Category: Church and Ecclesiology
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Nosocomial Infections
“Look at that!” I said. “Look at what?” My wife asked, as we sped along the rural road. “You missed it,” I said. “But someone ran into the fence around that body shop back there. He knocked down part of the fence and really crumpled up his hood.” “Oh,” Elaine said, not particularly interested. “I…
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Kingdom Womanhood: Making Home and Haven Part 1
What was lost at creation was a place and a space of abundance, perfect communion, and glory. Adam and Eve were one with each other and one in God’s presence. As disciples saved from the power of Satan, we are brought once again in God’s place and space: the New Creation. It is even MORE…
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Discipleship as Theology? Introducing the Kingdom Outpost Study Series #1
The Kingdom of God is the central proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ, and it stands in contrast with the fallen ways of darkness, sin, and oppression in the world’s empires. The Kingdom of God is more than a worldview, because it is a ontology (way of being), not just an epistemology (way…
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Political Faultlines: A New Fracturing of Conservative Anabaptism
Anabaptism has long existed on a spectrum. Presently, groups as culturally distinct as the Old Order Amish and as theologically and socially liberal as the Mennonite Church in the Netherlands all consider themselves to be under the umbrella of Anabaptism. In this article we will limit ourselves to America, and to the center-right of this…
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The Temptation of Bibliolatry
I often read the Bible with an air of arrogance. Sometimes I elevate myself above the foolish Israelites who, even after seeing God part the red sea or deliver them from empire, still choose to rebel against this omnipotent and benevolent God. At other times I am appalled at the Ancient Near East’s barbaric practices…
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More with Less: The Politics of Jesus in Everyday Living
The question we need to ask is, are we operating by the world’s definition of “politics” and Kingdomhood, or Jesus’s? What did He do that was political, that threatened Herod, Pilate and Caesar? The Kingdom of God is not merely to be proclaimed, it is to be lived. Our lives, our communities, our social interactions,…
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The Temptation of Power
“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” –Lord Acton Yes, sooner or later – later, if he is strong or well meaning to begin with – but neither strength nor good purpose will last – sooner or later the Dark Power will devour him.” — J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring The…
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(Book Review) Bonhoeffer’s “Cost of Discipleship” and the Deconstructing Church
I shall never forget the first impression my twelve-year-old self had of a yellowed, tattered paperback copy of Bonhoeffer’s well-known Cost of Discipleship. We were in the Bible school library, and when I flipped the book open and my eye fell on the first place I felt immediately that here in this book was something…
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(Video) Christians and Critical Race Theory: Debunking Myths with Dr. Drew G. I. Hart
Does Critical Race Theory conflict with the gospel? Is it divisive and harmful to the church? What is its relationship to Marxist theory? Where does Critical Race Theory come from and what is it used for? Dr. Drew G. I. Hart is a prolific author on Anabaptism and racial justice. Today, he joins us on…
The Kingdom Outpost 