• Christianity,  Culture

    Albert Mohler on California Homeschool Decision

    Here’s the description of today’s edition of “The Albert Mohler Program“: “Like a bolt from the blue, a California appeals court has ruled that the state’s parents have no constitutional right to homeschool their own children. In a flash, a child welfare case that no one had noticed has become a flash point of controversy in the nation. Will homeschooling be ruled illegal in California? On today’s program, Dr. Mohler welcomes Michael Farris for a discussion about the significance of the decision and the threat it poses to parents’ rights.” You can listen to the audio below or visit the website for “The Albert Mohler Program.” [audio:http://www.sbts.edu/MP3/totl/2008/AMP_03_10_2008.mp3]

  • Personal,  Theology/Bible

    Richard Bauckham Lecture at Criswell College

    I teach at Criswell College in Dallas, Texas, and last week we hosted Dr. Richard Bauckham for a lecture on the biblical book of Revelation. Dr. Bauckham’s lecture was titled “How To Read the Book of Revelation.” The main point of his address was to explain how the genre of Revelation should effect the proper interpretation of the same. What was fascinating to me was the Q&A time at the end. Criswell College has a premillenial confessional statement, which suggests a certain reading of Revelation 20 that does not cohere with Dr. Bauckham’s. At the very beginning of the Q&A you’ll hear me ask Dr. Bauckham whether reading Revelation “symbolically”…

  • Theology/Bible

    Daniel Wallace in the Dallas Morning News

    Daniel Wallace is probably best known for his intermediate grammar of Koine Greek, Greek Grammar beyond the Basics. I know him because I was his intern for a year when I was a master’s student at Dallas Theological Seminary. He also supervised my master’s thesis and inspired the thesis of my book. Needless to say, I and many others have benefitted greatly from his scholarship.

  • Politics

    Progress in Iraq

    Presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have dominated headlines lately because of their prolonged fight for the nomination of the Democrat Party. Both of them have downplayed progress in Iraq as a part of their justification for rapid troop withdrawals should either of them become president.

  • Politics

    Proportional Representation Bedevils the Democrats

    Former Senator Tom Daschle squared-off against Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell on “Meet the Press” today. Daschle made the case for Obama, and Rendell for Clinton. The ironic thing is that Rendell seems to have the stronger argument—that Clinton should receive the Democrat nomination for president despite winning fewer delegates than Obama. Watch it for yourself and see if you agree about the strength of Clinton’s case for the nomination. One this is clear. The Democrats are having a problem with proportional representation in their primary and caucuses. If the primaries and caucuses would have been winner-take-all contests, the Democrats would have settled on their candidate by now. And that candidate…

  • Christianity,  Politics

    Schwarzenegger Vows To Protect Homeschooling in California

    In response to the outrageous appellate court decision issued earlier this week, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has vowed to protect homeschooling in California. I’m including this story in the links list of my previous post. But since his remarks are an extremely important development, I reproduce them here: “Every California child deserves a quality education, and parents should have the right to decide what’s best for their children. . . Parents should not be penalized for acting in the best interests of their children’s education. . . This outrageous ruling must be overturned by the courts, and if the courts don’t protect parents’ rights then, as elected officials, we will.” “Governor…

  • Christianity,  Culture

    Reckless Court Outlaws Homeschooling

    This story is huge. A California appeals court ruled yesterday that parents without teaching credentials cannot homeschool their own children. This development not only has implications for the homeschool movement, but also for parental right in general. Here are some resources so that you can get informed about exactly what has happened. The Albert Mohler Program (3/10/2008) [audio:http://www.sbts.edu/MP3/totl/2008/AMP_03_10_2008.mp3] James Dobson’s Focus on the Family Broadcast (3/7/2008) [audio:http://swn.edgeboss.net/download/swn/saved/oneplace/mp3/2581632/ffd20080307.mp3] *California Appeals Court Decision

  • Theology/Bible

    Jim Hamilton to Deliver Lecture at Southern

    My good friend Dr. Jim Hamilton will be delivering a Julius Brown Gay Lecture at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary at 1:30pm, March 13, 2008. His paper is titled, “The Typology of David’s Rise to Power: Messianic Patterns in the Book of Samuel.” If you are anywhere near Louisville, Kentucky, you won’t want to miss this one. Jim is one of the most prolific young evangelical writers that you will find. Many of his published papers are available on his faculty webpage. His book God’s Indwelling Presence is a must-read. Some of you may remember that I reviewed it here. Jim’s blog is here.

  • Theology/Bible

    Does N. T. Wright believe in Heaven?

    Bishop N. T. Wright was interviewed on ABC’s “Nightline” last week where he promoted his new book Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church. The segment was set-up to be a provocative piece about a bishop who doesn’t believe in heaven. N. T. Wright actually does believe in heaven; he just doesn’t believe that Christians go there to live forever after they die. That may sound strange to some ears, but what he says on this point is actually orthodox Christian truth.