I am a sermon freak. A few great pastors have had a huge impact on my life, and helped guide my theology and ecclesiology. Over the next few weeks I'm going to share them with you. Starting with Matt Chandler.

Matt Chandler is a pastor at the Village Church in Dallas, Texas. He preaches from the Bible with authority, in a tone that tells his listeners how much he cares about their souls. Matt is incredibly thoughtful and Christ-centered in everything he does.

His Background
Before becoming a pastor, Matt was running a non-profit. One of his big donors asked him to interview for a head pastor position at a dying Baptist church. Matt had zero desire to accept the job—but even when he preached election, elder-lead government, and God's Sovereignty to an old school baptist congregation—they still hired him! God has used Matt in incredible ways. The small church has grown to over 3,000 people in a few short years, planted several churches, and sends out swarms of missionaries.

Conference Teaching
Vision of a Church Planter

Slaves, Women & Homosexuals: Exploring the Hermeneutics of Cultural Analysis. By William J. Webb. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2001. 301 pp. n.p.

INTRODUCTION

Sometimes I wonder if egalitarians hope to triumph in the debate on the role of women by publishing book after book on the subject. Each work propounds a new thesis which explains why the traditional interpretation is flawed. Complementarians could easily give in from sheer exhaustation, thinking that so many books written by such a diversity of different authors could scarcely be wrong. Further, it is difficult to keep writing books promoting the complementarian view. Our view of the biblical text has not changed dramatically in the last twenty five years. Should we continue to write books that essentially promote traditional interpretations? Is the goal of publishing to write what is true or what is new?

Who wants to read about stuffy old law, anyway? Jesus came and we have grace and love now, right? Jani Ortlund, the wife of Ray Ortland Jr., and author of His Loving Law, Our Lasting Legacy would graciously counter that grace was given to the Israelites before the law, and that the law was a gift of love from God, not slavery. In her interview she discusses her love of the Bible and commands that are not only in the Old Testament, but the New. She informs us that the law is meant to point us to Jesus as we cannot live up to its standards. Jesus cleanses us and frees us to love him back, and the law is a picture of what God is like. Formerly a school teacher, Jani saw the removal of the Ten Commandments from the walls of her school. With a deep love for Jesus and the law that God gave, she was burdened to share with families the practical teaching of the Ten Commandments as conduits to Christ and a gift of life to be passed on to the next generation. This wise and gracious woman clearly loves Jesus and clearly loves the Word.

An Interview with Dr. Alistair McGrath

The right for believers to interpret Scripture lies at the core of Protestantism. Dr. McGrath writes his latest book Christianity’s Dangerous Idea: The Protestant Revolution – A History from the Sixteenth Century to the Twenty-First to help the church today remember the roots and adaptability of Protestantism. With a balance of criticism and encouragement, McGrath clearly presents the development of Protestantism over the past 500 years. He concludes with great insight on the tremendous upside of Protestantism in that it continues to be close to the culture yet faithful to preaching the gospel. We are very thankful for his flexibility to do this interview over the phone with us (especially with the time difference involved!).

About a month ago I was able to interview Mark Dever, of Capital Hill Baptist Church and 9Marks Ministry about his book What is a Healthy Church?

You can find the interview here. Also, it categorized under: Ecclesiology, Theological Book Briefs, and Christian Living