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“The Bible’s Big Story” by Jim Hamilton
Jim Hamilton is a prolific author. His commentaries and monographs on scripture are serving the church and enriching the field of biblical theology. Because of this work, most readers know Hamilton as a scholar. Few readers, however, know that he is also a pastor, a father, and a poet. But indeed he wears all of those hats, and that is why one of his most recent works is an excellent little book for children titled The Bible’s Big Story: Salvation History for Kids.
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Mothers tell their abortion stories
Sunday’s New York Magazine features testimonials from twenty-six women who have had their unborn children aborted. The stories are raw and revealing. These are not stories of feminist liberation and power. They are the stories of women who have pangs of conscience over what they have done. Some of them have muddled through the aftermath by suppressing their consciences. One woman even says, “There’s no room to talk about being unsure.” Other women aren’t able to pretend and are obviously living with a heavy burden of grief and regret. The first story is from a 19-year old named Nicole (pictured at right). She writes,
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Are Christian conferences sexist?
Jonathan Merritt has an article making the rounds today about the Christian conference circuit and whether or not it’s sexist. He provides a quick round-up of some major Christian conferences and finds that out of 805 speakers, only 159 are women. That’s only 19%. He then concludes, While I don’t think we can conclude that the Christian conference industry is downright sexist, we can say that most conferences have some serious work to do if they want their stage to look anything like the 21st century church.
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Interview w/ Carl Trueman: “Sex, what is the meaning?”
I had a stimulating conversation with Carl Trueman and Todd Pruitt on the “Mortification of Spin” a few weeks back. All you need to know about Trueman and Pruitt is revealed in their bumper music. I think they’re the only hosts in all of Christendom featuring Led Zeppelin during the outro. I understand there’s some bit of intrigue with that. Apparently if you play the outro music backwards, you can hear someone saying “I buried Carl.” (…but I digress…) It really was a pleasure visiting with these men. The episode is now posted online, and you can download it here or listen to it below. [audio:https://s3.amazonaws.com/mos.alliancenet.org/M027.master.mp3]
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Interview about “What Is the Meaning of Sex”
A couple of weeks ago, I sat for an interview with Southern Seminary’s Towers magazine about What is the Meaning of Sex? The questions I answered include the following: 1. Why is your book necessary? 2. What’s your book saying that’s unique compared to other books on the topic? 3. What role should natural law play in a Christian’s arguments when discussing sexual ethics issues? 4. What role does hermeneutics play in sexual ethics? 5. What challenges do the new sexual norms present for Christians and for the church? 6. Why should a pastor care about these issues? 7. What is the meaning of sex? 8. What do you hope…
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Lawmakers cite Pope Francis in support of gay marriage
As you no doubt have heard by now, lawmakers voted last week to make gay marriage legal in the state of Illinois. The law will go into effect on June 1, and it will make Illinois the 15th state to sanction such unions. What you may not have heard is the religious justifications that lawmakers gave for favoring the bill. The Chicago Tribune reports that some lawmakers quoted recent remarks by Pope Francis as the basis for their vote. The Tribune reports:
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The weekly task of pastoral ministry
“The weekly task of pastoral ministry: read yourself full, write yourself clear, pray yourself hot, preach yourself empty.” –Kevin DeYoung
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Reviews of “What Is the Meaning of Sex”
I am very grateful this week for two reviews of What Is the Meaning of Sex? I have no illusions that reviews would be uniformly favorable. The subject matter is far too controversial for that. But I am very grateful for the positive reception from Tim Challies and Matt Damico. Click the links below to read their reviews: Tim Challies, Review of What is the Meaning of Sex? by Denny Burk, Challies.com (November 5, 2013). Matt Damico, Review of What Is the Meaning of Sex? by Denny Burk, Towers 12.4 (2013): 11.
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Have the New Testament charismatic gifts ceased?
Last night, James White moderated a debate between Sam Waldron and Michael Brown about this question: “Have the New Testament charismatic gifts ceased?” You can watch the video of the debate above.