Adam L. Feldman's Blog, page 4

Blessed Part 3: The Meek

This is the third post in a series exploring the Beatitudes and the Salt and Light passage at the beginning of Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5. Before we turn attention to today’s Beatitude, here are 4 interpretive principles that I discussed in the first two posts in this series.

1. First, the Beatitudes can only be produced by the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. In this sense, they are similar to the fruit of the Spirit (see Galatians 5:22-23) and the three cardinal virtu...

Blessed Part 2: Those Who Mourn

Last week I started a series exploring the Beatitudes and the Salt and Light passage at the beginning of Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5. I noted that the Beatitudes can only be produced by the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. In this way, they are similar to the fruit of the Spirit that Paul lists in Galatians 5:22-23, and also the three cardinal virtues of the Christian faith: faith, hope, and love (see 1 Corinthians 13:13).

Now, although the Beatitudes emerge in the belie...

Blessed Part 1: The Poor in Spirit

Some years ago, I preached a sermon series through the Gospel of Matthew. The sermon series progressed well enough, and then I hit Matthew 5-7, Jesus’s “Sermon on the Mount.” I paused. The Sermon struck me in a way I did not anticipate. It cut straight through me and laid my life bare before the words of Christ. So, I slowed down the sermon series to allow space for the Spirit to do a work in me and in our church.

Since that time, the Sermon has featured prominently in my own spiritual walk....

How Should Evangelicals Respond to the Immigration Executive Order?

Note: Within our church (Metanoia Church) there are naturalized citizens of the USA as well as green card holders legally living and working in our community. Many persons in our church–my family included–have friends or personally know persons from other countries studying on education visas or who are citizens of predominantly Muslim countries that are affected by the January 27 executive order regarding immigration. This past Sunday, we prayed for direction, wisdom, and comfort. The follow...

30 Minute Year-end Reflection

Why make New Year’s resolutions that you probably won’t keep? That’s so discouraging.

Instead, look forward by looking backward. Then, set your goals according to what God is doing in your life right now, and make adjustments accordingly.

Sometimes its better to look backward if you want to make the most of where you’re going. If you’ve ever rowed a boat, you know that you look backward to move forward. Such is the case with end-of-the-year reflection and preparing for a new year. Looking bac...

The Good, the Bad, and the Way Forward

2016 was a year of redirected ministry and refining of convictions for me. It was a year of saying goodbye to friends and hello to new friends. It was a year of celebrating marriages and grieving divorces. It will be a year that I remember as one that had the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. A year when I couldn’t really put things into neutral.

For many of us, 2016 was a year of sharp relief. There was very little gray and a whole lot of black and white. There were a lot of jagged ed...

Time Traveling

I’m a time traveler. So are you, of course. We are all traveling through time together, albeit in one direction. We can’t “go back” but we most certainly will “go forward.”

I am nearing that proverbial “over the hill” mark. Its the phase of life commonly referred to as “midlife.” I am not anticipating a midlife “crisis” so much as a midlife “contemplation.” As I approach this next milestone in my journey, I am increasingly more aware of how time seems to both speed up and slow down at the sam...

Your First Half-Day Retreat

Do you wear the word “busy” as a badge of honor? How often have you had this brief conversation:“How are you?” “I’m good. Keeping busy!” When did “busy” become synonymous with “good?”

Now, before we go off the deep end, there is certainly a form of “busy” that is good. For instance, if we’re busy about God’s work, busy with the appropriate responsibilities we have taken on (or that God has placed upon us), or busy with the realities of a family with small children, busy is an inevitable and p...

When There Is No Script: Disaster Relief & the Local Church

On Saturday, July 30, the area where I live received over 6 inches of rain in less than 2 hours. Meteorologists said it was a once in 1,000 year type storm. Flash floods struck all over the metro Baltimore area, but perhaps the most devastating flood occurred in Ellicott City.

The flood washed away entire sidewalks, exposed foundations of historic buildings constructed 1 or even 2 centuries ago, quite literally washed away local businesses, blew out brick walls of buildings, sent over 20 cars...

The 6 Relationships Every Christian Desiring Spiritual Growth Needs

Earlier this week I was discussing theology and soul care at a local coffee shop with our church’s elder apprentices. One of our topics for the evening was corporate worship. During our discussion we expressed the many ways God has ministered to us through corporate worship. In the process, we were reminded that the Christian faith is not an independent, private enterprise for self-improvement. While aspects of our faith are personal, they are never private. You can’t be a Christian without o...