Jason Locke's Blog

This year's RENEW conference here in Fresno (Feb 8-10) is full of speakers who will be BRINGING IT in thought-provoking and inspirational ways. In these fractious days, it can seem as though our options are defined for us by folks in the media or by our most vocal associates. Do we have a Christian calling that supersedes the surface-level bickering in our society? We'll be exploring that question together during Renew. The Kingdom of God is not just a spiritual construct that allows us to go to heaven one day. God has high expectations of us, and some of these run counter to the pigeon-holing stereotypes of our contemporary culture. Our speakers will help us look backward and forward as we seek to live out the high calling of being Jesus' disciples. As an example, here's a short blurb from Doug Foster about his first talk on Friday night: "Race, War and Gender in Churches of Christ" Churches of Christ in America have not been known for activism in matters of...

We're blessed to have Doug Foster as a keynote speaker on this year's RENEW program. Doug teaches church history at Abilene Christian University, and is considered one of the foremost experts in the history of the Restoration Movement (to which Churches of Christ belong).      Renewal has been a constant theme of Doug's work. The books he has co-authored include  Renewing God's People ,  Renewal for Mission , and  Renewing Christian Unity . Sounds to me as if Doug may have a few poignant things to say on the subject of renewal! His two major talks will focus us on issues relevant to Churches of Christ on the West Coast and beyond as we explore how to renew our congregations as we partner with the mission of God in our contexts. Doug's first talk (Friday evening) will be on "Race, War & Gender: Do Churches of Christ Have a Social Conscience?" His second talk (Sunday morning) will be on "The Strengths and Temptations of Churches of Ch...

Just a few more weeks till college football kicks off. The West Virginia Mountaineers will play their inaugural season in the Big 12. They're being projected to finish high, but who knows for sure how they will fare in a new landscape where there are no easy victories. Here's a quick teaser for those who are mostly unfamiliar with WVU. They have two of the country's most electrifying players, QB Geno Smith and WR Tavon Austin. A third player, WR Stedmon Bailey, had even more receiving yards than Austin last year. Austin gets more press, however, because of his speed and versatility. He also returns kicks.

Pope John Paul II said, “A society will be judged on the basis of how it treats its weakest members, and among the most vulnerable are surely the unborn and the dying.” This excellent quote sets the stage for the first installment of a sermon series on the family. This week’s lesson looks at how we treat some of our society’s weakest members: the aged. Throughout August, I will be preaching about the unique situations of today’s families. This won't be your typical sermon series about families. I won't propagate the stereotypes about happy mom, dad, 2 kids and a dog/cat. I have nothing against normal, happy families, and one of my sermons will talk about marriage. But the situations faced by today's families are far more complex than what stereotypes can handle. The apostle Paul’s comments on this subject were perhaps more stark than the pope’s. He wrote, “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and i...

In the past week, a conversation has filled Facebook walls and Tweet chats. Many have hit the blogosphere. They want to discuss an op-ed article by Ross Douthat in NY Times & a follow-up by Diana Butler Bass in the Huffington Post. Ross Douthat wrote to pile on with those who describe the steep decline of attendance in the Episcopalian Church. Could there be complex and multiple reasons for their decline? Not according to Douthat. He views the culprit as the embrace of a social liberal agenda. He writes, "But if conservative Christianity has often been compromised, liberal Christianity has simply collapsed. Practically every denomination — Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian — that has tried to adapt itself to contemporary liberal values has seen an Episcopal-style plunge in church attendance." In other words, embrace liberal values and plummet in attendance. Douthat may be right. The liberal social agenda may drive many church-goers to more conservative congregations. ...

It's perhaps the most well-known verse in all of scripture. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life” (John 3:16). From the crazy colored-hair guy who always showed up at sporting events to the black strips under Tim Tebow's eyes, the shorthand for this verse is etched into our minds. But what does it mean? How are we to understand these words? When we step back and read the entire section of John 3, we find a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, a highly placed Jewish teacher and leader. Nicodemus is in the dark (figuratively, perhaps), and he is curious about "the signs" Jesus has been performing. These signs indicate that Jesus must be from God, but Nicodemus doesn't understand who Jesus is.Jesus begins to talk about rebirth as a prerequisite for entrance into God's kingdom. Nicodemus doesn't understand spiritual rebirth--it apparently wasn't...

In the 2011 movie Soul Surfer, 13-year-old Bethany Hamilton lies on her hospital bed. She is a prize-winning surfer who just lost her left arm in a shark attack. Fearful that she will have to give up her life's passion, she asks her father (played by Dennis Quaid) when she can get back on her surfboard. He leans toward her and begins to quote (sort of) Philippians 4:13, "You can do all things." At this point, Bethany joins in and recites it with her father, "Through him who strengthens me." Here's a link to the movie clip . The real life story of Bethany Hamilton is touching and inspirational. I'm all for her and her story. The movie is a great pick-me-up, and I am grateful for any film that puts a relatively good spin on Christian faith. But something here is lost in translation (so to speak). Paul's statement in Phil 4:13 comes across as an endorsement for wishful thinking. One might get the sense that Christians think Jesus can help them do ...