Famed Yale professor quits believing Darwin’s theories

It is well-known that Darwinism is taking something of a battering in the academy. Fewer and fewer consider it a credible explanation of origins. Here is one such example.

Make Sunday mornings uncomfortable

‘This Sunday, let’s take a risk. Let’s reach across the small divides to others as we imitate the one who spanned the great divide for us. And let’s urge our friends to do the same, because the harvest in our gatherings is plentiful.’

A Reformed Ministry – And some practical problems

This article was originally published in 1958. Change jacket and jeans for joggers and a t-shirt and it could have been written yesterday. ‘I commenced what I believe to be a Reformed and Biblical ministry. As problems have arisen it has often been a joy to read some timely word in a Christian book, and particularly from Reformed authors. But on certain practical problems of everyday pastoral experience it has become clear that there are no “pat” answers and on some I still have very little light at all. So I am raising a few of my problems here. The questions I have in mind would not have arisen if the ministry had not been Reformed.’

The millennial pastor and the looming midlife crisis

‘I think we have drunk the extra-Biblical vision kool-aid and it has infected almost every area of life. To make it in the modern pastoral world today the pastor has to have a vision. You have to cast vision and get people to buy into the vision. You have to get a vision and go for it! We even have to get a vision for our own life… We need to slay that “vision” dragon.’

Why niceness weakens our witness

‘Niceness is one of the reasons our gospel message is uncompelling and our witness limp. Niceness is a false form of spiritual formation that has crept into the church, seduced Jesus’ followers, and taken much of the power out of our lives. It is one of our generation’s favorite idols, and it is high past time to name it. After observing the fruit of this false idol in my own life, here’s what I have concluded: I cannot follow Jesus and be nice.’

Some thoughts on Keswick

Al Gooderham offers some reflections on a week at the Keswick Convention. One of our podcasts, that will be coming out in a couple of weeks, is on a similar theme. 

From the archive: The problem with the Pope’s call for a new translation of the Lord’s prayer

‘We typically translate scripture, try to understand it on its own terms and then handle the theological implications. We do not determine our theological position and then twist scripture in order to suit our predetermined views. Interestingly, Francis is suggesting precisely the kind of tactic beloved of progressive liberal Christians who are currently working to undercut millennia old biblical teachings to suit their favoured theological predilections. For a church that supposedly stands on the motto semper eadem (forever the same) it is remarkably close in method to that employed by those bent on changing all doctrine that does not accord with current cultural orthopraxy.’