Narrative and Horizon

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If the Bible isn’t a rule book or a clear-cut moral guide for every decision that we need to make, how do we go about discerning what is good? This is a question that our pastoral staff spent a few months discussing, which resulted in an ethical framework for discerning good in an array of circumstances. This framework considers collective and personal stories, principles, as well as several questions that can be asked in order to inch closer toward goodness.

Perhaps you’re in the midst of making a big decision, or perhaps you wrestle with knowing how to discern what’s best when making decisions, or perhaps, as you’ve come to realize that the Bible doesn’t definitively direct particular judgments that you need to make about life and godliness, you’re looking for a thoughtful way to make wise decisions. If any of these statements speak to where you’re at, then we’re hopeful that this sermon series—which will draw from our ethical framework—will inform, support, and encouragement your flourishing, especially now, when discerning goodness is increasingly important.

The Story of the Bible

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At Pearl we regularly say that we exist to express a sacred story and to extend a common table that animate life by love. About our sacred story, we have a longstanding tradition of telling it on an annual basis, on Labor Day weekend. Our hope in telling this story in its entirety is that it might more deeply shape our language, orient our hearts, and direct the ways that we mark our days and live out our lives here on earth.

The Wisdom of Song of Solomon

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The Bible’s wisdom books span the conventional wisdom of Proverbs to the evocative wisdom of Song of Songs. Between these two extremes are Ecclesiastes and Job, which invite us into the muddle of every day living that can range from the mundane to the difficult.

Today we find ourselves in a season of life that is demanding wisdom. But what does wise living look like? The books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Job, and Song of Songs will help us to explore the diversity of wisdom. More so, the ancient-ness of these books will be an encouraging reminder that, although our experiences in this world feel novel, they are indeed as old as language itself. Lastly, this series intends to draw on these books as a means to encourage careful observation and dynamic responses to our ever-changing world that result in flourishing life.