IX Marks recently sat down with Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert to discuss their new book, and their interview is broken down in two parts (links are downloadable MP3s).
Part 1 – discussion on the mission of the church, social justice, and the gospel
Part 2 – exegetical considerations on the mission, the poor, and the kingdom of God
Several months ago, NewFrontiers interviewed Jeff Vanderstelt leading up to their conference, and below are three parts of the interview, focusing on gospel fluency, meaning of missional, and hospitality. These are some critical issues for the church today, and Jeff is one of the best at addressing them. Check out these short videos:
My good friend Joe Thorn was recently interviewed by Justin Taylor about his new book,Note to Self: The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself. I have been recently working through it in my morning devotions (on Kindle) and have found it to be a very edifying read. In this interview, Joe answers the question of what it means to preach the gospel and follows up with an excellent summary of the importance of law and gospel in the Christian life. Check it out!
Last Friday, I took some time to post my thoughts on John Piper’s interview of Rick Warren. And I was entirely not surprised by the comments my post received. However, I did appreciate the interaction I received offline with my fellow pastors and with other friends through email, Tim Challies included. Tim shared with me that he was going to share his thoughts in greater detail, which he did yesterday. I encourage you to check it out, though I take a little different approach, as you will see here.
In his post, Challies shared with his readers that I “marveled at the theological agreement between the two men” and used my blogpost as typical of what the blogosphere was positively regarding the interview. I guess you could say that my blogpost was an appreciative response to Piper’s appreciative interview. Obviously, Challies and I interacted with the interview with different perspectives and came away with different conclusions. Having said that, I thought I’d elaborate more on my take of the interview.
First, I do not consider myself a careful observer of all things Rick Warren. I have read a couple of his books, follow him on Twitter, and occasionally here about what he is doing during the year. I don’t read the watchdog blogs that are obsessed with him, nor do I care to try to correct him every time he says something I disagree with. It is not that I am entirely ambivalent about Warren as much as it is that I have far greater concerns about the issues in my own life that demand far greater attention. The scope of the interview with Warren was limited to his book The Purpose Driven Life, and while that may have not felt to be sufficient material for a thoroughgoing critique, I’m glad Piper stuck with a first-hand source that all of us can evaluate on its own merits.
Let’s just pretend for a moment you did not read the title of this blogpost. Let’s pretend that there was an anonymous Christian minister who explicitly affirmed the following:
I am passionate about the glory of God above all things.
I believe in the absolute sovereignty of God in all things, including sin and tragedy.
I believe in exhaustive, meticulous divine providence.
I believe in the doctrines of grace, including total depravity, unconditional election, and particular redemption.
I affirm the five solas of the reformation and consider myself a monergist both in justification and sanctification of the believer.
I believe in the eternal, conscious torment in a literal hell.
I believe that substitutionary atonement is at the heart of the gospel.
I believe in that the imputed righteousness of Christ is essential to the nature of the gospel.
I believe that God saves us from Himself by sending us His Son as the wrath-bearing propitiation in my place.
I believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God.
I believe that those who die never hearing the name of Christ will not go to heaven. They need to hear the gospel, and the church must go to them and make Christ known in order for them to be saved.
Everything I do in life and ministry has an overarching missionary focus.
Having considered these personal beliefs and affirmations, what well-known evangelical preacher might we be talking about? John MacArthur? Sounds a lot like him. Albert Mohler? Possibly. D.A. Carson? Perhaps.
Like just about every other evangelical leader I respect, I don’t agree with everything Rick Warren says and does, but I found this interview very clarifying and confirming. I cannot imagine the controversy and criticism both John Piper and Rick Warren will receive from this interview, but I’m grateful they made this agreement, having demonstrated a substantive, constructive, engagement on important issues from two very different perspectives.
I don’t know of two pastors in our country who have more influence on my generation than John Piper and Rick Warren. They have asked that we pray for them, especially in regards to pursuing humility, fighting pride, and stewarding their influence for generations to come. God has given these men incredible platforms to display the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let’s pray for them and their continued usefulness in such enormous proportions for the advancement of the gospel both in breadth and depth for many years to come.
A Church Like the World – What We Need?; Wanted: Servants not Celebrities; The Big Business of Evangelicalism; “Christians make a difference in this world by being different from this world; they don’t make a difference by being the same”; Relevance – What is It?; The Irrelevance of Relevance; Against the World for the World; The Bible as God’s Listening Post; An “Emergent” Humility?; Evangelism – God’s One Great Work?
Culture – What is it?; Sola Scriptura or Sola Cultura?; Jesus and Cosmic Renewal; The Cultural Mandate – What and Why?; What is the Kingdom of God?; Contextualization – What is It? Do We Need it?; The Church as God’s Greatest Evangelistic Tool.
I’m grateful for Doug continuing to offer informative and engaging discussions on topics that matter from some of the most respected voices in Baptist and evangelical circles. To subscribe to the Insight Podcast on iTunes, go here.
Where on the one hand, the Missouri Baptist Convention de-funds all dually affiliated SBC/Acts 29 church planters, the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina invites them to a convseration about the Gospel, the church, and the mission. That’s my kind of state convention!
The Insight Podcast is hosted by Doug Baker, and recently he sat down with Acts 29 church planters J.D. Greear, Daniel Montgomery, Tyler Jones, and Sean Cordell to discuss a host of issues. The podcast is divided into two parts. You will certainly want to download them both.
Topics: Postmodernity – What is it?; Contextualization – What is it?; Culture and Theology; Ministry in an Urban Context; Diversity in the Local Church; Tradition and Traditionalism; The Craving for Authenticity; The Emerging Church Movement; Gospel Reductionism; The Emergent Church Movement; Acts29 Church Planting Network; Vintage 21’s Theology and Doctrine; Tony Jones and the Gospel; The Gospel and Propositional Truth; Homosexuality and Modern Culture; Christology – Missiology – Ecclesiology.
Topics: Institutions and Denominations; Acts29 Network – Its Founding and Future; The SBC as a Missional Network; The Doctrinal Commitments of Acts29; Biblical Preaching as a Priority; Acts29 and Southern Baptists; North Carolina – Still the Bible Belt?; Requirements for an Acts29 Church Planter; Churches Planting Churches – the Biblical Model?; The SBC and Church Planting; The Future of the SBC.
I’m grateful for Doug Baker putting together an excellent podcast dealing with substantive issues that really matter to the church today. You can find previous podcasts hosted by Baker here.
One of the more significant books of 2008 was Total Church: A Radical Reshaping of Gospel and Community by Tim Chester and Steve Timmis (#9 on my top 25 list). Mike McKinley (from IX Marks) recently interviewed Steve Timmis on various issues including preching, membership, leadership, evangelism, and missions. I thought the interview was well done and worth the read. Here are the links:
Yesterday afternoon, Voddie Baucham joined me for the third Founders Podcast, discussing his theological pilgrimage, cultural apologetics, church planting, family worship, the Southern Baptist Convention, and future projects he is pursuing. As I shared with Voddie, I first met him a decade ago at a conference for college ministers (REFUGE) in Birmingham. It’s great to see what God is doing in the life of Voddie after ten years, including all that God is doing through him and the church he pastors in the area of church planting. I hope you find this interview as encouraging and instructive.
The total listening time is approximately 46 minutes.
This morning, I had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Donald Whitney to discuss spiritual disciplines and the 2008 National Founders Conference. In the interview, I asked Dr. Whitney about his pilgrimage in the study of spiritual disciplines, how to cultivate spiritual disciplines in challenging and demanding times, his work at the Center for Biblical Spirituality and at SBTS, and finally the work of personal and formative discipline in the practice of church renewal and church planting.
The total listening time is approximately 42 minutes.
Ed Stetzer, keynote speaker for this week’s upcoming National Founders Conference, was recently interviewed by Mac-evangelist Adrian Warnock. Using iChat, Warnock provides an hour-long, eight-part video interview with Stetzer, and the videos are posting here below.
1. Ed and Adrian talk about what ‘missional’ means.
2. Stetzer speaks about church planting.
3. Are Apostollic and missional synonymous?
4. How Can We All Be Missional?
5. Ed speaks about the atonement and the state of the church today.
6. Ed on why some churches are more successful.
7. Ed on preaching. Is there such a thing as missional preaching?
8. Ed Stetzer on culture and the challenge of building a multicultural church.
My friend Doug Baker has recently posted a three-part interview with one of the men I look up to the most – David Dockery. Those of you who were around in January of 2007 will remember the week-long interview I had with Dr. Dockery as well as the live, interactive Q&A on the blog. I have always appreciated the careful, articulate, and balanced approach Dr. Dockery has exhibited as a Southern Baptist statesman, and, in light of the heightened attention and interest in the SBC political sphere of things leading up to the annual meeting in Indy, I would like to recommend these MP3’s for the betterment and prospect of a gospel-driven consensus and spirit of cooperation within the SBC.
(To download the audio, right click, save as):
Part I – The Path Toward Consensus; the SBC of the past; and the Inerrancy of Scripture
Part II – Perspectives on salvation – Arminianism, Calvinism and Amyraldianism; the Legacy of the SBC’s Founding Generation; and the Doctrinal Building Blocks Required for an Orthodox Consensus Among Southern Baptists
Part III – Landmarkism; the Call to Embrace the Gospel; Expository Preaching; the Practice of the Lord’s Supper; an Overview of SBC worship; the Role of Christian Higher Education Among Southern Baptists; and The Challenge to a Rising Generation
A little more than a week ago, Dr. Paul Dean who hosts the Calling for Truth radio program, interviewed Tom Ascol regarding the resolution on regenerate church membership. You can access this interview by listening online or by downloading it (MP3) to your computer.
As the conversation continues, I hope to provide more excerpts on this subject matter. For related articles, go here.
Two brothers whom I have grown to love and appreciate over the past year are Owen Strachan and Collin Hansen. A couple of weeks ago, The Henry Center (of which Owen is managing director) held a discussion between Dr. Doug Sweeney, professor of Church History at TEDS, and Collin, who as you know, is the author of Young, Restless, Reformed. While the topic of Collin’s book has oft been discussion, perhaps there is no one more historically conscious than Dr. Sweeney to facilitate a healthy and informative time of delving into Collin’s journey regarding the revival within the Reformed tradition.
Allow me to point you to this good discussion between Dr. Sweeney and Collin which is approximately 40 minutes and includes Q&A from the TEDS audience. The discussion is available in both audio and video, so be sure to check it out!
In this third and final part of my interview with Collin Hansen, we discuss the largest chapter in his book, entitled “Ground Zero: Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.” Hansen is not an SBCer, so I was particularly interested in his reflections as a journalist looking in from the outside. Some of you may remember me querying everyone for the top five reasons why you are Reformed, which was spawned off my discussion with Collin when we first talked.
There have been a couplecritiques regarding why would Collin call SBTS “Ground Zero,” and I have asked him to elaborate specifically on this issue, and why in particular he chose to include the SBC in general and not stick exclusively with SBTS. For those of you who want my take on this, besides what I shared in the interview, you can find them in my responses to Tony Kummer’s critique (see comments 6, 7, 10, 11, 13, 15, and 18).
But back to the interview, here are the questions I asked in the final segment:
1. As an outsider, what do you think about the current spike of controversy regarding Calvinism with the Southern Baptist Convention?
2. For some, your book will be a cause for thankfulness and rejoicing, and for others it will be a cause for lamenting and grieving. What would you say to each group in response?
3. What do you hope to accomplish, in the end, with the publishing of this book?
RT @MattSmethurst: The Lord didn’t check who inside the house was worthy. He checked for blood on the doorposts.
None of us is worthy. Onl… 2 months ago
My good friend Doug Baker 
Yesterday afternoon, 
This morning, I had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Donald Whitney to discuss spiritual disciplines and the 2008 National Founders Conference. In the interview, I asked Dr. Whitney about his pilgrimage in the study of spiritual disciplines, how to cultivate spiritual disciplines in challenging and demanding times, his work at the Center for Biblical Spirituality and at SBTS, and finally the work of personal and formative discipline in the practice of church renewal and church planting.
Two brothers whom I have grown to love and appreciate over the past year are Owen Strachan and Collin Hansen. A couple of weeks ago, 
In this third and final part of my interview with Collin Hansen, we discuss the largest chapter in his book, entitled “Ground Zero: Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.” Hansen is not an SBCer, so I was particularly interested in his reflections as a journalist looking in from the outside. Some of you may remember me 
Provocations & Pantings 
Tim Challies, Rick Warren, and My Take on the John Piper Interview
June 1, 2011Last Friday, I took some time to post my thoughts on John Piper’s interview of Rick Warren. And I was entirely not surprised by the comments my post received. However, I did appreciate the interaction I received offline with my fellow pastors and with other friends through email, Tim Challies included. Tim shared with me that he was going to share his thoughts in greater detail, which he did yesterday. I encourage you to check it out, though I take a little different approach, as you will see here.
In his post, Challies shared with his readers that I “marveled at the theological agreement between the two men” and used my blogpost as typical of what the blogosphere was positively regarding the interview. I guess you could say that my blogpost was an appreciative response to Piper’s appreciative interview. Obviously, Challies and I interacted with the interview with different perspectives and came away with different conclusions. Having said that, I thought I’d elaborate more on my take of the interview.
First, I do not consider myself a careful observer of all things Rick Warren. I have read a couple of his books, follow him on Twitter, and occasionally here about what he is doing during the year. I don’t read the watchdog blogs that are obsessed with him, nor do I care to try to correct him every time he says something I disagree with. It is not that I am entirely ambivalent about Warren as much as it is that I have far greater concerns about the issues in my own life that demand far greater attention. The scope of the interview with Warren was limited to his book The Purpose Driven Life, and while that may have not felt to be sufficient material for a thoroughgoing critique, I’m glad Piper stuck with a first-hand source that all of us can evaluate on its own merits.
(more…)
Categories: Interviews, Personal Commentary, Responses
Tags: Interview with Rick Warren, John Piper, Rick Warren, Tim Challies
Comments: 24 Comments