Ramblin Pastor Man had some good ones up yesterday.
First up was a link to a paper by Tim Keller and David Powlison about passing along bad reports about other people (a/k/a gossip). Well written and extremely practical instruction about Ephesians 4:29. Part of their conclusion is this:
If you hear bad reports about other Christians you must either cover it with love or go to them personally before speaking of it to any others.
The first thing to do is to simply suspend judgment. Don’t pass on bad reports.
The second thing to do is “cover” it in love, reminding yourself that you don’t know all about the heart of the person who may have done evil—and you know your own frailty. Don’t allow bad reports to pass into your own heart.
The final thing to do is go and speak to them personally.
The second big hit was this analysis of the Joker’s worldview. Here is a little tease, but oh my, oh my, how good the whole thing is:
Heath Ledger’s Joker was frightening to me because he was bold enough to really live out the implications of his belief. He lives out what most people in this world are too cowardly to admit: that their rejecting of God as the moral center of the universe leaves them with no ability to declare wrong from right. The result is a world in which people must be freed to pursue their desires to their fullest extent.