Category: Recommended

yep, I recommend this link, article or whatever it is

Appreciating and Assessing Fundamentalism

~ fundyreformed ~ 3 Comments

Nine Marks Ministries, a conservative evangelical ministry aiming to strengthen churches by emphasizing Biblical rather than pragmatic approaches to ministry, recently released their March/April 2008 e-journal. This month the topic was unity and separation, with an emphasis on fundamentalism.

The journal was kind to fundamentalism. While it recognized a need to balance separation with unity, it gave fundamentalists like Dr. Dave Doran (pastor of Inter-City Baptist Church in Allen Park, MI and president of Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary) and Dr. Mark Minnick (pastor of Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Greenville, SC and NT faculty member of Bob Jones University) an opportunity to defend their fundamentalist viewpoint.

The journal brought together some of the best articles on the issue of Biblically-based separation and unity. I particularly thought that the articles by Mark Dever, Albert Mohler, and Wayne Grudem were excellent. See this link where Justin Taylor provides links to all the articles in the journal. Or download the pdf version of the journal. Also, don’t miss out on the audio lecture by Iain Murray (of Banner of Truth) on “George Whitefield and Catholicity” (catholicity meaning Christian unity with the universal church).

Perhaps the most interesting part of the journal was the “Pastors’ and Theologians’ Forum on Fundamentalism“. It is a round-table discussion of sorts, where 19 different men were asked to answer this question: “What can we learn from the Christian fundamentalists?” For the most part, the answers focused on the positive contributions fundamentalism has made to evangelicalism. And while the faults of fundamentalism were sometimes mentioned, the overall feel of the discussion was one of a great appreciation for fundamentalists.

Ben Wright, a pastoral assistant at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC (home of Nine Marks Ministries), at his blog Paleoevangelical (which I would consider a reforming fundamentalist blog), asked for people to comment on which round-table answer they thought was the best. Ben of course expects his commenters to choose his own answer, as he contributed both to the roundtable and the journal (providing one article). I thought the idea was fun and could encourage some good conversation on these matters.

As I thought about responding, I felt I should just make my response into a post. So here goes….

I think the two best overall answers were Bob Johnson‘s and Carl Trueman‘s. And I appreciated some phrases and thoughts from other answers. I should also note that I learned a new derision of fundamentalism: “No fun, all da**, and not enough mental”. I should say that this was given tongue in cheek, and the 2 contributors who mentioned it were not bitter at the “fightin’ fundies”. I still thought it was funny, even though I recognize it is not true of many good fundamentalists I know.

Besides that line, I thought the following quotes were worthy of consideration:

…What it does is reassert a lost world, a once intact but no-longer-taken-for-granted cultural reality. In doing so, it both romanticizes the past and radicalizes the present with its overlay of psychological defiance and cultural militancy. Herein lies its danger to followers of Jesus: the cultural overlay grows more and more alien to the call of Jesus to his disciples…. (by Os Guinness)

In a day when Protestants seem to be as easily impressed by smooth-talking television preachers, beautiful liturgies administered by women and gays, or smart popes, we could use Fundamentalist suspicion. (by Darryl Hart)

I also was pleased to see someone make the same point I did about the place of the Gospel as it relates to extreme separation.

Sometimes, their practical applications appear to be as important as (or even more important than) the gospel. (by Matthew Hoskinson)

So what are your thoughts on the journal, or the round-table discussion?

Essential Reading on Fundamentalism

~ fundyreformed ~ 4 Comments

I don’t have time now to get in depth, but I wanted to at least give you the link.

9 Marks Ministries‘ March/April e-journal is on the topic of fundamentalism and separation.

Some of the very issues, I’ve been debating about recently here are covered (including article’s I’ve referenced by Albert Mohler and Wayne Grudem). There are other new articles and thoughts on this topic from Ian Murray, Mark Dever and others. And they include David Doran and Mark Minnick with a fundamentalist perspective. Ben Wright, of Paleoevangelical, also contributes.

Again, I’m pressed for time, so I’ll just give you the link to the PDF copy as well as a link to the page that introduces the journal and provides html links to the articles.

PDF / HTML

More on Casting Crowns

~ fundyreformed ~ 4 Comments

Click to see this CD on Amazon (and listen to song samples)While we’re on the theme of music, I thought I’d point out a good review of some of Casting Crowns’ songs by my blogging friend Will Dudding.

It made me remember my previous look at the motivations behind Casting Crowns and Mercy Me, which might be a good follow up to Will’s post for you all to check out. Casting Crowns is one of my favorite Christian music groups and I’ve highlighted their great song: Who Am I?, and also their 2nd album Lifesong, and its title song.

As you see the challenging lyrics that Will shares, maybe one fact should encourage you. This group is enormously popular and has sold more than 2.5 million records in a couple short years. This doesn’t count there newest album which came out a few months ago. The first song on that to hit the radio was number 1 on the charts for 19 weeks straight, which gives you the idea of their popularity.

And in this case, I think this shows that Christians (at least the kind that listen to and follow CCM) are hungering for a deeper message and really are trying to grow in the Lord. Granted I wholeheartedly agree with the criticism that much of CCM is shallow and trendy today. But there is a real turn around happening. And Casting Crowns isn’t the only group producing some real soul-searching, deep, faith-building songs.

To check out Casting Crowns more I recommend using Rhapsody.com which allows you 24 free online songs a month. Just search for Casting Crowns and tune in.

Modern Hymn Writers

~ fundyreformed ~ 4 Comments

Keith Getty, one of the founders of what I term the “modern hymn movement”, was recently interviewed along with his wife Kristyn by Christianity Today. The Getty’s new CD “In Christ Alone” is doing very well, with some of its songs being sung on Christian radio, now.

The interview explores how and why the Getty’s are writing their hymns. “Singable Doctrine” is how CT describes them. The article is worth the read.

Some of Keith Getty’s songs that he either wrote or co-wrote, are: “In Christ Alone“, “The Power of the Cross“, “O Church Arise“, “My Heart is Filled“, and “Speak, O Lord“. We sing all of these at my church along with a few others. They are excellent songs that are singable across generations and music styles.

For more on the “modern hymns”, read my earlier post: “The Rise of the Modern Hymn Movement“.

[Thanks, Grace, for pointing out this interview to me!]

King James Only Research Center

~ fundyreformed ~ 12 Comments

Introducing my newly redesigned King James Only Research Center.

I’m really excited about the redesign. The site is now a normal website rather than a website-wannabe using blog software.

The site is very user-friendly with simple built-in navigation. And it includes a site blog, where I hope to blog about additions to the site and other KJV-only related finds I come across.

I still have more work to do with the site, but I’m satisfied with the new design, and feel I have the infrastructure in place to finally fill out my own writings on the topic.

If you have linked to the KJV Only Debate Resource Center in the past, please update your link to the new site: http://www.freewebs.com/kjvonlyresearch/index.htm and edit the name to the new site name: King James Only Research Center. Some may not have linked to the old site, because it was difficult to use. I hope the new design will bring more visitors and encourage more to link to what I hope is a useful resource.