Dave Miller

Doctrinal debate is a tricky thing. We are called to walk in unity with one another, to honor one another as brothers in Christ and to edify the Body. But the very act of asserting doctrinal truth demands that one call another wrong. I cannot hold to one truth without denying another. Yet, the common response on blogs to being confronted doctrinally is to yelp like a whipped puppy.  "How could you say that about me?"  "Are you calling me a heretic?"  "How dare you?" Instead of responding with biblical or theological content, the preferred response seems to be to define oneself as a … [Read more...] about My Brother, You Are Wrong!

Short paragraph - a brief summary. Tell us about your sermon today. I'm always interested to hear what other guys are preaching on. … [Read more...] about What’s Your Sermon Today?

When I was a young whippersnapper like many of you here, I disdained some older pastors who stood somewhat aloof from their congregations. I determined to be myself, to be vulnerable, to be "real" with my congregation. I had my closest friends within the congregation. I refused to be called anything but Dave, rejecting any honorific titles. But as time went on, I began to notice something. This may come as a bit of shock to some of you, but I am not perfect. No, really, I'm not kidding. I have flaws. And what I found is that a lot of people in my churches had trouble dealing with seeing … [Read more...] about A Voices Forum: Should a Pastor Have Close Friends in His Church?

It was so predictable. David Rogers posted some comments here from DA Carson about the dangers of angry Christians being involved in politics. Dr. Carson, not a left-winger by any reasonable standard, was simply saying that when we engage in anger on politics, we undermine evangelism - our ultimate goal. Here was Carson's money quote. But at the end of the day, if you can’t do it with compassion, and gently, and leave the doors open for evangelism, boy, you destroy everything. I think one of the devil’s tactics with respect to the church on the Right today is to make them so hate everybody … [Read more...] about Angry or Compromised? Shrill or Silent? Seeking Middle Ground in Christian Social Engagement

I have an ugly secret to admit. I used to be a cessationist. Don't judge me. Back then, many (perhaps most) Baptists were cessationists. I couldn't help it. I was born that way! I was a cessationist because that is what I wanted to be. I found charismatics weird and annoying and I wanted the Bible to prove they were all wet. Plus, the school I attended taught cessationism as settled doctrine.  And that was fine with me.  I accepted cessationism by faith without needing evidence. Then, I began to read and study the Bible and I found out an uncomfortable truth. The Bible does not support … [Read more...] about God Told Me that the Bible Does NOT Teach Cessationism

1) A team that everyone is predicting will be bad will surprise veeryone and turn out to be very good. 2)  A team that everyone is predicting will  be good will fail miserably and everyone will wonder what happened. It will probably be the Cowboys. 3) Football coaches will be interviewed and will always say the word football in front of everything. "We played a great football game today, because we are a great football team. Smith is a great football player who really helps this football team play a great football game." This is likely because of the large number of head injuries … [Read more...] about 12 Can’t-Miss NFL Predictions for 2012

I am afraid that sometimes we fail to preach the full story of the gospel. We focus on Christ's death for sin (as we should) but we sometimes neglect the primary emphasis of gospel presentations in the Book of Acts - the victorious resurrection of Jesus Christ and his exaltation as Lord of all!  We need to proclaim both the substitutionary death and the glorious resurrection of Christ. Here is a message I preached August 19, 2012 at Southern Hills Baptist Church, if anyone is interested. A couple of things: 1) The video and audio get crossways about halfway through the sermon, so the … [Read more...] about Preaching the FULL Gospel in a Baptist Church!

I feel so much like Michael Corleone right now.  I want to ignore the Calvinism wars. I want to talk about something else. I want to move on the things that I think are more important that are being ignored in our obsession with promoting or assailing Calvinism.  But, as soon as I make a commitment, then: Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in! Alan Cross wrote a powerful article at his site, Downshore Drift, called, "Does Al Mohler Need to Repent of Promoting Calvinism?"  In that article, he calls on Dr. Mohler to change his ways, asking him to tone down the rhetoric … [Read more...] about A Plea to Mohler, Nettles and the Founders

It is no secret that I am weary of the incessant and petty bickering about Calvinism that has marked so much of the SBC's discussion, and has been the driving force on blogs. Frankly, that is all that some people want to talk about. But maybe that is only because that is all we've given them to talk about. We have a big God and a big Bible and there are lots of interesting topics to write about. Ecclesiology. Ministry strategies. Missions. Engaging culture. There are a lot of things that we could talk about that are more important than the kerfuffle that has marked us.  Honestly, I never … [Read more...] about I Need Your Help – Contributions Needed (Articles, not Money!)

Some years ago, I was invited to speak at a statewide conference for pastors of mission churches. Northbrook Baptist in Cedar Rapids nearly quadrupled in size within a few years, so I was asked to share what we had done that others could do to grow as we had.  I was to share the methods and strategies we employed so that Iowa mission pastors could see what was working and imitate it at their churches. Such a Baptist thing to do, right? I found the entire premise of the conference somewhat silly – whatever was happening at Northbrook was a unique work of God that could not and should not be … [Read more...] about Failing in the Center of God’s Will