Ryan does a great job explaining the real intent of the law. Again, the other talking heads are unable to hear the argument. Don’t miss his article at The Daily Signal from earlier today: “Apple CEO Tim Cook Is Wrong About Indiana Religious Freedom Law.”
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The media freak-out hits “Morning Joe”
John McCormack and Joe Scarborough are the only voices of sanity at this discussion (see above). The other talking heads are a perfect illustration of the irrational “media freak-out” that is the real story here. For more on that, read Rod Dreher’s remarks in my earlier post. Very troubling.
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Get fired in the interview
When I was in college and aspiring to ministry, I was greatly influenced by a pastor in Denton, Texas. His name is Tommy Nelson, and he is preaching in the chapel of Southern Seminary this morning. Among the many nuggets of wisdom that I gleaned from him in those days was this: “Get fired in the interview.” What was he talking about? He was telling all of us young aspiring preachers exactly what we should be doing when candidating for a pastorate. It was sage advice for me then, and I reckon it is sage advice for any aspiring pastor who may be reading this now. When the pastor-search committee…
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Tough review of N. T. Wright’s 2-volume work on Paul
John Barclay has written a hard-hitting review of N. T. Wright’s Paul and the Faithfulness of God. If you know anything about the interactions between Barclay and Wright over the last several years, you will not be surprised that Barclay comes down pretty hard on Wright. Barclay concludes: The stimulus offered by this book will be lessened, and perhaps cancelled, by its persistently shrill and overheated rhetoric. Ouch. Like I said; it’s a tough review. Read the rest here.
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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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The Girl in the Tuxedo
Jean Lloyd shares a little bit of her story today at The Public Discourse about how she grew confused about her gender and sexuality in her teenage years. She compares her experience back in 1985 to what a child with the same struggles might experience in 2015. The differences are stark and tragic. The pathways to wholeness that were available to her in 1985 have largely been cut-off to today’s adolescents. If you don’t read anything else today on the internet, read this. The consequences of the sexual revolution are massive, and they have an impact on the lives of children. Be sure to read this one all the way…
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Is God a cosmic fan in the sky or disinterested observer? Or neither?
A new poll from the Public Religion Research Institute says that many Americans believe God plays a role in who wins and loses NFL football games. From the poll: Majorities of Americans (53%) and sports fans (56%) say that God rewards athletes who have faith with good health and success; more than 4-in-10 of Americans (45%) and sports fans (42%) disagree… About 1-in-4 (26%) Americans and 27% of self-described sports fans say that God plays a role in determining which team wins a sporting event. About 7-in-10 Americans (71%) and sports fans (69%) disagree.
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An “evangelical” church in Nashville embraces gay marriage
A couple weeks ago, I noted Elizabeth Diaz’s feature-length article in Time magazine arguing that evangelicals are changing their mind about gay marriage. Today she has a follow-up piece about Nashville, Tennessee’s GracePointe Community Church which has become “one of the first evangelical megachurches in the country to openly stand for full equality and inclusion of the LGBTQ community.” The church’s pastor, Stan Mitchell, made the announcement at the end of a sermon a few weeks ago. You can watch it above beginning at 44:52.
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No one can really redefine marriage
Last week I read a report about philosophy professors who believe the debate about marriage is over. For many (perhaps most) of them, the question has been settled. There is no rational basis to privilege the union of one man and one woman in our laws and culture. To do so is the equivalent of bigotry. Or so these professors believe. And that is why many of them are no longer treating it as a matter up for debate. Conversation over. It struck me that while many people in our culture will evade this discussion in a similar way, that doesn’t close the issue. Why? Because an ostrich with his…
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Douglas Moo’s essay on the NIV and Bible Translation
At last November’s ETS meeting in San Diego, I attended a dinner hosted by Zondervan celebrating the 50th anniversary of the commissioning of the New International Version (NIV). Doug Moo is the head of the committee that oversees that translation, and he gave an extended address on the NIV in particular and on Bible translation in general. Zondervan has made a PDF of that address available for free. You can download the booklet at right or at the link below. Douglas J. Moo, We Still Don’t Get It: Evangelicals and Bible Translation Fifty Years After James Barr, Presentation from the 2014 ETS Annual Meeting (Zondervan, 2014).