We no longer publish articles, but you are welcome to view past articles.
THE WHY SERIES – WHY DOES THE CHURCH OF CHRIST TEACH DEFINITIVE PARAMETERS ON MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE?
Why Does the Church of Christ Teach Definitive Parameters on Marriage and Divorce? Earlier this year, we presented a series of articles about the beliefs and practices of the churches of Christ that were thematically arranged around “why” questions, such as “Why Does the Church of Christ Believe That Baptism is Essential to Salvation,” “Why Does the Church of Christ Lack Musical Instruments in Their Worship Services,” and “Why Do Churches of Christ Observe the Lord’s Supper Every Sunday.” Since…
FULLY INVOLVED
Have you ever heard the phrase “fully involved?” To me, that phrase refers to whether or not you want all of the fixings on your sandwich at Firehouse Subs. However, that phrase actually comes from the world of firefighting. In firefighting jargon the phrase “fully involved” is a “term of size-up” indicating that “the fire, heat, and smoke in a structure are so widespread that internal access must wait until fire streams can be applied.”[1] If I understand this terminology correctly,…
U-Turn Encouraged
One of the most confusing decisions for a driver is whether or not it is legal to make a U-turn at any given intersection. In some situations, there will be a sign that clearly says, “No U-Turn;” or it will have the symbol for a U-turn with a Ghostbusters sign over it (which I understand because I saw the movie…in the theatre). In other situations, there will be a sign that says, “U-Turn Permitted,” which means that you can do a U-turn without having to worry…
CHANGE YOUR ATTITUDE
In aeronautic terminology “attitude” refers to “the orientation of an aircraft’s axes relative to a reference” point such as the horizon.[1] For the record, I am not an aircraft aficionado so my explanation of aircraft terminology is based on my own research and therefore susceptible to flaws. But as I understand it, the attitude of an aircraft is its position relative to other objects on the axes of roll (i.e. rotation from the longitudinal axis that is controlled by the aileron…
Inform, Not Enforce?
First things first: I’m a rule-follower. This doesn’t mean that I ALWAYS follow the rules (just ask my Mom), but I’m a rule-follower by nature. I respect authority, obey rules/laws, and absolutely HATE to be “in trouble” with anyone. So, keep that in mind as you read this article… Several months ago, a man was dragged off of a plane and it was caught on video. The video was posted on social media and sparked a multi-faceted outrage across the country.…
TRAGIC REMINDERS
As most of you know, tragedy unfolded at the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Antioch, TN last Sunday when a twenty-five year old man named Emanuel Samson arrived at the church building as worship service came to a close and began shooting at churchgoers, both inside and outside the building, killing one and injuring 7 others. In the wake of this event I have been reminded of some biblical truths. First, the Burnette Chapel shooting reminded me that we…
Tootsie Rolls??
I joined a gym this past week. I have never attempted to work out at a gym by myself for any extended period of time, but I felt like it was time to get in better shape so that I can walk my girls down the aisle instead of being carried by them. I decided to join Planet Fitness, which is close to my house and fairly inexpensive. Although they don’t have any of the structured classes that I was looking for, they have…
THE BACK-TO-SCHOOL BLUES
Almost all of our teens have gone back to school at this point, and I think it would be safe to say that most of them are not especially happy about it. After all, why would anyone WANT to go back to early mornings, late night homework sessions, increased temptation, and a never-ending list of demands that is constantly placed on you by coaches, band directors, teachers, parents, and seemingly everyone else in the WORLD?? In the pages of Scripture,…
DEVOTED TO EVANGELISM
In Acts 2:42-47 we are given a glimpse into the life of the first century church, and this section begins with the simple phrase “they devoted themselves to.” In the following verses we discover devotion to God’s Word, fellowship, the Lord’s Supper, and prayer, as well as an emphasis on benevolence, involvement, and worship. But there is one more detail about the first century church mentioned by Luke in this passage that should not be overlooked. The eighth and final…
DEVOTED TO PRAISE
For the past several weeks we have observed what the first century church devoted itself to based on Luke’s description in Acts 2:42-47. The seventh detail we discover about the first century church is that they were “praising God” (Acts 2:47). To what is the text referring when it says that the church was “praising God?” The Greek term employed here means “to praise, extol, to sing praises in honor to God.”[1] So, we are talking about worshipping God and declaring…
DEVOTED TO BENEVOLENCE
According to Acts 2:42-47 the first century church was devoted to the Word of God (i.e. apostles’ teaching), fellowship, the Lord’s Supper (i.e. the breaking of bread), prayer, and, as we noted in the previous article, involvement. It was also devoted to benevolent activity. Throughout the book of Acts the church is depicted as a people who denounced materialism and adopted a communal lifestyle in order to meet the needs of the poor. In other words, they emphasized benevolence. In…
DEVOTED TO INVOLVEMENT
For the past few weeks we have been exploring the details outlined in Acts 2:42-47. In this brief passage, we are given a glimpse into the life of the first century church. In it, we not only learn that the first century church was “devoted…to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayers” when they assembled, but we also learn that “every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts [and] they broke…