Mike Corley responded to Joe’s open letter.
It is pretty interesting, and I think most of you would enjoy hearing it.  After hearing this, I feel more secure in our mission here.  I was frustrated and scared about what these men were doing even a few months ago.  I see now that God is raising up people to contend for the faith and the Bride of Christ here and at other sites run by our brothers and sisters.  Our grassroots voices are being heard and having an effect.  It is amazing to see what God is doing in this new generation of believers, unashamed of the gospel and not afraid to infiltrate culture. 
Many of us understand here that while a few splinter groups in the emerging/emergent movement have gone astray, we cannot and will not paint anyone who looks different with the same brush.  Film, music, dance, candles, incense, helping our non-following neighbor all can aid in sharing the gospel.  That changing the methods DOES NOT change the message.  We understand the true meaning of being in the world, but not being of the world.  We see a dying world outside of our four walls and a steeple, and we will do whatever asked of us to show these people the faith, love and hope of Jesus Christ. 
Anyhow, listen to the response and hear for yourself.  These were two quotes that I really enjoyed.             

“I don’t ridicule Erwin McManus, and Doug Padgett, or Mark Driscoll, or anybody else”

“We are not about analyzing people”

 

While we often focus on those things we disagree with at CRN, we don’t always point out when we do agree (often because those agreements are around things that don’t require all that much ‘discernment’).  However, there is an issue addressed by Jon Cardwell today where I think discernment is required, and I believe that he hit it right.

An aspect of Christianity I am very interested in (obviously, if you’ve ever read my blog) is the Hebrew Roots of Christianity.  One of the pitfalls in this type of study occurs when Christians feel they need to ‘go to the next level’ by observing Mosaic law and practice around ceremonial and external observances.  Jon has linked to an article on how to handle this topic, with what I believe is a correct interpretaion of how we Gentile Christians should approach Jewish practice.

Let’s change gears a bit and get some discussion going on another topic away from our friends at Slice 2.0/CRN. What would you do if a sex offender wanted to worship at or join your church? Go here and read the article.  I blogged about this a little over a year ago when I found out a sex offender lived down the street from me.