Steven Furtick’s Hermeneutic of Vision: A Review of Sun Stand Still

Posted on November 7, 2020November 7, 2020 by markwchristy

By Mark Christy, PhD A review of Steven Furtick, Sun Stand Still: What Happens When You Dare to Ask God for the Impossible (Colorado Springs, CO: Multnomah, 2010). Furtick’s work, Sun Stand Still, is praised by Craig Groeschel, Andy Stanley, and Ed Young among others. In this book, Furtick hopes to teach all believers to manifest an “audacious faith” that trusts God for the impossible. From the prologue, the author demonstrates that his understanding of seeking God for the impossible aris...

A Biblical Response to Accusations of Being Too Direct, Lacking Polish, and Hurting Feelings When Communicating Biblical Truth

Posted on November 1, 2020March 8, 2022 by markwchristy

By Mark W. Christy, PhD In a culture where self is king and every conversation is gauged by how it serves one’s emotions, many who choose to boldly declare truth will face a plethora of accusations concerning their directness and insensitivity. In response to these concerns, the one declaring truth should most certainly manifest a humble and loving spirit in their relations to others. That being said, the possession of such a spirit may be somewhat difficult to perceive by those receiving a ...

Some Reasons Why Churchgoers Disdain Expositional Preaching

Posted on November 1, 2020November 1, 2020 by markwchristy

The seeker sensitive (driven) movement has reprogrammed many to reconsider church based on how it meets their needs. While I do think that the best of the seeker sensitive movement helped us realize some of the changes in culture, I also think the worst of it has done far more damage. For years, popular culture has been on a headlong march toward emotional, experiential, and self-affirming arguments becoming the foundation of one's learning and assessment of the world.For the most part, factual...

The Theology of Steven Furtick: A Review of Crash the Chatterbox

Posted on October 30, 2020October 30, 2020 by markwchristy

By Mark Christy Steven Furtick’s work is praised by Craig Groeschel, Andy Stanley, Brian Houston, T.D. Jakes, Jack Graham, and Ed Young. His goal is to help his readers silence “the lies resounding inside [their] minds that keep [them] from hearing the voice of God” (213). These lies, according to him, include feelings of insecurity, fear, condemnation, and discouragement. To combat these lies, Furtick offers some Scripture, some advice and applications that are loosely derived from Scriptur...

Sanctification

Posted on October 27, 2020October 27, 2020 by markwchristy

The following is an excerpt from my paper The Role of the Holy Spirit in Mission (available on Amazon Kindle): The sanctification process, which follows the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, is the work of the Holy Spirit.[1] In 1 Corinthians 6:9-20, Paul is contrasting the difference between the believer’s old life with all of its sinfulness with his or her new life whereby the body of the believer becomes “a temple of the Holy Spirit.” Commenting on Titus 3:5, Philip H. Towner observes an “un...

Justification by Faith: Biblical View vs. Roman Catholic View

Posted on October 26, 2020October 26, 2020 by markwchristy

In justification, God proves Himself Just and Holy by dealing justly as well as mercifully with sinners through the cross of Christ. On the cross, our sin was imputed to Christ, and he was thereby justly condemned; His righteousness was imputed to us, and we are justified. Justification indicates a permanent change in our judicial relation to God whereby we are absolved from the charge of guilt, and whereby God forgives all our sins on the basis of Christ’s finished work. Justification is a gif...

True Biblical Faith

Posted on October 26, 2020October 26, 2020 by markwchristy

Faith is belief in Jesus Christ as He has been prophesied about in the OT and testified about in the NT. Faith is a gift received by grace and not by works (Eph 2:8-9). On the other hand, true biblical faith produces fruit according to James 2:14-26. To put these to ideas together, God given faith will produce spiritual fruit in and through the life of the believer. A person who has been given the gift of faith can be certain of his/her salvation because God’s gifts and call are irrevocable. ...

A Biblically-Based Family

Posted on October 26, 2020October 26, 2020 by markwchristy

A good Christian family is one which lines up with biblical principles and one in which each member understands and fulfills his or her God-given role. The family is not an institution designed by man. It was created by God, and man has been given the responsibility of stewardship over it. The basic biblical family unit is comprised of one man, one woman—his spouse—and their offspring or adopted children. The extended family can include relatives by blood or marriage such as grandparents, niece...

SUMMA ESCHATOLOGICA

Posted on October 26, 2020October 26, 2020 by markwchristy

God reveals Himself, in a general way, to all peoples through His creation.[i] God also reveals Himself in a special way to the patriarchs and the Israelite community in a special way.[ii] Revelation is special when God chooses to initiate a relationship with a person or persons. Before Christ, God chose to reveal Himself through the Mosaic law and the promise made to Adam and Eve. Mosaic law clearly defined the pathway to self-sanctification. Since no man could meet God’s righteous standards, ...

BONHOEFFER’S THEOLOGY OF THE SUFFERING CHRIST AND HIS CROSS

Posted on October 26, 2020October 26, 2020 by markwchristy

The Jesus who walked this earth was in a very real sense a man. As a man, it would be incorrect to discern Jesus as being divine in some abstract manner.[i] Rather, one must “speak of His weakness, of the cradle, and of the cross.”[ii] The Incarnate Jesus is God in the flesh; therefore, He possessed the glory of God as well as fallen flesh.[iii] This unity between man and God in the person of Christ causes flesh to become a part of the God-head from that point on. But the question arises at the...