ABI 2010 Year-End Report

It’s hard to believe that 2010 is almost over. It has been an incredibly exciting and very full year of ministry. The Lord has allowed me to minister to many wonderful people, as well as carry the ministry of The Alliance for Biblical Integrity forward in significant ways. I had the opportunity to teach more hours and in more venues than in any of my previous 23 years of full-time ministry. We sincerely appreciate the many who have prayed for us, those who have sent notes of encouragement via email and Facebook, and those who have given sacrificially to make

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Ministry Trip to S. Korea / Philippines

Support the ministry of ABI by becoming an International Ministry Partner A few weeks ago I posted an ABI blog outlining the tremendous international ministry opportunities the Lord has set before us. I noted that as each trip gets closer I will send additional updates and see if there might be those who would be interested in giving toward one or more of these important missions trips. In order to be able to maintain ABI’s international ministry we need the help of the many friends who receive the ABI updates and who believe in what we are doing. The focus

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Where Should We Meet?

A Theological and Historical Response to the Contemporary Home Church Movement By Paul Barreca Pastor, Faith Bible Church, Vineland, NJ ABI Co-founder A recent Associate Press article highlighted a trend among Christians to leave their churches and worship at home instead. (1) Sometimes called Organic Church, Missional Church or House Church, this movement appeals to many who have grown dissatisfied with the corporate and impersonal nature of many American churches. Propelled by books such as Pagan Christianity (Frank Viola and George Barna), Life After Church (Brian Sanders) and They Like Jesus but Not the Church (Dan Kimball), some Christians urge

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Burning Korans (the right way)

You couldn’t watch or listen to the news for more than a few minutes this week without hearing about the Florida pastor’s plan to burn Korans on the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. After it was reported that General Petraus had expressed his concerns that this could very easily put American soldiers and expatriates at risk in Afghanistan and other countries, I wrote an email to Pastor Jones asking him to reconsider his plans – both as a brother in Christ and as a fellow leader in ministry. I don’t know if he actually received or read my email.

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Glenn Beck’s “Black-Robed Regiment”

Should we be concerned about Glenn Beck’s 8/28 “Restoring Honor” rally in Washington? I have watched Glenn Beck almost every day since he has been in the 5 o’clock slot on the FoxNews channel and I agree with virtually everything that he says about the fact that we have been witnessing the decline of the principles and values upon which this country was founded. I tend to agree with much of his analysis as to why and how this has happened. I also agree that returning the Constitution to its rightful place in the legislative and judicial realms of government,

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ABI Quick Survey: Mark Galli’s CT article

ABI Quick Survey: What is your opinion of the July 15 CT article by Mark Galli? A couple of days ago, I published a blog (copied below) concerning an article written by Mark Galli for Christianity Today. If you have read the comments following the article on the CT website, you have seen mixed responses from the readers. The majority have been negative, but some have expressed their support, suggesting that his perspective was appropriate and helpful. I hope you will take a moment to participate in our brief survey to express your views (which we will publish in about

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Christianity Today: God – the “Divine Drama Queen”

Christianity Today Senior Managing Editor Mark Galli’s recent article sparks controversy. Christianity Today’s identification as “A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction” will almost certainly be called into question once again by many readers because of a July 15 article by Mark Galli in which he calls God “such a drama queen.” He reduces God to being little more than a totally-out-of-control diva: “So  what we have, for better or worse, is a melodramatic God. He yells and  throws dishes, and walks off in a huff, slamming the door behind him—and  then he turns around and gives his life for us.” The

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Partnership Opportunities: ABI International

As the ministry of The Alliance for Biblical Integrity continues to develop in the United States, we are also receiving an increasing number of invitations to teach internationally. These represent tremendous opportunities to provide solid biblical instruction to the next generation of leaders as they are trained by other ministries around the world. Unlike those in the U.S., overseas ministries need for guest teachers to come as fully-supported short-term missionaries. Therefore, we are seeking additional strategic partners to join our support team specifically for the international ministries of the ABI. I encourage you to look over the international ministry opportunities

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Homosexuality and the Bible – Part III

(This article is available in downloadable and printable PDF, 2 column article format: Click here to download) According to an April, 2009 article on MSNBC, a Washington Post/ABC poll released that month became the first to indicate that the number of Americans supporting same-sex marriages (49%) is now greater than those who oppose it (46%). Although the two numbers are within the typical poll margin-of-error of each other (±3%), there does seem to have been a significant shift in attitudes over the preceding 5-year period, when a Post/ABC poll put the percentage in-favor at just 32% in 2004. Between 1982

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Bruce Waltke’s Comments Create Firestorm

(This article is available in downloadable and printable PDF, 2 column article format: Click here to download) Bruce Waltke is one of the most well-known Old Testament scholars in the Reformed tradition of this generation. Known by many as a conservative, his comments made in a recently-released 2009 interview may have created one of the most significant theological firestorms to sweep through the evangelical community in recent memory. (This issue has generated a tremendous number of articles, blogs and comments and because of the sheer volume it has become very difficult to trace everything back to the primary sources for

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Homosexuality and the Bible – Part II

(This article is available in downloadable and printable PDF, 2 column article format: Click here to download) Homosexuality and the Believer’s Identity in Christ But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12–13, NKJV) There are many things that distinguish Christianity from the religions of the world, not the least of which is the believer’s identity in Christ. In other religions,

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Homosexuality and the Bible – Part I

This is the first in a series of articles on the topic of “Homosexuality and the Bible.” However, the series will not necessarily be presented in consecutive blogs. A Faltering Consensus The consensus among conservative evangelicals is that the Bible provides the final and authoritative word on all aspects of life. Historically, there has also been broad consistency in how the Bible has been understood and biblical principles have been applied to a variety of moral issues, including homosexuality. However, this consensus seems to be slowly dissolving in the face of seismic shifts in the views of society toward homosexuality

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Homosexuality and the Bible: ABI Survey Results

Below are the results from the survey concerning ABI readers’ views on homosexuality and the Bible. (The survey was launched on April 20.) The link to the survey was sent to the 550+ ABI Facebook Group members, 850+ Facebook friends, as well as the 470 recipients of the ABI Update emailings (although there is obviously overlap between the three groups). There have been 104 respondents so far. Concerning the Results The statements were presented in pairs, generally representing the two opposing views as they are often expressed concerning this subject. However, this was not to suggest that these are the

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Holy Ghost Hokey Pokey

This video is from a service at MorningStar Ministries (founded by Rick Joyner) in Fort Mill, South Carolina. A Google search on “Holy Ghost Hokey Pokey” quickly shows that although recently posted, it has received a lot of attention across the internet. It marks just one of the latest in a long string of “manifestations of the Holy Spirit”  – which are clearly neither biblical, nor the work of the Holy Spirit, whatever the real explanation. (Note: I am working on a higher quality video that I hope to post in the near future.) MorningStar is a fairly well-known Charismatic

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Eroticizing the Eucharist

This article is by guest contributor Larry DeBruyn, pastor of Franklin Road Baptist Church in Indianapolis, Indiana and the author of the blog, “Guarding His Flock.” ——————————— T.D. Jakes and Communion at “A Table Set for Two.” “Brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.” (Romans 16:17-18, KJV) In the Upper Room and to memorialize His upcoming death, the Lord Jesus took the common but symbolic elements of

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In India with The Agape Puppets

This ABI blog is a bit of a departure from most articles – but it does focus on reaching the lost with the gospel in a unique way. This blog features an email from a dear friend, Linda Summer, who is the Director of the Agape Puppet ministry. Linda and her team are currently in India and reaching thousands of Hindu children with the gospel of Jesus Christ. As always, she is accompanied by Sam Shaw (from Northern Ireland), who is the Associate Director for the ministry and his wife, Silvana, who is from Brazil. Linda Summer is a truly

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What About Those Who Haven’t Heard? An Exposition of Romans 10

During his 30-year career, the Apostle Paul personally carried the gospel to some of the most important and populous cities along the central corridor of the Roman Empire, including Rome itself. But this work was no easy task. Paul endured incredible hardship and continually put his life on the line for the sake of the gospel, facing death time and again (2 Corinthians 11:23-28), until finally he was executed in Rome for the message he preached. History tells us that most of the other apostles met similar fates. And through the centuries, countless others have given everything in order to

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Those who haven’t heard – in the Amazon

As an introduction to the second survey in this series, I presented a hypothetical situation of an Indian village and a young girl named Ayanna. However, this blog is about a present, real-life situation deep in the Amazon jungle. Yesterday, my dad forwarded an email update from a missionary that very directly touches on the question, “What about those who haven’t heard?” And because of its timeliness and relevance to the issue, I have decided to post it (below) before addressing this question in light of Romans 10 in the next few days. Michael Guerink , is a missionary in

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Life + 150 years

I recently became an adjunct professor for Grace College, teaching part-time in their Associates Degree program in the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility in Carlisle, Indiana. There are currently 17 men studying Old Testament Survey and 22 in Systematic Theology. This is an amazing ministry opportunity for me personally and fits well with the goals of ABI in making the Word of God accessible to this generation of believers and preparing the next for leadership. From time to time I will be blogging about some of my experiences and observations related to my prison ministry. ______________________ Between classes on Monday evening,

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What about those who haven’t heard? (Part 3)

This is part of a blog series concerning the question of the eternal fate of those who have not heard the gospel by the time of their death. So far, 77 people have participated in the first survey and 41 in the second, follow-up survey (which are part of this blog series). The tabulated results can be seen in the graphs below. Even though these results are not statistically significant due to the low number of respondents, they do seem to show that there is a fairly significant divergence of opinion regarding this issue. And although the results are not

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