This sponsored post was prepared by E. Ray Clendenen. Not everyone is excited by terms such as “textual variants,” “eclectic text,” and “Alexandrian text-type”—and that’s ok. But we all need to poke our heads up occasionally out of our neat little worlds and get smacked in the face with reality, which is usually a lot…
This sponsored post was prepared by Dr. George Scipione, Director of the Biblical Counseling Institute at the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Pastoral work is a lot like combat. You are never truly prepared for battle just by theory or classroom instruction. In combat, physical and spiritual, you need hands-on training in the field. Training for…
Dear Church Leader, YOUR CHURCH NEEDS A GREAT WEBSITE Your site is your new front door and church lobby. Newcomers will visit website before showing up in person in order to help them feel oriented to your congregation. They will form a first impression that will cause them to visit, or to move on. What…
This sponsored post was prepared by Dustin Willis A solitary faith is not a Christian faith. Lose the Lone-Ranger Mentality While our culture may place high value on independence and individualism, the truth of the matter is that we need one another to carry out the mission of God. A foundational truth for everyday missionaries…
This sponsored post was prepared by C.J. Williams of Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary. When Adam found that among the creatures there was not one suitable for him as a partner (Gen 2:20), it is not as though he (or God) first thought that there might indeed be an animal that would match him as a…
As many of my readers know, I worship and serve as a pastor at Grace Fellowship Church in Toronto, Ontario. What my readers may not know is that my local church has been served faithfully by Church Plant Media since March 2011. Our church doesn’t have a huge budget and we needed a website that…
by E. Ray Clendenen In the 1970s many feminists saw androcentric language—the abundant use of man, he, him, and his for groups or individuals of both genders—as one of the influences keeping alive the subordination and even demeaning of women in society. Consequently, many organizations, including publishers and teacher associations, were quick to publicize their…
by William P. Farley If someone polled your church with the question, “Which preacher do you listen to most frequently?” how would you respond? Some would point to the pastor. Others might suggest a minister they hear on the radio or by podcast. But if we are honest, none of these wins the contest. Believe…
By Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert The below article is adapted from Helping Without Hurting in Short-Term Missions, by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert (Moody Publishers.) The world has shrunk remarkably in the space of a few decades, creating new possibilities and questions for the body of Christ. The Apostle Paul spent his life sailing…
This sponsored post was prepared by Dr. C.J. Williams, Professor, Old Testament Studies, Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary To open the Bible is to step into a world in which shepherding, farming, swords, and plowshares were the stuff of everyday life. The Gospel message is affixed to such images by way of parable and metaphor, but…
Hi, my name is Matt. I’m a pastor, and I also run a small business called Mere Agency. You may have heard of MereChurch. I know many other bi-vocational ministers, those who aren’t able to be paid enough by their congregation to meet the needs of their family, and so need to take a second…
By E. Ray Clendenen President Obama is famous for repeating some variation of the phrase, “Let me be clear.” There has been some discussion of what he means by this. Some suggest it marks a “sound bite” or a “take-away” for reporters. Deborah Tannen, professor of linguistics at Georgetown University and author of “The Argument…
The truth of Scripture is meant not only to be studied—it’s meant also to be sung. What the people of God believe shapes the way we worship, and how we worship shapes how we practice our faith. Church musicians and lyricists who have crafted hymns with deep biblical content and soul-stirring arrangements have been of…
by Barry York At the heart of being a disciple of Jesus Christ is learning from Him. “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32). As a new professor at the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary (RPTS) in…
The Bible is a book. It may be called a collection of books compiled into one majestic volume. As a book it is designed to be read. In this respect it is like all other books. But in important ways, the Bible is not like any other book. It is the Book of books. We…
Tabletalk magazine exists to help Christians grow as disciples of Jesus Christ. It meets Christians where they are, whether young or old in the faith, and it takes them deeper. Tabletalk helps to provide Christians with the tools they need to dig down into the depths of God’s Word and the theology of God’s Word…
by E. Ray Clendenen Although not as versatile as some words (such as run), the word faithful can mean different things in different contexts. It can refer to “loyalty,” the quality of always acting in the best interests of someone else. It can also refer to “consistency” or “predictability,” always acting according to certain principles…
By Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary. You could see the panic rising in his eyes. As the collection plate moved ever closer to him, indecision tightened its grip on his heart. In his hand was a wad of cash, and, as he ruffled through the various bills, one could almost hear the question that echoed in…
by Tony Payne. Perhaps it’s a kind of laid-back Aussie skepticism about the possibility of anything ever being very successful, but I have been genuinely surprised by the reaction to The Trellis and the Vine over the past five years. To me it always felt like a very ordinary and unremarkable statement of the patently…
By Tony Merida Social causes come and go like bad fashion trends, sometimes quite literally: what color bracelet are you wearing this month? Surely our consumer-conditioned attention spans have something to do with this, but let’s be real: when you care about something enough to devote serious time and energy, it can be discouraging when…