Can Christians Attend Gay Weddings?
Attending a gay wedding involves approving of a ceremony that makes a mockery of a central New Testament teaching and of Christ himself.
There are also obvious reasons why a Christian should never attend a gay wedding. If marriage is rooted in the complementarity of the sexes, then any marriage that denies that challenges the Christian understanding of creation. It is one thing for the world to do that. It is quite another for Christians to acquiesce in the... Continue Reading
A Political Primer on Reformed Confessions
Surveying the historic role of the Protestant magistrate.
Scots Confession, 1560, article 24. Its production was overseen by John Knox by order of the Scottish Parliament. It was ratified in 1560 but did not gain approval until after the overthrowal of Bloody Mary in 1567. Consider here the very conventional appeal to the great reformist kings of the ancient Israel, a common model... Continue Reading
Ecclesiastical Suicide
American Protestantism has become the foolish woman, tearing down its house with its own hands. Let us pray that God mercifully will call it back from the brink of ecclesiastical suicide.
It appears that there no longer remains any behaviour which mainline Protestants are willing to call sexually perverse. It seems that the category of sin in sexual relations has disappeared altogether. The great old American Protestant establishment, the once wise mother church of most American Protestants, is pursuing a course of self-destruction. In Savannah respected churches... Continue Reading
PCA Petitions Biden Protesting Trans Surgeries for Minors: ‘Attempting the Impossible’
The PCA commission said children are uniquely vulnerable, exacerbated by social media and the alienation caused by the government's COVID-19 policies.
The commission grounded its petition in the teaching that God has special care for children, noting when Jesus Christ warned strongly against scandalizing children when he urged his disciples in Mark 10:14: “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.” Petitioning the government is an... Continue Reading
The Teaching Elder and Pastoral Ministry
An act of love for God, his word, & his people.
Pastoral care means caring for people in difficult circumstances. It’s critical that the minister carry himself with humility. Without humility, we may speak the truth – but if we speak without love, we risk reducing our ministry to nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). When we speak hard truths, we must speak with firmness and a spirit of... Continue Reading
The Nature of Responsibility
Let us all acknowledge our responsibilities: personal responsibility for ourselves, leadership responsibility for our people, and shared responsibility for fixing systemic problems while trusting in Christ.
There are many examples of people rightly taking responsibility in the Bible—and many examples of people trying to avoid it. The latter was a major component of the Fall. Adam and Eve both tried to avoid their responsibility by blaming others, but God still held them—and Satan—accountable for their own sins. A great example of... Continue Reading
Good Authority Submits
It’s hard to say it loud enough: good authorities submit. If you cannot listen and follow, you should not lead.
A leader who doesn’t view himself as being inside an accountability structure effectively becomes a law unto himself. He teaches everyone under him to fear him, when it’s only God whom we should fear. Loyalty to a leader is indeed a good thing, but good loyalty is loyalty to his leadership under God and anyone else... Continue Reading
Reflections on the Evangelical Fracturing, Ten Years In
Not only has reformed evangelicalism lost the steady leadership provided for so long by Piper, Keller, and Don Carson, but also the underlying modes of thought and the specific contexts that helped to shape those men in the first place.
During times of instability we naturally seek out allies to stand back to back with us as we feel attacked. Yet this ecumenism of the trenches can be quite dangerous. It causes us to abandon faithful brothers and sisters who we ought to persist in working with, as well as encouraging us to form quite... Continue Reading
Dear Retired Pastor: Off with the Slippers, On with the Boots
Abraham was “looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God” (Heb. 11:10). This life isn’t a stroll but a hike, and a long one at that.
As retired pastors, we have years of experience and wisdom to share with others. Take inventory of what you’ve learned. Don’t think for one moment your ministry is over. Some of your best years have just begun. You’re in new territory with seasoned wisdom ready to be delivered to those coming behind you. Anyone... Continue Reading
How to Properly Wrestle a Church Opossum
And other lessons learned in rural ministry.
It was early and no one would be at church for another hour or so. Since I was alone, I jumped down the last two steps, belting out the wrong words to one of the hymns we were going to sing later that morning. As I landed on the sanctuary floor, there was a large... Continue Reading
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