Articles for tag: Conventions

October 23, 2014

Christian Standard

Books for Bible Students: Read These Books to Understand the Old Testament

By Gary Hall The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament by John H. Walton, Victor H. Matthews, and Mark W. Chavalas (Intervarsity Press, 2000) The cultural and historical background of the Old Testament is a mystery to most Christians, leading to many misinterpretations. This book begins with Genesis 1 and goes through the entire Old Testament, section by section, giving crucial sociocultural, historical, and geographical information. It is a treasury of facts that brings the text to life and enables Bible students to penetrate many of the barriers to Old Testament understanding. It is well informed, accurate, easy to use,

September 27, 2014

Christian Standard

Facing the Darkness as Children of Light

By Paul E. Boatman The words pierced even though they were not a surprise. “Mrs. Boatman, you have persistent and pervasive memory loss of an Alzheimer”s type.” Alzheimer”s! We did not want to hear the “A” word. Alzheimer”s has a dark, hopeless sound to it. My wife, Mary, had been exhibiting patterns of memory loss for a couple of years. The symptoms were occasionally amusing, frequently frustrating, and increasingly intrusive.  Our initial pursuit of answers was not taken seriously. “We all have forgetfulness as we age.” “Maybe some of your drugs are having adverse side-effects.” (With a history of surgeries

April 6, 2014

Christian Standard

Does Everyone Worship?

By Ken E. Read “Want to see the next trend in worship?” It was a decade ago. My daughter started the video halfway through the song, with the camera sweeping across the crowd. They were certainly enthusiastic (“filled with God”), raising their arms and swaying as they pressed up near the stage and sang along with the contemporary band. Thousands of people in the crowd were singing full-voiced, their faces turned upward, arms extended skyward, and waving in united praise, their eyes gazing off into space while they sang. The camera changed to show the performers on the stage. I

January 23, 2014

Christian Standard

A Conversation with Randy Gariss

Interview by Jennifer Johnson Last time we talked, you”d just finished a sabbatical. How has it changed you and the church? We decided on my six-months sabbatical partly to give me prep time for the next five to eight years, because all leaders need some extended time to study and refill the well. But the other reason is no congregation accidentally gets younger. There are four of us on staff who had been here 25 years or longer, and that wasn”t setting us up for the future. Clearly, we”re not a “throw-out-the-old” type of church. But you only get younger

March 27, 2012

Christian Standard

Considering the Question of “˜Them” and “˜Us” and “˜Ours”

By Mark A. Taylor The spirit of the day was one of inclusiveness. “Denominationalism is dead.” “Sectarianism is to be shunned.” “People today are more interested in Jesus than any human hierarchy or divisions.” Hear, hear for the plea to be “Christians only.” But this discussion was not just about whom to treat as Christians, but also about whom to include in one of “our” meetings. And here opinions were not as uniform. If the meeting is by and for “us,” some wondered, shouldn”t those credentialed by the meeting planners be from among “us”? Their question of “them” and “us”

August 3, 2011

Christian Standard

An Embarrassment of Riches (Part 2: Four Popular Translations)

By Mark S. Krause Last week we looked at five factors that shape an English translation of the Bible: interpretation, version genealogy, translation theory, audience, and gender-neutral language. This week and next week, we will take a quick look at eight translations.   Popular English Translations There are too many English translations of the Bible to write about each one, but we will focus on a few. In each case, we will look at the presuppositions behind the translation, its audience, and a couple of test verses: Psalm 8:4 and Matthew 16:18. Psalm 8:4 is well-known for its ringing question,

April 15, 2011

Christian Standard

Trying to Keep Up with Books by “˜Us”

By LeRoy Lawson Superman on Earth: Reflections of a Fan Gary D. Robinson / Baltimore: PublishAmerica, 2010 Thoughtprints: Poems En Route Wilma Curtis Buckner / ©Wilma Buckner, 2009 Daily Disciple: A One-Year Devotional Guide Gary Holloway / Abilene: Leafwood Publishers, 2008 Steppes of Faith: Discovering God”s Goodness in Ukraine Janice Lemke / Purpose Press, 2010 Eyes of Integrity: The Porn Pandemic and How It Affects You Craig Gross and Jason Harper / Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2010 I remember grumbling with some fellow Christian church ministers many years ago that we did not seem to be a publishing fellowship. We

February 22, 2011

Christian Standard

We Have Met the Enemy

By Mark A. Taylor Jim Tune says in “Stake” that the NACC is better, but less necessary, than ever. His rationale resonates with that of Gary Weedman who contributed one of several “viewpoints” on the NACC for our September 21, 2008, issue. The NACC was created in 1927 as a reaction to what was seen as encroachment of liberal theology and of “open membership” practiced by missionaries. . . . The majority of the leaders of the International Convention . . . were seen to be supportive, or at least tolerant, of the theological liberalism and practice of open membership.

October 1, 2010

Christian Standard

We Have a Dream

By Dudley C. Rutherford At the midway point of Martin Luther King”s famous “I Have a Dream” speech on the footsteps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963, he mentioned the white people in attendance that day. Most are not aware there were many white people who participated in that momentous march on Washington, D.C., and others are even less aware that King addressed that segment of the crowd in his memorable monologue. In the midst of this poetic oration he says, “For many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize

September 22, 2010

Christian Standard

2010 NACC: We Can”t Say We Weren”t Warned

By Darrel Rowland First night, first message at this year”s North American Christian Convention, President Ben Cachiaras let us know that the week would be more about “afflicting the comfortable” than comforting the afflicted. Many of us had thought those square pieces of netting on our chairs that opening night at the Indiana Convention Center were some weird Hoosier way to save seats. Instead, they were a visible reminder from Cachiaras of Jesus” radical call to the first disciples to drop their nets and follow him to a place “beyond”””the convention”s theme””and of our need to do the same today.

September 21, 2010

Christian Standard

Special for Many Reasons

By Mark A. Taylor What made the North American Christian Convention this year so special? The question has more than one answer. Certainly, the theme itself struck a chord with many. These were not self-help sermons meant to calm their hearers. Instead, “Disturb me”””President Ben Cachiaras”s prayer for months before the convention””underscored every main session. His vision was not so much to encourage us where we are as to challenge us to go someplace we”ve never been. Listeners resonated with the possibility to be and do something new for God. This substance””both in content and in spirit””permeated the convention. Workshop

March 28, 2010

Christian Standard

Building Bonds Between Elders and Ministers (Part 2)

By Bob Russell In 1965, Butch Dabney served as chairman of the pulpit committee for the newly established Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. A few months before I was asked to preach a trial sermon, Butch approached the president of Cincinnati Bible Seminary and asked for the names of young preachers who had the potential to grow with the church. Butch said, “We want to hire a young man and we”re going to make him successful.” That phrase describes the attitude elders should have toward their preacher: one of their primary functions is to help make the preacher successful.

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