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Does God Desire All to Be Saved? Adam Harwood reviews John Piper's proposal

Among many interesting articles in the latest edition of the Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry (JBTM, available free of charge at http://www.baptistcenter.net), Dr. Adam Harwood, Associate Professor of Theology at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, reviews John Piper's little volume, Does God Desire All to Be Saved? (John Piper. Wheaton: Crossway, 2013. 56 pages. Paperback, $9.99). After rehearsing the flow of Piper's volume, Professor Harwood concludes: The strength of this book is that it seeks to address an Achilles heel in Reformed theology, namely the charge that affirming unconditional... Read more →

Brewton-Parker College to file an appeal on latest SACS report

An official statement was just released from Brewton-Parker College on the latest SACS report. The gist of the statement: SACS reported to the President that the committee voted to withdraw Brewton-Parker College from membership; an official letter of intent will be sent from SACS to Brewton-Parker College Brewton-Parker College has ten days from receipt of letter to file an appeal Brewton-Parker College will file an appeal within the appropriate time period Brewton-Parker College remains accredited but on probation during the appeal process which will end in August 2014 The President... Read more →

Joel Gregory on the best in Baptist preaching

George Bullard on the Associated Baptist Press blog profiles the newly released volume entitled Baptist Preaching: A Global Anthology by Dr. Joel Gregory, Professor of Preaching at George W. Truett Theological Seminary at Baylor University. Dr. Gregory arguably remains one of the finest biblical expositors today albeit his banishment from mainstream Southern Baptist sub-culture (whether just or unjust as the case may be). Gregory's role in choosing for Baylor University Press just who qualifies as most representative of the best in Baptist pulpiteering is all the more impressive. According to... Read more →

Yale lecturer on The Great Calvinist Reawakening

Briallen Hopper is English Lecturer at Yale University, Faculty Fellow at the University Church in Yale, and frequent contributor on religious topics in many prestigious media venues. She has written about religion for The Huffington Post, Killing the Buddha, and the Los Angeles Review of Books. In her latest piece entitled "The Great Calvinist Reawakening" published in Religion & Politics, Hopper profiles the rise of Neo-Calvinism and the impact it's having in contemporary culture. Citing the proof of Reformed revitalization as entirely persuasive, she goes on to contrast Neo-Calvinism with... Read more →

Are Southern Baptist Traditionalists losing appreciation for viable historical options dealing with God’s sovereignty and human free will?

Does there exist a logically-driven, undeniable answer to the age-old question concerning God's sovereignty and human free will? Some appear to think so. Calvinism's Typical Response to Divine Sovereignty and Human Freedom Calvinists often suggest a logical answer by redefining what we normally mean when we think of free will. When I think of free will (and I suspect most people would affirm my thoughts), I think of the actual ability to choose otherwise than I chose. For instance, if I'm driving through a small city in the Southwest and... Read more →

Spurgeon indicts slavery, Baptists in the south abandon support

"The North and the South were in antagonism and slavery was a burning question, although the great Civil War was not to come for some years yet. Charles Haddon Spurgeon, in the course of his sermons, felt bound to pass strictures [moral criticism] upon the whole system of slavery, and at once the sale of his sermons in the Southern States fell almost to nothing, while scores of insulting and threatening letters were sent to the preacher." Charles Ray in A Marvelous Ministry: The Story of C.H. Spurgeon's Sermons: 1855-1905.... Read more →

Mark Driscoll and the Mistakes of Jesus

Christianity Today (CT) has an interesting story about a sermon Mark Driscoll reportedly preached at Mars Hill Church on May 4, a sermon the web version of which Warren Throckmorton documents a six minute deleted section. Throckmorton claims in "Mars Hill Church Deletes Mark Driscoll's Teaching on Jesus Making Mistakes" that comparing the web version and the original version which he's obtained reveals: Those who watch the sermon on the website are missing some material from the live delivery two weeks ago. A segment of nearly six minutes was deleted... Read more →

Army deserter Bergdahl connected to ballet and Calvinism

Five years ago, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl reportedly laid down his weapons and quietly vanished into the night from his small military outpost in the Yousaf Khel district of Paktika. Several hunts for him ultimately led to several deaths of American soldiers who tried to find their comrade in arms. Three years later, a story in Rolling Stone magazine entitled "America's Last Prisoner of War" featured Bergdahl as our last prisoner of war turned into a political pawn to end the war against terror. One of the most interesting captions concerning... Read more →