Theology & Bible

Theology & Bible helps Christians understand Scripture and the core teachings of the Christian faith. Explore Bible-based articles on biblical interpretation, doctrine, salvation, the Holy Spirit, baptism, communion, creation, and key themes across the Old and New Testaments. You’ll find thoughtful guidance for studying the Bible faithfully, applying God’s Word to life and ministry, and growing in theological clarity rooted in the gospel. Whether you’re a church leader, teacher, student, or everyday disciple, this hub equips you to know God through Scripture and live with conviction and hope.

February 7, 2011

Christian Standard

Lesson for Feb. 13, 2011: Jesus Is God”s Son (Mark 9:2-13)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for February 13) is written by Rod Idle who serves with Journey Community Church in Fernley, Nevada. Jesus Is God’s Son (Mark 9:2-13) By Rod Idle There is a discussion about Jesus still going on today. It doesn”t center on whether he existed. We all can agree Jesus lived 2,000 years ago, and historians accept that he was born in Bethlehem and lived in Galilee. The discussion is not whether or not Jesus really lived, breathed, and died. The question is, “Who was Jesus?” It”s not a new question. This discussion

February 5, 2011

Christian Standard

The Highest Purchase Price

By Charles Gerber People buy and sell some outrageous items on eBay. I heard about someone who tried to sell an elastic band you put around your head to hold your mobile phone to your ear. (It sounded an awful lot like a rubber band.) No one bid on it. (What a surprise!) However, someone actually did buy a half-eaten taco! Yard sales are places you can find some great bargains, but at auctions you are more likely to pay a premium on your purchase. Perhaps the most expensive sculpture sold at auction was L”Homme qui marche, created by Alberto

February 3, 2011

Christian Standard

Nancy Meets God in Isaiah

By Nancy Karpenske It”s just a purple spiral notebook, well-worn and nondescript. But it contains my personal history with the book of Isaiah. All I really knew about Isaiah was that it held precious prophecies””a virgin shall conceive, unto us a child is born, despised and rejected, a man of sorrows. And the famous vision of God”s throne room that resulted in Isaiah crying out, “Here am I, Lord, send me!” I set my sights on becoming more familiar with Isaiah””not the facts and time lines and interpretations; I intended to look for God in the pages. I decided to

February 1, 2011

Christian Standard

Getting the Most from Old Testament Stories (Part 2)

(This is the second of six articles Matt Proctor will write this year under the theme, “Reading the Bible for All It”s Worth.) By Matt Proctor When we read one of these Hebrew narratives, we want to discover the author”s intended meaning. This guards us against imposing our own meaning on the text. How do we uncover the clues to the author”s intended meaning? I love Warren Wiersbe”s observation in The Wiersbe Bible Commentary: The Complete Old Testament, “If you don”t talk to your Bible, your Bible isn”t likely to talk to you!” In other words, if you don”t ask the text

January 31, 2011

Christian Standard

Lesson for Feb. 6, 2011 Jesus Is the Messiah (Mark 8:27″“9:1)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for February 6) is written by Rick Walston, senior minister with Marion Church of Christ, Rochester, Minnesota. Jesus Is the Messiah (Mark 8:27″“9:1) By Rick Walston What are life”s most important questions? “Where will I go when I die?” “What will I do with my life?” “Whom will I marry?” Some might say the answers don”t matter as long as we are asking the right questions. But answers are important, and the most important question of life must be answered correctly because its implications are eternal. Jesus asked his disciples this

January 24, 2011

Christian Standard

Lesson for Jan. 30, 2011: Wounded for Our Transgressions (Isaiah 53:1-12)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for January 30) is written by Drew Sherman who serves with Compass Christian Church in Colleyville, Texas. Wounded for Our Transgressions (Isaiah 53:1-12) By Drew Sherman A few years ago on a mission trip to India, we, like many others who tour India, included a visit to the city of Agra where the Taj Mahal is located. Known as one of the Seven Wonders of the World, this marble monument was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It is widely considered as one

January 20, 2011

Christian Standard

A Birthday Worth Celebrating

By Victor Knowles The King James Version of the Holy Bible will be 400 years old on May 4, 2011. Happy Birthday, KJV! Like many readers of Christian Standard who are 60 and older, I was raised on the King James Version. It was the only Bible we used in church, VBS, or Christian service camps. Not that we were King James Version-only Christians. It just happened the King James Version was the only Bible used in the Midwest where I grew up in the 1950s and “60s. There were very few translations available other than the American Standard Version

January 19, 2011

Christian Standard

Getting the Most from Old Testament Stories (Part 1)

By Matt Proctor (This is the first of six articles Matt Proctor will write this year under the theme, “Reading the Bible for All It’s Worth.) All human beings love a good story, so when God wanted to communicate the most important message in the universe to us, guess what he did? He told stories . . . and we”ve been captivated ever since. The Bible, and especially the Old Testament, is chock-full of narratives. The Old Testament is two-thirds of Scripture, and more than 40 percent of the Old Testament is narrative. In Sunday school children are still taught much-loved

January 17, 2011

Christian Standard

Lesson for Jan. 23, 2011: Light for the Gentiles (Isaiah 49:1-7)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for January 23) is written by Steve Carr who serves with Echo Church in Cincinnati, Ohio. Light for the Gentiles (Isaiah 49:1-7) By Steve Carr As a minister and an employee at a Christian institution, I have spent a lot of time talking with people about God”s call in their lives. Through these interactions I have met people who have claimed to hear the audible voice of God speak to them. I”ve also met people who fear for their salvation because they have never felt God speaking in their lives. While

January 10, 2011

Christian Standard

Lesson for Jan. 16, 2011: Reassurance for God”s People (Isaiah 48:12-22)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for January 16) is written by Matt Schantz who serves as director of organizational development with a national building supply company in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Reassurance for God”s People (Isaiah 48:12-22) By Matt Schantz I don”t listen well. Too often I get distracted and I fail truly to hear what someone is saying to me. My daughter has come up with a remedy for this malady. When she senses I am losing focus, she grabs my cheeks and cranks my head in her direction and says, “Daddy, listen to me with

January 9, 2011

Christian Standard

Interview with Jim Eichenberger

Having taught junior high and high school and served as a school principal, Jim Eichenberger has a passion for education. He holds a master”s degree in educational administration from the University of Illinois at Springfield and an undergraduate degree in Christian education from Lincoln (Illinois) Christian College. As a Christian educator, Jim has been a contributor to Standard Publishing since the 1970s and has been employed by Standard full-time since 1995. Thirteen years ago Jim began developing the concept of a chronological treatment of the Bible that would have broad appeal to Christians of all maturity levels. That concept has

January 6, 2011

Christian Standard

What to Call Our Year of the Bible?

By Mark A. Taylor What better time than 2011 to focus on the Bible? This year marks the 400th anniversary of the King James Version of the Bible, and in Christian Standard we”ll be lifting up the Bible all year long. This week”s special articles are the first of many about everything from how we got the Bible to how we teach it. Friends and advisers””our contributing editors as well as colleagues here at Standard Publishing””gave us dozens of ideas for the year. But even with all their excellent input, we couldn”t agree on what to call our year of

January 3, 2011

Christian Standard

Lesson for Jan. 9, 2011: Salvation for God”s People (Isaiah 45:14-25)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for January 9) is written by Ron Martin who serves as pastor at Bayfield (Colorado) Christian Church. Salvation for God’s People (Isaiah 45:14-25) By Ron Martin One of the most beneficial pursuits for a Christian is the study of God”s attributes. But when God gives testimony to himself in Isaiah 44 and 45, we are wise to put down our theology books and to listen carefully. In these chapters, God testifies to his existence and power in comparison to the empty wooden idols invented by man. In so doing, the Lord

January 2, 2011

Christian Standard

What Should We Believe About Hell?

By Glen Elliott People of the Restoration Movement know the declaration well. These days I hear it quoted by many in the church worldwide. I use it when I introduce our doctrinal position to the new members at our welcome event. Most attribute the statement to St. Augustine. This 1,500-year-old declaration remains powerful in its simplicity: “In essentials, unity. In opinions, liberty. In all things, love.” Nothing has the potential to divide us so much as differences over doctrine and theology. We take different stands regarding the end times and the “rapture.” We still have debates over speaking in tongues.

December 27, 2010

Christian Standard

Lesson for Jan. 2, 2011: God Is Our Redeemer (Isaiah 44:21-28)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for January 2) is written by Byron Davis who serves with Shepherd of the Hills Church in Porter Ranch, California. God Is Our Redeemer (Isaiah 44:21-28) By Byron Davis “Remember these things . . . I have made you . . . I will not forget you” (Isaiah 44:21). “Daddy, you stink!” Those were the first words that came out of my 4-year-old daughter”s mouth after I returned home from a 13-mile morning run. I walked into the kitchen to grab some water. Soon, I started talking with my wife and

December 20, 2010

Christian Standard

Lesson for Dec. 26, 2010: God Is with Us (Isaiah 43:1-7, 10-12)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for December 26) is written by Tom May who serves as discipleship minister with Eastside Christian Church in Jeffersonville, Indiana. God Is with Us (Isaiah 43:1-7, 10-12) By Tom May Isaiah would not have used the word near to describe any part of his life in Judah. Isaiah was not near to his friends and family. His work as a prophet often took him from his home. The burden of sharing an unpopular message from God put a strain on many of his relationships. If the traditional belief that Isaiah was

December 17, 2010

Christian Standard

The Tyranny of the Paradigm (Part 3)

Read “The Tyranny of the Paradigm (Part 1) Read “The Tyranny of the Paradigm (Part 2)” ________ By Jack W. Cottrell My thesis is that the understanding of the doctrine of salvation in most Protestant groups is captive to the Zwinglian version of the sola fidei paradigm. In the previous article (last week) I showed how this is the case in the way faith is treated as the sole condition for justification, and not just its sole means. It is also seen in the way repentance either is excluded as a condition altogether, or is diminished by being made simply

December 13, 2010

Christian Standard

Lesson for Dec. 19, 2010: A Child Is Born (Isaiah 9:6, 7; 11:1-8; Matthew 1:21-23)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for December 29) is written by Jeff Stone who serves as senior minister with Bright Christian Church in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. A Child Is Born (Isaiah 9:6, 7; 11:1-8; Matthew 1:21-23) By Jeff Stone “For to us a child is born. . . . And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end” (Isaiah 9:6, 7). Unending Reign You might be surprised to learn that the word peace appears more than 400 times in

December 6, 2010

Christian Standard

Lesson for Dec. 12, 2010: The Lord Is Our God (Isaiah 41:8-10, 17-20; 42:1-4, 9)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for December 12) is written by Ken Greene, vice president of enrollment services with Mid-Atlantic Christian University in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. The Lord Is Our God (Isaiah 41:8-10, 17-20; 42:1-4, 9) By Ken Greene In early September, my region of North Carolina faced her first hurricane threat of the season with Earl. This storm had the potential to cause major damage, as everyone watched to see if Earl”s course would bring it across the Outer Banks. The area braced for the worst; community events were canceled and evacuation plans were

November 29, 2010

Christian Standard

Lesson for Dec. 5, 2010: God Gives Strength (Isaiah 40:1-8, 25, 26, 29-31)

This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for December 5) is written by Teresa D. Welch, assistant professor of Christian education at Emmanuel School of Religion in Johnson City, Tennessee. God Gives Strength (Isaiah 40:1-8, 25, 26, 29-31) By Teresa D. Welch Are you waiting, worried, or weary? What concerns do you carry? Wars and rumors of wars? Economic upheaval and increased poverty? Political decisions and governmental policies? Religious hostility or indifference? The words of God recorded in Isaiah 40 are delivered to the nation of Judah, which had these concerns and many more. The people of God

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