Voting Guide from BW3

As the elections are fast approaching, Ben Witherington III offers sage advice in considering our voting choice here. In it he states emphatically that we should "never" vote based on one issue. What do y'all think?

The Importance of Seeds

A very important part of sustainable development is having good seeds. I'm no agriculturalist at all, but I know that having quality seeds can make a huge difference in whether a farmer can support his family or not. Checkout this article on seed banks with the provocative title: "Sowing for Apocalypse."

Thanks to Tech.Samaritan for directing me to this article.

NoiseTrade Widget

"God's Chemo for My Cancered Soul"- Check it out

J. I. Packer has a little article (a reflection really) in Christian History magazine called "God's Chemo for My Cancered Soul." He reflects on the mentoring he received from the writings of the Puritan theologian John Owen and the impact it had on his daily walk and his struggle with sin.

A Quote on Theology

What do you think of this quote? How do we preserve the gospel? Is "preserve" even the right word?

"The great theologians of each generation have realized that merely
repeating particular formulations inherited from previous generations
would serve only to preserve the gospel by petrifying it. Fear can
easily drive us to treat our theological propositions as fossils,
unearthed from a privileged period in church history and placed in an
ecclesiastical museum, quarantined from the polluted air of cultural
anxiety that might contribute to its deterioration." F. LeRon Shults, Reforming the Doctrine of God, 201

Engaging Postmodernism, Not Running From It Or Decrying It

Andrew Jones has written a response to the first two chapters of Carl Raschke's latest book, GloboChrist: The Great Commission Takes a Postmodern Turn. Here is a snippet of Jone's response:

"Carl’s contribution here is to equate being postmodern with being
global. Whatever postmodernism was, or however it has been received,
over the last few decades, it is about “globalization” in this 21st
century in which we live and more and have our being and, unlike a mere
philosophical theory, we cannot avoid it. This fact brings
postmodernism back into play for those of us that thought we could move
on."

I am often frustrated by the very superficial, naive view of postmodernism that pervades the Evangelical church. It is too often viewed as a campaign initiated by a few bumptious, atheistic, curmudgeon-ish, university professors that are out to hate on truth. I don't deny that there are these types, but that is not what postmodernism is about. More rightly understood it is a sweeping global phenomenon where worldviews are undergoing a paradigm shift. It is less due to some person's influence than due to the changing realities of the world and our reactions to it. Globalization, urbanization, and technology proliferation have changed the globe and cultures are changing as a result. In the west we are NOT transitioning from a Christian worldview to an anti-Christian one. We are, instead, transitioning from a modernist worldview to postmodern worldviews (the plural is intentional). Any worldview is deeply troubled by our tainted perspectives and agendas (one effect of sin). And yet the good news can be translated and embraced by those in any worldview. Of course those that really emerse themselves in the good news begin to exhibit a transformed worldview. But even then, this transformed worldview will be shaped by the background worldview.

I have posted remarks like this before and so I apologize for the repitition. It is one those issues that periodically makes me emotional. Postmodernism is here and is impacting people's worldviews. We need to spend less time attacking postmodernism and more time exhibiting and communicating the good news of Jesus in ways that people living in this emerging worldview can understand.