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A La Carte (December 7)

monday

Today’s Kindle deals include a massive list of deals. If you’ve got a Kindle, today’s a good day…

(Yesterday on the blog: No Hope Without Christ’s Righteousness)

Sanctorum Communionem

“As I stood there in that big echoey room, I sighed and considered all that has not gone on in there since March. ‘I believe the communion of the saints.’ Those old ancient words. Credo… sanctorum communionem. I walked over to the wall and noticed the calendars had also not been updated: MARCH APRIL MAY. We keep a quarterly schedule on the wall on white board calendars. They were all still in place. Birthdays and anniversaries and events had gone by.”

The Crisis of Christian Celebrity

David French has an important article about the crisis of Christian celebrity. In the background is a long New York Times article about Carl Lentz of Hillsong fame.

Christmas in a Minor Key

“Since our society so regularly confuses Christmas with the superficial, it is no wonder many people decide to opt-out when life is hard, but this misses the point of Christmas altogether.”

The Children of Pornhub (The World’s Biggest Porn Site)

I don’t know if you should read this one or not. On the one hand, it’s explicit at times. On the other hand, how else can people be awoken to the horrors of pornography—the violence, the rape, the pedophilia—unless people are told what porn is really about? So when the New York Times covers it, even as imperfectly as they do here, it is worth noting and perhaps even supporting with a click. If, with all that in mind, you’d like to read it, click here: The Children of Pornhub.

Bill C-6: What the Criminal Ban on “Conversion Therapy” Means for Churches in Canada

Canadians will want to be aware of this. “Across Canada, in various provinces and municipalities and now in Parliament, laws have been proposed (and most have passed), outlawing ‘conversion therapy.’ Christians should be concerned. As ARPA Canada explains in its policy report on conversion therapy, the devil is in the details: how one defines conversion therapy determines how good or bad such a ban would be.”

Wary of Words on the 1%

“From a collective and societal level, the 1% rhetoric is supremely dangerous. It is the seedbed of classism, and bloody revolution. Here’s the unfortunate secret: by definition, there will always be a one percent. And it will always feel like they have a lot more than you. The pre-occupation with this as an unfairness, as an injustice, leads inevitably to reaching up in order to tear down, rather than reaching down in order to bring up.”

Plan to Be Interrupted

Scott Hubbard: “At one time, I thought the best test for our faith in the sovereignty of God was our fidelity to the five points of Calvinism. But lately I’ve wondered if a different test might be more appropriate: how we respond to the interruptions, inefficiencies, and unforeseen delays strewn throughout our days.”

Flashback: Sexual Revolution, Same Old Revolution

…the sexual revolution is a movement of hate in the guise of love, a movement of destruction in the guise of justice.

Such as will not have Christ to be their king to rule over them, shall never have his blood to save them.

—Thomas Watson

  • Finnegan

    Why I Haven’t Written A Whole Lot about My Grandson

    It has been two months since little Finnegan was born—two months since I became a grandfather for the first time. It only just occurred to me that I have said very little about this new reality, this new stage of life, this new member of our family.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (January 20)

    A La Carte: Is it good that you exist? / Should we trust churches? / In defense of childhood / Take your anxiety to church / How do I leave my abortion in the past? / Kindle deals / and more.

  • Prayer Recipe

    Prayer Is Not Like a Good Recipe

    Prayer is not like a good recipe: simply follow a set of mechanical directions and everything turns out right in the end. So what is it then? And how can we do it well?

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    Weekend A La Carte (January 18)

    A La Carte: Biblical theology is for nerds / The sins of TikTok / Be content where God has placed you / Alistair Begg on the downfall of peers / Not a vending machine / “But I keep sinning!” / and more.

  • Free-stuff Fridays (Truth78)

    This weeks giveaway is sponsored by Truth78. Are you wondering how you can help lead the children growing up in your church or home to a saving faith in Christ?  Zealous, written by Truth78 executive director David Michael, is for parents and ministry leaders, and anyone who wants to be inspired with biblical vision and…

  • Deconstruction

    Walking Through Deconstruction

    I suppose by now we all know a least a few people who have begun the process of deconstructing their faith. Meanwhile, we have undoubtedly heard of many more who are doing so in a public way—celebrities who have decided to rigorously examine the faith they once professed and to reject much of what they…