The word is out...

The temperature is rising on a sad but essential parting of ways. Last month Pierced for our transgressions was published by IVP as a thorough and warm defence of the glorious doctrine of penal substitution. I'm currently reading a copy I managed to borrow - since the first print run sold-out quickly. IVP assure me that the second print run will be available by the start of next week!

Gospel-loving blogger Adrian Warnock is writing extensively about penal substitution and his path meandered to the launch of New Word Alive:

"New Word Alive has managed to confirm a fantastic line-up of main preachers: John Piper, Terry Virgo, and Don Carson will all be speaking at the event. Not much wonder that the New Word Alive Facebook group has jumped to almost 900 members already! If they will have me, I may just have to try and go along with my whole family and live-blog, like I did at Together On A Mission 06."

This is a conference specifically designed to be cross-exalting and life-changing as the New Word Alive website says...

" We rejoice in opening up the Scriptures with some of the most gifted Bible teachers of our time, and as we acknowledge God’s transforming work in our lives we want to respond in heartfelt, passionate worship and prayer. We long to see lives shaped and changed by an authentic experience of the gospel of grace."

This is a conference for all the family that promised to get people together for the sake of the gospel, rather than for anything else.

Related articles:

• Tim Suffield on Evangelicalism Divided : "Word Alive was formally a conference within a conference at Spring Harvest, the more biblical bit without the incessant trappings of evangelical subculture, if you will. Less flag waving, prophetic painting and false stumbling blocks to the cross of Christ, that kinda thing. In other words: it was reformed."

• David Gibson on Assumed Evangelicalism: some reflections en route to denying the gospel : "Assumed evangelicalism believes and signs up to the gospel. It certainly does not deny the gospel. But in terms of priorities, focus, and direction, assumed evangelicalism begins to give gradually increasing energy to concerns other than the gospel and key evangelical distinctives, to gradually elevate secondary issues to a primary level, to be increasingly worried about how it is perceived by others and to allow itself to be increasingly influenced both in content and method by the prevailing culture of the day."

• Jonathan Thomas - Gospel-headed, Gospel-hearted
• Martin Downes adds his comments
• Justin Taylor draws attention to the split
• Ed Goode on marching bands
• Paul Huxley asks that we aim wide
• Dan Blanche on the disease of indifferentism.
• Steve Camp - a hill to die on
• Alex Chediak - reports on new word alive
• Mark Moore - Division in the UK
• Dan Hames - Warnock on the money
• Rosemary Grier - want to get the message across
• Maurice McCracken - Drama
• Mike Chalmers - Something old, something new
• Mark Lauterbach - Here we stand: "As the debate rages on, may we have the diligence to check out the references and quotations on either side. While we draw lines in the sand, our goal is also to convince of error those who wish to minimize the substitution of the Savior for sinners at the cross -- and to persuade them to embrace the full teaching of the NT. "
  

• Dave Cruver - quotes the issues
• Tim Neale - How did we end up here
• Ed Goode - Division and what history can teach us
• Andrew Fountain - The atonement debate
• Cat Hare - In the thick of it: "God never forgives - he punishes" Richard Cunningham at Word Alive.
• Peter Kirk responds to "God never forgives"

• Derek Thomas - Observes that the blogosphere is in overdrive
• Pete Jackson - Word alive and well
• Phil Johnson - How important is the atonement (with Spurgeon)
• Phil Johnson - propitiation: "Too many Christians think of divine forgiveness as something that utterly overturns justice and sets it aside—as if God's mercy nullified His justice—as if God's love defeated and revoked His hatred of sin. That's not how forgiveness works.

• Peter Kirk is not surprised
• Dave Warnock asks if it's always wrong to split
• Dave Warnock - not at-one-ment
• Steve Chalke - redeeming the cross - This has been online for a while and I read it ages ago... It is worth reading. I find myself disagreeing with almost every word said here - but there's no harm reading things you disagree with. I think Chalke plays fast and loose with church history and with his Bible quoting, and has an odd logic as to how we're to respond when the world doesn't understand our theology. Steve Chalke has done some brilliant work, way more than me. I have to agree with this statement he makes: "erroneous theology will always lead to dysfunctional missiology." - this matters... it really does.
• Mike Gilbart-Smith makes some careful observations

Pierced for our Transgressions & NT Wright

• Pierced for our transgressions - website for the book.
• NT Wright on Pierced for our transgressions and related issues
• Jollyblogger warmly suggests "Wright is narrowing and narrowing his definitions to such a precise point and then claiming that they all err who don't see it this way"
• Anglican Mainstream - Wright politics? Wrong enemies?
• John Richardson - Tom Wright, Conservatives and the Cross: a triumph of politics over theology?
• Don Carson on NT Wright on Penal Substitution highlighted by JT
• Jim Hamilton on NT Wright and Penal Substitution
• Phil Johnson on NT Wright and Wrong
• Doug Wilson on NT Wright, Pierced for our Transgressions etc
• The authors of Pierced for our Transgressions respond to NT Wright's criticisms of their book

UCCF & Spring Harvest statements:

• Dan Hames - UCCF Press Release - April 23rd 2007 - "There comes a point when loyalty to the gospel, as we believe it to be clearly set out in Scripture, and the drive for unity with others can come into conflict, and we have reached that point." (quote attributed to Richard Cunningham)
  
• Pete Broadbent replies to UCCF and Adrian Warnock