Same Process Going On

I was reading the following op-ed piece by David Kupelian, the author of The Marketing of Evil, and it struck me that a very similar process seems to be being used in the RCA. It is not as overt, but it certainly seems to be there. First there is the desensitization by the constant unwillingness to deal with one of our partners in the Formula of Agreement concerning their practice of not only ordaining practicing homosexuals, but of encouraging all the churches in their fellowship to do so. Again and again when overtures come seeking something to be done about this, nothing is done because we can't divide over an issue of Christian practice. Now we have the 3 year dialogue. Even the language used for those congregations that have abandoned the clear teaching of scripture, "Open and Affirming" is perjoritive. I guess that means all the churches that seek to be true to the Biblical injunctions against homosexual practice are "Closed and Demeaning!" The only thing we don't have yet is diversity seminars. Next we have the 'jamming' of those who are against the push toward being "Open and Affirming." As mentioned we are apparently close minded biggots to call for someone to show a change in lifestyle following conversion. We are charged with being "single issue" people who don't care for the poor the downtrodden and the oppressed, because GLBT people are the oppressed aren't they. Finally we have what Kupelian calls "Conversion" where people's views on homosexual practice are re-educated to break down the stereotypes that homosexual practice is wrong. We are not there yet, and I pray we never will be. I have not yet read Kupelian's book, but it is on the list of books I want to get out of the library. Hopefully our small town library will soon have a copy.

Going To the Banner In May

As I have mentioned before, I am planning to attend the Banner of Truth Minister's Conference. Well, I am now all registered and ready to go. It is still a month away, but I am very much looking forward to the teaching and fellowship with other ministers who share in the amazing doctrines of grace. At this point it sounds like we have a large group coming from our area of Ontario, although I have not heard the exact numbers, but I was told that we have a 'busload' of people. I would guess that was speaking figuatively, but one never knows. One of the things I enjoy almost as much as the conference is the time of fellowship and conversation during the long trip down and back again. If you are a minister or elder consider attending this conference. It is well worth your time.

Scottish Theologian

You scored as James Orr. You are James Orr. You are not afraid of Scholarship, but you know that scholarship is not necessarily objective. James Orr 95% Thomas Boston 90% John Knox 75% James Denney 70% Thomas Chalmers 65% Which Scottish Theologian are you? created with QuizFarm.com

My New Laptop

I finally reached the last straw with my old laptop. It was getting a little long in the tooth anyway (about 7-8 years old), but it constant tendency to have the power go off with no warning and not being able to get it to power back up again finally pushed me over the edge. So I bit the bullet and purchased a new laptop. Now I am the happy owner of a Toshiba A100-LE1. It is a nice little beastie, with a DVD writer, built in wireless and wired networking, 80Gig HD, 512Mb memory, and a nice Celeron M 390. Certainly a big step up from my old Toshiba Satellite 2100cads running at 400mhz. Well, that is my new work partner. So far I don't mind Windows XP, but it still seems like most windows versions I have used, ok but full of aggravation :)

Da Vinci Code

With the Da Vinci Code movie scheduled to be released May 19th, I thought that the opening article of the Solid Ground from Stand to Reason would be helpful to some of you. It is a good response to Dan Brown's book, and has some helpful questions to ask people who my confront you based on that book. Check it out at Solid Ground.

Sad But Not Surprising

Kim Riddlebarger posted yet another example of more biblical ignorance among Christians. A survey done among regular church attenders in the UK showed they could not put key Biblical events in chronological order. I wonder first how well my congregation would do, but this also makes me wonder what have churches been teaching to leave people with no idea about even big events in the Bible.

Oh The Times They Are A Changing

As I was browsing through some of my favorite blogs tonight, I found an entry in my friend Michael Haykin's blog pointing to yet another blog that has been added to my subscriptions. It is Denny Burk's blog, and I suggest you check it out. What prompted this post was a post by Denny Burk concerning the fact that although in the past a general consensus could be found throughout evanglicalism, that consensus is not really there any longer. In fact many of the things the Carl Henry wrote about liberalism can now be found in some parts (popular parts at that) of evangelicalism. It seems times have changed and the group that was known for standing against liberal theology, has lost its grounding. Check out Denny Burk: Could Carl Henry Be Wrong?

Our Obsession With Numbers

Today as I was reading some of the blogs I frequent, I read this article posted on Doxoblogy. The article by Steve Green points out how our obsession with numbers (attendance, baptisms, etc) can be a great danger, because it can easily miss that God uses what is weak, powerless and despised by this world to achieve his goals. Numbers are not always the best way to determine the effectiveness of a ministry. As a pastor of a small congregation in a small town where there are already several large congregations, it is good to be reminded that numbers are not everything. Yes, I would love to see many more people come in, but as I have served here, I have seen other changes and other growth in the members of this congregation that cannot be boiled down to numbers, and those things are at least as important although not as easy to quantify.

Cookies!

You Are a Chocolate Chip Cookie

Traditional and conservative, most people find you comforting. You're friendly and easy to get to know. This makes you very popular - without even trying!

What Kind of Cookie Are You?

Now Even Cats Can Be Terrorists

Reports in the Connecticut Post Online, A ferocious feline terrorized a quiet Fairfield neighborhood, to the point that residents are seeking help from the law to stop the so-called "Terrorist of Sunset Circle." Lewis, a 5-year-old, black-and-white long haired cat, attacked at least a half-dozen people on the cul-de-sac and even took on the local Avon lady, neighbors say. "He looks like Felix the Cat and has six toes on each foot each with a long claw," Sunset Circle resident Janet Kettman said. "They are formidable weapons." I always knew there was a reason I didn't trust cats. To read the whole story you can find it here. This link will work for 14 days, after that you will have to search for it using their search engine.

Abdul Rahman

With the charges dropped by the court in Afghanistan because of lack of evidence and a belief that Rahman is not mentally competent, he has been freed. However, the story is not over. Apparently the Parliament of Afghanistan is now saying that he should not be allowed to leave the country even though he has been offered asylum in Italy.

Eagle Nest

Tim Challies posted this link on his blog, and I found it rather amazing. I have always considered Eagles to be beautiful birds, and to be able to watch a streaming video feed of an Eagles nest is fascinating. Check out Eagles Nest Video.

Very Interesting Post

Yet another thing that points out that the origin of all things cannot be explained without a creator.

It Seem People Really Don't Know

As I was going through the various news stories found at the Pearcey Report I went to read this article. The article recounts the fact that the St. Paul City Hall removed a toy rabbit, pastel-colored eggs and a sign with the words "Happy Easter" from their lobby. The concern that prompted this was that they thought they might offend non-Christians. It seems that they are under the misapprenhension that Easter is about some rabbit and coloured eggs. I guess that is why Christians have celebrated it for the last 2000 years. The only person there who may realize this has nothing to do with Easter is Council Member Dave Thune who wondered, 'why they can't celebrate spring with "bunnies and fake grass."' Ok strike that, he seems to be under the impressiong that Easter is a celebration of spring. Frankly, I am offended by the rabbit and eggs because I am a Christian. That is not what Easter is all about, and to think otherwise is complete ignorance. Easter is about one thing only, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead showing his victory over sin and death for all who believe in him. The last thing I want is for the world to co-opt Easter like they have Christmas. Perhaps it is time to have real Easter decorations (and Good Friday ones for that matter). How about an empty tomb decoration? Anyone have other ideas how to fight against this trend to make all the Christian faith into excuses to buy chocolate and tacky decorations that have nothing to do with what is actually be celebrated, or good ideas for real Easter decorations?

Two More Sermons

Here are two new additions to the streaming sermons. How To Worship The One God Do Not Take God's Name Lightly I actually don't know how well these are streaming, so if you have any problems comment about it so I can try to fix it.

HE IS HOME

We just received a call from Annette's father, and he is home! Yes, we are surprised by this, at least I am! They talked to a health care professional (Annette doesn't remember what the person actually is) and they said Justin should not come up until after he has finished his current medication (For more information on that go to here to find out more) so Annette will not be going up to help until Monday. Thank-you again for all your prayers.

What's New With My Father In Law

I realized it has been a while since I have given an update here. His recovery is going well. He is able to walk down the hall and back in the hospital with a walker for support, and his blood is looking pretty good. They took the filter out of the vein in his leg, and so far he has had no clots. If they can get his blood to the correct thinness for two days in a row then he will be able to go home. His blood was at the correct level on Monday, and we hoped he could go home on Tuesday. Yet, by Tuesday it was not at the correct level. I am not sure on this, but as I understand it if his blood were at the correct level today, he would need to maintain that for tomorrow before they would let him go home. We are still hoping he will get home this week, but if not it will hopefully be soon. With that in mind I want to thank you all for your prayers. Through all this God has made his grace known, and shown that it is sufficient for our needs. That is a great thing to learn.

Persecution For The Name of Christ

The news broke in the last couple of days about a Christian in Afghanistan who faces execution for converting to Christianity. For more information you can look at Michelle Malkin's Site or check out Al Mohler's blog On section in the report that caught my attention was this one, "The judge, however, holds hopes for a solution. "We will ask him if he has changed his mind about being a Christian," Mawlazezadah says. "If he has, we will forgive him, because Islam is a religion of tolerance."" Emphasis mine. This quote shows something important about Islam and it's view of tolerance, and it is not something that should set our hearts at ease. Pray that God will work in this situation, so that he is glorified either in the release of one of his saints or if that is not his will, that he would use this to bring others to Christ.

Faith and Emotions

Read this on Wittenberg Gate today. This is something that I have strived to get into the minds of the younger people of the congregation I minister to. They has such a feelings based approach to faith, that when the feelings are not there with the same fervor as they were before, they wonder if they still have faith. When I read this, I thought that it said what I have been trying to say very well.

NEW SERMON ONLINE

It has been a while since I have added a sermon to the streaming audio sermons. What can I say, I have been busy. Today I added the next in the series on the 10 Commandments looking at the first commandment. You can listen to it by clicking No Other Gods