Welcome!
|
New Release
|
|
Jackie and Cheryl Johns wrote Encountering the Living Word: Relational Inductive Bible Study because they believe the Bible is the Word of God and therefore, a vessel of his living presence. Through it, he is still speaking to people who, in faith, read and study it. The church would be healthier, and the world would be safer if Christians spent more time with God in his Word.
The Johns's believe there is a great need for a rebirth of serious Bible study among Pentecostals and other believers. This book is a manual on why and how to achieve this. |
Click to set custom HTML
A review of
Dear Church of God Family by Jackie Johns
Written by Barrington Brown, D.Min.
The book, Dear Church of God Family: Letters of Love and Concern is a “series of essays in the form of letters addressing the author’s concerns for the Church of God” (Cleveland, TN). It is an outstanding presentation, which offers insights regarding the ethos of the Church of God (COG) while laying bare the soul of the author, Jackie David Johns, who describes the work as containing “the themes of my life and ministry.” Johns is a Professor of Spiritual Renewal and Practical Theology, at the Pentecostal Theological Seminary. The book is published by the Center for Pentecostal Ministries, (2022), and contains 200 pages, which is divided into thirty-two chapters (each letter forming a chapter), a preface, and a postscript.
In the first eight chapters, the author painstakingly provides a critical historical review of the COG’s roots, fundamental beliefs, government, and practices. From the very outset, he pulls us into his concerns regarding a shift in the COG’s identity by highlighting the words of one of the renowned church fathers, Brother Wade H. Horton. He cites Horton as saying, “they’re going to destroy us. They’re after three things: holiness, the tithe, and our government.” (p.3). Then he drives the nail home regarding the gradual shift that has occurred from our foundation with the statement, “Most Church of God members have no idea what we teach about the Christian life. Holiness is no longer central to our shared identity.” (Pp 3-4). Another agonizing yet soul-searching analysis is summarized on pages 9 and 10 in these words, “Many of our people/ministers have lost faith that we even can be God’s church on earth….many of our churches and pastors never identify with our Declaration of Faith and other teachings…. There is a growing shame about who we are, what we believe, and from whence we have come.
[To continue reading click here: Documents.]
In the first eight chapters, the author painstakingly provides a critical historical review of the COG’s roots, fundamental beliefs, government, and practices. From the very outset, he pulls us into his concerns regarding a shift in the COG’s identity by highlighting the words of one of the renowned church fathers, Brother Wade H. Horton. He cites Horton as saying, “they’re going to destroy us. They’re after three things: holiness, the tithe, and our government.” (p.3). Then he drives the nail home regarding the gradual shift that has occurred from our foundation with the statement, “Most Church of God members have no idea what we teach about the Christian life. Holiness is no longer central to our shared identity.” (Pp 3-4). Another agonizing yet soul-searching analysis is summarized on pages 9 and 10 in these words, “Many of our people/ministers have lost faith that we even can be God’s church on earth….many of our churches and pastors never identify with our Declaration of Faith and other teachings…. There is a growing shame about who we are, what we believe, and from whence we have come.
[To continue reading click here: Documents.]