Author: David Ellis

Don: Among the synoptic gospels, there are slight differences in the story in which Jesus rebuked money changers for plying their trade in the temple. For instance, John puts it near the end of Jesus’s ministry while the others put it near the beginning. To me, this and other minor discrepancies are unimportant; what is…

Don: We are discussing whether doctrine helps bring us closer to God. In the Gospels—which contain the teaching, the doctrine, of Jesus—doctrine centers around the two great Commandments to love God and to love one another. For Protestant Christians, doctrine grew out of the Reformation, when Martin Luther developed a view of salvation different from…

Don: Doctrine is derived primarily from Scripture. Jesus hinted at a potential danger with doctrine: “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;…” (John 5:39) Mankind so easily embraces doctrine as being the key to eternal life, but true doctrine is the teaching…

Don: What is the role of doctrine in worship? The word for doctrine is mentioned more than 50 times in the Old and New Testaments. The dictionary definition is: A belief or set of beliefs held and taught by a church, political party, or other group. Synonyms include: Creed, dogma, belief, teaching, and ideology. In…

Don: The reunification and reconciliation of Man and God is at the core of the acts and processes of worship. To seek God is to acknowledge that there is a space where He exists—a “God space”—that Man seeks, if not to occupy then at least to find the entryway thereto. One might argue that Man…

Jay: The Bible has much to say on the topic of God seeking Man and Man seeking God, and on God knowing Man and Man knowing God. For example: 
“For affliction does not come from the dust,
 Nor does trouble sprout from the ground, 
For man is born for trouble,
 As sparks fly upward. But…

Don: Technology strengthens, enables, and empowers us in many ways. It turns us into something we are not, or were not. It is as if it is turning us into gods ourselves, at least in a physical sense. Is this the driving force behind our addiction with technology? After the Fall, Man initiated the use…

Don: Today’s younger generations were born into a technological way of life. How do they see technology interfacing between Man and God, augmenting or assisting in a more meaningful worship experience, and as a way of strengthening and of sharing faith? Is the overall effect positive or negative? For today’s discussion, we will limit our…

Don: Every aspect of out world is affected by technology, including faith, hope, grace, and our understanding of God. The anthropomorphic view of God is as a vastly bigger and stronger and smarter version of us. Isaiah told us God is immeasurably more than anything we could imagine, but we still tend to think that…