(Download MP4 video)
More details about The Rebelution Tour conferences here.s

Now I want one when I get to the States! Anybody want to sponsor a poor seminary student for an Apple iPhone?

Lots of photos and details of Friday’s Apple iPhone launch at The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Seems like there’s been quite a hullabaloo over the gospel lately.A man named Chalke, echoing a McLaren, echoing a Green and a Baker, echoing a number of feminists, used the words “divine child abuse” to talk about the cross. In response, two major British evangelical institutions refused to let Chalke speak, thereby cutting ties with a third institution that has Chalke on its board.A book called Pierced For Our Transgressions responded to Chalke, which in turn provoked a heavy-weight named Wright to enter the ring, pound the book, and defend Chalke.The conservative blogosphering bleacher-sitters then jumped to their feet and started quarrelling with one another over whether or not Wright is one of them. Another heavy-weight named Piper now promises to leap in soon with a book that says “no” and argues that Wright is “harmful to the church and to the human soul.” Meanwhile, the U.S. counterpart to the British publisher that printed Pierced decided not to touch the book, telling the enquiring yours truly that the book “doesn’t add anything to the conversation.”

Those evangelicals. Always squabbling with one another instead of doing the work of the ministry. Isn’t that what this is?

Well, what does Jude mean when he says “to contend for the faith”? What does Peter mean when he says “be on your guard”? What does John mean when he warns a church to not “even greet” false teachers? What does Paul mean when he says to let anyone with an alternative gospel—my goodness—”be eternally condemned”?

Until this world is ended, the gospel will be challenged from places high and low. It will be tweaked and twisted, denounced and denied. And most fundamentally, Christ calls local churches—not seminaries, not presbyteries, not synods, not theologians, not publishers, and not even eJournals—to defend the gospel. It’s the people in the pews and the pulpits whom these apostles address.

Insofar as God permits, this issue of the 9Marks eJournal aims to equip local churches and pastors to do just that—defend the gospel. The sweet news is, defending the gospel means meditating on it. Start with Powlison, and you’ll see exactly what I mean.

–Jonathan Leeman, in his “Editor’s Note” to the
July/August 9News (PDF): CHALLENGES TO THE GOSPEL 

Individual Online Articles: Read the rest of this entry »

I was watching “We Are Marshall” with my sister last night, but here’s some “the best of” Paris Hilton’s interview with Larry King last night:

Best pre-written flack-vetted lawyered-up soundbite:
“It was very traumatic experience and everything happens for a reason. [It] was a time out from life to find out what’s important, to figure out who I am, even though it’s really hard, I took that time to get to know myself.”

Second best:
“Don’t serve the time, let the time serve you

Biggest Fibberoo of the Night:
When Larry asked her whey she wanted to do the interview, she said, “when I heard you asked me to be on the show, I was excited…I consider you an icon…”

Second…
“I will never drink and drive again…”

Third…
“I was treated like any other inmate, no better no worse.”

(From The TV Zone.)

Official transcript from the interview on CNN is available here.

In light of Canada Day on Sunday, July 1, Rogers Video is offering all their Previously Viewed DVDs for sale at the ridiculous pricing of buy 1 get 1 free! (Offer ends July 2)

Furthermore, they have 2 for 1 deals on New Release & 7 Day rentals with this coupon (valid til July 31)

As first reported by The Christian Post, it is very interesting to see the theological background and position of the top 2 of the top 25 list multiplying churches in America! #1 is Tim Keller’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church (New York, NY), and #2 is Mark Driscoll’s Mars Hill Church (Seattle, WA) (–not to be confused with the highly emergent Mars Hill Bible Church of Grandville, MI that Rob Bell pastors). Given the misconception that Calvinists don’t care about evangelism and missions, the list clearly shows that we really do care and are doing the best we can at making the Good News known to the lost!

The top 25 list was compiled by ranking the top 40 respondents using such self-reported criteria as the total number of church plants, the average number of churches planted each year, the percentage of budget dedicated to church planting, and the number of daughter churches that have planted a new church.

Calvinists are not few but are plenty in this world — especially in the US of A — and especially among them “younger” evangelicals!

And as Mark Dever of 9 Marks Ministries correctly asks, Where’d All These Calvinists Come From?