3 Reasons I Signed the Nashville Statement
In August, the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood released a document called “The Nashville Statement” (read it here) that, in 14 concise articles of affirmations and denials, presents the traditional Christian position on human sexuality.
6 Recommended Podcasts
We live in a day and age that offers many opportunities to learn through the use of the ear, and one of those is the Podcast. In Sunday's sermon I recommended three Podcasts. To those three I have added another three that I listen to with some regularity, and I recommend all six to you now...
3 Reasons White Supremacy is Wrong
After the events in Charlottesville this past weekend, most rational people have found themselves sickened by the overt displays of white supremacy that we all observed. But I wonder how many people have thought very carefully about precisely why white supremacy is wrong.
J.C. Ryle’s Practical Religion — A Strong Argument for Reading Old Books
Much has been written lately about the potential negative effects of smart phone use and social media. To me, one of the most pressing concerns is that, in our anxious scramble to always keep up with what is new on Twitter and Facebook, we neglect the value of what is old. In particular, I am thinking of the benefit of reading books from the distant past.
Review of the PCA's 45th General Assembly
During the week of June 13, I was blessed to be able to attend the General Assembly (GA) of our denomination, the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), in Greensboro, NC. It’s always a pleasure to reconnect with pastor friends (from Maine, Illinois, Florida, Colorado and Pennsylvania!) and seminary classmates, and personally I always find it rewarding to participate in the work of the body of Christ at the highest court level.
The Time Has Arrived - New Life Planting Its First Daughter Congregation
Back in 2011, New Life released a strategic plan in which the elders of the church proposed a plan for planting our first daughter congregation, as part of an overall movement of church planting taking place in our denomination and in our local presbytery. By God’s grace and as a display of his faithful provision, we are now on the cusp of getting this first church plant started.
3 Good Things and 3 Bad Things About 'The Shack'
Some people I meet say “The Shack” is one of the most powerful and spiritually helpful books they’ve ever read. Others say it is one of the most dangerous deceptions of the last 200 years. Personally I have not read the book, but I did see the movie, so based on the film adaptation of the book, I offer three good things and three bad things about “The Shack.”
Should Christians Long for the ‘Good Ol’ Days’?
As we begin a new year, we have been inundated with countless retrospectives of the year past (in sports, politics, movies, music, deaths), along with various predictions for the year coming (some positive, some ominous). In any case, whenever a new year begins, we all become acutely aware of the passing of time.
10 Favorite Books of 2016
The other day I received an email from Goodreads, telling me about my “year in books” — so far in 2016, I’ve read 7,834 pages, with my shortest book being 80 pages, and my longest being 672 pages. There is no way I would have been able to read this much if I didn’t respond to Goodreads’ “reading challenge” at the start of this year, which motivated me to set a goal of reading 40 books in the year. As of today, Dec. 15, I have read 36, with one about half way done, and another recently started, so hope still abides that I can reach my lofty ambition by Dec. 31.
4 Things for Christians to Remember in the Aftermath of the Election
I have been out of the country recently so I realize I’m late to the game on this, but I couldn’t let this contentious and unusual election season pass without some commentary from a pastoral perspective. Donald Trump has been elected to serve as president of the United States, which has left some Americans elated, and others despondent. What is unique about this election is that the divide that exists in the nation seems to exist within the church also. Secular media have been talking about “evangelical rifts,” “what is a Christian?” and “fractures” in the evangelical community — all because of different perspectives held on the new president.
Are the Unborn Human Beings?
It is curious to me that we are not hearing more about abortion in this election season, especially after Chris Wallace presented the issue to presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton during the candidates’ debate last month. Immigration, the economy, ISIS, gun control laws, lewd comments and private servers have been widely discussed, but not abortion so much. Has the culture become so complacent and hardened that abortion no longer gets our attention? Or has the issue simply taken a back seat to other issues that are rightfully getting attention, such as racism and sexism?
Mars Hill – Essential Listening for the Thinking Christian
R.C. Sproul said we live in what “may be the most anti-intellectual period in the history of Western civilization.” J.P. Moreland said “the contemporary Christian mind is starved, and as a result we have small, impoverished souls.” C.S. Lewis said “God is no fonder of intellectual slackers than any other slackers.” (See “5 Theses on Anti-Intellectualism” here).
15 Things the Proverbs Teach About How to Post on Facebook
Ted Cruz had just spoken at the Republican National Convention, and I noticed a post on Facebook regarding the former presidential candidate’s speech. The post affirmed Cruz for not endorsing Donald Trump, but then went on to say that Cruz was still an “odious little (expletive).” After unfollowing this person, I immediately began to think that a blog on how to post on Facebook was in order.
Weep with Those Who Weep
As a pastor who has not been slow to speak up about homosexuality and transgenderism in the past, I want to be no less slow to speak up this week about the devastating shooting in Orlando this past weekend, when 49 people were gunned down by Omar Mateen at the Pulse nightclub. The first response of any Christian to such a tragedy should not be to get immediately tangled up in the tense debates about gun control, Islamic terrorism or the gay lifestyle. A Christian should simply follow Paul’s exhortation to weep with those who weep. (Rom. 12:15).
4 Reasons Why Romans 9 is Not as Difficult as it Seems
Something surprised me as I have been preaching through Romans 9 and 10 lately – not that the Calvinist understanding of election is so clearly taught there, but that objections to the Calvinist understanding of election are so clearly answered there.