At this point in our culture’s sexual devolution, the only recognized boundary on sexual expression is consent. If two or more persons are of age and if all parties agree to a given sexual activity, then that activity is deemed acceptable—no matter what it is. Any attempt to suggest moral obligation beyond consent is treated as repressive and as a throwback to puritanical austerity. That’s simply where we are right now as a people. Certainly Christians would agree with our secular counterparts that consent is a necessary moral condition for sexual expression. No one disagrees with that. The problem we have is with the suggestion that consent is the only…
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Sam Allberry to speak at Southern Seminary, March 4
I’m really excited to welcome Sam Allberry to the campus of Boyce College and Southern Seminary next week. It’s a one-day only event in which he will be delivering a series of messages on “Homosexuality and Ministry.” The talks will focus on how to do faithful gospel ministry among those who are same-sex attracted. Sam Allberry has shared his compelling story in his watershed book Is God Anti-gay?, and he will be fleshing-out those themes in his talks on campus. The event is free for students and their families and will be held next week on Wednesday, March 4. For more information about the schedule and meeting room, visit here.
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Florist rejects AG’s offer, stands courageously on principle, and risks everything
If you haven’t been following Barronelle Stutzman’s case in Washington State, you need to be. She is the florist being sued by the state attorney general for refusing to participate in a gay wedding. The attorney general is trying to compel her to ignore her Christian faith and to participate in gay weddings. If she refuses, he is threatening the full coercive power of the state to force her to do it. She stands to lose everything—her home, her savings, her business, her livelihood—if she does not comply. I have an article today at CNN.com explaining the situation. The conclusion reads like this:
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21 Martyrs
We have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood (Hebrews 12:4), but some have.
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Lenten Curmudgeon: Carl Trueman on Evanglicals and Lent
Carl Trueman is perplexed at Evangelical fascination with Lent. He writes: I can understand Anglicans observing Lent. Hey, I can even approve of them doing so when I am in an exceptionally good mood or have just awoken from a deep sleep and am still a little disoriented. It is part of their history. It connects to their formal liturgical history. All denominations and Christian traditions involve elements that are strictly speaking unbiblical but which shape their historic identity. For Anglicans, the liturgical calendar is just such a thing. These reasons are not compelling in a way that would make the calendar normative for all Christians, yet I can still…
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Wrapping a Lie in the Cloak of Faith
Secular journalist, Matt Lewis, tries to explain to secular people why President Obama’s lie about gay marriage is such a big deal to real believers. In short, it is because the President wrapped his lie in a cloak of faith. Lewis writes: Consider this imperfect analogy. You say, “On the life of my daughter, I’m telling the truth…” and I find out that you lied. The lie itself might be about something terribly minor. But what kind of person would do that? That’s the problem here. Obama cited his belief in something sacred to buttress an argument he apparently didn’t actually believe. By making his faith an accessory to a…
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Why “50 Shades” is not the same as biblical submission
I hadn’t planned on contributing anything to the 50 Shades meme that appears to be taking over the internet. In fact, I was studiously avoiding it. I changed my mind this morning after watching a CBS News package that deals with female “submission” in relationships (see it here). The report compares the sado-masochism of 50 Shades of Grey to the submissive roles of two well-known wives, Candace Cameron Bure and Gabby Reece. By the end of the piece, the CBS journalists seem scandalized by Bure and Reece, but it is not clear whether they are equally troubled by 50 Shades of Grey.
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President Obama’s cynical lie about gay marriage
In his new book, David Axelrod admits that President Obama lied about his views on gay marriage in order to get elected in 2008. In particular, he wished to deceive black voters, whom he knew were largely opposed to gay marriage. Here’s the report from TIME Magazine: Barack Obama misled Americans for his own political benefit when he claimed in the 2008 election to oppose same sex marriage for religious reasons, his former political strategist David Axelrod writes in a new book, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics. “I’m just not very good at bulls—-ing,” Obama told Axelrod, after an event where he stated his opposition to same-sex marriage, according…
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Ravi Zacharias slams President Obama’s reference to the Crusades
Ravi Zacharias has a sharp response to President Obama’s reference to the Crusades last week. I was surprised to see this–mainly because it’s unusual to see Zacharias get so close to the political wood-chipper. But he does it here. For that reason alone, it’s worth passing it along to you. Here’s an excerpt: For those who did not hear the talk, it is sufficient to say that it was the most ill-advised and poorly chosen reprimand ever given at a National Prayer Breakfast. I have been to several and have never, ever heard such absence of wisdom in a setting such as this. I wasn’t at this one but have…
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Russell Moore remarks on Pres. Obama’s comparison of ISIS to the Crusades
Over the weekend, Russell Moore weighed-in on President Obama’s remarks comparing ISIS to the Crusades. Moore’s words were spot-on and hilarious. In the video above, his part begins at 2:00.