“Church Growth” has become the byword for evangelism everywhere today. The Church Growth model is almost universally applied, regardless of theology or denomination. All church activity is measured in Church Growth categories. The Church Growth model for evangelism involves the…
Tag: church
Charles Finney
Friend of Foe? The most successful advocate of Arminianism in America was not Jacobus Arminius (1560-1609), but Charles Finney (1792-1875). Because The Works of Arminius (Baker Book House, reprinted 1996) are highly intellectual and academic — bordering on the arcane,…
Feminine Mystique
I grew up and was educated during the blossom of the feminine spirit. My years in seminary witnessed a vicious attack on everything masculine — including pronouns! Ordinary sentence structure was convoluted beyond common sense and the basic rules of…
Congregationalism
A Brief History of Congregationalism ©1998 Phillip A. Ross Renewal is often the rekindling of a former glory, and the former success of Congregationalism was indeed great. Yet, history does not travel backwards. The majority of contemporary Congregational church members…
What Is A Church
The church is not a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. The IRS does not define a church, God does. The church is the people of God. The church exists in and through Jesus Christ, and so is a distinctive New Testament reality.…
What Is A Christian?
What makes a person Christian? It sounds like a simple question, but it has been complicated by sin and history. Jesus’ first sermon set the standard — “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). Clearly, Christians…
What Is A Christian – Part 2
Part 2 If you have not read Part 1, please do so first. It sounds like a simple question, but it has been complicated by sin and history. The first and most inclusive definition of a Christian is a person…
Christianity in China
Official Chinese surveys now show that nearly one in three Chinese describe themselves as religious, an astonishing figure for an officially atheist country, where religion was banned until three decades ago.
God’s Promises
“…because God’s promises pertain to those who agree to live in obedience to God’s will and to those who do not, it pertains to everyone alive.”
Apostolic Baptism – Introduction
If the church is going to get beyond the baptism wars, the whole issue must be reframed. The best minds have gone round and round about credo (believer’s) baptism versus paedo (infant) baptism to the point that we must remember…