Christianity Today reports on a “Dispensational Dustup” at Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minnesota. According to CT, the college removed a senior as student ministries director because of his “hyper-dispensational” views. The student believes “that the book of James was written for Israel and not for the church; that the church started with Paul and not at Pentecost; and that Israel was saved by faith and works, not by faith alone.” The administration is definitely correct to find such views troubling. I would even go so far as to characterize such views as sub-Christian. Nevertheless, it’s important to point out (as Darrel Bock does in the article) that the student’s…
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Answering Brad Pitt’s Objections to Religion
In a recent interview with Parade magazine, Brad Pitt explains why he no longer embraces Christianity. It turns out that he was raised as a Southern Baptist, but when he got to college he came upon some stumbling blocks that led him to cast aside his faith altogether. He describes his current feelings on “religion” in this way: “Guilt is the thing I find most evil about it. It’s the thing I rail against the most. . . Religion works. I know there’s comfort there, a crash pad. It’s something to explain the world and tell you there is something bigger than you, and it is going to be alright…
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The War: Some Reflections
I just finished watching the last episode of Ken Burns’ documentary “The War.” The film is not entertainment. It’s an historical depiction of real evil and of the heartrending, gut-wrenching consequences of human sin. It’s also a reminder of the great courage and heroism of a generation of Americans who went out to fight a necessary war. I am grateful for them and their sacrifice, even as I thank God for the blessings of liberty and peace that I too often take for granted.
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Are You A Convergent Christian?
Last week, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina hosted a conference addressing the Mark Driscoll wing of the emerging church. The plenary speakers included Mark Driscoll himself, seminary president Danny Akin, and others. I was particularly interested to hear Driscoll’s message. Driscoll is widely known as an emerging church pastor. But because many Southern Baptist leaders tend to treat the emerging church as a monolithic movement, Driscoll has been regarded by many as theologically liberal (like Brian McLaren and Tony Jones). But this characterization is certainly unfair.
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David Gushee Takes on Complementarians
David Gushee tries to undermine Complementarianism by suggesting that Complementarians do not live up to their own principles. He asks four questions that are supposed to reveal flaws in the Complementarian view. He writes: “I believe these types of questions expose weaknesses in complementarianism that cannot be mended from within that paradigm. These weaknesses contribute to my embrace of the egalitarian view.”
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More Wrong from Wright
I have given my assessment of N. T. Wright’s politics in previous posts on this blog (here, here). Readers may remember that Wright is pretty unrealistic in his appraisal of how the West should respond to Islamo-fascism. Not only does Wright excoriate the American-led war in Iraq, he also dismisses America’s toppling of the Taliban in Afghanistan as an “immature lashing out.” Wright has said that “the only way to fight terror is by working for mutual understanding and respect” (He’s serious!). For Wright, the American “empire’s” wars in Iraq and Afghanistan amount to fighting “one kind of terror with another.” One would expect this kind of moral equivalence from…
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Will There Be Sex in Heaven?
Dr. Peter Kreeft is a Catholic theologian of the Thomist tradition. Last Spring he delivered a lecture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina (Yes, a Roman Catholic addressing Baptists!). The title of his lecture was “Will There Be Sex in Heaven?,” and this lecture is one you will not want to miss.
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The Gospel as the Power of God for Perseverance
It was my pleasure to preach last week at my friend Jim Hamilton’s church in Houston, Texas. I was very grateful for the invitation and for the warm reception my family received while visiting. My sermon text was 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, and the title was “The Gospel as the Power of God for Perseverance,” which is available here.
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Q&A on Complementarianism
A commenter in a previous post asked some questions about Complementarianism and how it plays out practically in various settings. I am happy to answer these queries, so I will list them here and respond to them in turn. For an overview of the Complementarian viewpoint that I am defending, see the Danver’s Statement.
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Timothy George on the Five Revolutions
Dr. Timothy George is the Dean of Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama. He is delivering the Page Lectures this week at Southeastern Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. I listened to the first lecture yesterday morning, and it was outstanding. He argues among other things that the Baptist movement stands on the theological shoulders of the mainline Protestant Reformers like Martin Luther. Here are the links to both of his lectures. “The Five Revolutions of the Reformation Era” – by Timothy George (Page Lectures, Southeastern Seminary) “Martin Luther’s Discovery of the Gospel” – by Timothy George (Page Lectures, Southeastern Seminary)