Hamilton on “The Typology of David’s Rise to Power” April 13, 2008
Posted by Clint Armani in Bible and Theology.add a comment
My brother-in-law recently delivered a lecture at Southern Seminary that is available in audio and manuscript.
Title: “The Typology of David’s Rise to Power: Messianic Patterns in the Book of Samuel“
Who are the Evangelicals? April 13, 2008
Posted by Clint Armani in History.add a comment
My friend, Dr. Tony Chute, recently presented three talks at my previous congregation’s annual church history conference. I like the titles to his talks:
“When Evangelicals were Fundamentally Sound”
“When Modernism was the Best Show in Town”
“When Fundamentalists were not Fun to be Around”
Who are the evangelicals? Are they a right-wing fundamentalist voting block that follows the lead of Pat Robertson and the late Jerry Falwell? Are they people who continue to stand for family values just so they can give Hollywood a hard time? Or are they merely middle class citizens who simply want to live purpose driven lives so they can experience their best lives now?
It is hard to know the answers to these questions when the word “evangelical” is so loosely defined. Indeed, it has been said that an evangelical is anyone who admires Billy Graham!
The design of this conference is to explore the history of evangelicalism with the purpose of understanding how they have maintained their identity between the twin errors of fundamentalism (which shunned engagement with the world for the sake of sound doctrine) and liberalism (which set aside sound doctrine for engagement with the world). Each session will be aimed at conveying the history of the movement with practical application for Christians today.
Covenant Eyes April 11, 2008
Posted by Clint Armani in Family.1 comment so far
I know that many men (and women) struggle with guarding their heart and mind while on the internet. Likewise, our children are becoming very proficient on the internet. On the web, there are many great thing but also many very destructive things. So, I recommend Covenant Eyes as a tool to assist in this battle.
Covenant Eyes provides two services, which you can get separately or together. First, they provide internet accountability through a report that gets sent to your accountability partners. Second, they provide internet filtering. Check it out and use the internet wisely.
Audio Bible April 11, 2008
Posted by Clint Armani in Bible and Theology.1 comment so far
The entire NASB is now available for download in MP3 format. Check out the link to the right.
Who do you follow? April 8, 2008
Posted by Clint Armani in Gospel.1 comment so far
I was recently reminded by a friend who works with Muslims of the difference in the way-of-thinking between eastern cultures and western cultures. Easterners often think in terms of relationships, whereas, Westerners often think in terms of philosophical ideas. For instance, I’ve previously asked people in Sunday School to give me short descriptions of Jesus. The first ones are descriptions like rock, alpha and omega, bread of life, etc. These describe Jesus in abstract terms. Don’t get me wrong, these are all very fine descriptions. They are biblical. However, other terms that we might think of to describe Jesus are king, shepherd, high priest. These terms are more relational and less abstract.
My friend pointed out that Easterners follow people, whereas Westerners follow schools of thought. He said that Westerners tend to identify more with Christianity than with Jesus. This is challenging for me. How do I describe my Christian walk? Am I an evangelical, reformed, baptist… Christian? Or am I a follower of Jesus?
This leads me to another area that I think Westerners tend to be weak at, that’s mentoring/discipling. Again, we tend to identify ourselves with the type of church we attend and which theological points we ascribe. Rather, in trying to follow Jesus, shouldn’t we identify ourselves, not only with Jesus, but with other Godly men or women who are mature followers of Jesus? This is probably why my undergraduate years were some of the most spiritually rich years — dedicated time sitting under the feet of Godly men. Easterners are honored to imitate their leaders.
My friend pointed out that westerners are too independent, too individualistic. We don’t want to submit tp authority (for instance: elders, Word of God). Let us learn from eastern culture. Realize that Jesus lived and taught in such a culture. He told us to follow Him. And in following Him, may we sit under the feet of men and women who also follow Him. May we imitate their lives in Godliness. Likewise, may we tell our children and friends to imitate us as we follow Jesus.
When Mom is Sick April 7, 2008
Posted by Clint Armani in Family.add a comment
Recently, my wife, who is a homemaker, mothers 3 little ones and is expecting a 4th, became ill. Normally, she presses through little infirmities in order to perform her daily activities. However, this time was a little more severe. She was in bed for 3 days and was slowly recovering for another 3 days. Thankfully, I was off from work already (between school quarters), but I learned first hand that when Mom is sick the house just doesn’t run well. I thank the Lord for my wife–her gifts, her diligence, her patience, her love. She brings much in terms of quality to our home.
The words of Proverbs 31 are ringing in my ears. “An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels… Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all. Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”
