The Gospel Coalition

Adoniram Judson and Ko Tha Byu (“The Karen Apostle”) brought the gospel to the Karen people of Burma in 1828. Revival came and thousands from this animistic people were saved and baptized. Now 40% Christian, the Karen people are suffering and they need our prayers.

Christians receive harsh treatment in Burma (also known as Myanmar), where they make up only 4% of the population (89% are Buddhist). According to a thorough report from Compass Direct, “Printing of Bibles is restricted, and churches are destroyed on a regular basis.” Last January, 100 churches in Rangoon were forced to close. If a Chin or Karen (two states with high Christian populations) Christian wants a job or promotion, they are often told to convert to Buddhism first.

The persecution goes far beyond closing churches and discriminatory hiring practices, however. Over 150,000 Karen and Karenni people have fled to refugee camps in Thailand—over half are Christians. They were forced to flee their homeland by the repressive Burmese military, which has burned to the ground hundreds of villages, killed thousands of their own people, and put many more into work camps. The military carries out much of its violence under the pretext of stamping out rebel activity, but it seems many are seeking to crush Christianity as well. Voice of the Martyrs tells of a Burmese official who recently stated, “Soon there will be no Christians in this nation. You will only be able to see a Karen person in a picture in a museum.”

Though persecution has been ongoing for many years, this is an especially precarious time for many of our Burmese brothers and sisters. The Thai government is threatening to force Burmese refugees back into Burma in the next couple of weeks, where most would be tortured, raped, or killed.

Many other Burmese Christians are hiding in the Burmese jungle. For example, Mission Network News tells of 100 Karen children in hiding. Vision Beyond Borders is working hard to serve these children and other displaced Burmese Christians. They have produced a helpful 30-day prayer guide that you can download here.

Learn more, pray, and then spread the word.

Ligonier Ministries has done the church a great service by aggregating helpful resources on the doctrine of Justification and the New Perspective on Paul. From Ligonier:

For the past few decades, a paradigm shift in New Testament scholarship has led some researchers to question whether the church has rightly understood first-century Judaism and the apostle Paul. In the name of a “New Perspective on Paul,” certain men are calling for a reassessment of the traditional Pauline understanding of the doctrine of justification, the nature of good works, and other elements essential to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Prominent among these figures is N.T. Wright, bishop of Durham and theologian who in his voluminous writings is demanding a new reading of Paul, even claiming that the Protestant Reformers misunderstood the apostle.

These accusations cannot be easily brushed aside, for they strike at the heart of our entire understanding of salvation. With an aim to analyze the merit of Wright’s claims and expose both the strengths and weaknesses of his approach, the editors of Tabletalk magazine have put together this collection of tools to help Christians discern the errors behind the approach of N.T. Wright. It is our hope that you will find these resources helpful in understanding the biblical doctrine of salvation and for making an informed assessment of the work of Wright and other New Perspective thinkers.

Check out the resources here. Thank you, Ligonier!

D.A. Carson on an all-too-common tendency by Christians:

Because human beings are made in the image of God, there is much that we can do that is worthy and admirable. Theologically speaking, this is the product of “common grace.” But it is possible to be far too impressed by wealth, power, architecture, fame, learning, physical prowess, and technology, with the result that we do not think through the moral and spiritual dimensions of the world around us. We may see the glory, and overlook the shame; we may detect human accomplishments, and neglect the undergirding idolatry; in short, we may be impressed by all that impresses God’s fallen image-bearers, but fail to assess these realities in the light of the cross and in the light of eternity.

[For the Love of God, February 10 entry based on Mark 13.]

When we reflect upon questions of providence, as Christians, we begin to realize the grandness of what we are attempting: We are pondering God’s activity. For all the questions concerning God’s providence, the “why” question is where the reflections end. Paul Helm articulates it this way:

What is impossible for us to do is to provide an intellectually satisfying answer to the “why” question. For asking such a question can only call for the answer, “Because God willed it to be so.”  To the subsequent question, “Why did God will it to be so?” there is no further, illuminating answer.  This is one reason that the pattern of divine providence will, in this life at least, always be a mystery.

In dealing with the providence of God, therefore, we are dealing with matters of ultimate significance for which there is no further explanation.  This does not mean that God is arbitrary or capricious in his dealings with the created universe. What it does mean is that the will of God, and the holy and wise reasons that he has for the exercise of that will, are the highest court of appeal (highest in the logical sense). There cannot be a higher court, and so, unsatisfactory though it may be, we must rest content with the ultimate reference to the will of God.

- Paul Helm, The Providence of God (IVP)

For Christians, Helm’s instruction is wisdom to heed. Further, while as Christians we confess to not have answers to the “why” questions, we can find assurance in God’s goodness as displayed in the good news of his Gospel. His Gospel informs us that while we do not know why he allows earthquakes, famines, disease, and all sorts of calamities, we do know that God does care. We know because he has sent his Son to be slain for sinners and to reconcile those sinners to himself.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come,nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

Tim Challies continues to plow ahead through his 0ne-year project of reviewing every NYT bestseller at his 10 Million Words blog. One of his latest reviews is of Jeffrey Long’s Evidence of the Afterlife: The Science of Near-Death Experiences. Here’s how he concludes the review:

Of course as a Christian I have to grapple with asking exactly what a NDE [Near Death Experience] is. It seems irrefutable that many people, when gravely injured and often when clinically dead, do experience something. The accounts are too common and too consistent to ignore entirely. So we see that such experiences do appear to exist and that they seem to lead directly away from what the Bible teaches us. What recourse do we have, then, but to state with some confidence that these experiences are somehow a trick of Satan? And would it not be just like the Enemy to use such an experience to convince people of their own divinity–to lead people as far from what is true as is possible? I am persuaded that NDEs do exist but that they exist to deceive, to provide false comfort, to provide false hope, to enslave, to trap, to destroy.

I think Amazon already knows this. Evidence of the Afterlife is filed under Books > Religion & Spirituality > Occult. Well done.

Verdict: Read it if you want to see how Satan continues to ensnare and enslave.

Enjoy the whole review. And be sure to check out others at 10 Million Words for help in understanding a bit more about America through our country’s bestsellers.