Family is an interesting thing. For the most part, you don't pick your family, you show up into the world with people that stay in your life and you have no say in the matter. The church can be like that. We become part of the family and look around and see who else is in the body with us. Many times we find people we connect with and click with. Sometimes we find ourselves at odds with people, and sometimes we find people we just don't agree with, but love anyway. I have some brothers who I love dearly but I just don't always agree with. I don't agree with everything that Rick Warren … [Read more...] about Dave Miller, Rick Warren, Mark Driscoll and Peter Lumpkins
Instituting Calvinball in the SBC (by Chris Roberts)
(Chris Roberts has a brilliant suggestion for the current conflict in the SBC. Let's turn it into a game - a competition. Then, there can be a clear winner and loser! My blood is already pumping faster at the prospect. Chris blogs at "Seek the Holy.") History has seen fit to bless humanity with two significant individuals carrying the name Calvin. One, John Calvin, was a theologian of some repute. The other, simply known as Calvin, was an imaginative, well-behaved (by relative standards of behavior) six-year-old boy. Because the SBC is currently involved in a controversy over the first … [Read more...] about Instituting Calvinball in the SBC (by Chris Roberts)
“At the Statue of Jesus, Turn Left”
As more decades descend upon my timeline, my confusion about the perfect randomness of God, as He demonstrates His all-knowingness, does not unravel, but remains tightly wound, safely bound by trust. I often do not know how or why His will is what it is, and my clarity remains unclear on the entire "God allows" issue. I only know He does . . . and He knows why. And I trust. God is not random. God is God. This is, after all, His world, not mine; in His hands, not mine; His creation . . . not mine. No matter what I have to say about this world, He spoke it into existence. And, in a world … [Read more...] about “At the Statue of Jesus, Turn Left”
Proverbs for Christian Blogging: Don’t Pick a Fight That Isn’t Yours
“Do not contend with a man for no reason, when he has done you no harm” –Proverbs 3:30 In other words don’t pick fights that aren’t yours. That sounds reasonable enough but it kind of begs a question: what fight is mine? Consider this example. I attend The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. I have a vested interest in what happens there. Dr. Albert Mohler is our President. He is someone that I consider to be a very faithful man and a great leader. In a very real sense he is one of the authorities that the Lord has placed in my life. So, what happens when bloggers start taking on … [Read more...] about Proverbs for Christian Blogging: Don’t Pick a Fight That Isn’t Yours
A Stunning Reminder: The Darkness Lives in Me
I had a shocking conversation with an old friend this week. He told me that his wife, whom I had known as a vibrant, passionate, committed Christian, had abandoned her family, her faith, and embraced a life of sin with wild abandon. I would have never believed that it was possible. I'd preached to her, talked with her about deep spiritual matters, and watched her grow. What happened? As I pondered that chilling event, my mind cast back to a pastors' conference I attended nearly 20 years ago. The prominent pastor who hosted the conference was discussing the ongoing problem of moral … [Read more...] about A Stunning Reminder: The Darkness Lives in Me
So, Whatcha Preaching These Days?
I have been preaching through the book of Proverbs on Sunday Mornings for quite a while. The first nine chapters of the book are 10 sermons that Solomon preached to his sons admonishing them to choose wisdom over folly. It's been a lifelong study and I hope, soon, in bookstores near you! But I've been working my way through that book, and I'm now in chapter 5, talking about the path of wisdom and the path of folly in sexual issues. At night, I'm preaching nearing the end of my series on 1 Corinthians. I'm under a bit of a time crunch here. I started this series on Sunday mornings about … [Read more...] about So, Whatcha Preaching These Days?
An SBC NOLA 2012 App – Looks Amazing!
I'm a Droid guy - none of those namby-pamby iPhones for me. But there is a new app for the iPhone and for Droid, available from your phone's app store, that is specifically designed for 2012 SBC Annual Meeting in New Orleans. I downloaded the app yesterday and played around with it. Wow! That is going to be helpful in NOLA. It has a map of exhibitors, a detailed copy of the program and lists of the speakers. You can link to Twitter, Facebook and friends. The app is free, but it looks like its going to be worth a lot during the week. Thank you to whoever developed this. Here is … [Read more...] about An SBC NOLA 2012 App – Looks Amazing!
The Southern Baptist Convention: A Testimony of Grace?
We look back at those who founded the Southern Baptist and those who followed after with honor, even veneration at times. We fight over their heritage (were they Calvinists or not). They were men (and women too) of theological depth, evangelistic passion and exemplary character. And they either participated in or turned a blind eye to slavery, racism and discrimination. How could these great men not see the evil of their treatment of people whose skin had a different hue? How could they be so blind? How could they love Jesus while accepting cruelty to people Jesus loved? We can … [Read more...] about The Southern Baptist Convention: A Testimony of Grace?
A Meme, A Kerfuffle, and Mitt
Some memes just never get old. … [Read more...] about A Meme, A Kerfuffle, and Mitt
We Can Work It Out!
The extent to which the Southern Baptist Convention is being Calvinized is a subject of considerable debate. A Baptist Press article in 2007 compared a 2006 Lifeway Study claiming 10% of Southern Baptist Pastors were Five Point Calvinists with a 2007 NAMB New Minister study claiming that nearly 30% of recent seminary graduates were Five Point Calvinists. Although a 2010 Barna study seems to contradict this idea of a growing Calvinism, most observers of SBC life accept the prevailing view that a New Calvinism is being embraced, especially at Southern and Southeastern Seminaries. A problem … [Read more...] about We Can Work It Out!