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A La Carte (10/17)

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An Unparalyzed Faith – This is an amazing article to find in a mainstream newspaper. Pastor Robert Shelby was paralyzed in a diving accident. Here is what happened when he realized he was drowning: “I began praising him for his grace, for saving me, sending his son, those type things, praising him for the privilege of raising up a family and ministering to people. I prayed that he would watch over my family and provide for them.” A must-read!

A Christian Business Owner – Mark Taylor, president of Tyndale House Publishers: “I’ve always thought—in a theoretical way—that I might someday face a situation where the government was asking or telling me to do something that was counter to God’s law as I understood it. If such a situation arose, I hoped I would have the backbone to stand tall and disobey the government mandate. Well, that day seems to have come.”

Fire – I don’t often respond to poetry, but this little poem, titled simply “Fire,” really spoke to me.

Should We Baptize Upon Profession? – “No membership class. No onlookers are mentioned. No period of seeing whether or not this Ethiopian was serious about his profession. All that we have in this context is a gospel explanation by Philip, a chariot driver, and ‘some water’. Therefore, churches ought to follow Philip and baptize people upon profession. Right?”

Taking the Bible Literally – From The Gospel Coalition’s fact checker series comes this article on whether and how Christians take the Bible literally.

King’s Crisis – While I try to guard against “sanctified gossip,” this seems like a significant story considering Dinesh D’Souza’s rising profile in the Evangelical world: “After a meteoric rise in the evangelical world, The King’s College president Dinesh D’Souza now faces his board’s likely questions about his relationship to a woman not his wife.”

None can know their election but by their conformity to Christ; for all who are chosen are chosen to sanctification.

—Matthew Henry

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