Is there a “gay gene”? Is our “sexual orientation” determined by biology? Most people today would probably say “yes” to those questions. But is it supported by reliable scientific research? And regardless of the answers to those questions, what should our attitude and response be toward the homosexual community?

We live in a part of the country where we cannot ignore the very public nature of homosexuality and gay marriage. Rarely does a week go by that I do not see or speak with someone who is either part of this community, or is interacting with someone who is. Even more frequent is the barrage of information and opinions about this social phenomena from the various forms of media that so directly influence society — we are talking about television, movies, radio and our various news outlets.

We need to be careful to have a discerning spirit as we listen to this information. And we need to be even more diligent to maintain a thoroughly loving and Christian attitude as we interact with others about it. In an effort to help you be discerning, careful and loving in your evaluation and interaction about this often biased information, I want to pass along some information and articles that will both inform your understanding, as well as help shape your attitudes toward others who may not agree.

Click here to read the entire post!

One of my favorite authors, Dr. Jay Adams, has started a new blog where he is giving short, helpful comments on topics and passages of Scripture. In a recent post he discusses the topic of “Promptings of the Spirit” as they relate to assurance of salvation, and gives a helpful discussion of the biblical passage almost everyone uses to describe this experience.

Here is the complete text of what Dr. Adams said.

Last October a group of 138 muslim clerics compiled a quite lengthy document entitled, “A Common Word Between Us and You” (available here), in which they outlined what they believed to be some core common ground between Christianity and Islam. In response to this open letter The Yale Divinity School’s Center for Faith and Culture put together another document: “Loving God and Neighbor Together: A Christian Response to A Common Word Between Us and You” (available here), which was endorsed by over 300 Christian leaders including Rick Warren, Bill Hybels, Brian McLaren and others.

In this post I have included some comments of my own about one aspect of these documents, as well as an embedded video by John Piper which accurately and passionately expresses what our thinking and response to such statements ought to be. I’ve also included a link to an article by Piper about how Christians ought to relate to people of other faiths.

I hope you find these resources helpful in building discernment and gospel-centered thinking for your life and ministry. Click here for the whole article, video, and links.

Some weeks ago, Pastor Craig preached a couple of sermons on God’s ingredients for a grace filled life, and drew a comparison to the views of author and preacher Joel Osteen, along with some comments in his best-selling book, Your Best Life Now. As this video reveals very clearly, Osteen is notoriously “safe” (and sadly heretical) by avoiding making any negative comments about the faith and beliefs of Mormons in general, and Mitt Romney in particular.

See more of my comments on this sad interview here …

Brian

I have been reading Wayne Mack’s book on prayer, Reaching the Ear of God. I recommend it. As I was reading recently I ran across this extended quote that outlines the horrors of the crucifixion as a proof of how serious sin is, and how God views all sin as an abomination. This excerpt is from pages 248-249.

…sin is serious because of what Christ had to do to remove it. In order for our sins to be forgiven, Jesus Christ had to be born a man, had to experience abuse and mistreatment throughout his life, and then had to die a cruel death on a cross…

Read on for the rest of this horrifying, yet encouraging, description of Christ’s death on behalf of men…

I recently received an honest inquiry about seeker-friendly churches from someone at our church, and thought that the response I wrote to them might be helpful for others to read and interact together about. The question arose in response to some guarded and indirect comments I made in my sermon this past Sunday about the recent admission by Willow Creek and Bill Hybels that their emphasis in ministry has not produced spiritual maturity in Christians. You can read a short article regarding this here, as well as some follow up comments and clarifications by Greg Hawkins, the co-author of the book.

Their specific confession regarding their church programs was, “Increasing levels of participation in these sets of activities does NOT predict whether someone’s becoming more of a disciple of Christ. It does NOT predict whether they love God more or they love people more.”

The particular person in our congregation asked the following questions:

So here’s a question regarding “seeker churches”…such as Saddleback in California or others like it…Why do you think they are seemingly able to accomplish such great things for the Lord if they are “off base” Biblically?…

Read the rest of their question, along with my response by clicking here , or on the title above…

SoulFest is an annual Christian music festival in New England. SoulFest 2007 took place in Gilford, NH August 1-4.

I didn’t go. I couldn’t…it would have been too painful. Why?

My problem is not so much with the styles or volume of the music. Also, I have no problem worshiping with people even though they “aren’t just like me.” The source of my grief is much deeper than that…