Wednesday Link List

There’s this one blogger who totally hates everything unless it was written by John MacArthur, and every once in awhile I go on her weekend link list and I find things she is totally opposed to and find that, from my perspective, they are things worth celebrating and I include them here…

…For the above image a shoutout to Clark Bunch who wouldn’t share the origin of this $43 clothing item with his own readers, but clicking it here might yield something. 

One last thing: There’s some great stuff here this week. Please allow an extra few minutes to click more of these links than you might usually.

• For Starters: I really appreciate the detailed research done by sites like Spiritual Sounding Board and The Wartburg Watch. In today’s link, TWW narrates the story of a pastor intent on converting a Baptist church into something it never was, something inspired by the teaching of Mark Dever and 9Marks. This story has enough ugliness to make me not want to link to it at all, and yet its value as a serious cautionary tale cannot be overlooked.
• Essay of the Week: Preston Sprinkle looks at his current role as an ‘expert’ on all things LGBTQ and explains why he couldn’t justify simply “expanding” the Biblical definition of marriage to include same sex couples. 
• Testimony of the Week: This is a must-read. “When church leaders sit around and discuss how they can reach people, I don’t think they have the widow in mind. I don’t think they have the cancer patient in mind. I don’t think they have the children who are growing up without a parent in mind.” The writer wants to the church to be a place where she hears the word of God, not a place to drink freshly brewed coffee.
  
• “And the main point of the Old Testament is…”  Peter Enns brings an answer I wasn’t expecting. 
• Time Travel: Today we go back in time to ask the Apostle Paul for his views on the rapture. He replies, “The what?” The New Testament writers would contend it represents a misreading of the text…
• …On the other hand more solid textual evidence exists for the doctrine of the age of accountability.
  
• Evangelism: Some of our best Evangelical strategies are exactly the things that turn off Australians. (If nothing else, take a few minutes to study the infographics.) 
• Recommended Reading: How the developmentally challenged better respond to liturgical worship.
  
• Rachel Held Evans tracks people on the front lines of being Christian and transgender.
  
• New Project: Stephen Altrogge launches a series of 21 devotional videos titled Good News of Great Joy.
• Even with recent downsizing of the San Diego project, the Legacy Vision Center will feature “rock wall-lined Roman catacombs…; a replica of Jerusalem’s wailing wall; a domed motion-seat theater featuring 4D-style biblical films produced by Disney alums — and a holographic greeting from Morris Cerullo and his wife Theresa.”
• Book Review: A look at all six gazillion pages of Greg Boyd’s Crucifixion of the Warrior God.
  
• As mainline, historic churches close what happens to the pipe organs? This article profiles one worth $500,000, but is quick to add that 450 other instruments are awaiting adoption.
• Changing Culture: A UK study notes that social and health care professionals there are failing to report underage sexual activity by children as young as eleven. The report’s author notes “the normalization of underage sex has been identified repeatedly in the serious case reviews as a reason for the complacency of child protection agencies;” adding “We should be wary of any approach to sex and relationships education that is reluctant to declare anything ‘wrong’.”
• Shauna Niequist joins the world of podcasters as part of the Relevant Podcast Network. Don’t have iTunes? Use this link instead to the debut episode. 
• This blogger would contend that the phrase “had an affair” when it concerns a pastor is to soften the seriousness of the sexual abuse…
• …while this article deals with cleaning up the after-effects of a pastor’s moral failure.
  
• This article totally offended me.
• Book Excerpt of the Week: In this review of The Power of Imperfection, the author bridges from an anecdote about her kids to the larger story of caring for her husband.
• Many authors, including some Christian writers, self published with Tate Publishing and Enterprises. Last week the state of Oklahoma filed eight felony charges against Ryan and Richard Tate. 
• Is there a Doctor in the house? According to this 2015 article I discovered, not all pastors, Christian authors or televangelists who use the Dr. honorific really have earned doctorate degrees. Most are, at best, rather sketchy diplomas. 
• This isn’t new, but I just noticed that Reformed Christians have their own online dating site. “All of our members…hold to the Doctrines of Grace.” They really aren’t part of the rest of us are they?
  
• Preacher Place (1): In 20 years your church will have experienced at least 1,040 sermons. A pastor looks at the process leading up to Sunday and also what happens after the sermon has been preached. 
• Preaching Place (2): What is your first language? For some their first language is grace. For others their first language is truth. You need to speak both fluently.
  
• Parenting Place: Though not a faith-based news story, it’s interesting to hear what the grandfather of modern technology, Bill Gates, thinks is the right age for kids to get a smartphone.
• KidMin + Just in Time: A Sunday School lesson for Mother’s Day.
• In the set-up to a devotional piece, the author mentions what he claims was the first gospel song to sell a million copies. (The year was 1964.)
• Carra Crouch, granddaughter of TBN founders Paul and Jan Crouch claims that at age 13 she was raped by a 30 year old ministry employee and the television ministry tried to cover it up.
• The Final Frontier: A review of a 2016 book we all missed, The Gospel According to Star Trek.
• ♫ Chain Breaker: Zach Williams tells his story leading up to the song Christian radio listeners know so well. 
• Bee of the Week: I’m gonna get my worship on.
  
• For a short while this week, the hashtag ThingsJesusNeverSaid was the #1 trending subject in the U.S. Still, it seems Americans can only see the potential of social media in terms of commentary on federal politics. See what it’s like at the time you click.

Finally, The people at Church Marketing Sucks really want to help you with things like having a better church bulletin, but in the meantime, completing this bingo card — among many membership benefits of working with them — isn’t too difficult in the average church.

 

Public Notice: “Will link for food.” If anyone out there with a major Christian website and a budget is interested in leasing the Wednesday Link List as Christianity Today & Leadership Journal did, contact me via Twitter.