American Idol, Sex, and True Manhood

I know, I know, you claim to never watch the television show American Idol because you are too spiritual. Or at least, the name just turns you off - I mean, who on earth is that honest about idolatry? (Well, the Bible calls us all to be, but that's not the point . . .)

Well, my wife and I find the show amusing, entertaining, and honest on several levels. And, yes, folks, even the Bible says we need a good laugh every now and then. So we watch it, mostly for its hilariously bad singing and its accurate take on modern American culture.

Thus, I wasn't surprised when I read about Bruce Dickson. At his audition, Dickson told the three famous judges that he had purposefully never kissed a girl and would not until his wedding day. After a couple of snide remarks from judges Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell, Idol host Ryan Seacrest closed Dickson's segment by saying, "Maybe next year he'll come back less a boy and more a man."

Dickson was not amused, and corrected Seacrest's wicked view of manhood by retorting, "A real man would rather wait than just do whatever with whoever."

Let us praise God for young men like Bruce Dickson who follow Him fully, even into insults. O that our high schools and colleges would be filled with them! That our young men would see visions of the true God and His true glory and turn from their dead idols to serve the living God!

(HT: Gender Blog)

The Church is Burning

Professor David Wells blogs over at 9 Marks on how the church is burning while we watch:

The problem, though, is that the consequences in our churches of increasingly vapid biblical teaching, personality-centered pastoring, invasive individualism, contempt for the past, and an egregiously non-theological kind of evangelicalism have now been accumulating for years. And this makes for easy-pluckings by anyone who seems to have a better idea or who offers more for less.

Wells' God-centered, God-given, thoroughly biblical insights on modern Christianity make his books well worth picking up.

Dever on Subjective "Guidance"

Pastor Mark Dever blogs over at Together for the Gospel on how many contemporary believers wrongly practice decision-making:

The desire for such a subjective sense of leading, however, is too often, in contemporary evangelical piety, binding our brothers and sisters in Christ, paralyzing them from enjoying the good choices that God may provide, and causing them to wait wrongly before acting.

Indeed.

(HT: JT)