I remember Rick Warren asserting that Jesus preached topical sermons. If learning what I have learned about midrash, I disagree with Warren.

But whether Jesus (or the writer to the Hebrews, for example) was doing exposition or not, it seems as though expository preaching is not longer considered a sign of a good church — at least not in the popular evangelical mind.

Will it survive at all? Will it survive as a secondary form of preaching?

Please don’t get caught up on the word “resolution.”: We do not mean a vow or promise, and we are not “trusting in the flesh” by using the term. Think, instead, of a specific practice, habit, or goal you are going to aim toward.

Unfortunately, these polls are not set up for more than one answer, so, if you can, make the choice that will get a special emphasis this year.

There seems to be a growing viewpoint that Christ could have been born on December 25. Offhand, any day would have a one out of 365.25 chance of being correct, but is there enough evidence to suggest December 25 has more going for it than other days of the year, as per this article:

https://www.circeinstitute.org/blog/december-25th-day-christ-was-born-8-arguments

So what do you think?

Poll Results

Beth Moore (and John MacArthur’s comments) have sparked a controversy, reminding us of a great controbersy: the role of women in the church.

Most of us on SI have a problem with women serving as (teaching men) pastors, based upon ! I Timothy 2:11-15 and other passages.

But where would we draw the line as far as participation (separation) goes?

By pastor, I mean a pastor who teaches men. The choices do not allow me enough room to add deatils like “pastors who teach men.” But that is the assumption of the choices.

A recent SI post got me thinking about this, and the effect of Puritan writers in my own devotional life. I am not an avid Puritan reader, but an occasional one. On the positive side, their quest and hunger for godliness inspires me. On the negative, they tend to “pound,” and I am the type of person who finds pounding counterproductive. But, despite the negative, I can appreciate the positive.

What about you? Have the Puritan greats (or unknowns) inspired or challenged you?

If I were to choose my favorite, it would probably be the less-known Thomas Watson.

According to an article in Chrsitianity Today, both Glenn Stanton’s The Myth of the Dying Church: How Christianity is Actually Thriving in America and the World and Rick Richardson’s You Found Me: New Research on How Unchurched Nones, Millennials, and Irreligious are Surprisingly Open to Christian Faith document how the evangelical church is growing or at least holding its own in the U.S.

John Dickerson, in The Great Evangelical Recession says the opposite, that people — especially young adults and single moms — are ditching the church in droves.

A recent SI filings article documented that most churches still use hymnals. Tyler has begun a series of articles about Christian Music (CCM, etc.). So now is probably a good time to take this poll.

Our church still uses hymnals, but we often project the hymns as well as our contemporary choruses (we do blended). Some people use the hymnals, others just look at the screen. Sometimes we have a blip, and we all use the hymnals.

I have known a number of men serving as pastors who have been divorced and remarried. In one instance, for example, a man was married to a woman who became a lesbian. In another instance, it was a more traditional issue with a wife leaving her husband for another man.

In your understanding of Scripture (passages like I Timothy 3 or Titus 1, etc.), can a divorced man serve as a pastor in some instances?

This is not the same issue (although to some it may be) as to whether he can be an elder, deacon, trustee, or Sunday School teacher, for example. We are talking pastor.

We have seen some excellent articles posted on SI about our president and the pros and cons he brings.

What are your actual plans?

Please indicate the closest choice.

Some friends told me last election, “I didn’t vote for Trump, really; I voted ‘no Hillary.’” That would translate to voting for Trump.

So please approximate the closest answer if no answer fits perfectly.

Poll Results

Do you anticipate voting for Donald Trump in 2020?

Depression is a problem I think every person faces, at times. Jesus, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief was depressed, even bemoaning that He had no place to lay his head.

But there are different levels of depression that people experience. It doesn’t matter if you are a pastor or layman, depression is an issue.