Aaron Armstrong's Blog, page 382
March 24, 2012
Purge the Conscience of Dead Works
Our conscience must of necessity be first purged from dead works, that we may serve the living God. And this is done by actual remission of sin, procured by the blood of Christ, and manifested to our consciences, as appeared by Christ's dying for this end (Heb. 9:14, 15; 10:1, 2, 4, 14, 17, 22). That conscience, by which we judge ourselves to be under the guilt of sin and the wrath of God, is accounted an evil conscience in Scripture, though it perform its office truly, because it is caused...
Links I Like (Weekend Edition)
Amber Van Schooneveld:
There are many reasons we tell and retell single stories. Black and white is simply easier to write than grey – and it's snappier too. Complexities muddle writing, whereas simplicity is vivid. The single story is dramatic, it is emotional, and it gets us hopping. It motivates us to just do something! The single story sells.
But the single story is also misleading. It is over-simplified. And ultimately it is an insult and a disrespect to those...
March 23, 2012
Should Christians "Name Names"?
Maybe it's me, but the idea of "naming names"—calling out a specific pastor, teacher or author as promoting false doctrine and heresy—has increasingly felt awkward to me. Part of the reason, I suspect, is that I've seen very few examples of it done well. Generally, those naming names seem to be folks that Paul warns about in the pastoral epistles—men who love to stir up controversy and division who we should have nothing to do with (1 Tim. 6:4; Titus 3:10). They appear to jump on a video...
Links I Like
Gloria Furman begins a new series at the TGC blog:
I had heard all the rumors about pastor's wives. They're supposed to play the piano, lead prayer meetings, organize the Christmas play, supply a baby to be Baby Jesus for the Christmas play, and perhaps have several more kids to be shepherds and wisemen for the play, too. . . . I felt that my husband was very well suited to be a pastor for a congregation of people from more than 50 different nationalities...
March 22, 2012
Book Review: Who Am I by Jerry Bridges
"Who am I?" It's a question that every single one of us has likely asked at one time or another. And with good reason; understanding who we are—defining our identity—completely transforms how we act, think and speak. It is no wonder then, that we so many appeals within Scripture to our identity as being "in Christ." We are to remember that we are new creations in Christ, made free in Christ, made alive in Christ, made wise in Christ… the list is (seemingly) endless.
Yet, many of us struggle...
Links I Like
Possibly the most important thing to come out of the missional conversation is the truth that all believers are missionaries in their country, culture, and context. This has contributed mightily to our exploration of cross-cultural mission work within our own cities and communities, leading us to embrace cultural distinctives rather than judging them. More and more, Christ's followers see themselves, accurately, as...
March 21, 2012
The Difference Between Trust and Faith
The Christian message contains more than the fact of the resurrection. It is not enough to know that Jesus is alive; it is not enough to know that a wonderful Person lived in the first century of the Christian era and that Person still lives, somewhere and somehow, today. Jesus lives, and that is well; but what good is it to us ? We are like the inhabitants of far-off Syria or Phoenicia in the days of His flesh. There is a wonderful Person who can heal every ill of body and mind. But, alas...
Links I Like
Jason Helopoulos:
As Christians we must understand the secularist mindset and its desire to place religion, morality, and values in a distant upper chamber separated from facts and truth. And armed with such understanding and knowledge, we must stand against this agenda. One must understand that the debate about homosexuality is not tangential. It is not a "mere" moral issue as if it did not bear upon truth. If we give in to the argument that homosexuality...
March 20, 2012
What Can I Do About Poverty?
When we look at the needs of the poor and the vast number of organizations seeking to meet those needs, it's easy to become overwhelmed. In order to help you as you evaluate how you can best serve the poor, I want to offer you the following practical reminders.
Not all Christians are called to serve the poor in the same way or to the same extent.While every believer is called to show concern for the poor, the practical expressions of that concern will differ from one person to another. Some...
Links I Like
Joel Miller:
Bearded Gospel Men: WycliffeWe live and worship God in community because we can't see enough of him on our own. Christians who isolate themselves from the body are consigning themselves to a peculiarly distorted and limited view of God.
Joe Thorn:
Wycliffe is best known for overseeing the the translation of the Latin Bible into English. Completed in the 1380′s this was the first full Bible available in the English language. As huge of an undertaking it...
