Archives for 2014

Unleashed Cruelty Martin Luther King passionately wrote out of a jail cell in Birmingham some 50+ years ago now... “There was a time when the church was powerful.  It was during that period that the early Christians rejoiced when they were deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed.” A great statement, reaching for a clear answer.  Where was the power of the early church centered and for what could each member rejoice? Was the joy that could be counted, as all, an ambiguous or political joy from God deemed worthy for suffering?  King continues with his thought…"In those days the church … [Read more...] about Black and White Congregations: Duped by Another Gospel: Part I

I've been blogging for a long time, and slavery was never something on my radar when it came to topics to discuss. I'm not the Civil War's equivalent of a "Holocaust denier." The aspects of our regional past and our denominational history that touch upon slavery are the least flattering portions of our story, and I'd rather tell other parts of the story. What changed this for me? Why have I written a series of posts on the question of slavery? Was it Ferguson? Was it Eric Garner? No. It actually didn't have anything to do with race at all. I've been writing about slavery because of the … [Read more...] about Why the Slavery Question Is Important

Our modern world economy offers options to us that were not previously available (or widely available). Some of these developments make slavery less desirable than it once was (which is why passages like Exodus 21:5 are inscrutable to us). We quite naturally take these things for granted, but they make our present wage-labor system possible: Money: Minted coinage was not in use in the Levant until after the Babylonian Captivity. The use of precious metals as a medium of exchange dates back to sometime during the lifetime of Abraham. The first time anyone bought anything in the Bible by … [Read more...] about The Dawning of Emancipation

THE SBC AND RACIAL UNITY: DO FLOYD, MOORE AND LAND REPRESENT A SEA CHANGE? BY WILLIAM DWIGHT MCKISSIC, SR. Jesus taught His disciples to pray that God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven. The apostle John described a picture in heaven of every racial, ethnic, and language group praising God together in unity. If heaven is a picture of racial unity and tranquility, shouldn’t—at least among God’s kingdom citizens on earth—there should be a demonstration of racial unity and peace? The Psalmist said, “Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity” (Psalm … [Read more...] about SBC and Racial Unity: Do Floyd, Moore and Land Represent a Sea Change? (Wm Dwight McKissic, Sr)

Have you ever heard the expression "it has an 'air' about it"?  It can be a person, a place, a room, a company or a church.  There are some churches that just seem friendly or some that just seem full of grace, and some that just seem cold and distant.  We project a certain type of air and attitude with all we say and do.  What is your air? In this day and age in many cooperate places, they are working to change the mood of the company.  Looking at companies like Google and Yahoo, who lead the way in having a positive environment.  They get more accomplished, people are more creative and … [Read more...] about What’s Your Atmosphere?

I opened a group at Fox Sports "College Football Bowl Pick 'Em". Anyone who who wants to join is welcome to do so. There is a large cash prize for the winner. I will photo copy a $1 bill, blow it up to the size of an 11X17 sheet of paper and make it available. You must come to Sioux City to collect the prize. You have to pick the winner of each bowl game, plus I've made the league a "weighted" league - you have to choose which games you are most confident about and which you are least confident about. Point spread is not part of this. You just pick the winner in each game - by 1 point or … [Read more...] about Football Bowl “Pick ‘Em” (Play for Second Place, Behind Me!)

Eliezer of Damascus was the trusted slave of Abraham. He managed all of Abraham's worldly affairs. He was, until Ishmael and Isaac arrived, Abraham's heir-apparent. We have no reason to believe that he ever tasted the business end of a whip. We have no reason to believe that he was malnourished or ill-clothed or mistreated in any way. We have every reason to suspect that he partook in the prosperity of Abraham. I prefer my life to his. Freedom is of great benefit, and I desire for all to have it (1 Corinthians 7:21). Plaguing our conversation about slavery, however, is the ill-founded, … [Read more...] about I’d Rather Be Abraham’s Slave Eliezer Than…

Better yet, if Jesus walked into a bar would the people there be glad that he came? The popular notion of Jesus is that he’d walk into a bar and all the down and out sinners would greet him by name and give him a high-five. He’d be the most popular dude there—because you know sinners just couldn’t get enough of good ol’ JC. I’m being facetious—but only slightly. My portrait isn’t terribly far off. What we’ve done is taken the insults of Pharisees (Matthew 11:19) and constructed an entire portrait of Jesus as a response. But I’ve yet to see a portrait painted of Jesus dabbling in dark … [Read more...] about If Jesus Walked Into a Bar Would Everybody Know His Name?

Christian groups like the ERLC and the Kainos Movement are moving toward hosting discussions on racism in America and in the church in the 21st century, which is a good thing. But, if we are not careful, we will miss the deeper issues that animate the entire problem. I sought to explore those deeper issues in my book, When Heaven and Earth Collide: Racism, Southern Evangelicals, and the Better Way of Jesus (NewSouth Books, 2014). Because the manifestation of racism has changed from the separate water fountains and lunch counters and busses of the Jim Crow segregation era, many whites do not … [Read more...] about Racism Is A Symptom of a Deeper Issue That We Don’t Want to Address