How Post-modern pseudo-prophecy dishonours God
‘If their prediction proves correct, it confirms they were speaking for God, and you should consider the utterances to be authoritative; if their prediction proves false, it merely shows they gave a human—and perhaps partially mistaken—report of something the Holy Spirit brought to their mind. This motte-and-bailey approach is the reason pseudo-prophets like Vallotton believe they can make inaccurate claims that supposedly came from God and yet still be credibly considered to have the gift of prophecy.’
On following mediocre leaders
Tim Challies: ‘The fact is, there are not a lot of great leaders. That’s true in the corridors of power, in the workplace, in the church, in the home. Just like, by definition, most of us are of average height and average intelligence, most of us are of average leadership ability. A few are brilliant, a few are awful, but most fall somewhere in the middle—average, adequate, mediocre. The question each of us has to consider is this: How do we follow mediocre leaders?’
Winding back the hyperbole
‘It will be important to recognise that we may see the actions of others as either rash on the one hand or over cautious on the other but in fact there hasn’t been compromise with the world, nor has then been doctrinal error here. There have simply been different views about how best to honour God in our worship and love our neighbours – to be good witnesses during trying times. People have come to different conclusions in their consciences, often shaped by their contexts and we should be able to be okay with that.’
Of Sabbath stick and stones
‘Like traveling down a highway on a vacation trip, only to come upon a grisly accident, reading through the Scriptures can have a jarring impact upon you at times. A short passage in Numbers 15 is one such spot. A man is stoned for gathering sticks on the Sabbath Day.’
Expecting less from church
Ed Welch: ‘Why do we go to church? It’s a question worth revisiting more often, especially now. It raises the related question: What are we expecting? What implicit—and wrong—standards do I have for judging a church?’
Refugee? Mixed-race? Please stop co-opting Christ
‘Messing with the Gospel story to convince someone to accept it, or worse yet, to win a political argument is counterproductive and ultimately unbiblical. It cheapens the Gospel and distorts the true mission of Jesus Christ.’
From the archive: What should we make of dreams?
‘What are we to make of dreams? The Ligonier answer was to simply dismiss all dreams as false. For all the reasons David Robertson outlines here, I cannot see how that is a Biblical (and, therefore, a right) answer. In all my discussions with people, my answer has largely been the same. I begin with the view that God is sovereign.’