Related Papers
Baker Academic: Grand Rapids
Book Review The Family: A Christian Perspective on Contemporary Home
2007 •
Frank Lyambian
The Family is an insightful text that offers profound wisdom in matters relating to the contemporary home. Distinctively from a Christian perspective it integrates sociological, ethical, biblical, theological and clinical insight into understanding the modern family. The authors, Jack O. Balswick and Judith K. Balswick have been married for over forty years. Judy is senior professor at Fuller Theological Seminary in the Marriage and Family Therapy Department. Jack, a professional sociologist with years of teaching, research, and writing experience at the university and seminary level, is also a senior professor at Fuller. This third edition of The Family incorporates the most current research to date, adding two new chapters "Family Spirituality" and "Complex Families in Contemporary Society." And it includes a new focus on trinitarian theology of relationship to enhance the biblical themes in the earlier two editions of covenant, grace, empowerment, and intimacy. This, the authors believe is the essence of an integrated model of family relationship. The conclusions of this book are not only based on current social-science research clinical insights and biblical truth, but significantly on their own family life experience and knowledge in marriage and family therapy for over fourty years. The book begins with biblical, theological and sociological perspective on family life. Taking an "analogical-familial theology" approach as developed by Steven Post (1994) in his book Spheres of love, Jack and Judy by way of analogy base their theology of family relationships on relationality within the Holy Trinity and throughout the Old and New Testament description of God in relationship. Human beings are created by a relational Triune God. This, fundamentally is a welcoming insight that marriage was designed and instituted not only by a relational Triune God but by a Holy Triune God. Marriage is therefore a holy institution. It is a divine institution instituted by God, not man. And it resembles the relational nature of the God-head. The Trinity, God being one yet composed of three distinct persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Our relationships are to reflect the relationality within the Holy Trinity. In essence, God intends for all our relationships to be a reflection of Him. Marriage is an institution initiated, crafted, designed, originated and instituted by and in the mind of God. Having its origin from God it depicts a union that maintains separate identity while simultaneously connected in relationship, belonging and unity. Marriage is not a mere social contract but a divine covenant resembling the nature of a relational and divine God. That becomes the lifeblood of a healthy-friendly family, heartbeat of spirituality and Christianity, and solid foundational platform of the moral fabrics of the society. Marriage is a covenant typifying a lifelong and holy commitment such that it
A Case for House Churches.pdf
Milton Adams
International Conference The Household of God and Local Households: Revisiting the Domestic Church
Marco Lazzarotti 李克
A Theology for House Church
Wright Doyle
This paper examines the biblical evidence for the meaning of the word, "church," "ecclesia," and finds that it refers either to the universal Body of Christ, or to a group of congregations in a region, or to individual congregations. These last references almost always indicate that the early Christians met in homes. Not until the second century do we have church houses, that is, residences set apart for church meetings, and not until after Constantine do we find large buildings with large numbers of congregants. The theological, ecclesiastical, and political implications of these facts for Christians today are momentous.
The Home That Stands: Biblical Insights for Family Living
1976 •
James Jeremiah
Arise and Shine! In: Living Together in the Household of God – Asian Reflections, Bangkok: Christian Conference of Asia, 2015. ISBN: 978-962-7439-62-2. pp. 47-53.
Binsar Jonathan Pakpahan
Bible Study Isaiah 60
What Kind of Family is Needed for ‘Domestic Church’? A Mystagogy of the Family
2013 •
Jana M Bennett
JAMS (Journal of Adventist Mission)
After 15 Years of Planting Simple House Churches
2024 •
Milton Adams
Source -- https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/jams/vol19/iss2/5/ This article will highlight five areas of learning: (1) the conventional church attendance crisis, (2) church history, (3) Simple House Church planting, (4) the future of "church," and (5) the rise of Disciple-Making Movements. It is intended to be descriptive. It is my story. In many ways, thanks to the input of many Simple Church planters, it is our collective Simple Church story of the past 15 years. In hopes of adequately sharing what is currently taking place, this article will include a blend of statistical data, observations from personal experience, analysis of social trends, and a brief summary of my understanding of God's prophetic end-time vision to which all nations, tribes, languages, and people are invited. There are still many questions along with the realization that we have made mistakes along the way. However, we have found some answers to the mounting challenges facing Westernized churches. As you read, there will likely be things you find helpful, insightful, disturbing, challenging, and some that may even make you angry. My goal has been to take a candid look at what is developing among God's end-time people. The closing thoughts of this article will attempt to synthesize our experience, providing a look at possible next steps.
CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE COUNSELLING AND ITS EFFECTS ON HOMES
CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE COUNSELLING AND ITS EFFECTS ON HOMES
2019 •
Stella Amara Aririguzoh
God created the institution of marriage for three main reasons: partners are to provide help to each other, offer companionship and complement each other. God also gave them the assignment of procreating. Happy marriages lead to happy homes. Children who are raised in happy homes become good members of the society. But the devil does not like any person to be happy. Hence, he attacks homes. If parents are fighting each other, they would not have time to raise godly children. Couples who feel that their marriages are under siege and are willing to make efforts to save same seek christian counsellors. Christian counsellors seek a change in behaviour from the persons involved using the words of God. They believe that the word of God is the final authority and has the power to address every human problem. They seek to change people walking in error into people working with the scriptures. These errors are what cause trouble in different marriages and homes. The knowing and correct application of the true words of the Bible lead to lives changing. The immediate effect is that couples are reconciled. Consequentially, peace is restored in homes and the homes become happier again. Happy homes reflect on the society because our societies are made of different homes.
STS Publication
Marriage and the Family in the Mystery of Redemption and in the Church's Witness to the World
2022 •
Nelson Mwale
Marriage is a covenant, a sacred bond between a man and a woman instituted by and publicly (before God) and normally consummated by sexual intercourse. God’s plan for marriage covenant is permanence, sacredness, intimacy, mutuality, and exclusiveness. That husband and wife (family) are the light of the covenant already established as Christ and the Church (cf. Mark 10:6-9). However, there are lots of challenges in the 21st century, such as the disconnection between love and procreation, the privatization of marriage and family, the increase in divorce, adultery, abortion, contraception, same-sex marriage, and many others. Therefore, the worth and call of marriage and the family is slowly being overlooked. The paper presents how the mystery of redemption could be read in the sweetness of marriage and the family, and how the experience of marriage and the family in the mystery of redemption should be understood and lived in the Church’s witness to the world at large. It affirms that, "Marriage and family are institutions that have been for centuries the image of unity despite differences in culture, religion and civilization, and to some extent, have reflected the belief that neither man nor woman is perfect or complete without the other." Therefore, the paper acknowledges that Christian marriage always exists within a culture and is influenced by it.
