R. Albert Mohler Jr.'s Blog, page 202

Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019

What is beauty? The secular world is stumped when it comes to explaining beauty found in creation New York Times Magazine (Ferris Jabr) — How Beauty Is Making Scientists Rethink Evolution

Beauty meets identity politics: The danger of contemporary politics being inserted into our art museumsWall Street Journal (Roger Kimball) — The National Gallery of Identity Politics

Why there is no independent, politically-neutral ground on which anyone, fact-checker or otherwise, can standWashington Post (Elizabeth Bruenig) — Fact-checking has flourished. But it’s more complicated than it looks.

‘Global flood’ in the news: Why Christians ought not to miss this headlineUSA Today (Doyle Rice) — Ancient Antarctic ice sheet collapse could happen again, triggering a new global flood

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Monday, Jan. 21, 2019

With a history of supporting border barriers, why is the political left now so opposed to such a measure?New York Times (Annie Karni and Sheryl Gay Stolberg) — Trump Offers Temporary Protections for ‘Dreamers’ in Exchange for Wall FundingWashington Post (JM Rieger) — Trump says Democrats used to be for new border barriers. He’s right.

After controversy surrounding Women’s March, crowds dwindle and fractures are exposedNew York Times (Michael Wines and Farah Stockman) — Smaller Crowds Turn Out for Third Annual Women’s March EventsWashington Post (Gracy Olmstead) — The Women’s March has always been divisive. Here’s how we can fix that.

The battle over language in the March for Life: Why ‘pro-life’ is buried in a news story but ‘antiabortion’ screams from the headlinesWashington Post (Michelle Boorstein, Julie Zauzmer and Marisa Iati) — Trump and Pence give surprise addresses at antiabortion March for LifeThe Atlantic (Ashley Fetters) — What It’s Like for Secular, Liberal Pro-lifers at the March for Life

Even when we want to, we can’t believe our eyes: Lessons learned after viral video leads to widespread rush to judgement New York Times (Sarah Mervosh) — Viral Video Shows Boys in ‘Make America Great Again’ Hats Surrounding Native ElderNew York Times (Sarah Mervosh and Emily S. Rueb) — Fuller Picture Emerges of Viral Video Between Native American Man and Catholic Students

On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we are reminded of the need to return to explicitly biblical categories when it comes to debates over human dignity

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The Illusion of Enemy-Less Christian Discipleship

This article is an excerpt from my book, The Prayer that Turns the World Upside Down: The Lord’s Prayer as a Manifesto for Revolution . This post is the seventh in an eight part series on the Lord’s Prayer.

When I was a child, I loved camping. For twelve-year-old boys, camping trips have many thrilling aspects, among them that you could spend an entire day outside without being chaperoned by your mom. I vividly remember how my father helped me get ready for camping trips. He would pack Vienna Sausages, canned baked beans, and oatmeal cookies. This was an ideal diet for a twelve-year-old boy.

On one particular trip, I remember playing with friends in an abandoned palmetto field. We ran ourselves into exhaustion, which I now realize was the scoutmaster’s plan. After a long day, we finally crawled into our tents and fell asleep. The next morning we were awakened by three gunshots. Racing out of our tents, we found Colonel Mack Geiger, one of the leading laymen of the church, draping three enormous diamondback rattlesnakes across the front of his jeep. When we asked where he had shot them, he pointed to the bushes–the very palmetto bushes we had been playing near the night before, blissfully unaware of the danger so near.

The Illusion of Enemy-Less Christian Discipleship 

We like to think the world is a safe place, but it is not. The world is a tremendously dangerous place. We like to imagine that evil is distant but, as the headlines reveal, evil is always lurking near. Even when we don’t see any enemies, invisible threats like germs, viruses, bacteria, and toxins surround us. If we are honest, we know that danger can crop up in any circumstance.

Christians should recognize this truth particularly when it comes to our spiritual lives. The Bible clearly teaches that the Devil and his demons are real and that these invisible enemies are bent on destroying our spiritual lives. Yet many evangelicals rarely, if ever, meditate on our lives in light of this truth. Some Christians avoid any discussion of demonic forces because they are overreacting to fanatics who obsess over evil spirits and see the Devil in everything. Still other Christians fear that if we start to talk too much about the Devil, we will inevitably undermine personal responsibility in our sin.

C.S. Lewis observed the same phenomenon in his classic work The Screwtape Letters. As Lewis explained, humanity is prone to two extremes when it comes to thinking about demonic forces:

“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.” [1]

The aim of this chapter is to fall into neither of these ditches. Certainly the Devil and his demons are not behind every corner of our lives and responsible for every negative spiritual thing that happens. Yet at the same time, the Bible clearly warns us about demonic powers and encourages us to remain diligently opposed to their influence.

Regrettably, many Christians are blissfully complacent in matters of spiritual warfare. If Christians truly embraced biblical teaching on demonic powers, we would come to church with a tremendous sense of the fact that God has rescued us from the domain of darkness. As Søren Kierkegaard observed of the Danish church in his generation, most people sit in church, listen with their hands folded over their stomachs, and direct their sleepy eyes slightly upward [2]. Rather than celebrating their redemption from the domain of darkness and living in light of this truth, they are indifferent to the fight. Jesus’ final petition reminds us that we have a daily fight against principalities and powers: “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

Why We Need This  Petition

Jesus’ reminder to pray regularly against temptation reminds us just how prevalent and dangerous the appeal of sin can be in the Christian life. Once again the issue of kingdom and kingship is front and center. Sin and temptation are harsh masters. As the story of Cain reminds us, sin doesn’t just want to play a minor role in our lives; it wants to “rule over us (Gen. 4:7). Asking to be delivered from sin and temptation is a cry that emerges only from the heart of a citizen of God’s kingdom. We desire to submit to the rule and reign of God, not the dominion of sin. This petition is one of kingdom warfare, asking that God conquer the powers of sin, Satan, and the demons so that we might live for his heavenly kingdom.

Christians must recognize that temptations are a real and daily threat to communion with God and life with Christ. The most dangerous thing a Christian can ever do is believe that he is somehow immune to temptation. In fact, failing to account for the dangers of temptation betrays a severe misunderstanding of the gospel. In the gospel we come to recognize both the depravity of our hearts and the freedom of God’s grace in Christ. If we, at any point, think that we are somehow freed up from fighting temptation, then we have both overestimated our own spiritual state and grossly underestimated our need for God’s grace…

After that camping trip, I never went out into the Everglades the same way. I still played in the palmetto fields, of course, but I went with eyes opened to the dangers that were lurking in the bushes. In the same way, Christians should recognize that spiritual danger surrounds us.

Temptation comes to individuals, churches, and institutions. We know the power of temptation by looking in both history books and the mirror. If we are honest with ourselves, we are not up to the task. But Jesus teaches us that we have access to deliverance from sin and temptation by the grace and mercy of God, which is why we must repeatedly pray this prayer of deliverance.

We are frail in our flesh and must pray for God’s protection from evil. As the familiar hymn “O worship the King” reminds us: “Frail children of dust and feeble as frail, in thee do we trust, nor find thee to fail; thy mercies how tender, how firm to the end, our maker, defender, redeemer, and friend.”

To read more, purchase your copy of The Prayer that Turns the World Upside Down at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or ChristianBook.com.

__________________________

[1] C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters (London: HarperCollins, 1942), ix

[2] Søren Kierkegaard’s Journals & Papers, eds. Howard V. Hong and Edna H. Hong, vol. 1, A – E (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1967), 90.

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Friday, Jan. 18, 2019

Everything comes back to the sexual and moral revolution...even shaving productsWall Street Journal (Alexandra Bruell) — P&G Challenges Men to Shave Their ‘Toxic Masculinity’ in Gillette AdNational Public Radio (Tovia Smith) — Backlash Erupts After Gillette Launches A New #MeToo-Inspired Ad CampaignNational Review (Mona Charen) — Gillette Is Not Wrong

Even when his intention is distorted, the glory of God continues to shine through in men and womenWall Street Journal (Erica Komisar) — Masculinity Isn’t a Sickness

Why a feature story in the New York Times about gay penguins confuses something that is abundantly clear in nature New York Times (Nellie Bowles) — The Gay Penguins of Australia

The breakdown of intersectionality: Why you can’t rescue yourself when immersed in this kind of confusionNew York Times (Liz Robbins) — How New York City Ended Up With 2 Competing Women’s Marches

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Thursday, Jan. 17, 2019

Outrage from the sexual revolutionaries as Second Lady Karen Pence will teach at school that affirms historic Christian teachings on sexual ethicsWashington Post (Eli Rosenberg) — The school that hired Karen Pence requires applicants to disavow gay marriage, trans identityBBC — Vice-president's wife Karen Pence to teach at anti-LGBT schoolPolitico (Rebecca Morin) — Karen Pence to teach at school that bans gay students, parents, employees

Parental rights, religious liberty, and homeschooling: Why it’s dangerous and unsustainable to ground fundamental rights in a secular worldviewBBC — Home education: Court rules against German Christian family

Why divorce is never as smooth as the Bezos announcement tries to makes it appearWall Street Journal (Laura Stevens and Sara Randazzo) — Bezos Divorce Clouds His Stake in AmazonWall Street Journal (Elizabeth Bernstein) — The Art of the Public Divorce Announcement

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Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2019

Brexit fallout continues: Historic defeat in Parliament as vote fails and Theresa May faces no confidence voteNew York Times (Stephen Castle and Ellen Barry) — May and Brexit Face Uncertain Future After Crushing Defeat in Parliament

What’s at stake in confirmation hearings for President Trump’s nominee for Attorney General?

Another federal judge blocks religious liberty exemption for contraception mandate, setting up an even more high-stakes legal battle

Teachers strike in Los Angeles effectively shuts down nation’s second-largest school system. What’s really behind this labor dispute?New York Times (Jennifer Medina, Tim Arango, Dana Goldstein and Louis Keene) — Los Angeles Teachers Strike, Disrupting Classes for 500,000 StudentsWall Street Journal (Editorial Board) — Unions in La-La Land

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Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019

As House leaders strip Steve King of committee assignments, Christians must be clear that there is no place for any argument for racial superiorityWashington Post (Mike DeBonis) — House Republican leaders move to strip Rep. Steve King of his committee assignments over comments about white nationalism

Deep moral divide revealed by court battle over exemption to Obamacare contraceptive mandateBloomberg (Erik Larson) — Judge Blocks Trump Plan to Revoke Obamacare Contraceptive Rule

Sexual revolution marches onward, this time in California’s new framework for sexual educationEdSource (Brenda Lebsack) — Parents, educators should scrutinize concepts of gender and sexual identity in state's health education framework

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Monday, Jan. 14, 2019

Even with their promise, are reproductive technologies compatible with human dignity?Time Magazine (Alice Park) — An Experimental Procedure Could Help More Families Have Healthy Babies. But It’s Not Allowed in the U.S.

A new category of gender disappointment: Why some parents are traumatically disappointed after gender reveal partiesWashington Post (Caitlin Gibson) — It’s a boy! It’s a girl! For some parents, learning their baby’s sex is a disappointment

As public school districts allows students to register with ‘non-binary’ gender option, a major bureaucratic disconnect is exposedNew York Times (Donna De La Cruz) — Some Schools Allow Children to Register With a Gender Option Besides Girl or Boy

Why our language always reveals our hearts, and our public language reveals even moreNew York Times (Michelle Goldberg) — Rashida Tlaib Said Nothing Wrong

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Friday, Jan. 11, 2019

The moral revolution perfectly illustrated as Methodist leaders call for change on homosexuality Religion News Service (Yonat Shimron) — Methodist university presidents call on denomination to amend LGBTQ policies

Transgender people welcomed into Anglican church in ‘baptism-style services’. Why this liturgical change raises huge theological questionsTelegraph (Helena Horton) — Church of England to offer baptism-style services to transgender people to celebrate their new identity for first time

Has acceptance of LGBT identity become 'too firmly established to dislodge'? Christianity Today (Kate Shellnut) — Going Dutch: Netherlands Imports Nashville Statement ControversyThe Economist (Erasmus) — In the easy-going Netherlands, two worlds have clashed

Meditation in the modern age: Deepak Chopra has not just become a tech evangelist, but also an investor in Silicon ValleyWashington Post (Geoffrey A. Fowler) — Deepak Chopra has a prescription for what ails technology

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Thursday, Jan. 10, 2019

After trying to reinvent itself, Planned Parenthood doubles down on their “core mission” as an abortion providerBuzzfeed (Ema O'Connor) — Planned Parenthood’s New President Wants To Focus On Nonabortion Health CareWashington Times (Jessica Chasmar) — Planned Parenthood President Leana Wen: Abortion is our 'core mission'

New York Times reveals that it’s not very healthy to be a woman, particularly a pregnant woman, who works for Planned ParenthoodNew York Times (Natalie Kitroeff and Jessica Silver-Greenberg) — Planned Parenthood Is Accused of Mistreating Pregnant Employees

What New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s commitment to expanded abortion rights tells us about the modern Democratic PartyNew York Times (Vivian Wang) — As Supreme Court Shifts Under Trump, Cuomo Vows to Expand Abortion Rights

Can California move even further left? Gavin Newsom thinks so and has a plan to do just thatNew York Times (Adam Nagourney and Jose A. Del Real) — Gavin Newsom Takes Over as California Governor and Pledges Fight for Equality

German reporter accused of making up facts in characterization of rural America. What does this tell us about truth and why it matters?Wall Street Journal (Bojan Pancevski and Sara Germano) — Germany’s Der Spiegel Says Reporter Made Up Facts

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