Category: Technology

Technological advancements are wonderful. Never before have we been so capable of taking the gospel into the whole world at such little expense (Matthew 28:18-20). A single congregation can do today what seemingly required church-splitting unscriptural arrangements a short time ago. Yet, the potential for abuse is also so apparent.

Be absolutely sure that what you write is true to God’s word. Never publish material for consumption that represents shoddy scholarship or speculation. Remember the admonition of James, “My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment” (3:1). Approach your audience as if they are as the noble Bereans, and will search “the Scriptures daily to find out whether” your words agree with God’s (cf. Acts 17:11).

The process for offering sermon audio is simple, and inexpensive. For those who are not familiar with how it is done, may I offer some suggestions as a primer.

Don’t write for others unless you are serious about getting it right. Brethren need good reading material; material that is true, well written and understandable. If you are not willing to spend the time to do it right, then don’t do it at all. Writing is not for everybody, and certainly not for those lacking proper motivation. But, for those who are willing to put in the time and effort, it is a wonderful blessing to them and their readers. What about you? Pick up your pen (or your keyboard), and give it a try!

This article contains the author’s suggestions on preaching with an LCD projector. Those who are new to the technology could avoid some common mistakes by a careful reading of this material.

The foolishness of man is evident in his belief that he can look back in time by using the Hubble Space Telescope to view distant heavenly bodies.

About three months ago I began using PowerPoint, and I am absolutely enthralled with the program. Not only is it relatively easy to use, its printing and exporting capabilities make it a tremendous teaching asset.

Gone are the days when going to the mission field meant leaving most of the information found in your library behind. While computer accessed data may never replace the book in the hearts of many of us, it does allow for a far more normal “office life” for one far from his library than has ever been possible.

For the organizationally impaired, (including yours truly), PDAs are wonderful devices. Used properly, the device can be wonderfully helpful to the busy preacher.

It may not look like it, but your preacher is probably sowing the gospel seed through his modem in ways you cannot imagine. Don’t assume that he is wasting his time and your money when you find him with a keyboard and a Bible instead of knocking on doors. He may be answering one of hundreds of Internet queries that he will receive this year.

At the risk of being called “technophobic,” I hope that preachers will “display” moderation in the use of this new technology. Skill at creating a professional visual presentation is good, but it’s a poor substitute for being — like eloquent Apollos — “mighty in the scriptures” (Acts 18:24).

Excellent on-line introductory Greek course. Currently this site features nine chapters to take students through roughly the first third of a first year course, with lucid explanations, detailed assignments and plenty of helps like the “Clik-Thru Tutor” and flash-cards. The site is well-designed and pleasing to the eye, and there is plenty of audio help too.

Writing requires discipline. It is a most rewarding activity, and can be very beneficial not only to the reader, but also to the writer. An old adage is apropos here, “If it is worth doing, it is worth doing right!” It is our desire that the preceding will help someone not only to write, but to write right!

The preceding is sufficient to give readers a general idea of what is necessary to establish a Web presence. In future articles we will give suggestions and advice regarding specific aspects of the utilization and design of Web pages. The internet is a wonderful thing, and the potential for good is great. Congregations should consider taking advantage of such an efficient and exciting opportunity to preach the word!

Technology is neither inherently good nor bad, but it can certainly be useful. Just an hour ago one of the elders here at West Side indicated to me that he believed the purchase of the projector was one of the best things we have done for the worship in recent memory. I said in reference to the substantial cost, “Well, I’m glad because I felt a bit of trepidation in suggesting we buy it.” He answered, “Well, I’m glad too, because I felt a bit of trepidation in agreeing to it!”

With this issue of Watchman Magazine, we begin a new feature intended to help Christians (especially preachers) to both utilize the tremendous opportunities that technology supplies in preaching the gospel of Christ, and avoid the pitfalls that are associated with the same.