LEGATO...

Between the Dallas shootings, the Hillary mess, and so much more, I've been thinking about the relationship of the Church in America to the moral decay and lawlessness in our society. Now, if you think about it, most culture-minded Christians assume that our national problems are largely a byproduct of the failure of churches to "transform" their surrounding culture. They are absentee in their cultural mandate. Having written a great deal on the cultural mandate, I see that  connectivity as well. However, I want to suggest that the real problem is not "with" the church and its cultural program. The problem is instead "within" the Church. Let me explain this nuance. When Paul, for example, says in 2 Tim. 3:1-4 that "in the last days difficult times will come", then gives his long list of difficulties, it is natural to think he is decrying the state of affairs in the culture. But read vs 5. The treacherous people Paul is talking abo...

In May of 2014, I was blessed to travel to the DRC. Bukava, Congo is situated on the south end of Lake Kivu and provides a splendid setting for Bible classes. Much more than this, however, the conference with about 70 pastors and area leaders sparked overwhelming interest in core biblical doctrines that many of us take for granted. The response to that conference was so overwhelming that, as I shared in my last newsletter, the pastors at the conference rather insisted on a Bible College in Bukavu. Since then, I have been praying about the start of a Bible College in the DRC, one very similar to Covenant College of Theological Studies and Leadership in Kenya, which I helped to start.  After a very serious setback with my low back in 2014 that eventually required surgery, I was finally able to make plans to return to conduct what I call a "test" or pilot class to ascertain the educational abilities of the men who might form the nascent first class of the new...