Rev. Dr. David Watson, professor at United Theological Seminary, one of the primary voices of Methodism, has accepted and invitation to speak about scriptural interpretation. My fundamentalist tendencies have led me to be largely sympathetic with an approach that depends only upon the scriptures for authority and legitimacy in the church. David, on the other hand, adheres to an approach that acknowledges a limited but larger body of work, which he calls the 'consensual tradition.'
Albert Outler, the founding theologian of The United Methodist Church, established the doctrine of the Wesleyan Quadrilateral, which quickly became a means of subverting the plain meaning of scripture. If we acknowledge other sources of authority outside of the bible, then how do we guard against such tendencies? What is at stake? What are the risks on either side of this continuum of trusting scripture too much or trusting tradition too much?
Consider joining David and me for this live stream conversation. We will receive input from anyone who joins us.
Given the state of the Global Methodist Church, in particular, it seems quite important that believers discern how it is that they will discern God's truth together. If the GMC turns into another "big tent" with folks going about truth differently, then it would seem we could have another recipe for division. If you agree that this is an important conversation, then join us!
Debra Baty is the head of Resources 4 Redemption, which is an effort aimed at spreading good information about sexual orientation and gender identity. She recently published an article about “sexual fluidity” and how it impacts our sanctification in Firebrand Magazine. It is a good piece, and Debra does worthy work. All believers in the West have to contend with the artificial ideas of the sexual revolution. There is nowhere we can go that these issues do not impact us. The only way out is through.
Debra has a personal story that is quite compelling. She is a trustworthy, thoughtful, and conscientious resource. All covenant Christian bodies need to know where they stand on these things, lest the evil one sow confusion. Now is the time to reflect upon these things. Days are coming when what we believe will be put to the test. If we have not prepared, then we cannot expect to prevail.
Resources 4 Redemption can be found at https://substack.com/@resources4redemption
If you would like to ...
I didn't realize until I finished this morning's live stream that it got cut off pretty early in the stream. It should have made me suspicious when the viewer count stayed the same and I wasn't getting any more comments. Anyway, I recorded the whole thing and have reposted it here for you. I'll clip up the two main portions and post them on YouTube later today. Sorry for the snafu, y'all. There was a small power surge and something about that threw Rumble off. Tomorrow should be normal. God bless you all!
The issue of identity, while being ubiquitous in our most divisive politics, is also central to the Christian concern. I wanted to speak to these things a bit for the sake of fellow believers who perhaps are not quite so sure how to navigate these things…
https://open.substack.com/pub/jeffreyrickman/p/the-harsh-reality-of-identity?r=17brpc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
No live stream this morning. Was up all night with a sinus infection and need to get in gear for annual conference session. I'll just plan on Monday. God bless you folks!
