by Bret Capranica | May 8, 2006 | Ecclesiology
Unaccountable at Calvary Chapel – Christianity Today Magazine I used to hear the horror stories of congregational church polity. Then, I lived them as a pastor. I was convinced that “Elder Rule” was the model of the New Testament. That is that the elders rule the church and the congregation follows with no corporate “say” or “authority.” All authority is vested in the elders. I have since come to see a more balanced approach, which I believe the Bible also affirms. Elder leadership with congregational affirmation seems to be a more biblical model, providing accountability for both congregation and leadership. The article linked above is an example of the horrors of “Elder Rule” – where all the rule is vested in the elders and the congregation must blindly...
by Bret Capranica | May 7, 2006 | Ecclesiology, Music, Worship
Worship Matters I used to listen to the lyrics of Bob Kauflin through the group GLAD. This group put out some contemporary redentions of old hymns as well as produced great lyrics, some sung acapella, through more recent songs. While his blog has been out for awhile, I’ve just started looking it over. He has some great thoguhts on the subject of...
by Bret Capranica | May 6, 2006 | Ecclesiology
The Affirmations and Denials from the Together for the Gospel Conference are now available in their final form. The audio from the conference is also available. The articles a well worded expression providing what I believe is a healthy series of statements that can lay a firm foundation for genuine church and individual...
by Bret Capranica | May 6, 2006 | Ecclesiology
Hartford Institute for Religion Research Here is some recent data on mega churches in America. Will the mega model continue to thrive? It still seems that the moderate sized church finds the broadest ministry impact in America. HT: Chris...
by Bret Capranica | Apr 30, 2006 | Ecclesiology, Pastoral Ministry
Between Two Worlds: Powlison, Counseling, and Seminary I agree with Dr. Powlison’s assessment that seminary is necessary for solid biblical counseling. However, I don’t necessarily think it is the primary discussion we should be having among evangelicals. We live in a day when many, if not most, won’t take a man serious in his counseling if he does not have some formal training. The world has created a professional field for such counselors and the church has embraced the mindset. Not that the world would ever come around to accepting theological training as adequate for counseling people with their problems. Only if we bow to their ideology, will they accept our credentials. The question evangelicals should be having, in my estimation, is not whether seminary is necessry for counseling, but whether training through the local church is essential for effective training. I think we need both in order to be thoroughly trained. In seminary I took the one required course in biblical counseling and a second course in marriage and family counseling. I’m thankful for my professor, Dr. Stuart Scott, and for the material we learned and thoroughly discussed. My theology classes were imminently relevant to the subject of counseling. The Masters’ Seminary placed a premium on not merely understanding theology in order to merely converse with the world of professional theology (though they trained us to be able to do so). We learned theology and the ramifications it has on daily living, congregational life and cultural trends. We also had to spend a day observing a pastor at Grace Community Church field calls from around the country and...
by Bret Capranica | Apr 29, 2006 | Ecclesiology
T4G Statement of Faith What are your...
