When I was in seminary, Dr. Howard Hendricks used to tell us what he thought about preachers who wanted to make the Bible relevant. He thundered, “The Bible’s not irrelevant! You’re irrelevant!” What he was trying to tell us also applies to preachers who desire to mitigate what they find boring in the Bible. The Bible’s not boring! You’re boring! The point is that as communicators we should strive to have a delivery that serves and reflects the message we wish to preach. And boring sermons say in a non-verbal way something profoundly untrue about God’s word.
-
-
Complementarianism or Patriarchy? What’s in a name?
Rachel Held Evans recently made a splash with a blog post suggesting that complementarianism is merely patriarchy masquerading under a less offensive name. Her post generated a good bit of discussion not only on her blog but on Scot McKnight’s as well. Evans is riffing on remarks that Russell Moore recently made about complementarians who are big on gender orthodoxy but not so much on orthopraxy. Here’s how Moore expressed his concern, “What I fear is that we have many people in evangelicalism who can check off ‘complementarian’ on a box but who really aren’t living out complementarian lives.” Evans agrees with this statement and then offers three reasons why…
-
Jerry Vines Interacts with Mohler on Soteriological Statement
For those following the conversation among Southern Baptists about soteriology, you will want to note Dr. Jerry Vines’ recent contribution to the discussion, “It’s Time To Discuss the Elephant in the Room.” Among other things, Dr. Vines offers a rejoinder to the impression that the “Traditional” statement is semi-pelagian. You’ll want to read the entire statement and observe in particular this conciliatory note:
-
Mohler Responds to the “Traditional” Baptist Statement
Albert Mohler has responded to a recent statement issued by a group of Southern Baptists about the doctrine of salvation. Mohler’s essay is direct and generous. It takes the drafters’ concerns seriously and answers substantively. It’s a clarion call to unity around the BF&M. In short, it’s statesmanlike, which is exactly what we need right now. He writes,
-
Paige Patterson’s B21 Video: Classic!
Dr. Paige Patterson filmed a video invitation to the Baptist 21 event coming up in June at the Southern Baptist Convention in New Orleans. This is really classic! Click here to sign-up. (HT: Jon Akin)
-
LA Times Profiles Fred Luter
The Los Angeles Times has a profile today of the Rev. Fred Luter, the next president of the Southern Baptist Convention. Here’s the summary: The Rev. Fred Luter Jr. has long been a prominent African American voice among a largely white denomination with a segregationist history. Now he is poised to become its first black president. Read the rest here. (HT: Jim Smith)
-
Les Misérables Is Coming This Christmas
The musical version of Les Misérables is set to be released in theaters this Christmas. It stars Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean, Amanda Seyfried as Cosette, Russell Crowe as Inspector Javert, and Anne Hathaway as Fantine. I’m a big fan of Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean. The rest of the cast is exciting as well.
-
Justin Taylor Interviews Piper and His Successor
Last week, Justin Taylor sat down for an interview with John Piper and his successor, Jason Meyer. Piper and Meyer give a candid glimpse into the process that led Bethlehem Baptist Church to select Meyer as their next pastor. Watch this, and witness a clear testimony of God’s faithfulness to His people. (HT: Colin Hansen)
-
Planned Parenthood’s Morally Bankrupt Response
In my previous post, I highlighted Live Action’s latest sting operation of a Planned Parenthood (PP) facility in Austin, Texas. A hidden camera disclosed a PP worker counseling a patient about sex selective abortion. The patient claimed that she only wanted a boy and that she intended to kill the unborn child if an ultrasound indicated it was a girl. The worker showed the patient exactly how to get this done. PP has now released a statement in response to the video. PP’s response is a moral outrage for many reasons, but I want to highlight two.
-
Steel in My Spine and Fire in My Belly
The sermons you are about to hear put steel in my spine and fire in my belly almost 20 years ago when I was in college. At the time, I was still cutting my teeth theologically and was wrestling mightily with the studied claims of theological liberalism. The sermons were like an oasis of truth, and they proved to be epoch-making for me. Here I heard for the first time about the bankruptcy of liberalism, the inerrancy of the Bible, the job-description of the pastor, and the necessity of perseverance. The messages meant the world to me then, and they still do now. The preacher is Tommy Nelson, pastor of…