Pure Church

This is a nice Christmas story. Quadruplets in Connecticut become the first quads to be admitted to Yale University.

The Crouches’ perfect batting average represents a first for Yale — the first time in anyone’s memory that it has offered admission to quadruplets. It is also, of course, no small milestone for the siblings, who were born more than two months premature. (Ray was the last to be released from the neonatal unit, more than four months later.)

They made up for that rough start. Their class rankings range from 13 out of a class of 632 (Kenny) to 46 (Martina) — and they have sky-high SAT scores (including Carol’s perfect 800 on the verbal part of that exam).

At least it makes you say crazy stuff. Three cases in point:

Rush Limbaugh:



What?! Why is this guy still employed? Why is anybody still listening to him? What non-sense!

Sen. Harry Reid

Okay... let's switch political aisles for a moment just to show that "race"-induced insanity strikes all political varieties. Check the comments from Sen. Reid re: health care reform and those who oppose it.



Really?! Not passing health care reform is akin to opposing abolition, women's suffrage, and Civil Rights legislation?! Wow. Health care reform is either very, very important, or two very sad things just happened. One: Sen. Reid used some very "race"-freighted comparisons to essentially demonize his opponents. Two: He just trivialized some rather huge social and political issues with an unwarranted comparison. I think the first is unkind. I resent the second.

As I've written elsewhere, the current "let's take our issue and make it the new slavery or the new Civil Rights" is both offensive to many and ineffective. The abortion=slavery, Civil Rights=gay rights analogies should be abandoned, if for no other reason than the sometimes tacit and other times explicit racial freight they carry. It's not helping us.

Tiger Woods and Racial Reconciliation?

Finally, Tiger Woods. If you've not read C.J.'s post, you should go there now. It's must reading. I've been pretty disinterested in all the Tiger mess. I'm surprised people are surprised, and I wonder if all the shock and horror are simply more respectable guises for our voyeurism.

Anyway, I was caught by one of Challies' A La Carte items (don't you love that feature!). In it, he quotes a section from an article at American Thinker. I don't really know this blog or this person, so this isn't aimed at anyone in particular. I just couldn't understand how this sentence about Tiger could be true: "...he was our first living embodiment of the collective hope for racial reconciliation."

The man defines himself as so "racially" or ethnically "other" that it's nearly impossible to see him as reconciling anything, or embodying any hopes for reconciliation. What exactly is a "Calabanasian," Tiger's self-designation? He has a right to that, and I don't begrudge him one bit. So, let's not make him "black" all of a sudden (an imposition and a false assumption from our one-drop rule past). But it's a huge stretch of the imagination to consider him "our first living embodiment of the collective hope for reconciliation." Heck. I'm not even sure there is such a "collective hope." Seems most are pretty comfortable with marginal interaction masking deep stratification.

Anyway... that's my mental health post for the week. Let's check the craziness at least through the New Year.

Well, first, the good news. Our brother Al Mohler reviews an interesting piece from Jennifer Senior in New York magazine entitled "The Abortion Distortion--Just How Pro-Choice Is America Really?" Mohler writes:

In “The Abortion Distortion — Just How Pro-choice is America, Really?,” writer Jennifer Senior offers an incredibly insightful and important essay on the moral status of abortion in the American mind. Senior is clearly writing to a New York readership — expected to be overwhelmingly pro-choice and settled in a posture of abortion advocacy. Given the passage of the so-called “Stupak amendment” to the health-care reform bill adopted by the House of Representatives, many in the pro-choice movement responded with amazement that a pro-life minority has been able to muster such support. Jennifer Senior posed the most awkward question for her readers: Is America really pro-choice

The good news from this piece is that Americans are significantly less pro-choice than a small, aging minority would have us believe. Senior's work goes back to the 1970s documenting that Roe was significantly out-of-step with public opinion and abortion as a practice continues to be. May it not only be out of step but out of existence in our lifetime.

Now the bad news. Or, at least the cute bad news. Turns out most children are unrepentant sociopaths. Mockingbird links to a very funny piece from The Onion. An excerpt:

MINNEAPOLIS—A study published Monday in The Journal Of Child Psychology And Psychiatry has concluded that an estimated 98 percent of children under the age of 10 are remorseless sociopaths with little regard for anything other than their own egocentric interests and pleasures.

According to Dr. Leonard Mateo, a developmental psychologist at the University of Minnesota and lead author of the study, most adults are completely unaware that they could be living among callous monsters who would remorselessly exploit them to obtain something as insignificant as an ice cream cone or a new toy.



"The most disturbing facet of this ubiquitous childhood disorder is an utter lack of empathy," Mateo said. "These people—if you can even call them that—deliberately violate every social norm without ever pausing to consider how their selfish behavior might affect others. It's as if they have no concept of anyone but themselves."

"The depths of depravity that these tiny psychopaths are capable of reaching are really quite chilling," Mateo added.

Read the whole thing here.

Related Posts:
Two Year Olds Are Sneaky Little Sinners
The Joys of Talking with Little Kids

Yesterday I linked to a video from Mark Dever commending The Trellis and the Vine as "the best book on the nature of church ministry" that he has read. You can see the video and a long list of endorsements here.

Today, Westminster announced a 50% off sale on the book until 3pm Easter December 10th. If you've been thinking about getting copies of this book for yourself, your pastoral staff and leadership, or others, now is the time to buy a stack!

Mockingbird has interesting and encouraging short post about a somewhat unusual species... an athlete, singer, movie star, politician who lives to give away all that he earns to those in need. He's the modern-day opposite of the rich young ruler... and of professing Christians who love the world and wealth.

Al Mohler comments on a story about churches who are having special services for people and their pets. I've long heard of Roman Catholic churches that have a special service where pets are blessed. But this particular story features Protestant churches doing the same, and a handful having not an annual "special" service but regular services complete with treats and trinkets for the animals. One pastor featured in the report says he hopes that having these services will help revitalize his aging church and help people love God as much as their pets.

Wow.

Well, we must eagerly desire the revitalization of churches that have experienced decline--whether the decline comes from an aging congregation or other things. We love the church. And so, we pray for her vibrancy and power.

But c'mon. "Woof 'n Worship" and "Canines at Covenant." Depending upon pets to put the power in the gospel is beyond desperate. And it's the wrong kind of desperation. It's an unleashed pragmatism.

We want that kind of desperation that pleads often and long with the Lord to send laborers into the harvest, to enlarge the work of His Holy Spirit, to stoke burning zeal in the hearts of His people, to touch the preacher's tongue with burning coals from off the altar. We ought to be desperate, but the means of expressing our desperation should be the means established by God Himself in His word. After all, it's God who both creates the longing in our hearts and satisfies it with his presence.

I read Mohler's commentary and I was made freshly grateful for the over 95% of churches who don't stoop to such things, but trust God in more biblical fashion. I was made thankful for the churches that hold differing ministry philosophies than my own, but who nonetheless stay far away from such gimmicks. I'm thankful the Lord has a very large remnant that has not bowed the knee to Spot and Fido.

Lord, we praise you for everyday, mundane faithfulness and trust in your Word. And Lord, please fill our desperation with more of Yourself.

We should despise stereotype, slander, and prejudice wherever we find it. I hesitate to post this only because I don't want more people to watch it. But since it's on national television, I guess my not posting it want stop the spread of hate disguised as comedy.

But here's the Quizno's hot tub commercial. As a fellow human being and empathetic southerner, the "hillbilly is stupid" approach is... well... stupid. I find it offensive. What about you?



Related Posts:
One More in the Coffin of "Race"
Another Reason "Race" Makes No Sense
Mark Noll Lectures on Race, Religion and American Politics
Talking to Children About "Race"
Thabiti's Top Ten Tips for Talking About "Race"

MSNBC reports that the NIV and TNIV are to get a facelift. A major updating with "everything on the table" regarding gender revisions is planned. At this point, CBMW and others are remaining open to the full review process. Ligon Duncan, chairman of CBMW, responds here. Al Mohler weighs in here. Concluding paragraph from Mohler:

In the end, the update of the NIV to be released in 2011 will have to stand on its own. Those of us who have had significant concerns with the TNIV should communicate these concerns respectfully, candidly, and directly to the Committee on Bible Translation, to Zondervan, and to Biblica. When released, the updated NIV will deserve and require the attentive study and review of all committed evangelicals. We must hope and pray that this updated NIV will be found both faithful and useful. For now, the decisions that will determine the faithfulness and usefulness of this updated edition are in the hands of the Committee on Bible Translation. We must all pray that their work will produce an updated translation we can greet with appreciation and trust. We must take the members of the Committee on Bible Translation at their word that they will consider these concerns. To fail to pray and to act in this way will be to fail at a basic Christian commitment. The issue is not only the integrity of a Bible translation, but our integrity as Christians.

In pastoral ministry, you get exposed to a little bit of everything.

We learned yesterday that one of the students in our elementary school has been diagnosed with a case of H1N1 virus, otherwise known as swine flu. It's the first reported case in the Cayman Islands. We're taking all the precautions necessary, quarantine for some, closing the school, extensive disinfection of the classrooms and building, etc.

Things appear to be under control. The young man, who apparently contracted the virus while on a family trip to New York , is doing well and recovering at home with family.

It's been great to see how the health officials have responded with promptness and effectively. Now we pray, and ask you to join us in praying, that the flu does not spread but is contained.

the potential "resurrection" of Henry Lyons inside the National Baptist Convention, the largest African-American denomination in the U.S., is ridiculous.

From the story:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The ousted former president of a national organization of black Baptist churches is running for the position again, a decade after he was sent to prison for stealing millions of dollars from the group. The Rev. Henry J. Lyons was forced out as leader of the National Baptist Convention USA in 1999 after an investigation revealed he abused his power in the convention to steal about $4 million. He used the money to buy luxury homes and jewelry, and to support his mistresses.

HT: Ray Ortlund, Jr. Good morning America featured a story about a pastor in New England who faces the town's disdain for living out the gospel and believing that Christ changes people. See here.

One of the deans of African-American social and historical studies, John Hope Franklin died on March 25th. He was 94.

For those not aware of Franklin's work and contributions to African-American studies or to the American conversation on "race," a few brief reflections make an introduction to his life and work.

Duke University, where Franklin spent so much of his career, offers this tribute.

Associated Press

The Washington Post (w/ photo gallery)

The New York Times

Chronicle of Higher Education

Seven quick reasons:

1. I'm not so sure that the "new Calvinism" is all that "new." This post is helpful in explaining why.

2. The potential for making biblical truth a fad seems quite high. All fads die. If the resurgence of robust biblical theology rides an emotional crest until that superficial, emotional wave dies, so too will interest in robust biblical truth. We're all familiar enough with church history to have seen this several times over.

3. The media attention forces some superficial attempts at self-definition, and the inevitable result are "camps" of Reformed types. Add a little carnality, and then you'll hear folks saying they're of Paul, or Appolos, or Peter, or Dever, or C.J., or MacArthur, or Driscoll, or the really, really Reformed, etc when those men weren't even looking for groupies. We need a strong confessional center with the charity that celebrates secondary and tertiary distinctives. Which is why I am so encouraged by this group and the work of these friends and this growing fellowship.

4. Not only are there "camps" within Reformed circles, but it also prompts some unhealthy Reformed/non-Reformed tensions. The potential for playa hatin' is great. Well-informed leaders inside the SBC have been dealing with this enough over recent years, I think. Do we want the attention of secular news outlets stirring the cauldron of Christian disunity? We ought to be wary of such a potential outcome.

5. Goal displacement. Put simply: so much of the talk about the "new Calvinism" "winning the culture" ends up taking too many eyes off the cross, off the gospel, off the local church, off the great commission, and off the great commandment. Not all such talk does this, but enough does. And that's bad.

6. False views of success. How many of us would have thought Calvinism was changing the world before this article? I suspect many of us Reformed types would feel beleagured and embattled, not victorious, etc. Now we have a news magazine ranking the work of God as #3 in the world. Is that success? Do we want to define success by media spots? I'm sure we don't. So we probably ought not put too much stock and spill too much ink over this.

7. Do most people even know what Calvinism is? Do we want a brief news blurb to be their introduction, especially given the remarkably high likelihood of misunderstanding and fear? Gotta be a better way than a #3 ranking on a list of things changing the world right now.

Is the "new Calvinism" and its spread a cause for rejoicing? I think so. But there are also some pitfalls that come with loving the applause of men.

This is an overdue 'thank you' to the many, many of you around the world who prayed for our recent ministry efforts in the Middle East. Today concludes our time here and each moment has met with the wonderful blessings and guiding providence of our loving God and Savior.

It's been a very hectic 10 days or so. We landed last Thursday at 7:30pm after a 13 hour direct flight from Atlanta. I think I'm all caught up on the movies I've missed over the last several months!

We arrived at our lodgings around 9:30pm or so, grabbed a light dinner, then off to bed. Fridays are holy days in Islam, so Friday morning found us gathered together with the saints here. It was an honor to preach during the two morning services at one international church here, and later to share my testimony at an Arabic speaking church. I can't quite describe what it's like to praise God with Arab brethren in Arabic... somewhat exotic and familiar at the same time as occassionally a known tune would be sang or a "halleluja" would go up while the rest of the service was a glimpse of that day when every tongue shall praise God. One thing about our Arabic brethren, though, they love to be together. We started service at 12:30pm and ended around 3:30pm. It was a full morning and afternoon.

That same Friday, the student leadership conference began. From Friday evening through Saturday, I delivered three talks on biblical theology, attempting to help the students see the unity of the Scriptures and the glory of the gospel throughout all of Scripture. The students interacted hungrily with the word and with each other. We hoped the conference would be useful preparation for the dialogue and the follow-up afterwards. By God's grace, I think we met with some measure of success.

Sunday included a time of prayer with the team here, some brief fellowship time with my dialogue partner, Bassam Zawadi, and discussion with the church elders. The entire day was sweet.

Monday's Muslim-Christian dialogue was the central reason for our visit. What a unique opportunity to proclaim the supremacy of our Savior in a land where He is not known. The Christian Fellowship Club, the only one in all of the Middle East as far as I know, did an outstanding job with all of the details. The event took place in the largest room available on campus. The room filled with some 275 people, overwhelmingly Muslim. Two years ago, we were able to distribute about 100 copies of the ESV outreach Bible. What a treat to see a lot of those Bibles show up again at this year's dialogue. In addition to those, we were able to distribute about 75 more Bibles this year.

An area mosque announced the event to the 600 persons on their mailing list. The wider the event, the greater the concern for a peaceful, constructive dialogue. Though a number of people, myself included, found themselves anxious about this issue, the Lord turned the room into a very hospitable and winsome atmosphere. Bassam and I were able to engage one another seriously and winsomely. The Lord enabled the gospel to go forward repeatedly throughout the event, including a concluding word of personal testimony about my conversion from Islam to faith in the Lord Jesus.

A senior advisor for Islamic Affairs attended the event. Following the dialogue, he very excitedly shared with others that such events should happen more often. Please pray for the King, the kingdom, and such officials in this region, that they would work to preserve religious liberty and the right of all people to worship according to their own conscience. Pray that this event would be precedent-setting and door-opening for the gospel in this region. Pray that the Lord would demonstrate His power through the gospel in the conversion of many.

The video of the dialogue should be up on YouTube at some point. Please check it out if it interests you. And please pray that the Lord would be pleased to extend the fruit of the dialogue across the region through this means.

We found out later that night, after having enjoyed so much of the Lord's favor, that two people dear to the saints here had been detained by the secret police in a nearby country. They've been caught up in an anti-Christian sweep being conducted by that government. Our joy melted into prayer for these brethren. This country is currently considering an anti-conversion law that would enforce a death penalty for Muslims who convert. In addition, some Christians suspected of affiliating with Westerners are in danger of being charged with treason and spying, also carrying the death penalty. Please pray for the nearly 100 Christian leaders who have been rounded up over recent months, and for these two brethren currently detained. The good news is we've heard from them since their arrest. But they still need the Lord's favor. Pray for their joy and strength in the Lord, and that the Lord would shake the jail causing the jailers to repent and believe.

Tuesday-Thursday included follow-up meetings with student leaders and some of the attendees at the dialogue. Again, the Lord showed great favor and blessing in these times. Stephen visited and shared at the host campus for the dialogue while I visited another university in a nearby city. I also had the wonderful privilege of catching up with dear friends during these days, friends first made while we were back in Washington, D.C. I felt like the Lord indulged me in these times.

Thursday night included a talk at the church's youth group. And Friday morning I spoke again at the church's two services. I was thankful for the Lord's sustaining grace on Friday, since I came down with some flu-like thing on Wednesday. We attended the evening service, where the church prayed for the saints and ministries back at FBC and celebrated the 19-year ministry of one of its elders now moving to Australia. A sweet time gathered with the Lord's people.

Saturday was spent with student leaders talking about spiritual leadership, its joys and challenges. The team went out to the dessert for a time of prayer and hymn singing. Finally starting to feel better, I stayed behind for a bit more rest.

It's been a tremendous week with much, much more to give God praise for. To see His sovereign hand at work here leaves one in awe! May He continue to make himself known and receive the praise of the elect among the people of this region!

Thank you for your prayers and encouragements. I trust the Lord will grant you an unfading crown for your love and kindness!

A number of fellow bloggers have shared the news that Good Book Company is launching operations in the U.S. That's good news for those who love solid Christian material. The press release is below:


We are pleased to announce the launch of a new, Bible-centered, Christian resource provider in North America. From the 2nd February 2009, The Good Book Company will make available its full range of resources to churches and individuals in North America from its new US-based website.

The Good Book Company is a Christian resourcing agency that began in the UK and grew out of the need for attractive, quality, practical materials for gospel work, which don’t compromise on the essentials of the Christian faith. It has a particular focus on daily devotional reading, small group Bible study, outreach, discipleship and resources for youth and children.

A number of The Good Book Company’s resources already have a strong following in the US and Canada, including Christianity Explored, The Gospel Centered Church, Christianity Explained and If you could ask God one Question. Now they are cheaper and easier to get hold of than ever before.

Editorial Director Tim Thornborough said, ‘When we exhibited at Together for the Gospel last year, we saw a real hunger for sound gospel resources which are faithful to the Bible but which also engage with an increasingly post-Christian culture. That's what we specialize in and our prayer is that the range of resources we've developed over the past two decades will serve to equip local churches in discipleship and reaching out with the gospel.”

US Ministry Director Brad Byrd said ‘February 2nd may be Groundhog Day on the calendar but, no matter what our furry friend may predict, spring has come early with the launch of The Good Book Company in the USA. A wave of fresh ideas, new perspectives and tried and true Biblical insights are available for the first time in North America.’

The launch has been timed to coincide with the Desiring God Pastor’s Conference in Minneapolis where two of The Good Book Company’s key resources - Christianity Explored and Christianity Explained – are being commended to delegates.

To celebrate the launch, visitors to thegoodbook.com will receive 10% off all purchases until the end of February.

For more details of the Good Book Company range, contact US Ministry Director, Brad Byrd at brad.byrd@thegoodbook.com or on 866 244 2165 (toll free). To browse the site, please visit http://www.thegoodbook.com/

Healthy octuplets born in 5 minutes to a California woman. The eight one was a surprise.

A 7 feet 3 inches tall 12 year old boy who can't stop growing.

And a 26 year old woman who is 3 feet 3 inches tall.

And God is glorified in each one!

Psalm 139

13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!

18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.

This is too bizarre to pass up. A couple recently exchanged wedding vows in a Taco Bell. The first two lines of the story are downright hilarious. "Normal, IL." Apparently, there's not much normal about Normal, IL.

Customers inside the fast-food restaurant continued to order tacos and burritos as the couple sat Friday in an orange Taco Bell booth and exchanged vows.

Employees displayed hot sauce packets labeled with the words "Will you marry me?" They decorated the restaurant with streamers and balloons.

The bride wore a $15 hot pink dress and the entire wedding cost about $200. Several dozen guests looked on as the couple's friend, Ryan Green of Normal, administered the vows while wearing a T-shirt. He was ordained online.

Now, I'm all for inexpensive weddings. My wife and I married for about the same amount of money. And too many high-dollar productions are over in a couple year's time, leaving the couple with huge debt as they prepared for the wedding but not the marriage.

But a fast-food wedding speaks volume about the state of marriage and the ceremonies that celebrate them. On-line relationship, add one on-line "ordination", pull up to the local drive-thru, and let's call it a marriage. One hopes they don't "run for the border" before death does them part.

Just when you thought things weren't weird enough with marriage, divorce takes a wacky turn. One NY man wants his former wife to return a kidney he devoted to her in 2001. Wow. Now a divorce can cost you an arm, a leg, and a donated kidney.

No, this is not a post featuring 2008 first time events, it's a list of firsts that occured in 2008. I know my posts are long, but not that long!

Here are nine things we never saw prior to the year 2008:

1. The obvious first first: the United States saw the election of its first African-American presidential nominee for a major party and its first African-American president-elect.

2. The numbers behind the obvious first: The first presidential campaign topping $1 billion dollars ($1.7 billion to be more precise). And there were a lot of first time voters in this year's election.

3. March 25, 2008, the first democratic elections were held in Bhutan, the world's only Buddhist kingdom, Gospel for Asia reports.

4. Also in March 2008, for the first time the number of adherents to Islam outnumbered the number of adherents to Roman Catholicism.

4. 30,000 people turned out for fifth day of the first test cricket match between India and England. (Okay, it's official. I'm giving cricket "firsts" and I don't even know who is in the playoffs for the NFL! I've been in the Caribbean too long!)

5. Have we seen the first historical evidence of the Druids?

6. Bruno Julie, "the Mauritian Magician," earns Mauritius its first Olympic medal. The sport? Men's boxing.

7. In May 2008, the Archbishop of Perth announced the first female bishop of the Australian Anglican church, Kay Goldsworthy. A few days later, the first woman bishop was appointed in Victoria as well. Meanwhile, openly gay Bishop Gene Robinson began his second term

8. Their campuses are only a couple miles apart, but this year marked the first time that historically black N.C. Central University squared off against Duke University in a baseball game.

9. UNESCO completes first ever study of historical and contemporary slavery.

Trivia question: Who is the longest tenured African-American in the White House? A touching story from the Washington Post gives the answer.

When history was made with the election of America's first African-American president?

I was in an elders' meeting until about 11:45pm and missed all the election night activities. I think perhaps my time was better spent than most. But for those like me who missed the presidential acceptance speech, a video of the full speech is here?

So where were you when Sen. Barack Obama became President-Elect of the United States?