RBC Ministries

More than any other portion of Scripture, John 8:1-11 teaches us how grace loves others. While many doubt the reliability of this passage, the Jesus presented in these verses looks exactly the same as the Jesus who is presented elsewhere in John’s gospel. The Jesus of John 8:1-11 is teaching, while the Pharisees are plotting [...]

Our family carried a heavy burden several months ago. At 1:30 a.m. we were awakened with shocking news from our oldest daughter that one of her very best friends and her friend’s husband had been killed in a plane crash in Northern Michigan. This dear friend was helping our daughter plan the upcoming wedding of [...]

Yesterday we looked at Psalm 55, a time when David was in a despondent mood. Along with the demands of leading a kingdom, he had the heartbreak of a son who attempted to grab the reins of king and a counselor who shifted allegiance from David to his rebellious son. David’s first inclination was to [...]

Elisha Hoffman’s song “I Must Tell Jesus,” includes the line: “I cannot bear these burdens alone.” That line seems to fit what King David felt as he penned Psalm 55. This psalm is laced with words such as restless, anguish, fear, and trouble. Some Bible commentators believe that in this psalm we discover a clue [...]

As I moved on to #5 of “The Ten Most Significant Events or Decisions of My Life,” I remembered all the leadership experiences I had during high school and college, and even being able to work with and study under a famous Christian writer right out of college. Next, in caps, I wrote FAMILY. Jeanine [...]

One of the best practices our church staff atAkroninstituted was to have a staff member or intern share in eight minutes, “The Ten Most Significant Events or Decisions of My Life.” By the time he or she was done, it was much easier to understand that person’s motivations and actions. Each time someone shared these [...]

One of the things I have learned over the years is that it’s during those moments when I lack grace that I need it the most. I once heard Joe Stowell say that the more ticked off a person gets, the sharper their theology becomes. I know this is true in my own life. When [...]

How many of us have ever been hurt while serving in ministry? For most of us it is not a matter of “have you ever” but which time. If you are in ministry odds are you have experienced pain of some sort. When you work with people hurt is unavoidable but it is not irredeemable. Our church staff is preaching through the book [...]

Our family consists of seven living creatures. Five are humans and two are animals. The first nonhuman family member is a skittish and annoyingly nocturnal hamster named Snowball and the second is a rotund and lethargic cat named Holly Chaffins. Her first name is Holly, because she was born around Thanksgiving time and we adopted [...]

“You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich” (2 Cor. 8:9niv). My first pastorate was inCleveland,Ohio, a ministry that lasted 18 years. The church began to grow in those early years, and we [...]