• How LGBT Pride Month Became a Religious Holiday. Joe Carter writes “LGBT Pride Month is not a just a secular commemoration of a people but a religious celebration of a belief—the belief that “Gay Is Good” and that moral opposition to homosexual behavior or transgender ideology is inherently bigoted.”
• PCA Sides with Nashville Statement over Revoice’s Approach. Kate Shellnutt writes that faced with more proposals addressing LGBT issues than any other topic, the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), the denomination that I am an elder in, last week approved measures to affirm the Nashville Statement and launch its own study committee on sexuality. Denny Burk includes a video of the debate.
• The Theological Legacy of Rachel Held Evans. Anne Carlson Kennedy writes “Evans made a way in the Bible Belt for advantageous, unorthodox, incoherent interpretations. Most of all, she nursed ordinary people into a strange comfort, not of bringing the difficult and terrifying questions of life and death to be answered by a kind and merciful Savior in the life-giving Scriptures, but of finding refuge in their own doubts, their supposedly unanswerable questions. This is perhaps the most tragic portion of her legacy, and one with which the church will have to wrestle for many decades to come.”

Click on ‘Continue reading’ for:

• More interesting article links
• Great cartoons
• Favorite Quotes of the Week

• Can a Christian Lose Their Salvation?   R.C. Sproul writes “There is no question that professing believers can fall and fall radically. We think of men like Peter, for example, who denied Christ. But the fact that he was restored shows that not every professing believer who falls has fallen past the point of no return.”
• What Book or Resource Would You Recommend to a New Believer? How can new Christians learn more about the faith? What books should they read? From one of the live Ask Ligonier events, Sinclair Ferguson gives his recommendations.
• Ask Ligonier with Derek Thomas. On May 15, Dr. Derek Thomas participated in a live Ask Ligonier event and answered biblical and theological questions. You can watch the program, beginning at the 4:05 point.
• Ask Anything Live. Check out episode 10 of Albert Mohler’s always interesting Ask Anything Live series, which begins at the 1:09 point in the video.
• What is Discernment? Sinclair Ferguson writes “True discernment means not only distinguishing the right from the wrong; it means distinguishing the primary from the secondary, the essential from the indifferent, and the permanent from the transient. And, yes, it means distinguishing between the good and the better, and even between the better and the best.”
• What is Self-Discipline? Steven Lawson writes “Growth in personal holiness is largely determined by our progress in self-discipline. Without this foundational discipline, there can be no advancement in grace. Before other disciplines can be administered, whether in the home, business, or church, there first must be self-discipline.”
• If You Believe in Arminian Doctrine, Can You Be Saved? Arminian beliefs may not be heretical, but they remain serious errors. From one of the live Ask Ligonier events, Robert Godfrey explains why Arminianism is unstable theology.
• Was George Whitefield a Christian? Jared Wilson writes “What are we to make of evangelicalism’s historical “heroes” who carry with them still a tainted legacy of sin? Such is the question constantly facing the American Church as we contemplate the theological and evangelistic impact of men like Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield, both of whom owned and, at points, defended the sinful institution of chattel slavery.”
• Are There Degrees of Sin?  R.C. Sproul writes “It’s clear that we have different degrees of sin when we consider the warnings of Scripture.”
• Should a Gay Couple, Once Converted, Stay Married? On this episode of the “Ask Pastor John” podcast, John Piper answers a question about same-sex marriage relationships and polygamous marriages. “After conversion, would you advise them to stay in similar relationships and somehow consecrate them?”

Theologically Speaking

• Mark Dever on the Gospel. In this short video, Mark Dever provides a short explanation of the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ.
• Michael Horton on Why You Should Believe in Jesus. In this short video, Michael Horton argues that Christianity is not a religion of fuzzy feelings but of objective historical truth. Jesus gives hope for new life.

• Waiting When God Seems Silent Randy Alcorn writes “Trusting God when we don’t hear Him ultimately strengthens and purifies us.”
• Pursue Integrity Relentlessly. John MacArthur writes “Ethical integrity is one of the indispensable attributes of Christlike character. As vital as it is to be sound in doctrine and faithful in teaching the truth of Scripture, it is by no means less crucial for Christians to be upright in heart and consistent in our obedience to the moral and ethical principles of God’s law.”
• You are More than Your Enneagram Number. Watch this short video with Jen Wilken and J.D. Greear, in which Wilkin discusses how we have come to define ourselves with personality tests and seeking self-knowledge. But we should find the definition of who we are in finding out Who God is. It is Who God is that then informs who we are and how we should.
• Twelve Principles for a Biblical Worldview on Economics. Albert Mohler writes “Christians must allow the economic principles found in scripture to shape our thinking while recognizing that we can act in light of those principles in any economic, cultural, or generational setting.”
• Approach Your Bible Desperately. Matt Smethurst writes “If you read the Bible, you’ll never get the impression that it’s meant to be a mere hobby in your life. It’s meant to be your food.”
• You Are Not Special, But You Are His. Scotty Smith writes “Because Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience for you, as your substitute; and died in your place upon the cross, exhausting God’s judgment against your sin; and was raised from the dead for your justification, God loves you just as much as he loves Jesus. God cannot love you more, and he will never love you less.”

• Your character is a collection of your choices. Jackie Hill Perry
• It is Jesus’ own righteousness, His performance and not my performance, that is the grounds of my justification. R.C. Sproul
• Through the cross my great debt has been paid, and through the Resurrection my future wealth is assured. Tim Keller
• We always choose according to our greatest inclination at the moment. R.C. Sproul
• We must place our reliance entirely on the perfect obedience and sin-bearing death of Christ as the sole basis of our standing before God—on our best days as well as our worst. Jerry Bridges
• No one is so sinful that he cannot be saved. No one is so good that he does not need to be. Steven Lawson
• Through the gospel, we have come to base our identity not on what we have achieved but what has been achieved for us in Christ. Tim Keller
• When people are right with God, they are apt to be hard on themselves and easy on other people. John Newton
• Whatever you think is going to give you ultimate satisfaction in life is what you worship. Ligon Duncan