“Lindsell represents the evangelicals that saw inerrancy as a test for evangelical authenticity…. Henry saw inerrancy as a test for evangelical consistency rather than authenticity. Ramm … affirmed a broad concept of inerrancy but did not see it as either the test of authenticity or consistency. This particular issue would cause early cracks in the unity of the new evangelical movement.” - Themelios

The United States was attacked in unprecedented waves of terrorism on Sept. 11, 2001. What followed was an immediate, passionate surge of patriotism, mingled with religious fervor. Many of us remember those days very clearly.

Our patriotism ran only so deep, however, and the spiritual connection was extremely shallow. After six months, the enthusiasm had largely faded away.

When Israel was attacked by Hamas in unprecedented waves of terrorism on Oct. 7, 2023, we would have expected a passionate surge of support for Israel, grounded in Biblical understanding.

“About half of voters say that, if given the chance, they would replace both candidates on the ballot.” - Pew

“watching the film nevertheless ‘picked me up and transported me’ back in time to a time in my life when everything about life was simple, clear, uncomplicated, warm, meaningful, even exciting. God was real to us.” - Olson

“This article argues that much of the controversy surrounding gender in Bible translation is unnecessary. One reason is that many of the discussions about this issue have focused almost exclusively on the way nonliteral versions translate gender, giving insufficient attention to the way gender is handled in versions that identify as literal.” - Themelios

“Let’s consider the words of Christ when He was ‘dying on a hill.’” - P&D

“Devin Pope didn’t think so either. Instead of relying on the answers people traditionally give to pollsters, Pope decided to use cellphone data to confirm who was really going. If a new study is accurate, people have been lying about going to church. A lot.” - Daily Citizen

Thy Will Be Done: A Biography of George W. Truett* by Keith E. Durso. Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 2009. 377 pp., hardback.

From early in the 20^th century until his death, George Washington Truett (1867-1944) was the most famous Baptist pastor in America and perhaps the most highly acclaimed preacher of any denomination. He pastored First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas for a remarkable 47 years, taking it from a moderate-sized congregation, to a megachurch with nearly 8,000 members, hundreds of annual baptisms, a Sunday School enrollment for a time exceeding 6,000, and extensive local, national and international ministries and influence.

“Straw has little sustenance value. Isiaah 11:7 says that the lion will eat straw like the ox. This translation grates on the nerves of a farmer, for every farmer knows that you do not feed straw to an ox” - Matt Postiff

“Despite a lack of evidence, Jones observes that the tradition concerning Domitian’s persecution persists: ‘From a frail, almost non-existent basis, it gradually developed and grew large.’ Thus the alternative facts sown by these ancient historians grew to a truism of Christian history.” - Biblical Archaeology Society

“The pastor study posed six exclusive questions and 11 questions modified from the Harvard wellness project. Of those shared across the two studies, the average pastor score was higher on all but one question.” - Lifeway

“Sure, a Bible may sell well if the celebrity whose name is on the cover has a large following. But I much prefer a study Bible with contributions from a team of scholars with diverse expertise.” - Word by Word

“the meme is channeling a certain truth without really nailing the truth: the number of ‘lazy’ folks who are living for ‘free’ is in fact negligible—they are not necessarily the parasites the meme implies.” - L&L

“In delivering the words he wanted us to have, God chose the supernatural means of divine inspiration and inscripturation. In preserving the words he wanted us to have, God chose the providential means of human transmission and translation.” - P&D

“More than six-in-ten White voters who do not have a four-year degree (63%) associate with the Republican Party, which is up substantially over the past 15 years. White college graduates are closely divided; this was not the case in the 1990s and early 2000s, when they mostly aligned with the GOP.” - Pew

“other individuals expected to be nominated for SBC president include: Clint Pressley, the lead pastor of Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina; Mike Keahbone, the senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lawton, Oklahoma; and Jared Moore, pastor of Cumberland Homesteads Baptist Church in Crossville, Tennessee.” - CPost

“Pastor John Lindell of James River Church in Missouri apologized to his congregation Sunday for inviting professional sword swallower Alex Magala and Pastor Mark Driscoll to the church’s Stronger Men’s Conference” - CPost

Also: ‘I Take Full Responsibility’—John Lindell Apologizes for Inviting Mark Driscoll and Alex Magala - Church Leaders

“no one is perfectly content to be the richest, most beautiful, or fastest either. Why? Because they know their time will soon be up” - Challies

From Lectures to My Students: A Selection from Addresses Delivered to the Students of The Pastors’ College, Metropolitan Tabernacle

First Series, Lecture X
By C.H. Spurgeon

Read the series.

Types of sermons can be defined with numerous variations, subdivisions, and hybrids. In this poll, we are asking which style your church features MOST. Few pastors, for example, always preach expository sermons — but many mostly do. Here are our definitions:

Expository preaching — can involved several verses, a paragraph, chapters, or even section of a Biblical book. Can be “book by book” or a series on a section of a book or a one time paragraph/section. The idea here is that the main idea of the text is the main idea of the sermon. The passage is both exposited (interpreted based upon how it ties together) and applied.

“On Friday, the U.S. Department of Education released updated regulations for Title IX. The result is bad for parents, potentially harmful for children, and turns the protections for young women on their head.” - Breakpoint

Related: Riley Gaines, Fourth-Wave Feminism and the Battle for Women’s Sports - Daily Citizen

“the words are extemporal, as I think they always should be, but the thoughts are the result of research and study” - Desiring God

“Pessimistic language is a growing feature of popular culture…. ‘doomslang,’ a category that includes terms like ‘doomscrolling,’ ‘bed rotting,’ and ‘dumpster fire.’ Montell argues the casual adoption of apocalyptically negative language is affecting mental health.” - TGC

“Church Works Media has a helpful resource for pastors and those who plan worship services: a topical list of hymns. In a similar spirit, I wanted to share a list of hymns that we either sang or considered singing in connection to a series I preached on the attributes of God.” - DBTS Blog

“Speaker Johnson has shown remarkable courage and commendable leadership in moving forward with these bills, despite ongoing political pressure. We now urge other lawmakers to act swiftly in passing such a package to save innocent lives.” - Baptist Press

Read the series.

Our Lord gave special significance to the last meal He shared with His disciples. He said, “I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:16 KJV). During that meal, “he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: for I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come” (vv. 17-18).

“There are two questions that tap into some of the basic tenets of prosperity theology. To what extent did you read the Bible to learn about attaining wealth or prosperity? To what extent did you read the Bible to learn about attaining health or healing?” - Ryan Burge

“When Hamas attacked Kibbutz Be’eri, Gat, his wife, 3-year-old daughter, parents and sister hid for hours in their rocket-proof safe room. But fighters entered the house and killed or abducted everyone inside, except for his father who hid in the bathroom. His mother was dragged into the street and shot.” - RNS

“Given that fact, and given the fact that Sandy’s book failed to give even one new insight into Scripture that is traceable to the recovering of orality, I felt safe to conclude that I was reading a good exponent of poor ideas.” - Mark Ward

“They did not collapse the transcendence of God into the immanence of political exigency. And it was that very concern for the transcendent that made them wise actors in the world of the immanent.” - Carl Truman