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Pornography and the Local Church
Arthur Birch, MA Two thousand years ago, the Holy Spirit, speaking through the Apostle Paul, warned believers in Jesus about sexual immorality. Writing to the church in Ephesus, in a letter that would be shared worldwide in coming years, the … Continue reading
Mark 13:14 – A Cryptic Prophecy of the Messiah’s Death?
Larry J. Perkins, PhD Generally, current explanations of Mark 13:14 identify the “desolating sacrilege” or “the abomination of desolation” with the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. While certainly the agent of this desolation, the Roman action is not … Continue reading
Competency-Based Theological Education: Origins of the Immerse MDiv at Northwest Baptist Seminary
Ruth McGillivray, MA As seminary enrolment in North America declined through the early 2000s, a small Canadian school, Northwest Baptist Seminary, struggled to survive. Accepting that its conventional model of education was not producing the type of leaders needed by … Continue reading
Moving Beyond Inclusion: The Story of One Family
Stace-Smith, H. & Pudlas, K.A. (2020) In a previous article Pudlas (2019) provided an introduction and overview of the current pedagogic paradigm known as full inclusion and argued that the church, which is the body of Christ here on earth, … Continue reading
In Celebration of Small Churches: Size As an Indicator of Church Health
Ron Johnston, DMin Introduction While mega-churches and their leaders have received much attention over the past half century, numerically the small church still dominates the ecclesiastical landscape in Canada. While the author of this article has not found any hard … Continue reading
Camp Youth Leadership Training: A Hidden Resource for the Church
Julie Bayley, BA Introduction Where are the future leaders of churches and ministries in Canada going to come from? Is there anything being done now that is effective in reaching these future leaders? How can churches be part of training … Continue reading
Choosing a Children’s Curriculum
Nikki Lanigan, BAR, former Director of Children’s Ministries, Northview Church, Abbotsford, BC Baby Moses floating in a basket. A staple component in a central story of every pre-school curriculum written. But did I read that right? Do they really want … Continue reading
Posted in Author Submission
Tagged Bible training, children's ministry, church children, Nicole Lanigan
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Starting an Early Childhood Learning Centre in Your Church: What could possibly go wrong?
By Kathleen McMillan, BA, ECE I’m on vacation. The first substantial vacation I’ve taken in 5 years. Exhausted and discouraged, I stare; watching waves crash against the shore; feeling the waves wear down solid rock. I fret. One day someone … Continue reading
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Tagged church, early childhood education, early learning, Kathleen McMillan
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Faithfully Inclusive Communities: How Welcoming is the Body?
By Kenneth A. Pudlas, Ed.D. “Full inclusion” is a term that elicits visceral responses in the public education system. Within the Body of Christ, His Church, is the term even known let alone discussed? It ought to be, for a … Continue reading
Posted in Author Submission
Tagged church, diversity, inclusive, Ken Pudlas, Ministry Education
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Doing Research in the Context of Ministry
By William Badke, MTh, MLS Introduction Imagine that someone in your congregation has come to you with a URL to a website that has been intriguing her. She tells you that she is not sure the site is believable. When … Continue reading
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Tagged church, leadership, lifelong learning, ministry research, William Badke
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The Persistence of Preaching: Why Christian Preaching Remains Resilient Within the Church Today
Despite the occasional announcement of its demise, the practice of preaching has been surprisingly resilient. Preliminary research showing the ubiquity and centrality of preaching within the most prominent and fastest growing North American churches is supported by a brief historical, biblical, theological, and practical study of the persistence of preaching across time. Continue reading
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Tagged church, Kenton Anderson, preacher, preaching, sermon
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Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin?
Like every family that walks into a church for the first time, the family who walked in the doors that Sunday morning was cautious. They were unsure what to expect from this church. Would the people be friendly? Would the music be good? Would the preaching be interesting? Would their children like the kids’ ministry? Would the coffee taste like dishwater? Continue reading
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Tagged hate the sin, love the sinner, Mark Carroll, ministry, Theology
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New Testament Greek Terms and Mark’s Gospel: Hermeneutical Inquiries
Hermeneutics is all about meaning. Bible expositors attempt to understand and explain how language works, orally and textually, and especially how it communicates meaning. Precise discernment of meaning arises from a comprehensive knowledge of a language’s[1] structures, i.e., the conventions developed to communicate meaning, as well as the cultural context within which that language functions. When texts, such as we find in the Bible written in Hebrew, Aramaic, or Hellenistic Greek, are imbued with unique religious significance, decoding and transferring their meaning across time and cultures arguably become critical competencies. Continue reading