Blog - Page 295 of 318 - John H Armstrong

The Impact of Donald Bloesch on My Life

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:24:15-05:00July 13th, 2006|Categories: Personal|

Friends of mine know that Donald G. Bloesch has had a shaping and formative influence on my thought and life for at least three decades. Dr. Bloesch, now a retired professor of theology at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary (Iowa), continues to bless many of us by his prolific writing ministry. I had the unique honor of sharing a meal with Don again this past Monday afternoon. He is in good health, was encouraging to me as always, and recently celebrated his seventy-eighth birthday. He still has a keen mind and a lovely spirit and is working on four new books at the present time. Dr. Bloesch has often supported me very deeply (he is one of my stated formal Advisors to ACT 3) and has frequently shared in the ministry of ACT 3 personally. Don and Brenda, his kind wife, were also present at a lovely ACT 3 event we held at the seminary on Tuesday evening. It was a real joy to be with this special teacher/mentor again. It was also a pleasure to meet with about twenty to twenty-five folks, […]

Pirates of the Caribbean: What's the Fuss About?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:24:15-05:00July 11th, 2006|Categories: Uncategorized|

I am not a film critic but I do like films, especially good action films. I tend to see less of them in the summer months since baseball takes my entertainment time and dollars. Last night I had a few hours, since there was no baseball to watch on ESPN. (I know, the all-star home run derby was on but that doesn’t count to me.) I was also out of town and staying in a hotel, thus I was a little bored. So, I went to see the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest." This Jerry Bruckheimer movie just broke previous US box office financial records for an opening weekend and is highly acclaimed by many critics. I thought it would be sheer fun. It was not. This is either a very bad movie or I am out of touch with what is really fun today. It may be the latter, which I am sure teen viewers would likely tell me. (The place was packed with kids and young couples!)

Is it a Johnny Depp thing or maybe it’s the co-star […]

Are You Being Converted?

By John Armstrong|2006-07-10T07:34:17-05:00July 10th, 2006|Categories: Renewal|

I sometimes despair about what is called Christianity. Churches and Christians disappoint you at some point, if you live this faith for very long. Yet I still confess my deeply held Christian faith in “one, holy, Catholic and apostolic church” every Lord’s Day. I would not think of living such a life without the church. This is why I pray for the church and minister to her and within her, that she might be truly converted to Christ alone. But I pray this same prayer for myself too, that I will be truly converted to Christ every single day.

A wise writer once said: “The greatest service that could be rendered to the Christian peoples would be to convert them to Christianity.” I agree. Conversion is what each of us needs. Conversion is not a once-for-all event, but a daily experience by the grace and work of the Spirit. Are you being converted to Christ?

Living in Peace with Others

By John Armstrong|2006-07-09T21:54:56-05:00July 9th, 2006|Categories: Personal|

Watch the Christian who is always fighting battles, building their life and ministry on the need for continual warfare and always identifying everything that is wrong in other believers. While it is true that we must fight vigilantly against evil, and the evil one, it is not true that we should be continually at war with fellow Christians. There is not one good reason to be in a continual state of conflict with those who also love the Savior.

An old aphorism puts my point very well: “Those who are at war with others are not at peace with themselves.” Fifty-seven years of life have shown me how true this really is.

More Left Behind Nonsense

By John Armstrong|2006-07-08T12:55:22-05:00July 8th, 2006|Categories: American Evangelicalism|

The Left Behind series, which is very bad theology and not-so-hot fiction, continues to influence ordinary Christians in some rather sad ways. A friend has compared this series to the Ever-Ready battery commercials—these books, and the series of things related to them, just keep going and going. Please do not try to convince me that money is not a major part of this whole development.

Now a video game called Left Behind is being marketed. In it the Christians wipe out the non-Christians proving, I suppose, that there really is no one left behind. I understand that the theme of violence in this game is so great that parents are warned to beware.

I have to tell you I am as offended (I can’t think of a better way to put this) by this stuff as anything produced by the Christian left, in fact more so since the left doesn’t market “Jesus junk” like this. With over sixty million Left Behind books sold one can only ask: “What next?” Probably the answer lies as much in the marketplace as anywhere […]

Responding to the TR World

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:24:15-05:00July 7th, 2006|Categories: Reformed Christianity|

I have no interest in naming specific names or making specific charges against anyone in particular when I write blog entries that address various types of people or movements that I have seen in the church. These blogs are not formal accusations but reflections upon what I have seen and even been part of myself for nearly ten years (1992-2002). Please read my entries more as confessions than as personal accusations and you will understand my writing of these types of blogs. Some who fit these descriptions, to varying degrees, are my friends. Some who fit these descriptions once counted me as a friend. There is nothing personal about these comments I assure you. Those readers who have met these types of individuals, or have been in these kinds of reformation movements, know what I am referring to and thus understand these various posts quite clearly.

If I were doing academic writing, as say in our journal the ACT 3 Review, then I would use a rigorous academic method, including references and end notes. I understand, however, that a blog is an […]

What Happened to the Gospel in Our Churches

By John Armstrong|2006-07-05T08:48:31-05:00July 5th, 2006|Categories: American Evangelicalism|

The late Presbyterian minister and chaplain of the United States Senate, Richard Halvorsen, always had a succinct way of putting things so that ordinary folks could understand a big point very clearly. He once said that when the Greeks got the gospel, they turned it into a philosophy; when the Romans got it, they turned it into a government; when the Europeans got it, they turned it into a culture; and when the Americans got it, they turned it into a business.

The great tragedy in the American church is that we do not understand how the gospel transcends our various ways of thinking and ordering life. All of the above “turns” amount to what the Bible calls worldliness. Sadly, much of the evangelical movement has turned the gospel, and thus the church, into a business. By this transformation the church conformed itself to the world more than the gospel. When our leaders and spiritually concerned people realize this in greater numbers, and consciously turn away from it, we will be far closer to experiencing the real power of the gospel at work […]

Celebrating the Fourth of July

By John Armstrong|2006-07-04T11:57:19-05:00July 4th, 2006|Categories: Culture|

The spirit of nationalism is a positive thing in my view. Most people inherently love their country. Christians should not be alarmed by this very normal human emotion. I shared in it today by observing the Fourth of July parade in my community. As the band played and the fire trucks blared their sirens I found myself feeling a sense of pride about this community and my country. I watched the politicians go by, seeking recognition and votes, and thought to myself, “Elections never seem to end here.” The best word to describe my emotion was “pride” I think. I am sincerely proud to be an American.

But as with any other emotion I felt some other reactions as I thought further about our country at this time. I believe nationalism is a good thing but I am deeply concerned about the growing “Christian” nationalism on the far right. This spirit is fed by many springs, including popular preachers, best-selling books and mean-spirited talk shows. My concern about this kind of nationalism is not without reason. When I hear conservative Christians talk […]

Facing the Clash of Civilizations with Resolve

By John Armstrong|2006-07-02T17:55:44-05:00July 2nd, 2006|Categories: Current Affairs|

I noted on July 1 that war has a powerful influence over all who are touched by it. Let us be clear about this, war is bad, very bad. But my observations are not those of a pacifist. I believe that there is something worse than war, namely a peace that allows tyranny to dominate a people and/or society so that human freedom is crushed under ideologies that destroy mankind’s ability to seek peace and to worship God freely.

I have no real doubt that we are presently engaged in what Samuel Huntington has called “A Clash of Civilizations.” This is true regardless of the mistakes we have made with regard to Iraq, and plenty seem to have been made.

Uwe Siemon-Netto, a Christian journalist I deeply respect, is a realist when he asks: “Are hard line tactics the most effective way to deal with terrorism?” He concludes: “What are the alternatives? Negotiate a peaceful settlement that will limit suicide bombings to one a month and decapitations before rolling video cameras to one per year—well, maybe two? Propose Osama bin-Laden […]

War Really Does Give a Certain Type of Meaning

By John Armstrong|2006-07-01T08:17:42-05:00July 1st, 2006|Categories: Current Affairs|

Christopher Hedges, in a controversial and moving book written before we entered the war in Iraq, said that war is a force that gives us meaning (War is a Force That Gives us Meaning, Anchor, 2003). I think about his trenchant observations very often as the war in Iraq drags on, strongly defended or strongly vilified by almost everyone who has an opinion. “The communal march against an enemy generates a warm, unfamiliar bond with our neighbors, our community, our nation, wiping out unsettling undercurrents of alienation and dislocation," writes Chris Hedges, a foreign correspondent for the New York Times. Hedges looks at what makes war so intoxicating for soldiers, politicians and ordinary citizens. It is the "intoxicating" quality of our "war on terror" and our struggles in Iraq that I think most defenders of war do not get at all. A little humility would help a great deal, especially among Christians.

I was reminded of all this today when I read the story of our American GIs planning the rape of an Iraqi woman, then killing the three other members of […]