One Witty Ditty For Your Memory of Theology: The Great Commission

About to go evangelize.  If you read this, pray for us!

Here’s a witty ditty about witnessing and the Great Commission:

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Quick Devotional from Philippians 4:13 (Observation from the Greek)

This is from my daily Greek exercise of sight reading a few months ago, courtesy of Vincent S Artale Jr.

Our text is from the Greek translation of Philippians 4:13.  Here is my translation:

“SENTENCE 13 πάντα ἰσχύω ἐν τῷ ἐνδυναμοῦντί με”
I have strength in all things through the one who strengthens me

It is quite a popular verse in Christian circles.

Here are some observations:

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Video: September 11th & God

Today is September 11th.  9/11 still bring a lot of raw emotions even after 17 years.  As I mentioned over the years on this blog I felt 9/11 has changed my adult years.

Here’s a video that Ray Comfort’s ministry Living Waters made on a survivor of 9/11 and how she came to God

I hope if you don’t know Jesus as Savior you repent and trust in Christ.

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Review: Suicide: Understanding and Intervening

Jeffrey S. Black. Suicide: Understanding and Intervening.  Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, February 1st 2003. 34 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Westminster | Amazon

This is a biblical counseling booklet on suicide that is a part of a series called “Resources for Changing Lives” printed by Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing.  I highly recommend this series of booklets and I have found them very beneficial for my own personal spiritual growth and also as a resource in pastoral ministry.  The specific topic for this booklet is on suicide.  The booklet addresses those intervening and counseling someone who is struggling with wanting to commit suicide rather than addressing directly the person who desire to end his or her own life.  I made the mistake of not reading the subtitle of this work carefully and gave this to someone I was counseling that was feeling suicidal.  Nevertheless when I read this booklet I felt it was a treasure trove of help for the counselor and is jam packed with many insights despite its tiny size.

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The Glory of God: Videos from 2018 Veritas Conference

Earlier this month was the third year of Veritas Conference, a weekend gathering of biblical like-minded churches in Southern California.  I have blogged about this conference in the past.  In 2016 the topic was on the Gospel followed by 2017 on Sanctification.  For 2018 the topic was on the Glory of God.

Here are the videos from the main session:

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Analysis of Rachel Held Evan’s Book “Inspired” Part 2: Chapter 1 and Adam being Symbolic of Israel

This is part 2 of our critique of Rachel Held Evans’ book titled Inspired.   For Part 1 click here.  Lord willing part 2 and 3 of our series will look at chapter 1 of the book which is on “Origin Stories.”

On page 9 Rachel Held Evans stated the following concerning the Bible’s origin story in the book of Genesis:

Origin stories are rarely straightforward history.  Over the years, they morph into a colorful amalgam of truth and myth, nostalgia and cautionary tale, the shades of their significance brought out by the particular light of a particular moment.

Contrary to what many of us are told, Israel’s origin stories weren’t designed to answer scientific, twenty-first-century questions about the beginning of the universe or the biological evolution of human beings, but rather were meant to answer then-pressing, ancient questions about the nature of God and God’s relationship to creation. Even the story of Adam and Eve, found in Genesis 2 and 3, is thought by many scholars to be less a story about human origins and more a story about Israel’s origins, a symbolic representation of Israel’s pattern of habitation, disobedience, and exile, set in primeval time.

In her own words Rachel Held Evans sees the Bible’s origin story to be in the same league with other origin stories.  And origin stories in her own words “are rarely straightforward history.”  As she later explained this means that Genesis 2-3 is “less a story about human origins and more a story about Israel’s origins.”  Evans therefore sees Genesis 2-3 as “a symbolic representation of Israel’s pattern.”

There’s so much to say with just these two paragraphs.  Here’s my response:

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Review: Domestic Abuse: Help for the Sufferer

Pastors, church leaders and biblical counselors, this is a much needed resource you need to get along with Domestic Abuse: Recognize, Respond, Rescue.

Darby A. Strickland. Domestic Abuse: Help for the Sufferer.  Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, May 31st 2018. 56 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Westminster | Amazon

This is from a biblical counseling series called “Resources for Changing Lives” printed by Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing.  The author has written two booklets in this series on domestic abuse and this specific work is addressed to the abused spouse.  I am glad that is the case since the booklet covers a difficult topic that many pastors and churches might not have thought through about seeing the various controversies in recent years with pastors, churches and spiritual leaders and how they addressed or neglected the issue of abuse.

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