Blog - Page 166 of 318 - John H Armstrong

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. […]

When People Stop Believing in God

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:22-05:00January 14th, 2010|Categories: Lordship of Christ|

The famous twentieth century Catholic writer G. K. Chesterton once said, "When people stop believing in God, they don't believe in nothing—they believe in anything." This is profoundly true and our time increasingly demonstrates this point in day-to-day life.

There can be no doubt about the fact that we are experiencing a dramatic social and moral upheaval in today's world. This amounts to a seeming breakdown in values and morals altogether. Ours has become a non-stop world. We cannot stop it nor can we find a place to stop in it. Boundaries are less and less important, whether political, cultural or religious. We call this globalization in business but in the West it is causing the disintegration of almost everything we valued in the past as true life. It also increasingly subordinates virtually everything we know and believe to cash flow and maximizing profits. Add to this a growing commitment to individualism and the end result is spiritually and morally deadly. The concept of the good, of what is really proper and proportionate, is being lost. Faithful or unfaithful, it doesn't really matter. […]

Will the Health-Care Bill Include the Pro-Abortion Provisions Advocated by the President?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:22-05:00January 13th, 2010|Categories: Abortion|

It seems that many younger Christians who supported the election of Barack Obama do not really believe that President Obama is radically pro-choice. I hear various Christians say they are pro-life but I hear none defend the president on this critical point. I have said this several times, and demonstrated it time after time after time on this blog, but this president is doing more to promote abortion than any previous president in U. S. history. While the view of the president on this issue will not ultimately alter legal abortion (only a deep change in the view of the people will finally do this and there is growing evidence that this is slowly happening) the president's view will, and does, impact lives each day. His view on this issue already has impacted lives and has plainly allowed for more abortions. He has promoted federal support for abortion and new ways of funding abortion. Upon entering office he undid a number of hard-fought restrictions on abortion and now […]

The House Church Phenomenon

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:22-05:00January 12th, 2010|Categories: The Church|

Since the 1960s I have followed the rise and fall of "house church" congregations in America. I even attended one in college, in the 1960s. House church is not a new phenomenon for sure. Such congregations where part and parcel of the earliest expressions of Christian community. No one who reads the New Testament doubts this fact. But in time, when persecution died down and the church was able to meet in the open, the house church became less and less important to Christian practice.

Today, in places where state persecution requires it, the house church still thrives; e.g., rural China. But what about America? A surprising figure, tucked in a recent Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life poll, suggested that the number of Americans who say "they attend religious services in someone's home" is now at seven percent. I would have guessed 1%, or maybe 2%, but never 7%. If this is true it is a staggering development, at least to my mind.

Six percent of Americans says they are atheists. And Jews are two percent of the population. Sixteen […]

The ACT 3 Luncheon Forums 2010

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:22-05:00January 11th, 2010|Categories: ACT 3|

Five times a year we conduct a local luncheon forum for interested Christians. Our speaker this Wednesday, at 11:45 a.m., at the Holiday Inn in Carol Stream, is David Neff. David is the senior editor of Christianity Today. David's topic is: "Anglicanism in America: Gospel Mission or Sour Grapes?" This lunch costs $20, which is payable at the door. We end at 1:15. The meal is excellent and the discussion always very stimulating and encouraging. This is a great learning opportunity for anyone interested. The Holiday Inn is located at 150 S. Gary Avenue, just south of the stop light on Rt. 64, North Avenue, in Carol Stream. If you live in the Chicago area come and enjoy this wonderful event. I would love to see many of you who are friends and meet new friends as well.

Do Blogs Make a Serious Contribution to the Life of the Church?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:22-05:00January 11th, 2010|Categories: ACT 3, Personal|

I frequently ask myself, "Why do I blog?" My answers are varied. First, I enjoy writing, and writing is a vocation for me, not just a hobby. Second, I have a number of friends who want to know what I am doing and why. They are interested in me personally and pray for me as their friend. I also have a number of friends and donors who seek my input on various issues in the public mind. Third, both fresh content and interaction with current ideas lie at the very heart of the mission of ACT 3. ACT 3 exists to "equip leaders for unity in Christ's mission" thus I believe my blogging makes some contribution to this purpose or I would not do it. Finally, blogging allows you to respond to my thoughts in a number of fruitful ways.

I was made uniquely aware of this particular value after I read the responses to my Saturday post about why I continue to change […]