Cross Point Blog
Everyday theology and useful resources; relevant to our church, our city and current culture.
Latest Posts
Welcome Others: The Book of Romans As A Basis For Hospitality
One of the general undercurrents of the New Testament is Jew and Gentile relations, who were strangers in one another’s eyes. Which is why Romans is the first letter after the Gospels and Acts because it lays out a comprehensive understanding of why hospitality was, and is, a key ingredient in the mission of God. And it’s why Paul can look at Romans, Christians, Jew and Gentile, and say, “welcome others, as God in Christ, has welcomed you” (15:7).
Welcome Others: What is Hospitality and Why Does it Matter?
For the next few weeks on the blog we are going to be exploring the topic of Hospitality from a biblical perspective. Both globally and locally, there is a desperate need for a fresh obedience to this often neglected biblical command. Could it be that many of the ills that plague us today could be greatly muted if the people of God could hear with fresh ears Paul’s exhortation to the early Romans? He says, “Welcome others, just as God, in Christ, has welcomed you” (Romans 15:7).
Spotlight
Holy Week: Palm Sunday
As a church we have been journeying through the book of Mark for the last 40 days of this Lent season. With Easter around the corner, we would like to spend Holy Week reading and rereading the significant moments of Jesus’ last week in the gospel of Mark.
Generosity
As you read the words of Jesus, you find that there is a consistent theme to His teachings: the heart. Every commandment sinks beneath the surface of action to motivation. Matthew 6:24 falls right in the middle of Jesus’ most famous sermon, the sermon on the mount. A few verses before, Jesus wraps up the heart behind the spiritual disciplines and moves into our relationship with money. Verse 21 says, “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Is that true of your life? It’s true of mine.
Dad, Easy and the Blessing of Zion
The family is “society in miniature” and as one author states, is the place where “we first and most deeply learn how to love and be loved, hate and be hated, help and be helped, abuse and be abused.” In a world fraught with sin and its effects, experiencing unity in the family is not a given. And as critical as the family is to the strength of communities, it is not the most important institution of society. The blessing of familial unity bleeds into a greater blessing, one that transcends flesh and blood, time and space, earth and Heaven.
Beauty Amongst Poverty
It’s not always the easiest to see,
But when you look, it becomes clear
That beauty lives amongst dirty air.
Spiritual Disciplines
When considering the practice of spiritual disciplines, especially when life feels busy, it can seem like God just wants to add more to our plate. Why? Because He knows something we’ll never fully understand on this side of life: spiritual disciplines aren’t just a means to an end, they’re the path toward Jesus, who is the very sustainer of our breath. We need Jesus like we need to breathe, and these disciplines are the spiritual equivalent of taking a big gulp of the freshest air we could imagine.