Series: Featured

March 24, 2018

Christian Standard

Maintaining Hope in Ministry

Compiled by Justin Horey Easter is a season of hope. The resurrection promises that God’s power triumphs over darkness. But the crucifixion reminds us that God “did not spare his own Son” from pain during his earthly ministry. Jesus faced discouragement, disbelief, and disloyalty, yet he remained “obedient to death—even death on a cross!” We all face difficulties in ministry. Even at Easter—or perhaps, especially at Easter—we struggle with “trials of many kinds.” In our weakness, it can be difficult to maintain hope. This Easter season, we asked Christian Standard readers for practical answers to one question:   When you

March 22, 2018

Christian Standard

The Bold Invitation

By Kevin Dooley   During Passion Week we reflect on Christ’s sufferings for us. We may also remember the sufferings of the apostles and the persecuted church throughout history. Today, millions of people around the world are boldly proclaiming the gospel in the midst of great suffering for their faith. They invite us to know Christ “and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings.” It is the key to reaching the unbelieving world with the gospel of hope.   My wife, Kim, and I have been privileged to serve alongside the persecuted church in countries that

March 18, 2018

Christian Standard

A Secret We Must Tell

(The essay originally appeared online April 12, 2009.) ________ By Arron Chambers Can you keep a secret? Stephen and Louise couldn’t. “Our son became an astronaut today.” On September 17, 1962—in one of the most interesting segments of game show history—Stephen and Louise Armstrong appeared on I’ve Got a Secret with the secret that their son Neil had just been selected to be an astronaut. Neil was one of nine new men so chosen. What made this appearance especially unique was that host Garry Moore asked Louise an incredible question: “Now, how would you feel, Mrs. Armstrong, if it turned

March 17, 2018

Christian Standard

Archaeologists Unearth the Centrality of the Table

By Jim Nieman The discovery of a floor to what might be the earliest-known Christian church seems to confirm that early Christ followers came together around a table to celebrate the Lord’s Supper. In 2005, prisoners unearthed a 580-square-foot mosaic floor with three inscriptions likely dating to the third century. One of the inscriptions speaks of a table “offered . . . to God Jesus Christ as a memorial.” The mosaic floor was discovered within a prison holding 1,200 Palestinian inmates, in Megiddo, on a hill overlooking the Valley of Jezreel—“the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16).

March 16, 2018

Christian Standard

The Communion Distinctive: Drama of the Gospel

By Mark Scott   In the middle of the second century, Justin Martyr gave an account of the weekly worship of Christians. And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine

March 8, 2018

Christian Standard

Our Heavenly Father’s Favorite Thing

The True Story of a Defeated Pastor, a Dying Church, and God’s Redemption of Both   By Ken Idleman  Both the Old and New Testaments reveal something about God that we tend to either quietly doubt or glibly take for granted. We can find it buried in the historical narrative of the book of Jeremiah, who speaks for God, revealing both his heart for and goodwill toward his people: This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says . . . “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and

March 7, 2018

Christian Standard

When the Church Splits: Hope After the Loss

By Jessie Clemence   The church gymnasium, once filled with the sound of squealing children and bouncing balls, fell silent. The church bank account, once bolstered with tithes from generous givers, dropped to a frightening low. The elder board had vacancies. The pulpit lacked a minister and the worship team was missing vocalists and musicians. Children were missing from Sunday school classes, but that was OK because there weren’t enough adults to teach them anyway. The church had split, and those of us who stayed walked through an endless succession of losses. I grew tired of trying to explain to

March 1, 2018

Christian Standard

Should Christian Leaders Take a Stand on Political Issues?

By Bob Russell A popular Christian blogger recently suggested ministers should avoid preaching “anything political” because that’s an automatic turnoff to most seekers. He pointed out that when preachers take a position on contentious cultural issues they minimize opportunities for evangelism—especially with millennials. He applauded one of the leading ministers in America who recently announced he would no longer preach about homosexuality because it was such a polarizing subject.   WHY CONFRONT CONTROVERSIAL POLITICAL ISSUES? That may sound like good counsel because, after all, our ultimate hope isn’t in politics but in Jesus Christ. But think about the many hot-button

February 25, 2018

Shawn McMullen

Civil Liberty: How Christ Frees Us to Be Civil in Less-than-Civil Times

By Shawn McMullen You’re driving down the highway and notice a silver Honda in the passing lane traveling a few miles per hour below the speed limit, impeding the progress of the gray Toyota behind it. When the Toyota gets a break in the line of traffic, its driver veers quickly into the other lane, moves in front of the Honda, and taps his brakes, causing the driver of the Honda to brake and swerve into the berm. The party of four at their lunch table simply can’t be pleased. They complain loudly to one another throughout the meal: the

February 22, 2018

Jerry Harris

Christian Standard Media Purchases Christian Church Today

Christian Standard Media has purchased the assets of Christian Church Today, including its online database of Christian churches and Christian ministries, and plans to make them available to readers of Christian Standard and The Lookout. “Our intention is to create a digital list that will form a vital communication link in our church network locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally by providing connections and links to email, websites, and social media,” said Christian Standard Media Publisher Jerry Harris. “The database has more than 9,000 churches and organizations that we are presently and painstakingly bringing up to date,” Harris said. “We plan

February 22, 2018

Christian Standard

Extinguishing the Flames of Conflict

What Leaders Can Learn from the Fire Tetrahedron for the Good of the Church   By Walt Wilcoxson Heat, fuel, oxygen, and a chemical chain reaction. These four factors comprise the fire tetrahedron, which is basic knowledge to every firefighter and the basis for the plan of attack for fighting every fire. Even rookie firefighters know that if you can eliminate any single part of the tetrahedron, the fire will go out. Or, if any of these four elements is missing, there will be no fire. In church conflict, leaders have a tetrahedron to consider as well. They need to

February 16, 2018

Jerry Harris

The Dot.

By Jerry Harris Whether it happens intentionally or accidentally, every church fashions a product that is more effective with at least one subset of people. Every church has a target. It may not be a deliberate target, as traditions tend to take on lives of their own, but it’s there just the same. Consider the style of your music and worship. Who is attracted to it? Scan the church budget. Who gets the most money? Study the use of the building. Who gets the most space? Assess the style of the building and its furniture. Is it antique? Do the

February 14, 2018

Christian Standard

A Night for “Kings and Queens” to Shine

By Justin Horey On the evening of Friday, February 9, limousines will line up in front of Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in coastal Florida. As guests in tuxedos and gowns make their way down the red carpet toward the entrance, cameras will flash and onlookers will yell, “You look great!” “We love you!” Some of the honored guests will be in wheelchairs. Some will use walkers. Others will struggle to speak. On this night, the occasion is not an award show or a celebrity gala; it’s “Night to Shine,” a prom-style formal event for people with special needs created by

February 11, 2018

Christian Standard

Dennis & Linda Messimer: Five Decades of Ministering Around the World Together

By TR Robertson A lifetime of ministry together has given Dennis and Linda Messimer a rhythm of talking—they often finish each other’s sentences—and a rhythm of serving God together. “Dennis would teach Bible studies and I would teach the kids,” Linda says, describing the arrangement they’ve followed hundreds of times, on three continents. “. . . But once kids came along,” Dennis adds, “Linda wasn’t as involved in the ministry work as she had been earlier.” Since the kids have grown, Linda says, “I’ve done Bible studies with women and he did Bible studies with men. We support each other

February 10, 2018

Christian Standard

Wayne & Greta Meece: Two Country Kids Serving Together for Nearly 60 Years

By Wendie Gabbard “The blessing God gave to both of us was that we grew up country kids.” Those country kids, Greta from Pennsylvania and Wayne from Kentucky, met as sophomores in college. Rules prohibited them from dating without another couple or chaperone present and the understood boundary was “six inches apart.” Even so, they quickly fell in love and married in Greta’s hometown the summer before their junior year. Pennsylvania law allowed marriage at age 21. As both were 20, their parents had to sign for them. Wayne and Greta Meece then returned to Kentucky Christian College, where she

February 9, 2018

Christian Standard

Ben & Pat Merold: Still Having Fun After 68 Years

By Kelly Carr   Ben and Pat Merold—most folks seldom say one of their names without the other, and that’s just fine with them. When they talk, you hear their love for one another, the joy they feel together, and the immense pride they have about the other’s ministry. One could easily declare that Ben and Pat Merold are who we all hope to be when we grow up! Ben and Pat share their story of a lifelong love for serving the Lord and for each other.   Jumping into Ministry The year was 1948. Pat, a freshman at Johnson

February 7, 2018

Christian Standard

Denzil Holness Spreads a Message of Racial Reconciliation

By Jacqueline J. Holness Had Denzil D. Holness been hired as a pastor in Coward, South Carolina, or Peculiar, Missouri, or any other out-of-the-way American town or city, he may not have been led to take on racial reconciliation in the Christian church. However, since Holness was hired as the first black pastor at Central Christian Church in Atlanta, Georgia, “The City Too Busy to Hate,” it would seem tackling racial reconciliation was God’s plan for him all along.   Committed to Christian Church Principles Holness became CCC’s pastor in September 1979 and in December 2017, he retired from ministry

February 4, 2018

Christian Standard

Leading in the Direction of Unity      

By Alan Stein In the movie Hidden Figures, Kevin Costner plays Al Harrison, a mission director of NASA in April 1961 when the Soviets launched the first man into Earth’s orbit. Harrison (a composite character) had a single-minded mission: successfully launch an American into orbit and safely return him to Earth. NASA was just beginning to transition into the computer age, and so they had some uncertainty about the trajectory calculations provided by the agency’s IBM computer. Astronaut John Glenn, preparing for the Friendship 7 launch that would send him into orbit in February 1962, asked for mathematical genius Katherine

February 3, 2018

Jerry Harris

Marshall Keeble and What He Taught Me

By Jerry Harris I, like so many independent Christian church preachers, had the opportunity to study the history of the Restoration Movement in Bible college. My experience was a droning professor in a 7 a.m. class. My goal then was simply to survive it, achieve the best grade possible, and then move on to more interesting things. Biographical sketches of our movement’s pioneers held little interest for me at the time, and for the most part, it stayed that way for many years. It wasn’t until our church launched a multisite location in Hannibal, Missouri, that an interest in our

January 30, 2018

Christian Standard

Beauty Out of the Storm

The “Big C” Church shows up to provide a flood of support after Harvey By Tim Liston Hurricane Harvey, the first Category 4 storm to hit the United States since 2004, made landfall south of us on August 26, 2017. That put Houston on the “dirty” or rainy side of the storm. To make matters worse, Harvey stayed on top of Houston for days, pulling water from the Gulf of Mexico and dropping it on the region. Water rose in the streets, with every highway in Houston impassable because of flooding. At one point, nearly 10 inches of rain fell

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