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Showing posts from 2014

Embracing the Tension of Being in the Middle By Terry Pruitt

When I claim to be a moderate, may I never do so as an act of cowardice where I refuse to take a risk.  I desire to be open minded like a true liberal.  When I claim to be a moderate, may I never do so as an act of cowardice where I refuse to take a stand on the truth.  I desire to be respectful of the wisdom of the past like a true conservative. When I claim to be a moderate,  I never want avoid the hard, painful intellectual rigor of grappling with the truth. I desire to read, listen, and study broadly like a true liberal.  When I claim to be a moderate, I never want to consider myself better than others by the false thought that I have somehow risen above the debate to a higher plane. I desire to bring the self awareness that I indeed have a world-view that I implicitly believe when weighing all others like a true conservative.  When I claim to be a moderate, may I never do so as an act of distancing myself from my sisters and brothers in the faith, nor distancing myself from

Baptism for the Dead

The idea for "baptism for the dead" from 1 Corinthians 15:29 is probably a lot simpler than we make it out to be. First we should recognize that there was a variety of reasons someone would perform a ceremonial washing besides Christian baptism. Hebrews tells us that there were a lot of ceremonies in the Old Testament that used washings. It says, "According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, but deal only with food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until the time of reformation." (Heb 9:9b-10 ESV) We often just think of Christian baptism as the only washing, but there were other washings as well. That brings us to the second fact for consideration. If someone was to touch a body in the process of caring for a person, or burial of a person, a washing was required afterwards. Numbers 11 tells us, "Whoever touches the dead body of any person

I Asked The Lord - Indelible Grace

This song is so sad but reflects the sadness of real spiritual walk. It is not the triumphant song a muscular Christianity but reflects how real spiritual walk really feels. May my spiritual walk be genuine and not a show of human strength.

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T erry P ruitt Pastoral Candidate Pastor ▪ Associate Pastor ▪ Assistant Pastor With Emphasis on Shepherding, Discipleship, Missions or Evangelism. Life-long commitment to studying the Word of God and preaching in a manner that helps the message find a home in the hearts of the congregation. Willingly share my life with transparency and invest in people of all ages and backgrounds by spending time with them and praying with and for the people. Remain a student of worship and help lead the people to approach God through Word and Sacrament. Known as a Christ-centered preacher, shepherd of the flock, and partner in service. Education Masters of Divinity (MDiv), 2013 Capital Bible Seminary Completed internship with Chesapeake Presbytery Bachelors of Science – Humanities, 1992 emphasis in Arabic Language, Philosophy & Religion University of New York: Regents College Ministry Path Grace Point Presbyterian Church – Severn, MD     

Illumination of the Scripture

             The illumination of Scripture is a theological phrase that is used to describe how the Holy Spirit helps someone reading the Bible.   This theological usage of the terminology is not always common to the average Christian in the pew.   Clark H. Pinnock says theological works usually mention the phrase but do not give an extensive development of the theology. [1]   This paper will attempt to develop the concepts of the doctrine by discussing various views of the illumination of Scripture, followed by exegesis of a key Scripture passage, 1 Cor 2:14.   Then three specific theologians' views on illumination will be examined: Augustine of Hippo, John Calvin and John Owen.   The position taken in this paper is that the illumination of Scripture is the Holy Spirit empowering the church to embrace and apply the Bible.                Communication theory says that there are four parts to communication: the sender, the receiver, the message and the medium.   There are