As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
“Andy Stanley is in the headlines once again…. He began a new series with the question, ‘Do you have to believe in miracles to be a Christian?’ His answer? Yes, but only two foundational miracles—’the miracle of the universe’ and ‘the miracle of the resurrection.’” - AiG
Essay gathers some of the best that has already been said on the topic, offers additional insights. - Randy Alcorn
“We must seriously weigh some questions: Is the biblical sex ethic a boundary marker for the faith once and for all delivered to us? Can someone reject it and still inherit the kingdom of God?” - TGC
“Stanley never explicitly names Mohler in his message, but he does say at the outset that he does not hold to the same version of Christianity that Mohler holds to. The rest of Stanley’s message certainly bears that out.” - Denny Burk
“…the advertising for the ‘Unconditional Conference’ indicates clearly that this event is designed as a platform for normalizing the LGBTQ+ revolution while claiming that the conference represents ‘quieter middle space.’” - World
“North Point came to the decision because of its size and the difficulty that poses for contact tracing, Stanley said. If a church member is diagnosed with coronavirus after attending a service, North Point would be responsible for contact tracing, or identifying anyone who could’ve been exposed to that sick person.” - CNN
Stanley is correct that the church has at times incorrectly understood the Old Testament and in some cases has used the Old Testament to subjugate and coerce others. Rather than discussing the hermeneutical mistakes and complexities that led to abuses, Stanley simply posits that the entire Old Testament is now fulfilled and should be detached from the New Testament.
Republished with permission from Baptist Bulletin © Regular Baptist Press. All rights reserved.
“Stanley conjectures that the modern church and Christianity are resistible because the Old Testament is mixed into Christianity and that believers sense the need to defend the Old Testament’s historicity and accuracy, which leads to alienating ‘post-Christians.’” - GARBC
Tom Schreiner: Commenting on Andy Stanley’s new book arguing that Christians must “unhitch” from the Old Testament, Schreiner disagrees and argues: “We must interpret the Old Testament in terms of God’s progressive revelation in his covenants in order to discern how to apply it today.”
Discussion