Prata Potpourri: Mark Driscoll, ShepCon, Digital use, Unity, more
By Elizabeth Prata
It’s fall in full swing around here and we are loving the cooler temperatures, the harvest festivals, Homecoming events, and looking toward Christmas. Some early birds have already put up Christmas decorations. These last three months of the year are my favorite time of year. A Prata Potpourri is one of my favorite blogs to write. I hope some of these links are meaningful or helpful to you. Enjoy!
As a Reformed conservative Christian, I am against feminism. We all have heard how feminism as an ideology is ruining society, families, even churches. I read this article posted by the Sheologians Summer White and Joy Temby and it brings new facts and insights as to what is happening in the larger society with regard to women’s place in it than we ever knew.
Author Helen Andrews brings light to the fact that our institutions such as education, medicine, law, journalism, etc., are at or past a tipping point where women comprise the majority of that institution- and what happens when that happens. It’s devastating, and this gender majority flip bodes ill. I urge you to read it to be aware and knowledgeable about our near future.
Nothing shows an unregenerate heart than someone who refuses to be discipled, won’t listen to godly men attempting to reach them in their error, and who rejects correction. Mark Driscoll has done all that and more for decades.
We don’t mark and avoid someone who professes the faith just because of recently discovered sins or minor doctrinal variances from our own interpretations. We don’t mark and avoid especially an elder or pastor, on the basis a little here or a little there, because marking and avoiding is serious.
But when a little here and a little there becomes a mountain of evidence from a variety of credible sources, then we enact the biblical commands to credit that person as false.
Mark Driscoll is in the news again and apparently not only making a comeback (which he did within a year of his disqualification/resignation from Mars Hill Church in 2013), but a visible and warmly welcoming comeback today from even supposedly conservative Christians and organizations.
If you are curious about the Mark Driscoll situation, here are some credible links to bring you up to speed:
Utterly Disqualified: Why Mark Driscoll Must Be Marked (and Avoided) video by Justin Peters. 1 hour
Why Mark Driscoll Left Mars Hill (In His Own Words) video by Pastor Gabe Hughes the WWUTT guy, 10 minutes
The Rape of Solomon’s Song, John MacArthur essay part 1. part 2. part 3. part 4
Dallas Holm Praise Ministries, here, Dallas Holm writes about the Power of Unity. There are always doctrinal differences, and there are always fights over them. Many fights are not warranted, while others are. It is a mark of maturity to know when to contend in love and when to agree in love. Holm writes, “I’ve often said that when ‘we all get to Heaven’ as the old hymn says, there may be this great sit down orientation moment before we take the tour, and Jesus will say to us, “You were all wrong about a few things, and you were all right about some things.” But, I’m pretty sure the main thing will be the love of God toward us, our love of Jesus, His Son, and our love for one another realized and expressed through The Power of Unity.”
In that same vein, a lot of people are on edge and concerned after they saw the listed lineup for the next Shepherd’s Conference at Grace Community Church, the church John MacArthur pastored for 56 years. Included in the speaking lineup are several personalities who have been lately associated with woke-ism. Questions arose as to whether now that MacArthur is passed on, the church will begin to compromise, slide, or otherwise cause a disheartening in onlookers and members. Why is the church hosting them? Isn’t separation called for?
Phil Johnson is an elder at GCC church and was MacArthur’s editor and right-hand man, he presented this response to a similar question. The reasoning in my opinion is good. If you don’t want to listen, the short of it is, inviting the gentlemen who people say are woke…was John MacArthur’s idea. The notion is the same as in Dallas Holm’s piece. Unity, love, and maturity. Here’s Phil explaining why the gentlemen were invited to participate:
Our digital lives are just as busy as our real life lives. Here we have Marci Ferrell the Thankful Homemaker with podcast advice on how to manage the digital life so that it reflects our love for Jesus as a primary orientation in our public, private, and digital lives. Here’s Marci:
Today’s [podcast] discussion isn’t about getting rid of our smartphones; it’s about using them in a way that aligns with the gospel. Matthew 10:37 tells us that whoever loves anything more than Jesus is not worthy of Him. Our first desire must be to be wholly devoted to Jesus, ensuring that our smartphone use reflects that devotion. We need to be mindful of how our phones impact our spiritual lives, making sure they enhance rather than hinder our walk with Christ.
EP 163: Wisely Navigating Our Technology
And here is another link to The Thankful Homemaker with a roundup of good links and tidbits, just because!
