Podcast: A Mighty Fortress Arrangement By Scott Lee
Scott Lee, a Southern Seminary alumnus, currently serves as the Minister of Worship at State Street Baptist Church in New Albany, IN. He has a heart for God-centered worship and it shows in his selections of music each week. He has also updated some of the greatest hymns of the church. Periodically in our worship service, Scott introduces these new arrangements. He is working on putting together a CD, which has been delayed due to the birth of his first child. For the time being, I have been granted permission to share with the readers of Said at Southern his arrangement of Martin Luther’s A Mighty Fortress.
Please give it a listen and tell us what you think.
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Help Me Design A Poll About Sunday School Models
Breakfast With A Revolutionary
This morning I had breakfast with SBTS alumni Darryl Wilson. He is the guy behind the Kentucky Baptist Convention’s Sunday School Blog titled Sunday School Revolutionary.
We had great conversation about Sunday school and it’s role in local church ministry. If you teach Sunday school or lead a small group, you can find practical advice on his blog.
You Design A Poll About Sunday School
The conversation got me thinking about the competing visions that many people have about Sunday school. For an example, go read the comments on my post about Sunday school decline in the SBC.
I’m designing a poll here on Said at Southern about these different ideas. But to be fair, I want to get your feedback on the survey. Here are my initial thoughts, leave a comment to make suggestions.
In your opinion, what is the ideal model for adult Sunday school?
- Seminary education for lay people that aims for maximum Bible instruction.
- Relationship building groups that aims for maximum fellowship.
- A tool for evangelism that aims for maximum outreach.
- A tool for practical outreach that aims for community service.
- Family worship in large groups that aims for intergenerational instruction.
- Let it die, all of the above goals are better reached without traditional Sunday school
Leave a comment to let me know how you would modify this poll. I’ll probably post it later this week.
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Forum: School Is Out, What Will You Do Now?
It didn’t take long for my wife to ask, “Now that your classes are over, what will you do with all your extra time?” If I was a handy kind of guy, then I would suspect some kind of honey-do-list behind that question. But I’m not, and there wasn’t.
It did get me thinking about making the most of my Summer break. I will have a class in July, but should still have some time (and energy) to balance a few other projects. This sounds like a good topic to kick around here, I might even get some new ideas. So, leave a comment below and join the conversation. Also, check out what Terry Delaney wrote about “Quality Down Time” at Going to Seminary.
What will you do now that Seminary is out for the Summer?
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Book Review: Scripture Memorization by Christopher Pearson
Introduction and Background Information
Chris Pearson thought he was saved, until God showed him otherwise. At 18-years old, he had a “moralistic” faith in which he lived in perfect contradiction to every thing he professed to believe. Then God saved Chris. After this, he went to Missouri Baptist University (then College) where he was introduced to Reformed Theology. He attended First Baptist St. Peters which is pastored by Joe Braden. This is where he was introduced to scripture memorization. Since then, he has memorized the books of Jude, Colossians, 1 Peter, and 1 Thessalonians. He is currently working on memorizing Ephesians.
This book came about because, James Briggs, a current student at SBTS and friend of Christopher’s, asked Christopher to write a study for his (James’) youth group about scripture memorization. You can visit Christopher’s website at www.dwelling-rich.org.
Summary of Scripture Memorization
Pearson begins the book by explaining that the purpose of memorizing Scripture, “is quite simple: The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God in our hearts to further conform us into the image of Christ” (12). He also shows that memorizing scripture leads to greater fellowship with brothers and sisters in Christ, enables the greatest defense against sin taking root in our hearts and mind, and allows for us to meditate deeper and more often on the things of God.
His main thesis in the book is that we should not memorize our “favorite” verses but should instead memorize whole books of the Bible. His reasoning is similar to a hermeneutic that is stressed in the SBC-context, context, context. While it is good to know the “key” verses, it is better to know whole books and be ready to meditate on the word of God or “read” the Bible wherever you are even if you don’t have a Bible with you.
Christopher spends the next six chapters explicitly stating why you should memorize whole books of the Bible. His first argument is that it is a great weapon to battle against Satan when engaged in spiritual warfare. Second, it helps in your prayer life. Third, your meditation on the things of God is greatly enhanced. He does offer three more chapters with other reasons, but you get the picture. In the last chapter, he offers a method of how he memorizes whole books of the Bible.
Critical Evaluation of Scripture Memorization
As far as accomplishing his goal of providing a lesson plan of sorts for a youth group, Christopher Pearson successfully accomplishes his goal. However, it is very obvious that this book was self-published. There are spelling errors and grammar mistakes on just about every page. Also, there are some major formatting issues that need to be taken care of if a second edition is published.
His writing style is conversant and engaging and you get the feeling that he is truly writing from the heart. He does write as one with a burden to teach others the benefits of scripture memorization. Errors aside, the book is full of Biblical reasons for memorizing Scripture.
Conclusion
If one is able to read past the grammatical errors and spelling mistakes, then this book should be very useful in your ministry or personal devotion time. I realize not most people are interested in a self-published title, but this is one worth looking into. Christopher has set up a 6 or 7 session study to prepare a young group to memorize whole books of the Bible. I would recommend it to a youth pastor or a young believer (or any believer) who is wanting to memorize scripture and teach others how and why it should be done.
You can purchase the book from his website here.
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Thank You Mom
I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God –2 Timothy 1:5-6a. ESV
A Son’s Sincere Faith
Paul uses the phrase “sincere faith” only twice in his epistles. Both times he is writing to Timothy. The first time he used this phrase when he gives the three elements from which the charge of ministry is based upon: a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith (See 1 Tim. 1:5). The second time is here in 2 Tim. 1:5-6. Paul, himself is reminded of Timothy’s sincere faith and then reminds Timothy that this sincere faith dwelt first in his grandma and mom.
A sincere faith is important to whatever you do as Christian whether it is secular work or a ministry that God has blessed you with. On this Mother’s Day, if your mom or your grandma (or any mother-like family member) had such a sincere faith, be sure to thank her for that. This sincere faith undoubtedly had an impact on your faith thanks in large part to prayer and I am sure the verbal sharing of the Gospel.
Who Taught You About Jesus?
Paul implies this handing down of the faith from generation to generation. This is perhaps the most important way in which we as Christians evangelize the world. As John Piper says, “Marriage is meant for making children…disciples of Jesus” (Read or Listen to part 1 and part 2).
Not all of us can look back to a family member who shared Jesus with us, but there was someone who did share the gospel with you. Hopefully, there was also someone (maybe the same person?) who discipled you in your young Christian walk. Now, as Christians who either have children or will have children, you are in a position to hand down your sincere faith.
I have witnessed how my wife interacts with our two older sons about what it means to have faith in Jesus and am amazed at how influential she is with our boys. Chances are most moms are in the home with the children (I realize this is not the case for all) more often than the dad and consequently have more time to share your faith with them. Never underestimate your children. Start teaching them Bible verses as soon as they are able to talk. Play those great children’s songs to begin introducing them to the wonderful stories of the Bible. Mom, I pray that you are not the only one raising your children in the faith. However, if you are, take solace in the above passage. Timothy was used by God as a great minister of the Word and Paul only mentions his faith coming from his grandma and mom.
Who Will Start The Fire?
Finally, Paul reminded Timothy to fan his faith into a flame. This immediately brings to mind a vision of starting a camp fire. Rarely does a camp fire begin with an intense flame and searing heat. No, it usually starts small. The flame of faith cannot be fanned if it does not exist. Mom’s you have the great privilege of evangelizing daily your children. With a seeming rebirth of doctrinal Christianity happening in our time, you have the awesome opportunity to begin to lay a foundation that will bear fruit for decades to come.
Honor Your Mothers
We at Said at Southern would like to honor all the moms who share their faith with their children and pray for their children and their children to come. Without women like you, all of the study and pastoral ministry we do would very easily go for naught. Thank you moms for your faithfulness to the gospel. Thank you for enabling so many husbands and fathers to focus on ministry and studies in order to fulfill the Great Commission. Without your work in the home, it would be even harder to stand in the pulpit or work in the mission field.
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Book Review: The Next Christendom by Philip Jenkins
Introduction & Background Information
According to the back cover of the book, “The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity - Revised and Expanded Edition” is “a landmark in our understanding of modern Christianity.” Philip Jenkins currently is Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Humanities at Pennsylvania State University. He teaches in both the undergraduate (Modern Christianity, Sects, Cults and Religious Movements among others) and graduate levels (American Catholic: Roman Catholicism in Twentieth Century America as well as others). He has Ph.D. (1978) in History, an M.A. (1978) and a B.A. (1974) all from the University of Cambridge.
Summary of The Next Christendom
The thesis of this book is explicitly stated on page xi of the Preface. Dr. Jenkins states, “Far from being an export of the capitalist West, a vestige of Euro-American imperialism, Christianity is now rooted in the Third World, and the religion’s future lies in the global South” (xi). Originally, he sent his first edition to the publisher on 10 September 2001-”which was in fact the last day of the old world” (xi).
Dr. Jenkins sets out to show how the concept of modern Christianity is not found in America as many think. Rather, it is found primarily in what he calls the global South. In essence, he argues, quite successfully, that we should step outside our preconceived notions of Christianity and look to other cultures in order to see how modern-day Christianity is impacting the world as we know it. He defines Christendom as having supranational and antinational implications in that one is no longer an African as much as he is a Christian first and an African second.
He makes his point quite clear that the global South has now become the “seat” of Christianity when he shows that North America actually has the lowest number of confessing Christians among the four major regions of the world. In order from most to least you have Europe (511 million), Latin America (511 million), Asia (344 million), and finally North America (226 million). This ought to cause us to take a second look at how we believe about Christianity and the global community.
He shows in the second chapter how Christianity is changing and impacting every culture where it is able to claim deep roots. He argues that syncretism is a major reason why Christianity is so successful in Third World countries. He also shows how forced conversions to Christianity helped to spread the religion outside of Europe. Whenever a Christian nation would conquer another nation, they would bring their religion with them. Another tactic he calls the Silk Strategy, was to bring the faith to the cultural elite and then allow it to filter down to the rest of the population.
In explaining the spread of Christianity today through missions work and missionaries, Jenkins believes that Christianity spreads effectively because it is perhaps the best worldview that is offered to the people. He seems somewhat amazed by the willingness of the converts to die so violently for their new found faith in God.
He also shows how Christianity becomes a political movement more than a religious movement. In essence, he explains that many revolutionaries (or at least revolutionary types) use what we call Liberation Theology to “rally the troops” and over throw an oppressive government in order to make life better for the poor.
Central to his understanding of the spread of Christianity is the power and persuasiveness of Pentecostalism. In his estimations, the Pentecostals are the most active with missions work and evangelism in the world. There message of health and wealth, while almost a laughable cliché in the United States by most Protestants, is a force to be reckoned with in the Third World.
Dr. Jenkins successfully demonstrates how Christianity, as a political and economic movement is infiltrating the Third World. It will not be long before the world’s understanding of Christianity will be that of what we see on the Trinity Broadcasting Network. It seems that the reasoning for this global expansion is more a matter of pragmatics than anything else.
Critical Evaluation of The Next Christendom
Before I begin with a critical evaluation of this book, I must state that Dr. Jenkins successfully accomplished his goal of showing how Christianity is becoming a more globally south religion given his understanding of Christianity. With that said, I believe his book fails at many levels to begin to understand what Christianity truly is. Quite often he makes statements about Christianity succeeding based upon its syncretism with other religions. He includes other religious groups like Mormons and says things like, “the term ‘Christian’ could be used only for someone who had experienced a personal born-again conversion” (100). Then he says, “These restrictions can seem overly narrow or bigoted (100).
All throughout the book, Dr. Jenkins refers to Christianity as the means by which one can experience political and economic freedom. This is not the end by which the means is after. Yes, it is true that as a by-product of Christianity, you are more likely to have financial freedom (we call this stewardship) and political peace (we become citizens of heaven), but these should never be our ultimate goal in this world or the next.
My final critique, and perhaps the most glaring given the subject of the book, is that he waits 102 pages to define what he means by the term “Christian.” His definition is one, “who believes that Jesus is not merely a prophet or an exalted moral teacher, but in some unique sense the Son of God and the Messiah” (102). This is why he can call Mormon’s Christians. They believe this but add so much more to who Christ is. This is also why he is able to exclude Jews and Muslims-they do not believe Jesus to be the Son of God.
However, his next sentence is what helped me to understand his extremely broad definition of Christianity used throughout the book. He says, “Beyond that (the definition given above), we should not inquire into detailed doctrine” (102). If Christianity is not a faith based upon essential doctrines that one must hold to in order to be a true Christian, then most everyone in this world is a Christian. I believe it is safe to say that if one limits the definition of Christianity to a set of essential and foundational beliefs, Dr. Jenkins thesis will not appear as striking as it does. When you include all who mention Jesus Christ in a positive manner in accordance with his definition given above, then it is no wonder the coming global Christianity is frightening with all of its syncretistic, political and economic benefits.
Conclusion
I think perhaps the best way to describe this book is that it is schizophrenic. On one hand, I think his extremely broad definition of Christianity violates what we know Biblical Christianity to be. On the other hand, he gives us a great peek inside how the world really sees Christianity.
Those who read this book with me have agreed that he is way off base in his inclusive view of Christianity. However, I would highly recommend this book to mature Christians who are able to discern what is and what is not true Christianity. It is good to see how negatively the world views Christianity and missions work. I think this book would be a great tool in seeing our failures as Christians and how we need to repent of past sins and seek to glorify God in our future work in global missions.
Purchase This Book
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Semester Retrospective: Spring 2008
A few final exams and this semester is history. How did it go? This post is an open forum to discuss everything related to your Spring 2008 semester at Southern Seminary.
- Professor: Who was your favorite professor this semester?
- Chapel: What was your favorite SBTS chapel message this semester?
- Buzz: What created the most buzz on campus this semester?
- Epiphany: What was your biggest ah-ha moment this semester?
- Classes: What was your most demanding & least demanding classes this semester?
- Books: What was your favorite book(s) you read this semester?
- In Sum: How would you characterize this semester for future students. Complete the sentence, “That was the semester that ____________.”
- Blogging: What student, alumni and faculty blogs did you read the most often this semester?
Anyone remember the Spring 2007 and Fall 2007 Semester retrospectives? They’re still back in the archives.
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