Blog - Page 133 of 318 - John H Armstrong

What is the Greatest Enemy of Christian Unity?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:05-05:00December 6th, 2010|Categories: ACT 3, Missional-Ecumenism, Unity of the Church|

I am convinced that one of our greatest liberties, the freedom to practice religion and faith openly, is also one of the greatest weakness to be found in the American church. We divide the church endlessly because of tribalism and sectarianism. Indeed, denominationalism is a lot more about sociology and power than it is about truth and theology. In today’s video on the book Your Church Is Too Small I address this problem. A fuller and longer treatment can be found in the book.

Pray and Speak Up for Christians in Iraq

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:06-05:00December 5th, 2010|Categories: The Persecuted Church, The War on Terrorism|

On October 31 two priests and 51 parishioners were murdered by Islamic terrorists in Baghdad at a Syriac Catholic Cathedral. The primary reason for this attack seems to have been the determination of certain militant Islamic forces to prevent a religiously plural central government in Iraq. Pope Benedict XVI called these attacks “savage” and “absurd.” The descriptions of what happened, even to children, are gruesome.

Joseph Kassab, executive director of the Chaldean Federation of America (CFA), the largest and oldest association of Chaldean organizations in the nation, said: “Iraqi Christians are being systematically murdered and driven from their homeland. This situation must, repeat must, be addressed by an international security coalition with members from Iraq, the U.S. and the U.N.”

Many Iraqi Christians believe their suffering is invisible to most Christians in the U.S. I have to agree. White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs issued a statement on this recent attack and did not even mention the cathedral or use the word Christian in condemning the attack. Several members […]

Cyber Church on Facebook

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:06-05:00December 4th, 2010|Categories: The Church, Web/Tech|

I guess I was not surprised by this but a recent article in the Reformed Church in America bulletin insert called “Today” told about a church in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey, that has begun a mid-week service for worship on Facebook. Yes, I am serious. You can check it out at www.facebook.com and then search for First Reformed Cyber Church and you will find it. I spent some time there to get a feel for what the church is really doing online.

Pastor Dianna Smith says “Worship at First Reformed Cyber Church is a very Reformed liturgical process.” She says this is just a new format that is being used to connect with younger people. Smith posts Scripture passages, music and videos, as well as litanies, all ahead of time. When the service begins she then guides those who take part from link to link. She will direct participants to read the Scripture text on their own and then, when they are finished, to respond with an “Amen” or by clicking “Like.” By this she knows when to proceed. Sermons are abbreviated and thus usually a […]

Becoming Aware of Our Need to Grow Spiritually

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:06-05:00December 3rd, 2010|Categories: Education, Spirituality|

Most of us do not become truly aware of the need to grow spiritually until we are at least in our adolescence. Spirituality is not child’s play. Spiritual growth is a process, like everything else in our lives. It develops in phases. It is frequently activated when we face a crisis, a trial, or a great test. Maybe a tragedy hits us or an issue that we cannot cope with in our own strength. Whatever it is we become aware that we need God and his grace. If we try to force this on children prematurely I am convinced that we will do serious harm.

It is right and good that we teach children about God. It is right that we teach them the Bible, especially the Gospel stories about Jesus. It is also right that we raise their curiosity. It is even right that we catechize them in sound doctrinal understanding of the faith. What is wrong is an attempt to push them beyond where they are […]

The Beginning of True Spirituality

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:06-05:00December 2nd, 2010|Categories: Personal, Spirituality|

Yesterday I wrote about the danger of theology. What is truly needed is not a profound academic theological system that we can master or comprehend. What is needed to be godly is deep, true, vital spiritual life. This true spirituality, as the late Francis Schaeffer called it decades ago when evangelicals did not talk this way, always begins with the simple recognition that we need God in our lives. It begins when we place ourselves in his loving hands with complete trust. We can do this because we have become confident, in the revelation of God in Jesus Christ, that the Father truly loves us and nothing can change that fact. “God is love” (1 John 4:8).

The principal reason that we cannot rest in the love of God is that we are too conscious of our own sins and failures. No matter what we tell ourselves something inside of us keeps saying, like an alarm system, “You have no right to God’s love so forget it!” But […]

The Danger of Theology

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:07-05:00December 1st, 2010|Categories: Christ/Christology, The Christian Minister/Ministry, The Church, Theology|

One can find several different dictionary definitions of theology. Perhaps the best comprehensive answer is that theology is “the rational and systematic study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truth.” More particularly, for the Christian, theology is a situated system of teachings; "Roman Catholic theology" or “Protestant Theology,” etc. In an academic context theology is a profession acquired by specialized courses in religion and Christian studies (usually taught at a college or seminary); e.g. "He/she studied theology at Fuller Theological Seminary.”

Now, theology is a needed and useful discipline. I am not only committed to theological study but I believe it is a properly recommended course of study for ministers, priests and many non-clerical leaders (elders, deacons, teachers, etc.) In the most broad sense everyone who thinks about God at all is a theologian, professional or not.

But here’s the problem—theology is often very cold and sterile, especially when it is limited to intellectual forms and human systems of thought. What changes all this is when theology serves as a means to understanding God. In this instance it can result in a healthy […]

One Hit From Home: My Bit Role in a Film

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:08-05:00November 30th, 2010|Categories: Baseball, Film, Personal|

I mentioned to a few of you late last year that two good friends asked me to play the role of a minister in a movie they were making. Most of you know how much I love movies and film-making. I have led seminars and discussion with Christians in the industry and now get to have a small role in a new film to be released in a few days. My friends, Dave Stone and Johnny Meier, are co-stars and co-directors of the new movie: “One Hit From Home.” (Yes, it has a baseball theme. Are you really that surprised?)

This film is ready for public release. An exclusive one-time screening will take place in suburban Chicago on Wednesday, December 8, at 7 p.m. I will be there with Dave and Johnny and other friends for this one-time premier in Chicago. I would love to see some of you attend. The cost is $5 at the door.

This screening will be at:

Ogden 6 Movie Theater

1227 E. Ogden Ave

Naperville, IL

For group rates or for more information contact Joe@gloryroadfilms.com

Film Synopsis –

"Baseball superstar Jimmy Easton returns home after a […]

Illustrations of Missional-Ecumenism at Work

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:08-05:00November 29th, 2010|Categories: ACT 3, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism|

When I wrote Your Church Is Too Small I wanted to make sure the reader got some sense of what missional-ecumenism actually looks like in practice. While this vision is fresh it is not new. Churches, ministerial association, missions and leaders of all types have come together to experience and practice this vision of the church in mission. I devote chapter eighteen in my book to this subject and provide ten illustrations. Since the book was published, in April, I have discovered at least a dozen more illustrations of this vision in action.

ACT 3 exists to “equip leaders for unity in Christ’s mission.” Let us help you, where you are, to grasp this vision and put it into practice. If you’ve read the book then you will better understand how we can serve you as a partner in mission.

Little Town of Bethlehem

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:08-05:00November 28th, 2010|Categories: Film, Islam, Israel|

Opinions range from one extreme to the other on how to find “peace in the Middle East.” Many Christians actually think peace is impossible since the great prophetic clock is ticking down day-by-day to the return of Christ. Others, especially among some liberal critics, think the single solution is for Israel to stop its unjust practices and cease to be a state at all. Still others see the political solution in a “two-state” formula that recognizes a Palestinian State. I share this view politically but I think this process is far more complex than any single political solution.

A recently released DVD, Little Town of Bethlehem, brings forward a different approach, that of a growing non-violent movement modeled on the approach of Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

One of the leaders of the non-violent approach is Palestinian Christian Sami Awad, whose grandfather was killed in Jerusalem in 1948. Today Sami Awad is the executive director of the Holy Land Trust, a non-profit organization that promote Palestinian independence through […]

A Common Mistake Made in the Pursuit of Holiness

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:08-05:00November 27th, 2010|Categories: Spirituality|

Popular Catholic author Fr. Joseph F. Girzone, in his first non-fiction book Never Alone (1994,) wrote:

The mistake many people make when they start trying to be holy is they multiply religious practices and burden themselves with a host of activities, attending endless religious services, thinking that the more good things they do, the more spiritual they will become. Spirituality doesn't work that way. The spiritual life is something that grows slowly, imperceptibly, way beneath the surface of our lives. Pressuring ourselves to do all kinds of nice things for people and performing a multitude of good works does not make us holy. It can, if we are not careful, make us extremely nervous and pressure us into commitments that can overload our already overburdened lives (14).

I do not think this is, somehow or the other, a Catholic problem. This is a universal problem among all Christians, myself very much included. Over the course of my life I have added this activity and that new thing thinking that […]