If you are horrified by the pictures coming out of Haiti and if you have any means at all, please consider giving a financial gift to disaster relief efforts. Many news reports say that the immediate need of relief organizations is cash, and many of us can help with that right now. Mark Kelly reports that Southern Baptist disaster relief is being led by Florida Baptists, who have had ministry relationships in Haiti for more than 20 years and currently have seven Haitian staff members who live and work in the country. Initial funding for the relief effort will come from the International Mission Board’s disaster relief fund. You can…
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Russell Moore on the Social Gospel
Russell Moore has a great piece on the social gospel in the latest 9Marks journal. Among other things, he asks and answers the question whether the emerging church represents a revival of the social gospel. He writes: “The doctrinal left wing of the ’emerging’ movement isn’t clarifying the doctrinal content of Christianity, but using, it seems, cunning words to downplay this doctrinal content in order to substitute a social program there instead. This can—and has—happened on the political right as well as on the political left, and with the same kind of wreckage left in its wake. . . “Let’s remember that the gospel is social but the social gospel…
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The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind
Carl Trueman has another gem of an article in the latest 9Marks journal. It’s cleverly titled “The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind.” So what’s the “scandal”? He explains: “Years ago, Mark Noll wrote a book, The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind, in which he argued that the scandal was that there was no such thing. When it comes to evangelical scholars and scholarship, I disagree: the scandal is not that there is no mind; it is that these days there is precious little evangel.” Trueman is on point with this article. Read the rest here
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Which god?
A court in Malaysia recently overturned a government ban on the use of the word “Allah” to denote the Christian God. As a result, several Christian churches have been firebombed. Pray for Christian brothers and sisters in Malaysia. They need it now. Perhaps you are aware that western theologians and missiologists have long debated whether or not the Christian God and the Muslim “Allah” are the same God. It is a contentious debate with profound missiological implications. Have you considered, however, how that question has been answered on the Muslim side? According to the New York Times , the strife in Malaysia owes to the deeply held conviction among Muslims…
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Ross Douthat on Brit Hume
Ross Douthat of the New York Times weighed-in yesterday on the Brit Hume controversy. He writes: “What Hume said wasn’t bigoted: Indeed, his claim about the difference between Buddhism and Christianity was perfectly defensible. Christians believe in a personal God who forgives sins. Buddhists, as a rule, do not. And it’s at least plausible that Tiger Woods might welcome the possibility that there’s Someone out there capable of forgiving him, even if Elin Nordegren and his corporate sponsors never do.” His conclusion is right on point:
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Piper’s Message at Angola Prison
In November, John Piper wrote about his experience at Angola Prison in Louisiana. This prison has only murderers, rapists, armed robbers and habitual felons. The average sentence is 88 years, and 90 percent of the inmates will die there. Nevertheless, there is a wonderful move of God going on among the prisoners. Piper’s message to and Q&A with the inmates is now available. You can watch both of them below.
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Gerson and Mohler on Hume
Two more items on Brit Hume appeared since yesterday and are worthy of note. First, Albert Mohler has devoted an entire episode of his radio program to this topic. Perhaps the most helpful part of the conversation is Mohler’s careful explanation of what Buddhism is. It’s not a theistic religion, but a philosophy. Thus, Brit Hume was correct to say that Buddhism does not offer redemption and forgiveness as Christianity does. You can listen to the program here or press the play button below. [audio:http://www.sbts.edu/media/audio/totl/2010/AMP_01_07_2010.mp3]
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CT Interviews Brit Hume
I like Brit Hume’s blunt analysis of the media’s regard for Christianity: CT: Is Christianity welcome in the media? Hume: No. Christianity is scorned by many in the media. CT: Did you see that before you made this statement? Hume: Sure. Think of how many times we’ve seen an athlete interviewed on the sidelines of a football game who says he owes it all to God or owes it all to Christ, and the weird silence that greets those statements. People are uncomfortable with it. People don’t want to talk about it. Politicians who proclaim their faith, the next question is about something else. There are some other interesting personal…
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Howling about Hume not Hitchens
Peter Wehner’s article at National Review Online is right on target about Brit “Humes’ Gentle Witness“. Wehner rightly points out the double-standard of those who cry foul against Hume’s remarks about Buddhism. He writes, “When Christopher Hitchens, whom I like and whose company I enjoy, appeared on television shows promoting his book God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, he was far more critical of Christianity than Hume was of Buddhism. Yet I don’t recall the Left saying that those criticisms were inappropriate for public debate. In fact, they weren’t — and neither are Hume’s words. Furthermore, those who are unnerved by Hume’s ‘sectarianism’ were untroubled by the aggressive…
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Hume Ups the Ante
“Christianity is uniquely and especially about redemption and forgiveness. That is what the cornerstone of what the faith is about. Now other faiths aren’t hostile to the idea, but think of what the message of Christ and Christianity is. It is that the God of the universe sent His only begotten Son, who died a hideous death on the cross, to atone for all of our sins. And we are thereby offered through that act a new covenant in which we are offered forgiveness and redemption on a continuing basis in return for our faith in God and our continuing efforts to live the Christian life. That is a unique…