...LIBERTY UNIVERSITY BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY A Critique of the Journal Article: The Nature of the Church By Walvoord, John F. Submitted to Professor Kevin Richard in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of the course THEO 510-B06 Survey of Theology by Mark W. Clark, L26613732 January 23, 2014 Contents Introduction 1 Brief Summary 1 Critical Interaction 2 Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................................4 Bibliography 6 Grading Rubric 7 Introduction: Digging around the archived files of Bibliotheca Sacra (affectionately known as “Bib Sac”) evoked a deep sense of history and legacy. Although my exploration was limited to the broad, colorful screen of my iMac computer, I could almost smell the dusty stacks, piled high in the bowels of Dallas Theological Seminary’s archive rooms. Bib Sac was first published in 1844 and lays claim to being the oldest theological journal in America. The list of past editors stirs my earliest memories in Bible college on the coast of Maine. The theological foundations of my studies there included Lewis Sperry Chafer, John Walvood and Roy Zuck, all prolific writers and former editors of Bib Sac. It was here, in a relatively modern volume: October, nineteen fifty-nine, that I struck pay dirt. The volume I was perusing contained an article entitled The Nature of the...
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...MILITARY LEADERS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE AMERICAN MILITARY TRADITION, AMERICAN CULTURE, AMERICAN WAY OF WAR, AND THE EXHIBITING OF CHRISTIAN VALUES ***** ******* HIUS 380– Spring B02 March 11, 2016 The United States of America has exemplary Divisions of Armed Forces where many outstanding members have stood courageous and resilient in their service to this country and the protection of others. General John J. Pershing, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, and General Matthew B. Ridgway are three of the military leaders which this paper will depict and associate while expounding upon the way each contributed to the American Military Tradition. Continuing in how these individuals were or were not representative of an American culture or an American Way of War as interpreted in this course of study. Also, an opinion will be offered regarding such persons as to whether or not each was an appropriate Christian role model. No matter the similitudes or dissimilarities of the individuals each will prove to be distinguished and accomplished in their innovative and outstanding leadership and service to this country. Military Tradition in the United States of America is a frequent reference to relationship and affiliation through the ancestral line of a serviceman and an individual’s advancements and accomplishments as soldiers. American Military Tradition will endeavor itself to change as new technologies and ideologies transpire. The reflection of change or enhancement will reveal through...
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...Christian Concept of Leadership Christian concept of leadership adds wide range of moral values to the basic characteristics of every leader. The main dilemma is whether it is possible to be a committed Christian and a committed leader. The leadership is an art and it requires communication skills in order to reach mutual respect and understanding with your employees or team members. Committed Christians are successful leaders as they are concerned about others’ well – being and they strike to reach fairness and peace in the workplace. There are several responsibilities that are important for Christian leaders. It includes moral behavior, carrying the vision for the organization, open communication, team building and encouraging growth and creativity. Leader should be able to keep the balance and make those decisions that suit particular situation the best. Moreover, good leader is the one who first learned to be a good follower. This chapter basically explores the characteristics that every good leader should have. Christian leader is viewed as a model, as an example of moral behavior at workplace. However, not every committed Christian has those moral values as in this chapter is described. It is idealized more. On the other hand, moral values and mutual respect at a workplace has always been valued between employees and a leader. Mostly Christian leaders are opened and seek to relate people with gentleness, show forgiveness and respect. However, it is not...
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...0 CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW: REAL SERVANT LEADERS 1 Christian Worldview: Real Leaders Serve A requirement for being a servant leader is to be a Christian. To be a Christian, one must follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ by being baptized. After baptism, God has several expectations for Christians to fulfill which are living a Christian life and openly sharing information about God. Nancy Pearcey the author of Total Truth states, “A servant leader creates an atmosphere of “transparency” in which all relevant information is shared openly, so that everyone has an opportunity to make responsible decisions.” (Pearcey, 2004) In order to be a Christian servant leader, you must be a Christian. Charles H. Dunahoo the author of aking Kingdom Disciples M states “to be a Christian, not in name only, but as one who practices his or her beliefs (which is the essence of a disciple), is to think from a Christian perspective about life and reality. In becoming a Christian our life becomes oriented to God.” (Dunahoo, 2005) In the Book of Romans, the Apostle Paul has given us scripture on how we can live a Christian life. The scripture states, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:2) After renewing of the mind, you have a new heart and a new spirit. God want the newness of your heart and mind to affect the way you live by no longer ...
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...A Review of “Vocation of the Business Leader- A Reflection” By Jessica Pellicane The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace (PCJP) is a Catholic-based organization whose main role is to conduct action-oriented studies with an aim of promoting international justice, peace, and human rights from the perspective of the Roman Catholic Church. The ‘Vocation of the Business Leader- a Reflection’ is a report on a seminar entitled Caritas in Veritate: The Logic of Gift and the Meaning of Business that was held in February 2011 at the PCJP. The report highlights the practical guiding principles for business men and women on Christian practices in the contemporary economic and financial world. It also acts as a handbook to be utilized by professors to instruct students in schools and universities on ethical dilemmas and good business practices. The report emphasizes the need for human dignity and service to the common good in business practices. It is generally meant to enable Christian business people to overcome the challenges presented by different unique circumstances in the corporate world and strike a balance between Christian faith and contemporary business practices. This is explored through three stages including seeing, judging and acting. The report suggests the proper functioning business markets and economies focused on serving the common good greatly contribute to both material and spiritual well being in the society. Moreover, good management practices...
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...Destouche Jennifer Kearns Paul Pirkle Mark Ricker Liberty University Abstract Servant-leadership is widely researched and discussed from a secular and Christian worldview (Fischer, 2010; see also Blanchard & Hodges, 2005). A Christian is called to follow God in all he does but life experiences can be conflicting in dealing with the spiritual and secular context; however, Christ wants his followers to operate within the context of the secular world. True servant-leadership is to emulate how Jesus led those around him - with complete selflessness and by serving others. Moreover, it is challenging for humans to be servant-leaders as they often desire personal recognition in life; yet, dedication to the Word and quiet reflection in God can help one to lead like Jesus. Larry Spears labeled Greenleaf a Grandfather of empowerment movement in business leadership (Greenleaf, 1996) because of his zeal toward servant-leadership. Greenleaf’s viewpoint, though commendable, conflicts with biblical principles. Thus, this paper analyzes Greenleaf’s work from a Christian worldview and institutes a biblical basis for servant leadership. Keywords: servant leadership, biblical perspective, gifts, loving, individual Introduction Servant-leadership is widely researched and discussed from a secular and Christian worldview (Fischer, 2010; see also Blanchard & Hodges, 2005). Paul encouraged believers to be imitators of Christ in this area when he said "[f]ollow my example, as I...
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...A Christian Leader Audit The Christian Leader Audit helps determine the overall strength of the leader as a Christian. Is the leader a strong Christian leader, above average Christian leader and so on? As Malphurs exclaims, as Christian leaders our “mandate is to lead Christianly regardless of the context.” This audits one’s commitment to Christ, godly character, reliance on God and ability to live by example. I scored a nine on the audit and according to my score I am a strong Christian leader. Practicing servant leadership was a given for me. It has always been a passion of mine to serve others in any way possible. I have always believed that you must lead by example. In student ministry this often means that I look for opportunities to serve students so that they can see in living color what being a servant looks like. Some examples would be sharing what I have with students. I find that any time I can share a meal with someone or share some money with someone in need that this a great opportunity for me to lead by example. Often, I find myself not just asking others to clean up but I join them in cleaning up. I try to make sure that I never have the attitude that I am “too good” to do something. As I further reflected on this audit I found that while most of the time I lead by the power of the Holy Spirit there are times when I launch out ahead of the Holy Spirit on my own. I often find myself praying that I would not get ahead of the Spirit but if I am...
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...in Partial Fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of LEAD 510 Biblical Foundations of Christian Leadership by Rooshawn Pratt April 1, 2016 ABSTRACT Reviewing Leadership: A Christian Evaluation of Current Approaches, is a book that takes an observation of leadership in its current state and it looks to improve leadership for the future. The authors Robert Banks and Bernice Ledbetter, take a look at all areas of leadership, use their experiences in the work place, weave in faith to create a beautiful evaluation to help us become better Christian leaders for today and the next generation. This book “is a summary of academic approaches and concrete experiences. It is a fruit of biblical investigation and reflection on our own experiences. It is exercise in cultural analysis and theological exploration.” This book takes a different approach compared to other books o leadership. Banks and Ledbetter show us how using our faith in leadership can be beneficial and even necessary. “This book surveys the evolution of understanding about leadership and asks important questions about faith and leading that are necessary to consider if leadership is to have a future.” This book asks all the right questions to make us ponder on our role as leaders and how we are utilizing our faith in our role as leaders. They use an example of one of our greatest Christian leaders, The Apostle Paul and his key understanding of what leadership should be in the early church. Chapter...
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...LIBERTY THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Theology of Christian Leadership LEAD 520 – D01 LUO The Life of Leaders December 11, 2013 Table of Contents I. Introduction 3 II. What is Leadership 3 III. Christian Leadership 3 IV. Biblical Perspective 4 V. Servant Leadership 5 VI. Leadership Disciplines 6 VII. Conclusion 7 VIII. Bibliography 8 Introduction According to Bill Hull, “While certain pockets of evangelicalism have grown, overall, the church is in a decline. Many congregations can attest to Hull’s assessment, in that, churches in America are indeed experiencing sharp declines in its numbers of baptisms and church attendance. Over time we have produced a body of people that enjoy hearing the word of God preached and experiencing the supernatural presence of God. This is not enough, people must be taught, nurtured, and mentored toward living a transformed life reflecting the resemblance of the Lord, Jesus Christ. This paper will explore the importance of the role of leadership in developing leaders in the body of Christ. Leadership There are different definitions and different styles of leadership. Leadership can be viewed as the process of influencing other people to work together to accomplish a desired purpose. Dr. Michael Mitchell defines a leader as one who possesses a clear mission with an attendant vision, stands before others effectively conveying the message...
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...Learning to be a Christian Leader in Today’s World. There is more to running a Christian based business than hanging a Cross in your window. Gerald J. Zalecki Bluffton University Whether it is in business or our own personal life we all will face struggles in the choices we make. Many times we know the right thing to do but do the opposite because the outcome is more to our liking. It takes more than talking the good talk to really impress and change the world around us. We all need to let our actions and deeds speak the loudest for how we think. The common business ideology is growth and success often mean more then integrity, but what about the Christian in business? For a Christian to succeed in business they need to do more than push their beliefs on others, it means a style of doing business in your community. As we began our look at what it took to be a Christian in the business world we needed to first look at what God wanted from us. Looking into what God wants us to do and how he wants us to treat each other is as simple as opening the Bible. As I read the Sermon on the Mount, in Mathew 5, I heard how God wants us to treat each other fairly and nicely. We are not to make a show of the good things we do we are supposed to just do them. Again in Mathew 6:3 we read, “When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” In other words do not do good deeds for rewards do them because it is right. Too often we get caught up in...
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...Rochelle KP. Thomas Although the most perfect example of a Christian leader is that of our Lord Jesus Christ, Stott (2002) informs “our model of leadership is often shaped more by culture than by Christ (p.113). He went further to suggest, “Yet many cultural models of leadership are incompatible with the servant imagery taught and exhibited by the Lord Jesus” (Stott, 2002, p.113). According to MacArthur (2002), “2 Timothy 2, for example, Paul uses seven different metaphors to describe the rigors of leadership. He pictures the minister as a teacher (v. 2), a soldier (v. 3), an athlete (v. 5), a farmer (v. 6), a workman (v. 15), a vessel (vv. 20-21), and a slave (v. 24). All those images evoke ideas of sacrifice, labor, service, and hardship. They speak eloquently of the complex and varied responsibilities of spiritual leadership. Not one of them makes leadership out to be glamorous” (“Wanted: a Few Good Shepherds (Must Know How to Wash Feet)”, para 1). Thus, for those contending with an internal struggle that questions: why me? And, how do I become? One might also ask, “How do I develop a deeper relationship with Christ to learn how to be led in order to lead? Or, where is the course in “shepherdology” (MacArthur, 2007)? If we take a look at the Book of John, Christ declares, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). According to the article “What is Christian leadership?” (2011), “when Jesus referred to us as ‘sheep’, He...
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...LIBERTY UNIVERSITY PROTESTANT REFORMATION: A PROLOGUE TO CHRISTIAN CIVILIZATION A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE DIVISION OF RELIGIOUS STUDIES IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF DIVINITY IN CHAPLAINCY BY SULEIMAN ABBA LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA MARCH 2013 Abstract The Early Church was a minority religious movement which faced significant threats of persecution in their daily practice of faith. As a result there was no detailed structure of worship as seen in the present day Christian worship. However, worship in those days paved way for the current settings of various churches which have greatly evolved over time. Worship was characterized by several aspects such as baptism, organizing prayer meetings and gatherings, rejoicing through songs, listening to the scriptures, collection of charity and using their spiritual gifts among others. Additionally, during those early days of Christianity, Christians often met in church assemblies for the ceremonial get together meal (Lord’s Supper) or for thanksgiving and singing gatherings. This paper critically analyzes the various practices of early church such as the singing of psalms and hymns, gathering in church assemblies, vocal thanksgiving, the Lord’s Supper as well as the practice of baptism. Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………………i Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………………….ii 1. Introduction............................
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...God's Son, was the ultimate example of a leader who took on the form of a servant and humbled himself even to death on the cross in order to fulfill His Father's redemptive plan for humanity. His example far surpasses the attempts Christian leaders make today unless they apply Philippians 2:5 to their lives: "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus." There are many seminars and conferences offered consistently throughout the country that address the qualities leaders need to be successful in business or in life in general. Leadership skills such as organization, planning, visionary techniques, relationship management strategies and assertiveness training are all emphasized as being crucial. Even though there are important skills to be learned in order to succeed in life, an interesting paradox is drawn between the qualities of a Christian leader and the worldly leader. Leaders often get a bad reputation for their means of achieving success. For example, many times skills such as focusing on goals no matter the circumstances, doing whatever it takes to get the job done and stepping on others to reach the top have become the norm within the cooperate or secular workplace. Unfortunately, this mindset is also reflected in the lives of many Christians. That is not to say that leaders' qualities such as a good work ethic, personal determination and undaunted focus on the right goals are not found within many secular and Christian models. However, the servant leadership...
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...LIBERTY UNIVERSITY LIDERSHIP AUDIT ANALYSIS I SUBMITTED TO DR. RICHARD G. HALCOMBE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE COMPLETION OF THE COURSE LEAD 510 — BIBLICAL FOUNDATIONS OF CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP BY JOSE MIGUEL MERCEDES SAN PEDRO DE MACORIS, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC FEBRUARY 9th, 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 2 CHRISTIAN LEADER AUDIT 3 SERVANT LEADER AUDIT 4 CREDIBILITY AUDIT 5 SPIRITUAL GIFTS AUDIT 6 NATURAL GIFTS AUDIT 7 PASSION AUDIT 8 CHARACTER AUDIT 9 CONCLUSION 10 BIBLIOGRAPHY 11 INTRODUCTION When Jesus was on earth, He established by His own example that one of the characteristic that should be present in a good leader was this man or woman was a servant. As a servant, the leader is called to have a teachable spirit in order to become a good representative of his/her Master. In the case of Jesus, He is perfect. He didn’t have to improve any area of His life, but although He was perfect, chose to walk and live as a servant to set the parameters that anyone who holds a leadership position should look at. We, as Christian leaders, must improve different areas in our lives in order to become what God has called us to do in His work. A Christian leader also has a duty. “Christian leaders are servants with the credibility and capabilities to influence people in a particular context to pursue their God-given direction.” Credibility and capabilities do not grow on trees or can be purchased at the supermarket. They have to be developed. If we really...
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...descripts the voyages of Captain Bligh and subsequent mutiny of this crew. In 1787, William Bligh was appointed the captain of the Bounty. The mission of the trip was to travel to Tahiti to obtain breadfruit trees for transplanting in the West Indies for the purpose of producing food for the slaves owned by the English nobility. There where multiple reasons for the mutiny, however the main cause was the leadership style of Captain Bligh. He was viewed as a tyrant on the ship, acting more of a dictator than a leader. The second-in-command, Fletcher Christian had a participative or facilitator type leadership style that caused conflict. The different styles often caused strife among the two men, ultimately leading to the munity. (The Bounty 1984) This paper discusses the comparison and contract of Captain Bligh and Fletcher Christian leadership styles. The Leaders The two main characters of the voyage are Captain Bligh and his second –in-command, Fletcher Christian. The trip to the Tahiti was one of difficulty in regards to overcrowding, lack of food or water; also what the crew considers the tranny of Captain Bligh. The stay on the island was beneficial to the crew as they enjoyed the tropics and became friendly with the natives, especially with the women. Upon the announcement of the ship’s departure for the travel to the West Indies the crew realized the conditions would be the same or worse on the trip. They did not want to leave the comforts of the Tahiti. (The...
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