NASHVILLE (BP) — Three members of the Bible Studies for Life advisory committee will discuss using small group Bible study and life application of the Bible for meeting spiritual needs during a May 8 webcast at noon Central.
Also joining the webcast will be Eric Geiger, vice president of LifeWay Christian Resources’ church resources division, which is unveiling updated and enhanced Bible Studies for Life design and content for use this fall.
The BSFL curriculum line is used in some 30,000 churches across the Southern Baptist Convention.
Ronnie Floyd, senior pastor of Cross Church in Springdale, Ark., and BSFL general editor, will discuss on the webcast why churches need to have an intentional, long-term plan for making disciples.
Pete Wilson, senior pastor of Cross Point Church in Nashville, will discuss the need for churches to connect the unconnected through groups and the value of studies related to life issues such as those covered in Bible Studies for Life.
Cross Point Church has a goal of 80 percent of churchgoers involved in one of their 200-plus weekly community groups. Wilson is the author of an upcoming six-session BSFL study.
Ron Edmondson, a church leadership consultant and senior pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Lexington, Ky., will discuss how local congregations can strengthen families by equipping parents to lead their spiritual growth. He is the author of the six-session BSFL study “When Relationships Collide,” which will be available in June.
Floyd said the number one benefit of the updated Bible Studies for Life curriculum is it will be “where the Bible meets your life. Bible Studies for Life focuses on real-life issues in order to engage the unreached and unchurched in our communities. We want to see the small group ministries of churches, however and whenever they meet, return to a commitment to evangelize people through the ministry of their groups.”
The new Bible Studies for Life materials are slated for preorder in May for the fall quarter.
The webcast can be viewed at Bible Studies for Life/webcast.
LIFEWAY ADDS ORKIN TO ONESOURCE PROGRAM — LifeWay Christian Resources has added Orkin Commercial Services to its OneSource program, making discounted pest control services available to LifeWay church customers.
LifeWay’s Jennie Taylor said churches can receive discounts on Orkin’s services at prices negotiated by LifeWay. In addition, Taylor said, “A church’s satisfaction is guaranteed by LifeWay as well as Orkin.
“Orkin offers more than a century of experience in pest management and its trained specialists are equipped with the latest technological advancements in pest control. We’re pleased to make this arrangement available to our OneSource customers.”
OneSource is a group purchasing program with LifeWay-endorsed product and service providers that takes advantage of the collective buying power of SBC entities. Approved suppliers of envelopes, buses, signs, church furnishings, copiers, office supplies and background checks are available.
Churches can call 800-464-2799 or go to LifeWay.com/Orkin for more information.
NEW BOOK SPOTLIGHTS CARL F.H. HENRY — A new book by Gregory A. Thornbury explores the theology of Carl F.H. Henry and how his ideas of “classic evangelicalism” can unite today’s church.
“Recovering Classic Evangelicalism: Applying the Wisdom and Vision of Carl F.H. Henry,” published by Crossway, is what Thornbury described as his (Thornbury’s) witness — his “stones piled by the river Jordan” — and his attempt to provide a definition and marker for classic evangelicalism.
“What I wanted to do was paraphrase the best of Henry’s theological work and give it a new hearing for a new audience,” said Thornbury, dean of the school of theology at Union University, a Baptist-affiliated campus in Jackson, Tenn.
Henry, a theologian, journalist and first editor of Christianity Today, died in 2003 at age 90. He is the author of the influential “God, Revelation and Authority” series of books, among others.
“It’s been almost a decade since Carl Henry passed, and it’s time to revisit his legacy,” Thornbury said. “I think that’s an appropriate amount of distance to be able to get some perspective about it. Henry’s thoughts, ideas and theology were what gave the neo-evangelical movement so much of its spark and verve, initially.”
Written mainly for theologians, pastors and church leaders, Recovering Classic Evangelicalism defends some of Henry’s ideas — and the significance of Henry’s influence — that are currently under attack by evangelical scholars, said Thornbury, a longtime admirer of Henry who thinks that, despite what others may say, Henry’s theology is still relevant for Christians today.
“I have seen a time in which giants roamed the land, and like all travelers who sojourn in magical places, I long for myself and for my fellow evangelicals to return to the world of Henry — where the promise and power of evangelicalism seemed to be just within reach,” Thornbury writes in the book’s first chapter.
The book is Thornbury’s third. He also is co-author of “Who Will Be Saved: Defending the Biblical Understanding of God, Salvation, and Evangelism” and co-editor of “Shaping a Christian Worldview: The Foundations of Christian Higher Education.”
The book is available in LifeWay Christian Stores or at online retailers such as Amazon.com.
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Compiled by Baptist Press editor Art Toalston. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp).
