Because I work with students, many of them not Christians, but mostly with some Christian background, I get a lot of questions about certain topics. I could probably post a “Ten Most Frequently Asked Questions From My Students” and you would be surprised at what is not on that list. Understanding that I am campus minister, frequent preacher and Bible teacher, the questions are usually related to what my students have heard from preachers or family members regarding subjects they are interested in. I’m supposed to confirm that Brother Billy Bob or Grandma were right or wrong. It’s a big responsibility, because….well…there’s not much way to avoid making someone angry with the kinds of questions students ask me.

“Is interracial dating wrong?” I get this a lot because a fair amount of parents disapprove of it and send their daughters to boarding school to avoid it. Trouble is, we’ve got more interracial couples than any school our size I know of. I know some of our older employees and mountain people struggle with this, but we’ve always done the right thing in saying nothing. When I answer this question–”The Bible doesn’t have anything to say about skin color as a factor in relationships”–I probably run the risk of some redneck dad coming to straighten me out, but so far, I’ve survived. [Continue reading]

[The entire text of God Is The Gospel is online at Crossway.]

Many of my readers will be aware that I recently removed the essay “The Piper Project” from this web site. I am an unabashed fan of John Piper; a listener to his preaching, a student and reader of his work and a teacher of his theology to others. I’ve travelled to hear him, and he is near the top of my list of people who have deeply influenced my life.

Still, in “The Piper Project” I ventured two paragraphs of criticism amidst 15 paragraphs of praise, and the mail just never stopped. Finally, it became clear to me that my essay would be used by critics of Piper in a way that I never intended, and that was never my goal. So, I let it go.

And now, here I am again, wanting to praise John Piper for what is, perhaps, one of the most significant evangelical books of the year and, certainly, one of the finest works to come from his pen. Yet, there are some critical issues as well. Can we hear both? We shall see.
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[I want to thank Glenn Lucke and Broadman & Holman Publishers for providing me with a review copy of Common Grounds. Visit their blog at Common Grounds Online.]

Who would have thought that one of the most loved or loathed words in evangelicalism would turn out to be “conversation?” Conversation is among the most popular metaphors for a way of doing theology, education and evangelism. While the word has been mostly attached to the emergent church- which describes itself as a “conversation”- it is clear that the usefulness of the idea has moved out of twenty-something Christianity and into the larger evangelical stream. (I recently found myself inviting students to have a “conversation” about Jesus with evangelistic counselors during a spiritual emphasis week service.)
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*Music Up….swells….Voice Over*

It’s VAN TIL LIVE! The Internet Monk Radio Network Presents The BHT’s Magic Tail-Chasing Dog, Van Til, in Hippy-Emergent Christianity’s Favorite Interview and Entertainment program…..VAN TIL LIVE! And now, broadcasting live from the Boar’s Head Tavern in downtown St. Sadies, Maryland, it’s Vaaaaaaaaan Til!!

*Music Swells….Applause….more Applause…more….shouts from crowd when Van Til appears…..goes to his desk. Hops up in chair…..music up and fade to out*

VT: Hello America. I’m your host, Van Til, the BHT’s Magic Tail Chasing Dog, and you know what we love to say at the beginning of this program…”

Crowd: THE BIBLE IS TRUE!!!
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Yesterday, I came across an article by James Jordan called The Closing of the Calvinistic Mind. While written from a considerably different place within the world of Reformed Christianity than I occupy, it is simply sensational. The content and conclusions of this piece are spot on when I consider my own experience in the Reformed community this past year.

Jordan decries the death of a vigorous, deep, diverse, thoughtful, unafraid and bold reformed engagement with Biblical material, philosophy and cultural engagement. While none of us would agree with the total work of all the authors he lists- that would be absurd and impossible- he does make the devastating point that, if the publishing world is a measurement, we have moved from a healthy and confident kind of reformation thinking and writing to a narrower, more fearful, mostly devotional, and generally “fluffy” kind of Reformational thinking. While I am sure that Jordan has different issues and authors in mind in some cases, I believe that, as a Biblical scholar, he knows exactly what he’s talking about when he surveys the stifling of Biblical discussion within much of “official” Calvinism as popularly encountered.

Most notably, however, he points out the lesson to be learned from the reaction within the Reformed camp to N.T. Wright, the Federal Vision debate, the attempted defrocking of Mark Hornes, etc.

My burden here is to point out, to all the younger people reading this essay, that once upon a time it was not so. Once upon a time, a man being examined for presbytery could take issue with Calvin or the Westminster Standards, defend himself from the Bible and Reformed theology, and have a conversation. He could say that a flawed epistemology was found in some parts of these early works. He could say that pitting good works against grace was not true to the genius of the Reformed faith, or to the Bible. He could point out that there is no “merit theology” in the Bible. He could say that he preferred to speak of being united to the whole risen Christ rather than speak in the abstract about an imputed righteousness separated from that union. He could argue that the book of Romans is not after all a kind of proto-Berkhof systematic theology, but a book that is to a considerable extent about how Jew and Gentile, torn apart and dead to each other, were now reunited through resurrection in the kingdom of the Resurrected One.

In many places such conversations are no longer possible. Pastors have been cast out of or rejected by PCA presbyteries for believing what the Westminster Confession says about baptism. In others, the bullies who run the presbytery or classis have so cowed all the licentiates that they dare not raise any questions about anything. Here and there things are better, but from what I see, I’m not encouraged. The Calvinistic mind, if it has not closed already, appears to be closing fast.

Almost every word of this piece deserves to be written in large letters over the current reformed discussion. I hope all my readers- especially younger Reformational thinkers- will read and consider Jordan’s conclusions.

As I maintained in Crisis, Opportunity, and the Christian Future, the Protestant age is coming to an end. That means that the Reformed faith and Presbyterianism are also coming to an end. The paradigm is exhausted, and the world in which it was worked out no longer exists. We must take all the great gains of the Calvinistic heritage and apply them with an open Bible to the new world in which we are now living. We must be aware that there is far more in the Bible than the Reformation dealt with, and that many of our problems today are addressed by those hitherto unnoticed or undeveloped aspects of the Bible. Those who want to bang the drum for a 450-year old tradition are dooming themselves to irrelevance. Our only concern is to avoid being beat up by them as they thrash about in their death-throes.

HIghly recommended. While I doubt that I agree with Jordan on many things- since there is a theonomic edge to much of what he’s writing- his assessment of Reformed intellectual life and the resulting atmosphere of intimidation and intolerance is completely accurate, in my opinion, at least.

Jordan’s website is Biblical Horizons.

I brought something I want to share with you. Do you have a few minutes? I think you’ll find it interesting. It’s my “Southern Baptists and Alcohol” scrapbook. It tells the story of what I grew up hearing and believing about alcohol, Christians and the Bible. It’s the story of getting my eyes opened and all my certainties wrecked. In other words, it’s the story of one, big, happy lie. Maybe more than one, actually.
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Here’s the kind of column that I really wish could be written by more evangelicals: Jesus Isn’t Cool: Challenging Youth Ministry, by Chanon Ross. Here’s a sample:
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Steve McCoy at Reformissionary, recently linked to a forum at Southern Seminary where Drs. Russell Moore and Al Mohler discussed the seminary’s position on the use of alcohol. (Total abstinence is a requirement for teachers and students. Violators will be dismissed.) I welcome this forum, and hope it signals a discussion of the topic.

Let me be straightforward: I believe it is time for conservative evangelicals (including Southern Baptists) to express their opposition to the abuse of alcohol through other means than requiring teetotalism in church and denominational covenants. I believe such a required abstinence simply cannot be sustained Biblically, forces thousands of believers into unnecessary, unloving crisis of conscience and hinders our ability to share the Gospel. I in no way believe that we should promote the use of alcohol, but I do believe that for churches to require abstinence as a requirement of membership is simply, Biblically, missionally wrong. It is a matter for individuals and families to decide, not for the church or its institutions to require.

The forum was recorded, and I posted the following response to it at the BHT.

NOTE: Daniel Whitfield’s survey of the Biblical material on alcohol is very helpful to this discussion. (Thanks Daniel)

Let me say, first of all, how much I appreciate this kind of forum taking place. When I was at SBTS, this discussion would not have occurred, and one of the reasons I love, appreciate and respect Dr. Mohler is his openness to exactly this kind of leadership. The forum is open, the questions are not staged, and the entire forum has intellectual and spiritual seriousness.

Further, Dr. Mohler does an excellent job both reminding his audience of history, being fair to other traditions and seriously engaging scripture. He is honest about his biases, and he is up front about his institutional and ecclesiastical commitments. What more can anyone ask? I applaud Dr. Mohler for being willing to go on record, as a Southern Baptist, with this forum.
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In December, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (LWW) will be released to the big screen. Probably no single piece of Christian literature has been enjoyed and passed on by so many people, Christian and not, as LWW. The expectation among lovers of the Narnia books and C.S. Lewis in general is strong.

Frankly, I’m worried. And I want you to be worried too.

Evangelicals are starting to get some practice at having movies pitched our direction. I remember when Chariots of Fire was about to be released, and someone organized a meeting of ministers and talked to us about the possibilities of using the film for evangelism. (Ironically, Chariots of Fire was produced by a Muslim.) No Eric Liddle running shoes appeared at Lifeway, however.
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Since we were trapped in a car for 7 hours together, Joel and I debated/discussed a topic that we’ve disagreed about for some time: The usefulness of the idea of a “Christian Worldview.”
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On September 17th, I was privileged to present the following paper at the Civitas Conference: “After Evangelicalism,” at Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Thanks to Joel Hunter for inviting me to be part of a panel entitled: “Blogging Evangelicalism: Benign Influence or Ecclesiastical Menace?” It was great fun for me, and a super birthday present.

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I’m tired of small potatos. We might as well get to the big dog of these “hearing voices” post. Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome Mr. Bill Mckinnon to the stage for tonight’s main course, “No Voices In My Head.”

Mr. Mackinnon may, or may not, respond to your comments. If he does, just remember that he attends a Southern Baptist Church on the New York/Canada border. That tells you about all you need to know.

Continue reading “No Voices In My Head.”

Looks like a three-year old iMonk classic is stirring ‘em up out there in the blogosphere, so I think it deserves to see the light of day here in the big show.

So here is one of my favorite essays: “Signs: (I’m Weary of Weird Christians.)”

Continue Reading “Signs.”

Joel Hunter wrote this absolutely outstanding piece about the Bible and propositional, positivist versions of truth. I believe IM readers will resonate with much of what he is saying, and it’s said well.

The post was prompted by this post from Dr. Lawson Stone on “Hindenberg Theology,” (continued here), and is indebted to Calvin Seerveld’s Rainbows For The Fallen World. Joel welcomes your comments here at IM in the comments threads.
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The 50th anniversary of one of the most productive relationships in Christianity was celebrated this week at Zondervan’s “Youth Ministry Hall of Fame” in Nashville as pizza finally received a long overdue recognition for its contribution to youth evangelism.
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