Vicki and I have had many, many conversations with one another—and with many of you—about the condition of churches worldwide. We aren’t speaking for all Christians or all the Churches of Christ, but instead focusing on the 100,000-odd members in our wing of the Restoration Movement.
We’ve decided (with your encouragement) to address some scriptures that have consistently been used in some unhealthy ways. Our hope is to:
Rethink familiar passages- Encourage the disillusioned, those hoping to learn more Bible, and all who deep down truly want to be called higher
- Suggest alternatives for those seeking change
- Answer your questions (even as we seek answers to our own)
For the introduction to the series, click below.
1. Why "Conversations"?
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Next time we will reflect on the past 20 years of our churches (what’s changed, what hasn’t, where is this all leading), and in the following weeks we’ll begin reexamining the scriptures, beginning with Matthew 18:15-17.
To learn more about Douglas & Vicki, you may want to check out their series Grace & Ungrace (esp. talks 2 and 3). Here they share openly about their first few decades as Christians.
2. An Honest Look at the Church – the past 20 years
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Background documents (written shortly before and after the collapse of 2003):
- Statistics & Church Growth (2000)
- Church Polity (2002)
- Sisters on Staff (2002)
- Forceful Men (2003)
- Driven Men (2005)
- Unity on Three Levels (2005)
3. Matthew 18 (forthcoming)
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