Dave Miller

The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord; She is his new creation by water and the Word. From heaven he came and sought her to be his holy bride; With his own blood he bought her, and for her life he died. Would that it were so. There is only one true foundation for the church of Jesus Christ - Jesus Christ, the cornerstone. The Spirit of God brought Jews and Gentiles together in one Body, breaking down the social prejudices and barriers that held them apart in the culture at large. Slave and free partook of the same bread and wine, as did men and women in a culture that … [Read more...] about The Church’s Wrong Foundation.

I have really enjoyed my time as the editor of SBC Voices over the last 2 1/2 years. Blogging has been one of the best things that has ever happened to me. I get a little bit torqued when people take shots at blogging and bloggers because it has been such a great thing for me personally. I have been writing since I was a kid - I've got some handwritten stories in files that I would hate to have anyone see, but I have been writing since I can remember. Blogging gave me the one thing I had never had before, an audience. For the first time, a few people actually read what I wrote. That is an … [Read more...] about I’ve Got a Problem

This is a Christmas meditation from my archives. Enjoy.  Celebration of Christmas at the Miller house officially begun last night.  I put lights on our Christmas tree and the season has begun. I have two strong convictions about the Christmas tree. 1)  The Christmas tree must be real.  For some reason, people get offended when I say this, but "artificial trees are for artificial people."  Why would that offend?  I can't imagine.  But I want Fraser Fur needles dropping on the floor and the smell of pine throughout the house.  So what if it triggers allergies?  Sacrifices have to be … [Read more...] about Attaching Christmas to Its Roots

I was all fired up today about some stupid comments Rob Parker made on ESPN's First Take about Robert Griffin not being "black enough" for his tastes. Really torqued me. Then, I read that a man went into a Connecticut elementary school and killed at least 26 people, at least 18 of whom were children. Kinda puts stupid comments about sports into perspective, doesn't it? Obviously, twitter and Facebook have lit up on the topic - that is what social media are all about. We pronounce our outrage and grief. I do not intend to say much about the Connecticut tragedy - not today anyway. Coverage … [Read more...] about When Tragedy Falls…

William Thornton's recent article has certainly been a discussion starter, hasn't it? This is an article I wrote long ago (in blog years anyway) raising some questions about old-earth and theistic evolutionary viewpoints. I am reposting it here for a very simple reason: I don't have anything else to post and I don't have time to write something!  I made a few edits.  I am assuming here that this is a discussion between those who have the highest view of scripture, who believe that the Bible is God's Word to us without mixture of error and is our absolute guide and rule for all things. … [Read more...] about Some Questions for Old-Earthers and Theistic Evolutionists

In 1952, a New York pastor named Norman Vincent Peale penned a book that has influenced generations that followed, called, “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Many of his thoughts and ideas were picked up by Robert Schuller, who repackaged them as “Possibility Thinking,” and built a religious empire from them. These ideas, once seen as counter to the gospel, have now become mainstream, even in evangelical, supposedly Bible-believing Christianity. Christianity has been completely redefined, deemphasizing sin and lostness and separation from God and replacing it with a man-centered, … [Read more...] about The Power of Negative Thinking

There are so many sappy, stupid Christmas shows and movies made. The Hallmark channel has shallow and sentimental  Christmas shows 24/7 during the Christmas season. None are really worth the two hour time investment required. (I know, we recently visited family who watched such programs round the clock.) So, I thought I would engage a discussion of the greatest Christmas movies of all time. Obviously, opinions are going to vary on some of these, but there is to be no debate or question about number 1. Those who disagree with me on #1 will be referred to my good buddy St. Nick (we met at fat … [Read more...] about The Best Christmas Programs Ever: My Top-5

I'm in my Sunday School hour break - recuperating from the 8:30 service and readying for 11:00. I am between series right now (finished Proverbs and didn't want to start something new until after the holidays).  So, I preached a Christmas-themed sermon today. That means I will probably preach 4 Christmas sermons during this year - it's not easy to keep that many sermons fresh and free of sappy sentimentality. I have often said that the reason pastors move from church to church is that they run out of fresh ideas for Christmas. I was at my last church 14 Christmases, and this is my 8th … [Read more...] about Christmas Preaching: What Do You Do?

                          That's right, NOTHING! … [Read more...] about What’s Worse than an Alabama/Notre Dame BCS Championship Game?

I am a CP guy. My current church gives 12% to missions through the Cooperative Program and that is the smallest percentage of the 4 churches I have been involved in during my 31 years of ministry. A couple of my churches gave in the neighborhood of 20% and my last church was giving near 15% - I believe in the Cooperative Program! I think it is an amazing and genius idea that has enabled us to fund an unparalleled world missions program. I have fought against tendencies to fix our church's financial problems by cutting missions giving - that is the easy way out, and I am convinced, the wrong … [Read more...] about Are We Entering a Post-Cooperative Program Era in SBC Life?