Basic yet Vital Truths about Love

I really appreciate Christopher Ash's summary of key truths about love, including how love factors into marriage according to God's design.  Ash provides a "big picture" view of how human love makes sense in light of the love of God.

Transgender Controversy

Russell Moore strikes a wise and helpful balance of compassion and truth in his recent post at TGC.

The Ends of the Earth

J. D. Greear shares an amazing report from a remote setting in Asia--a story that shows God's missionary heart for all the people groups, and the way he transforms lives and plants his church in connection with the witness of his people!

Losing Focus?

Is the rush of breaking news and counter-claims and 24/7-commentary tempting Christians to lose their focus on the Gospel?  And what's more, is our way of handling the current-events-mania causing unnecessary divisions within the church?  Erik Raymond has a very helpful warning along these lines:  "Keep Your Eye on the Ball."

Russia Muzzles Church

"Under the guise of implementing “anti-terrorism” measures, Russia has adopted new laws that restrict religious freedom and criminalize missionary activities."  See Joe Carter's article on this chilling development.  And pray for the advance of the Gospel despite all obstacles.

Trump's Theology

Michael Horton has a terrific and important article on "The Theology of Donald Trump" at Christianity Today.

The Vatican Says No to Evangelizing Jews

Bernard Howard has written a helpful article reviewing the recent (and misguided) assertion of the Vatican that evangelism of the Jewish people will no longer be conducted or supported.  Howard rightly reaffirms the basic biblical teaching that faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord is necessary for salvation for Jews and for everyone else.

Trump's Christianity?

A thoughtful word from Michael Brown in connection with the concerns voiced by the Pope regarding Donald Trump's Christianity.

Update:  see also Max Lucado's post about Trump and decency.

Culture Wars, Religion, and Today's Turmoil

Kevin DeYoung's recent post, "Thinking Theologically about Islam," lays out helpful baseline commitments that Christians are urged to accept and agree upon.  They fall under the headings of "identity," "faith" and "welcome." 

Remembering Officer Garrett Swasey

Police officer Garrett Swasey lost his life seeking to protect and defend others on Nov. 27 when he responded to a call to assist law enforcement on the scene at a Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic where a gunman was on a violent rampage.  Officer Swasey was also a co-pastor of his church, Hope Chapel, where he delivered his last sermon on Nov. 15, including a poignant call to consider Christ and not delay:  don't assume you've got tomorrow--tomorrow may not come.  See Jordan Standridge's overview of Swasey's sermon.

About the "Nominal Christian"

Helpful thoughts from Mike McKinley:


.

Ronnie Smith Killed in Libya

On Dec. 5, 2013, American teacher Ronnie Smith was shot to death while jogging near his home in Benghazi, Libya.  Smith had been a Chemistry teacher at an international school in Benghazi for the last year and a half.  Prior to that he had served on the ministry staff at Austin Stone Community Church in Texas.

ASCC provides helpful guidance and resources for their congregation, and for the wider public, in the aftermath of this tragedy.  If you want to get a feel for Ronnie's passion for Christ and the gospel, watch his sermon, "The History of Redemption" (see video below), which is made up entirely of memorized Scripture.  He tells the story of the whole Bible, and he tells it well.

Ronnie's widow, Anita Smith, has spoken out in a CBS interview in a most thoughtful, gracious, kind, Christ-honoring way.  Especially noteworthy is her open letter to the Libyan people, along with her specific remarks to the killers of her husband.  See also her remarkable interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper.  Note also this collection of news reports.

"For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39, ESV).

Jesus said, "In the world you will have tribulation.  But take heart; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).

Sermon - The History of Redemption from The Austin Stone on Vimeo.
.

Mez McConnell's Story

Mez McConnell's Testimony from 20 Schemes on Vimeo.

A Word of Hope

A message of God's transforming power--don't miss it:

.

The Gospel and the Fear of Death

The gospel of Jesus Christ is not just for getting saved in the first place, but it is for living as a child of God.  And that gospel life we now live by faith in the Son of God makes all the difference when it comes to the looming reality of death.  John Piper speaks to this:

.

PCUSA Vetoes "In Christ Alone"

Timothy George analyzes a recent action of the Presbyterian Church (USA) to exclude the gospel-centered contemporary hymn by Stuart Townend and Keith Getty, "In Christ Alone," from their newly revised hymnal.  Turns out, the song's reference to "the wrath of God" being satisfied at the cross was deemed unacceptable:  the notion of divine wrath against sin, despite its massive biblical basis and theological centrality, was rejected.  Denny Burk also comments on this sad development.  See also the remarks of Sam Storms.  Here is a link to the song at the Gettys' website, complete with lyrics.
.

Doing "Church Stuff"

A story of grace in a series of videos from Renovation Church on "Making beautiful what is broken."  The love of Jesus Christ is sufficient to cover even our hypocrisy.

Jesus Loves Whores & Hypocrites - Michael Wang from Renovation Church on Vimeo.
.

Broken

Cru tells the Great Story--about God and life and love and death and hope.

.

Pray for Greece!

Greece has been in the news—with the recent elections, the wrenching struggle over accepting the European Union bailout terms (austerity measures and all) and whether there’s any wiggle room in the stiff terms that need to be imposed.  That story is unfolding before us as a new government has been formed to try and lead the Greek people through some very difficult times.

Having just visited Greece in the capacity of a short-term teacher with Training Leaders International for the purpose of building up pastors and church leaders among various immigrant communities in Athens, however, I’m reflecting these days more about the spiritual “state of the nation.”  [Links:  my blog from Greece; some photos from Greece]

What especially has my attention is the odd juxtaposition of two statistics in Operation World’s country report on Greece:  On the one hand, 91% of the population (i.e., 10,228,331 out of 11,183,393 people) self-identifies as “Christian.”  On the other hand, the number of “evangelicals” in the country is 41,372, or 0.4% of the population.  What does it mean that only about one half of one percent of self-proclaimed “Christians” in Greece are “evangelical”?  Let’s probe this with a couple more questions.

What does OW mean by “evangelical”?  Let me quote their definition at length.  Evangelicals are…  “All who emphasize and adhere to all four of the following:

• The Lord Jesus Christ as the sole source of salvation through faith in Him, as validated by His crucifixion and resurrection.
• Personal faith and conversion with regeneration by the Holy Spirit.
• Recognition of the inspired Word of God as the ultimate basis and authority for faith and Christian living.
• Commitment to biblical witness, evangelism and mission that brings others to faith in Christ.” 

So the term “evangelical” is not being used of some politically conservative voting bloc or as a label for people who promote traditional morality.  Rather, the it’s being applied to people who’ve been born again, who have a personal and vital faith relationship with the living Lord Jesus Christ, who embrace the Bible as the uniquely inspired and authoritative Word of God, and who long to live for the honor of Christ in all things.  You can say it many different ways.

Well then, when speaking of evangelicals, does OW envision only to those outside the historic Greek Orthodox Church?  No.  The 0.4% of the population includes evangelicals who are worshipping within Orthodox congregations.  Back to the OW definition:  “Evangelicals are largely Protestant, Independent or Anglican, but some are Catholic or Orthodox.  It is one of the TransBloc movements in this book.”  So, obviously, OW knows that there are evangelical renewal movements in all sectors of global Christianity, Orthodoxy included.  A glaring implication of their statistics, however, is that such movements in Greece are miniscule at best.

So, again, what does it mean to be among the 99.5% of “Christians” in Greece who say no to the concept of Christianity above under the heading of “evangelical”?

Our ministry team peeked into several Orthodox church buildings in Athens and the surrounding area.  A couple of times we were able to listen in on the worship liturgy.  In one instance, the canters sang back and forth a prayer-song pleading with the “Panagia,” the all-holy one, i.e., the mother of Jesus, “Mary, save us!”

We were distraught to hear this:  “Mary, save us!”  How bold, how brazen, to plead for salvation to someone other than the Savior, Jesus Christ.  And further, how unsettling to consider the tenuousness of the salvation experience from that frame of reference—that God is remote, and mercy is insecure…

The more we took things in, the more we came to see how different the religious landscape is in Greece compared to the USA.  Here in the States some 29% of the population is self-described as evangelical.  But in Greece, the religious scene is dominated by historic Greek Orthodoxy, and any group claiming to be Christian but not Orthodox is immediately considered suspect, peripheral, or even cultish; non-Orthodox churches are viewed as culturally marginal.

One of the leading Greek evangelical pastors in Athens explained to us that, if asked what made his evangelical church so different from Orthodoxy, he’d highlight two things.  First, he’d underscore the evangelical commitment to the “solas.”  These Latin phrases (sola scriptura, sola gratia, sola fide, solus Christus) summarize evangelical priorities on the unique revelation and authority of Scripture alone, salvation through God’s grace alone and by faith alone, all achieved by Jesus Christ alone.  Orthodox church-goers need to grapple with the solas.  OW contends, “Most Greeks are ignorant of the gospel message and are unreceptive to any non-Orthodox witness.”

And, secondly, they need to comprehend and experience the love of God as taught in Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32).  The character of the father in this profound story portrays God’s great heart of love for lost and ruined lives—especially how the father scans the horizon for his lost son and then runs recklessly to him, embraces him, assures him of his acceptance, and insists on a grand celebration of the son’s return home.  That kind of a conception of God, of our Heavenly Father, is not brought out in traditional Greek Orthodox churches—and the need to see the Lord God from that angle is an urgent need.

Do pray for Greece!

.

"My Chains"

Several of the letters God inspired the Apostle Paul to write were penned in prison.  In fact, it’s on account of declaring the message of Christ, Paul says, that “I am in prison” (Colossians 4:3), and he urges the church to “Remember my chains” (4:18; see also 1:24; 4:10).  Just imagine what it was like—chains on his ankles clanking, sores bleeding, rats scurrying, cold and dark … as he wrote!  Philippians, Philemon, Ephesians, and 2 Timothy are also prison letters.

I don’t know about you, but when my circumstances go south, I’m tempted to wallow in frustration over how things ought to go better for me—why do I have to put up with this?  It isn’t right!  (Etc.)  But that’s exactly what we don’t find in Paul’s Prison Letters.  Despite chains, he’s free to bless and encourage and build up believers as he shepherds them from a distance.  Just think what he says; consider the content and tone of this prisoner’s message as he writes the church at Colossae:

Colossians oozes with gratitude; Paul is grateful to the Lord for his brothers and sisters in Jesus, thankful for how they’ve learned and grown and given testimony to the Gospel in their mission (1:3; cf. 1 Thess 5:18).  How would my gratitude hold up if I were bound in chains?  How about you?

Colossians overflows with praise, with highest worship of the all-glorious, eternal Lord Jesus Christ, the Creator and Sustainer of “all things,” the Head of the Church, who is the very Fullness of God, the Preemi­nent Redeemer (1:15-20).  Praise from prison! (of course, we’ve seen this before [Acts 16:25]).

Colossians reports how Paul boldly, confidently rebukes the false teachers who propagate insidious error (2:8-23).  This is not a letter from a timid man, pining away with his chains, hoping someone might just pay attention to his “two cents” on the matter.  Rather, it’s a definitive, authoritative word, inspired by the God of the Universe, to defend and declare life-giving truth.

Colossians may speak from behind bars, as it were, but it pulsates with hope of Christ’s appearing in all his glory, and to our union with him (3:4).  The Apostle’s anticipation of his Lord’s future full victory will not be squelched.

Colossians looks right past the obstacles of captivity to the advance of the Gospel, calling for prayer that God would open doors, pave the way and help his ambassadors speak the word of Christ—to make it clear, so that many might find true freedom (4:2-4)!

.