From the very beginning, Christians gathered to worship, teach and break bread. We explore the concept of Koinonia, generally translated as "fellowship," and how its significance carried forward from the early church. We try to define fellowship in the context of modern Christian social life--is it more than game nights and picnics, or is all that the point? We also discuss the vital component of the Eucharist in Christian worship, and the different traditions we each grew up with.

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Love the Lord your God and love your neighbor. “Upon these two commandments,” says Jesus, “hang the whole Law and Prophets.” This isn’t difficult statement. Jesus is giving us the default standard for the Law--love. The Pharisees were intent of debating every nuance and letter to the point it was the only thing that gave meaning to their relationship with God. Even today, Christians want to use the Bible to justify all sorts of reasons to isolate and hate their neighbors. The Greatest Commandment is the baseline measure. It forces us Christians to ask if we are showing love or just indulging bigotry, or displaying fear and insecurity, or hiding pride and self-righteousness behind scripture. The church answer is always “God loves you.” The follow-up question is how will you let that change you.

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There's more at church than the Sunday service. A Sunday School class offers direct engagement with the scriptures in an informal group. We discuss the value of a good Sunday School class and how best to prepare as a participant. We also talk about our experiences with Bill's Man Up Formula for creating and leading a men's Bible study class. Download or listen or watch this episode on our No Church Answers YouTube channel.

Find the Man Up Formula: How Your Church Can Build an Effective Discipleship Group For Men on Amazon.

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We finished our study of Seth Troutt's Authentic Masculinity: Leaving Behind the Counterfeits for God's Design with a discussion of the roles Troutt puts at the top of the pyramid: Husband and Father. Unlike Son and Brother, these two are roles men chose. Troutt says they are "normative" in God's plan for men, a notion that already might ruffle some feathers. But to do them well, the require the maturity and self-knowledge built through experience. Is the Christian idea of marriage traditional or countercultural? Confining or liberating? Listen and argue.

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After offering his perspectives on masculine virtues, in the second half of Authentic Masculinty: Leaving Behind the Counterfeits for God's Design, author Seth Troutt addresses masculine roles. He defines these broadly, but bottom line, to him a “role” is all about what a man should be doing and how he ought to function in the world. Troutt identifies five specific roles a man will take throughout his life. This week we cover the first three.

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Author Seth Troutt sees willingness to take on responsibility as the principal difference between a man and a boy. True male adulthood comes when one can say, "I am the cause of my actions." In the second half of the podcast, we extend the discussion into Troutt's fourth, and culturally dicey, virtue of masculinity--chivalry. We examine Peter's call to be considerate and understanding to women and place this command in context with the the biblical truth that God created women as co-heirs to His kingdom.

Order Authentic Masculinity: Leaving Behind the Counterfeits for God's Design

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We're back from summer break with a new study, Authentic Masculinity by Seth Troutt. As some churches attempt to attract men through a questionable theology that stresses headship, unquestioned household control and limited agency for wives and children, Troutt's book advocates a more accurate biblical standard of male conduct and behavior that conforms to neither so-called conservative nor liberal models. Up this week, discussion of the first two of four masculine virtues Troutt identifies: humility and discipline, characteristics you rarely find on lists of admirable or expected male traits.

Find Authentic Masculinity: Leaving Behind the Counterfeits for God's Design at Amazon.com or order it from your favorite local bookseller.

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Is there a Christian mindset when it comes to spectator sports? Paul used sports analogies in 1 Corinthians, so clearly he had no issue with fandom. But how much awareness should we bring to an industry so deeply soaked with money and so demanding of time and attention? Make no mistake, like most guys we're both rabid sports fans, but there are some things about it that gives us pause. Just in time for college and pro football, not to mention baseball's pennant race, we toss wet blankets all around.

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