When we started Christ Over All, we envisioned this ministry to a be a place where we would engage any number of subjects related to the Bible, theology, church, and culture. Equally, while appreciating the many contributions of our Presbyterian and Reformed brethren, we sought a place to express specifically Baptistic views on the church. And for the last month, we fulfilled those two missions in part by addressing the Christian home from a particularly Baptist position.
This is not to say that all our articles where authored by Baptists, but in our longforms and podcasts we sought to argue for raising children according to the convictions that Baptists have long shared. In this way, we spent time learning from Richard Furman, an eighteenth century Particular Baptist. We then applied his concept of “wardship” to the children of church members in seeking to avoid pragmatic parenting that outsources parenting to the church, we also sought to give a positive vision of raising children in the Lord who are not in the covenant of grace. That was a key objective for this month, and one you should go back and revisit, if you haven’t had the chance to read or listen. Additionally, you should be sure to listen to the roundtable discussion on the age of baptizing believing children.
Then, from these theological foundations, we enjoyed multiple articles on what Scripture says about the Christian home (Part 1 and Part 2), the blessed necessity of children, and how husbands manage their households well. We also received help from essays that focused on discipling children, evangelizing our children, catechizing children, and disciplining our children. Moreover, we also tackled issues related to technology, education, and the need to stay the course in parenting and not make it too complicated. Finally, we brought new covenant perspectives on singleness with applications for how singles can rejoice in their calling.
All told, the month of May served to equip families with a rich variety of resources, essays, and podcasts to consult now and for many years to come. For all those who wrote for us this month we give thanks to God and we pray these articles will strengthen the hands of both weary parents who are raising children and also faithful singles that are seeking first Christ and his kingdom.
Christ Over All is working to turn our online articles into print editions. If you are interested in helping raise funds for that project and for the ongoing ministry of Christ Over All, please donate here.
Cultivating and Keeping the Christian Home
If you missed anything from during the month of May, here they are in one place (the Longform essays are in red below):
Neither Covenant Children, Nor Evangelism by Proxy: Recovering a Baptist Approach to Raising Children in the Lord by David Schrock
How do Baptist beliefs inform our parenting? We neither treat our children as automatic members of the covenant, nor do we neglect our holy responsibility to instruct them in the Lord. READ ESSAY
2.20 David Schrock • Reading • “Neither Covenant Children, Nor Evangelism by Proxy: Recovering a Baptist Approach to Raising Children in the Lord”
How do Baptist beliefs inform our parenting? We neither treat our children as automatic members of the covenant, nor do we neglect our holy responsibility to instruct them in the Lord. LISTEN TO PODCAST
What Does It Mean for a Man to Manage His Household Well? by Andy Naselli
As Jesus shepherds his sheep and as pastors shepherd their people, so fathers shepherd their families. What does a shepherd do? He knows, feeds, leads, and protects the sheep. READ ARTICLE
Children: A Blessed Necessity for Christian Marriages by David Schrock
Children play a major part in God revealing his glory to the nations. So is it right for married Christians to willingly bypass kids? READ ARTICLE
The Contemporary Myth of Mutual Submission in the Christian Home (Part 1) by Ardel Caneday
What did the Apostle Paul mean when he wrote “submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ”? And how is this an important aspect of discipleship for husbands, wives, and children? READ ARTICLE
The Christian Home as an Initial Realm of God’s Self-Revelation (Part 2) by Ardel Caneday
Why is it so important to maintain biblical roles within the family? Because in doing so, we reflect and reveal the character of God himself. READ ARTICLE
2.21 David Schrock, Trent Hunter, Stephen Wellum • Interview • “Neither Covenant Children, Nor Evangelism by Proxy: Recovering a Baptist Approach to Raising Children in the Lord”
How do Baptist beliefs inform our parenting? We neither treat our children as automatic members of the covenant, nor do we neglect our holy responsibility to instruct them in the Lord. LISTEN TO PODCAST
Parenting 001 by Kevin DeYoung
Parenting is certainly hard work, but have we maybe made it a little more complicated than it needs to be? READ ARTICLE
Encore: Skill, Talent, and the Call to be an “Excellent” Female Preacher by Matt Kennedy
If a worldly “excellence” is our only goal, then bring on the female preachers. But if God desires faithfulness over flashiness, then our selection of preachers is based on qualifications, and not mere giftings. READ ARTICLE
Christian Parenting Is Evangelistic by Ardel Caneday
What does the practical process of disciplining a child look like—and does this look different if you are a Baptist? READ ARTICLE
Encore: The SBC’s Gordian Knot Problem by Jason Gray
In Greek mythology, a farmer named Gordias tied a knot that nobody could untie. The SBC has a Gordian Knot problem: almost a dozen strands that must be identified to be untied. READ ARTICLE
2.22 Greg Beale, David Schrock • Interview • “Union with the Resurrected Christ + Dr. Beale on the Millennium”
We were able to catch up with G. K. Beale to talk about his new book, Union with the Resurrected Christ: Eschatological New Creation and New Testament Biblical Theology. We talk deeply about the centrality of the resurrection for the new creation, with a special bonus portion at the very end on the millennium! LISTEN TO PODCAST
Women’s Nature Is Home Making by Abigail Dodds
Is the biblical injunction that women be “working at home” a cause for bristling, or a cause for rejoicing? Learn about the joy and beauty of women who serve as home-makers. READ ARTICLE
Richard Furman (1755–1825) and His Letter, “The Children of Church Members” by Tom Nettles – Richard Furman
Practically, how ought Baptists raise up and care for their unbelieving children? READ ESSAY
2.23 Tom J. Nettles • Reading • “Richard Furman (1755–1825) and His Letter, “The Children of Church Members”
Practically, how ought Baptists raise up and care for their unbelieving children? LISTEN TO PODCAST
Parenting and Technology by Candice Watters
Technology is a great blessing when used rightly, yet temptations for misuse abound. So how can Christians parent wisely in our digital age? READ ARTICLE
The Christian Home: Family Worship and Teaching of the Catechism in the Home by Greg Strand
God has granted parents the glorious responsibility of raising children in the instruction of the Lord, and family worship is integral to this task. So what might this look like in the home? READ ARTICLE
On Parenting Wisely in a Foolish Age by Jonathan Woodyard
The world tempts us all with enticing lures. Wise parents train their children not to take the bait. READ ARTICLE
Teach His Glorious Deeds & His Wonders by Marla Helseth
A government school—a place in which the majority of the people instructing your child likely do not know God, do not want to know Him, and actively work against Him—will not instill in your child anything of the knowledge of God. READ ARTICLE
2.24 Tom J. Nettles, David Schrock, Stephen Wellum • Interview • “Richard Furman (1755–1825) and His Letter, “The Children of Church Members”
Practically, how ought Baptists raise up and care for their unbelieving children? LISTEN TO PODCAST
The Anthropological Lie of “Same-Sex Marriage” by Andrew T. Walker
Despite what the world may say, there is no such thing as same-sex “marriage.” Such a relationship inevitably falls short of what marriage is according to God’s good design. READ ARTICLE
Talking to Our Children About Discipline by Trent Hunter
We must discipline our children, but how should we talk to our children about discipline? Hebrews 12 provides a good place to start. READ ARTICLE
Fathers Discipling Children by Jason DeRouchie
Deuteronomy 6:4–9 commends formally and informally teaching our children the Supreme Commandment to love God with our everything. But what might this practically look like in daily, weekly, and yearly rhythms—in both the good times and the hard times? READ ARTICLE
Singleness in the New Covenant by Stephen Wellum
The New Testament teaches that marriage is but a shadow of the relationship between Christ and his Church. So what does this mean for single Christians? READ ARTICLE
2.25 David Schrock, Stephen Wellum, Ardel Caneday, Trent Hunter • Interview • “Baptism Roundtable”
Listen in as David Schrock, Stephen Wellum, Ardel Caneday, and Trent Hunter discuss the topic of baptism and how it relates to children. LISTEN TO PODCAST
Rejoicing in Singleness by John Lee
Singleness is not just a waiting room for those who want to be married. Christian singles can joyfully pursue godliness, contentment, and fellowship within the church. READ ARTICLE
Christianity and Liberalism at 100
Turning the corner from May to June, our focus will move from the home to church history— and chiefly the historically significant book Christianity and Liberalism.
In 1923, J. Gresham Machen, a professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary, addressed the rising tide of Protestant Liberalism in his book Christianity and Liberalism. Among his own denomination and throughout America, the historical doctrines of the faith were under threat. Responding to Harry Emerson Fosdick and others who were replacing biblical doctrine with merely ethical living, Machen would outline what Christians believe about God, man, the Bible, Christ, salvation, and the Church. Indeed, he rightly identified liberal forms of Christianity as another religion entirely, and he showed why true Christians could not compromise with many leaders who resided in his and other Protestant denominations.
One hundred years later, Machen’s book Christianity and Liberalism still stands strong. Defending the faith once for all delivered to the saints, this century-old tome continues to speak today, especially as false teaching and false teachers continue to arise all around us.
For this reason, we will spend the month revisiting Machen’s arguments and seeing how they apply today.
In the Lord’s kindness, we have received articles from an all-star cast of contributors. And beginning with Michael Haykin’s biography of Machen and D. G. Hart’s “biography” of Christianity and Liberalism, we will look at each chapter of the book as the month progresses. Be sure to keep up, so that we all may stand in the truth of God’s Word.
Making Plans for the Summer
Speaking of standing for the truth, Christ Over All will be standing with Mike Law in New Orleans when the Southern Baptist Convention meets on June 12–14. As we shared in our March Theme: The Egalitarian Beachball is a Wrecking Ball, the SBC is at critical moment. And those gathering in New Orleans will decide whether to accept Mike Law’s amendment for the SBC constitution and affirm a biblical position on male elders, or they will further open the door for compromise.
There are multiple ways that the SBC might go, and we trust that the Lord who reigns on high will accomplish his purposes on the earth. That said, we would ask that you would pray for the truth to prevail among the 10,000+ messengers who will gather there. In real time, we plan to hand out materials that point to our March Theme and that explain the practical importance of this amendment for the ongoing biblical fidelity in the nations largest Protestant denomination. If you are going to be in New Orleans, let us know. We would love to see you.
After June, things do not slow down. Christ Over All is looking to release our first digital eBook, a book I’ve written entitled Dividing the Faithful: How a Little Book on Race Divided a Movement Founded on Grace. This book will respond to Divided by Faith and the Critical Race Theory contained therein. Lord willing, this book will come out in July, as we tackle the subject of the Civil Rights movement. A hard copy of this book will also be available this fall through the publishing arm of G3 Ministries. Additionally, we are also exploring ways to bring our digital content into publishable forms. Please pray for that pursuit.
In all of these efforts, we are attempting to carry the baton handed down to us by men like Richard Furman, Francis Schaeffer, and J. Gresham Machen. We long to stand for truth and to proclaim that truth with spiritual wisdom and biblical love. If you share that passion with us, we would ask that you would pray for this ministry, share this ministry with others, and support this ministry financially, as you are able. Even more, if you are a writer, we would love to hear from you, so we can share future writing opportunities.
One last thing: This month we will begin sending out a weekly email with fresh content and directions to older resources that remain relevant. These emails are not meant to clutter your inbox, but to serve as an easy way to look up content and share it with others. If you only want to receive the monthly newsletter, there will be a simple unsubscribe feature to make that change. But in receiving this email, we hope you will see the value keeping up with the articles that we are producing each week.
Again, we give thanks to God for all those who take time to read and listen to the resources we publish. And we pray that Christ Over All may continue to serve you and build up the body of Christ through the evergreen content that we publish here.
Until next month, let us remember that Christ is Lord over all, and so in all things let us exalt Christ!
