Monthly Archives: March 2007

This is the PowerPoint outline from the classes I taught at the ACU Lectureship about a year ago. These materials are taken from the book of the same name, also posted on this site. Do We Teach. This is two lessons, … Continue reading →

The following is the PowerPoint presentation for Saturday’s two lectures at ElderLink in Atlanta: “What Really is a Test of Fellowship?” and “When Does Someone Really Fall from Grace?” ElderLink outline

The Churches of Christ are falling apart. Actually, we’ve been falling apart for over a century, and what’s happening now is just a continuation of the same problems. We’ve not be able to hold together for a very long time. … Continue reading →

3,500 years ago, or so, God wanted to free his chosen people from slavery in Egypt. He performed many mighty acts to bring this about, but the people remained firmly in captivity. Finally, the choice became a very stark one: … Continue reading →

Imagine that a member of a 500-member church wants to evangelize the local downtown singles community. He believes he can best do so through a cell church model, meeting in coffee shops and apartments. Absent some really good reason to … Continue reading →

It’s very fashionable today to talk about the benefits of planting churches. The independent Christian Churches have enjoyed rapid growth through a planting strategy, while the Churches of Christ have plateaued, growing hardly at all in the last 20 years. … Continue reading →

As previously noted, there are very real, very practical difficulties in trying to merge congregations. The foremost difficulty is our intolerance of doctrinal differences. It’s instructive to see how we behave depending on the options available in our home town. … Continue reading →

I’ve already made one doctrinal point. Larger churches are more effective at ministry to those outside the church–and this is the very essence of Christianity. Read Matthew 25′s account of Judgment Day. Read James’ definition of pure and undefiled religion. … Continue reading →

Well, there are very real difficulties in merging churches. What would motivate us to work through these problems and actually have a merger? First, we address the practical considerations. There are many.

The overwhelming majority of Churches of Christ have less than 150 members. Although many of these congregations are the only Church in their community, many communities have several congregations. In my own town, many of our members drive past two … Continue reading →