R. Albert Mohler Jr.'s Blog, page 224

Thursday, Apr. 5, 2018

Did the Pope deny the existence of hell? Why much modern theology targets hell for disappearance.Wall Street Journal (Francis X. Rocca) — ‘There Is No Hell’: An Untraditional Pope, an Italian Journalist and the Quote Igniting ControversyNew York Times (Jason Horowitz) — Does Hell Exist? And Did the Pope Give an Answer?

The crisis of Catholic doctrine under Pope Francis and the lessons for evangelicals.Simon & Schuster (Ross Douthat) — To Change the Church: Pope Francis and the Future of Catholicism

The collision of biblical Christianity and the spirit of the modern age over the doctrine of hell Thomas Reese (National Catholic Reporter) — Pope Francis and hell

Vatican attempts to bolster Pope’s conservative credibility by doctoring photo of letter from BenedictAP (Nicole Winfield) — Vatican doctors photo of Benedict’s praise for Francis

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Wednesday, Apr. 4, 2018

50 years ago today, history turned on a mere moment as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, TN

Theology and the racial crisis, then and now

Why it’s significant that the BBC religion editor recognizes there is more to Easter than chocolateRadio Times (Martin Bashir) — BBC’s religion editor Martin Bashir: Why Christianity is still relevant this Easter

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Tuesday, Apr. 3, 2018

A love story that ends in suicide: New rituals around dying raise huge moral questions about the sanctity and dignity of human lifeThe Global and Mail (Kelly Grant) — Medically assisted death allows couple married almost 73 years to die together

How a reordering of the theological landscape has led to a redefinition of life and deathThe Globe and Mail (Sandra Martin) — Fight to the death: Why Canada's physician-assisted dying debate has only just begun

Abuse of junk science leads California judge to order cancer warnings on coffee: What this reveals about Americans’ chemophobiaWashington Post (Ben Guarino and Eli Rosenberg) — California ordered to add cancer warning to coffee, but the science doesn’t hold upWall Street Journal (Editors) — Attack of the Killer Cappuccino

Stephen Reinhardt, the liberal lion of California, dies at 87, but there are many cubs following close behindNew York Times (Sam Roberts) — Stephen Reinhardt, Liberal Lion of Federal Court, Dies at 87Washington Post (Staff) — Stephen Reinhardt, liberal lion of federal judiciary in California, dies at 87

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Monday, Apr. 2, 2018

On Good Friday, NPR report distorts definition of Easter, revealing extent of secularizationNPR (Vanessa Romo) — Pope To World: Hell Does ExistWashington Post (Callum Borchers) — On Good Friday, an NPR report mangles the definition of EasterNew York Times (Elisabetta Povoledo) — Pope Calls for ‘Peace in All the World’ in First Easter Message

Although the cultural conception of Christ may fascinate, only the biblical conception of Christ savesWall Street Journal (George Weigel) — The Easter Effect and How It Changed the WorldNew York Times (Jon Meacham) — Jesus Died Only to Rise Again. Where Did the Concept of the Resurrection Come From?

Can the Bible be meaningful, even if one doesn’t believe it to be true?Washington Post (Christine Emba) — You should read the Bible

Why abandoning a Scriptural understanding of ministry will inevitably lead to a very different rendering of GodNew York Times (Nicholas Kristof) — God and Her (Female) Clergy

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The Empty Tomb and the Resurrected Lord

The pattern of the Christian year is an exercise of the Church’s discipline. The annual celebrations of Christmas and Resurrection Day force the Church to ponder again the truths of Christ’s incarnation and resurrection.

Christians understand that every Lord’s Day is Resurrection Day, but this Sunday is the festival which draws all Christians face to face with the empty tomb and the truth of the resurrected Lord.

Resurrection Sunday is the central event in the church year–the climax of worship, expectation, and celebration. This celebration is also an acid test of the Church’s faithfulness and conviction.

The secular world has done its best to make a mess of Christmas, but it has largely ignored our celebration of the Resurrection. Where commercialism intrudes, it comes in the forms of eggs and chicks and rabbits–none of which claim any connection with the Resurrection. The fact is, the secular world will attempt to domesticate, commercialize, and tame the babe in the manger–but it will run at breakneck speed from the cross and the empty tomb.

That cross stands as condemnation on all human attempts at self-righteousness, and the fallen world will do all within its power to hide the cross from sight. The empty tomb is the seal and confirmation of the cross, and the world will shield its eyes.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead separates Christianity from all mere religion–whatever its form. Christianity without the literal, physical resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is merely one religion among many. “And if Christ is not risen,” said the Apostle Paul, “then our preaching is empty and your faith is in vain” [1 Corinthians 15:14]. Furthermore, “You are still in your sins!” [v. 17b]. Paul could not have chosen stronger language. “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable” [v. 19].

Yet, the resurrection of Jesus Christ has been under persistent attacks since the Apostolic age. Why? Because it is the central confirmation of Jesus’ identity as the incarnate Son of God, and the ultimate sign of Christ’s completed work of atonement, redemption, reconciliation, and salvation. Those who oppose Christ, whether first century religious leaders or twentieth century secularists, recognize the Resurrection as the vindication of Christ against His enemies.

Those who would attack the Church and reject its gospel must direct their arrows at the most crucial truth claim of the New Testament and the disciples: That Jesus Christ, having suffered death on a cross, though sinless, having borne the sins of those He came to save, having been buried in a sealed and guarded grave, was raised by the power of God on the third day.

As Paul well understood, Christianity stands or falls with the empty grave. If Christ is not raised, we are to be pitied, for our faith is in vain. Those who would preach a resurrectionless Christianity have exchanged the truth of the gospel for a lie. But, asserted Paul, Christ is risen from the dead. Our faith is not in vain, but is in the risen Lord. He willingly faced death on a cross and defeated death from the grave. The Resurrection is the ultimate sign of God’s vindication of His Son.

As John A. Broadus preached over a century ago: “It was the signed manual of the Deity, it was the seal of the Sovereign of the Universe affixed to His claim, it declared Him to be all that He had ever professed to be, and so it establishes the truth of all His teachings and the truth of the whole Christian society. The great fact that Jesus Christ rose from the dead is the central fact of the evidence of Christianity.”

Believers have no reason to be defensive concerning the Resurrection. To the contrary, any denial of the Resurrection is a denial of the Savior. The biblical evidence is overwhelming.

As the disciples preached in the earliest Christian sermons, “This Jesus God has raised up, of whom we are all witnesses . . . . Therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ” [Acts 2:32,36].

The Resurrection was not a dawning awareness of Christ’s continuing presence among the disciples, it was the literal, physical raising of Jesus’ body from the dead. The Church is founded upon the resurrected Lord, who appeared among His disciples and was seen by hundreds of others.

The Church does not have mere permission to celebrate the Resurrection, it has a mandate to proclaim the truth that God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. The resurrected Lord gave the Church a sacred commission to take the gospel throughout the world. As Paul made clear, the resurrection of Christ also comes as a comfort to the believer, for His defeat of death is a foretaste and promise of our own resurrection by His power. “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality” [1 Corinthians 15:53].

So, as the Church gathers to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we should look backward in thankfulness to that empty tomb and forward to the fulfillment of Christ’s promises in us. For Resurrection Day is not merely a celebration–it is truly preparation as well. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the promise of our resurrection from the dead, and of Christ’s total victory over sin and death. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is at the very center of the Christian gospel. The empty tomb is full of power.

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Friday, Mar. 30, 2018

Elites who call for the end of Christianity might not like what comes nextFox News (Caleb Parke) — Atheist Richard Dawkins warns against celebrating the alleged demise of Christianity in Europe

Why the Christian worldview never settles for mere happinessThe Atlantic (Lone Frank) — Can Electrically Stimulating Your Brain Make You Too Happy?

What is good about Good Friday? Reflections on the substitutionary death and bodily resurrection of Christ

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Thursday, Mar. 29, 2018

What the media coverage of a 10-year-old drag performer reveals about efforts to transform moral instinctsNew York Magazine (Lauren Levy) — 180 Minutes With Desmond Is Amazing He’s a 10-year-old drag performer, and he’s cooler than you.Daily Mail (Aoibhinn McBride) — 'You can just do you': Boy, 10, founds a drag club for KIDS so they can express themselves in a 'positive, encouraging, and safe' space

Under mandate from government, preschools in Sweden aim to ‘counteract traditional gender roles’New York Times (Ellen Barry) — In Sweden’s Preschools, Boys Learn to Dance and Girls Learn to Yell

In the name of equality, France announces mandatory school attendance for 3-year-oldsUSA Today (Elizabeth Schumacher) — This country is making school for 3-year-olds mandatory

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Wednesday, Mar. 28, 2018

The scandal no one is noticing: Pornography redefined as adult entertainmentWall Street Journal (Editorial Board) — The Tale of Stormy Donald

The normalization of pornography in American cultureWashington Post (Alyssa Rosenberg) — The most radical part of Anderson Cooper’s interview with Stormy DanielsNew York Times (Katie Van Syckle) — What It’s Like to Report About the Porn Industry

Considering the consequences of technology as the world around us embraces it indiscriminatelyWashington Post (Megan McArdle) — How safe are driverless cars? Unfortunately, it’s too soon to tell.The Atlantic (Adrienne Lafrance) — How Self-Driving Cars Will Threaten Privacy

Technology invades the kitchen: How far is too far for American familiesNew York Times (Brian X. Chen) — To Invade Homes, Tech Is Trying to Get in Your Kitchen

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Dialogue with David S. Dockery

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Tuesday, Mar. 27, 2018

The future of secularization: What trends in Europe reveal about coming generations Benedict XVI Centre for Religion and Society (Professor Stephen Bullivant) — New St Mary's Research Shows Huge Differences in the Religiosity of Young Adults across EuropeThe Guardian (Harriet Sherwood) — “Christianity as Default is Gone”: The Rise of of a non-Christian EuropeThe Telegraph (Will Heaven) — Christianity in Britain is only decades away from vanishing — but there is hope yet

Does making abortion legal really reduce the number of abortions? NBC News (Maggie Fox) — Abortion Rates Go Down When Countries Make It Legal: Report The Guardian (Jill Filipovic) — Want to Lower the Abortion Rate? Support Pro-Choice Policies

Remembering the heroes of the past: the discovery of Juneau reminds us of true sacrifice and the value of lifeNew York Times (Jacey Fortin) — Wreck of the Juneau Is Found, 76 Years After 5 Brothers Perished

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