Tag Archives: liberty

Judging Matters of Freedom

Judging Matters of Freedom

This entry is part 8 of 63 in the series Ten Mangled Words You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Modern Christians are in the habit of labelling all sorts of things as ‘matters of Christian liberty’ or ‘areas of preference’. We do not doubt that these adiaphora (“indifferent things”) exist; Scripture explicitly deals with them in Romans 14 and 1 Corinthians 8-10. The question is, how do we identify them? Genuine adiaphora can be… Continue Reading

Matters of Conscience and Freedom

Matters of Conscience and Freedom

This entry is part 7 of 63 in the series Ten Mangled Words You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Scripture devotes two sections of the New Testament to explain how certain choices in the Christian life are not explicitly or implicitly forbidden or prescribed: explicitly by commands or prohibitions, or implicitly by a very clear application of general Scriptural principles. These two sections are Romans 14, and 1 Corinthians 8 to 10. Here we… Continue Reading

Freedom and Churches

Freedom and Churches

This entry is part 6 of 63 in the series Ten Mangled Words You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

A church is a voluntary society. Baptists believe that people join churches not by birth but by choice. People freely associate, and can freely disassociate. Voluntary societies cannot use force or coercion on their members; they can only persuade. Having said that, a number of things need to be said to overturn the muddled thinking… Continue Reading

Freedom – Societal and Individual

Freedom – Societal and Individual

This entry is part 5 of 63 in the series Ten Mangled Words You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Liberty is the absence of unwarranted coercion, leaving the human open to persuasion and his own agency to choose what he ought. Freedom does not, and never can, mean an unlimited amount of choices. The freedom of a man should be limited in two ways. Externally, he is not free to harm the common good,… Continue Reading

Freedom

Freedom

This entry is part 4 of 63 in the series Ten Mangled Words You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Freedom is another word that the disingenuous enjoy. Just as the Tolerazis cry ‘intolerance’ and pose as victims even while they terrorize and bully others, so similar people shout freedom while insisting that others submit to their choices, or at least abdicate legitimate authority over them. Freedom has a nice ring to our ears. Restraint and… Continue Reading

Perry Noble’s Missed Opportunity

Perry Noble’s Missed Opportunity

Jeff Straub The fall of mega-church pastor Perry Noble has stunned the evangelical world. Noble founded and pastored NewSpring Church of Anderson, SC, for 18 years. NewSpring was listed as the third largest church in the United States in 2015. Outreach Magazine reports its attendance as approaching 28,000. But in recent days, the leadership of… Continue Reading

Drinking, Cheeseburgers, and Marijuana?

Drinking, Cheeseburgers, and Marijuana?

Recently, Pastor Michael Harding of First Baptist Church of Troy, Michigan was invited to debate the issue of Christians and beverage alcohol on a Moody Radio program called Up for Debate. Mike argued the position of abstinence—while the Bible, in his opinion, does not explicitly prohibit the use of beverage alcohol, Christians should nevertheless abstain… Continue Reading