As an integral part of their approach to Christian education, I'm hearing of a number of churches talk about something called "content strategy." (If you're in education, you're probably also very familiar with this word.)
Very simply (and straightforwardly), this emphasis on "content strategy" focuses on being strategic with their content. Oftentimes, this plays out in being intentional with WHAT content is created and/or recommended (keeping in mind who it's designed for, and the goals desired), and HOW the content is distributed/presented/made accessible. I happen to be a fan of being strategic with content myself, so I figured I'd chime in and provide three brief reasons WHY (in my opinion) content strategy should be on the radar screen of churches who think intentionally about Christian education.
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One of key emphases of the Brookside Institute is theological formation (along with biblical literacy, for the purpose of living on mission). A whole category of posts is devoted to this, and one of the Institute's core classes, "Fuel for Faith: An Important Class about Christian Theology" is devoted to building and reinforcing strong foundations in Christian theology. Theology is important! All of this is why I love Jaquelle Crowe's (she's a teenager herself, by the way - 18 years old) recent post at The Gospel Coalition, reminding all of us that teenagers need theology too. Here are five reasons WHY teenagers need theology. (I've just listed them below - check out the full post to see how she develops things.)
Listen to how she concludes her piece: So parents, pastors, youth leaders, church members, please teach us theology. More than anything else, we need to know God. He’s the answer to our questions, the solution to our problems, the only One worthy of our worship and trust. And all of this is why I am so grateful for the student ministries of Brookside Church, Tribe (Middle School) and Oasis (High School). These ministries (the leaders and volunteers!) faithfully labor and partner with parents to reinforce these same values. Thanks, Tribe and Oasis!
In their excellent book Teaching the Faith, Forming the Faithful: A Biblical Vision for Education in the Church, authors Gary A. Parrett and S. Steve Kang include an important plug for approaching Christian education and equipping in the church with an appropriate intentionality. Check out what they have to say: There are very few spheres in which an approach to education is an random and haphazard as that practiced in many of our churches today. If someone wanted to study towards a degree in economics, for example, it would be most unlikely that the college would let her choose all her own courses or choose simply not to take classes at all. If we wish our child to learn to play an instrument, we would certainly hope to find an instructor who has some idea and plan about what particular things really must be learned and when and how. When we look at the medical school diploma on the walls of our doctors' offices, we probably assume - and gratefully so - that our doctors actually attended (in the full sense of the term) all the required classes classes in the curriculum and not only those that suited their fancies at the time. How strange it is that, in this matter of Christian education and formation, we have come to adopt a very different scheme" (p. 77, bold emphasis added). This is a large reason why I'm so passionate about what the Brookside Institute is trying to do for adults, and why - more broadly - content strategy and Christian education are so important in the life of a local church. And all of this is why I'm so grateful for everything Brookside Church does to support these same values through the Institute and other ministries!
Earlier this week, I ran across this short video where R. Kent Hughes talks briefly about why pastors need commentaries. I encourage you to check it out if you're interested. (By the way: Hughes is always worth listening to, in my opinion. His pastoral wisdom is great, his love of the Bible is great, and he communicates well. Oh yeah, and his book Disciplines of a Godly Man is still one of my first "go to" books for dudes.)
So again: The video is worth watching. But it got me thinking beyond just why PASTORS need commentaries. (I agree with him on that, just so we're clear.) As a pastor and a teacher myself, I also want others who aren't in full-time vocational ministry to know that commentaries can be accessible (at least some of them!), and that commentaries can offer benefit to their own personal study and life of devotion. One more brief comment that may be helpful. If you're brand new to this word "commentary," here's the scoop: A commentary is basically a book written about a book of the Bible - it's a book that offers commentary on the message and meaning of either a book of the Bible or a few books of the Bible grouped together - often along with other important introductory material on the biblical book, like historical and cultural context, who wrote it and why, etc.. (In some cases, a Bible commentary is a single volume on the entire Old or New Testament, or even on the entire Bible itself.) Here are three reasons ANYONE may want to read a commentary - even if you're not a pastor:
As we seek to build and reinforce foundations of the Christian life here at the Brookside Institute, few things are as important as cultivating a big view of God, and encouraging a God-centered view of life.
Ezekiel 1:1-28 - as weird as it maybe seems at first glance - is a passage that helps us develop this big of God that is so important. And so - even though this isn't my habit - I figured I'd post the video of a sermon I preached at Brookside Church (June 12, 2016) on Ezekiel 1:1-28. The bottom line? God is bigger and better than we often think. And when we encounter God, we can't stay the same. The Glory of God from Brookside Church on Vimeo.
Interested in digging in more deeply? Here are some other posts to check out:
A little more than a year ago, I highlighted an audio segment where JT English talks about the Institute at The Village Church. (Click here to see that.) I love hearing people articulate a passion and vision for biblical & theological equipping in the church and for the church - because of how closely this aligns with what we're trying to do with the Brookside Institute. And so I figured then that I'd highlight what The Village Institute is doing, and trust that people can connect the dots in some right ways over to the Brookside Institute. Well, Dr. English is back at it. Recently, I listened to this audio segment from the Village Church Podcast Show (Episode #30 - May 26, 2016) where JT English gives an explanation of their Institute and an update on it. The whole episode is worthwhile and I encourage you to check it out - below you'll find the first 10 minutes (unedited) where JT English speaks most directly on the Village Institute, because of how closely it touches on certain things we're trying to do with the Brookside Institute. Remember: Dr. English is talking about the Institute at the Village - he's not talking about the Brookside Institute. Don't expect 100% overlap. There are certain things they've chosen to do there that we've chosen not to do at the Brookside Institute. But there's still A LOT of overlap. Listen in and you'll hear a lot of things I found myself nodding my head to throughout the course of the segment. And for those of you already familiar with the Brookside Institute, you'll see how so many of these same emphases have taken shape - independently - in our own context. Here's the audio: Here are a few notes I was scrambling to type as I listened along - these may pull you into listening, if you're still on the fence:
What do teachers do when prep is slow, intimidating, or overwhelming? How do teachers make progress when the size and scope of content is daunting? What focal points can help teachers teach - in such a way that students learn - when teachers are themselves in process, and continuing to learn themselves?
These are all good questions - questions I've felt numerous times myself as someone who teaches in a number of different environments. Therefore, over the life of this blog thus far I've posted intermittently on "things I'm aiming for when I teach?" (Original posts are included at the end of this current post.) However, I've not compiled these "targets" into one cumulative list. I figured it was time to do so. :) With that said, here are 8 things I'm aiming for as I teach, with a bit of introduction: Earlier this week, the Brookside Institute offered a seminar on "How to Profit from the Prophets." About 50 people signed up for 90 minutes of overview on the prophetic books, and a glimpse into the book of Daniel - good stuff! As the Institute seeks to build and reinforce foundations of the Christian faith in the areas of biblical literacy and theological formation, seminars like this play an important role.
Below I've included some things that will give you a taste of the seminar. Here's the "Table of Contents" for what follows in this post if you keep scrolling:
The prophetic books that finish off the Old Testament make up a big chunk of our English Bibles. And for many, reading the Old Testament prophets can be "weird and confusing." Just this morning I was talking with a group of guys who affirmed a certain struggle with reading these prophetic books. They said the books are harder to follow than other parts of the Bible, and there are lots of "huh?" passages. One thing these guys specifically asked for (with no specific prompting from me) was a timeline to help situate the prophets historically. Where do different prophets fall in the larger timeline of Israel and Judah's history? I was able to update a chart I made a few years ago, and figured I'd make it available here for a wider audience. My only disclaimer is that this chart is an APPROXIMATE timeline of the prophets. I really wanted to get an introductory sweep of the prophets on just one page - and so that "trumped" other layers of detail that would have offered greater precision. With that said, see the "Old Testament Prophets Approximate Timeline" below! Thanks to Dr. John Holmes of Grace University and Dr. Eric Smith of The Pillar Seminary for glancing over this and offering some feedback. The chart is better for their contributions, and any deficiencies remain my own. :)
From the earliest days of the church in the centuries following the death of the apostles, an intentional "training program" (or catechesis) was developed to form and shape believers in the Christian community. Why was this track of catechesis important? Alan Kreider points out a key reason in his The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbable Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire: "...believers knew that their practices [i.e., their noticeable, distinctive Christian lifestyles] were not acquired genetically or absorbed from pagan society. As Tertullian puts it around AD 200, 'Christians are made, not born'" (p. 134).
Those following Jesus took intentional steps to be transformed by the renewing of their minds (Romans 12:2); they took intentional steps to be made new in the attitude of their minds and to put on the new self (Ephesians 4:22-24); they took intentional steps to make sure they were strengthened and encouraged in their Christian faith (cf. 1 Thessalonians 3:2). A key part of these "intentional steps" was a value placed on catechizing (i.e., intentionally training) those in the Christian faith. It's important to note that a number of different components were included in catechesis. Catechetical practices developed over time in the first few centuries. And no single approach seems to be have been adopted everywhere as the early church grew. We need to acknowledge the numerous layers and the diversity that characterized catechesis. Nevertheless, catechesis was valued. As Kreider points out in The Patient Ferment of the Early Church, by the fourth century we have enough samples of catechetical priorities that we can present a composite picture of what the early church included in their catechetical content. So (more simply), what did the early church teach? |
Tim WiebeChristian. Husband. Father. Pastor. Learner. Contributor. Reader. Categories
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