Blog - Page 154 of 318 - John H Armstrong

My Three Conversions

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:58-05:00May 17th, 2010|Categories: Missional-Ecumenism, Personal, Reformed Christianity, Spirituality, The Church, Unity of the Church|

Conversion is an often misunderstood word. In English it refers to a changing of one’s direction, or of one’s faith. Literally, Webster says, conversion means “to change from one belief, religion, doctrine and/or opinion to another.” Many of us have undergone some kind of conversion. Most of us have had more than one conversion experience. We have seen a truth so powerfully revealed to us by the Holy Spirit that we had to change our belief and practice. This is a conversion. Christianity is rooted, by the work of the Holy Spirit, in conversion. This is why this type of language is so common among Christians the world over.

The New Testament speaks of conversion to faith in Christ and it clearly speaks of this work as past, present and future. We have been saved, we are being saved and we will finally and ultimately be saved. I experienced the first of these tenses decades ago and I am experiencing the second one even today. The third is future for me and all who read this blog if you are a follower of Jesus.

[…]

Word and Spirit: The Missing Key to the Liberal and Conservative Split

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:58-05:00May 16th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Biblical Theology, Hermeneutics, Spirituality, The Church|

The famous Bible teacher G. Campbell Morgan once said the whole truth does not lie in “It is written,” but rather in “It is written” and “Again it is written.” By this Morgan wanted to make what I believe is a vital point. The second text must be placed over against the first or we lose symmetry. I believe the Reformers understood this as Word and Spirit theology. Just as the right wing needs the left to fly so the left needs the right. A. W. Tozer once said that “Many of the doctrinal divisions among the churches are the result of a blind and stubborn insistence that truth has but one wing. Truth has two wings” (The Incredible Christian).

For many years I have been persuaded that truth, in order to be really and properly understood, must be lived. And to be lived it must be processed by the power of the Holy Spirit. […]

So What Are You?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:58-05:00May 15th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Biblical Theology, Church Tradition, Science, The Church|

I began three days ago asking the question: “Are you liberal or conservative?” I suppose I think about this question more than most of my readers. One reason may be that a writer becomes the public target of critics from both sides of so many debates. Another might be the presence of the nearly ubiquitous profile page on Facebook. I read these pages almost every day and see people list themselves as conservative, liberal or something else. My Facebook profile says that my political views are independent and my religious views are described as follows: “A Jesus follower rooted in the ecumenical confessions and creeds of the earliest Christian churches.” I have stuck with that for several years and think I will let it stand still.

I read a post recently that actually attacked people for referring to themselves as “Jesus followers.” I was surprised since I use the term a lot these days. But then […]

The Response of Conservatism

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:59-05:00May 14th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Church History, Current Affairs, The Church, Unity of the Church|

Yesterday I wrote about the rise of liberal theology in the nineteenth century, first in Europe and then in America. The most noteworthy intellectual response to these developments, at least in America, came from the strong opposition of a Presbyterian pastor and professor, J. Gresham Machen (1881-1937). Machen graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1905 and then did postgraduate work in Gottingen and Marburg (1905-06), experiencing the teaching of European liberal theology firsthand. From 1906 until 1929 Machen taught at Princeton Seminary. Ordained as a minister in 1914 Machen was both temperamentally and theologically a strong advocate for strict subscription to the Westminster Confession of Faith. (I had a professor at Wheaton College in 1969-70 who had studied under Machen at Princeton. Through this esteemed professor I heard a lot of great stories that got me interested in Machen as a man and in the various conflicts of that era. My professor loved Machen, and generally agreed […]

The Birth of Christian Liberalism

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:59-05:00May 13th, 2010|Categories: Church History, Religion, The Church|

As I noted yesterday the term liberal and liberalism became particularly connected with Christian theology and practice in the late eighteenth-century. The philosophy of the Enlightenment began to influence how Christians thought about the faith and the Scriptures. Old assumptions were challenged and new ideas were entertained like never before. The world was changing and the church would change with it. For some this picture is all dark. For others it is all light and good. For many of us we just wish the faith could be considered with less passion and heat, thus with more love and openness to people and their ideas. But most of us could name some pretty important doctrinal issues that are at stake where Christian liberalism has worked its influence deeply into the life and thought of the church. This is why we cannot embrace its orientation so easily. The problem here is that we are not “revisionists” or “minimalists” when it comes to orthodoxy and the core of the faith. We want to be sure that the foundations are not destroyed while we still truly engage […]

Am I a Conservative or a Liberal?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:59-05:00May 12th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Church History, The Church|

Of all the labels that we commonly use none are more frequently invoked, it seems to me, than conservative and liberal. Most of us want to know, “Is he a conservative?” Or, perhaps, “Is he (really) that liberal?” Whether the debate is about politics or theology the same phenomenon is common. Before I even tackle this question, with regard to myself, I need to provide a few definitions and some background.

The word conservative, used in a broadly understood way, refers to someone who preserves or conserves. A conservative, notes Webster’s New World College Dictionary (1997), “tends to preserve established traditions or institutions and to resist or oppose changes in these (e.g. conservative politics, conservative art).” I believe the same definition works for the way the term is broadly used in our religious debates. A conservative is moderate, generally cautious and desires to preserve belief and ritual with, at most, very modest adaptations.

The word liberal, in some ways, if a far more difficult word to define. Coming from the Latin liberalis and liber, which simply […]

Letters to God: How and Why Evangelical Movies Often Fail

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:59-05:00May 11th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Death, Film|

I am absolutely certain that many who read these blogs will like the new movie Letters to God. It is directed by David Nixon, the producer of the two highly successful films Facing the Giants and Fireproof. I am just as certain that others, who appreciate good film as art, and understand the medium in much the way I do, will find this new film a mixed-bag. Let me explain.

First, the story is quite good. It is actually rooted in a true story, with liberty taken to write the script. The film’s co-director, Patrick Doughtie lost his real-life son Tyler to cancer in 2005. He wrote the original screen play based upon this experience. I think that this explains why Letters works in a deeply personal way. The material is moving and the viewer, especially a sincere Christian viewer, will be easily drawn into this story. Further, this film is technically […]

The Servant Church and the Kingdom of God

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:59-05:00May 10th, 2010|Categories: Evangelism, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, The Church, Unity of the Church|

Why does your congregation exist? Is your church in your local community to attract people so that it can grow larger and larger? Is it there to “meet (felt) needs” or to serve families who want to be a part of your church? Or is it there to minister to various age groups who need a demographic that fits with their preferences? Or what about this one: Is your church there to advance your denomination or tribe? Maybe you think it is there to hold forth the truth. (Paul does call it “the pillar and foundation of the truth.”)There is some truth in all of these, and much more truth in some than in others. But I believe they all fail to answer this question in a proper way.

Your local church is there to serve the kingdom of God, to be the kingdom in local circumscription to use another phrase I learned many years ago. The church is the serving community that exists for the reign of Christ (kingdom) and thus it is for others. In fact, the […]

Reflections on a First Communion Service

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:59-05:00May 9th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Church Tradition, Sacraments|

A few weeks ago my wife and I witnessed a very moving first communion service at our local Lutheran congregation. I am not a Lutheran by denomination but my Reformed Church congregation is quite far away from home. As an ordained minister in the Reformed Church in America (RCA) I am a minister of Word and Sacrament and can serve in an (ELCA) Lutheran Church like the one I attend near my home. We visited this church five years ago this July and then became associate members shortly after getting involved. We have come to love the people of this church and feel very much at home there. When Anita’s mom died a few weeks ago we were so completely supported by this church that it deeply moved us. On the three previous occasions of the passing of one of our parents no church ever responded to us with such support and love as Lutheran Church of the Master. Both the pastoral team and the people were wonderfully Christ-like and gave us such help and love.

Two years ago, […]

N. T. Wright on the Gospel and Our Culture

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:59-05:00May 8th, 2010|Categories: Evangelism, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, Renewal, Spirituality, Unity of the Church|

Several weeks ago I mentioned the Wheaton College Theology Conference (April 16-17) which featured the theology and teaching of Bishop N. T. Wright. I directed you to the Wheaton College Web site where you could hear the entire conference on audio or even watch it on video. One of the gifts given to participants at this conference was a written copy of a commencement address that Bishop Wright gave at Nashotah House in Wisconsin in 2006. This powerful and enriching address is also available on video online. It provides a superb opportunity to see and hear how Tom Wright deals with gospel and culture issues in a powerful and effective way. I share it because I think this resource is so valuable for all who share my vision of missional-ecumenism.