A story commonly scoffed at by doubtful folks has found some verification at the tip of the archaelogist's spade.
Get em David! Link - Finding Said to Boost Proof of Goliath - Yahoo! News
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POC Blog
The random technotheolosophical blogging of Reid S. Monaghan
The Trunk Monkey
Ancient church found on jail site
Greg Koukl - I'm Fighting for Joy
It is good to know what other brothers are soaking their souls in...Greg Koukl over at Stand to Reason has been chewing on John Piper's recent book When I Don't Desire God: How to Fight for Joy.
Koukl gives a peak into his own struggle to stay faithful to a life saturated with the Scriptures. Very encouraging.
I have this book on my table as a "must read soon" - but for now the Seminary pile awaits.
I'm fighting with you Greg, fighting to find my joy in God, that he would be my vision
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Books and Culture's Book of the Week: The Shrine Next Door
Books and Culture has a review of a new book about the religious developments of China. The book The Sinister Way:The Divine and the Demonic in Chinese Religious Culture looks to be an interesting read.
I have marveled lately at how God prepares a culture with its religious forms, linguistic traditions, to receive the gospel. It is like God prepares peoples for the coming of the good new of Christ and then it explodes. South Korea is such a phenomena in the 20th century. A country which went from almost zero Christian influence to a near majority in less than 100 years. Perhaps China is on the horizon as Jesus' next lands for his sheep.
Here is a brief exerpt from the Books and Culture piece:
"Traditional Chinese religion, driven underground for a while by Mao and his minions, has resurfaced in a remarkable resurgence, especially in rural and southern China. For the first time in their long history, however, Chinese have an alternative. As David Aikman's Jesus in Beijing has shown, the spread of Christianity now offers hope of deliverance from demons and from the dominion of greed, rather than the domestication of the former with rituals and the latter by a sanitized god of wealth."May God grow his church in the lands of China Let the nations be glad and sing for joy! (Psalm 67) ... --------
One of the more ridiculous things I have read
Zondervan is hosting a Pastor's conf this year with a featured "Emerging Church Track" - I could not believe the quote I read commenting about the "Emerging" church.
"Is it a movement or a conversation? Is it dangerous or the church's last hope?"Last time I checked Jesus was the eternal hope of the church. He is the author and perfector of our faith (Hebrews 12), he is our eternal faithful high priest (Hebrews 9 and Hebrews 10), he makes continual intercession for his people, not one of his sheep shall be lost, and all that the Father gives him shall come to him and be raised up on the last day (John 6 and John 10) What the heck could it possibly mean that the emerging church is the church's last hope? How is this not hype and marketing crap? The sickening man-centeredness of that sentence is beyond comprehension...especially talking about a movement which is abandoning penal substitutionary atonement, denying the reality of God's judgment of sin and sinners (and thereby making the work of the cross quite an unecessary event), and and presenting a weak, new age like, universalist, pacifist Jesus, that needs us to become "Postmodern" (however one defines this) or the church dies. Link - to the quote in context is found here Critical Concerns Courses | National Pastors Convention 2006 ... --------
By the Numbers...
Recent stats on religious and non-religious politics, Russia's abortion rate, and views on evolution.
| posted 10/26/2005 09:00 a.m.
Source - http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/011/17.24.html
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| 45% | 1.5 million | 48% |
| Americans who say religious conservatives have too much control over the Republican Party. | Russian women who gave birth last year. | Americans who say life has evolved over time. |
| 44% | 1.6 million | 42% |
| Americans who say nonreligious liberals have too much control over the Democratic Party. | Russian women who had an abortion last year. | Americans who say life has always existed in its present form. |
| 18% | ||
| Americans who say evolution was guided by a supernatural being. |
Reformission 2004
"Postmodern" Christians
The following article is a good read. Mark Driscoll is a pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seatle - a missional church reaching out to contemporary culture - seeking to be both relevant and faithful to Jesus.
Link - postmodern_christians.pdf (application/pdf Object)
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An Apologist must be Curious
In my previous post I encouraged apologist today to be Compassionate - to care enough to engage. In this installment I want to encourage us to be Curious. Curiosity is a strange quality of an active mind. Curiosity asks questions, thinks continually, explores possibilities, solves problems, and invades new territories. In our multicultural and pluralistic world there are gods and goddesses behind every tree. "Strange Things" come to the ear almost regularly if we perk up and listen. To engage others with the life saving, soul redeeming, freedom purchasing gospel of Jesus we must be curious enough to listen to the people and cultures around us...so that we might connect and communicate the truth to diverse peoples today.
There are two quintessential example of this in our Bibles - one from the Old Testament the other from the New.
Daniel - A Curious Captive in Babylon
Daniel was a young man ripped from his homeland, taken from his family, taken from his religion and placed into a foreign society. He was educated by the best thinkers and religious leaders of Babylon, he ascended the ranks of their society, he led their people, new their culture and was in many ways an insider in a foreign world. However, Daniel ever remained a disciple of YHWH, a follower of the true and living God, and did not compromise his life and witness even while living in Babylon. He clung to his God, maintain steadfast devotion and committed himself to God and not the opinions of men. When the time of testing came, he was faithful, he was strong in conviction, and he trusted God in the midst of trial. Such an man is an example today - to learn the best of another worldview, to be conversant with the world around him - but never becoming captive to godless living and godless beliefs. He influenced his world, because he worked from the inside out as an ambassador of his God.Paul - A Curious Observer on Ancient Hills
The greatest preacher following Jesus in the history of our faith is the apostle Paul. He was also the greatest of curious apologists that we observe in the New Testament. In Acts 17 Paul was in Athens awaiting Silas and Timothy, his friends and brothers in ministry. While in Athens Paul did not simply wait, he was an "active waiter" or a "curious waiter". We see in verse 16 that while he was waiting for his friends his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. Paul was observing, thinking, praying, and he was burdened. I can only image how his desire to preach Jesus to those worshipping idols. His mind was engaged, his heart bursting, a sermon was to come... Paul's move to action was to go the centers of cultural exchange - the places where ideas, and religion flourished - he engaged at the synagogue and in the marketplace. His first engaged and reasoned with the Jews and the God-fearers (devout persons, Gentiles, who would go to the Synagogue) about Jesus. Finally, he engaged the philosophers...the Stoics and Epicureans (The Catholic Encyclopedia has some good articles on these two groups of ancient philosophers) Paul was preaching Jesus and the Resurrection, and the philosophers show some resistance. In fact they call him a babbler, literally a "seed picker" (Greek -- σπερμολόγος spermologos). Paul's engagement affords the opportunity to speak before the thinkers and cultural leaders of Athens at Mars Hill (the Areopogus). In this center of intellectual power and influence, Paul weaves a sermon forged out of a life of a curious apologist. He weaves his message from the observations he made as an active waiter and a cultural anthropologist - one who was studying and thinking about the worlds around him. What were the resources Paul had gleaned in observing the Greeks:ConclusionHe didn't take on directly the Stoics and Epicureans and all their arguments...He didn't get sidetracked. There was already disagreement with these two groups. Paul did not want to debate for the sake of debate. In Verse 24,25 - his starting point was creation, not the OT Scripture as was his practice with Jewish audiences. He begins with what they are familiar affirms and critiques with the Biblical gospel. He blew up their categories with a UNIVERSAL deity. He captures their small deities with a large God.
- The people were very religious - the city was full of idols.
- The nature of their religion - idols and temples made by human hands.
- This moves the path of his message - they were religious and philosophical.
- He was very positive about their religious pursuit - he didn't speak from ignorance.
- He recognized their openness to novelty - they loved new ideas.
- The topic has emotional intensity for them
- He also notes a point of weakness from which he can depart to the gospel. It provides the point of contact and contrast.
- Verse 28 He quotes their own poets, he is familiar with their cultural art forms
We must be curious and not lazy believers (as Luther once said "some preachers are lazy and no good") - thinking, reading, exploring other ideas, willing to study, desiring to know our own faith from all angles, so to connect it with people from various backgrounds. We must stay informed - knowing the tensions that people today have with the gospel so we can hold firm, yet present the word of God clearly and winsomely. Always listening, always thinking, looking for connection points to others, bridges to their lives to connect and communicate the gospel. The apologist today must be curious and she must pray...praying asking the Holy Spirit to show you the way with this person, this people rather than borrowing stereotypical assumptions or cliche how to approaches to the gospel.Compassionate and Curious - we are on a road to sharing Jesus with people in any and every context - yet, something remains which will keep us on the right paths. We must be compelled by conviction...to this we turn next - The Apologist must be compelled. ... --------
Stand to Reason Blog
Halloween
"The truth is that I have several convictions regarding Halloween. I despise the pagan aspects of it. I am convicted that my children should not dress as little devils or ghosts or monsters. But I am also convicted that there could be no worse witness to the neighbours than having a dark house, especially in a neighbourhood like ours which is small and where every person and every home is highly-visible. We have nothing to fear from our neighbours or from their children. So my children will dress up (my son as a knight and my daughter as a princess) and we will visit each of our neighbours. Either my wife or I will remain at home, greeting people at our door with a smile and a handful of something tasty. If the kids are deemed too old to trick-or-treat, they'll be forced to sing a song to merit any handouts. Our door will be open and the light will be on. And we hope that the Light will shine brightly.". --------
CWE - Christian Wrestling Entertainment
Christian Pro Wrestling??? I am speechless - give me a break.
Link - CWE - Christian Wrestling Entertainment
HT: Worldmag Blog
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Brennan Manning: "I Lied"
Justin Taylor has a thread going on the embelishments made by Brennan Manning on his involvement after Katrina. As much as people seem to love Manning - I am sure this will not hurt his reputation. God's grace is sufficient for all of our lies...yet making up stuff like this is a bit self-promoting and disappointing.
Original Story with Editor's Update - http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/140/42.0.html
Link on Theologica - Between Two Worlds: Brennan Manning: "I Lied"
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An Apologist must be Compassionate
In today's world Apologetics should never just be about a "nanny nanny boo-boo, I'm smarter than you" kind of trip. Oh, I can refute all the XYZ people who believe in XYZ. This is not the ethos of Jesus, this is not the way of the Apologist. Above all else an apologist for the faith must see himself as a compassionate follower of Jesus in mission with Him in this world. To be real blunt, if you do not care about the souls of others, that they really come to know Jesus, you should not speak for Him, and you may not belong to the Lord. So often we just don't care about people - we don't give a rip whether they know Christ or not and we just continue our lives chasing pride, position and possessions without turning an eye to those separated from life and redemption and hope and truth and peace with God in Christ.
Jesus looked out upon the ancient city of Jerusalem and something welled up within his being:
35And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37Then he said to his disciples,"The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."
- Do you view yourself as one sent by Jesus into the world, throughout your city and village proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom?
- When you see a world filled with idols and pain and brokenness and loneliness and sin do you care? Do you care that people are living without the shepherd they desperately need.
- Do you pray that God would bring in his people through his church?
How To Score in Church
I have just been listening to a recent radio broadcast by Mark Dricoll, a pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seatle, Washington. The topic of the show, a recent issue of Maxim Magazine, a soft core porn men's rag, which put the following in its pages in the September issue:
How To: Score in Church: The pews are packed with heavenly bodies. God bless you.
Apparently this magazine is encouraging dirt ball guys to "go to church" to try to find girls to hook up with. Ladies, be wary of the guys lurking around - if they do not know Jesus and are about his business, you may want to keep your distance.
Maxim - how creative! Encourage little boys (that you call men) to chase women in churches trying to score.
Let me give some advice from Driscoll to pastor's who lead ministries that include young single women. If you find these kind of dirt ball guys hanging around, stalking the ladies, you need to give them "the right hand of fellowship to the jaw"
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Whatever Happened to Truth? - Andreas J. Kostenberger (Editor)
An Anatomy of Megachurches - The new look for places of worship
Slate.com is running a piece on the architecture of the modern Megachurch. An interesting read and some very good questions are asked. An Anatomy of Megachurches - The new look for places of worship. By Witold Rybczynski
Who looks big - humans or God due to our buildings our gatherings, etc.? Very good question.
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Is the Sanctity of Human Life an Outmoded Concept?
If you have not be associated with the work of Peter Singer this commentary might be a good place to begin - Link Is the Sanctity of Human Life an Outmoded Concept?
HT: AlbertMohler.com
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Apologetics in Contemporary Culture
Apologetics is properly defined as the defense of the faith against its detractors in the marketplace of ideas. As such it usually becomes a very broad interdisciplinary effort of engagement in the public sphere. It is primarily a discipline of theology, so it must necessarily grasp the core of the Christian faith. It must interact with other ideologies and worldviews so it must touch on philosophy, comparative religion, and popular ideas in any given culture. In the west it must interact with secularism, scientism, and a consumeristic culture of pride and possessions. In the east it must confront syncretism and pantheism. And in todays global culture, Apologetics may deal with just about everything. Yet the goal in every context is the same. Broadly, apologetics should be intimately and subservient to presenting the beauty and truth of the Lord Jesus to those who need to bow a knee to Him. It involves commending the living Christ to others, helping them to see his cross in a way that is unencumbered by false perceptions, half-truths, deceptions, and misunderstandings. It never should be merely an intellectual tit for tat between a believer and an unbeliever, an unending argument going round and round on a Carousel of pride. The desire of the apologist should be to connect with others - which involves, listening, love and patience - so that she might communicate clearly (Colossians 4:2-6) the good news of God reconciling the world to Christ (2 Corinthians 5). In this brief blog series I want to call believers to be apologists for the faith which requires something of us. To be an apologist today’s world requires a follower of Christ to possess at least three characteristics. He must be compassionate, he must be curious, and he must be a compelled. To these we turn over the next few entries…
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