Amazing quote from the C o S debacle.

You can almost smell the stench of rhetoric (albeit on both sides most likely) when ordarined ministers are willing to say things such as:

"Scripture does not address homosexuality, much less condemn it."

-Reverend Lindsay Biddle

That's almost an unbelievable statement, except that she apparently really did say it. Forget the 'condemn it' aspect. How could any person responsible for the Gospel be so irresponsible, regardless of which side she fell on the issue? I underestimated the level of theological engagement in the CoS (i.e. I assumed it was at a basic level across the board). But this issue is about polity not sexuality and that has now been backwardly decided.

Mark Driscoll's scathing review of the Aussie Church

All though he's a bit high on American entrepreneurialism, it's still really good stuff to think about. Here are some of my favorite points:

8. Many of you are afraid of the Holy Spirit. You don't know what to do with Him, so the trinity is Father, Son and Holy Bible. You are so reactionary to pentecostalism that you do not have a robust theology of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit calls people into ministry. He also empowers people for ministry. You don't have to be charismatic but you should be a little charismatic, enough at least to worship God with more than just all of your mind. The word charismatic here means prosperity, excessive, bizarre. In London, it means you're not a liberal. Don't get hung up on all the terminology. Do you love the Holy Spirit? Jesus says the Holy Spirit is a 'He' and not an 'it'." Ministry cannot be done apart from the Holy Spirit – I think that is in part leading to the lack of entrepreneurialism and innovation, because if it's not already done and written down, you're suspicious of it.

11. There is a propensity to call the trained rather than train the called. People need to be tested and proved by church leaders but ministry needs to begin with a calling. There should be an innate sense of desire, rather than going to college, then being trained, then being called into ministry. Colleges that have alternative delivery systems, for example part-time options, will be more effective in training the called. Four years in college without sufficient practical experience can lead to idealism and self-righteousness, where young men critique older men who've done something. That then gives the young men the false impression that they themselves are doing something. Pastor Driscoll said Mars Hill had grown to 8000 by the time he finished his Masters degree in Theology. "Sometimes you don't know what you don't know until you're doing ministry – and then you're more teachable than ever."

14. There is a proclivity to try to raise ministers before making them husbands and fathers. Many men delay marriage and children so they can enter college and ministry. They need to learn to be good husbands and fathers and shepherd a little flock. If they are not good husbands and fathers, they are not going to be good ministers. "In fact… being a husband and father trains you more for ministry than any college." You should really press young men to take responsibility early, be good husbands and fathers, and then encourage them into ministry. Otherwise their priorities end up being God, ministry, wife, children, rather than God, wife, children, ministry. If you delay marriage for ministry, you are organising a paradigm that is dangerous.

There entirety is here (ht: euangelion)

Struggling with Covenant Baptism

For those of us who have wrestled through the issue of Covenant Baptism (i.e. baptizing all legitimate covenant community members as a sacrament that supersedes circumcision), Michael Bird has some excellent comments. He is a baptist, but points out some plainly obvious way in which the gap between covenant baptism and believers baptism is not as far apart as one might think. Read it HERE for yourself.

I have already worked out my convictions on the matter (after a 3 year intensive struggle), but am more interested in the unity of the church given the diversity of sacramentologies. At what point can I celebrate baptism with a Pentecostal or Baptist and especially vice versa (at what point could they celebrate a convenant baptism of a child?)? In the grand paraphrase of the Reformation: Dunk em' all and let God sort them out! ;)

The point that Michael Bird does not mention (but I'm sure that he's aware of it) is that the 'dunk em' all' mentality is everpresent in both sacramentologies. Sans the extreme catechetics of the early church being 2-3 years prior to baptism, most pastors I know in most traditions will error on the side of baptism when it comes to a confessing 'believer'.

House for sale in Maplewood (St. Louis)

If you know anyone intereseted, here's our listing.

Off to UK and Kenya

I'm heading out on Wednesday to St. Andrews, Scotland in order to scope out our new home and make some contacts. Then, I'm off to western Kenya to do some teaching in hermeneutics and the Pentateuch for rural pastors. I'm really looking forward to this as it is humbling, rewarding, and just plain good to be with brothers in Christ who are working in very difficult conditions. Some of these men will walk up to 100km just to sit for a week of teaching.

We just put our house on the market (yesterday) and I am taking my EPC ordination exams today and tomorrow. Needless to say, things should (please God) slow down a bit after I get back.