2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

March 2013

Biblical Priorities for Church Ministry

The theme for the 2013 conference was Biblical Priorities for Church Ministry with an emphasis on understanding the contemporary Christian worship controversy. Scott Aniol, the keynote speaker and author of "Worship in Song", a book we highly recommend, provided critical insight into understanding that there is biblically consistent music and music that contradicts a Christian worldview.

Tens of thousands of churches have almost identical doctrinal statements. However, when attending them they may seem vastly different. That difference is what is usually called the “philosophy of ministry” and basically describes the priorities and emphases of any given church or ministry. Sadly, apostasy, division, and church splits are more often the result of differences in how to “do church”, than in what we believe, and few churches ever articulate their philosophy of ministry.

One of the most divisive areas of philosophy of ministry today is not only the meaning of the word “worship”, but its exclusive identification with music. Our keynote speaker, Scott Aniol, is exceptionally qualified to address this topic and has written and spoken much about this over the years. Other significant areas that must be addressed relate to the priority of Bible teaching in a local church, what it means to be a pastor, ministry to men, and ministry to children, along with many other day-to-day activities of a local church.

The men teaching at this conference combine decades of experience in numerous different venues of church ministry. Each is committed to the sufficiency of Scripture and the prime directive of Scripture to “feed the sheep,” “teach the Word,” and to do the work of an evangelist. But we also need to think through how these priorities shape the day-to-day operation and decision making in the local church.

Hosted by West Houston Bible Church from March 4-6, 2013, the speakers at the conference also included daytime speakers Charles Clough, Robert Dean, Bruce Einspahr, Bryan Hult, George Meisinger, Jim Myers, Mark Perkins, David Roseland, Paul Schmidtbleicher, Jeremy Thomas, and Andy Woods.

To view all video Bible studies in the 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference series, click here (Vimeo) or here (YouTube).

1 - Conference Kickoff - Priorities of Ministry

Sunday, March 03, 2013

by Robert Dean

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 15 mins 1 sec

Video:watch Audio:listen download Text:slideshow

2 - Shepherding: The True and the False in Ezekiel

Monday, March 04, 2013

by George Meisinger

Passage: Ezekiel

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 16 mins 39 secs

The question to address is, “Should we examine the Old Testament for guidance regarding pastors/shepherds in the Church Dispensation?” We need not conjecture for the New Testament unequivocally answers the question.

Where does this lead us? The Old Testament is “for our learning,” delivers “examples” and “admonition,” as well as “doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness.” In addition, it is “reliable” not causing disappointment, thus we should “pay attention.” And all this to what end?—that teaching pastors may become fully equipped for every good work, such as shepherding a flock with patience and hope.

Video:watch Audio:listen download Text:notes slideshow

3 - Evaluating Musical Communication

Monday, March 04, 2013

by Scott Aniol

Passage: Ephesians 4:29

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 14 mins 42 secs

You can read more about this topic in Scott Aniol's book Sound Worship: A Guide to Making Musical Choices in a Noisy World

Video:watch Audio:listen download Text:slideshow

4 - Drawing Near to God in Worship

Monday, March 04, 2013

by Scott Aniol

Passage: Hebrews 10:19-23

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 18 mins 28 secs

I want to address what I believe is really at the center of the whole debate about music in worship. There are many issues that could be addressed, of course, such as worldliness or the morality of music. But when it comes down to the differences of conviction regarding the purpose of music in worship that lead to differences over what kind of music is appropriate for worship, I am convinced that at its essence, such differences are different understandings of the nature of worship itself.

Video:watch Audio:listen download Text:notes

5 - A Biblical Analysis of the Emerging Church - Part 1

Tuesday, March 05, 2013

by Andy Woods

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 6 mins 16 secs

These sessions involve a a critique of a movement that you may not know anything about if you are over the age of 40. This movement that I am speaking of is the emergent church.

In 2 Timothy 4:3-4, Paul warned that the last days of the church would be characterized by apostasy. What I would like to share with you in these sessions is really the next wave of apostasy which is coming and in fact is already here. It is called the emergent church. You may not be familiar with it at all because it is targeted towards the young. All you have to do to validate what I am saying is to go to Google and type in the words "emerging church" or "emergent church," and you will find a plethora of emergent websites, all targeting the young.

Video:watch Audio:listen download Text:notes slideshow

6 - The Apostle Paul’s Pastoral Ministry

Tuesday, March 05, 2013

by David Roseland

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 7 mins 38 secs

A philosophy of pastoral ministry is indispensable to the task of shepherding God’s flock. A pastor’s approach to his sacred task may arise from his own experience, the examples that have preceded him in his theological or ecclesiastical tradition, pressure from the congregation, or any number of perspectives which purport to have the most expedient answers to challenging questions of our time. Today it is not uncommon to hear from the world of commercial trade about how to succeed in leadership for the church. As many different instances of ministry philosophy exist as pastors and leaders in the various local churches that comprise the Body of Christ. In the larger category of ecclesiology, this topic is one of the most varied regarding opinions and perspectives. This paper will argue that the biblical philosophy of pastoral ministry begins with the imitation of Jesus and His apostles. It will be shown that this concept of leadership imitation extends from the general features common to all believers in the growth process of experiential sanctification to the specific tasks that belong to pastors and teachers in the local church.

Video:watch Audio:listen download Text:notes slideshow

7 - Developing Biblical Manhood in a Feminizing Pagan World

Tuesday, March 05, 2013

by Bruce Einspahr

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 8 mins 51 secs

Video:watch Audio:listen download Text:slideshow

8 - Issues in Chaplaincy

Tuesday, March 05, 2013

by Bryan Hult

Series: 2013 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference

Duration: 1 hr 10 mins 7 secs

1) What is a chaplain?

a) Definition of a Chaplain: A chaplain is a credentialed minister recognized by a faith-based organization to render spiritual care to assigned recipients in a non-religious institution, like the Army. Chaplains serve in hundreds of capacities from the military, to hospitals, prison, sports, businesses, educational institutions, police and fire departments. He/she can be Protestant, Catholic, or even Jewish, Buddhist or Imam. The chaplain is a non-combatant, i.e., he does not carry a weapon.