It is not the Word of God because the church says so; but that the Word of God might be spoken, therefore the church comes into being, The church does not make the Word, but it is made by the Word. – Martin Luther as quoted by Sproul, R.C.; Grace Unknown: The Heart of Reformed [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Church’
The Church Was Made By the Word, Not Vice Versa
Posted in Luther, Martin, tagged Bible, Church on May 29, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
What Is Called For In These Days From the Church
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged ACts 6, Church, Demographic, Ethnic Disctinctives, Gospel, Holy Spirit, Laws of the Market, Po9litical Ideologies on August 5, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
What is called for in these days, as in any other time, is a church that is a genuine covenantal community defined by the gospel rather than a service provider defined by laws of the market, political ideologies, ethnic distinctives or other alternatives to be the catholic community that the Father is creating by his Spirit [...]
The Self Must Be Dethroned
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged Church, Gospel, Moralism, Spirituality, Therepeutic Diesm on August 3, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
When our churches assume the gospel, reduce it to slogans, or confuse it with moralism and hype, it is not surprising that the type of spirituality we fall back on is moralistic, therapeutic deism. In a therapeutic worldview, the self is always sovereign. Accommodating this false religion is not love – either of God or neighbor [...]
These Questions Take Us Into the Very Heart of the Situation
Posted in Machen, J. Graham, tagged Church, Kant, Schleiermacher on August 2, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
These questions take us into the very heart of the situation; the growth of ignorance in the Church, the growth of indifference with regard to the simple facts recorded in the Bible, all goes back to a great spiritual movement, really skeptical in its tendency, which has been going forward during the last one hundred [...]
Which Church Do You Desire to be a Part of?
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged Church on July 29, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
A church that is deeply aware of its misery and nakedness before a holy God will cling tenaciously to an all-sufficient Savior, while one that is self-confident and relatively unaware of its inherent sinfulness will reach for religion and morality whenever it seems convenient. – Horton, Michael; Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of the American [...]
The Ministry of the Church
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged Church, Deacons, Elders, Hebrews 12, Kingdom of God, Ministry, Pastors, Teachers on July 26, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The ministry of the church is God’s service to us through pastors, teachers, elders and deacons, which generates a thankful community of genuine gift giving that overflows to the world. The kingdom of God is something we are receiving, not something we are building (Hebrews 12:28) – Horton, Michael; Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of [...]
The Church’s Very Narrow Commission…
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged Church, Church's Commission, Gospel, Salt and Light on July 22, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The church has a very narrow commission. It is not called to be an alternative neighborhood, circle of friends, political action committee, social club, or public service agency; it is called to deliver Christ so clearly and fully that believers are prepared to be salt and light in the worldly stations to which God has [...]
How Do You View the Church?
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged Church, Covenant Community, Evangelical Revivalism, God's Grace on July 21, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Until we reevaluate our commitment to the revivalistic paradigm itself, we will view the church as consumers who have signed a contract for spiritual services rather than as sinners who have been incorporated by God’s grace into a covenant community. – Horton, Michael; Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of the American Church; Baker Books; Grand [...]
What is the Church?
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged Body of Christ, Church, Means of Grace, Spirituality, Transforming Culture on July 19, 2011 | 2 Comments »
This means that the church is not a club for those with similar cultural tastes, political views, ethnic backgrounds, and moral leanings. They do not meet because they share a hobby called spirituality or because they have the same vision for transforming culture. Believers gather to be regularly reconstituted as the body of Christ, receiving [...]
Charles Finney’s Approach to Evangelism Represents Practical Atheism
Posted in Horton, Michael, tagged Atheism, Charisma, Charles Finney, Christian Mission, Church, Conversion, Holy Spirit, Means of Grace, Michael Pasquarello, Parachurch on July 19, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Citing numerous contemporary heirs, Michael Pasquarello goes so far as to suggest that Finney’s approach itself represents a “practical atheism” according to which the success of Christian mission depends on human technique, style, planning, and charisma “without having to surrender ourselves and our words to the presence and work of the Word and Spirit.” It is [...]
