Category: Current Collection

Current

On By BrianIn Current Collection

A weekly collection of current news and issues in the church, country, and world.

Ideological Moralism and Gospel Grace – Derek Rishmawy (GC)
“My life has meaning because of the Cause. You oppose the Cause. You must submit or be destroyed.” — Modern/postmodern ideological moralism

Division Begins with the Departure from the Truth – Jared Wilson
And it isn’t those who believe the Bible when it says sin is sin that are being divisive; it is those who are introducing the idea that some sins aren’t. If you push a decision on something that innovates on the Bible’s testimony, you’re creating the division. Division begins with that first departure. The first step away from the agreement is the original divide. It is simply necessary, then, for Christians to walk away from a divisive person.

The Fault Lines Before the Evangelical Earthquake – Trevin Wax
Can an institution with an historic evangelical identity be divided on an issue as central as marriage and family and still be evangelical? Related to this discussion are questions about the authority and interpretation of Scripture, cultural engagement, and institutional power. All sides of the debate recognize that the definition of evangelical is at stake, which is why some are now publicly casting off the term altogether.

Current

On By BrianIn Current Collection

A weekly collection of current news and issues in the church, country, and world.

This week we consider the Christian’s interaction with Hollywood:

Evangelicals and Hollywood Muck – Trevin Wax
Yet now in the 21st century, we are expected to find redeemable qualities in what would only be described by people throughout church history as “filth.”  What’s the point in decrying the exploitation of women in strip clubs and mourning the enslavement of men to pornography when we unashamedly watch films that exploit and enslave?  I do not claim to have this all figured out. But one thing I know: our pursuit of holiness must be the mark against which our pursuit of cultural engagement is measured.  If, like me, you’re conflicted about this issue, maybe it’s because we should be.

And then there is the new movie Noah.  Here are three takes – a simple movie review to get the basics, Ken Ham’s thoughts, and the final post which is fascinating, disturbing, and helps make sense of all the oddities in the movie (which I have not seen, and based on everything I have read and heard have no intention of seeing).

Noah: Film Review – Todd McCarthy (The Hollywood Reporter)
Noah will rile some for the complete omission of the name “God” from the dialogue, others for its numerous dramatic fabrications and still more for its heavy-handed ecological doomsday messages, which unmistakably mark it as a product of its time.

Ken Ham: The Unbiblical Noah Is a Fable of a Film – Time
Also, while the extreme wickedness of man was depicted, the real sin displayed in the film was the people’s destruction of the earth. Lost within the film’s extreme environmentalist message is that the actual sins of the preflood people were rebellion against God and man’s inhumanity to man. 

Sympathy For the Devil – Brian Mattson
Conservative-minded evangelicals write off the film because of the “liberties” taken with the text of Genesis, while a more liberal-minded group stands in favor of cutting the director some slack. After all, we shouldn’t expect a professed atheist to have the same ideas of “respecting” sacred texts the way a Bible-believer would.  Both groups have missed the mark entirely. Aronofsky hasn’t “taken liberties” with anything.  The Bible is not his text. 

Current

On By BrianIn Current Collection

A weekly collection of current news and issues in the church, country, and world.

World Vision announced they will hire people living in same-sex marriages.  The arguments of neutrality on the issue were less than convincing.  Two days later (today), they have reversed their decision.  Here are some helpful posts in response to their first announcement.  Even though they have changed course, the issues involved are still very much worth considering:

The Worldliness in World Vision’s New Hiring Policy – Kevin DeYoung

Two More Thoughts on the World Vision Controversy – Kevin DeYoung

Pointing to Disaster: The Flawed Moral Vision of World Vision – Albert Mohler

On World Vision and the Gospel – Russell Moore

In other news, Fred Phelps of Westboro Baptist Church (I struggle to call it a church) passed away last week.  Albert Mohler has some important thoughts on Phelps’ legacy of hate and some implications for the true church today.

Current

On By BrianIn Current Collection

A weekly collection of current news and issues in the church, country, and world.

The homosexuality issue isn’t going away any time soon, and refusing on religious grounds to participate in a same-sex ceremony seems to be the latest front.  Here are some helpful posts to help us think through some of the issues:

Would Jesus Bake a Cake for a Gay Wedding in Arizona? – Joshua Wood (CT)

You Don’t Bring Me Flowers – Mike Wittmer

Should a Christian Photographer Work at a Same-Sex Wedding Ceremony – Russell Moore (GC)

Does This Look Like Jim Crow Discrimination to You? – Denny Burk

The Terms of Our Surrender – Ross Douthat

 

Current

On By BrianIn Current Collection

A weekly collection of current news and issues in the church, country, and world.

Here are some stories related to Ukraine you may not have heard, plus a link to the latest news there:

Ukraine Names Baptist Pastor as Acting President – Timothy Morgan (CT)

The Ukrainian Church Is Not Silent – SEND Missionary Blog

Ukraine Crisis – BBC News

Also an update on the Romeike family:

German Homeschoolers, Romeike Family, Will Not Be Deported, DHS Says – Christian Post

Current

On By BrianIn Current Collection

A weekly collection of current news and issues in the church, country, and world.

Christian publishing.  I love it, and I can’t stand it.  There are a lot of great books published every year.  And then there are the not-so-helpful, not-so-biblical books that end up as best-sellers.  Here are some helpful discerning thoughts on three of those latter books:

We Don’t have to Read the Book or See the Movie to Know Heaven Is Real – Nancy Guthrie (GC)

Don’t Pray in Circles! – Tim Challies

Did Jesus Really Say? – Todd Pruitt (Reformation 21)

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A regular collection of current news and issues in the church, country, and world. 

Here are some excellent thoughts on the recent Ken Ham and Bill Nye creation/evolution debate, as well as a quick look at four views on the historical Adam:

Bill Nye’s Reasonable Man – The Central Worldview Clash of the Ham-Nye Debate – Albert Mohler

Lessons from the Ken Ham vs. Bill Nye Creation Debate – Rick Phillips (Reformation 21)

Four Views on the Historical Adam – Tim Challies

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On By BrianIn Current Collection

Current: A weekly collection of current news and issues in the church, the country, and the world.

A few weeks ago a federal judge ruled that a pastor’s housing allowance is unconstitutional, which begs the question for many people: what is a pastor’s housing allowance and why do pastors get it?

Also a few weeks ago, our president made a new deal with Iran that failed to secure the release of American citizen Pastor Saeed.  Despite Iran’s outward show of goodwill in other ways, Iran is executing many of its own citizens, and holds at least one other American prisoner.

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear Hobby Lobby’s case regarding the requirement in the new health care bill for businesses to offer contraceptives – even contraceptives that can cause abortions – regardless of the owner’s religious beliefs.  Rick Garnett writes: Like millions of religious believers and groups, these challengers reject the idea that religious faith and religious freedom are simply about what we believe and how we pray, and not also about how we live, act and work. At the heart of these two cases is the straightforward argument that federal law does not require us to “check our faith at the door” when we pursue vocations in business and commerce.  Meanwhile Trevin Wax affirms that freedom of conscience is a beautiful thing – as it relates to this case and many others.

Passion Ethics

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Here are some updates on some important current religious freedom issues:

Saeed Abedini, American pastor jailed in Iran, denied medication, family says – Fox News Iranian jailers have denied crucial medication to Pastor Saeed Abedini, the American citizen imprisoned there for his faith, according to the Idaho resident’s family and legal team.
Here are some ways you can help.

Home School Legal Defense Association Files Romeike v. Holder with U.S. Supreme Court – CrossMap
HSLDA Chairman and principal author of the petition, Michael Farris, said that the Court should intervene for the sake of justice.  “The United States should be a place of asylum for those who are persecuted because of their decision to follow their core religious beliefs,” he said.  “Parents, not the government, decide first how children are educated. Germany’s notorious persecution of families who homeschool violates their own obligations to uphold human rights standards and must end.”
Farris has called for a day of prayer on November 17 in anticipation of the Supreme Court’s November 26 decision on whether to hear this case as well as Hobby Lobby’s case.

Hobby Lobby asks US Supreme Court to take up case over federal birth-control coverage mandate – Fox News
Lawyers for the Oklahoma City-based craft store chain and its sister company, Mardel Christian bookstore, asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case because of what they say are conflicting decisions by other courts regarding religious freedom.
And in related cases, Freshway Foods wins its initial lawsuit, and Cornerstone University – one of the schools I attended – adds its own lawsuit.

On Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2013, Cornerstone University joins Dordt College in filing a federal lawsuit against the Obama administration unconstitutional mandate that employers – including religious ones – provide insurance coverage that facilitates access to drugs that can induce abortions. – See more at: http://www.cornerstone.edu/details.aspx?p=19E2931D85131112&ppid=56597&naid=EBD15E2C1F34E07C#sthash.h04UvDbg.dpuf