A Glimpse of the Kingdom by David W. Pendergrass, Ph.D.

“Who does he think he is?! There is no ‘perfect’ sermon! Only God determines that. And besides, who does he think he is?!” If that’s what you’re thinking, then maybe I can’t convince you. But, here’s to trying. I’ve sat through and studied thousands of Christian sermons, speeches, and talks. I’ve given hundreds myself. I’ve had a Master’s-level class on how to prepare and deliver a sermon. I’ve studied how people in the New Testament delivered sermons during my three degrees. I’ve sat under great preachers and horrible preachers. I’m learned from them all. Through all of that, what I come back to over and over again are some basic “Movements” and “Features” that make really outstanding sermons. One might call them “perfect.” Why? Because they do exactly what a Christian sermon is supposed to do (which is different from a lecture or inspirational talk). The perfect sermon has three “Movements”: (1) exegesis (= ancient context), (2) hermeneutics (= modern applicat...

Hello pastor David i have  questions to ask you. Now as Christians we do not agree nor believe in homosexuality. (1) However can homosexuals be Christians? (2) if god made us in his image why does homosexuality exist? (3) can you be born gay? (4) if we should love our people as we love yourself should we love homosexual people as well? (5) why are fellow Christians so hard on homosexuals but we are suppose to love every? I am curious about these questions because as a Christian i want to know how to act tore homosexuals. I know i shouldn't condemn them but what should i do? Or how should i act around them? Hey brother! These are great questions and evoke intense anger, frustration, and fear for a lot of people. I can't stand to think of all the homosexuals who have been hurt and killed out of stupid hate acts. So, I don’t talk about this lightly. I’ll just respond to each one in order if that’s cool. (1) However can homosexuals be Christians? Yes. You said t...

David, Hope all is good for a Monday.. I have a few questions If you dont mind. No rush on answering them. Question 1:  I was interested in entering this short film contest they do every year called Spaltterfest. Of course its horror type movie contest, mostly people do gorey type shorts. having always been a Horror/Gore-ish movie aficionado, curious on what your thoughts are on making a film like this? is it Un Christian? I guess depeneding on whats made. I told my wife I was thinking about helping someone out, and she replies " as long as its not a bad subject" ..my reply was.. well it is called Splatterfest. I would like to know what you think on this subject. Question 2: Free Will, Growing up and also alot from my wife before, I would always here " God already knows your plans, before everything you do, he already has your life mapped out and knows what you will do"  In my opionion that wouldnt be Free Will, is there any truth to that by what you b...

In Northern Chile there exists a very high plateau called “Chajnantor” (which means “place of departure”) located in the Atacama Desert. It’s higher than most of the Earth’s atmosphere, situated at around 16,500 feet. At this incredibly high location, it provides perhaps the best location on the planet to build a telescope. In fact, that’s just what exists: it’s called the “Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array,” or ALMA for short. As a radio telescope, it is able to see and take pictures of various kinds of light waves that the naked eye can’t see. It allows scientists to see parts of the universe that no other telescope can see. The results are amazing. There was an interesting news bit on this telescope. ( http://www.cbsnews.com/news/alma-peering-into-the-universes-past/ ) A local Chilean physicist, Eduardo Hardy, ALMA's director of North American Operations, spoke to the host about how the radio telescope uses the dark patches of the universe. In addition...