August 3, 2023
In 2012, Daniel Overdorf and two friends examined 250 Christian Church and Church of Christ websites to determine how they presented their view of baptism to the public. Overdorf offers good suggestions for churches.
May 1, 2020
By Michael D. McCann When consumed, it hydrates. When boiled, it disinfects. When we bathe in it, our body is cleansed. This simple combination of hydrogen and oxygen, water truly is a precious, versatile commodity. Similarly, the waters of baptism provide the participant with unimaginable benefits. Baptism floods the spirit with divine blessings. And yet baptism is distinct from our daily uses of water that require no special qualification. Atheist and Christian, male and female, king and servant—we all receive the same benefit when water is consumed. But in baptism, the water produces powerful effects promised only to those who
January 29, 2019
By Jeffrey Derico Two critical challenges facing churches and their leaders today are to identify hurdles that undermine relevant ministry and then to eliminate them. The stakes are high because failure to overcome either hurdle will result in countless people never hearing the gospel, and eventually that church will permanently close its doors—and neither of these are acceptable outcomes. Yet both are becoming more common as churches across America struggle to effectively live out the Great Commission and then decline to the point they can no longer afford to pay the bills. During nearly two decades of teaching and consulting
December 14, 2010
Read “The Tyranny of the Paradigm (Part 1)” Read “The Tyranny of the Paradigm (Part 3)” _________________ By Jack W. Cottrell Previously I noted that Michael Denton speaks of how modern science regards Darwinian evolution as the determinative paradigm or controlling interpretive principle to which all scientific data must be made to conform””even when the data are in conflict with the paradigm. He calls this faulty methodology the “priority of the paradigm” (Ã la Thomas Kuhn). In that earlier essay I applied this concept to certain faulty theological systems, which likewise are distorted by the tyranny of their respective paradigms.
March 8, 2009
By Mark S. Krause This article is no longer available online, but all of the articles about baptism that appeared in the March 1 and 8, 2009, issues of CHRISTIAN STANDARD–plus a bonus article–are available for purchase as a single, redisigned, easy-to-read and easy-to-use downloadable resource/pdf (a fuller explanation is below).  Baptism: 7 Practical Perspectives Item 02973 “¢Â $2.99   What does the Bible teach about baptism? What does baptism symbolize and what does it accomplish? Why is there so much disagreement? Seven writers offer their insights on this controversial but fundamental topic in this 14-page resource that””with the
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