As you seem to know what your doing blogging wise, do you know what the best time of the week is to blog and have them read?…

If we own up to our distrustful desire to control outcomes and people, rather than love and serve, we might be in a better position to converse and even reconcile with 'emergents' as well as others. The longer we deny our complicitness, the harder it will be to do any good for Him while we're here.

That's all I'm saying. And I think John 13-17 as well as 1 Cor. 13 clearly teaches this.

Brian, I like RC's stuff. If there's anyone I get hives about, its Big Mac. I have read and recommend alot of RC's stuff. But he's not above criticism. He seems to move the Arminianism/Calvinism, Covenant/Dispensational arguments up to the "essentials" level to the Christian faith, when they are clearly not. But he's a top scholar and very up on even secular philo. But his business should be serving and loving others. Teaching and preaching are good, but aren't really substitutes…as if I know by my own example….he dogs me.

Read John 13-17. Jesus teaches us the way in those passages and He is crystal clear. And we hardly ever do that. We hardly ever serve or love. Way say the word alot, but it is nowadays contentless religious jargon. Jesus said the power to transform us and the world is in loving one another, without conditions placed, just as He loves us. All that "you obey my commands I will remain in you" and "ask anything in My Name and I will give it to you" are powerful statements all in the context of following His example of serving each other by loving each other, just as He loves us.

He didn't say this, but I think one could arguably conclude it from His teaching, that if you go another route other than serve/love, even if you want to stretch the definition of serve/love to things that obviously aren't even close, instead of His power…instead of bearing His fruit, you get cruelty, then schism, heresies, Brian McLaren and the whole Hee Haw Gang. Once more, as they deny the objective and universal truth of Christ's teaching, particularly of John 13-17, they go ahead and shame us by serving better and loving more, when we are the ones who are supposed to be the obedient ones who take Jesus' teaching seriously. Instead, we debate, hold conferences to figure out how many critical things we can come up with about the other side without any examination or complicitness of our own side.

Again, I lack big time, but I think I should get some credit for at least recognizing my ailment, right?

Effing trends. They're everywhere.

Emergents = Barry Manilow and diet soda

Take your pick…

Maybe do a shot of Cuervo w/ John while talking about Jesus and stuff. Fundies would run like crazy and emergents wouldn't be able to handle it.

What we need are more preachers who smoke cigars, cuss, and foam at the mouth while riding wooden horsies on national TV.

Emergents won't do that. Might mess up the manicured nails.

Point is, there are times and seasons for being both tough on truth and lavishing with grace. Since we see Jesus in both contexts….I feel safe to say, we should do the same.

Did you know that Alice Cooper (the wild Rock star of the 70's who's real name I cannot recall) was converted through personal interaction with RC?? If you knew the half of this man's life, you'd be backing off from your prior comments. He doesn't write books about how great God has used him, or how much he used to know which no longer amounts to much. I don't need to read a book about what someone else got wrong in life for so many years and now has an epiphany of what really, and truly really is true. Sproul has been sound an unchanging, reflecting truth about God for decades……and it for the most part, goes unchallenged from the highest intellects of our culture. Only Greg Bahnsen was perhaps the only one to outwit RC in a debate…..but that's another story.

Sproul get's a bad rap. from those who want the warm and fuzzies…..who think everyone wants the warm and fuzzies…(reminds me of that 80's movie "One Crazy Summer") those "cute n fuzzy bunnies"! Anyway, you will someday appreciate RC for fulfilling God's mission and call for his life…..Most could only dream of serving God in such a way that He has. I would say, he's the most profound communicator of Biblical Truth over the past 100 years! Most folks hear something critical about RC and never pick up one of his books, or listen to a podcast. You'll get more meat there than you will here. If you knew RC as well as I do, you'd be much more appreciative of his lifelong dedication to God's truth, without the Eureka's!! Just my fumble opinion.

But don't get me started about oil!

But you missed probably the most important point I was trying to make, which you may not agree with me. Aside wanting Steve in the foxhole over all the others you mentioned…we have to accept a large part of the blame for Emergents, Liberal Theologians, etc, just as the Puritans and Congregationalists should have accepted responsibility for the Unitarians and Deists back in their day. We have not exhibited Scriptural mandate (command of Christ Himself) to love one another as He has loved us. There's no excuse for digging up dead babies and describing them as half-demon, anymore than there is an excuse for us to treat our brothers and sisters who disagree with us as crap.

Had there been a huge repentance on behalf of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the officials of Salem, etc., maybe there wouldn't have been such a deliberate backlash against 'orthodoxy' as there was. Had McArthur decided to trust God rather than his own doctrinal knowledge and self-righteous percieved standing, maybe his words would be taken to heart a little more. Sure, I fully understand the sinful heart and its inclinations against conviction….but we use that as a 'get out of jail free' card to excuse our piss poor behavior toward each other, 'before the watching world', as Schaeffer would have stated.

We need to put feet to our doctrine, rather than just spew it every time we think people may have forgotten how obnoxious we can be….and start obeying Christ, loving one another, even and especially those who don't think just like we do or look just like we do, and then maybe there won't be a need for a sinful reaction from a spurned portion of evangelicalism (Mohler himself stated that the new liberals used to be conservative evangelicals).

We need to fess up to being cruel and calloused and also our refusal to take responsibilty for our lack of love by falling back on the sinfullness of man. It's difficult to accept someone preaching about the depravity of man, with his foot on someone's face.

You want to know how to help someone embrace Biblical doctrines? Wash their feet. Die for them. Show them you love them. It works better than polemics. You would think RC would have figured that out by now, as smart a guy as he is.

Just because everyone is a "theologian" doesn't mean that every opinion is equally valid.

Hey Charles, I do agree!!! The response to this video excerpt I posted of "Sproul Mohler and Ravi" only proves that many today do in fact have a disgust and a distaste for orthodox, scriptural theology. Charles, I am in agreement with you totally on this issue! I actually never thought you would have defended what they said…but you did, and very well I might add! in this post orthodox era, will see increased attacks on those who actually have it more right than others who just claim and say they do, but are just trying to make a name for themselves, as "emergent" as they try to be…..reminds me of emerging markets and hedge funds……just going "eslewhere" to try and make a buck!! : ))

Hey, I've even visited the emergent "Wizard of "ooze" website….and must say…..(ooozy ooozborn??) that truth seems to be something subjective, and ever changing with no real absolutes. Reactionary, and trendy. Nothing of which describes the true everlasting "unchangeable" God who is there" (thank you Francis). Undoubtedly, it is sad that we have no real modern day replacements for these faithful men who have stood faithful to champion the cause of the Gospel truth all of their lives…..RC Sproul has engaged non Christians at just about every level in society for the better half of the past 45 years, and isn't afraid to debate (even still) those who are unsatisfied with the Bibilcal norm and feel they need to add or reinvent some of their own….I'd much rather have RC in my Theological foxhole at a time of war, than Steve Brown, Tony Campolo or Brian McClaren!! Until the day we can be face to face with Jesus, that is…and no more war.

Hey, this could just be a passing fad, but people who feel they just have to find a way to bend or manipulate what is solid and clear, have deeper issues with which to contend. They strive on self attention. Pride in their own vanity. We see it all the time from posts on this board soo lacking in humility. So unlike, John the Baptist who stated, I must "decrease….so that He (Jesus) would increase!

We instead see so many who would rather others meet "them" (ie my space, youtube, and self edifying blog's which have more to say about how great "thy art" than Christ is….not to say there is indeed a context for which some of these mediums can be good…such as the one we're on now….minus the scritpural deadbeats.

Emergent…..convergent…..divergent. Always something trying to steal the thunder from what can be plainly understood from a garden variety reading of "God's Inspired" Word…providing an interpretation far and away from those who are better equipped to handle God's Word. There will always be folks who claim "there's always a better way"…and it is those who find comfort in following right along that go from fad to fad…..but often having nothing of real substance left to show…..since only God can give, inspire, or impart true value.