Hurricane Harvey
Before addressing today’s topic, my heart goes out to those affected by Hurricane Harvey. The Houston area is where I spent my childhood so I know the area well. The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) has provided a list of ministries helping those affected by Hurricane Harvey. Please consider joining me by helping in the disaster relief efforts.
Nashville Statement
On Tuesday, August 29, the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood in partnership with the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission released the Nashville Statement. The statement brings much needed clarity and guidance for followers of Christ on the issue of biblical sexuality, especially in light of our increasingly post-Christian culture seeking to reinvent what it means to be a human being.
The Preamble explains the purpose of the statement:
“We believe that God’s design for his creation and his way of salvation serve to bring him the greatest glory and bring us the greatest good. God’s good plan provides us with the greatest freedom. Jesus said he came that we might have life and have it in overflowing measure. He is for us and not against us. Therefore, in the hope of serving Christ’s church and witnessing publicly to the good purposes of God for human sexuality revealed in Christian Scripture, we offer the following affirmations and denials.”
The initial signatories include an impressive array of evangelical leaders, like J.I. Packer, John Piper, James Dobson, Russell Moore, Wayne Grudem, R. Albert Mohler Jr., Tony Perkins, D.A. Carson, John MacArthur, Dennis Rainey, R.C. Sproul, Francis Chan, Ligon Duncan, Marvin Olasky, J.P. Moreland, Alistair Begg, Matt Chandler, and Randy Alcorn.
I have signed it. I hope you will also. This statement provides an important opportunity for evangelicals to come together with a united voice to clearly communicate God’s purposes for human sexuality as revealed in His Word. To sign the statement, click here.
ICYMI – Latest News & Articles of Interest
- To learn more about the Nashville Statement, listen to Al Mohler’s The Briefing for August 30 and 31. On Twitter, follow Denny Burk, Al Mohler, and CBMW to see the latest commentary.
- In the coming term, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission whether a Colorado cake artist can decline to use his artistic talents to design a wedding cake for a same-sex wedding ceremony. In his article “Masterpiece Cakeshop: Can the State Force Us to Agree with Its Views?”, Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Jonathan Scruggs provides a helpful discussion of legal precedents that will play a part in the Court’s decision.