Every Member Ministry and Simple Church

Is Christianity really as intellectually driven as some of us seem to think? Sermons are lectures. Bible studies, book groups, and theology discussions take on an outsized role in the life of the church. We have difficulty talking to people who don’t know our jargon. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller discuss how we can push back against an overly intellectual approach to the faith and embrace a holistic church ministry and spiritual life.

Many churches preach that your biggest problem is that you’re not living your best life now. Rather than calling people to repentance, they call them to “try harder, do better” so that they can be fulfilled, healthy, and happy. Reformed theology provides a doctrine to help counter this wrong diagnosis of our true problem: total depravity. But sometimes, this doctrine sounds much more like “utter depravity,” leaving nothing good or redeemable about humanity. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller consider how we hold total depravity in tension with the goodness of humanity.

Do Reformational people read their Bibles? Do they have daily “quiet times”? Is it important for them to pray every day? Sometimes we can give people the sense that all God really cares about is public worship, but what happens in our public assembly should flow down into our families and then into our individual spiritual lives as well. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller discuss the role private piety plays in our Christian life, considering how we can reclaim spiritual disciplines for our churches.

It was a brisk November evening in 2022. Winter’s chill had settled in, wrapping the world in clouds that promised a cold night ahead. But the air was filled with the laughter of children clutching bright plastic shovels, their excitement lighting up the gathering.

In a recent church small group, in which I was the youngest participant by several decades, I witnessed a surprising display of emotion. Older women—saints in the church who have nurtured and fed me literally and spiritually—tearfully sharing painful memories from their middle school years.

When orthodoxy is quietly displaced, institutions may continue to function administratively, yet they no longer recognize their purpose. They become like cathedrals built without load-bearing walls: they may stand for a time, but their structural integrity is already compromised.

In 2022, Ligonier and Lifeway published “The State of Theology,” where Evangelicals were surveyed about various theological claims. The results were startling to say the least. For example, 55% of surveyed Evangelicals agreed that “Jesus is the first and greatest being created by God.” […]