I was 28 when I became the pastor of Highland Village First Baptist Church (now known as The Village Church). I had had a rough go early on in my church experience, and at that time I was not fully out of my “disenchanted with the local church” phase.

In all honesty, I wasn’t sure at the time that church membership was biblical. Despite that, the Spirit had made it all too clear that I was going to be pastoring this small church in the suburbs of Dallas. That was one of the many ironies of my life in those days.

Read the rest here

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Last week my awesome intern Matt, went with some students to see the movie Son of God. Here’s his helpful review of the movie. As well as some great discussion questions you can use with families, friends or small groups. You can read more great stuff by Matt at his blog http://receivedhome.wordpress.com ]

My Review of Son of God

                In a sentence, the basic synopsis of Son of God is the Apostle John recounting the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus while exiled on the island of Patmos.  The movie covers many of the stories from the Gospel of John, though few of them are in their entirety and the order of events is somewhat changed.  In order to cut the Book of John down to fit in a two-and-a-half-hour movie, though, it’s understandable that one would have to edit a lot of the material.

I’ll start out with the things I liked about the movie.  My favorite scene was probably the one where the teacher of the law asked Jesus about whether or not they should pay taxes to Caesar.  It was very clear that the Jews wanted Jesus to say no and that the question was a trap.  The portrayal of the scene as a whole was well done, establishing the tension and Jesus’ ability to answer and bring the focus back to God.  I thought the way the crucifixion and resurrection were done was handled well.  I liked how the movie showed the faith and doubts of the disciples.  The disciples weren’t perfect, nor were they idiots.  They were realistic and relatable, questioning the logic of what Jesus or the Pharisees would say, discussing events among themselves, and encouraging one another.  I could see myself thinking, saying, and doing the same things as they did in the movie.  This is significant because we are Jesus’ disciples and can go through many of the same things they went through 2000 years ago.

While there was plenty that I liked about the movie, some scenes honestly made me cringe.  Usually, it wasn’t even because of an inaccuracy (of which there were a few), but because of the way a scene was portrayed.  One such instance was when Jesus says that not one stone of the Temple will be left unturned (which He says to one of His disciples in Mark 13), He is saying it with a huge, happy-go-lucky smile to a little girl who laughs when He says it.  That and several other scenes made me concerned that they would not be taken seriously by the audience, especially non-Christians.  Also, the actor who played Jesus in the movie seemed to struggle with showing emotions.  He didn’t even cry when Lazarus died, though a small attempt was made to do so after Lazarus was raised from the dead (also, Lazarus’ eyes opening up at the same time as Jesus’—a little creepy).  He was almost robotic in the way he turned over the money changers’ tables.  There were also a couple times when Jesus seemed surprised that something happened or was about to happen.

I think a couple of things would have improved this movie.  First, an explanation of how Mary Magdalene came to follow Jesus would have been helpful.  Second, I believe John 20:30-31 should have been referenced at some point in the movie (perhaps it was and I just missed it).  Lastly, Luke’s account of what happened after Jesus read from the scroll of Isaiah should have been in the movie (Luke 4:16-30).  I just think that would have been an amazing scene.

Discussion Questions for the Movie:

What was your favorite scene?  What was your least favorite?  Why?

How did this movie show Jesus was the Son of God?

Could you relate to any of the disciples?  Which ones?  When?  How or why not?

Has this movie allowed you to see the Bible in a new way?

[Guest post by Dan Music] 

How many of us are afraid of the dark?

As a child, I was.

I made the mistake of telling my dad I was afraid of the closet because it was so dark. And that evening he hid in it and tried to scare me. After that I realized that I wasn’t so much afraid of the dark but more afraid of what was in the dark that I couldn’t see.

The dark bares uncertainty. Without light to guide the way, we are susceptible to being hurt, scared, unsure, and lost.  But in John 1:5, we read that the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. Darkness can’t linger where there is light. Light does not allow any room for darkness.

Have you ever built or made something in complete darkness?

It would probably not work. Or it would look a lot different than what you planned in your head. Have you ever looked for a light switch in the dark. I usually trip over a dozen things before I find it–if I find it.

But God created the earth in complete darkness. Geneses 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. It wasn’t till the third verse that God said let there be light and there was light. The light wasn’t for God. He is just fine without it. The light was for us.

How many of us are carrying the darkness with us inside? To the point that we’re lost?

God created physical light so we could see in the dark. But He also sent His Son, so we could see the spiritual light.  All of us need light, both physical and spiritual.

I’ve heard people say “just step into the light”, but really it’s a matter of letting the light in– it will do the rest. When you let light in, your job is done. Because, darkness has no power over light.

When the weather is like this:

I can’t help but think of passages like this:

“Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again.

C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe