“Occasionally, some well-meaning Baptists have asserted that belief in both the active and passive obedience of Christ as the ground of our justification is something foreign to Baptist life… is this understanding of the active obedience of Christ something new to Baptist life or is it rather something that many Baptists have affirmed from the early decades of Baptist history?” - DBTS Blog

“That’s according to the findings of a new, large study that was published … by JAMA Network Open and build upon numerous other recent studies concluding that any amount of alcohol consumption is linked to significant health risks.” - WebMD

(Hat tip: P&D)

“The Times seemed to state this somewhat derisively, but that ‘warmth’ is why Americans eagerly and loyally watched the show for nine seasons and 210 episodes—and have been enjoying it in reruns ever since.” - Daily Citizen

Read the series.

In his primary description of himself, God includes a list of related attributes (Ex 34.6-7):

And in the parallel prophetic passages,

“Most old-earth creationists begin with the authority of science. Then they proceed to evaluate the interpretive conclusions of the Bible made by believers.” - P&D

“How can we properly guard against it? I am glad you asked because the father continues. He writes: ‘May your fountain be blessed… may you ever be intoxicated with her love’ ” (Prov 5:18-19) - DBTS Blog

We are making some updates to our small church. We have used a projector in the past, but it is a cheap one and it is not really clear and it does not always work reliably. Because of some changes we made, we would need a new screen in a new location. Thus, we are considering updating to a big screen TV since it has so many options for linking technology etc. We expect that the maintenance will be easier and that it will be much more user friendly.

“More than six-in-ten Americans (63%) would instead prefer to see the winner of the presidential election be the person who wins the most votes nationally. Roughly a third (35%) favor retaining the Electoral College system.” - Pew

“At its 2024 synod in June, the Christian Reformed Church instructed LGBTQ-affirming congregations to repent and comply with the denomination’s beliefs on sexuality. Some are now choosing to leave.” - RNS

“A Frankenstein sermon is one where all of the constituent homiletic pieces of an expositional sermon may be present, but it’s lacking the vivifying force that should bring the sermon to life.” - 9 Marks

As I approach my 60th year of life, I find myself more aware of things I’ve learned that I should try to pass on to future generations. One of those skillsets is how to craft a good sermon. I still have room for improvement, but I do have an approach to sermon-crafting and delivery that a fair number of preachers could learn something from.

“Our situation is different from Moses’, of course, but I think it’s important we daily ask God to help us see a glimpse of who He is and what He’s doing.” - Chuck Lawless

“IVF separates the unitive and procreative goods of sex, a separation that is not morally neutral. IVF can treat humans as a product, the sort of being it is right to produce or manipulate. At times, although certainly not always, IVF raises additional questions about the morality of surrogacy or of having donor-conceived children.” - Public Discourse

“Leading proponents of Confessional Bibliology have taken another step that the IFB KJV defenders have not… insistence that the Hebrew Masoretic Text has been kept pure in all ages like the New Testament and that therefore modern English and other Bible translations are wrong to use Septuagint readings.” - Mark Ward

“Church growth strategies have been tough on small church pastors…. But a small church pastor is uniquely positioned to drive a revival of discipleship in ways that larger churches and celebrity pastors simply cannot replicate.” - Church Leaders

“Within their own ranks, there is second-guessing and finger-pointing, plus trepidation that Election Day might provide new proof that their cause is broadly unpopular.” - AP/RNS

Read the series.

A Plea for Plain Speaking

I am considering this matter of plain speaking in theological discourse, and have noted my dislike of those views which put something in a such way that it is easy to mistake the intentions. We are used to being given the run-around by the cults—for they deal in duplicity—but evangelical brothers and sisters can do this sort of thing too. I only wish to issue a plea for plain-speaking.

“…he will preach his final sermon as pastor in October…. Still, at almost 90 years old, Swindoll insists his age will not keep him from continuing to serve in other ministry-related capacities.” - MinistryWatch

“The biblical insistence that Christians must resist temptation and so maintain sexual holiness, in both desire and behavior, applies equally to heterosexually attracted individuals as it does to same-sex attracted persons. We acknowledge, however, that Christians who are same-sex attracted face challenges even in Christian communities.” - CPost

“…since ordering my church’s worship is a part of my job, I knew I needed some help. I needed to get organized. For pastors like me, here are some tips for getting organized for the task.” - 9 Marks

“If we truly love our neighbors… how can we not work to shape the policies that affect our neighbor’s flourishing? And yet, there is a temptation in this age toward partisanship that goes beyond mere civic action, a totalizing approach that becomes less about stewarding citizenship and more about an all-encompassing social identity.” - Daniel Darling

“If we want to be better theologians, we must take ourselves less seriously to take God more seriously. When it comes to our knowledge of God, we need to realize we’re all idiots.” - TGC

“About one in three U.S. adults now rate the Secret Service’s performance as ‘excellent’ (8%) or ‘good’ (24%), while 25% say it is ‘only fair’ and 36% ‘poor.’” - Gallup

A conversation with the author of Priests of History: Stewarding the Past in an Ahistoric Age (Zondervan Reflective). - TGC

“Satan tempts us to believe we can’t enjoy the good life without cheating. As in the garden, so too in the office.” - Common Good

“As a church practitioner in groups ministry for the past three decades, I’ve seen the benefits of having both kinds of groups to reach different kinds of people.” - Lifeway

“If you’re a parent and you have a child, you discipline that child because you love that child. You discipline that child because you want what’s best for that child.” - Church Leaders

Related: “He fell today; I may fall tomorrow.” - Ref21

The handwriting was already on the wall before the pandemic killed it. Attendance at the evening service of a typical Bible-preaching church in America has been plummeting for years. Many abandoned it long before COVID restrictions forced each church to evaluate what was truly essential to its ministry. While some resolutely returned to the old schedule, many dropped their evening service in the subsequent years.

“I believe that humor is a gift given to man by God as an expression of our Maker’s innate creativity. Jokes are what we create when we play with words and ideas until they make us laugh and fill our hearts with the medicine of joy (Prov. 17:22).” - 9 Marks

“Public skepticism about national unity isn’t new. Surveys by Gallup and others dating back to the 1990s show that Americans typically have seen the country as divided on key values.” - Gallup