God, the Gospel, and the Gay Challenge — A Response to Matthew Vines
Here we face the most tragic aspect of Matthew Vines’s argument. If the modern concept of sexual orientation is to be taken as a brute fact, then the Bible simply cannot be trusted to understand what it means to be human, to reveal what God intends for us sexually, or to define sin in any coherent manner. The modern notion of sexual orientation is, as a matter of fact, exceedingly modern. it is also a concept without any definitive meaning. Effectively, it is used now both culturally and morally to argue about sexual attraction and desire. As a matter of fact, attraction and desire are the only indicators upon which the modern notion of sexual orientation are premised.
China on Course to Become ‘World’s Most Christian Nation’
Christians in America often find reasons to be pessimistic about our religion’s waning influence on our country. But we should remember that our land is not the last bastion of hope for the faith. The remarkable growth in global Christianity — particularly in Asia and Africa — should give us reason to be optimistic. The Holy Spirit is changing hearts and minds around the globe in a way that has not been seen since the first century after Christ’s Ascension. For this we should be eternally grateful.
What Hollywood gets wrong about heaven
Ultimately I believe we flock to gauzy, feel-good depictions of heaven and tiptoe around the biblical passages mentioned above because we’ve lost sight of God’s holiness.
I fear we’ve sentimentalized heaven and by extension its primary occupant. I worry the modern understanding of God owes more to Colton Burpo than the prophet Isaiah. And I think this one-sided portrayal diminishes our experience of God.
We can’t truly appreciate God’s grace until we glimpse his greatness. We won’t be lifted by his love until we’re humbled by his holiness.
The affection of a cosmic buddy is one thing. But the love of the Lord of heaven and earth, the one who Isaiah says “dwells in unapproachable light,” means something else entirely.
5 Things I Learned from Immigrants Learning English
We come together from every corner of the world, bringing so many experiences and stories. Together, we laugh, we dream, we hope. Some carry sad tales of war-torn homes, others struggle to navigate life without the right documents or enough money. Nearly everyone is terrified of LA freeways and perplexed by American teenagers. Each day as I walk them through the maze of the English language, they teach me how to walk through the maze of life.
Rethinking Theological Education
What if theological education was driven by stories rather than abstract concepts? What if it was driven by concrete characters rather than philosophical ideas? What if propositions were personified? What if it promoted discovery learning through problem solving rather than listening to the lecture to pass the next exam? What if it was driven from whole-to-part rather than part-to-(sometimes) whole? What if all Bible classes showed how they relate to the metanarrative of Scripture?
Fixing a World That’s Out of Balance
I think we’re going to do a book where we out ourselves fully, say, “This is how much money we actually have, this is how we live, this is who we are, this is what we think is important.” Not to be judgmental but to ask folks, “Hey, you with the $100 million, $500 million, or $3 billion: What’s it doing? What’s it for? Why do you feel you need that?” My dad is doing this giving pledge for people with $1 billion or more, and many of them won’t sign up to give half their money away. My dad jokes about how he wants to write a book about how to live on $500 million. It’s like, come on! They were honoring my dad recently and he said something really spectacular. All these ridiculously wealthy people at this dinner and you know what he stands up there and says? “Thank you, this is wonderful, but the truth is, the money I’m giving away had no utility for me. I had no use for it. The person who should get this award is the person who gives $10 to a food bank that they could have used to go to the movies, to buy food for the table.”
U.S. think tank urges president to allow more openings with Cuba
Specifically, AS/COA suggests the president allow for humanitarian travel licenses for U.S. citizens that provide professional services to independent Cuban entrepreneurs; authorize the import and export of certain goods and services between U.S. private sector and independent Cuban entrepreneurs; provide specific licenses to allow NGOs and other micro lenders to lend directly to independent farmers, cooperatives and micro enterprises in Cuba; promote exchange studies between U.S.-based cooperatives and private cooperatives in Cuba; and grant application-free travel for business-to-business exchanges.
Stephen Colbert on Extreme Measures for Boosting Church Attendance
The day after Easter, Stephen took a look at church marketing in his clip, “Extreme Measures for Boosting Church Attendance,” looking specifically at mixed martial arts as outreach.