Albert Mohler serves as the ninth president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, the flagship school of the Southern Baptist Convention. A leader among American evangelicals, Dr. Mohler was listed in a TIME magazine cover story as one of its "50 for the Future" and Christianity Today described Dr. Mohler as one of forty emerging evangelical leaders. Read more… Reformation Day 2006
We should remember that the Reformation was also, in one sense, a band of brothers -- men brought into friendship and fellowship by a common commitment to Reformation truth -- the Gospel of Christ. Thus, they were Together for the Gospel -- Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Solus Christus, Sola Scriptura, Soli Deo Gloria. May we follow in their faithful example. It is indeed a day to celebrate and an anniversary to remember. Happy Reformation Day 2006. Posted on October 31, 2006 | Link to this Post | Comments C.J. at Southern Seminary
Of course, the big question of the week was this -- What will C.J. wear? I did not worry about it, but my dear friend was concerned that he be a good guest. Frankly, I thought I would have to sneak into a funeral in Maryland to see C.J. in a coat and tie.
Enjoy the messages. I can assure you that we did. I can only hope and pray that my students will come to know friends in ministry like I have come to know in Mark, Lig, and C.J.. Thanks C.J.! And thanks to Bob Kauflin for leading us in God-centered worship through music during the week. What a gift to have Bob and C.J. together. There is something magnificant about the way Bob leads from the piano. Photo credits: Top photo, Andrew Rawls. Bottom photo, John Gill. Posted on October 29, 2006 | Link to this Post | Comments The Cutting Edge Has No EdgeLooking back farther than I would like to remember, I recall as a seminary student reading an article by Richard John Neuhaus (back when he was still a Lutheran) on the issue of relevance in ministry. In essence, Neuhaus argued that the churches most determined to be relative at all costs were destined to be the churches which were actually least relevant of all. Making an idol of relevance is a form of self delusion. Authentic relevance is represented by the transforming Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the faithful witness of the church throughout time. Mark, I really appreciated your words concerning “assumptions and pursuits.” I think you are absolutely right in suggesting that the big division among evangelical pastors today is between those who pursue faithfulness, assuming that faithfulness will produce relevance; and those who pursue relevance, hoping that faithfulness will emerge out of that quest. You have provided a wonderful description of how this is realized in the ministry of the local church. So many of the issues we deal with today seem to be focused on those who, in their own way, argue that we should pursue relevance by putting ourselves and our churches out on the “cutting edge” of ministry. If this means taking every opportunity to extend faithful witness and ministry in the name of Christ, then count me in.
Regrettably, it often becomes a rationale for something very different in the end. Repeating that slogan, many pastors and churches, along with an array of parachurch ministries, push themselves into modes of ministry that are based more on cultural analysis and pragmatism than in a clear biblical and theological understanding of the nature and purpose of the church – and the integrity of the Gospel.
The other problem with the “cutting edge” is that it really has no edge. The culture is moving at warp speed in so many different directions that absolute relevance is a mirage. Faithfulness to the Gospel produces the only relevance that matters. Of course, we use forms of language and mechanisms of communication that others can understand, but the basic structure of our ministry and the substance of our beliefs are unchanged and unchanging – and still ever relevant.
Those who push themselves ever onward toward the cutting edge will find themselves falling off the edge. Mark, thanks also for your beautiful testimony, “Why I Am a Southern Baptist.” It really is a wonderful piece that reflects your heart and witness. Lig, thanks for taking time out of your summer travels to join me on yesterday’s edition of the radio program. Thank you for your bold witness concerning the recent General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA). Posted on June 30, 2006 | Link to this Post | Comments The Glory of God and the Question of GenderThanks, Mark and Lig for two outstanding posts on the issue of complementarianism. Let me deal with the gender question Mark raised for a moment. He made a generalization, of course. Nevertheless, I agree with Mark and I believe the generalization to be generally true. Younger complementarians seem to be more concerned to contend for complementarianism than (some . . most?) older complementarians. I see this as part of the larger pattern visible in the church today. I can see it in the students at the seminary and I can sense it among younger, seriously-minded pastors. Put bluntly, this younger generation has been, of necessity, ready to assume a counter-cultural posture and then to find a way to contend for their convictions in the context of hostility, derision, and worse. In a very real sense, this generation has been swimming upstream all their lives. They know nothing of the cultural Christianity their parents took for granted. Even in pockets like the deep South, where cultural Christianity still remains a factor, young Christians soon find themselves facing a very different context when they go to the university, move to a large city, or enter the professional world. Their parents, on the other hand, may find a counter-cultural posture to be strange and difficult. They may share the same convictions concerning God's gift of gender and sexuality, but they are less enthusiastic about standing apart from the dominant culture. When they went to seminary and graduate school, egalitarianism appeared to be ascendant. A couple of additional suggestions would involve marriage, parenthood, and theological vision. Many younger pastors are in the midst of getting married, establishing a household, producing and raising children, and all that comes with this season of life. Given the shape of the larger culture, these young complementarians have had to think through all the issues and then forge their own way. Having forged their convictions in the midst of an adversarial culture, they understand that young couples need explicit and clear support and encouragement in order to obey Scripture and establish marriages and homes that reflect these commitments. Further, they have heard and read all the (aging) arguments on behalf of egalitarianism, and they grow frustrated with what they (correctly) see as a pattern of exegetical and theological corner-cutting. They are convinced that complementarianism is the winning argument. They are not interested in playing defense. Finally, younger pastors have had the encouragement of those who have been pointing evangelical Christians to a comprehensive vision of the glory of God in all things -- and this produces a commitment to complementarianism that goes far beyond just "getting it right." They want to display God's glory in their marriages and in their churches on these very issues, knowing that nothing less is at stake. Once again, they are right. Our belief that this is a watershed issue explains why an explicit affirmation of complementarianism appears in our statement. Posted on June 9, 2006 | Link to this Post | Comments Welcome to LouisvilleGreetings all, and welcome to Louisville. For those of you who are here, welcome in person. For those unable to attend "Together for the Gospel," we hope you will be with us in prayer. We are so encouraged to see so many pastors arriving here. Here's a personal request from the Louisvillian among the T4TG Band of Brothers: Please leave a good impression for the Gospel by your presence here. Be kind to all, including the waiters and waitresses, hotel staff, and others. We should be ashamed, brothers, to know that service personnel often cringe to see pastors arrive. Thank you in advance for your good witness through kindness. Our hope is that you will all be fed, strengthened, challenged, and encouraged by your time at T4TG. We are expecting great days together. A couple of short notes: [1] Mark, what did you get, the world's dinkiest iPod? You have listed a paltry selection of (very fine) classical music. Get with it. Where is Bach's "St. Matthew Passion," Mozart's 'Requiem" and "Jupiter," Gorecki's Third Symphony ("Sorrowful Songs") or anything by Biber or Gabrielli? Where is Haydn's "Creation," Handel's "Judas Maccabaeus" or Bach's magnificent organ music? Beethoven's Sixth Symphony? Handel's "Saul?" That poor iPod cries out for these and so much more. Feed it, lest it die of embarrassment. [2] CJ, at my Weblog today I posted a series of links to maps detailing the concentration of Christian denominations (and other groups) across the United States. Here is the link to my posting. Here, for example, is the map of Baptists in the U.S., who have congregated together in a clump, and here are the Presbyterians, who were predestined to be more evenly dispersed. Where are the Sovereign Grace churches? I want a map. Get your people right on this. Posted on April 26, 2006 in General | Link to this Post | Comments Dever on the AtonementDon't miss Mark's article, "Nothing But the Blood," in the current edition of Christianity Today. Mark has done a great job of laying out the objections to the substitutionary character of Christ's atonement, and then of answering these objections with solid argument. At the same time, he acknowledges that no single metaphor or model is sufficient to describe Christ's atonement for sin. The issue is the indispensability and centrality of substitution as a biblical theme. Thanks for your faithfulness, Mark. I will be in Sandestin, Florida this week for a meeting of large-church pastors in the Southern Baptist Convention. More later. Posted on April 17, 2006 | Link to this Post | Comments The Meaning of the GospelI write this early in the morning of Resurrection Sunday, a Lord's Day like every other, lived and celebrated in the light of the glorious resurrection of Christ from the dead. What a time to consider the meaning of the Gospel. C. J. raised this question, and it is so vast that it defies summarization. And yet, if we cannot summarize the Gospel, we surely do not understa |
With gratefulness to God we celebrate the 489th anniversary of Martin Luther's posting of his famous 95 Theses, calling for reformation in the church. The young Augustinian monk put his life on the line and we now know that a great Reformation was begun -- a reformation that would lead to a recovery of Gospel and truth.
C.J. came to Southern Seminary and Boyce College this week and took the campus by storm. You can download or listen to his excellent messages here. As always, C.J. brought his heart and passion to the proclamation of biblical truth. I was so glad to introduce this dear friend to the Southern Seminary family.
Nope. He appeared in Alumni Chapel in sartorial splendor. Here is proof. What a friend. What a preacher. What a servant. What else can I say?
