SBC Voices is going to give away some books!

Institutes of the Christian Religion – John Calvin
The Meaning of the Pentateuch – John Sailhamer
The Trellis and the Vine – Colin Marshall and Tony Payne

You have three different ways to get in the contest:

1) List your full name, first and last, in the comment section of $100 BOOK GIVEAWAY! at the SBC Voices website (not here).

2) Tweet this- “RT @matthewsvoboda RT for a chance to win: $100 Book Giveaway http://sbcvoices.com/kicking-off-2010-right-100-book-giveaway/”

3) If you have a blog, write a post telling people about the Giveaway. (it doesnt matter how long the post is as long as it is linked back to sbcvoices.com/kicking-off-2010-right-100-book-giveaway.

Your name will be put in the drawing according to how many of those 3 things you do!

The giveaway will end next Wednesday 1-20!

(To ensure no one tries to enter via my site, comments on my post will be closed)

H.T. Ben of Founder and PerfecterSimilar Posts:

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Another book giveaway!

Bezalel (or Bezaleel) means “in the shadow [protection] of El.” Bezalel is described in the genealogical lists as the son of Uri (Exodus 31:1), the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah (I Chronicles 2:18, 19, 20, 50). He was said to be highly gifted as a workman, showing great skill and originality in engraving precious metals and stones and in wood-carving. He was also a master-workman, having many apprentices under him whom he instructed in the arts (Exodus 35:30-35). According to the narrative in Exodus, he was definitely called and endowed to direct the construction of the tent of meeting and its sacred furniture, and also to prepare the priests’ garments and the oil and incense required for the service.

But I think a more accurate description would be to say that God was the Architect, Moses was the Project Leader and Bezalel was the Contractor.

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Bezalel

The problem is not that there’s too much conservatism: it’s that there’s a lot of unfounded, flabby conservatism running around with plastic fishes attached to it rather than a robust, young, and dangerous conservatism riding around on the fat, noisy Harley which is the Gospel.

’nuff said.
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Single greatest quote of all year

The Brick Testament is the largest, most comprehensive illustrated Bible in the world with over 3,600 illustrations that retell more than 300 stories from The Bible.

Launched first as a website in 2001, then as a published book series in 2003, The Brick Testament project is an ongoing one-man labor of love, constructed and photographed entirely by The Rev. Brendan Powell Smith.

391 stories with 4,214 illustrations. More to come…

- CONTENT NOTICE -
The Bible contains material some may consider morally objectionable and/or inappropriate for children. These labels identify stories containing:

N= nudity
S= sexual content
V= violence
C= cursing

HT: David A. Porter
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The Brick Testament

Bible Study Magazine and Mars Hill are giving away 20 copies of Mark Driscoll’s new book, Vintage Church. Not only that, but they are also giving away five subscriptions to Bible Study Magazine and a copy of their Bible Study Library software! Enter to win on the Bible Study Magazine Mark Driscoll page, then take a look at all the cool tools they have to take your Bible study to the next level!

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How to get free stuff

Dear beloved sponsors and friends of Good News India. We have never seen anything like this. We knew that Orissa was the most resistant and hostile State in India as far as the Gospel is concerned. And we brushed off the continuous threats and harassment we faced as we went about His work. But none of our staff imagined that they would see this kind of carnage…. And it seems to be totally under the radar of the Western Media ….

Let me explain…. A militant Hindu priest and 4 of his attendants, who were zealously going around the villages of Orissa and ‘reconverting’ people back to Hinduism, were gunned down by unknown assailants in Central Orissa last weekend.

Immediately the Christians were blamed.. The cry rose up…’Kill the Christians!’ And the horror began…. In the past 4 days, we have first hand witness to hundreds of churches being blown up or burned and many, many dozens of Christian tribals have been slaughtered. For no other reason than they bear the name of Christ.

Night and day I have been in touch with our Good News India Directors spread across 14 Dream Centers in Orissa… they are right in the middle of all this chaos. In Tihidi, just after the police came to offer protection, a group of 70 blood-thirsty militants came to kill our staff and destroy the home. They were not allowed to get in, but they did a lot of damage to our Dream Center by throwing rocks and bricks and smashing our gate, etc.

They have promised to come back and ‘finish the job.’ Our kids and staff are locked inside and have stayed that way with doors and windows shut for the past 3 days. It has been a time of desperately calling on the Lord in prayer.

More police have come to offer protection. In Kalahandi, the police and some local sympathizers got to our dream center and gave our staff and kids about 3 minutes notice to vacate. No one had time to even grab a change of clothes or any personal belonging. As they fled, the blood thirsty mob came to kill everyone in the building. We would have had a mass funeral there, but for His grace. In Phulbani, the mob came looking for Christian homes and missions. The local Hindu people, our neighbors turned them away by saying that there were no Christians in this area. So they left.. We had favor. The same thing happened in Balasore.

All our dream centers are under lock down with the kids and staff huddled inside and police outside. The fanatics are circling outside waiting for a chance to kill. Others were not so fortunate. In a nearby Catholic orphanage, the mob allowed the kids to leave and locked up a Priest and a computer teacher in house and burned them to death. Many believers have been killed and hacked into pieces and left on the road…. even women and children. At another orphanage run by another organization, when this began, the Director and his wife jumped on their motorbike and simply fled, leaving all the children and staff behind. Every one of our GNI directors that I have spoken to said: ‘We stay with our kids…. we live together or die together, but we will never abandon what God has called us to do.’ More than 5000 Christian families have had their homes burned or destroyed. They have fled into the jungles and are living in great fear waiting for the authorities to bring about peace. But so far, no peace is foreseen.

This will continue for another 10 days…. supposedly the 14 day mourning period for the slain Hindu priest. Many more Christians will die and their houses destroyed. Many more churches will be smashed down. The Federal government is trying to restore order and perhaps things will calm down. We ask for your prayers. Only the Hand of God can calm this storm. None of us know the meaning of persecution. But now our kids and staff know what that means. So many of our kids coming from Hindu backgrounds are confused and totally bewildered at what is happening around them. So many of their guardians have fled into the jungles and are unable to come and get them during these trying times.

Through all this, I am more determined than ever to continue with our goal: the transformation of a community by transforming its children. Orissa will be saved… that is our heart’s cry. If we can take these thousands of throw-away children and help them to become disciples of Jesus, they will transform an entire region. It is a long term goal, but it is strategic thinking in terms of the Great Commission. What can you do? First, please uphold all this in fervent prayer. Second, pass this e-mail on to as many friends as you can. We must get the word out and increase our prayer base for this is spiritual warfare at its most basic meaning. We are literally fighting the devil in order to live for His Kingdom. The next 10 days are crucial. We pray for peace and Thank you for taking the time to read this.

More info can be found at www.efionline.org and YWAMSimilar Posts:

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CHRISTIANS, MISSIONARIES in INDIA

I would like to add that Wendy’s mum (June) and dad are elderly people and it must be absolutely hellish for them to be going through this with their only daughter and youngest child, especially as they lost one of their sons (though not to cancer) some years back, so I’m asking for extra prayers for Wendy’s parents as well as Wendy

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Prayers for Wendy

When they provide bible verses that support their opinion, it’s called reading scripture “in context”.
When you provide bible verses that support your opinion, it’s called “cherry picking verses”.

When they make a distinction between two slightly differing concepts, it’s considered “scholarly”.
When you make a distinction between two slightly differing concepts, it’s considered “semantics”.

When they present their interpretation of Scripture, it’s called “what God’s word says.”
When you present your interpretation of Scripture, it’s called “heresy” or “a doctrine of demons”.

What it all boils down to is that when it comes to illusions of infallibility, Rome is in very good company.

HT: chaela on Christian Forums, which isn’t very Christian. BTW – I shant be returning to CF. its too chaotic and full of worthless posts. The posts worth reading and contributing on require 100+ posts to comment on and that’s just not worth it. Good luck to those that stick with it. I for one, have better things to do with my time — LIKE MINISTRY. [/end sarcasm]

P.S. be sure and visit Blogogetics.com for some less argumentative apologetics

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Pastoral Thoughts on Politics

1 Samuel 8:7 “The LORD said to Samuel…they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.” The Biblical worldview combined with the common grace of general revelation teaches man that God is King and ruler over the earth and that mankind ought to worship and serve him as governing King over our lives, families, and societies.

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Here’s the situation if you don’t feel like following the links. Christian bookstores are on the decline and many people feel that is a tremendous loss to our christian culture. Much like the battle between Wal-Mart and the Mom&Pop stores is the battle between Retail Bookstores and Christian Bookstores (online and off). For some, it’s a sad sign of the times – the secular world is “winning”. For others, it’s a purging of the false prophets.

Is the strength of the Christian Bookstore a good measure of the Christian faith?

Many people seem to carry their faith around like a burden to bare, a cross to carry. For them, the world is a place full of persecution and we are at war with its secular ways. For them, it’s always about who’s winning. If it’s a Christian movie, they’ll see it. A Christian CD, they’ll buy it. A Christian talk show, they’ll watch it. No matter how bad, poorly made, over-priced or theologically unsound, they’ll support it. These people will always choose “Christian [whatever]“.

On the other hand, are those who look at everything objectively. A Christian book can be better or worse than a non-Christian book. For this discussion, let me be clear that a non-Christian book is not the same as an unChristain book (aka anti-Christian). Sure the non-Christian book may hold certain world views but the discerning Christian doesn’t confuse a portrait of the world with a promotion of the world.

Case in point, Harry Potter. Some in the first group would burn all the books and banish the author for promoting witchcraft and sorcery, while those in the second group, can look past the fantasy and see how the concepts of good and evil are portrayed and how the world would treat issue of right and wrong. They also see the craftsmanship of the author and appreciate how skillfully she tells the tale.

If we can safely discern what is safe and what corrupts, then there is little need for a safe harbor of the Christian Bookstore. Not when all our book needs can be met at the secular bookstores and online. But can we safely discern what is safe and what will corrupt?

Discernment is not created in God’s people by brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance. It is created by biblical truth and the application of truth by the power of the Holy Spirit to our hearts and minds. When that happens, then the brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance will have the strong fiber of the full counsel of God in them. They will be profoundly Christian and not merely religious and emotional and psychological. – John Piper

The Gift Store vs. the Theology Store

From my experience, the only books I typically find in the major Christian Bookstores are The Purpose Driven Cheerleader and Your Dog’s Best Life Now. Beyond that, it’s every conceivable Christian nick-knack (aka Jesus Junk) ever made. Neckties, figurines, music, posters, tree ornaments, games, toys, etc. Now, before you get your Left-Behind Undies in a twist, not all this stuff is bad and not all Christian Bookstores are like this. But there is a distinct difference in the target audience these stores tend to market. These are what I’ll call the Gift Stores. Christian themed versions of the Hospital Gift Shoppe. Easy to digest and disposable – perfect for everyone, useful to no-one

To contrast this are the theology-heavy bookstores, where people write about infralapsarianism and supralapsarianism, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, as well as 4-point vs. 5-point Calvanism and whether Jacobus Arminius was a heretic or just misunderstood. These are obviously what I’ll call the Theology Store. The difference being, all meat – no fluff. The problem is, many of us aren’t ready for it (or simply don’t want it).

I once went into a Christian Bookstore while waiting to meet some friends for dinner. Among all the bookmarks and wall decor and Veggie Tales plush toys, was a plethora of christian fiction (some may find that redundant). Of the three aisles of books, one whole face was dedicated to the Left Behind Series. The other aisles consisted of a few designer bibles, no study bibles, various self-improvement books (which seems ironic) and several different devotionals. Curious, I asked the clerk if they had any theology books. They looked at me kind of puzzled and then suggested I look along the back wall – which was pretty much a clearance rack. Needless to say, this was a Gift Store.

Conversely, a local Christian Bookstore I frequent is quite the opposite. The only thing they carry besides books (audio or text) are bible covers, highlighters and pens, and that’s it. They have as many bibles as the other store had Left Behind books. They offer various sizes of bibles from ultra compact to jumbo print and all are available in various translations (KJV, NKJV, NIV, NASB, ESV, NLT, etc.). They have commentaries on specific books of the bible as well as ones for the entire bible. There’s books on christian counseling, raising children, getting married, staying married, adoption, abortion, work, finances, grief – and all of them are based on scripture and focus you back to the gospel. They have books on theology, apologetics, preaching, evangelism, worship, tithing, church history and the like.

Is the loss of the Christian Bookstore a bad thing or a good thing?

If we can’t always be trusted to discern good theology from bad, and the shear volume of Christian books available is overwhelming, then how do we decide what to read and what to avoid. Typically, we rely on the recommendations and reviews of friends, colleagues, and our elders/pastors. But they can only read so much themselves and aren’t going to be there at the store when you’re looking at the shelf wondering “which book on this subject is best”. The good news is, the Gift Store makes it easy for you by limiting the choices you have. The bad news is, the Theology store can be overwhelming.

But inventory isn’t the only measure of a good Christian bookstore. You need staff qualified to know a good book from a bad one. People who have actually read the books and, most importantly, are actually Christian. If you’re looking for a commentary on the book of Luke, then you need someone who can determine not just which book does a good job of it, but also can select one based on your need for one. Do you need an introductory overview or are you looking for an in-depth analysis of the original Greek? This is something Amazon and Barnes and Noble can’t offer.

I really don’t have a blanket answer. All I can do is offer some conditional answers which really can’t cover every condition. Is the loss of a Christian Bookstore a bad thing? Maybe. But maybe it’s the kick in the head that some of us need to realize we were putting our hope in the wrong place (namely ourselves) or maybe we need more milk before we can have our meat
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Death of Christian Bookstores