I used to think that stealing was wrong. But then my child told me that from a very young age he has felt compelled to steal. He did not choose these longings and he has struggled his whole life to suppress them, knowing that people would never accept him for who he is. 1/9 Hearing my son's story made me reconsider my own prejudices and deeply held beliefs. The command against stealing was given under the Old Covenant at a time when God apportioned land to each tribe. Personal or family possessions, in that context, had a sacred meaning. 2/9

There you are in your car Sunday morning, passing by the inflated Santa Clauses and Rudolfs and the snowmen, listening to Christmas carols, having a holly jolly Christmas because it’s the most wonderful time of the year. Then you pull into your Anglican church... 1/7 And where are the lights and the happy music? Why is everything so quiet? Then come the readings and the sun not shining and the stars falling from the sky and how you’d better watch out, not for Santa who’s coming to give you presents. But for Jesus who’s coming to judge...2/7

It has recently come to our attention that Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego have put forward the argument that any Israelite who bows down to King Nebuchadnezzar’s golden statue has departed the faith and become apostate. 1/15 We do not know who appointed these three extremely wealthy and privileged men to stand over everyone else and act as though their personal opinions should be the rule everyone follows, but here are eleven reasons why you can bow down to the statue and still love the LORD. 2/15

In seminary, I was taught to preach for 12 to 15 minutes using what was then called the “narrative” style which, essentially, meant retelling the “story” of the biblical text in modern terms. Biblical exposition, we were told, would be irrelevant to the average parishioner 1/9 When I got to the parish (which I still serve) I quickly realized how deadly that sort of preaching can be. The preacher imposes himself between the people and the text. They’re not exposed to the word of God, but to the preacher’s personal gloss over of the word. 2/9

Calvin on the eucharist: “It is not an empty or unmeaning sign which is held out to us, but those who receive this promise by faith are actually made partakers of his flesh and blood. 1/4 For in vain would the Lord command his people to eat bread, declaring that it is his body, if the effect were not truly added to the figure. 2/4

I'm used to hearing the following distinction: God removes the eternal consequences of our sins at the moment of justification because of Christ. But the temporal consequences remain. That's a general truth. 1/8 If you rob a bank and you're a Christian, don't expect to get away with it. God loves you too much for that. At the same time
1. The consequences we face will always be restorative...intended not merely to punish but also to instruct, sanctify, and ultimately raise up. 2/8

The ACNA Matthew 25 Initiative mediations have been uniformly bad, embracing politically woke themes as if they are the gospel. Today we are encouraged to “shift” our perspective on baby murder by considering the plight of unwed mothers. What sort of “shift” is in view? 1/3 Does Matthew 25 think that those who oppose baby murder need to have more compassion for single moms (ignoring the huge support for women’s pregnancy centers) and “shift” their view on legalized abortion? 2/3

"Why this way? Why the trouble of conception and labor and birth? Why not arrive as a grown man rather than go through the process of birth, nursing, etc.? If you and I were born innocent. If my sin were caused by bad influences out there, maybe that would be fine. But 1/5 ...the ruin lies within. I don’t sin because someone else tempts me. Temptations would never work if I didn’t love myself and my way over and above God and his. If that’s going to be healed, redemption has begin at the beginning. In the womb, at conception. 2/5

Baptized Critical Theory is a complete soteriological system with its own law and gospel. The white person must not ask: am I a racist? He must ask: in what ways am I racist? 1/8 He must repent of his whiteness. Should he object, his objection will be dismissed as fragility. The classic doctrines of the church, because they reflect values and voices of the victors, must be challenged and give way to theologies of the oppressed. 2/8

"I had two nice young men sitting in my living room last Friday telling me all about repentance. I asked lots of questions. They said, whoever repents receives the forgiveness of sins. So I asked them, what is repentance? 1/10 Repentance, they said, is when you stop committing the sin you’re repenting for. God will forgive you. But you’ve got to stop the sin first. You’ve got to clean your house before Jesus can come through the door. 2/10

Things Jesus taught that some/many in the modern church find embarrassing
1. That the Old Testament is God's word and contains no error (Matt 5:17-19, Jn10:35). 1/16 2. That God really made the first man from the dust and the first real woman from the man and joined the first man and the first woman together in the first marriage that is the measure and definition of all marriages (Matt 19:4-6). 2/16

Twenty years ago, Anne and I moved to Binghamton to serve the (then) Episcopalian (Now ACNA) congregation in which we still live and serve today. 1/9 It was a friendly but aging congregation and dwindling. No one had joined for ages. That, in itself, is not unique for a mainline congregation in a smallish upstate New York city. The real problem had nothing to do with age or demographics. 2/9

"Walk into a dying church and you’ll likely see that the people there are decent and industrious people. You'll find, perhaps, that the grounds and facilities are clean and well cared for, the garden watered, but that the church is dying all the same. Why? 1/4 It's not for inactivity. When the furnace gives out or the fence needs mending, the men are there. When the next bake sale or bazaar comes around the church is abuzz with energy and earnestness. 2/4

When I was new in the faith, I had a difficult time feeling any assurance. My preChristian life was very dark and I've always been plagued by the vestiges of it. When I considered my past and the habits of my own mind that had yet to be undone, I easily fell into despair 1/10 I believed the Gospel. And I saw dramatic evidence of Christ's power at work in my life. But at the same time, as I matured, my conscience became more tender and my ability to see my own sinfulness increased as did my awareness of the law and God's holiness 2/10

Now that our children are older and none of them are in jail and all six are believing and generally pleasant to be with, I think I'll give some parenting advice. We didn't make any of this up ourselves, we gleaned it from various books and other parents but here's what we did1/7 We only had 4 rules and they kept us sane and our kids happy since they knew where the lines were.
1. Immediate obedience (not to immediately obey is to disobey). This is the most important one. With this one rule in place and enforced, you don't need a huge list of rules.2/7

My grandmother, who I loved very much, was a selfless person who no doubt thought she was doing us a favor by insisting that there be no formal funeral service after her death. She hated the thought of anyone “making a fuss.” She specified instead… 1/11 that we all get together for a meal and share our memories of her. She said that she wanted everyone to be happy and to “celebrate her life” rather than mourn her passing. No “gloomy faces.” 2/11

This is quite slanderous sadly. I didn’t vote in 2016 because I didn’t believe that a man who cheated on his wife etc. could be trusted to keep his promise to appoint judges who would end mass baby killing & I wasn’t going to vote for a candidate from the death party. 1/7

https://twitter.com/zugzwanged/status/1571109652515155969

Four years later, Pres. Trump had kept his promise regarding judges, so I voted for him. What’s the moral issue at stake here? Was my vote a quest for raw legal power? Certainly, to actually do justice there must be power. Power is not in itself inherently evil thing to seek2/7

The thing to keep in mind to retain your sanity when watching the LOTR, Hobbit, and the latest ROP, is that unlike Star Wars and other film based fantasy, the entire Tolkien canon is written. New films or interpretations change absolutely nothing about the content of that canon. People can secure rights & make movies and write books using using Tolkien’s world, characters, & plot lines (faithfully or no) but no matter how badly they twist them, the canon remains pristine and stands in judgment over them all. There’s an analogy to Sola scriptura here. 2/5

I used to worry that when I got older, we might not bring in young families. The worry was grounded in church growth stuff I’d imbibed early in my ministry. Jesus, of course, builds his church and he uses his word and Spirit to do it. He can use an old man or a young one 1/7 Practically, it seems that a good number of people, young and old, aren’t so much looking for a pastor who “looks like me” as they are a pastor who won’t make radical changes to the worship or the sanctuary or start dressing Hollywood to attract unchurched people. 2/7

Once more into the breach: Bathsheba was not raped by David. There's nothing at all in the text of 2Sam to support that notion. The author of 2Sam knows perfectly well how to describe an actual sexual assault, see Amnon's rape of Tamar (2 Sam 13). 1/5 I don't think there's any support for the idea that she was bathing on her roof to seduce David either. The roof would be a normal and pleasant place to bathe in spring and summer. I think, rather, Bathsheba was seduced and certainly manipulated. 2/5

Those in the Church pushing CT/CRT want to deflect the issue by claiming those who oppose them don't know what CT/CRT is. That's untrue but setting that aside. Use whatever name you like, here are the elements we recognize as counterfeits of Christian gospel...1/11 1.The division of humanity into oppressed v. oppressor
2.The presupposition that disparity = oppression
3.The notion that a person by virtue of skin color or sex can be held responsible for acts done by people of the same color and sex in the past 2/11