• Theology/Bible

    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…

  • Culture,  Theology/Bible

    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…

  • Politics

    Moral Equivalence?

    I am watching world reaction to the tragedy that occurred in Qana, Lebanon, and I am stunned that world opinion continues to make a moral equivalence between the actions of the state of Israel and those of the Hezbollah. I am not speaking as a person who thinks Israel has a divine-right to the land that they occupy. Nevertheless, they are a democracy that is defending itself from the attacks of a vicious terrorist group. How can Israel acquiesce to a cease-fire while Hezbollah continues to fire rockets at their cities?Dan Gillerman, the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, summed up the difference between Israel and Hezbollah on “Meet the…

  • Politics

    The U.N. Rebukes U.S. for Its Response to Katrina

    I cannot comment yet on this story just released from the Associated Press. This is one of those moments in which I need to just stop, take a deep breath, and count to ten.Here’s the lead from the story: The United States must better protect poor people and African-Americans in natural disasters to avoid problems like those after Hurricane Katrina, a U.N. human rights panel said Friday. The U.N. Human Rights Committee said poor and black Americans were “disadvantaged” after Katrina, and the U.S. should work harder to ensure that their rights “are fully taken into consideration in the reconstruction plans with regard to access to housing, education and health…

  • Humor,  Music

    Another Hilarious Video

    My good friend Barry Joslin has brought to my attention another parody video. This is from the 2006 Purpose-Driven Worship Conference.I thought this one would be worth passing on to you. Well, actually, I don’t know if it’s worth anything. But I figured if you liked the “Get in Here Ministries” parody, then you might like this one too. Here it is: Smitty – “Filled with the Spirit” After seeing this, I’m sure you will all make sure that your worship leader is at next year’s “Purpose-Driven Worship Conference.” Or maybe not. Source: Simply Youth Ministry

  • Theology/Bible

    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.”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…

  • Culture

    Victim of Truck-jacking Speaks

    A four hour car chase captivated the Dallas/Ft.Worth area on Sunday. Samuel Scott Jones hijacked Christie Bundren’s 18-wheeler, kidnapped her in the process, and forced her at gunpoint to flee from police for four hours under threat of death. It seemed that everyone in the Metroplex was tuned in and praying for the safe release of this poor woman and for a peaceful conclusion to the kidnapping. Thankfully, she was released, and the ordeal did end peacefully.The victim was interviewed this morning on Good Morning America, and you can watch the entire conversation here: “Woman Truckjacked at Gunpoint.”

  • Culture,  Theology/Bible

    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.”

  • Culture,  Politics,  Theology/Bible

    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).

  • Culture,  Theology/Bible

    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…