MDiv.

Daniel 5-8/Matthew 13+14/Acts 27+28 

            Following Jesus and the Bible is as counter cultural as Beatniks,  Hippies, and Punks. The conservative, conformist, clean-cut Christianity offered to us by the church, not the Bible, doesn't mirror the life of Christ or the Old Testament Prophets. Jesus was a well-respected weirdo. The Prophets were crazy. Nobody outside of the prompting of the Holy Spirit would look at them and want to emulate them.

            Exile, imprisonment, embarrassment, shipwrecks, lion’s dens, death by sword, robbers, ambushes, mud-filled cisterns, days without food, no friends, betrayal, snake bites, riots, floggings, beatings, baskets over city walls, marrying hookers, buying them back, burying spouses, unresponsive kings, indignant crowds, shitty reputations—There is no seminary class for this. 

Spreading the Word Spirit Style

Ecclesiastes 11+12/Acts 18

As a church we need the Holy Spirit so we know when to say what. He gives us that discerning power and what words to use. Paul wanted to go preach at some places and the Spirit shot him down. God wanted Paul elsewhere. Not every encounter with somebody needs to be a raucous attempt to convert. Everything we do needs to point to Jesus. Every time we go into a situation we should be prepared to give a testimony about what Jesus has done, is doing, and will do.

But first and foremost we need to obey God and His promptings. If we just wantonly try to convince people without the Spirit then we are salesmen trying to fill a quota. When we are so enamored with God’s love for us, we must share it and become His witnesses. There is a subtle, yet stark difference.