Jason Locke's Blog

I'm writing from Atlanta, host to this year's National Campus Ministries Seminar. It's been an enjoyable couple of days -- especially the rain that's falling. This is the 53rd annual seminar. I've been on the planning committee for several years. Though I have enjoyed the stimulation of working with other campus-minded people, I anticipate stepping off the board at the end of the seminar. Since I'm no longer in full-time campus ministry, I'd prefer to make space for some of our young, talented campus workers.

Everyone is talking about The Shack , but I'd like to introduce a different book that you might enjoy reading. This one is a Pulitzer Prize winner. Marilynne Robinson's Gilead is about a 4th-generation preacher in the Midwest who is quickly approaching the end of his life. The preacher, John Ames, begins to pen a series of letters to his 6-year-old son. Ames is fearful that his only child will never know him and will only recall a feeble, old 76-year-old dad who couldn't play ball with him. Through Ames' letters, we see the passionate faith and rigorous commitment of a man who has devoted his life to the Lord's service and to his church in a small Iowa town. He is a devoted scholar, carefully writing and saving every sermon manuscript. At one point, he notes that he has written as many words as the great Augustine of Hippo. I couldn't help but pick up on the self-sufficiency and piety of Ames, just like many Midwesterners and Protestants alike. Even as a dying...

A quick personal post. We are settling into the new house little by little. Julie is the primary unpacker. You can follow most of house progress on her blog (link below). It's going to be a while before we feel like we're at home. My biggest success of the weekend was assembling our new grill. It's a beauty and solid as can be. Too bad I didn't assemble it where we eventually want it! Oh well. More tomorrow...

In a recent blog entry by Dan Kimball, he pointed to Tom Wright's July 15 editorial in the Times of London. Tom (or N.T. as he is known by many readers) is an Anglican bishop and one of the most widely read authors of Christian books today. He's not a pop-Christian author. His stuff is deep and based on serious scholarship. As an Anglican, he is intimately aware of the turmoil in the American Episcopalian Church, an official branch of the Church of England. Interestingly, he is referencing decisions made here locally in our neck of the woods. His editorial appeared in the Times online, and I am posting it below for you to peruse. His words are not politically correct and in opposition to mainstream media and culture. I think you will find his comments insightful and biblical. Blessings! jason _____________________________________ The Americans know this will end in schism Support by US Episcopalians for homosexual clergy is contrary to Anglican faith and tradition. They are le...

One well known voice in Churches of Christ -- who is less well known today than 10 years ago -- once talked about believers baptism as the "front-door entrance" into the Kingdom of God. He compared the Kingdom to a great ball and baptism to the festive entryway where guests are announced as they enter the ballroom. This, he proposed, is how God conceives of entrance into his glorious Kingdom. He went on to say, however, that we would be wrong to assume that believers cannot enter through side doors. There are ways of entry (the side doors), he went on to say, that are less glamorous and less rewarding, but that nonetheless gain them entrance to the ball. Those who enter in this manner are still in the Kingdom. We know this by the fruit of the Spirit's presence in their lives and by their discipleship to the risen Lord. What this group of side-door entrants has missed is not eternal life but rather the power of a meaningful transition. What is missing is not salvation but ...

The following editorial appeared in the July 12, 2009, edition of The Observer, a Sunday paper that is a sister to The Guardian, one of Britain's most respected papers. (You may notice the British spelling of words like "practising" rather than the American "practicing.") Former president Jimmy Carter wrote this piece to explain his decision to sever ties with the Southern Baptist Convention. It is all the rage in the blogosphere. Not to be outdone, I am posting it here to see what you think. Blessings! The words of God do not justify cruelty to women Discrimination and abuse wrongly backed by doctrine are damaging society, argues the former US president "Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion , political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status ..." (Article 2, Universal Declaration of Human Ri...

I'm not yet done with my comments on baptism. Hopefully, you're not tired of this or done with your comments either. Some of your insights are probably far more profound than mine. I find this discussion fascinating for at least two reasons: (1) believers baptism is a key characteristic of our heritage in Churches of Christ; (2) believers baptism is experiencing a revival of sorts in the broader Christian world today just as it is waning in some of our churches. I hope to talk about #2 in a couple days. But now for #1. I'm not proud of the way we have at times made baptism a heaven or hell issue. Now hold on before you leap ahead of me & think I am dismissing baptism! What I'm not proud of is this: in Churches of Christ, we reduced baptism to bar-code status. Either you had it or you didn't. If you didn't have it -- and by "it" I mean the right baptism for the right reasons -- then you were destined for hell. Many people were guilted into the water...