Category Archives: Witnesses

August 20, 2013

Embarrassing Witnesses

By John Paine

“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”
Matthew 10:16 (ESV)

One the greatest joys we have in producing this blog is sharing material from authors, pastors, thinkers, and theologians who are insightful and effective witnesses for Jesus Christ.  Whether you read these posts as a committed Christian or a scathing skeptic, we appeal to your intellect “with gentleness and respect,” as prescribed in 1 Peter 3:15.

We try to keep things positive, partly because so much of the negative passion that comes out in contemporary writing is self-defeating, but mostly because of the love that is modeled for us by Jesus Christ. We have produced lists of resources, people, and tools that—in addition to the material shared in individual posts—can help you discover the veracity of the Scriptures.

But…much as we would like never to write an unkind word, Jesus also modeled (in fact commanded) discernment.

There are people who make being a disciple of Jesus Christ much more difficult than it should be for the rest of us.  Some have large media outlets (even universities) behind them.  Some have presidential-sized egos and ambitions.  Some, quite frankly, are weirdoes and snake oil salesmen.  Some have been caught perpetrating scams.  Some have been investigated by the U.S. Senate for their overseas dealings or their accumulation of personal wealth while operating under the guise of tax-exempt ministries.  The common thread is a thirst for affluence, power, or attention (and strangely enough, an appetite for expensive jets). Continue reading

2 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Witnesses

August 11, 2013

Wisdom: John R. W. Stott

By Clarke Morledge
John R.W. Stott, author of the classic introduction to the Christian faith, Basic Christianity.

John R.W. Stott, author of the classic introduction to the Christian faith, Basic Christianity.

I fondly remember listening to John Robert Walmsley Stott teaching tapes in college some thirty years ago. Stott was a staple speaker at InterVarsity Christian Fellowship conferences in the last third of the 20th century. Verse by verse, Stott would calmly expound each point in the biblical text. He was not flashy, but in his eloquent British voice he was passionate about gaining an in-depth perspective on God’s Word. Stott died a few years ago at age 90, on July 27, 2011.

John Stott still embodies biblical wisdom for me. He was scholarly but still had a pastor’s heart that enabled him to care for people. How do the great truths of the Bible impact not only the way I am to think, but the way I am to live as a Christian? In the dozens of books and biblical commentaries Stott authored, he tackled tough issues with day-to-day applications in a tender and very practical way.

In celebration of Stott’s contribution to the church, Christian Audio is offering a FREE audio download of Stott’s classic book, Basic Christianity, during the month of August, 2013.

Continue reading

2 Comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Witnesses

July 17, 2013

Examples and Warnings

By John Paine
  • These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
    1 Corinthians 10:11 (NIV84)
Kisses

Essential Tools

Melinda Penner has a poignant observation on the Stand to Reason blog this morning, about a recent post by Rachael Slick—the daughter of apologist Matt Slick, the founder of CARM.

CARM is one of the sites I use frequently in my devotional research. I value their work, and respect their opinions. Sometimes they make me uneasy, but that’s Veracity—we don’t have to accept everything someone thinks, or their style, to benefit from their example or teaching. We’re about sharing resources, not telling people what to think.

Rachael Slick’s post, describing her upbringing and journey into atheism, is undoubtedly heartbreaking for her parents. As Melinda Penner notes, the post is one-sided. That it garnered over 2,300 comments in two days on the atheist channel of Patheos.com demonstrates the voracity of atheist sentiments in our culture. (If we accept the Great Commission and are laboring only in fields full of Christians, here’s a wake-up call.)

Melinda’s observation is that there is no Gospel in Rachael Slick’s story. How anyone can learn 800 Bible verses and all the apologetic doctrine she describes without getting the Gospel is…(I don’t have an adequate adjective).

Dick Woodward has a lot to say about examples and warnings in the Bible. A few months ago, Dick and I were talking about Matthew 23 and the Law of God. Dick made the point that, “The Law of God must always be run through the Love of God.”

I couldn’t help thinking about those words as I read Rachael Slick’s story. I’m not judging Matt Slick and the way he raised his family. I will take this example and apply it to the relationships in my life, particularly where I have a tendency to make a point or press an agenda without stopping to love the other person first. One more time for my own edification—I will try to do better at loving the other person first.

The Apostle John quoted Jesus, “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35, NIV84). The Apostle Paul put it even more strongly, “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself though love” (Galatians 5:6b, NIV84).

Thank you Rachael Slick for the example and warning—not about how you or your dad might have messed up, but about how less important an agenda is compared to a heart.

4 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in Witnesses

July 10, 2013

Teenagers with Disabilities: Amplifying Our Witness

By Clarke Morledge
Ben Conner's latest book, Amplifying Our Witness, is a wonderful primer in doing ministry to an often neglected community: adolescents with developmental disabilities.

Ben Conner’s latest book, Amplifying Our Witness, is a wonderful primer in doing ministry to an often neglected community: adolescents with developmental disabilities.

How many young people today do you know that wrestle with Asperger’s syndrome, cerebral palsy, or Down’s syndrome? How many parents do you know are utterly consumed by the developmental challenges faced by their teenage sons and daughters that keep them from fitting in with their age group?

Benjamin T. Conner has been a long time friend of mine in Young Life in Williamsburg, Virginia. Over the past few years, Ben has been leading the Capernaum ministry, a branch of Young Life dedicated to reaching out to adolescents who struggle with developmental disabilities. In his latest book, Amplifying our Witness, Ben cites an alarming statistic: nearly 20% of all adolescents today are diagnosed with some type of developmental disability. One in five teenagers today deal with issues that make them noticeably different from the rest of their peers. How can the Christian community effectively minister to these young people in need, as well as the families that seek to support them?
Continue reading

2 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Topics, Witnesses

June 27, 2013

Rosaria Butterfield – Hospitality and the Unlikely Convert

By Clarke Morledge
Rosaria Butterfield - An unlikely convert to Christian faith, touched by the art of hospitality.

Rosaria Butterfield – An unlikely convert to Christian faith, touched by the art of hospitality.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past fifteen years, you probably know that American public opinion has been shifting dramatically within the past few years to support same-sex marriage.

Given the current cultural trajectory, many observers remark that it is inevitable that gay and lesbian marriages will become widely accepted, at least legally, across large sections of America. Many critics of a traditional reading of Scripture regarding homosexuality argue that  finally “the train has left the station” regarding same-sex marriage. Many would say that Evangelical Christians should join in and affirm the trend as a matter of promoting civil rights, as was the case with racial issues in the 1950’s and 1960’s. How does someone who holds to a high view of the authority of Scripture respond to these challenges in a Christ-like way?

Enter in Rosario Butterfield. She was a lesbian professor at Syracuse University, who was for years convinced that Christians publicly supporting an exclusive approach to traditional marriage were a threat to democracy and human rights.  She was an activist who was horrified by what she saw as “homophobia” and worked aggressively to try to stamp it out. But something unlikely happened along the way.
Continue reading

1 Comment   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Witnesses