Aaron Armstrong

bloggingtheologically.com

Church

Links I like (3/15)

by

Links I like (2018 edition)

Does Hebrews 6 Teach that We Should Move On from the Gospel?

Jared Wilson:

And yet, the apostle Paul tells us in the opening verses of 1 Corinthians 15 that the gospel is of first importance. And I don’t believe he means initial importance but primary (central) importance. This is why he’s “reminding” the Corinthians about it. Over and over again, Paul instructs his readers to only hold true to what they’ve already attained, to lay hold of what has laid hold of them . . . and so forth. So I don’t believe the author of Hebrews is telling us in Hebrews 6 that we graduate from the gospel to other things.

So to what does Hebrews 6:1-2 refer?

Why do preschoolers need to study the book of Judges?

This was a great conversation between me, Brian and Karen Jones. Check it out!

Famous Christian Quotes . . . That Aren’t Real

Trevin Wax:

As someone who has sometimes passed along “fake quotes” without knowing it, I’ve started a collection so that others will know about them and stop spreading them. (Thomas Kidd offers a good suggestion for figuring out if a quote is real before passing it on.)

Christians care about truth. We shouldn’t spread quotes, no matter how good, if they’re not real. Here are some to avoid.

The Father Himself Loves You

David McLemore:

We doubt the love of God because we know who we really are. But the image we paint of ourselves is far better than the dim reality. God sees through it. We see the outward appearance even of our inward parts because we hold the brush, but God sees the heart.

Don Whitney on Family Devotions

I appreciated this video.

Links I like (1/25)

by

We Can’t Save Our Kids

Jamie Ivey:

As a parent, I sometimes fall into that trap of scaring my children into salvation. I mean, what Christian parent doesn’t want their children to follow Jesus?  We all do, and if we’re honest we would save them if we could. But we can’t. As much as I want to make my children good disciples of Jesus, the truth is that I can’t. Only God can call their names. I can’t get them on the guest list, or have them say enough of the right words, or even have them pray a prayer that will get them salvation. It’s out of my hands

How Can I Leave My Church Well?

Tim Challies:

If God is Not In Control of Your Pain

Kris Sinclair:

Although there isn’t a book, sermon, or blog post that can single-handedly address each of these issues, I believe there is a certain sentence that applies to any kind of pain and suffering. There are seven words that, when viewed correctly through the lens of Scripture, can bring hope, peace, and purpose to any situation, no matter how severe. For the terminally ill cancer patient, for the lonely single mother, for the bullied child and the heartbroken couple, for the Syrian refugee and the paraplegic, you should know: God is in control of your pain.

The Time I Went Under Church Discipline

Jeff Medders:

Church discipline isn’t just the final stage we often think of—removing from membership, fellowship, and so on. I went under church discipline in the booth of The Nook Cafe. It didn’t go all the way to the end because my brothers helped me. Our Lord loved me.

How Do Churches End Up with Domineering Bullies for Pastors?

Sam Allberry:

We are, sadly, familiar with pastors having to leave the ministry because of sexual impropriety. These incidents seem to occur with such frequency as to be barely newsworthy to a watching world.

But another, equally sad trend has developed in recent years: Pastors having to leave for bullying.

Links I like (3/27)

by

Links I like (2018 edition)

Podcast: On the latest episode of The Hero of the Story, Brian and I discuss gospel-motivated generosity, what it is and what it isn’t, from 2 Corinthians 8-9. This was a fun and challenging episode for us. I hope you’ll check it out.

What Counts as a “Gospel Issue?”

Tim Challies:

As I searched my library and Google Ngram Viewer, I found the phrase “gospel issue” has been used quite often over time, but that its meaning has shifted. In the past, it was used in at least four ways: 1) Authors would teach how the gospel issues in obedience (e.g. “Unless the gospel issues in new lifestyle it means very little.”); 2) periodicals would sometimes announce a gospel issue dealing with the gospel of Jesus Christ; 3) magazines would release a gospel issue focused on gospel music; 4) missionaries would tell how the message of the gospel issues forth through their labor (e.g. “From hence may the gospel issue and pervade all India.”).

Yet none of those quite captures how it is used today, and that always makes me just a tad cautious. I want to be careful adding new terms to our collective lexicon, and especially when we are assigning them a lot of importance (e.g. “gospel-centered”).

Deep Darkness Before Dawn

Trevin Wax:

The prophetic books of the Old Testament don’t always lend themselves to easy application. When I preach, I try to set these ancient prophecies in context, explain their meaning, and show how some have already been fulfilled in Christ.

The prophets are illuminating, yes. But immediately applicable? Not always . . . unless we broaden our view of application and consider the story behind the symbols.

A World to Work and Watch

Rachel Rose:

Last year, my husband and I were sent on a trip to the Holy Land. It felt surreal to walk along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, knowing that Jesus might have walked in the same spot a few thousand years ago. I found myself envisioning Jesus everywhere we went, trying to figure out what it would have been like to be there with Him or to know what He was thinking when He visited those places. The landscapes of Israel are absolutely breathtaking. Did Jesus also find the Sea of Galilee beautiful? Or did He view it in a utilitarian way, to be used for survival, ministry, and miracles?

U.S. Church Attendance May be Declining, But Not Among Evangelicals

Aaron Earls:

Many have spoken as if evangelicals are disappearing from the American religious landscape. According to analysis of the data from the General Social Survey, however, the share of Americans who attend an evangelical Protestant church has been consistent for the past 20 years.

It’s Time to Reckon with Celebrity Power

Andy Crouch:

Celebrities embody who we aspire to become and invite us—so it seems—into the inner circle of their lives. We are their kitchen cabinet, we are so close to being in their Inner Ring. They are so disarmingly transparent with us. They tell us so much of the truth. They live in our own imaginations, their faces more familiar to us than our neighbors’ or even some of those we call, loosely, in the American way, our friends. They inspire us, ordinary in their extraordinariness, assuring us that they are people like us and thus that we can be people like them. Above all, they beckon us to come closer.

The Gospel From Womb to Tomb

David Murray:

Every age and stage of life has its own special trials and temptations. The young are called to flee youthful lusts (2 Tim. 2:22). The middle-aged are warned about the choking cares of this life (Mark 4:19).

Even seniors have their own age-specific temptations.

Seven words you should never say to creatives

A favorite from the archives:

For years, I worked as a graphic designer. And even though I stopped working as one almost eight years ago, I still work with graphic designers. And I work with writers and videographers. And the one thing I learned very early on was there are some things you should just never, ever say to any sort of creative individual.

If you say, for example, “This is what you’re giving me? I could’ve done that,” you’re likely not going to have a good day. And the person working for you will no longer be there within three months. But there are worse, although most are too crass to publish on a Christian blog. However, among the worst things you can say to any sort of creative individual are the following seven words.