Blog - Page 165 of 318 - John H Armstrong

Please Stop the Interpretations of Divine (Secret) Providence

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 24th, 2010|Categories: Biblical Theology, Current Affairs, Hermeneutics|

If there is anything the most elemental study of the Bible, theology and church history will reveal it is the simple, but profound, truth that we have no business trying to explain divine providence in terms of what God is saying or doing in a catastrophe or tragedy. American history is, however, littered with preachers telling us what God was specifically saying to the world, or to some person or group of people, when a particular event took place. The greatest illustration of this problem occurred during the American Civil War. Abraham Lincoln was once asked, "Whose side is God on in the war?" He said he was not concerned with that question but rather with the question of whether or not he, that is Abraham Lincoln, was on God's side. That is the point!

Lincoln, not even a member of a Christian church, understood better than many ministers when to speak about providence, and how, and when to be quiet. But the problem persists. […]

The Blessing of Abraham and the Nations of the Earth

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 23rd, 2010|Categories: Biblical Theology, Missional Church|

The following reflection came to me this week via a post written by my son, Matthew Armstrong. Matt is a passionate church-planter, a faithful evangelist and a young man who teaches me a great deal about faith and obedience, probably much more than even he realizes. When I read this I decided to share it. Enjoy his insights gleaned from a "fresh" reading of Genesis.

On January 1, I started a new Bible reading plan. Actually, it's an old plan that I have done several times, but I had stopped doing it last year. In any case, I have been reading in Genesis about Abraham. It's cool how you can read God's Word many times and continue to see new things in it. It is a rich treasure trove for us as Christ-followers.

What I have been thinking about is how God called Abram, changed his name to Abraham, and blessed him abundantly. He gave him (for the most part) peace with his neighbors, a beautiful and loving wife, two sons (including Isaac, the child of promise), and great wealth. […]

Skye Jethani and Dan Kimball on the Emergent Church

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:18-05:00January 22nd, 2010|Categories: Emergent Church|

I attended a dialog on the emergent church Wednesday afternoon at Wheaton College (January 20). Authors Dan Kimball (photo at left) and Skye Jethani (photo at right) made presentations (Dan’s was given the evening before) and answered questions. The event was hosted by Dr. Vince Bacote and the Center for Applied Christian Ethics at Wheaton College. I tried to restrain myself but ended up making several comments at the end of the hour-plus meeting. I likely said more than I should have, given the time constraints. (Time flies when you are thinking, listening, reacting in your mind and wanting to speak while sensing you should say something or maybe you shouldn’t.) I find such events encouraging and just a tad frustrating. The encouraging part is that these two guys were humble, gracious and insightful. I loved listening to them both. The frustrating part is that […]

Catholics Come Home: What Is This TV Ad Campaign All About?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:18-05:00January 21st, 2010|Categories: Roman Catholicism|

A recent television campaign has garnered a great deal of attention and has every appearance of having a significant impact on many people. I refer to the Catholics Come Home ads many of you have no doubt seen. They seem almost ubiquitous of late. This movement, or ministry, was founded by Roman Catholic Tom Petersen. Tom returned to the Catholic Church twelve years ago following a life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ at a men's retreat. Sensing God's call, Tom used his 25 years of experience in the advertising world and applied it faithfully to the task of promoting spiritual renewal among Catholics. This "apostolate" (which is what evangelicals call a parachurch ministry much like ACT 3) is dedicated to reversing the tide of lapsed Catholics, a tide that has grown into a tsunami of late. The ads use the warmest intonation and rely on technologically savvy forms of media, urging Catholics who have fallen away from their church to "come home."

My very […]

What Has Dr. Dobson Done Now?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:21-05:00January 20th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism|

Laurie Goodstein, a religion writer reporting in the New York Times Saturday edition, January 16, tells a rather amazing account of the new ministry of Dr. James Dodson, the internationally well-known founder of Focus on the Family. Her story is both revealing and, to me, troubling. (I draw my information that follows from her account and then make my own responses in what follows.)

Dr. Dobson is, as most readers know, a much respected psychologist who used his experience in counseling and teaching, along with his best-seller status as an author, to build a major Christian ministry in Colorado. Eventually Dr. Dobson adopted an extremely partisan political agenda as the Christian Right developed since 1980. Now, do not misunderstand me here, but Dr. Dobson is entirely free to promote whatever he desires to promote. He is clearly a man of deep personal conviction, for which I honor him. But I am not required to remain silent, by any known […]

The Place and Power of Christian Joy

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:21-05:00January 19th, 2010|Categories: Spirituality|

It seems to me that deep and abiding joy is, in some respects, the chief mark of real grace in the human soul. I recall hearing the great Bible teacher and minister Ray Stedman once say that the chief reality about the early Christians was that they were constantly in trouble and always joyful. We seem to experience the exact opposite today. We are never in trouble, at least for the right reasons, and we are terribly sad and complain a great deal.

The famous W. R. Inge said, "Joy is the triumph of life, it is the sign that we are living our true life as spiritual beings. We are sent into the world to become something and to make something. The two are in practice so closely connected as to be almost inseparable. Our personality expands by creativeness and creates spontaneously as it expands. Joy is the signal that we are spiritually alive and active. Wherever joy is, creation has been; and the richer […]

C. S. Lewis on How We Come to Embrace a Thoughtful Christian Worldview

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:21-05:00January 18th, 2010|Categories: Lordship of Christ, Missional Church, Postmodernity, The Church|

I have written on several occasions about the subject of worldview. I often think the term is used improperly or too broadly. It has even become a way of saying, in a most sectarian manner, that "I have a robust Christian worldview and you do not." I wonder when I hear such a claim if the claimant has a clue what they are talking about or if they are just parroting something they picked up along the way.

One thinker who clearly understood this idea was C. S. Lewis. The last book Lewis wrote was The Discarded Image. It is an introduction to medieval and renaissance literature. In this book he writes (pages 222-23) that:

It is not possible that our own Model [by which he meant what we generally mean by the term worldview] will die a violent death, ruthlessly smashed by an unprovoked assault of new facts—unprovoked as the nova of 1572. But I think it […]

Why Celebrate Epiphany?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:21-05:00January 17th, 2010|Categories: The Church|

The word epiphany, from the Greek [epiphaneia], literally means “appearance.” The Greek word “upon” or “on” [epi] used before the Greek word “to show” [phanein] is how the compound word was formed. In the liturgical calendar Epiphany is the season before Lent. It is traditionally celebrated on January 6. Many churches adjust the Sunday closest to this date to be the first Sunday in Epiphany.

The date is chosen to commemorate the coming of the Magi to Jesus to pronounce him King at Bethlehem.
Epiphany is also celebrated in connection with the baptism of Jesus since this is the day his divine appearance is announced by a voice from heaven saying that this is God’s unique, only-begotten Son. Finally, since the third century the miracle at Cana of Galilee, where Jesus turned water to wine miraculously, is also celebrated in connection with Epiphany.

In my own experience, over the last two Sundays, we celebrated first the announcement and the baptism and then today the story recounted in John 2:1-11.
But Epiphany is an entire season in the church’s liturgy. During […]

My Trip to Pasadena and the BCS Championship Game

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:21-05:00January 16th, 2010|Categories: College Football, Personal|

Friends and regular readers know that I had the thrill of traveling to Pasadena, California, for the BCS College Football Championship game on January 7. It was the “trip for a lifetime.” While it is far easier to really see a game on television there is nothing to compare with the joy and excitement of spending “game day” at a BCS Championship. I loved every aspect of this amazing experience.

I want to thank everyone who made this wonderful surprise come true. First I want to thank my student Dan Jones, who called my son Matt and offered to get the ticket through a broker who would not mark it up above what he paid for it.. Dan, along with Pastors Ron Ward and Tim Balow, contributed their own money to my Christmas gift as well. Then there are my children: Matt and Adriana and Jason and Stacy. All four of them had a part in this […]

Secularization and the Role of Religion in Public Life

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:21-05:00January 15th, 2010|Categories: Abortion, Politics|

The controversy rages throughout the West. Does religion have a role to play in secular culture? Or should it be marginalized to a place safely outside the public square? So far as I can tell this controversy began in the 1960s but it is rooted in debates that are centuries old now. Europe and America are not the same in this regard but both face the same essential challenges. America still has a far more vibrant Christian presence than Europe so the issue here is still more openly addressed. This debate can be seen on a routine basis in American culture. Consider the recent flap about Brit Hume suggesting that Tiger Woods could find real peace and help if he turned to Jesus Christ in faith. If Hume had suggested that Tiger try some form of therapy or humanistic self-help the flap would never have taken on wings. But he specifically suggested Tiger could find real help in Jesus. The pundits went crazy. It would be hilarious if it didn't underscore once again the deep rift that has formed over the past fifty years. […]