Blog - Page 85 of 318 - John H Armstrong

The Will of the Majority, the Rights of the Minority and the Bill of Rights

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:25-05:00May 14th, 2012|Categories: America and Americanism, Politics|

In my college days I took one of the toughest undergraduate classes offered at Wheaton College. It was a course on constitutional law taught by a rigorous and demanding professor who knew the history of the debates very well. The class was a challenge and getting a decent grade was really hard work. But I believe that course may have done as much to shape my view of America as any single college course I ever took. More than forty years later I remain grateful for this class. It has helped me understand America in a way that I think far too few Christians get, especially in the heat of modern debates over political opinions, left or right.

I learned then, and have seen since, that debates about the interpretation of the Bill of Rights are common in modern American political and social debate. Ever since I can remember we have debated judicial activism. Whether from the political left […]

The Stain That Stays: How Should We Respond to the Sexual Misconduct of Pastors/Leaders?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:25-05:00May 11th, 2012|Categories: Ethics, Sexuality|

What should happen to pastors who fall into sexual misconduct? Should they return, repentant, to their pulpits/leadership within weeks or months – or should they return at all?

Around the world sexual misconduct is defeating ministers and destroying ministries. As the numbers of fallen leaders grow it is crucial to know what should happen to them – for their good and for the good of the Church. Does the Bible and church history give us any help with these kinds of questions?

In the 1990s, when sexual misconduct among some rather well-known evangelical pastors in America reached major proportions, I began to question the practices of various churches and organizations in how they handled a major moral problem. I also studied abundant evidence that suggested this problem was massive in scale and scope. Very few were interested then but the evidence I gave then has only grown more obvious over time. We have a crisis […]

Growing Into the Mystery That Is God

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:25-05:00May 10th, 2012|Categories: God's Character, Mysticism, Spirituality|

The apostle John says, “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known” (John 1:18).

God’s people in the Old Testament age were like us in their deep desire to see and know God. In the book of Exodus, God forbade the making of images, not because God is remote from us, but rather because no words, no concepts, no images and no power of imagination can define or describe God. Images can only give an impression that you understand or comprehend the incomprehensible. That you can limit the limitless. Israel was not permitted to see the form of God thus God spoke from the fire or from the cloud.

However, in the opening words of the Epistle to the Hebrews we read:

¹ In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, ² but in these last days he has […]

The Christian Mystical Tradition: Its Value and Place

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:27-05:00May 9th, 2012|Categories: Mysticism, Spirituality|

In the New Testament the Greek word for mystery, musterion, occurs twenty-eight times. Twenty-one are in the writings of the Apostle Paul. Mystery is vital to Christian faith and understanding. Yet the concept has been frequently misunderstood too.

The best theology has always maintained that what is known must be balanced by what is not clearly known. God is a mysterium trememdum et fascinans, compelling the worshiper with awe toward him but remaining ultimately beyond the grasp of human reason and imagination. The so-called mystical tradition, which uses all the available means to approach God (reason, prayer, meditation, spiritual imagination, the sacraments, etc.), finds its biblical roots in a text like Colossians 2:2–3:

²My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, ³in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

It was once thought that Paul […]

The Constant Struggle for a Proper Understanding of the Separation of Church and State

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:31-05:00May 8th, 2012|Categories: Separation of Church & State|

A growing number of Americans, according to a recent Pew Research Center poll, say that mixing religion in politics makes them uneasy. In 2010 29% said that there was too much religious talk from those in political office. 37% said there was too little. In both the 2010 and 2012 polls 25% said the amount was just about right. The numbers are almost reversed in a March 2012 survey. 38% now say that the mixture of religion with politics is too high and 30% said it was too little.

There are several ways to read this data. One obvious response is to recognize the obvious. We are in an election year during which some Republicans made religion a central part of their rhetoric during the primaries. I honestly expect this to tone down quite a bit during the general election between Governor Romney and President Obama. Both seem far more moderate and less likely to continually engage in religous […]

Why I Am Persuaded the ACT 3 Cohort Groups Will Help in the Making of Unique Leaders

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:33-05:00May 7th, 2012|Categories: ACT 3, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, Spirituality|

The ACT 3 Missional-Ecumenical Cohort groups are designed to provide a small group environment where learning is genuinely linked with community. There are numerous ways to teach and each way has its own merit. But not all forms of teaching produce the same fruitfulness. I have taken thousands of classroom hours over the course of my lifetime. I have heard thousands of sermons. I have taught, as a graduate level instructor, at least several hundred students. I have also preached several thousand sermons. I believe that what I remember best is from the material I taught that involved me the most directly in the learning and teaching experience itself.

In forming the ACT 3 M-E Cohort groups I gave a great deal of thought to educational research about learning. We know, for example, that we remember about 10% of what we hear. This percentage rises to 30% when we hear and see. This is why educators utilize […]

How St. Benedict's Rule Transforms Daily Life

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:33-05:00May 4th, 2012|Categories: ACT 3, Missional-Ecumenism, Mysticism, Spirituality|

St. Benedict’s Rule has remained popular for centuries. I believe that this is true for one very simple reason. It answers a question that serious Christians all ask. “If the power and presence of God are real and effective, what does this mean for human experience in day-to-day life?” Put another way, “What does Christ offer to men and women and what does he ask from them in return?” How do we recognize him, know him, respond to him?

People, including most Christians, have various images in their minds about God. Some think of him as entirely and always benevolent while others think of him primarily as wrathful. Some want to know what God will do for them while others wonder what God wants from them. The real question, I believe, is this: “Can all the holy aspects of the divine Being somehow be reconciled in our minds so that our hearts are warmed by the interior reality of […]

Keeping Spiritual Formation at the Center of Missional-Ecumenism

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:33-05:00May 3rd, 2012|Categories: ACT 3, Leadership, Missional-Ecumenism, Spirituality|

When the first ACT 3 Cohort group finished its intensive phase on April 17 the 13 members who graduated did a discernment process so that the group could give me feedback about what could be improved. The Cohort includes 36 hours of time in the group that is spread out over eight months and concentrated in four days of meetings with me. There are three core commitments that are the backbone of the process. These are:

1. You must desire to develop your interior life in a rich texture of spiritual formation that draws from the whole Christian tradition so that you can learn how to intentionally seek after God with your whole heart, mind, soul and strength (Matthew 22:37).

2. You must enter into the unity prayer of our Lord Jesus (John 17:20-23), a prayer for our relational oneness, and strive with all your heart to truly […]

"To Boldly Go Where No Man Has Gone Before"

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:33-05:00May 2nd, 2012|Categories: Missional-Ecumenism, The Church, The Future|

"Where no man has gone before" was originally made popular through its use in the title of most episodes of the original Star Trek television series. Every Trekkie knows it well. I am no Trekkie but even I have heard it and used it. The phrase refers to the mission of the original starship Enterprise. The complete introductory sequence, narrated by well-known actor William Shatner at the beginning of most episodes of Star Trek, said it this way:

Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.

I was reminded of this phrase last week. It made me take notice again that truly following Jesus, especially in this new century, […]

The Misuse of Free Speech is Harmful

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:16:33-05:00May 1st, 2012|Categories: America and Americanism, Current Affairs, Islam|

I am a huge defender of free speech. It is a core value and a cherished right of all Americans. I believe it is a double-edged sword but one that should be protected. Now and then we have obvious examples of provocative speech that causes social harm, even death outside of America. The line here is very thin and it is often extremely hard to grasp in terms of distinctions and nuances. It is this particular freedom that the Supreme Court has often had to protect by new rulings and decisions that create more misunderstanding. I am personally thankful that they remain vigilant about free speech.

I thought of this recently when Pastor Terry Jones, minister of a 25-member congregation in Gainesville, Florida, publicly burned a copy of the Qur’an last Saturday, April 28. Jones' public burning followed a personal meeting and intense conversation just one day earlier with representatives of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), including the executive director, […]