Articles for tag: Restoration Movement

July 3, 2019

Christian Standard

Merold Institute Assessing Options for Growth

By Chris Moon Four years into its existence, the Merold Institute is looking toward the future. The ministry of Harvester Christian Church in St. Charles, Mo., began primarily as a place to help mold the church’s key volunteers and existing and incoming staff—to give them the biblical and theological training lacking in many ministry workers who were unable to attend Bible college or seminary. During its short existence, the institute named for Ben Merold, Harvester’s former senior minister (who continues serving as a teaching pastor), has largely accomplished that goal. Many of the church’s staff and volunteers have earned certificates

June 22, 2019

Christian Standard

The State of Campus Ministry: An Interview with David Embree

By TR Robertson David Embree has led Christian Campus House at Missouri State University in Springfield for 41 years. I talked to him about the state of campus ministry, past, present, and future. QUESTION: Why is campus ministry important? ANSWER: As Charles Malik [former president of the United Nations General Assembly] said back in the ’60s, if you want to impact the world, impact campuses. Eighty-five percent of kids from our churches go to non-church-related schools; [it] is going to be one of the most challenging intellectual and spiritual experiences of their lives. We need to be the church on

June 22, 2019

Laura McKillip Wood

Laura-McKillip-Wood

Transformation through Education

By Laura McKillip Wood (After writing our “Horizons” column for two years, Emily Drayne has decided to step away from this role due to time constraints and other responsibilities. We thank her for her good work. We welcome our new “Horizons” writer, former missionary Laura McKillip Wood. Laura’s name may be familiar to readers as she contributes regularly to The Lookout.) He closes his Bible and stretches his arms, rubs his neck, and yawns. He hears the night sounds outside his window and tucks his sermon, scribbled on a scrap of paper, into his Bible. Ambling to bed, this Ugandan

June 20, 2019

Christian Standard

A Profile of ‘Raccoon’ John Smith (Part 2)

(Read Part 1 of this profile, published June 13.) Before launching into Part 2 of this profile of “Raccoon” John Smith from 1925, we should offer an explanation for how he acquired his nickname. The opening of M.M. Davis’s article about Smith from June 12, 1909, gives this account. _ _ _ “Raccoon” John Smith [1784–1868] is the most unique character in our history. . . . Just why he should have this undignified nickname is not clear, for he was never a hunter of anything, much less of raccoons. But of all names in the world needing a distinguishing

June 13, 2019

Christian Standard

A Profile of ‘Raccoon’ John Smith (Part 1)

When the Stone Movement and the Campbell Movement united in 1832, “Raccoon” John Smith helped seal the deal. Barton W. Stone represented his contingent of churches at those meetings in Kentucky, while Smith represented Alexander Campbell’s interests. Here are Smith’s historic words on that occasion: “Let us, then my brethren, be no longer Campbellites or Stoneites, New Lights or Old Lights, or any other kind of lights, but let us come to the Bible, and to the Bible alone, as the only book in the world that can give us all the light we need.” We start this week with

May 23, 2019

Christian Standard

Remembering Dr. Robert Richardson

This biographical sketch of Dr. Robert Richardson (1806-76)—compiler of the “Memoirs of Alexander Campbell,” among other contributions during the first century of the Restoration Movement—will serve as the May installment of our monthly series of excerpts from Christian Standard, circa 1909. In that year, the magazine devoted one issue each month to articles of particular interest to our movement. We’ll change it up this month by also providing an excerpt from a second article about Richardson, the latter from 1910. _ _ _ Dr. Robert Richardson By M. M. Davis(May 8, 1909; p. 9) Dr. Robert Richardson, the “Historian of

May 22, 2019

Jerry Harris

When We Go to War in Our Movement

By Jerry Harris This past April, my wife and I had the opportunity to preach and teach at Hope Christian Church near Augusta, West Virginia. Like most, I am now fully dependent on a GPS to direct my driving in unfamiliar places, so when I heard Siri say we could save 18 minutes by taking an alternative route around an accident, I jumped at the chance. The new path took us through switchback mountain roads—not a pleasurable experience for my wife, who struggles a bit with car sickness. The detour took us right by Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, a very

May 22, 2019

Christian Standard

Point and Jessup Cited as ‘Enrollment Success Stories’

The Council for Christian Colleges and Universities published an article on “Enrollment Success Stories” that features two of our Restoration Movement colleges: Point University in West Point, Ga., and William Jessup University in Rocklin, Calif. The story describes how, in 2006, Point University had 423 students, limited course offerings, and outdated facilities. “A firm of consultants estimated that it would take $17 million to make facilities fit for its current number of students,” the article stated, “as well as a $50 million investment to accommodate 1,200 students.” Much has changed over the past dozen-plus years. As of fall 2018, more

May 22, 2019

Michael C. Mack

Moving Past the Silence: How Can We Actually Restore New Testament Christianity?

By Michael C. Mack “Have we to any great extent restored New Testament Christianity?” Christian Standard editor Burris Butler asked that intriguing question 65 years ago . . .  and we’re still asking it today. Butler’s assessment of the situation in 1954 may seem harsh. He said, A big eloquent silence is the kindest answer we can give to this question. Here and there a life thoroughly committed to the Son of God has shone out like a bright light in the darkness. Now and then a local congregation has given a hint of its spiritual potentialities. But on the

May 22, 2019

Christian Standard

We Believe Jesus Is Lord

By John Caldwell The first song I ever learned was “Jesus Loves Me.” The first Bible verse I memorized was John 3:16. I preached my first sermon on that same text; it lasted 10 minutes. When I began my ministry with the infant Kingsway Christian Church, my first sermon was simply entitled “Jesus.” When I retired from that ministry 36 years later, my sermon was “It’s Still Jesus.” If you call me a “Jesus freak,” I’ll consider it a badge of honor. But who is this Jesus? The answer to that question is more important than anything else. Jesus raised

May 22, 2019

Jim Estep

What Is the Restoration Movement?

By Jim Estep The United States is becoming increasingly divided politically. Conservatives keep moving further to the right, liberals are gravitating toward the left, and those in the center are stretched between the two. It’s similar to what has happened to the Restoration Movement. A Formula for Effectiveness When I attempt to describe the Restoration Movement to someone, I draw on this formula: Biblical Authority + Church Unity → Global Disciple-Making The Restoration Movement affirms biblical authority and binds it to a strong commitment to church unity (beyond the level of unity by agreement), all for the sake of making

May 22, 2019

Christian Standard

We Believe in the Supernatural

By David Faust TV sportscaster Al Michaels uttered one of the most memorable lines in broadcasting history during the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. As America’s young hockey team skated toward a 4-3 win over the heavily-favored Soviet squad, Michaels blurted out, “Do you believe in miracles? Yes!” An underdog victory in a sporting event doesn’t compare to parting the Red Sea, but if someone asks, “Do you believe in the miracles described in the Bible?” my answer is a resounding yes! Churches devoted to Restoration Movement ideals such as “where the Bible speaks, we speak,” give that same

May 22, 2019

Christian Standard

Daryl Reed: Building Bridges for the Next Generation

By Melissa Wuske “I’m the grandson of a preacher,” says Daryl Reed, “so I always had it in my mind that it’d be cool one day to be a preacher.” When it came time for college, however, “I really didn’t want to go to any preaching school or seminary, because . . . I thought I was still too cool for that,” he laughs. This isn’t a story about youthful overconfidence, though; Reed was following the example of earlier generations of his family, and now he’s helping subsequent generations of young people live it. “My grandfather was a reluctant preacher,”

April 25, 2019

Christian Standard

God’s Love for a Lost World

We continue our monthly series of excerpts from Christian Standard, circa 1909. The magazine devoted one issue each month that year to articles of particular interest to our movement. Today we feature a sermon by Barton W. Stone, who allied with Alexander Campbell to form the Restoration Movement (aka, the Stone-Campbell Movement). No date is attached to this sermon, which we will prune some, as it is quite long. Here’s Barton W. Stone (1772–1844): _ _ _ God’s Love for a Lost World A Sermon by Barton W. Stone (Published April 10, 1909; p. 6) The love of God is

March 20, 2019

Michael C. Mack

Two Vital Preaching Principles

By Michael C. Mack We decided to focus on “biblical preaching” for this year™s annual Easter issue. The need is as great as ever to “preach the Word.” I hope this issue serves as a sort of “preaching guide” for our readers. Four of our feature articles provide powerful, practical, thought-provoking principles for preaching. (Amazingly, alliteration is not one of them.) Our e2 and Metrics columns also focus on preaching this month. We seek to restore, among several things, biblical preaching. To that end, I™d like to consider two vital preaching principles I don™t hear discussed much. Perhaps we take these

March 7, 2019

Christian Standard

Restorer of Gospel Evangelism

As promised last week, here is an article about Walter Scott by Enos E. Dowling, who was then serving as librarian of the School of Religion at Butler University in Indianapolis. This article is from January 27, 1945. Dowling begins the article by describing what some call “the most important sermon ever delivered on American soil.” _ _ _ Restorer of Gospel Evangelism Walter Scott Logically Comes First in a Series on ‘Great Evangelists of the Restoration Movement’ By Enos E. Dowling January 27, 1945 Every seat in the meetinghouse of the Baptist church was filled. Many stood around the

March 1, 2019

Christian Standard

The Most Comprehensive and Accurate List of Christian Churches and Churches of Christ Available Anywhere

UPDATE/MAY 18: The ChurchLink database is in the final testing phase. We hope to have it up and running—and ready for you to use—within the next few days. Thank you for your patience and understanding. ____________ (Christian Standard’s article from the April issue) The Center for Church Leadership and Christian Standard Media Partner to Produce an Updated—and Updatable—Digital Database By Jim Nieman  It’s taken longer than either the Center for Church Leadership or Christian Standard Media had hoped or previously promised, but a partnership to provide an updated—and updatable—online database of Christian churches and churches of Christ called ChurchLink should

February 28, 2019

Christian Standard

Have We Restored New Testament Christianity?

In his editorial of February 20, 1954 — 65 years ago — Christian Standard editor Burris Butler shared a rather harsh assessment with readers. _ _ _ This Is News (an editorial) February 20, 1954 When members of a local church recently pledged themselves to practice the Golden Rule for one month, the story was carried in newspapers across the land. Why? What was the “man bites dog” factor that made this experiment in Christian living noteworthy? The Golden Rule is only a small part of the teaching of Jesus. It is just a fraction of the Sermon on the Mount.

February 27, 2019

Christian Standard

Kent E. Fillinger

Christianity in Confusion: What Happens When We Forgo Reading the Directions

By Kent E. Fillinger A year or so ago, one of my teenage daughters had several of her friends over for a sleepover. During the night, the girls decided to play a game. My daughter pulled Scattergories, which was new to her, out of the closet, and in the girls’ rush to play, they decided to forego reading the directions. Instead, they came up with a way to play based on what they thought made sense. Not reading the directions first resulted in a hodgepodge game with no winner. There were a few arguments along the way, due to the

February 25, 2019

Jerry Harris

Our Move to Not-for-Profit

By Jerry Harris It happened quietly in 2018. The owner of Christian Standard and The Lookout took on not-for-profit status for the first time ever. For about 150 years, the magazines were guided by Standard Publishing, which did business like most of the working world . . . as a for-profit. The company encouraged churches to buy and pass out their magazines for free and to purchase their books and other helps for teaching. That system endured for years, even as the business was bought and sold four times. Then, in early 2017, a church-centric organization purchased the magazines, and

Help Keep Christian Standard Free & Accessible with a Tax Deductible Donation

We can do more together!

Every gift makes a difference!

No, thank you.
100% secure transactions - receipts provided.
Does Your Church Want to Support Christian Standard?

Would your church consider including support for Christian Standard in its annual missions budget? Your support would help us not only continue the 160-year legacy of this unifying ministry, but also expand the free resources, cooperative opportunities, and practical guidance we provide to strengthen churches in the U.S. and around the world.

We can do more together!

Every gift makes a difference!

No, thank you.
100% secure transactions - receipts provided.
Secret Link