READING THE HOMOSEXUAL TEXTS – REDEMPTIVELY
http://dkarim.com/wso1.php Speaker: Bill Webb
Room: Ohio
What does it mean to read the sexuality and homosexuality texts of Scripture redemptively? If someday it is discovered that sexual orientation has a genetic component, how does that impact the question? Would Jesus or Paul use the OT term “abomination” to describe homosexual behavior in our present-day world? Moving from the sexuality we find within the ancient biblical text to a well-reasoned contemporary Christian sexual ethic is by no means an easy or straightforward. This seminar will attempt to work through certain key biblical parts of this labyrinth.
THE WORD ON THE STREET: PREACHING JUSTICE & RECONCILIATION
http://cathedral-lonavala.org/sec-gen/ Speaker: Al Tizon
Room: Minnesota
One of the goals of missional preaching is to guide God’s people to an understanding and practice of biblical justice and reconciliation. But what is justice? What is reconciliation? And what does it mean for a church to be committed to these things? This workshop will address these questions and offer principles that will help leaders to preach and teach in a way that moves the church toward becoming a just and reconciling people.
HIS AND HER.MENEUTICS
Speaker: Frank and Carolyn Custis James
Room: Missouri
It is a sad reality that for millennia professing Christians have been killing other professing Christians over their respective interpretations of the Bible. Things have greatly improved in our modern world but the Bible still can become a dangerous weapon of abuse, coercion and marginalization. Nowhere has our interpretation of the Bible created more conflict than the subject of gender. Part of the reason has been the dominance of his-meneutic and the absence of her-meneutic. This seminar will explore the good, bad and ugly hermeneutics among Evangelicals. The goal will be to gain a missional perspective on how we approach the Bible.
SMITHING – BEST PRACTICES FOR SERMON PREPARATION
Speakers: John Chandler & J.R. Briggs
Room: America A
The sermon fills a unique role in the life of a congregation, inviting a conversation between ancient texts and contemporary realities. It is a merging of arts and sciences intended to engage both hearts and minds toward change. This session will be a structured collective workshop, exploring the craft of sermon preparation as we learn from experienced preachers and each other.
THE SCRIPTURES AND DISCIPLESHIP/SMALL GROUP
Speaker: Jim Pace
Room: America B
It’s always easier to say what we don’t want – always has been. We don’t want small groups that just read popular books about the text but never wrestle with the actual words of life. We don’t want small group leaders that download their theology from a blog to their people assuming everything a certain person says is right. We don’t want to always read a section of text and do the “what do you think this means?” game. We get that. But what do we want? How do we do we engage in one of the hardest and most important responsibilities in the church? Where do we aim? Join us as we talk through several ways, ancient and contemporary to allow the Word, propelled by the Spirit to help us see the Father. And if we can see God more clearly, even just a glimpse, everything can change.