Discernment bloggers have contributed to the end of discernment because they have damaged the reputation of the idea itself. In today’s climate, we almost cannot engage in true discernment without being associated with cynical and pugnacious modes of argument.
Should I Start a Blog Or Write for Edited Websites?
Are personal blogs dead? And are edited ministry websites like Desiring God or The Gospel Coalition the only way forward? We might be tempted to the issue an either-or matter when in reality it’s not. Personal blogs and edited websites have different and complementary purposes.
I have a column at TGC Canada and a personal blog. I do different things on each platform for different reasons. If you are asking the question of whether you should start a blog or write for an edited site, I’d recommend doing both if possible. If not possible, then consider the following purposes for each kind of platform to figure out which fits best for you.
Is Great Commission Christianity Opposed to Cosmic Redemption Christianity?
Anthony Bradley recently lamented the influence of what he calls Great Commission Christianity (GCC) because it only represents a partial understanding of the Gospel (he calls it “accidentally deficient”). What GCC misses, argues Bradley, is a right focus on the Gospel’s effect of restoring the creation. Pointedly, for Bradley, this means that GCC Christians do not prioritize social issues and so social justice.
His alternative, Cosmic Redemption Christianity (CRC), affirms what GCC does but also includes cosmic restoration. Put simply, it includes evangelism and the drive “to liberate creation from the power of the devil until Christ returns.”
Is he right? Is GCC an accidentally deficient version of Christianity? As is often the case, things are not so simple. Here’s a short review of the two sides which will hopefully clarify the current debate.
Why Complementarians Sometimes Disagree with Each Other (Or Why Some May Disagree with the Desiring God Review of Captain Marvel)
Greg Morse from Desiring God recently criticized the new Captain Marvel movie for its feminist ideology. In the review, Morse argues that men should protect women and not celebrate their male characteristics as Captain Marvel does.
Yet not all complementarians see things like Morse does. All complementarians agree that men and women differ. The question is how. Morse, for example, sees super-hero like actions as masculine, implying that the ideology of Captain Marvel makes men cowardly: “Should we so cowardly send our women to protect our children and us?”
Is he right? Before answering that question, we need to consider how and why women and men differ.
Be Gentle So That God May Grant Repentance
Paul writes to Timothy, encouraging him and explaining how Timothy ought to defend his flock against false teachers (2 Tim 2:14–19). Two particularly troublesome men, Hymenaeus and Philetus, had wrongly claimed that the resurrection already happened (2 Tim 2:18).
His advice to Timothy, however, is somewhat counter-cultural for us today. Paul tells Timothy to pursue virtue, gentleness, and patience so that God may grant Timothy’s opponents repentance.
[Read more…] about Be Gentle So That God May Grant RepentanceHow Should We Think about Christians Who Believe Historically Unorthodox Views?
One of the challenges of the twenty-first century is its theological diversity. Right now within evangelicalism, a number of theologians affirm some form of divine change or passibility. But Christianity has seen such an affirmation as a Category One breach of orthodoxy.
How should we understand this? Answer: we should be slow to speak, quick to listen, and try to get behind the language of these theologians.