The Contend Conferance

Greetings Contenders,
In recent years, Christians are encountering a hostile cultural climate. Our faith, once the bedrock of society, has lost respect. People are not indifferent towards Christians—they are indignant, both as a people and the beliefs we hold. Attacks have come even from within our ranks. And yet, the New Testament letter of Jude exhorts us to CONTEND for this Christian faith. What are we to do?

This event is part of our Underground Sessions ministry, which seeks to model and equip Christians to have conversations in tough areas, particularly politics and culture. The focus of this weekend was to equip believers in the area of APOLOGETICS, so they can respond with love, grace, and boldness to the challenges of the day. On Saturday evening, we put this into practice by hosting an Underground Sessions event answering the toughest questions of today’s culture. The word, “contend” is both a military and athletic term—it implies a struggle. Jude is exhorting his readers to preserve the faith. The purpose of this conference was just that—equipping followers of Christ to answer the tough questions, raise up a confident next generation, and engage the marketplace with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

When our time comes we must be prepared to respond. I hope these videos are both an encouragement and a challenge as we learn to CONTEND for the faith once and for all delivered to the saints.

BE PREPARED TO RESPOND

For God’s Glory,
Pastor Bob Erbig

About the Underground Sessions: If you are new with us, Underground Sessions is a live and online forum we hold several times a year where we discuss challenging and relevant issues in our world today. We do this with a spirit of grace and compassion while maintaining biblical faithfulness. Our events feature culturally relevant interviews with guest professionals specializing within the topic of discussion. Our chosen topics are often controversial. As such, we expect there will be aspects of disagreement. This is a good thing, as we hope we learn to disagree well. As you explore this web portal, we invite you to step into the tension as we create a space where respectful dialogue can happen, difficult topics addressed, and ultimately where Christ is exalted.

Mama Bear Apologetics

Full Conference – Session 

TEASI CANNON (Keynote Speaker) The youngest and most vulnerable members of the Church are growing up in a society that is vastly different than the one in which many of us grew up. While unbiblical ideas aren’t new, their accessibility, volume, and frequency are. It’s been said we are navigating a battle of ideas, many of which strategically target the next generation of Christians, tossing them into an onslaught of animosity, skepticism, and sophisticated arguments that seek to demolish their faith. That’s where Mama Bears come in. And Papa Bears … and any Bears who love all our cubs and are willing to do what it takes to shore up our own faith so we can help them trust the authority of God’s Word, sort through the noise, and cling to the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Biography: Teasi is the author of Lord, Where’s My Calling, and contributor to Mama Bear Apologetics. She obtained her master’s degree in Pastoral Counseling from Liberty Theological Seminary. She is a confessed book addict who can’t get enough of apologetics and theology, and when she’s not spending time with her family, you can find her sitting on her favorite spot of the couch with a book in one hand and a hot mug of coffee in the other.

Cultural Apologetics

Full Conference – Session 2

PAUL GOULD (Keynote Speaker) Christianity has an image problem. No one wants to hear what we have to say. All too often our lives are fragmented and unlovely. And we generally don’t see the world any different than anyone else. As a result we’ve lost the Christian voice, the Christian conscience, and the Christian imagination. The gospel is often viewed as unreasonable or undesirable or both. In our time together we’ll explore this question: Given this cultural moment, with all its challenges, how can the gospel get a fair hearing? To answer our question, we took a look at Paul’s encounter with the Greeks in Athens and then applied our insights to this day and this age.

Biography: Paul is an Associate Professor of Philosophy of Religion and director of the M.A. Philosophy of Religion program at Palm Beach Atlantic University. Gould earned his doctorate in philosophy from Purdue University. He is the author or editor of ten scholarly and popular-level books including Cultural Apologetics, Philosophy: A Christian Introduction, and The Story of the Cosmos. He has been a visiting scholar at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School’s Henry Center.

Cultural Intelligence

Full Conference – Session 

DARRELL BOCK (Keynote Speaker) How do we have cultural intelligence in a culture that is so pluralistic and contentious? How we see the challenge will determine how we approach it. Our weekend gave a fresh biblical look at how we should see our engagement, especially with those who are not a part of the church. We have no theology of cultural engagement in the church and we need it. We hope to give you a way of approaching engagement that is biblical and practical by looking specifically at 6 core texts and also how to have difficult conversations.  

Biography: Darrell is a Humboldt Scholar and an author of over 40 books, including well-regarded commentaries on Luke and Acts and studies of the historical Jesus, and works in cultural engagement as host of the seminary’s Table Podcasts. He was president of the Evangelical
Theological Society (ETS) from 2000 – 2001, served as a consulting editor for Christianity Today and serves on the boards of Wheaton College and Chosen People Ministries.

Saturday Evening Underground Sessions

Have you ever asked big questions about life but never received adequate answers? Meaning, suffering, faith, identity—we all wrestle to some extent. The Christian faith offers good answers to our questions, but we don’t always talk to the right people. On January 28^th . Millington Baptist Church hosted an Underground Sessions event: “Answering the Toughest Questions.” If you are someone who has difficult questions about life and faith, but you haven’t gotten good answers—this group discussion, and an expert panel if for you.

Saturday Evening Full Session

Sunday Morning Services 9:00am & 10:45

On January 29, Paul Gould and Darrell Bock conclude the Contend conference in our Sunday morning services.