August 2005 Edition

Welcome to the premiere edition of re:thinking magazine. Below you will find the titles, with a short synopsis, of the various articles appearing in this issue. Each article represents a considerable investment of time, study, and effort. You may not always agree with everything you read here. Even so, we believe you will profit by having done so. Some of the articles will be point-counterpoint articles, as we believe there are distinct benefits to be derived from reading both sides of an issue. This means the editor will not always agree with everything that is written here. Please keep this in mind as you read. We are interested in any feedback you may have, whether positive or not, so feel free to e-mail us at allan@allanturner.com. If you wish to correspond with the writers, their e-mail addresses are provided at the end of their articles. With this said, I wish you a profitable reading experience.

Editorially Speaking: Bush's Supreme Decision

President Bush has announced his nominee for the Supreme Court. Re:thinking's editor is convinced the future of the Republic hangs upon this nominee's judicial philosophy. Will John Roberts be a liberal like David Souter, a middle-of-the-roader like Sandra Day O'Conner, or a true judicial conservative like William Rehnquist? In tapping Roberts for the job, Mr. Bush has chosen a strategy with which this editor does not agree. Whether Mr. Bush has caved in to pressure from the liberal left or made a shrewdly impeccable choice is a matter yet to be known. Time will tell. It is a sad fact that several justices nominated by conservative presidents have proved to be grave disappointments. I sincerely hope Mr. Roberts will not wind up being one of them, for the stakes are simply too high. To read more about what Allan thinks about this, click here.

The "All Things" Of Romans 8:28: Limited Or Unlimited?

In this article, Wayne Wells writes about one of the greatest promises found in the Bible—the one that says God can cause all things to work together for good for those who love Him (Rom. 8:28). He notes it is not uncommon to hear brethren argue that this passage does not mean what it says. He says they try to limit "all things" to apply to only what immediately precedes this passage in Romans 8, i.e., the love of God, our hope, and the help of the Holy Spirit. Wayne argues rather convincingly that for those who love God and are called, "all things" means all things. To read this article, click here.

Another Look At 1 Corinthians 6

"The apostle Paul's denunciation of brethren hauling one another into the heathen courts has produced more confusion, disputing and inaction than it has solutions among most Christians," begins Randy Blackaby in his interesting article on implementing viable alternatives to taking a brother before the heathen courts. Perhaps more than ever, Christians, influenced as they are by the secularism of our day, are prone to ignore what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 6. Bro. Blackaby's scripturally reasoned article will help us see this issue as God would have us see it—seriously! To read the article click here.

Gender & Worship (Part I)

In this first in a series of five articles, Allan Turner argues there are serious differences over the role of women in public worship, along with the part they are to play in church leadership. The egalitarian (or feminist) position, and he claims to have known several Christian women who take it, argues that God’s original intent was for gender to be irrelevant with reference to leadership roles in both the home and the church. One effect of Adam’s sin, these argue, was to replace this original equality with the male domination and female submission structure in play today. Consequently, it is claimed that one of the counter-effects of the Lord’s work on the cross was to abolish this sinful system, at least in His church, and restore the egalitarianism God originally intended. Using Galatians 3:28 as their proof-text, they claim that women may serve the church as elders, deacons, and preachers. Allan clearly refutes these arguments, giving a "thus sayeth the Lord" for what he teaches. To read more about this, and others aspects of this issue, click here.

Why Genesis Matters (Part I)

In this first of several articles, Doy Moyer explains why Genesis matters when it comes to developing and maintaining a genuine biblical worldview. He observes that Humanists know how important Genesis is, for they realize if they can destroy the foundation for a Creator, the whole Christian worldview comes crashing down around us. Ideas have consequences and our enemies know it. To read more about it, click here.