Someone has observed that the first generation of any movement is usually radically transformed. The 2nd and 3rd generations are grateful – they live the transformation indirectly, enjoy its fruit, and then sadly drift back into complacency. The 4th generation is often clueless. Rejecting the faith of their fathers – they go back to the…
DetailsAt Pentecost, at Antioch, and in the modern era, at Azusa Street, we witnessed God’s desire to give birth to a new race of men not seen in history and only possible in Christ – the ‘chosen’ (eklektos) race – select, favored, and choice. Is such a thing possible? Have we missed a critical clue…
DetailsIn 100 AD, 70 years after the resurrection, 30 years after the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple – there were only 20-25,000 believers. For every living believer, an estimated one-to-two others had been martyred under Nero or Domitian. All the original twelve apostles were dead, as were Paul, Timothy and Titus, John Mark and…
DetailsOver the next several weeks, my blog will include excerpts from a message that I delivered at the 25th Anniversary Gathering of the PCCNA, in Memphis, in March 2019. I believe the church of the future will be, and must be, a glorious intertwining of Messianic roots, liturgical rhythms, evangelical expediency, and Pentecostal empowerment Messianic…
DetailsIn honor of Mother’s Day, this blog post reflects on the importance of not just praying for your children, but with your children as well. Parents who love the Lord openly create an infectious environment. Kids ‘catch’ the faith. Intentional teaching is essential, but it is the incidental inculcation of values that is even more…
DetailsRecapture the generation that checked out of church. 1. Create opportunities for intergenerational mentoring. Intergenerational connections are vital to a healthy, apostolic church. “The old dream and the young see visions!” 2. Be authentic, without dismissing the importance of credible Christian models. 3. Be a compassionate community – expressing the love of Christ outside the…
DetailsFor the Millennials, the simplest solution to the tension is to disconnect from the church that they perceive to be inauthentic and irrelevant, and quietly hold on to faith, privately sorting out what they believe. To a great extent, we have sent them searching in the wrong place. It is not that beliefs, doctrine, denominational…
DetailsOn the day of the resurrection, two unnamed disciples were on the road to Emmaus, walking away from Jerusalem. Some suggest that this was the brother of Joseph, Clopas, the uncle of Jesus, and his wife. What a poignant idea! They had been in the city during the ghastly hours of the crucifixion. They had…
DetailsThe problem with holding and reaching Millennials is not all on the shoulders of the church. They may be the most self-contradictory generation to have existed. They are “extraordinarily relational and, at the same time, remarkably self-centered.” Kinnaman characterizes them as, “We want to change the world! Look at me! Let’s make a difference together!…
DetailsLet me introduce you to the Millennial. Millennials are those who are born between 1984 and 2000. They are the largest generation in history, more than 78 million strong. Millennials disconnect from the church at the rate of 59 percent around the age of 15. Teens are one of the most religiously active groups in…
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