Reviews and other book stuff

The posting of book reviews does not constitute endorsement of the books or book reviews that are linked.

• Book Notes: February -- "This post highlights three biblical-theological books I read this month..."
• Book Review: “Transforming Homosexuality” by Denny Burk and Heath Lambert -- "...while most Christian books on the topic address the ethics of homosexual behavior, this book intends to address the ethics of homosexual desire or homosexual orientation."
• From Dust to Deity: Some Critical Reflections on a Critical Book" -- "Confessing the Impassible God is mainly a polemic against a more moderate form of classic theism."
• James K. A. Smith and Augustinianism -- "...Smith offers a fascinating blend of Augustinianism and contemporary phenomenology that is at once neither straightforward Augustine nor phenomenology."
• Leonard's Book Restoration Station -- Highly Recommended -- "Back in February of 2014 I had my favorite Bible rebound by them, and I have been thrilled with it ever since."
• Reading Notes: Christocentrism -- "This brief bibliography points to a few helpful christocentric texts while also accounting for at least some of that diversity."
• Stop Asking Jesus into Your Heart? A Conversation J. D. Greear -- "He has written a short and accessible book called Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart: How to Know for Sure You Are Saved."

An officer of the law

North Carolina's Attorney General Roy Cooper says he will not defend a new state law that voids Charlotte's anti-discrimination ordinance. Will those who called on clerks to resign if they would not issue homosexual marriage licenses also call on Cooper to resign if he won't enforce the law? Same principle, isn't it?

Tithing challenge, and other links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• Did The Apostle Paul Witness Christ’s Crucifixion? -- "...the crucifixion occurred in AD 33, followed by Paul’s epiphany the next year."
• Five reasons to believe Jesus rose from the dead -- "The empty tomb..."
• Follow the law, or follow your faith: Obama’s outrageous order -- "A priest’s mission is to nurture the exercise of religion in those to whom he ministers. Yet the mandate would require us to violate that religion, in full view of those we teach to live it."
• If Governor Nathan Deal Were a Real Baptist -- "For that reason, I will sign HB 757."
• Islamic militants hack Christian convert to death in Bangladesh -- "Hossain Ali was walking through Kurigram when at least two people jumped the 68-year-old victim. Eyewitnesses claim the men slashed Ali's neck."
• James Ireland: The preacher they tried to kill -- "Upon his arrival, Ireland was informed that if he preached the authorities would arrest him."
• Parents, educators rally behind teacher suspended for 'racist' social media posts -- ""The teachers at Como are outstanding, and for a long time they have not felt free to speak up and defend students’ rights."
• SBC Deacon Doubles Down on Building Abortuary -- "All we knew about the clinic was that it provided health services. fter much thought, prayer, and mentorship we have decided to complete the job because we are contractually bound and know that a breach of contract is illegal."
• The Millennial Generation’s Acceptable Sin -- "...80 percent of unmarried evangelicals between the ages of 18 and 29 had engaged in sex."
• The NewSpring Church Tithing Challenge -- "Sometimes, our articles write themselves. This is one of those times."
• They Call Me The Son Of The Morning; or, The Dangerous Theology of Venue Church -- "Rule number one in Tavner's theology: God has no authority on the Earth He created."

Choosing a Supreme Court Justice

In a recent Miami Herald op-ed piece, Leonard Pitts, Jr. wrote that Sen. McConnell is a liar — and not a very good one, at that. His reference is to Senator Mitch McConnell's suggestion to "give [the American people] a voice" in deciding the replacement for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. He intends to not hold hearings for President Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court."Let’s let the American people decide," says McConnell. That is, let's wait until after the presidential election and let the winner nominate the next justice. 

Pitts claims, "There are four lies here, each more threadbare and cynical than the last." The four lies he references are "The Biden rule," President Obama "politicizing this," "not about a person," and "voice of the people." 

1. I believe that Pitts is right when he says here is no such thing as the Biden rule. U.S. Senator Joe Biden made remarks in 1992 about not considering Supreme Court nominees made in the final year of a presidency. There is no "Biden Rule" under which the Senate must operate in this regard. On the other hand, Biden did make these remarks, and other Democrats have made similar ones. Both Republican and Democrat Senators display situation ethics in regard to matters than come before them, according to who is in power in Congress and in the White House.

2. McConnell and other Republicans say President Obama is politicizing this. President Obama and other Democrats say the Republicans are politicizing this. In fact, it's an election year -- most all of them politicizing, though some may be operating on principle (some might even be politicizing and operating on principle). 

3. Is it about a principle or a person? More probably it is about a person, principles and even power. All run in order to promote their principles, power and people -- though not always ethically so -- so we should not be surprised when they act in accord with their reasons for be elected to public office. 

4. Pitts and those on the Democratic side say the voice of the people has been spoken in the election of President Obama. That is true. He also references a recent Washington Post/ABC News poll. It claims that 63% of those polled want the Senate to hold hearings and vote. But these kinds of polls don't matter (and didn't matter to Obama and the Democrats when most people polled did not want their Affordable Health Care Act). Elections, on the other hand, do matter. But not only was the voice of the people spoken when Barack Obama was elected, but also when every Senator who has to advise and consent on the judicial nominee was elected (two elections in a row, mostly against President Obama). 

We have spoken with different voices, so it is no surprise that different voices speak on Capitol Hill. Ultimately, when they agree we will have a new Supreme Court Justice. (And isn't that kinda how the system was intended to work??)

One man’s mystery, and other quotes

The posting of quotes by human authors does not constitute agreement with either the quotes or their sources.

"One man’s mystery is another man’s contradiction." -- copied

"If everything that is called Christianity these days is Christianity, then there is no such thing as Christianity. A name applied indiscriminately to everything designates nothing." -- B. B. Warfield

"Professions of faith in our Finney-esque, “all heads bowed, all eyes closed,” “raise that hand,” “repeat this prayer” altar call environment are as easy to elicit as getting Kenneth Copeland to speak in tongues for the promise of a seed faith donation." -- Bud Ahlheim

"Get down on your knees and thank God you are on your feet." -- Irish saying

"I always thought love was shaped like a heart... but I've found it's actually shaped like a cross." -- copied

"I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene..." -- Charles H. Gabriel

"What we have once enjoyed we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us." -- Helen Keller

"Thou hast formed us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee." -- Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, Book 1)

"The blessed Physician has a remedy for every disease, and the remedy is always felt to be exactly suitable to the exigency of the case." -- J. C. Philpot

"Jesus didn't stay dead, and He won't stay gone." -- copied from a church sign

Which one?

Interesting poem of unknown origin

One of us dear--But one--
Will sit by a bed with a marvelous fear, 
And clasp a hand growing cold as it feels for the Spirit land. 
Darling, Which one? 

One of us dear--But one--
Will stand by the other's coffin bier, 
And look and weep, while Those marble lips strange silence keep.
Darling, Which one? 

One of us dear--But one--
By an open grave will drop a tear, 
And homeward go The anguish of unshared grief to know. 
Darling, Which one? 

One of us darling, it must be.
It may be you will slip from me, 
Or perhaps my life may just be done. 
(I'm glad we do not know) Which one?

(Credited to Julia H. May in Parry's Monthly Magazine in 1887, but often printed uncredited or credited to someone else; for example Locomotive Engineer's Journal credits it to "Alice H.")

Extensivism

An Extensivist “believes that man was created in the image of God with otherwise choice and that God’s salvation plan is comprehensive, involving an all-inclusive unconditional offer of salvation and eternal security of the believer; reception of which is conditioned upon grace-enabled faith rather than a narrow plan involving a limited actual offer of salvation restricted to the unconditionally elected, or any plan that, in any way, conditions salvation upon merely a humanly generated faith from fallen man.” – Ronnie Rogers in One Man’s Suggestions for Calvinists and Non-Calvinists See also Does Faith Precede Or Result From the New Birth? Rogers further writes: “Extensivism may have some things in common with Calvinism, Arminianism, or Molinism, but it neither relies on nor seeks consistency with any of them. Further, similarities do not equal sameness. Extensivism seeks only to present a comprehensive, consistent system of soteriology that is reflective of the totality of Scripture.”

The Song of Miriam

Miriam's Song, Exodus 15:20

Sound the loud timbrel o’er Egypt’s dark sea:

Jehovah has triumphed—his people are free!

Sing—for the pride of the tyrant is broken:

His chariots, his horsemen, all splendid and brave—

How vain was their boast; for the Lord hath but spoken,         

And chariots and horsemen are sunk in the wave.

Sound the loud timbrel o’er Egypt’s dark sea:

Jehovah has triumphed—his people are free!

Praise to the Conqueror, praise to the Lord!

His word was our arrow, his breath was our sword.         

Who shall return to tell Egypt the story

Of those she sent forth in the hour of her pride?

For the Lord hath looked out from his pillar of glory,

And all her brave thousands are dashed in the tide.

Sound the loud timbrel o’er Egypt’s dark sea:         

Jehovah has triumphed—his people are free!

By Thomas Moore in 1816 (1779–1852)

Sung to tune AVISON, an adaptation of a melody by Charles Avison (1709–1770) P.M.

Baptism's urgency

In January 2006 I posted a writing on The "Urgency" of Baptism. Here is a brief re-appeal.

Baptism, a rite of immersion in water, is important, urgent and should not be unneccessarily delayed because:

• It is commanded [to both converts to proclaim (Acts 2:38; 10:48) and to the church to perform (Matt. 28:18-20)].
• It is the believer's first act of obedience (Acts 2:33-39; Acts 10:47-48; Matthew 10:32).
• It pictures the gospel and testifies of new life (2 Corinthians 5:17).
• It signifies a spiritual commitment, that we who are born again are now free to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).

Giant cross, and other links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• Giant Texas cross sparks atheist lawsuit (and you won't believe why) -- "...the atheist sued a preacher for building a cross on church property in a city named Body of Christ."
• Glenn Reynolds: Supreme Court picks need diversity, compromise -- "...the president 'shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate'...Traditionally, the way this works is heavy on the 'consent' part, but not on the “advice” part."
• Obama Chooses Merrick Garland for Supreme Court -- " President Obama on Wednesday said he would nominate Merrick B. Garland as the nation’s 113th Supreme Court justice, choosing a centrist appeals court judge for the lifetime appointment..."
• Position Statement: Gender Ideology Harms Children -- "Conditioning children into believing a lifetime of chemical and surgical impersonation of the opposite sex is normal and healthful is child abuse."
• Recall Issued After Mom Discovers Pedophile Symbol on Popular Children's Toy -- "The company that makes the toy...have since issued a recall and pulled it from shelves."
• Should Christians Cremate? -- "Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen."
• The Shame Culture -- "College campuses are today awash in moral judgment."
• Why I Still Feel The Pull of Fundamentalism -- "Fundamentalists believe the Bible is true, and they act like it."
• Why Silence Is So Good For Your Brain -- "In a loud and distracting world, finding pockets of stillness can benefit your brain and body. Here are four science-backed reasons why."
• Why you should really start talking to old people more -- "What I heard changed my whole approach to life. Perhaps it will do the same for you."
• World’s Largest Church To Be Audited, Founder Suspected of Embezzling $67 Million -- "The Prosperity Gospel preacher, David Yonggi Cho, has been highly influential in American Evangelicalism."
• 20 Reasons I Don't Take Potshots at Fundamentalists -- "Everybody to my left thinks I am one. And there are a lot of people to my left."

Hits all the notes, and other Sacred Harp quotes

"Sacred Harp hit all the notes that I was missing in other musical contexts." -- Jesse Pearlman Karlsberg

Chuck Reese: "People seem to have no concern about one's denomination or doctrine here. Is that a fair statement?" Henry Johnson: "That's a fair statement. We may care about it ... But we don't discuss it at a singing."

"Musical instruments kills sacred harp singing, because there's notes in there that ain't on no musical instrument." 89 year old Minnie Beatrice Deason Cates, in "There's Notes In There That Ain't On No Musical Instrument" by Cheri Chapman, Valley Morning Star (Harlingen, Texas) June 26, 1976, p. D6

"It's called harp even though there ain't no harp because the songs has a Bible platform." -- Minnie Beatrice Deason Cates, Valley Morning Star (Harlingen, Texas) June 26, 1976, p. D6

"Sacred harp singing is from away back yonder." -- Minnie Beatrice Deason Cates, Valley Morning Star (Harlingen, Texas) June 26, 1976, p. D6

"The weird harmonic overtones and dour lyrics of sacred harp singing make it a unique musical form." -- Cheri Chapman in "There's Notes In There That Ain't On No Musical Instrument", Valley Morning Star (Harlingen, Texas) June 26, 1976, p. D6 

"The [Sacred Harp] verses don't spare the dark side of living. Most look forward to happiness in a future heaven and a rough road on the way." -- Cheri Chapman in "There's Notes In There That Ain't On No Musical Instrument", Valley Morning Star (Harlingen, Texas) June 26, 1976, p. D6 

"Be sure and bring your books that open the long way!" -- From a singing announcement in the Corsicana Semi-Weekly Light (Corsicana, Texas) Tuesday, August 16, 1927, p. 5

Cease ye from man

Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of? Isaiah 2:22

God's prophet urges the house of Jacob to trust in God and not man. They had mingled with and counted on other people (v. 6). They heaped up material wealth and accumulated martial power (v. 7). They worshiped in their own ways (vs. 8-9). They trusted in their high towers and fenced walls (v. 15). They savored their flourishing trade and artistic pursuits (v. 16). But when God is exalted they will be brought low (v. 17). Their confidence will turn to fear (vs. 10, 19, 21). "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man." (Psalm 118:8)

No confidence can be placed in men, even the greatest of them (Psalm 118:8-9). Let all be ashamed of such thoughts, for:

Man is temporal, a creature whose origin is outside himself. He has a beginning. The very life and breath that he has comes from God: "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." (Genesis 2:7)  Man as a creature, as well as individual men and women, have a beginning and an ending in the annals of time. Only God is eternal and self-existent (Exodus 3:14). We cannot depend on that which cannot control of the breath of its own nostrils. Our life is so fragile that if the breath of nose and mouth is stopped, the man is dead. Trust (and fear) God -- In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind (Job 12:10) -- rather than man who has no control over it (Matthew 10:28).

Man is mortal, a creature of the material world who is subject to death (Romans 5:12; 6:23). He has an end. We are of few days and full or trouble (Job 14:1). Our life is a fleeting breath which briefly appears and then vanishes (James 4:14). If God but "gather unto himself his spirit and his breath; All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust." (Job 34:14-15) Man who cannot control his being is unfit for the trust of another. Cease from man! -- who only survives on the breath God has loaned him, who is here today and gone tomorrow. Trust in the eternal one who abides forever (Hebrews 7:24).

Proverbs 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Proverbs 29:25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.
Psalm 125:1 They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever.

Make Him thy Fear, thy Love, thy Hope,
Thy Confidence and Joy. (Thomas Gibbons, 1769)

Sad, sad

Owner of 'Pay to Pray' Website Ordered to Return $7.8M to Consumers

"You go to his website and it looks very official. There's a seal that looks official."

"The Christian Prayer Center website not only charged consumers $9 to $35 for prayers but also "deliberately" confused some consumers into signing up for recurring monthly payments, according to authorities."

Mark Twain, and other quotes

The posting of quotes by human authors does not constitute agreement with either the quotes or their sources.

"Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it." -- Mark Twain

"Character flaws are not partisan." -- Dave Miller

"As political speech increases, spiritual authority necessarily diminishes." -- Russell St. John

"When God wants to judge a nation, He gives them wicked rulers." -- John Calvin

"If the Pope himself would lend me his pulpit, I would gladly preach the righteousness of Christ therein." -- George Whitefield

"If God is sovereign at all, He is sovereign in all and over all." -- Jim Durham

"While some in our day have opened the door to ecumenism and “non-doctrinal Christianity”, we have tightened the bolts to our door!" -- Covenant Baptist Church

"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." -- Said or written by someone who was not Winston Churchill

"A pastor needs to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable." -- copied

"Wealth means nothing; enjoy what you have." -- copied (sometimes credited to Steve Jobs, but not by him)

In memory of lost lives and in honor of heroic deeds

This day in history, March 18, 1937, the wealthiest rural school district in the world suffered the greatest school disaster in history.

Preconceived ideas

I like crossword puzzles. I try to complete one every day. It's supposed to keep the brain stimulated, but I'm not sure how much it does this. My mind is like a steel trap -- an old one, that is, rusty and hard to open! But I don't work them because it stimulates the mind. I work them because I enjoy doing so.

Sometimes I misread puzzle clues, and once in awhile I misunderstand them. Last night's 40 across clue was "on the shelves". The answer was a six-letter word that I knew would start with "U". My preconception for some reason or another was that "on the shelves" referred to books. Didn't say that, but that was what immediately came to my mind. So I kept thinking U N R E A D -- except that wouldn't work with other answers I was seeing. When I had enough surrounding answers to know the answer -- U N S O L D -- then I also understood the meaning of the clue. It wasn't about books on shelves (which wouldn't have to be "unread", by the way) but about merchandise on shelves.

It is easy for our preconceived ideas to get in the way and to give us wrong answers (and wrong actions). It is always good when we can move from a preconception back to reality and truth. Don't let preconceived ideas keep you from learning the truth. Find the truth and let it change your preconceived ideas. The truth will set you free.

"St. Patrick" the Baptist

Recovering from "Time Change" Day and recognizing St. Patrick's Day, I offer the following sermon by Wally Amos Criswell:

St. Patrick Was A Baptist Preacher

If you forgot to wear green, maybe you'll see green.

Pulpit dictator, and other links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• A Dictator in the Pulpit -- "Strong leadership from the top has been demonstrated as successful in the modern business world."
• Court strikes down university ban on ‘communicating … in a manner likely to cause … emotional or physical discomfort’ -- "The court held that the second sentence was unconstitutionally overbroad — and thus invalid, without regard to the particular speech in said by the particular student in this case..."
• Deflate-gate Poll: More Americans believe NFL than Tom Brady -- "A Yahoo Sports survey conducted in early March indicates that 43.4 percent of all Americans continue to believe the NFL's side of the deflate-gate story, with only 16.3 percent believing Tom Brady and the Patriots." [Tom Brady, here's your wake up call. You know you've got bad PR when folks in general believe the NFL and Roger Goodell over you!!]
• If You’re A Real Feminist, You’re Pro-Life -- "Daniel Payne wrote for The Federalist last month that it is impossible to be a feminist and be pro-life...All Payne succeeds in saying is that the most common mainstream incarnation of feminism is adamantly pro-abortion."
• It Really Sucks to Be a Christian Right Now -- "I’m a walking contradiction."
• Jim Daly Joins Muslim Sheikh and Robot Spiritual Guide at Ecumenical Culture Conference -- "Will Jim Daly, a self-described proclaimer of God’s Word, actually preach God’s word at this conference?"
• NRB Terminates Gospel for Asia's Membership Over Financial Accountability Issues -- "The NRB membership termination came approximately three months after the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability cut ties with GFA last October for violating five of the ECFA's seven core standards."
• On False Teachers: Why We Insist on One Degree of Separation -- "Why is speaking with women preachers, charismatic prophets and faith-healers, people teaching positive confession and Word-Faith theology or other serious issues a problem?
• Racism Charges in Bus Incident, and Their Unraveling, Upset University at Albany -- "I feel like they kind of messed it up for the rest of us."
• Rehire teacher who resigned over nude photo, students demand -- "South Carolina teacher should not have left cellphone containing nude photo on her classroom desk, school officials say."
• Report Details Why Gospel for Asia Lost ECFA Membership -- "For years, one of the world’s largest missions agencies has told supporters that 100 percent of donations for its work in India are sent to the field."
• Seven Reasons Why Your Church Should Have a Ministry to Widows -- "The Bible is not ambiguous on this topic."
• The Scandal of Biblical Illiteracy: It’s Our Problem -- "Americans revere the Bible–but, by and large, they don’t read it."
• Why so many scientists are so ignorant -- "Bill Nye was recently asked to opine about whether philosophy is a worthy pursuit."

“Taboo” marriage practice

My Georgia ancestors were 26 years old and 16 years old when they married. They lived together in holy matrimony, apparently peacefully and happily, until his death in 1864. Their marriage resulted in 8 children who helped populate the Oak Flat community of East Texas. Many of our genealogies look something like that, and sometimes that beloved grandmother and great-grandmother was even younger than that when she married.

Lisa Suhay of The Christian Science Monitor reports on several states trying to outlaw a ‘taboo’ marriage practice, writing “In the state of Virginia, a 13-year-old child can legally marry an adult twice her age, and all that’s needed is a clerk’s consent, provided she is pregnant and has parental consent.” She points out that many states allow exemptions (usually with parental or judicial consent) below their standard marriage age limits. Some lobbyists, including the National Organization for Women, have set their sights on outlawing these kinds of exceptions in all 50 states, claiming they support “physical, psychological, sexual, and economic abuse.” The emotional appeal to our current societal state of mind is on the side of these lobbyists, and they seemingly have the facts as well.

Marriage at 12 or 13 doesn’t seem advisable to me, and I recognize that there are specific arranged marriages that children are forced into which include lifelong abuse. On the other hand, there are plenty of marriages into which both parties enter willingly – and at a legal adult age – in which one party (or both) suffers lifelong abuse. Arranged marriages have a long and respectable history, and can result in lifelong stability and happiness. Abraham arranged a marriage for his son Isaac, in which Abraham and (mainly) his servant were the parties who arranged it (interestingly, in this case, the woman had a choice of whether to accept the proposal). Our current American system based on love-struck feelings can also culminate in lifelong stability and happiness – but there are as many wrecked lives in its wake as in the system of arranged marriages.

Suhay quotes Jeanne Smoot saying “The data shows it’s girls under the age 18, including some who are well under age 15, being married to adults and one-third of the time that adult is over 21.” Unfortunately, the article (and movement) seems long on data of how many and how old, but short on data of how these marriages turn out. Those who are against it can point to how some have turned out badly, where are the references to those that are successful? There are marriages under the legal exceptions that turn out badly, but what percentage of the whole are they? Are lawmakers throwing out the baby with the bathwater? And have they asked what are the unintended consequences of no exceptions?

It strikes me as a strange approach from groups like the National Organization for Women, who promote for a woman’s right over her own body for abortions – even promoting sexual promiscuity in teenagers – and yet want the state to take over the right in these exceptional cases. In broader context, some of these protest groups give the aura that marriage as an institution is a form of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse. If N.O.W. had their way, I’m sure they would not have let Mary marry Joseph!

Marlena Hartz with the Tahirih Justice Center says, “Child pregnancy should trigger alarm bells, not wedding bells.” I can agree with that. It is a good thing to discourage and prevent as much as is possible both child sexual activity and child pregnancy. In cases of rape, the rapist should be imprisoned rather than being allowed to marry the victim. But I also find it a little unusual and unbelievable that hordes of child rapists are trying to marry their victims. I’d like to see proof beyond what was submitted. (Yes, if the person is underage and pregnant, they have been raped, whether statutorily or otherwise). It is furthermore not true that all cases of exceptional marriage include underage girls who are pregnant.

We should discourage teenage sexual activity and child marriages. We should discourage all sexual activity outside of marriage. We should prosecute and punish rapists. In our haste to succeed in these areas, let’s not produce unforeseeable and unintended consequences by disallowing all exceptions. The parents and the legal system looking at specific cases should usually provide the needed protection for exceptional marriages. If not, let’s see why it doesn’t and address those problems in a less invasive way to outlawing it altogether.

Lewis's Lesson

"I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. In other words, if our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, amusements, etc, is up to the standard common among those with the same income as our own, we are probably giving away too little. If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small. There ought to be things we should like to do and cannot do because our charitable expenditure excludes them." -- C. S. Lewis

What Jesus Looked Like

Is This What Jesus Really Looked Like?  

In North America he is most often depicted as being taller than his disciples, lean, with long, flowing, light brown hair, fair skin and light-colored eyes...In the absence of evidence, our images of Jesus have been left to the imagination of artists. 

Richard Neave, a medical artist retired from The University of Manchester in England, realized [forensic anthropology] also could shed light on the appearance of Jesus.

And so the first step for Neave and his research team was to acquire skulls from near Jerusalem, the region where Jesus lived and preached.

Neave emphasizes that his re-creation is simply that of an adult man who lived in the same place and at the same time as Jesus. 

"This is probably a lot closer to the truth than the work of many great masters." 

Two things, or maybe three or four

• I have long thought Jesus did not look like any of the portraits we generally see of Him. 
• The Bible has no interest in detailing how Jesus looked physically. 
• Churches and Christians should avoid depicting Jesus on their walls. Since we have no idea of what He looked like, we have no need of creating such image in children's minds. 
• Neave's forensic attempt is helpful in at least challenging the common North American mental picture of Jesus.

Celebrating the Joyful Noise, and other music/worship links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• Celebrating The Joyful Noise Of Sacred Harp Singing -- "No one could have predicted that a strange and primitive form of gospel music would become one of the South’s most potent cultural exports."
• FOR OR AGAINST: Style-Based Worship Services -- "Offering a buffet line of worship services is a poor way for churches to accurately reflect the Gospel to their congregation and the onlooking world."
  
• Let Everybody Sing -- "Anyone could do it, as long as someone’s voice or an instrument could sing out the root note of the key in which the song was written..."
• Professional, Spectacular, Fleshly Music -- "...what we are now complaining about is church-singing that is professional and spectacular, that which is of the flesh, and rendered to please the ear of man."
  
• Responding to Gathered Worship: With a Life of Worship -- "A right response to worship encompasses our whole being."
• Sacred Harp singing Sunday at Powerhouse -- "The long tradition of “Old Harp” singing in Lafayette County, revived in 1981 by Warren Steel and the late George Boswell, attracts singers from all parts of Mississippi, as well as Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and other states."
• Sacred Harp Convention to be held at local church -- "Shape Note/Sacred Harp singers from many states and from Canada will once again gather in Warren County for the Annual Missouri State Sacred Harp Convention."
• Sovereign Ruler of the Skies -- ""The hymn begins with doctrine that overflows into devotion."
• The Inspirations' Martin Cook Hospitalized -- "After several tests, doctors determined that Martin's heart is strong but a pacemaker would be of benefit to him."
• Why I Don't Clap for Sacred Music -- "Music in church is not a performance, it’s worship."

Saviour of Sinners by Parks

The Saviour of Sinners

1. Jesus condescended to sinners – for “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15).  God’s divine and sinless Son came from heaven to earth “in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin” (Romans 8:3).

2. Jesus identified with sinners – for Jehovah says, “He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many” (Isaiah 53:12).  Jesus was treated as a sinner (Mark 15:28), and died as the substitute for many sinners (Isaiah 53:4-8).

3. Jesus sought sinners – as when “He needed to go through Samaria” in order to save an adulterous woman (John 4:4ff).

4. Jesus called sinners – for He said, “I did not come to call the righteous [such as self-righteous pharisaical people], but sinners [including the worst of them], to repentance” (Mark 2:17).

5. Jesus forgave sinners – such as the notoriously sinful woman who came and showed to Him kindness in the house of a certain Pharisee (Luke 7:36ff).  Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven. ... Your faith has saved you.  Go in peace” (vv.48-50).

6. Jesus justified sinners – such as the tax collector despised by Pharisees, who cried “God, be merciful to me the sinner!”  Jesus then said, “I tell you, this man [the humble sinner] went down to his house justified rather than the other [the proud Pharisee]; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:9-14).

7. Jesus welcomed sinners.  Jesus is like the father of the prodigal son who repented of his sin and returned home (Luke 15:11-24): “But when [the prodigal] was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. ... the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.  And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’  And they began to be merry.”

8. Jesus received sinners – for when “sinners drew near to Him to hear Him ... the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, ‘This Man receives sinners and eats with them’” (Luke 15:1f).

9. Jesus befriended sinners – for Pharisees called Him “a friend of sinners” (Matthew 11:19), a term of derision Jesus wore as a badge of honor.

10. Jesus saved sinners – for this is Paul the apostle’s testimony regarding himself in our present text (1 Timothy 1:15).  Therefore, sinner, be assured that if you come to Jesus in repentance and faith, He will welcome and save you.

– Daniel E. Parks

Twice as likely, and other links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• Churches Are Twice as Likely to Fear Refugees as to Help Them -- "Telephone survey studies how American Protestants are engaging the refugee crisis, and why many are not."
• Corrective Church Discipline -- "One of the most important and difficult tasks a pastor must undertake is leading his congregation to understand and obey what the Bible says about church discipline."
• Defining Evangelicals in an Election Year -- "We think there is a more coherent and consistent way to understand who evangelicals are—one based on what evangelicals believe."
• Don’t Take Your Kids to a Megachurch: An Open Letter to Andy Stanley -- "Don’t take your kids to a megachurch, where the preacher and “worship leader” are rock stars."
• Is Anyone Really Surprised by Elevation Church’s ‘Spontaneous Baptisms’? -- "What if no one wants to get baptized?...Plant a few “volunteers” in the crowd to respond to the baptism calls first, and others will surely follow."
• Meet The Revolutionary Abigail Adams -- "...this remarkable woman recorded 1,200 letter exchanges with her husband John Adams throughout their marriage, likely making her one of the most documented women of her time."
• PC Hysteria Claims Another Professor -- "The movement to purge all offensive speech from American college campuses has claimed another scalp."
• Preachers, Politics, and Spiritual Authority -- "When men see that a Christian minister’s hopes and fears are invested in this world just like other men, then they naturally assume that he is no more invested in the world to come than they themselves are."
• Recovering the Satellites -- "While the bible is silent about the proper operation of universities, it does provide the standards by which churches should operate. Unlike the case of university expansion, there is an inherent ecclesiological problem with the creation of church satellite campuses."
• Tech and civil rights groups rally behind Apple in court filings -- "For practical reasons, the security bypass this Court would order Apple to create almost certainly will be used on other iPhones in the future. This spread increases the risk that the forensic software will escape Apple’s control either through theft, embezzlement, or order of another court, including a foreign government."
• The Myth of the Evangelical Trump Voters -- "...Trump does not come out on top among those voters for whom the religious faith of the candidate matters most."
• The Science Behind Why It Hurts So Much to Step on a LEGO -- "Death, taxes, and stepping on a LEGO: the three universal inevitabilities."
• This Is the Oldest Dairy Queen in Texas. Yes, Really -- "There are no fancy signs outside proclaiming it to be the oldest Dairy Queen..."
• Three Reasons We Should Refuse to Be Colorblind -- "If you don't notice the differences in musical notes, you can't notice the beauty of harmony when very different notes are artfully brought together."
• Will Lee Daniels, Bishop Yvette Flunder and Dr. Forrest Harris Convince the Black Church/Community to Affirm Homosexuality? -- "In the dawning of this new millennium, homosexuality has burst out of the closet and into the mainstream of American life and society."
  

Spiritual blessings in heavenly places

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. Ephesians 1:3 

"Look at the words; examine them again and again; think over in your mind, one by one, the spiritual blessings that you most covet. Is it pardon? Is it peace? Is it the love of God shed abroad in your heart? Is it the spirit of adoption, enabling you to cry, "Abba, Father?" Is it communion with God? Is it the enjoyment of his presence and smiles? Is it deliverance from every doubt and fear? Is it a large measure of his fear in your heart, a subduing of all your lusts and corruptions, a godly, holy life, and a happy, blessed death? Are not these the spiritual blessings which you prize above house or land, wife or husband, child or relative, or any earthly good? With these, then, and with every other are you blessed, already blessed, if you are one of God's saints and a believer in Christ Jesus. God has not yet to bless you, beyond giving you a foretaste here and the full enjoyment hereafter. He has already blessed you with them all in Christ Jesus." 

​Excerpt from J. C. Philpot's Daily Portions

California school, and other links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• Augusta Heights Baptist Church dismissed from Greenville Association after pastor performs same-sex marriage -- "It was clear that Augusta Heights had left the biblical view of marriage as being between a man and a woman and accepted same sex marriage..."
• California school lets students wear anti-LGBT stickers -- "...administrators and lawyers have decided that students have as much right to wear anti-gay stickers on their school ID badges as they do to wear stickers supporting gay rights..."
• Closing The Book On Vengeance -- "We must constantly resist the temptation to cast ourselves in the role of those who deserve mercy, while casting those outside our tribe in the role of those who deserve vengeance."
• Controversial Pastor Ran Mars Hill Megachurch Like a Crime Syndicate -- "Also at issue are millions donated by church members who were told offerings went to missions in Ethiopia and India through the church’s “Global Fund.” In reality, those tithes appear to have stayed right at home."
• Gay, transgender movements need a divorce -- "If the gay community allows the trans community to co-opt its success and redefine the movement as one seeking to upend the human experience, it does so at its own peril."
• On Dog Funerals and Being an Inadvertent Propagandist -- "Literally nothing is said regarding those grieving the loss of an animal."
• On the Ethics of Online Shaming -- "Is online shaming just a new version of something that humans have always done, or is it substantially different..."
• On Traveling -- "Traveling has not always been a big deal but for the past two centuries it has become fashionable to travel."
• Pastor says Trump ‘true friend’ to evangelicals -- "'Donald Trump cares about and loves evangelical Christians,' Robert Jeffress, Fox News personality and pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas said..."
• SBC boots church for allowing pastor to officiate gay wedding -- "Previously voted out of the Greenville Baptist Association and South Carolina Baptist Convention, Augusta Heights becomes the...first [church voted out of the Southern Baptist Convention] involving a marriage cermony performed since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last June that same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states."
• 40 harmful effects of Christianity – #17 -- "This post is the seventeenth in a series that addresses a list of “40 harmful effects of Christianity” that originated on the American Atheists Facebook page..."
• 93-Mile-Long Ancient Wall in Jordan Puzzles Archaeologists -- "When was the wall built? Who built it and why?"

Substantial Truth

1. Substantial Truth, O Christ, thou art,

The Witness and the Theme;

The Light of life thou dost impart,

And by thy Truth redeem.

Thee of thy Church the only Head,

Master and Lord we own;

And by thy Word and Spirit led,

Will follow thee alone.

2. Thou Lamb of God for sinners slain,

We glorify thy love;

High-Priest in heaven's eternal fane,*

Our Advocate above,

Now, through thy rended veil of flesh,

We dare the Throne draw nigh,

And, sprinkled with thy blood afresh,

With boldness, Abba, cry.

3. Thou art the King of glory, Lord,

Of every realm and race;

Omnipotent thy sovereign word,

Invincible thy grace.

Assume thy universal sway,

Tread down thy monster foes;

Let earth and heaven thy will obey,

And sin's mad conflict close.

--Josiah Conder

* fane = a temple