God and ‘The Wrath’

“C.H. Dodd prefers the translation ‘the Wrath of God’ to Moffatt’s ‘God’s anger’ in Rom. 1:18, ‘because such an archaic phrase suits a thoroughly archaic idea,’ while Nicolas Berdyaev writes ‘Anger in every shape and form is foreign to God.’ …

In such words many modern writers give expression to their conviction that God cannot be thought of as exercising wrath towards men, so that where the Scripture speaks of ‘the wrath of God’ it must either be explained away or abandoned. …”

– The wrath of God, in passages such as Romans 1, is never popular. Leon Morris, writing in 1955, explains that the concept of the wrath of God is necessary if he is also a righteous God. Republished online at The Australian Church Record.

Not all Equality is Equal

“One of the central mantras of the campaign to redefine marriage is that it’s all about ‘equality’. We hear the language of ‘equal marriage’, ‘marriage equality’ and even the claim that homosexuals are, somehow, ‘second-class citizens’.

What are we to make of this claim? I think the key is to establish quite what proponents have in mind when they speak of ‘equality’. To get clarity on this question we should turn to the most consistent of those pushing hard for a ‘yes’ vote in the upcoming postal survey (notwithstanding their refusal to committing to honour the result). Here in Australia perhaps one of the proponents with most integrity in this regard is the MP Tanya Plibersek, member for Sydney. …”

– David Ould asks what exactly it is that proponents of ‘marriage equality’ are talking about.

(Photo courtesy of the website of The Hon. Tanya Plibersek MP.)

Related:

This short video tries the approach of logic.

“Let’s be clear. This isn’t personal. The people making the argument for same-sex marriage are our family, they’re our friends, they’re our colleagues. We love them and we don’t think they’re failures at all. It’s the argument being used to justify a change in marriage that is a failure. This isn’t personal, it’s logical.”

CBMW releases Nashville Statement on Biblical Sexuality

“The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW) announced August 29th the release of The Nashville Statement, an evangelical coalition statement on biblical sexuality. …

The statement, comprised of 14 affirmations and denials, addresses issues related to human sexuality, ‘in the hope of serving Christ’s church,’ according to the statement’s preamble.”

– Announcement from the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.

Read ‘The Nashville Statement’.

From the Preamble –

“Evangelical Christians at the dawn of the twenty-first century find themselves living in a period of historic transition. As Western culture has become increasingly post-Christian, it has embarked upon a massive revision of what it means to be a human being.

By and large the spirit of our age no longer discerns or delights in the beauty of God’s design for human life. Many deny that God created human beings for his glory, and that his good purposes for us include our personal and physical design as male and female.

It is common to think that human identity as male and female is not part of God’s beautiful plan, but is, rather, an expression of an individual’s autonomous preferences.

The pathway to full and lasting joy through God’s good design for his creatures is thus replaced by the path of shortsighted alternatives that, sooner or later, ruin human life and dishonor God. …”

Related:

In today’s issue of The Briefing, Albert Mohler commends the statement and gives some background.

He explains the huge importance of speaking clearly about such matters. He also relates some of the early responses, and how they demonstrate the worldviews of the commentators. Take the time to listen.

Moore College and Cornhill Sydney in gospel partnership

In a new video from Moore College, Principal, Mark Thompson, chats with Gavin Perkins, Director of Cornhill Sydney.

They share how their organisations work together in helping form and equip gospel workers.

Presbyterian resources on Marriage

The Gospel, Society & Culture Committee of the Presbyterian Church in NSW has a number of resources concerning Christians and Marriage – on their website, and their Facebook page.

See also their resource paper: Engaging the Marriage Debate.

Hugh Palmer interview at Moore College

Hugh Palmer, Rector of All Souls Langham Place in London, recently visited Moore College.

He shares his impressions of Moore College, and speaks of the need for a thorough theological education.

Watch this 5 minute interview.

The Bible and Same-Sex Marriage: A Response to Robyn Whitaker and Amy-Jill Levine

“Christians seeking guidance in the upcoming same-sex marriage ballot will naturally turn to the Bible. But what does the Bible actually say about marriage and sexuality?

It can be confusing when there are so many claims circulating about biblical scholarship on these matters. However, the Bible itself is clearer than often claimed. The real question is not simply what the Bible says, but rather what we do with what it says.

Last week, the ABC republished an article by Robyn Whitaker, claiming to be a ‘summary of critical biblical scholarship on the issue.’…”

– ABC’s Religion and Ethics has published this response by Dr Lionel Windsor to claims published by the ABC last week.

Archbishop Glenn Davies preaches on marriage at Moore College chapel

On Friday 25 August the Archbishop of Sydney, Dr Glenn Davies, preached in the Moore College chapel on the Bible’s teaching on marriage, focussing on Matthew chapter 19. Good to watch and share widely.

See it at the Moore College website.

Reformation Rally, Saturday 26th August

Be sure you don’t miss the Reformation Rally at St. Andrew’s Cathedral on Saturday.  Read more

The Holy Spirit and Holy Scripture

“The Church Catechism, as well as the general tone of evangelical thinking and preaching, has taught us that we believe ‘in God the Holy Ghost, who sanctifieth me, and all the elect people of God’.

That is to say, the Holy Spirit has been given an association with the holiness of the believer, or rather, with the believer’s experience of holiness, which has almost excluded other functions ascribed to Him, and which has certainly distorted the perspective of biblical teaching on the Third Person of the Trinity. …”

– Church Society has republished this article by Alec Motyer, first published in Churchman in 1964. (PDF file.)

Hard truth about soft power

“How has the Anglican Communion managed to more or less stay together and even at times give the appearance of growth despite nearly twenty years of doctrinal and ethical chaos?

The Archbishop of Canterbury’s presence in Khartoum, Sudan, for the inauguration of the 39th Province of the Anglican Communion on July 30th illustrates the point. …”

– Charles Raven, Membership Development Secretary of GAFCON, takes a look at some of the ways power is used within the Anglican Communion.

Marriage redefinition: What does Romans 1:26-27 really have to say?

“Today, an article appeared on the ABC News website by Dr Robyn Whitaker, a lecturer in biblical studies at Trinity College Theological School, Parkville, Melbourne. The article is titled: “Same-sex marriage: What does the Bible really have to say?”.

Whitaker looks briefly at six key passages in the Bible that are relevant to the question of homosexuality. She argues that these passages cannot be used straightforwardly in the same-sex marriage debates, because they do not directly address the issue of same-sex marriage. She also argues that there are only a small number of passages about homosexuality in the Bible, compared to the many passages about other topics such as love and justice.

Close to the start of her article, Whitaker claims the following…”

– At Forget the Channel, Moore College’s Dr. Lionel Windsor examines a number of claims made in the article on the ABC News website. Read it all here.

How to ‘respectfully affirm’ marriage

“The case for same sex marriage touches on easily understood and widely shared feelings and aspirations.

Conversation with gay friends and family members quickly reveals that some wish to express a long-term commitment to the person they love, and they want to celebrate that, and invite the people who matter most to them, to celebrate with them.

So, when many Christian people have heard just such hopes expressed by their gay friends and family, and Christians want to ‘respect all people’ (1 Peter 2:17 ) and ‘do good to all’ (Galatians 6:10), why do many remain opposed to changing the definition of marriage to include couples of the same sex? …”

– Dean of Sydney, Kanishka Raffel, writes at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Is Jesus good news for the LGBTI community?

Sam Allberry spoke at Village Church, Annandale, last weekend to explore the question “Is Jesus good news for the LGBTI community?”. Very relevant and very helpful. Watch here.

See also:

How should Christians engage the Same-Sex Marriage debate?

“So we’ve got a voluntary ‘Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey’ (commonly known as a plebiscite) coming up in September.

The future definition of marriage is likely to be decided in the next few months. And while most Christians I know are happy to vote in the Postal Survey (plebiscite), questions are being asked about how to engage the SSM issue – and whether we should engage at all.

There’s uncertainty: should Christians ‘force their views’ onto other people, especially a vulnerable minority like LGBTI? Is opposing the redefinition of marriage contrary to what Jesus would do? Is it unloving?

These are important questions to think through.

Here are 11 things we should understand – beginning with a basic overview of political theology …”

– At The Gospel Coalition Australia, Akos Balogh helps us think through engaging in the same-sex marriage debate.

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