South

Virginia-based Liberty University's decision to invite Mark Driscoll, founding pastor of Seattle megachurch Mars Hill and a somewhat controversial figure among Evangelical Christians, as a guest speaker has stirred controversy, especially after a blogger with ties to the conservative Christian school claimed trustees told him Driscoll was not welcome on campus.

Liberty University announced that Driscoll would speak on campus on April 20, 2012. The charismatic pastor, known for a direct, unique preaching style, is on a tour promoting a book he co-wrote with his wife called Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together. The bestseller is considered risqué by some conservative Christians, who claim the couple is revealing way too many details about their sexual life. One critic has gone so far as to claim Driscoll is "obsessed" with sex.

But as a blogger, familiar with the university's movers and shakers, writes, the school board's trustees and other decision-makers are apparently not too enthusiastic about having the controversial pastor on campus. more >>

In pursuit of personal holiness, Christians must make a daily spirit-powered, Gospel-driven, faith-fueled effort to live as humble servants of Jesus Christ, Pastor Kevin DeYoung told some 8,000 pastors and ministry leaders at the fourth Together for the Gospel (T4G) conference held this week in Louisville, Ky.

During his hour-long talk, titled "Spirit-Powered, Gospel-Driven, Faith-Fueled Effort," DeYoung addressed the importance of task and effort in modern day Christianity, saying that it is through faithful action that one can achieve personal holiness.

In his talk, DeYoung connects the three threads of the Gospel, faith, and spirit that make up the fabric of personal holiness. more >>

The U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) slapped Ephren Taylor, a businessman already facing civil lawsuits for alleged million-dollar financial fraud, with a federal suit in Atlanta, Ga., Thursday, revealing a major affinity fraud allegedly carried out by Taylor targeting mostly African-American church congregations.

Eddie Long's New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, Ga., and Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, were two out of at least five churches Taylor allegedly targeted in what the SEC estimates to be an $11 million Ponzi scheme. The alleged perpetrator also targeted "a number of Church of Christ churches" and some secular individuals via radio advertisement and other methods, SEC told The Christian Post Friday.

Taylor, 29, a charismatic entrepreneur, speaker and former CEO of City Capital Corporation, and the company's chief operating officer, Wendy Connor, were charged with soliciting the money from at least 350 people, SEC said. A great majority of these people had one thing in common – they were practicing Christians. more >>

When Christians become discouraged it should be taken as an opportunity to learn what God is teaching them about their priorities, a prominent Presbyterian minister said before a large crowd of church leaders.

"God wants us to learn things in our disappointments," Ligon Duncan, senior pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Jackson, Miss., told some 8,000 pastors and ministry leaders at the Together for the Gospel conference held this week in Louisville, Ky.

"Discouragement is no stranger to the lives of faithful pastors and Christians," Duncan explained. "God wants us to study our disappointments because if we look at our disappointments … when the bottom falls out, you will learn things about what you love that you never knew before." more >>

A charismatic businessman accused last year of defrauding members of Eddie Long's New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, has been charged by the federal government with orchestrating a $11 million Ponzi scheme "that targeted socially-conscious investors in church congregations."

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleges that Ephren W. Taylor, a "self-described 'Social Capitalist,'" made numerous false statements to lure investors into two investment programs being offered through City Capital Corporation, an investment company of which he was the CEO.

"Instead of investor money going to charitable causes and economically disadvantaged businesses as promised, Taylor secretly diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars to publishing and promoting his books, hiring consultants to refine his public image, and funding his wife's singing career," SEC said. more >>

In an act of unity, 11 Christian student organizations at Vanderbilt University issued a joint statement this week, saying they refuse to comply with the university's new "all-comers" policy, which prohibits campus groups from selecting members and leaders based on race, gender, sexual orientation or religion.

The Christian groups have adopted the name Vanderbilt Solidarity, and recently submitted individual applications for registration as campus organizations. The constitutions found in the groups' charters include faith-based requirements for leadership positions.

Despite the privileges afforded officially recognized student organizations, Vanderbilt Solidarity, supported by the Alliance Defense Fund, is challenging the "all-comers" policy because it violates "the central tenets of our faith." more >>