LIVING FAITH BIBLE INSTITUTE

On today’s show, we’re tackling a question that has defined centuries of Christian thought: Did the Church replace Israel? This idea, often called supersessionism or “replacement theology,” touches on God’s covenants, the role of Israel in His plan, and the Church’s identity today. 

It’s also one of the key themes of this year’s Certainty Conference, hosted by First Baptist Church of New Philadelphia, Ohio. The conference will bring together pastors, teachers, and Bible students to consider why this question is not just theological but deeply cultural, especially in light of recent events in the world and ongoing debates about Israel.

To help us navigate this conversation, I’m joined by Pastor Troy Stogsdill of First Baptist Church.

And don't forget to catch this week's episode of SoundMind!

Whether you are familiar with Augustine or not, chances are you have encountered Calvinism and its core doctrines—especially the idea of unconditional election. Perhaps you have Reformed friends who hold to the belief that God has sovereignly chosen some individuals for salvation and others for damnation, entirely apart from their free will. This deterministic view of salvation has become deeply embedded in much of Western Christianity. But what if we could trace this theological development to a specific moment in church history? What if we could say, with confidence, when and how this view was introduced—and argue that it was not part of the original Christian faith? 

On today’s show, we take a critical look at one of the most influential figures in Christian history: Augustine of Hippo. We’re joined by Dr. Ken Wilson, Oxford-trained scholar and author of The Foundations of Augustinian Calvinism. In his historical research, Dr. Wilson demonstrates how Augustine’s later theology—particularly his embrace of determinism and unilateral grace—marked a significant departure from the teachings of earlier Church Fathers and laid the foundation for what would become Calvinistic theology.

And don't forget to catch this week's episode of SoundMind!

Hey Everyone,

No lectures will be released this week (8/30-9/5), but this is a great opportunity to get ahead on your reading and assignments. The Library will be open today (Saturday) from 9:30-Noon if you would like to study with your classmates, get some coffee or grab some reading materials for research.

Have a restful weekend.

Hello Students,

It’s so good to have you for another semester! We are already hitting record numbers of students enrolling in classes this fall—and we still have one more week left for enrollment in 16-week courses (spread the word). As you listen to your lectures, begin your assigned reading, and start outlining essays and assignments, we want to remind you of something really important: you get what you put in.

There are so many shortcuts to take in education, ways to hack the system and optimize efficiency. But so often what we call “efficiency” is actually just a subpar learning experience. Even worse, sometimes what we call resourcefulness is really just cheating. The world is full of students who use unethical practices to get through their classes and earn a degree—but they’ve learned nothing except how to use deception to get what they want.

So, what we want to call you to consider is something much higher and more lofty—we want to call you to sacrifice. In order to get what God has for you this semester, it will cost you something. Let’s set our affections in the right place and determine now that we won’t cram and we won’t cut corners.

As we enter the fall semester, we want to remind you of our ever-adapting policy concerning plagiarism and AI:

Because the majority of class instruction and communication happens digitally, LFBI requires students to abide by standard digital ethics and etiquette:

• Respect the rights of content creators and abide by copyright laws. Do not utilize or distribute copyrighted material without lawful permission or attribution, this is considered plagiarism. Students who plagiarize are subject to the academic misconduct policy and further decision of the board of formal review. All written assignments are subject to review through digital analysis.

• Generative AI software is not permitted in the creation or *generation of ideas in any assignment. Utilizing AI software to generate ideas or content in order to pass them off as one’s own will be considered analogous to plagiarism and will be adjudicated as such by the board of formal review. All written assignments are subject to review through digital analysis.

  • Students may use AI to substantiate ideas, not generate ideas. By substantiate we mean that student use of AI is limited to writing critique (feedback on content, grammar or punctuation) OR to provide intellectual support (research and referral). It is our belief that creativity, interpretation, reasoning, argumentation and analysis concerning spiritual matters (1 Cor 2:13) is an endeavor for spiritual beings. Our program of study is intended to teach souls, train souls and assess whether or not those souls have retained knowledge, gained understanding and demonstrated wisdom in their learning. Over reliance on mechanisms that circumvent or replace this process hinders the effectiveness of LFBI. See a doctrinal on the subject of AI here.

With this in mind, if academia is new to you—or if it has been a while since you have been in school—we highly recommend Freshman Orientation. This course helps students build good learning skills, teaches them how to leverage technology in an ethical way, shows them how to properly format and cite essays, and equips them to research, outline, and write academic papers. It is a very simple and easy class intended to launch our students into a successful LFBI career.

We are praying for you—that you would be strong in the Lord this semester.

-LFBI Staff

Please check out the article on the Living Faith Fellowship Blog.