cultural relevance
The election is now history. The people have decided and the victory of Barack Obama is decisive. Yet scripture declares a truth even more decisive: The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever. (Ps. 29:10)
However you may feel about the outcome of the election we know that God is working his eternal purposes and that He has not turned a deaf ear toward His people. The growing voice of united prayer emerging all across this nation will be answered by our God. The cries for Him to have mercy on the nation, and in particular to come to the aid of the most vulnerable will not be ignored by our compassionate heavenly Father. I am undaunted in pressing in to prayer for awakening among the people of God, and I hope that you will see how critical it is for us to never give up (Luke 18: 1 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart).
Our hope is in God alone. However, our strategy to see righteousness established is not simply a matter of praying and waiting. We are compelled by the Word to marry our prayers to wise action which puts our ‘money’, so to speak where our mouth is. We are not ideologues, but as James exhorts us: What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? (James 2:14) (more…)
Posted by Scott on November 6th, 2008 in Lamb of God, cultural relevance | 8 Comments »
Don’t Look Behind the Curtain
I have come to dread politics. I have lost nearly all confidence in political solutions to anything. I am grateful to be an American citizen, I recognize that I am fortunate to have been born in America. I acknowledge that many great men and women sacrificed extraordinary things to bring about the United States of America.
But it is hard for me to imagine that the founding fathers envisioned the circus that is the process by which we elect a president. Do we really need two or three years of campaigning to get a president? (more…)
Posted by Scott on October 24th, 2008 in cultural relevance | 42 Comments »
I thought it worthwhile to return one last time to some reflections about the so-called ‘Lakeland Revival’ in Florida and the ministry of Todd Bentley.
I posted my only written public comment on this matter on May 15th., entitled ‘Why the ‘alleged’ revival in Lakeland, Florida should invoke caution.’ My final comment if I might quote myself was - “Take this as the warning of your pastor, who loves LOG with a father’s heart - Todd Bentley, Paul Cain and the situation in Lakeland is to be treated with great caution, and prayerful word-centered consideration. I believe that if you wait and listen you will see this ‘alleged’ revival prove to be something with little or no value to the church.”
First, let me say very clearly I care nothing about my view of this situation being vindicated with what has finally been admitted about Todd Bentley and this ‘Lakeland Revival.’ No Christian should ever under any circumstances take delight in or derive any sense of self importance from the moral failings of another. This should be cause for mourning and great soberness. (more…)
Posted by Scott on August 26th, 2008 in Church life, cultural relevance, lakeland revival, todd bentley | 2 Comments »
5 Kinds of Christians
Understanding the disparity of those who call themselves Christian in America.
A new national survey co-sponsored by Leadership. Reported by Helen Lee
Jennifer Hua identifies herself as a Christian. A 35-year-old former attorney studying Christian counseling at the Wheaton College Graduate School (Illinois), she has gone to church all her life and is a lay leader in her suburban Chicago congregation. She furthers her spiritual development by daily Bible reading, prayer, listening to and singing worship songs, and interacting with other Christians. And every few months, she carves out time for a silent retreat. “I do all of these things because I know from past experience I need to recalibrate my mind and my heart to be in tune with God,” she says.
James Smith also identifies himself as a Christian. He attended church as a child, but his attendance was minimal as a young adult. He believes in God, occasionally attends Redeemer Presbyterian in Manhattan when his time-consuming job in the finance district allows, but he does not often participate in other activities to further his spiritual life. He has a Bible but rarely opens it; what leisure time he has he spends with friends, most of whom are of different faiths, and he does not necessarily believe that his God is any different from the one his Muslim friend worships.
“I don’t think that God would be a God who would shut others out of heaven because they don’t use the word ‘Christian’ to describe themselves,” he says.
(more…)
Posted by Scott on November 7th, 2007 in cultural relevance | No Comments »
In a few days I (along with Gail and the Dahmen’s) will head off for an ARC conference in Poland. During that time I intend to try and post entries for the Black Dwarf to give you some idea of our experience in Poland. I will be teaching on 3 different occassions (once at the conference, once before the youth of Pastor’s Marek’s church and once in a Polish church associated with the ARC Conference). We will also visit Herrnhut (the place of the 100 year Moravian Prayer meeting). We will pray at that spot for the work of God in Europe. We will also visit Auschwitz, the largest of the Nazi death camps. Following the conference the Pursley’s and the Dahmen’s will visit Budapest, Vienna and Prague and then back to the Garden State.
Christianity has recently come under some very critical attack. This radical atheism is being fueled by several books: Sam Harris’ book entitled: The End of Faith and Richard Dawkins book - The God Delusion are prominent. Here are some helpful and well thought out responses to these books. Check them out.
I am a huge fan of Paul Johnson. He wrote my favorite history book, called “The History of the World from 1920 to
1990.” His prose is wonderful, and reading his history is very much like reading a novel, rather than a text book. Check out his thoughts on the so-called “New Atheism”: Militant Atheism and God - Paul Johnson on the rise of militant atheism. Militant Atheism
I would also direct your attention to two books - “What’s so great about Christianity by Dinesh D’Souza. You can read about it here. (it is worth taking a look). Also Alister McGrath’s book - The Dawkins Delusion?. You can read an interview with Dr. McGrath here.
Another interesting article by George Barna study entitled: A New Generation expresses its skepticism and frustration with Christianity. Click here for the full article.
Finally, here is a site which is dedicated to keeping Christians informed about the suffering church in the World. Check it out and clik the link for the ten minute video.
Posted by Scott on October 10th, 2007 in cultural relevance | No Comments »
This is an observation. Christians under the age of 30 or so don’t seem to understand the traditional Christian view of homosexuality. Now obviously this is a over simplification and an exaggeration. I’m certain that there are many Christians who are under the age of 30 who have a clear understanding of the historic position which Christians have held on the issue of homosexuality.
But there are plenty who do not. I have been thinking about this for some time. And I have some ideas about why this is so. First, we have had nearly 30 years of relentless lobbying for the notion that homosexuality is merely a variation on the continuum of human sexual identity. The new orthodoxy says: homosexuality isn’t abnormal, its merely different. Over 20 years ago pressure on the American Psychiatric Association resulted in homosexuality being removed from the diagnostic manual psychiatrists use to to assign names to various psychiatric or psychological disorders. Was this change the result of new research? Was there some breakthrough in our understanding of homosexuality that caused social scientists to change their view? The answer to both is no. Yet, popular culture began to adopt the view that homosexuality is simply a human variation, rather than a pathology which needs treatment (a view which was held by nearly all mental health professionals only 25 years ago). (more…)
Posted by Scott on September 26th, 2007 in cultural relevance | 5 Comments »
