How should we then live — in Babylon?
“Back in the late 1970’s when I was an undergrad at Stanford, our Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship chapter sponsored lectures by Dr. Francis Schaeffer to the whole university. In the wake of the Obergefell decision legalizing same-sex marriage, and its ramifications for the constraint of our religious freedoms, I am reminded of the question Dr. Schaeffer posed in those lectures (and in his book) How should we then live?
I’m a pastor by first calling (an attorney by second), and I’ve been prayerfully reflecting on the answer to Dr. Schaeffer’s most relevant question. So let me respectfully offer some thoughts as we look over the cultural, spiritual and legal landscape we know face…”
– Phil Ashey at the American Anglican Council, has some advice for US churches.
David Cook on Preaching Acts
Weekend encouragement: Here are some very useful videos recorded at a 2 Timothy 4 Trust workshop in Scotland in 2012.
‘Redefining Sex and Marriage: how to think, live and speak as Christians’
The next event at the Centre for Christian Living at Moore College is on Wednesday August 26.
The topic is: “Redefining Sex and Marriage: how to think, live and speak as Christians when the world heads in a different direction”.
Sandy Grant and Tony Payne will be speaking. Details here.
A collection of resources for Christians to engage in the same-sex marriage debate
At Communicate Jesus, Steve Kryger has assembled a list of useful links to help Christians think and talk about same-sex marriage.
The success of the Left
“There are now fewer in our denomination who remember the way the church was pre 1977.
I began to teach Sunday School at Waverley Presbyterian in 1968. The curriculum consisted of situational ethics. There was no gospel being taught, indeed, in the wider church, those who refused to use the imposed Sunday School material were hounded out of the church. Liberalism in the majority is always thoroughly intolerant!
These were the days when our training institutions imposed a deadening liberalism by training clergy with no gospel to preach, no propitiatory sacrifice, no substitutionary atonement, no bodily resurrection, and no new life…”
– In one of his recent opinion pieces, Presbyterian Moderator-General David Cook reminds us of the ever-present danger of theological liberalism.
(Image: St. Helen’s Bishopsgate.)
Bring lasting hope
Through their Lasting Hope Appeal, CMS Australia is seeking the help of its supporters to bring lasting hope to Buddhist Asia.
To sustain their work, they are praying to reach their $1.5 million goal by the June 30th deadline!
Trouble ahead for U.S. Churches?
“The problem is that with this decision, the not-Supreme-and-not-a-court has set the stage for a monumental conflict between two constitutional rights: the right to exercise one’s religion under the First Amendment, and the right to marry (which soon will have to be extended to polygamy and polyandry, since there are no limiting principles to the new “right” just discovered).
And the worst part is that the only umpires for this impending conflict will be: you guessed it — unelected lawyers in black robes.
What may come as news to some is that the United States has been there before — and the results were not pretty…”
– Christian lawyer A S Haley comments.
Related: American Tragedy: Now Gird Up Your Loins.
“… this will turn out to be the greatest American tragedy for the civil liberties of persons of faith, for the cause of sexual purity… and for the lives of persons struggling with same-sex attraction…”
D A Carson on the US Supreme Court decision
On Desiring God’s Ask Pastor John podcast, Tony Reinke asked Prof. D. A. Carson for his response to the US Supreme Court same-sex marriage decision.
Runs for 18 minutes. Worth listening.
Responses to US Supreme Court same-sex marriage decision
“The threat to religious liberty represented by this decision is clear, present, and inevitable.
Assurances to the contrary, the majority in this decision has placed every religious institution in legal jeopardy if that institution intends to uphold its theological convictions limiting marriage to the union of a man and a woman. This threat is extended to every religious citizen or congregation that would uphold the convictions held by believers for millennia.”
– Read it all – at the SBTS website.
Russell Moore also has wise words in this video. via Justin Taylor.
“This is not the time for Christians to panic. We have a God who is sovereign. The Supreme Court can do many things, but the Supreme Court cannot get Jesus Christ back into the grave.”
David Robertson at the Spring Senior Ministers Conference
David Robertson (Minister at St Peter’s Free Church in Dundee) spoke at the recent Spring Senior Ministers Conference in the UK.
His talk, and a following Q&A, (each >60 mins) have been posted on the Proclamation Trust website. Most encouraging, especially for those involved in full time ministry.
The ‘No Compromise’ tour
An upcoming series of concerts featuring the music of Keith Green will help support the ministry of The Bush Church Aid Society around Australia.
Download the flier (PDF) and links to buy tickets via the BCA website.
GoThereFor.com 2.0 now live
The new GoThereFor.com from Matthias Media was launched last night, with lots of resources available, and they’re offering a free trial sign-up.
(“Sign up for a free trial by June 30 and receive an exclusive free ebook, Can we talk about Islam? by Tony Payne.”)
Here’s what ACL Council member Dr. Lionel Windsor says about it:
“I’m thinking GoThereFor.com is a bit like Netflix, but better.
It’s like Netflix because – a simple subscription gives you access to lots of content.
It’s better because – the content is all excellent quality, the subscription is cheaper, and subscriptions help people in the developing world to access resources for making disciples who wouldn’t otherwise be able to.”
Reckless Abandon by the Sea
“This week marks the 150th anniversary of Hudson Taylor’s Brighton Beach experience – one of the seminal events of the Gospel’s advance in China and in the history of missions…”
– Tim Keesee marks a significant anniversary – with the hope of stirring hearts today.
Update: Tim Keesee has a guest post at Challies.com –
“One of my favorite quotes from Hudson Taylor, the very quotable pioneer missionary to China is ‘There are three stages in every great work of God: first, it is impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done.’ Taylor knew about impossible…” – read it all here.
The Heresy of Racial Superiority
“In 1995, on the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Southern Baptist Convention, the denomination publicly repented of its roots in the defense of slavery.
In 2015, far more is required of us. It is not enough to repent of slavery. We must repent and seek to confront and remove every strain of racial superiority that remains and seek with all our strength to be the kind of churches of which Jesus would be proud — the kind of churches that will look like the marriage supper of the Lamb…”
– Albert Mohler looks at the history of his own denomination – and college.
Expositional Preaching – new 9Marks Journal
The latest 9Marks Journal is out. It’s on expositional (otherwise called expository) preaching.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…