It’s always a fun and informative exercise to look at the most popular posts on Pastor J.D.’s blog and learn some interesting facts. For example, his post on what his teenage daughter read last summer was more popular than the post about what Pastor J.D. read last summer, and many popular posts weren’t even from last year (three in the top 10 are five years old—they are officially classics). We’ve done the digging and found what you considered the golden nuggets of 2017. We hope you enjoy them again and glean even more wisdom and truth to equip you in your walk with Jesus in 2018.
Here are Pastor J.D.’s most popular blog posts of 2017:
10. Four Ways Husbands Should Lead. The article’s first paragraph best explains why it’s on the list: “[In Ephesians 5], Paul gives three times as much space to his instructions for the husbands as he does their wives. We may be quick to miss it, but what Paul says to men is just as counter-cultural today as any biblical teaching on submission. Our society certainly does not like the idea of submission. But as it turns out, the men of our society don’t really like to lead, either.”
9. Seven Signs That You’re “Judging” Others. The line between speaking truth and condemning seems to continually grow fainter. But here we’re reminded that Jesus drew a clear line, modeling grace when he brought to light our sin and then bringing us close. If we want to know how to live like Christ, we have to remember the gospel and follow the same pattern.
8. Pray God’s Words Back to Him: Claiming the Promises of God. All the promises of God are “yes” in Christ Jesus. Amen! This is one of those classics that may reappear in our “best of” list year after year, because who doesn’t need a reminder to not just read but pray through the Bible? Pastor J.D. even gives specific examples of how he prays Scripture for his kids and church.
7. Can Women Teach in the Church? It will be difficult to find a more straightforward or helpful read on this topic of exactly what kind of teaching is reserved only for men in the church. The longest comment section I’ve noticed on the blog reminds us that the conversation around this issue is ongoing, but God’s Word is always trustworthy.
6. Why Rosaria Butterfield Signed the Nashville Statement. In August Pastor J.D. was one of the initial signatories of the Nashville Statement, which speaks to how the church understands gender and sexuality based on God’s Word. It is well worth your time to read Butterfield’s reasoning for signing the Nashville Statement in whole by following the link in this post.
5. Five Things God Teaches Us in the Tragic Deaths of Ananias & Sapphira. When this post appeared on the “Top 10” list for 2015, we learned that after “J.D. Greear,” the most consistent search term that led people to jdgreear.com at the time was “Ananias and Sapphira.” Five years after it was originally posted, it seems readers still want to know just what we’re to learn from this dramatic story.
4. What Every Pastor Wishes His Worship Leader Knew. Apparently, there are a lot of worship pastors wondering what their pastor wishes they knew (or a lot of pastors who want to make sure Pastor J.D. got it right). Either way, this post sparked one of our most robust comment sections, proving this is one area in which worship leaders and pastors can continue to grow and learn from each other. Don’t miss the equally helpful companion article by Mike Passaro, one of the Summit’s worship leaders.
3. Why Don’t We Follow All of the Old Testament Laws? Ever heard the argument, “Christians follow some of the rules in the Bible and ignore others”? If so, you’re not the only one. Many Christians hope this question never comes up, because they just don’t know how to answer it. This is a great resource to learn how the New Testament teaches us to read the Old Testament and equip ourselves to give an answer to even the hard questions.
2. Marriage Is Not About You; Divorce Is All About You. People might have come because of the title, but we hope they stayed for the message: Couples don’t fall out of love; they fall out of repentance. That’s a harsh truth, but one our culture desperately needs to hear as the church models God’s love in their marriages.
1. Two Ways to Know You Are Saved. Pastor J.D. got asked the question, “How Can I Really Know That I’m Saved?” so much that he wrote a book to teach Christians how to fully embrace their salvation. We’re good with this post’s popularity five years after it was published because it’s always better to have asked the question and receive a gospel answer than to never have asked the question at all.
