Church Life | Blind Man's Fancy

Being Baptist (Part 2)

November 24, 2013 B.J. MaxwellChristian Life, Church Life

Part 1 suggested Baptist distinctives are vitally important but relatively few. Baptists share the essential convictions of historic Christian orthodoxy. Given a variety of confessions on a particular issue, one would be hard-pressed to sniff out the Baptist from among them. For example, take the following selections from three historic confessions of faith on the authority of Scripture: “Holy Scripture containeth all things necessary to salvation: so that whatsoever is not […]

Being Baptist (Part 1)

November 23, 2013November 23, 2013 B.J. MaxwellChristian Life, Church Life

A good friend was recently exploring school options for his daughter. He was drawn to a school which “embrace[s] and adopt[s] the essential truths of orthodox Christianity as articulated in the system of doctrine expressed in the creeds of the Protestant Reformation, including the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion and the Heidelberg Catechism.” He then asked if this contradicted anything he believed “as a Baptist.” The […]

Two Cents on Tithing (Part 3)

November 4, 2013November 5, 2013 B.J. MaxwellBiblical Meditations, Christian Life, Church Life

Is tithing (i.e. giving 10% of one’s income) biblically mandated for the Christian? Do texts like Malachi 3.10 prescribe the tithe as an ongoing requirement of God’s people in all places at all times? Parts 1 and 2 suggest the larger context of Malachi does not enforce a Christian tithe but prepares us for a curse-reversing Savior. Before offering specific principles about Christian giving we should consider the purpose of […]

The Bottom Line on Christian Tithing (Part 2)

November 3, 2013November 4, 2013 B.J. MaxwellBiblical Meditations, Christian Life, Church Life, Malachi

“Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor 9.7). Part 1 suggested Malachi 3.10 is about far more than instituting a Christian tithe. Rather it was part of Malachi’s whole message to an apostate Israel. Many preachers and churches lift Malachi 3.8-12 out of the context, overlay it on the church and impose […]

Whole Tithe or Whole Context? (Part 1)

November 2, 2013November 4, 2013 B.J. MaxwellBiblical Meditations, Christian Life, Church Life, Malachi

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows” (Mal 3.10). Malachi 3.10 is often the go-to text to jump start a church’s capital campaign or boost sluggish giving. When in […]

The Necessity of Baptism (Part 2)

September 22, 2013November 30, 2019 B.J. MaxwellBaptism, Church Life

Christian baptism is necessary for the Christian life. The New Testament regularly considers it in the same context of conversion (see Part 1). It’s the new birth certificate, the public record, that one has been born again. While the act of baptism does not technically save anyone, it is nonetheless part of what it means to be saved. The New Testament simply has no category for an unbaptized Christian. Baptism […]

The Necessity of Baptism (Part 1)

September 21, 2013November 30, 2019 B.J. Maxwell1 & 2 Corinthians, 1 & 2 Peter, Baptism, Biblical Meditations, Church Life, Colossians

“For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority; and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised […]

The Difficulty of Praying “Father, You”

September 7, 2013 B.J. MaxwellBiblical Meditations, Christian Life, Church Life, Matthew

I will never forget a life-altering lesson learned fifteen years ago from my New Testament professor at Southern Seminary (long live Mother Southern). Dr. Mark Seifrid began each class with prayer. But not just any prayer. It was prayer remarkably different from the rote, I-know-exactly-what-this-deacon-is-going-to-pray-before-the-offering sort of prayers. They were far different than the “bless the gift and the giver for the nourishment of our bodies” variety. Dr. Seifrid’s prayers […]

O Christ, Our Hope, Our Heart’s Desire

August 30, 2013August 30, 2013 B.J. MaxwellChurch Life, Hymns, Quotes of Interest

Hands down, my favorite hymn is O Christ, Our Hope, Our Heart’s Desire. Written in the 7-8th century in Latin, it was translated by John Chandler into English in 1837. There are two different tunes, one arranged by Handel in 1751 (Bradford) and another by George Greatorex in 1851 (Manoah). I’m familiar with the latter because it’s far easier to sing in my opinion. Robust theology jam-packed into a simple, […]

Avoiding Poimacide (Part 3)

August 28, 2013August 28, 2013 B.J. MaxwellChristian Life, Church Life, Pastoral Ministry

How can we reduce the “poimacide” rate (read Part 1) in modern church life? In Avoiding Poimacide (Part 2) I suggested two areas churches must seriously and urgently consider to do so. In this installment I offer three more. 3. Markeplace mentality. The church-at-large must confess and repent from a systemic addiction to a marketplace mentality. Instead of a community of other-Kingdom exiles, the church has become a business or brand […]