For those of you who think I’m too critical of N. T. Wright (see previous post), I direct you to Jim Hamilton’s recent evaluation of Wright’s theology. Jim and I have discussed this many times, and we are on the same page when it comes to Wright. There is much good, but there are also some things to be concerned about.Go check out Jim’s post: Why Are Emergent Pastors Reading N. T. Wright?.
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John Piper Is Back (with Guns Blazing)
Maybe you don’t like the war-metaphor “with Guns Blazing,†but it is a biblical one (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). John Piper is back in the pulpit after a five month sabbatical, and in his first sermon he goes to war with the New Perspective on Paul and its denial of the imputed righteousness of Christ.In particular, Piper confronts the imputation-denying theology of N. T. Wright.
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Baptism and Church Membership
You can be a lot of things, but you can’t be Baptist if you allow people to join your church who have not been baptized. That is why I am happy to see that the elders of Henderson Hills Baptist church in Edmond, Oklahoma have backed away from their proposal to admit into membership believers who have not been baptized.The Baptist Press reports: Elders of Henderson Hills Baptist Church decided against proceeding with a church-wide vote July 30 on a proposal to remove baptism as a requirement for church membership. . . Henderson Hills pastor Dennis Newkirk, in an extended entry on his weblog July 31, stated that the church’s…
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Bessie Marie Criswell, R.I.P.
“Mrs. W.A. (Betty) Criswell – “Mrs. C†as she was affectionately called – taught the Bible for over 70 years, most of those here at First Baptist Church of Dallas. She devoted herself to Dr. Criswell’s gospel ministry during his life, and after his death continued to preserve his legacy through First Baptist Church and The Criswell College.“Mrs. C was a blessing and a beacon to all who knew her, as well as the many thousands who listened from her radio audience. We mourn her loss as a church family and staff and celebrate her homegoing to see her Savior face to face, Whom she has so wonderfully served.†–From…
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Praying Beyond the Sick List
Does our corporate prayer get bogged down by praying for the sick? I was helped immensely by an article that I read today that addresses this question. I want to commend the article to you. It’s by a Christian counselor named David Powlison, and the name of the article is “Praying Beyond Health Concerns.â€Powlison argues that our prayers can get bogged down and self-centered if all we do is run through a laundry list of health concerns without also focusing on Kingdom priorities. Powlison argues that we need to pray for the sick, but we need to be doing so much more. Here’s an excerpt: Many pastoral prayers don’t go…
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David Dockery Responds to NY Times on Baptist Colleges
Last week, I commented on an article that appeared in the New York Times about the battle that’s going on for Baptist colleges in various states around the country. In a Baptist Press piece today, David Dockery also responds to the New York Times. The integrated vision of faith and learning that Dockery commends is the ideal that we all should be striving for. Therefore, I recommend his article to you: “Christian commitment & intellectual inquiry.â€
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Is Embryonic Stem-Cell Research Murder?
Does the destruction of human embryos amount to murder? White House spokesman Tony Snow put this question on the front burner last week when he described President Bush’s position as follows: “The president believes strongly that for the purpose of research it’s inappropriate for the federal government to finance something that many people consider murder. He’s one of them. The simple answer is he thinks murder’s wrong” (source).
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The New York Times on Southern Baptist Colleges
The New York Times reports today on the struggle between Baptist Colleges and the state Baptist conventions that run them. Many people are aware of the conservative resurgence that began in 1979 in the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). That resurgence returned the convention’s institutions and seminaries to conservative evangelical principles.That battle was all but completed in the 1990’s. Now the struggle has moved to the state conventions as various state conventions have tried to return their institutions and colleges to conservative Christian principles. The New York Times covers some recent developments in this ongoing battle for Baptist colleges. Southern Baptist colleges are affiliated with the state conventions, and it does…
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Rob Bell’s Change of Heart on the Women’s Issue
Gender-News.com has a fascinating report on Pastor Rob Bell’s transition from a complentarian position to an egalitarian position. The story is titled “Engaged by the culture: Michigan megachurch goes egalitarian.†The article also narrates the story of Rob Bell’s role in changing his church’s constitution so that women would be permitted to serve as elders.A few things are troubling about this story and are in stark contrast to my previous post about Al Mohler’s change of heart in the other direction.
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Al Mohler’s Change of Heart on the Women’s Issue
It is widely known that Dr. R. Albert Mohler is a staunch proponent of complementarianism. What is not so widely known is that Dr. Mohler was at one time a staunch proponent of egalitarianism.On his “Conventional Thinking†weblog, Dr. Mohler recounts the story of a conversation with Dr. Carl F. H. Henry in the mid-1980’s that provoked his change of heart. Walking across the campus, Dr. Henry simply stopped me in my tracks and asked me how, as one who affirms the inerrancy of the Bible, I could possibly deny the clear teaching of Scripture on this question. I was hurt, embarrassed –and highly motivated to answer his question. I…