**Editor’s Note: The following was written entirely by a Dallas Police Officer that reached out to me. With the exception of minor formatting, no modification was done to this letter. I’m a Dallas police officer. For reasons related to the safety of my family, I must withhold my name. I knew Sgt. Mike Smith who … Read more
“What happened at First Baptist Church Orlando the night of June 14 was the theological equivalent of the attack on Pearl Harbor. It was a day of infamy. It was the day that a flagship church of the Southern Baptist Convention, quite literally, sold its soul to the devil and “trampled under foot the Son … Read more
He taught me more about respect than anyone I can think of. – Thabiti Anyabwile, speaking of his brother, Victor. Ron Burns chose the name for himself, Thabiti Anyabwile, because of his black nationalist identity. Today, he still goes by that name, and is a contributor to evangelical organizations like 9 Marks, Desiring God, and … Read more
“In the beginning was the video game. And the game was enchanting. And the game was augmented reality.” (The gospel according to Pokemon?) The article popped up on Challies’ a la Carte serving Tuesday, July 12. Eight Ways Churches Can Capitalize on Pokemon Go appears penned on The Wardrobe Door website. I bristle at this. … Read more
Mark Driscoll, who resigned as pastor of a Seattle megachurch in a blitz to beat termination in 2014, will soon be hosting a conference on ‘building a healthy church.’ Mars Hill, Driscoll’s previous church in Seattle, imploded following a series of Driscoll-related scandals and now is defunct, no longer in existence. Driscoll’s conference speakers will … Read more
Southern Baptists are our own best cheerleaders. The ubiquitous, distinguished sound of back-slapping can be heard long after the annual convention is held. Regardless of whatever stereotypical posturing-reboot the leadership masterminds (this year it was providing yet another chest-thumping denunciation of racism), we’re all sure it was ground-breaking, history-making and brave. Whatever dead horse we decide to beat, … Read more
The setting might not be all that unrecognizable from the typical hipster, prosperity gospel, mega-church anywhere on the planet. A darkened room. A state of the art sound system. A big screen. A room full of fans eager for a show. But this one actually is a theater as Hillsong: Let Hope Rise is due … Read more
Five cops lay dead in Dallas. More were wounded. Officers were targeted from an overwatch sniper position by a Black Lives Matter (BLM) protestor who wanted to kill white cops. BLM supporters cheered in applause, tweeting things like “Laying pigs in a blanket!” and “Dallas keep smokin dem pigs keep up the work” and “dude hell … Read more
When a Calvinistic church in Arizona chose to raise funds through booze and tattoos and then chose to post about it in a video online while talking about its “coolness,” news sites covered the story as sensationally as the videographer meant it to be. Many Christians expressed disgust at the church’s flaunting of what some call … Read more
In a scathing rebuke of the evident failure of American justice in what, to most, seemed a clear cut case of more than mere malfeasance, Southern Baptist ethicist Russell Moore editorialized on the stunning news yesterday, July 5, that Hillary Clinton will face no recommendation for an indictment from the FBI. Wait. Hold on. No. No, … Read more
Worldliness is departing from God. It is a man-centered way of thinking; it proposes objectives which demand no radical breach with man’s fallen nature; it judges the importance of things by the present and material results; it weighs success by numbers; it covets human esteem and wants no unpopularity; it knows no truth for which … Read more
We’ve heard it all, folks. As polemicists, deflections avoiding substantive discussion typically come from either (1) misdirecting accolades of the good qualities of the person or institution questioned or (2) firing accusatory bullets toward the messenger. Examples of these common deflections… NewSpring plays Highway to Hell on Easter, but did you hear about their young singles … Read more
The Southern Baptist Convention’s favorite maven of false teaching and one of LifeWay’s cash cows of illicit doctrine has just wrapped up yet another conference in which the zealous worship of the false god of “unity” was portrayed. Adding credence, via intentional lack of discernment, to the “HER” in heresy, femme fatale of the faithless Beth Moore … Read more
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. I’ve written and spoken much about the difference between being a Calvinist and being Reformed. To be a “Calvinist” in theological parlance … Read more
Maybe Dobson’s source is somebody in the room of prosperity charismatics who laid hands on him and anointed him along with Robert Jeffress, Paula White, Mike Murdock or David Jeremiah. That’s what I wrote in the piece outlining the soteriological Sinner’s Prayer-related problems behind Dobson’s declaration of Trumps baby-Christian status and recent conversion. And as Dave … Read more
