Articles for tag: David A. Fiensy

October 10, 2016

Christian Standard

My Nation Under God

Four problems with nationalism for the Christian By David A. Fiensy I suppose when a small country church invites you to fill their pulpit on a Sunday near the Fourth of July, you should expect some flag-waving. But what I experienced was way over the top, in my opinion. The song leader led us in patriotic songs exclusively. At various times during the service, he seemed to choke up when referring to the American flag. When it came time for the Lord”s Supper, he apologized for “breaking the mood.” After the Communion service, he sang as a solo, “I”m Proud

October 24, 2014

Christian Standard

Books for Bible Students: The Book of Acts . . . the Stories and the Issues

By David A. Fiensy The book of Acts is a richly nuanced story of the spread of the Christian faith from Jerusalem to Rome. Along the way, the preachers of the gospel cross several cultures and subcultures. The fascinating part is viewing through Luke”s camera the way the proclaimers of the faith adapted the timeless message to different situations and ethnic groups. What the reader needs, then, is a guide through these cultures in order to understand both the events of the early church and how Luke presents those events to the reader. The book I have selected that does

May 22, 2014

Christian Standard

The Other Side of the Table

By David A. Fiensy I”ve served on the ministerial staff of five churches (four of them part-time), and I must say I”ve never had a bad experience with the elders. One hears some horror stories from other ministers, but God has blessed. As a matter of fact, I can remember sitting across the table from elders during meetings and thinking, If I am ever an elder, I hope I can have this guy”s openness to change or that man”s levelheaded understanding of things. Well, now I am sitting on the other side of the table; I am an elder. Things

October 7, 2011

Christian Standard

Jobian Musings

By David A. Fiensy The psalmist wrote that the righteous person “meditates on his law day and night” (Psalm 1:2). A wise rabbi advised, “Turn it and turn it.”1 (That is, turn the Old Testament law over and over in your mind.) Those authors believed that God speaks to us through the Bible in new ways when we reflect on it deeply and repeatedly. Søren Kierkegaard once retold the story of Abraham”s offering of Isaac (Genesis 22), each time with new details and from different vantage points.2 In this way, he brought insight to a troublesome biblical teaching. Each successive

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