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KANSAS CITY, Kan.?From the very first verse of Genesis to the very last verse of Revelation, the Bible is the story of God’s love for mankind. However, many who read the Word don’t connect the dots to see how the story fits together.
That’s where scripturestoryline.com comes in. The website, developed by The Master’s Community Church in Kansas City and Pastor Todd Chipman, a Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary grad, helps Christians connect the dots through daily Bible readings and commentary. Users of scripturestoryline.com can sign up to have daily devotionals and commentaries sent directly to their e-mail inboxes.
“We are trying to help folks see the big picture of the Bible and see how each book and chapter relates to the coming of Christ,” Chipman said.
The idea for scripturestoryline.com started in 2000 at Chipman’s kitchen table during breakfast. He and his wife were discussing the Bible reading program they were using with their family. The program included daily readings in the Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs.
“You are in so many places that it is hard to appreciate the context,” Chipman said.
“I said to my wife, ‘Somebody needs to put together a reading calendar that puts together the bigger picture. She looked at me and said ‘Why don’t you do it?'”
Chipman said he began to toy with the idea of what this kind of reading calendar might look like and decided that people should be reading in one place each day, but in bigger chunks. He also said the commentary on each day’s reading would be important to what he was trying to achieve. “The commentary gives an overview of the day’s reading passage and how it fits with the coming of Christ,” Chipman said.
In addition to daily readings and commentary, the site takes a unique approach to Psalms and Proverbs. “The poetry of the Old Testament is situational and prompted by events,” Chipman said. “A unique feature of this reading plan is that the Psalms and Proverbs are not read individually, but (as much as possible) in accord with the situation that prompted their composition. Where we are unsure as to the original situation of a Psalm/chapter of Proverbs, it is placed thematically in the reading plan.”
Since its premiere online in January 2007, scripturestoryline.com not only features the daily Bible reading calendar, but also has a more in-depth curriculum for those who want to do slower, more-targeted studies. Studies available include: Pentateuch, Minor Prophets, Major Prophets, Wisdom, Gospels, Epistles, Narrative, and Apocalytic. These studies can be used individually or for small group meetings.
For more information or to sign up for daily devotionals, visit scripturestoryline.com.
Month: June 2010
Southwestern journal promotes reading in an electronic age
FORT WORTH?A newly released edition of the Southwestern Journal of Theology encourages Christians from an electronic age to read broadly, not only from Scripture, but also from theological, biographical and literary volumes.
“Since the Reformation, Protestants of different stripes have championed the clarion call, ‘sola Scriptura,’ ” Mark Leeds, assistant professor of systematic theology, writes in his article, “The Virtue of Reading.” Introducing his article, he affirms the doctrine of sola Scriptura and the necessity and benefit of reading the Bible frequently.
“Over time, this dedication to the Scriptures,” he adds, “became for some an abandonment of everything except the Scriptures and a distinction between sola Scriptura and nuda Scriptura became necessary.”
Southwestern Seminary promotes “sola Scriptura over nuda Scriptura,” valuing the work of Christian theologians and authors of the past, while also placing Scripture as the supreme authority in faith and doctrine. After clarifying this distinction, Leeds explains why Christians should read broadly outside of Scripture and what they should read.
By reading widely, Christians can gain a better understanding of Scripture, of their own culture, and of the way that believers throughout history have struggled to interpret the Bible correctly. They should also recognize that “all truth is God’s truth,” without forgetting that Scripture alone is inerrant.
“The great writings of the Western world are worthy of critical consumption by the Christian mind for the many places where they contain philosophical, historical, mathematical, scientific, and other truths,” Leeds writes.
By reading broadly, Christians also improve their ability to communicate and defend the gospel in “a diverse and rapidly changing world.” Finally, Leeds notes that Scripture “esteems education.”
Leeds then encourages Christians to interact with authors with whom they disagree, as well as those with whom they agree. They should also read from various genres, including autobiographies or biographies like Augustine’s Confessions and fiction works like John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress.
“It is hoped,” Leeds writes, “that some who read this article will be encouraged not only to read in these different genres but also to write in them. … Perhaps some who read this article will take up the mantle left behind by Aquinas the academician, Augustine the autobiographer, and Bunyan the storyteller, and join those who through reading and writing become all things to all men so that they may by all means save some.”
In another article, titled “Finding Friends,” seminary President Paige Patterson explains why he insists that all students build a library of 1,500 volumes before graduation. While he believes the number of volumes in a student’s library is important, he underscores more the need for students to build a library of their own, even though they live in an electronic age.
The volumes in a minister’s library, Patterson writes, “constitute, in fact, the invaluable tools of the prophet of God who wants to satiate himself with every understanding of God and the world that he created.”
Patterson, who owns and uses a Kindle as well as a physical library with nearly 22,000 volumes, admits, “Even those who continue to be critics of the coming e-book age must face the fact that eventually most of the problems with digital books will be resolved.” He argues, however, that owning and reading printed books still has advantages for believers despite technological advances in recent years.
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Bible teacher offers suggested tools
Bible study teacher Barbara McKinney of MacArthur Boulevard Baptist Church in Irving suggested these resources for personal Bible study:
The Apologetics Study
Bible (HCSB), B&H Publishing
This is the one I use when I am looking for information on dealing with folks who want to argue the validity of the Christian faith. Read the preface to this Bible and it will let you know about how to use it and what to use it for. A newly released student edition is also available.
Hebrew-Greek Key
Study Bible (NASB), AMG
It is the New American Standard Bible (considered the best translation by many biblical scholars) compiled and edited by Spiros Zodhiates, Th.D. It has been my favorite for a long time. All my notes are in this Bible.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Study Bible, Crossway
I purchased this Bible in the fall of last year. It is the most comprehensive study Bible ever published. It was created by a team of 95 evangelical Christian scholars and teachers and contains more than 2 million words of Bible text, explanation and teaching; equivalent to a 20-volume Bible resource library. It is awesome. This is the Bible I study to prepare talks I do for the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention as I travel with them. It is for the serious Bible student. I would not start with this one, but I would plan on graduation to it eventually. I can’t carry it to church because it is too heavy!
The New Living
Translation, Tyndale
Redone in 2004, it combines the latest biblical scholarship with a clear, dynamic writing style?which communicates God’s Word powerfully to me. It is the one I pick up to read when I am sitting in my easy chair for the sheer joy of fellowship with God. I also have the Williams New Testament, the Phillips Translation of the New Testament, the Amplified Study Bible and many more.
Greek and English Interlinear
New Testament (NIV), Zondervan
It is fun to see the Greek and under it the English translation. It is good to have to compare when you have a question about a particular verse. For study only; it is too confusing to read for just your quiet time. [The same resource is available for other translations.]
New Westminster
Dictionary of the Bible
Eventually, you will need a Bible dictionary and this is the one I recommend. [This edition may still be available from used book sources, and has been replaced by New Bible Dictionary, IVP. Holman offers the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary which includes all major translations.]
The Bible Knowledge
Commentary, David C. Cook
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NIV losing ground as new translations gain popularity among Southern Baptists
The high volume of sales of an inexpensive Outreach New Testament and the introduction of the ESV Study Bible has kept the English Standard Version (ESV) among the best-selling Bibles for several years, according to the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). Data from Christian Booksellers Association show ESV in fifth place for unit sales with the Holman Christian Standard Bible following in sixth place.
Several leading theologians say Southern Baptists contributed to those sales by using the ESV in increasing numbers since its release in 2001.
Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, said the surge of ESV sales likely reflects a dissatisfaction with the long-popular New International Version (NIV) and its most recent revision entitled Today’s New International Version (TNIV).
“I think people are being attracted to the ESV, because when the TNIV came out, many people realized that even the NIV had made some very grave errors in translation and approach to translation,” Patterson told the TEXAN. “I, myself, began to urge people publicly, as I had done privately already, to no longer use either the TNIV or the NIV, and I believe that many other evangelicals did the same thing. The ESV offered a ready alternative and, for that reason, has been very successful.”
He added that the ESV is his second favorite translation, with the New American Standard Bible (NASB) and King James Version (KJV) being tied for first.
KJV and NKJV rank second and third behind NIV in the two publisher lists, with NASB consistently remaining in the top 10. While Southwestern Seminary encourages its students to rely on the Greek and Hebrew texts as much as possible, Patterson said the ESV is among the most commonly used English translations on campus.
In translation philosophy, the ESV descends from the KJV and the Revised Standard Version (RSV). Though weighed against the original Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek texts, the ESV translation committee took the 1971 RSV text as its starting point, updating that text for accuracy and readability.
The ESV is a word-for-word translation like the KJV, RSV and NASB. In contrast, versions like the NIV and New Living Translation adopt a thought-for-thought translation philosophy that focuses on the original author’s meaning rather than individual words. LifeWay’s Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) offers a middle way between word-for-word and thought-for-thought translations.
“When the ESV project was first inaugurated, I did have the privilege of working closely with Wayne Grudem, some other evangelicals, and the publisher to secure and see to the revision of the text at the point that it needed to take place,” Paige Patterson said, referring to his role on the ESV advisory council which also included his wife Dorothy, professor of theology in women’s studies at Southwestern. “In that sense of the word, I have endorsed it. I do think it is a good translation and that it has a thousand assets over the more popular NIV.”
Numerous Southern Baptists contributed to the ESV Study Bible, including several from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. Southern Seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr. endorsed the study Bible, calling it a treasure–“a beautiful volume, filled with a wealth of resources.”
The ECPA awarded the ESV Study Bible its 2009 Book of the Year, the first time a study Bible has received that distinction. Along with notes on the biblical text, the ESV Study Bible features charts, maps, illustrations and more than 50 articles on various topics. Plus, each hard copy comes with access to an online version of all its content.
Tom Schreiner, professor of New Testament interpretation at Southern, served as New Testament editor for the ESV Study Bible.
He said the study Bible has sold well because of “its focus on explaining the text first of all. But the ESV (Study Bible) also has a theological, apologetic, and practical slant. So, it is very useful for study and teaching.”
Denny Autrey, dean of Southwestern’s Havard School for Theological Studies in Houston, agreed that both the ESV translation and Study Bible have many positive features.
“Both the ESV and ESV Study Bible have produced a more accurate record of translating the text and have cleaned up many areas that were questionable in the RSV,” Autrey said. “Thus it has been well received in the academic field and has been recommended by some prominent pastors who have endorsed and are using it regularly in their preaching and study.”
Some, however, worry that the eSV Study Bible is too Calvinistic in its interpretation of the biblical text. David allen, dean of Southwestern’s School of Theology, gives the study Bible’s notes that address the issue of the extent of atonement as one example of his concern. “The notes on these passages [Romans 5:19, 2 Corinthians 5:14-21, 1 Timothy 2:4-6, Hebrews 2:9, and 1 John 2:2] argue the case of limited atonement and make no reference whatsoever to the majority position of unlimited atonement,” Allen said. Under the heading “Salvation,” Allen asserted, “The notes promulgate the Calvinistic error that regeneration precedes faith.”
He also observed that “virtually all articles that deal with aspects of theology are written by Calvinists.”
Schreiner readily acknowledged the Study Bible’s Reformed viewpoint.
“The ESV (Study Bible) isn’t explicitly Reformed, but many Reformed scholars worked on it,” he said, “and hence it does have a Reformed flavor soteriologically.”
The ESV translation, too, is often recommended by Reformed theologians, but Christians of all stripes use and endorse it. Patterson represents one of the many examples.
“I do think Reformed Christians have gravitated more than others to the ESV,” Patterson said. “Though, I certainly do not think there is any exclusivity there. Many of those who were involved in securing this Bible to begin with were of the Reformed persuasion, but my own involvement shows you that was not entirely the case.”
Allen echoed what appears to be the consensus view of the ESV among Southern Baptists.
“As an evangelical revision of the RSV, it generally succeeds quite well in its attempt to split the difference between the more idiomatic NIV and the more literal NASB,” Allen said. “I predict the popularity of this translation will continue to grow in the years to come.”
Malcolm Yarnell, associate professor of systematic theology at Southwestern, also like the ESV because it is readable and lacks what he sees as theological compromises in the TNIV, though sharing Allen’s concern regarding portions of the Study Bible.
“I would encourage people to add new translations like the ESV and HCSB to their collections,” Yarnell said, though he finds the New King James Version (NKJV) and NASB remaining popular among both younger and older readers. However, he shares Allen’s concern about some of the ESV Study Bible’s notes favoring a Calvinistic viewpoint.
Criswell College Old Testament and Hebrew Professor David Brooks also finds the NKJV and NASB to be the most frequent choices of students at the Dallas-based school. “From what I have seen, the KJV is popular particularly among those who grew up reading the version and those who tend to take the Majority Text or KJV-only position. Younger people who are not in those camps find the language difficult or obscure.”
LifeWay does not release sales figures for their stores or curriculum, but spokesman Brooklyn Lowery said, “Traditional translations such as the King James Version remain popular with our customers, but newer translations, like the Holman Christian Standard Bible, are also popular choices among LifeWay Christian Stores’ shoppers. We really see a blending of people who prefer older translations with those who prefer more modern language translations.”
A 2004 survey by Ellison Research for LifeWay’s Facts & Trends magazine, showed Southern Baptist pastors evenly split between the NIV (26 percent), NKJV (25 percent, KJV (23 percent) and NASB (22 percent) in their translation preference.
NIV remains the preference of nearly half of the participants in Bible drill competition sponsored by the Southern Baptist of Texas Convention, according to Lucian Stohler, but he is noticing more churches preferring the Holman Christian Standard Bible. “That’s probably because of problems some leaders have with NIV translation and because their Sunday School curriculum utilized Holman so they want the children using the same one for Bible drill.”
Bible drill competitors from First Baptist Church of Lavon still favor NIV with leader Carol High explaining, “In memorizing Scripture I would think that the purpose is to have God’s Word in our hearts and mouths so we can use it in our every day walk. We do not talk like the King James, so it only makes sense to use a version that is spoken in our own language.
Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington, which has a consistent record of seeing their students rank high in statewide competition, uses the King James Version in Bible drills, according to Bible drill leader Edna Penny, who said she also sees many families using NKJV when reading to their children.
With the 400th anniversary of the KJV translation coming up in 2011, the director of leadership and adult publishing at LifeWay Christian Resources said, “We’re going to make a bit to do about that, highlighting its history and how it was developed.”
While the Holman Christian Standard Bible translation is utilized throughout LifeWay’s curricula at every age level, the King James Version is the basis for Life Words, Bible Studies for Life.” LifeWay promotes the adult curriculum as “an accurate translation that is unsurpassed in literary beauty and in the contributions it has made to Western culture and to America’s rich Christian Heritage.”
“We use HCSB for everything, but we still have many churches that are very comfortable with KJV,” Robb said. He described sales of the KJV-based study as “very healthy,” along with the Herschel Hobbs Commentary offered since 1968 which utilized the KJV text.
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Bible societies exploiting technology to spread Word
Walk into any Christian bookstore in America and you will find shelf after shelf of Bibles in every shape, size, color and translation possible–Bibles tailored to every special interest group–women, men, children, teens, military, medical, and even sportsmen. These Bibles are no doubt a blessing for those who have both the resources to purchase them and the ability to read them.
But what about those who have neither? According to audio Bible distributor Faith Comes By Hearing, approximately 50 percent of the world’s population is illiterate. Even if they could afford to purchase a Bible in a bookstore, they couldn’t read it.
However, in today’s technology-driven age, groups are rising to meet the challenge of providing the Bible to those who are illiterate or have limited literacy. These groups are taking the gospel to far-flung areas of the earth in print, on CDs and MP3s, and over the Internet.
“We are building our part of the wall of the kingdom,” said Eric Fellman, president of World Bible Translation Center, based in North Richland Hills. WBTC exists to translate the Bible into an easy-to-read format in the top 100 languages spoken in the world. “We are a group that is totally committed to the original language. We believe the Holy Spirit wanted the common people to understand.”
To enhance understanding, WBTC translations of the Bible use vocabulary that is understandable for the average fourth- or fifth-grader. “Even in America, literacy level is dropping from ninth-grade level to seventh grade,” Fellman said. The Easy-to-Read Version of the Bible helps people grasp biblical concepts in everyday language.
WBTC has an Easy-to-Read Version of the Bible in 30 of the top 100 languages in the world. These versions are distributed in print and/or audio at cost by WBTC partners around the world. In addition, every edition is made available free of charge in a PDF format on the WBTC website.
WBTC Easy-to-Read Version has just recently been translated into Arabic and is being distributed in the Middle East.
“The Arabic version is incredibly important to supporting Christians in the Middle East,” Fellman said. “In Egypt there are currently 6 million believers with no version of the Bible available until now.”
In addition to world-wide efforts, the WBTC Easy-to-Read Version Spanish Bibles are being used to teach English in Texas and other areas with large Hispanic communities. “Our Spanish translation is side-by-side with simple English,” Fellman said. “It is a good tool with ESL.”
WBTC is ready and willing to partner with individuals, churches, and large organizations to get Easy-to-Read Versions of the Bible into the hands of those who need them most. Missionaries representing Southern Baptist mission boards have taken advantage of the resources for work around the world. For more information about how to partner with WBTC, visit their website at wbtc.org.
. . .
In 1972, Jerry and Annette Jackson were ministering on a Hopi Indian Reservation where they found unused Hopi Bibles and realized that even though the Word was there, the people couldn’t use it because they were illiterate. Out of that experience, the ministry of Faith Comes By Hearing and its audio Bible listening program were born.
FCBH focuses providing the Bible to the poor and illiterate in a culturally relevant way. According to FCBH statistics, the group has 24 recording centers throughout the world, staffed by 40 recording teams of national workers. In 2008, over $14.5 million was given to FCBH for its programs. Currently, FCBH has 454 audio Scripture recordings available in 388 languages. These recordings reach 4.5 billion people in 135 countries.
According to the FCBH website, spreading the gospel around the world presents special challenges. “Offering every person on our planet equal access to the Bible requires meeting the unique needs of generations, technical societeis, and fast-paced lifestyles. It also means meeting the cultural and literacy challenges presented when working in underdeveloped countries. Faith Comes By Hearing is rising to meet the biblical needs of a complex world through modern technology. An MP3 Bible, “BibleSticks” for all ages, and a third-world culturally adapted playback unit, called The Proclaimer, are just a taste of the technology that God is using to spread his Word throughout the world with Faith Comes By Hearing programs.”
Two FCBH programs provide audio versions of the Bible in the United States and around the world. “You’ve Got The Time” is an effort to provide an audio version of the New Testament to every adult and teenager in participating local churches. In addition, children are provided with the Kidz Audio Bible. According to FCBH, listeners are disciple and then they are asked to participate in providing audio Bibles to the poor and illiterate through FCBH’s international programs.
“You’ve Got The Time” is sponsored by Christian business people and foundations who are concerned about biblical illiteracy in the U.S.
The international program, “Faith Comes By Hearing,” takes audio Bibles in native languages to people groups who generally follow an oral tradition of transmitting information. Pastors or leaders commit to listening with their people for 30 minutes a week and then follow the listening with a time of discussion.
In addition to CD and MP3, FCBH also offers over 400 audio Bible downloads free of charge of its website, faithcomesbyhearing.com
. . .
Producing and distributing Bibles in a digital format, especially for areas of the world where the gospel is not readily available, is the mission of The Digital Bible Society. Based in The Woodlands, Texas, the group provides both audio and video versions of the gospel, primarily in China and the Middle East, as well as other areas of the world.
Started in 2000 as an all-volunteer group of software developers, missionaries, pastors and Bible students, The Digital Bible Society believes that the personal computer has opened new opportunities to share the gospel in a digital format—opportunities that are both vast low cost. “In the past, Bibles have cost missionary societies several dollars each to produce and ship. Now, an entire library with Bibles, audio=scriptures, evangelical media, commentaries, devotionals, inspirational works, and biographies can be reproduced on a quality computer disk for 50 cents. That same CD can be copied and given away in minutes. Imagine, an entire Christian library, resources worth thousands of dollars—taking up several meters of shelf space—copied freely in minutes and carried away in a shirt pocket,” state the society’s vision statement.
In keeping with its vision, The Digital Bible Society is currently focusing on distributing Chinese Treasures 5.0, a CD containing four Chinese Bibles, two commentaries, a New Testament Audio Bible, as well as various reference works, discipleship and training materials, evangelistic tracts, biography and history material. In addition, the CD contains 177 Classic and inspirational Christian books, as well as “The Hope,” an 80-minute video that presents the gospel. These CDs are available free of charge to those living in China or those who will be traveling to China.
In addition to making the CDs available for free, The Digital Bible Society encourages those who receive the CD to make as many copies as possible and distribute them in china. While there is no way to know how many times the CDs have been copied and given away, over 200,000 original copies of Chinese Treasure 5.0 have been distributed in China.
The Digital Bible Society is also working on Arabic Treasure, a project similar to Chinese Treasures, but targeted to Christians in the Middle East. They hope to have this project completed soon. Other language groups targeted for CD projects include Turkish, Indonesian, Russian and Farsi.
There are many ways to participate in The Digital Bible Society’s efforts to spread the gospel. To find out how you can be involved, visit their website at dbsbible.org.
Bible tools for families offered
At a young age children love listening to stories and turning through pages in books. They excitedly point at pictures even before they can put words together to describe what they are thinking and seeing. But where should a parent who loves Jesus begin exposing children to the life-changing stories and truths found in the Bible?
Christian parents desire for the curiosity and interest of their children to be directed toward God and the book he has written to young and old alike.
Two recently released titles provide parents tools to teach their children about the Bible. Crossway offers “A Family Guide to the Bible” by Christin Ditchfield as a family-friendly look at Scripture to help parents make teaching it a part of everyday family life.
According to Ditchfield, the book is not intended as an exhaustively-detailed resource, but is written to be user-friendly for families. “‘A Family Guide to the Bible’ was written to help busy parents, grandparents, and teachers with the basics: what’s in the Bible, where to find it, and how it all fits together,” Ditchfield said. “It’s intended to be simple, family friendly and easy to understand and follow.”
The book begins with three short chapters, each detailing an important aspect of studying Scripture. Chapter one addresses the history of the Bible and explains how Scripture was canonized. Chapter two examines the authority of the Bible and looks at the unity, accuracy, history and prophecy of the Bible and how these elements serve to prove the inerrancy of Scripture. Chapter three discusses the message of the Bible and how that message runs from Genesis to Revelation in a cohesive theme.
Following the opening chapters, Ditchfield lays out a book-by-book overview of the Old and New Testaments. These overviews include the book name, author, audience and setting, as well as key verses or passages and vocabulary words to know. Other sections include: “Where to Find More on the Story in the Bible,” which details how the story continues in other passages; “Did You Know?” which highlights important facts; and “Making the Connection,” which shows the link between the Bible and modern-day events.
Following the book-by-book overview, Ditchfield includes a chapter on how to study the Bible, including how to choose a translation and how to use other biblical resources, such as a Bible dictionary, encyclopedia and concordance. She also includes study tips for personal Bible study and family devotions, as well as Bible reading plans.
The final chapters of the book are reference guides with a chapter titled “Where in the Scripture to Find Everything,” which includes references for finding stories from the Old and New Testaments that everyone should know, Bible heroes, the miracles and teachings of Jesus, as well as where to find verses for specific life events. Ditchfield also includes a chapter of biblical maps and a chapter listing additional Bible study resources, such as books, maps and charts, software, movies, and online resources.
“I Want to Know About the Bible” by Christina Goodings exposes readers to many of the treasured stories of the Bible beginning in Genesis and continuing all the way through to Revelation. The book, published by Lion UK, gives a simple overview of stories, characters and themes that provide parents with an easy way to share with their children about the Bible.
Informative insights on how the Bible was written are included throughout the book in feature boxes. In one example, Goodings describes how thousands of years ago some of the first stories in the Bible were told by grown-ups to their children. She writes, “In this way, they were treasured long before they were written down.” The feature boxes also cover topics like languages used for original writings and information on biblical writers. The beautiful illustrations by Jan Lewis depict everything from the Ark of the Covenant to a map showing the Apostle Paul’s journeys and the destinations of some of the letters he wrote.
Goodings’ approach in writing “I Want to Know
SBTC joins others in regional children’s ministry conference
BROKEN ARROW, Okla.?More than 900 preschool and children’s leaders from six states met at First Baptist Church of Broken Arrow, Okla., for a two-day conference called “Heart of the Child.” The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention joined state convention leaders from Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri and Kansas-Nebraska in planning the bi-annual conference, which covered areas such as music, missions, Bible skills, weekday ministry, camps, and numerous related topics.
LifeWay Christian Resources, International Mission Board, North American Mission Board and WMU also participated.
“For a regional training, I think it is one of the most beneficial conferences to attend,” said Karen McNeece of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano. “The keynote speakers are relevant and fresh and it’s a weekend of recharging and renewing yourself to better share the gospel with boys and girls. It’s also a fabulous time to be with your teaching team?to connect to one another, to make a plan and share a vision on how to be the most effective teachers.”
The next Heart of the Child Conference is scheduled for April 20-21, 2012, at First Baptist Church of Broken Arrow in suburban Tulsa.
Demolition team grows church in Port-au-Prince
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti?Over the last few months, volunteer work in Haiti has revolved around demolition. With so many buildings damaged beyond the point of repair, teams had to go in and tear down crumbling structures and clear foundations before anything could be rebuilt.
Steve Dorman, pastor of First Baptist Church of Brownsville, led one of these demolition teams. Dorman and his team went to Port-au-Prince to work on demolition and reconstruction of a church.
“One of the walls had fallen apart and the roof had caved in,” Dorman said. “The other walls were concrete blocks, but they were very unstable. You could push on them and they would fall over.”
The team knocked down the walls and cleared off the slab. They then built a retaining wall and a wooden frame structure as well as a roof. The result was on open-air pavilion where the church could meet and have room to grow.
“We originally had planned to rebuild it with concrete blocks,” he said, “but the pastor was really hoping to expand the church in the near future so he asked us if we would build a wood frame wall so that he could take it loose easier and make a bigger structure.”
While Dorman and his team worked on the church building, a Mississippi couple was building the church in a different way. Steve and Kay Griffin, working through the North American Mission Board, acted as the team’s facilitators on the ground in Haiti. They helped to get all of the tools and supplies the team needed for their project.
As the team worked, the Griffins spoke to the children of a school that was attached to the church. In Haiti, parents have to pay to send their children to school, so many churches offer schooling and meals for children who cannot afford an education otherwise. The Griffins gave the kids the plan of salvation and 19 of them prayed to accept Christ.
“It was an answer to our prayers,” Dorman said. “We didn’t just want to do physical things to help them. We wanted to help them spiritually in a way that would last for eternity.”
“They were a super team,” Steve Griffin said about Dorman’s demolition team. “They had a major building and clearing project, and they did a great job.”
Though proud of what he and his team accomplished, Dorman acknowledges that there is still a lot of work to be done in Haiti. Rubble still lines the streets and people still live in fear and insecurity, unwilling or unable to go back into their homes.
“There are so many different needs,” Dorman said. “The country needed all of these relief organizations before the earthquake because of the poverty and the instability and the lack of infrastructure and the human need. But after the earthquake there will be needs for years to come.”
For more information on volunteering, contact Jim Richardson by e-mail at jrichardson@sbtexas.com or by phone at 940-704-9346. You may donate to disaster relief efforts online by credit card or writing a check to “Disaster Relief.” All funds go directly toward current or future disaster relief efforts. Checks should be mailed to the SBTC office at PO Box 1988, Grapevine 76099-1988.
Seminal events occurring in Orlando
Greetings from Orlando! Actually, I am still in Grapevine while writing this column but I wanted you to know that your prayers are needed for the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Orlando, Fla., June 15-16. There are several seminal events about to transpire:
?A new SBC president will be elected. There are currently four announced candidates. We have the luxury of knowing that all of them believe in the inerrancy of the Word of God. We have come a long way in 20 years. You can cast your ballot without being concerned that Southern Baptists will be taken down the wrong path as far as the nature of Scripture is concerned. The candidates differ on their vision for the SBC’s future. Carefully study their comments and prayerfully vote for the one of your convictions.
?The SBC Executive Committee search committee has announced Frank Page as their selection. While the SBC messengers do not vote on his election (only the Executive Committee), a new day will begin after the vote. Morris Chapman has served for 17 years. There will be a new person at the helm in the fall. Pray for God’s direction.
?With vacancies in the executive offices of the International Mission Board and the North American Mission Board, the boards’ search committees have not announced any candidates. It is very unlikely this will happen in Orlando. This could be the gathering when the persons who will direct our missions efforts surface in the hearts of the search committees. Pray for God’s leadership in the search.
?Finally, the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force report is on the program for Tuesday afternoon (June 15). It is unfortunate that some have made the report more about personalities and style than the facts. Individual Southern Baptists and the churches of the SBC are in desperate need of spiritual renewal. This has to be done in the heart. The report challenges all of us toward a deeper devotion to the Lord Jesus.
Structural recommendations of the GCRTF are not criticisms of good plans and godly leaders. The desire of the Task Force is to show the difference between good and better. It is better to penetrate lostness in the underserved regions of North America and the unreached peoples of the world than to concentrate our resources in the more served areas. Southern Baptists are being called to sacrifice for the gospel. We must prioritize our limited resources in such a way as to have the greatest impact in penetrating lostness. More personnel and funding must go to the least reached places. This will result in a Great Commission Resurgence.
My prayer is that we will pay any price, go any place, and do any service to accomplish the Great Commission as a convention of churches. By the grace of God this is my personal pledge to you.
That Bible you carry
What’s behind the Bible you use every Sunday? You know that others in your congregation, maybe in your own family, use Bibles with different wording in many verses. Are those Bibles all equally reliable? The path between the pens of Moses or Luke and the Bible you use most often is complex. While I say at the beginning and at the end that your Bible (assuming you’re using a mainstream version) is reliable, it’s worth understanding some of what has gone into making that statement true.
First, the raw material behind your own version of the Bible is voluminous and intimidating. The work of textual criticism (criticism here meaning “evaluation”) is to work through the biblical and even extra-biblical material so that we have the text of Scripture in a reliable form, as close to the original writings of God’s messengers as possible. Textual critics are theologians, archeologists, experts in ancient languages and history, and tedious analysts. They further utilize such tools as carbon dating and chemical analysis of ink and writing media.
Old Testament translations are primarily based on a text from about 1000 AD called the Masoretic Text. This was the Old Testament in Hebrew. Some other materials were available?a significant additional resource was the Greek translation of the Old Testament called the Septuagint. The Septuagint (seventy), often abbreviated “LXX,” is named for the 72 scholars who, in about 200 BC, translated the Hebrew Bible into Greek over the course of 72 days in Alexandria, or so the story goes. This Greek translation is the Bible the apostles and Jesus used most often, it is the Bible Paul quoted when he quoted an OT passage. One significant feature of the Septuagint is that it was translated earlier than our existing Hebrew text. This difference in age brings us closer to the original authors and thus gives us greater confidence that copy errors or other factors have not changed the text. This older text also bears strong witness to the reliability of the Masoretic Hebrew Bible of later centuries.
The way we understood Old Testament translation changed in 1948 when a shepherd boy found clay tablets containing biblical material in a cave near the Dead Sea. By the time several area caves had been excavated we had copies or portions of every OT book except Esther. These copies were more than a thousand years older than the Masoretic Text. One of the most amazing things we discovered was how little the language had changed during that long period. Another was how few differences there were between the older copies and the later ones. It was a great testimony to the reliability of the Hebrew text upon which modern versions were based. Bible versions translated or revised in the past 50 years have worked with an awareness of these Dead Sea scrolls and the insights we gained from their discovery.
For the New Testament we have thousands of manuscripts and fragments, one dating to within 20 or 30 years from the original. The examination of these resources allow biblical scholars to make informed decisions on the authenticity of a book, the most reliable manuscripts, and ultimately the best reading of the text. The work of these scholars is an art based on a great number of facts. They factor in archeological evidence that helps them understand the locales and language of the Bible. The type of ink used to write, as well as the material written upon, allows scholars to determine the era in which biblical material was penned. Even the style of writing?is it capital or lower case, are there breaks between words or not, is it uncial (a kind of cursive style) or printed?testifies to the era and authenticity of a Scripture portion. Their analysis of the vocabulary, writing style, historical references and so forth, in a book that claims to be written by one of the apostles or during that time often allows us to know if such material is what it claims. That kind of criticism has ruled out many of the so called “hidden” or “suppressed” books of the early church?a fact Da Vinci Code conspiracy theorists find inconvenient.
Less so than in the examination of Old Testament materials, New Testament scholars must also sort through well-meant (or agenda-driven) efforts to “fix” the grammar or theology of the biblical books. They therefore have to be versed in church history so that they can know when a controversy arose so that they can distinguish between verses written by first-century apostles and third-century debaters. I suppose it’s similar to those who would change biblical words to better fit the sensibilities of our time related to gender-specific references to God the Father or Jesus the Son. Scribes that handled the Old Testament reverenced the text to such a degree that far less of that kind of editing took place.
As rules of thumb, our Scripture CSI team developed some principles that allow them to spot the best reading of biblical material. First, older material is generally preferred over later material. This makes sense because every generation that passes from the original results in untold numbers of copies and with those, the possibility of errors or edits in the copy process. Second, readings more difficult (for the scribe) and/or shorter are preferred over easier or lengthier writing. Again, an edit would likely be intended to smooth out a tough passage and may also require greater length to clarify. Third, readings that are most broadly (geographically) accepted are preferred over those that could more easily derive from one source. I include this description to give you an insight as to how deliberate and serious these researchers are. They are trying to get us as close as possible to the source?the originals.
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