Wednesday, April 16
Can’t wait to read this one…
My friend Tim Sutherland has tried to convince me for at least two years to start listening to and to read everything I can find from Tim Keller. I have passively resisted, no particular reason, just too many books to read and too many podcasts to listen to I guess…Keller is the senior pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan (New York, not Kansas). It’s a church of mostly twenty- and thirty-somethings that totals about 5,000 each week.
He’s been described this way…”Keller’s intellectually upscale apologetic has helped change how non–New Yorkers view our so-called secular city and usher in a paradigm shift in how evangelism is done in postmodern America.”
Well, tiring of Tim begging me to check Keller out and knowing Keller is also scheduled to speak at a main session at the Exponential Conference in Orlando next week I bought Keller’s new book: The Reason for God. As of 4.13 it is #7 on the New York Times hardcover non-fiction list, just ahead of Stephen Colbert’s “I am America (and so can you!) and, unfortunately just behind “Stori Telling” the memoir of 90210’s Tori Spelling.
The thing that sealed it for me was reading an interview from First Things, The Journal of Religion, Culture, and Public Life. It’s a great article. Read it, now, hurry… Especially for those of you reading from Crossings or in the world of church planting, it’s a great read.
Anyone out there read the book yet…?
Mark Nelson at 10:59 AM 10comments
10 Comments
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at 3:06 PM
Abigail said... I'm reading it currently. My friend had it pre-ordered and it's been passed around since. I'm about halfway. Keller is one of my all time favorite preachers, so I would totally recommend you take a listen if you ever get the chance, some of his messages have revolutioned how I think and act. The book is great so far. There was one chapter that I didn't follow completely, but I was exhausted when I read it, so I'll probably give it a re-read.
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at 10:09 PM
said... http://biblicalthought.com/blog/apostasy-warning-tim-keller/
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at 7:52 AM
ragamuffinminister said...
I'll post this comment, and then silently pray it leads to nothing, but...
...I guess I'm not understanding the 'issues' associated with Keller. I've such good things about his teachings BUT I've also heard so much criticism. If I'm not mistaken, doesn't MacArthur slam this guy on his radio show or in one of his books??
Anyway, what gives? Anyone able to answer that in brief?-
at 8:08 AM
jason said...
well, i read the intro and first chapter during my lunch break yesterday at borders. i know little about keller. i can say that his perspective will probably appeal to you. seems to be a big fan of "struggling with faith and doubts" and opening your mind up to much more about God and the Bible than you ever thought you knew.
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at 11:43 PM
Mark Nelson said...
Jeph (ragamuffin)
I'm not sure what the answer to your questions are... I don't know anything about MacArthur...
My frustration level is extremely high with this spirit of 'choose your side', 'pick which team you're going to be on: Piper or Mclaren, Driscoll or Bell, Keller or whoever'...
I know the 'apostasy warnings' are well intended, but I think they make Jesus nauseous...
mark-
at 10:59 AM
ragamuffinminister said...
I totally agree. I'm not even well read enough to understand everyone's problems with McLaren, Bell, etc., etc. My thinking is that there's enough good to find in all of us, regardless of our differences. At least, that makes sense to me.
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at 4:00 PM
said...
The odd thing, is Jesus really was nausous of False teaching, such as the Legalistic heresy of his day with the Pharisee's. I think he desires truth over "getting along" which is the post-modern dribble heard from maclaren,bell, and so on. The question of the Virgin-birth, the trinity, and so forth that these men question not only nausiate, but anger God. So the truth divides "sides", not people. We are to be discerners and seekers of truth. That is why Biblical Christianity demands to "pick sides" as you put it. tongues or no, hymns or no, jeans or no, these are not dividing lines. only the absolute truth of Scripture and doctrine, both things that Bell, Maclaren, Keller, and the Emerging church abandon for "post-modern relativism". Be very careful when you speak for Christ and say he is "nausiated"
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at 4:40 PM
Mark Nelson said...
Steve, I appreciate your thoughts...
My take is that Jesus was absolute in His desire for truth and absolute in desire for grace...and was the perfect balance of the two.
I struggle to maintain that in my life and I don't want to even come close to losing that balance...but this discussion seems to lead people to that imbalance.
Personally, I don't buy every teaching of any person or movement other than Jesus. I don't desire to align myself with any person or movement other than Jesus, and honestly, I want to spend my time going after the truth that Jesus taught and less time going after people who teach things I don't agree with... My time is better spent being 'for' Jesus than 'against' the people I disagree with...
Again, you may disagree...that's okay. Like I said I appreciate your thoughts...
I just don't want to play the game of 'fighting back' with words...that's the last thing a world trying to find God needs to see, believers going after each other...which probably is more my point than anything, I just don't want to play that game... You have decided it's worth it to play it, I have decided it's not...
peace to you...-
at 5:17 PM
said...
The main point I see that you should consider deeply in your statement is this....
"I want to spend my time going after the truth that Jesus taught and less time going after people who teach things I don't agree with..."
I am not against this idea to be skeptical and discerning of teaching. there is a huge, black, significant line between what I "disagree with" and what scripture is against. These are where we are to divide. If I lived my whole life with your divider, I would have no problem with any teaching that is contrary to Biblical truth, because after all "I am only concerned with what I SEE as truth". Sola Scriptura is our guiding divider, and Rob Bell and Brian Maclaren and others have shown clearly there disagreement with this. Paul didn't warn against Heresies for nothing. the writer of 1st Timothy wasn't writing about this for kicks, its serious and we should be most serious about those that question core Christianity.
3As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine,
1 Timothy 1:3
and also
1Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,
1 Timothy 4:1
and
6If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed.
1 Timothy 4:6
Do you think this is a light statement? The Good doctrine, like substiutionary Atonement, Virgin-birth, The Trinity, and all the other truths that those you admire and read question unabashedly.
The early church thought unloving to NOT share the truth, where have we gone wrong. This is out of love for God's church, which you are a believer and member of.
Blessings,
Steve C.-
at 9:11 PM
said...
Mark,
You're wasting your breath here...
As the great movie "Wargames" once said:
"the only way to win is not to play."
- Greg