Dave Miller

There is nothing in God’s creation that more fully reflects the glory of God more than mankind’s intelligence and creativity, something far beyond any other creature’s. We have been able to make advances in technology that boggle our minds, engineer skyscrapers and airplanes and spaceships, fight disease, map DNA, and solve many of this world’s mysteries. We look with wonder at the next 20 years, or 50 years, and imagine what might be possible. But no matter what breakthroughs there are in medicine, in technology, or in any other field of human endeavor, one thing we know, the human mind will … [Read more...] about Everlasting Father

The Christmas we see in our cards, in our songs, and in our nativity sets, is a sanitized, sentimentalized, safe version of what really happened in Bethlehem. It was beautiful and glorious and powerful – Mary and Joseph yielding to God’s plan, angels announcing the Messiah’s birth, a humble setting as God takes on human form, a manger as his crib, and Magi following a star from the East to worship him. But there is a side to this that the Christmas cards do not show, one that we must understand. The story of Jesus is tragic, from his birth to his death. He was despised and rejected of men, … [Read more...] about Mighty God

I am turning my attention away from blogging for the next few days. Here is some homiletical content for our readers to ignore! Deism became an immensely popular idea during the 1700s in Colonial America, an idea held among some of our Founding Fathers. They believed that God made the world but that he stepped back and let it work on its own without intervening or interfering. The God of Deism is disconnected and uninvolved with the affairs of this world. That is not the God we worship. He is active, involved, sovereign, and at work in this world to accomplish his will. Isaiah 9:6 and the … [Read more...] about Wonderful Counselor

I watched a video recently decrying the feminization of men in the modern church. The speaker valued things like aggression and even anger as masculine and admirable. A while back a blogger wrote an article challenging the "idolatry of unity" - we cherish love and unity to the point where we are afraid to condemn sin and challenge error in the church. Perhaps there is a nugget of truth in these observations, but there is much to be wary of and much to reject. The fact is, as I noted in my first post, the Bible says much more about love and unity than it does about confrontation, about "calling … [Read more...] about Criticism and the SBC: Part 2 – Criticizing in Love

Dr. Albert Mohler and SBTS have just released a groundbreaking document called "Report on Slavery and Racism in the History of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary." I gave it a quick perusal, so I am not going to offer much analysis at this time, other than to say that this kind of honest appraisal of our history is needed among Southern Baptists. A PDF of the full report is available here. The report begins with a letter from Dr. Mohler with an overview and explanation. It is helpful and is copied here inn full. Dear Friends: We are living in an age of historical reckoning. … [Read more...] about BREAKING NEWS: SBTS Releases Report on Slavery and Racism in Its History

We always struggle with how to criticize the SBC and its leaders. Many of them, frankly, don't like it much and we don't enjoy doing it. Giving criticism will always put you in the crosshairs for others' criticism (or the silent treatment, or...). We have often found ourselves playing defense against the outrageous and inaccurate criticisms lodged against the SBC and its leaders by angry Baptists with an ax to grind. Now, the tectonic plates have shifted and we are in a position to speak critical words about things we see in the SBC. The SBC Voices team is made up of loyal, supportive, … [Read more...] about Criticism and the SBC: Part 1 – Criticizing God’s Way

It happened again a couple of days ago. Shock. Outrage. Twitter lit up because the men at Pulpit and Pen said something outrageous, racist, sexist, and homophobic. Honestly, who could have seen that coming? I am not going to repeat what they said. The shameful rhetoric would even rile some who share JD Hall's views. But it was not shocking that P&P did something like this. Shameful, unChristian, vicious attacks are the stock in trade of JD Hall and Seth Dunn and have been for years. There is no evidence of the Fruit of the Spirit or even the desire to display such - just the will to … [Read more...] about STOP Complaining about Pulpit and Pen – BLOCK Them!

I am thankful for the recent emphasis on Christ-centered interpretation of Scripture. It is a welcome balance to the tendency to turn Bible stories into mere moral lessons. However, while all Scripture points to Christ it does not follow that every Scripture has to be an allegory of the Cross. I am especially bothered by what some do with the book of Proverbs. Solomon gave his sons practical wisdom to guide them in choosing God's path over the world's folly. Lady Wisdom isn't a type of Christ but one of two options - two women - that he sets before his sons. Choose one, boys!  Walk with … [Read more...] about Harvest Is Coming: Choices Have Consequences