Riddleblog - The Latest Post - On Baptists and Booze

Riddleblog - The Latest Post - On Baptists and Booze

At the annual meeting of the Southern Baptists, the following resolution was approved. The spirit of prohibition lives on!

Resolution No. 5

ON ALCOHOL USE IN AMERICA

WHEREAS, Years of research confirm biblical warnings that alcohol use leads to physical, mental, and emotional damage (e.g., Proverbs 23:29-35); and

WHEREAS, Alcohol use has led to countless injuries and deaths on our nation's highways; and

WHEREAS, The breakup of families and homes can be directly and indirectly attributed to alcohol use by one or more members of a family; and

WHEREAS, The use of alcohol as a recreational beverage has been shown to lead individuals down a path of addiction to alcohol and toward the use of other kinds of drugs, both legal and illegal; and

WHEREAS, There are some religious leaders who are now advocating the consumption of alcoholic beverages based on a misinterpretation of the doctrine of "our freedom in Christ"; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina, June 13-14, 2006, express our total opposition to the manufacturing, advertising, distributing, and consuming of alcoholic beverages; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge that no one be elected to serve as a trustee or member of any entity or committee of the Southern Baptist Convention that is a user of alcoholic beverages.

RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptists to take an active role in supporting legislation that is intended to curb alcohol use in our communities and nation; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptists to be actively involved in educating students and adults concerning the destructive nature of alcoholic beverages; and be it finally

RESOLVED, That we commend organizations and ministries that treat alcohol-related problems from a biblical perspective and promote abstinence and encourage local churches to begin and/or support such biblically-based ministries.

For a thoughtful and pastoral response from Justin Taylor, Click here: Between Two Worlds: The SBC Resolution on Alcohol

A Missional Church - By Ed Stetzer, Special to the Christian Index

Thanks so much to The Christian Index for the Sept. 29 article on the missional church. For many evangelicals, the terminology is new, but the actual practice is as old as the church and her sacred effort. Now that the word "missional" is on the front page of The Christian Index, Lifeway's Facts & Trends, and throughout Baptist Press, it is good to be clear what the word means and why it matters so much.

As the Index correctly pointed out, "missional" is not the same as "mission-minded," though they are both important and related. The term "missional" is simply the noun "missionary" adapted into an adjective. For example, an "adversary" is your enemy. Someone who is "adversarial" is acting like your enemy. Thus, a "missionary" is someone who acts like a missionary (for example, understands a culture, proclaims the faithful Gospel in a way that people in culture can understand, and uses parts of that culture to glorify God). A "missional church" is a church that acts like a missionary in its community.

If we are going to reach a changing Georgia (and North America), we have to contend for the unchanging faith (Jude 3) but to do so using forms that are relevant to all kinds of people (1 Cor. 9:22-23). That's a missional church - a church acting like a missionary to the community around it while partnering with others to be missionary around the world.

Some will say, "The culture does not matter, just preach the Word!"

You may hear much of this in the letters to the editor over the next few weeks. However, we really don't believe that culture is irrelevant. Why? Because we send missionaries to foreign lands and, like Lottie Moon, expect them to don the clothes, live the customs, and be part of the community while proclaiming a faithful Gospel. We should not forbid North American missional pastors from doing the very thing we train international missionaries to do. Entire Article

The Pursuit of Hospitality - Doug Wilson

Hospitality, where it is still practiced in the church, is largely an unstudied virtue. The demands of modernity and the frenetic pace of life around us dictate that we neglect our responsibility to have our brothers and sisters into our homes. Nevertheless, the Bible is very plain in requiring us to be disciplined in our pursuit of "company," and includes a requirement of hospitality in the leaders of the church (1 Tim. 3:2). This is not because it is their task alone, but rather because a pattern or example should be set by them for the whole church.

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality (Rom. 12:9-13).

But we must begin with a caution. Before addressing the duties related to hospitality, just a few words are necessary to that group which always finds time to lament the unfriendliness and lack of hospitality in others. This duty is one where we may trust the Lord to convict us of our own failings. But with regard to their purported failings, take care not to draw any conclusions about the hospitality of others. First, you are in no position to make a right judgment. It is very easy to make judgments without all the facts (a practice that some seem to feel is their spiritual gift). And secondly, those who show great interest in the failings of others in this regard are usually a central part of the problem.

This said, nevertheless, in Romans 12:13, the saints are told to pursue hospitality, to chase down potential guests in the parking lot after church. Far more is involved than a simple willingness to have company over—Paul... Continue Reading

The Reformed Faith as the Most Consistent Form of Christianity

The Reformed faith is the Christian religion in its most consistent expression. This is not to claim that others, who do not hold to the Reformed confessions, are not Christians. It is simply to insist that there is only one true religion and that the most consistent expression of it is the Reformed faith. Jesus himself said, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (Matt. 7:13–14). No doubt some see this way more clearly than others. And Jesus does not say that none but the consistent will be able to enter in. But how clear it is that there is only one way!

Furthermore, Jesus plainly insisted that this one way of salvation be taught consistently: “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’ ” (Matt. 28:18–20).

Consistent and faithful maintenance of the entire content of the true religion is a matter of no little importance. We are not to judge just how much a particular sinner must know in order to be saved. But there is no doubt as to the church’s task in this world: to uphold the whole of Christ’s word in faithful and consistent teaching.

From 'What is the Reformed Faith? High Points of Calvinism'. The entire booklet can be found here.

HISTORY: unwrapped – June 13, 2006

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June 13, 2006 – The Second Josiah

During the reign of Henry III’s young son, Edward VI (1547–1553), England made long strides toward Protestantism. Protestant tutors were put in charge of Edward’s education, and at an early age Edward became familiar with the works of John Calvin and those of the Strasbourg Reformer Martin Bucer. At Edward’s coronation, Thomas Cranmer (1489–1556) referred to him as the second Josiah, as a king who would restore England to the true religion. (It was under Josiah’s reign in Judah that the “book of the law” was found in the temple—2 Kings 22). Under Edward’s leadership, a number of important changes took place: religious services were conducted in English; the Catholic Mass was abolished; clergy were permitted to marry; and English Bibles were freely printed. Not everyone was happy with these changes, however. Henry’s brand of Catholicism was still very popular, as future Reformers soon discovered. Edward, sickly and frail from birth with chronic tuberculosis, reigned for only six years. On July 6, 1553, the young king died, praying, “My Lord and God, save this realm from popery, and maintain it in true religion.” He was sixteen.

Who Really Stands with Israel?

Who Really Stands with Israel?
by Gary DeMar

David Brog has written Standing with Israel: Why Christians Support the Jewish State. The ten reviews I read on Amazon were quite favorable, and it us being advertised on WorldNetDaily. The fact that... READ FULL ARTICLE

Radio Apologia Audio

Radio Apologia Audio

The anti-theist lives as if this were God's world, with abstract norms, regularities, standards, etc; but pouts that "he just cannot know" whether the God on whom he is utterly dependent exists or not. Nowhere to go; it's just baffling that someone would choose beliefs that *if true* (which they're fortunately not) would *undermine the possibility* of logic, science, and ethics. And it's baffling that someone would so choose, all the while living as if the world were a world of meaning, standards, consciousness, and value -- rather than of matter clunking chemically against impersonal matter.

We have audio you probably won't find elsewhere.

To find the audio - sign up on the discussion board and then click on the 'access the audio here' forum for the link.

Why 6-6-6 Doesn't Matter - Gary DeMar

Today’s beastly date—6–6–6—really isn’t. Our calendar is based on when Jesus was born. Most scholars believe our dating system is off by approximately five years because of certain miscalculations in determining the precise year Jesus was born. This means that the real June 6, 2006 happened about five years ago. Of course, there was a bigger 666 date: June 6, 666. Or was it really June 6, 661? All the talk about today being 6–6–06 is little more than hype to sell books. Even Tim LaHaye has gotten into the act. The third volume in the Left Behind prequel—The Rapture—debuts today, and earlier paperback editions of Left Behind are selling for $6.66. Read entire article

Preaching Christ Alone - Dr. Michael Horton

"You search the Scriptures in vain, thinking that you have eternal life in them, not realizing that it is they which testify concerning me." With these words, our Lord confronted what has always been the temptation in our reading of Holy Scripture: to read it without Christ as the supreme focus of revelation.

Many people who come to embrace the specific tenets of the Protestant Reformation (grace alone, scripture alone, Christ alone, to God alone be glory, faith alone, etc.) are liberated by the good news of God's free grace in Christ. Pastors who used to preach a human-centered message suddenly become impassionate defenders of God's glory and particular doctrines which often characterized the messages and shaped the teaching ministry of the congregation are exchanged for more biblical truths. This is all very exciting, of course, and we should be grateful to God for awakening us (this writer included) to the doctrines of grace. Nevertheless, there are deeper issues involved. Read Complete Article by Dr.Horton