2008-12-09

Phillips defines a nomicophobe: "people who have an irrational (or, at any rate, unbiblical) fear of any sort of external authority or law." This is contrary to the repeated teaching of Christ and His apostles. "here's my test of apostolic soundness: if I can't preach and write what the apostles preached and wrote, I'm almost surely doing it wrong." The need to explain or demand explanations of God's right to command is not an indicator of spiritual health on any level. The soporific scourge of Nomicophobia

Blomberg gives an argument that the resurrection was widely accepted within a couple years of Christ's death. "for Paul to have been given an already established creed including resurrection witnesses, known not just in Jerusalem but also in Damascus, some time must have already elapsed for this foundational information to have been crystallized in this form and become widely known in the various locations believers lived and become widely agreed on as the kind of information to be passed on to each new convert." http://blog.bible.org/primetimejesus/content/resurrection-probably-reported-same-year-it-happened

Challies briefly reviews Don't Stop Believing by Michael Wittmer. Basically, he seeks to craft a third way between believing in love and loving only belief - "Wittmer seeks to craft a third way, a way that avoids the extremes on either side while finding that sweet spot that allows a Christian to hold fast to what is true while retaining a love for others and a desire to serve them." Don't Stop Believing. For interests sake, here is an interview with Wittmer by Taylor: An Interview with Michael Wittmer. [I will point out that I found the categorization of "What you must believe/must not reject/should believe" interesting, although I'm not endorsing his arrangement.]

Challies observes that we all know that noise prevents us from focusing or is distracting. Moreover, our current lifestyles bombard us with noise. Christians need to be vigilant to turn down the noise. To not be mastered by the distraction of technology. Surely many spend time with shallow online relationships while ignoring church; using tech. for escapism. Maybe we hate our own thoughts - we need the noise because the silence is horrid. Maybe we need to feel accomplished. Maybe it is the safety and allure of anonymity. Don't be enslaved. A Great Servant; An Evil Master

Challies draws some brief thoughts from John Frame, on how doubt is largely framed negatively in Scripture, that it is always wrong to doubt God's word, or to fail to pursue assurance in God's gift of salvation. Doubt isn't always sinful, in that we should admit our ignorance. "The faith we are to pursue is one that has absolute certainty about God's revelation." Doubt as Virtue, Assurance as Arrogance

Challies is starting his reading the classics on Mere Christianity. "mere Christianity is the essence of the Christian faith--those beliefs that have been held in common by all true Christians through all of the church's history." Reading Classics - Mere Christianity (I)

Solapanel: Paul Grimmond asks if we don't drown God's glory in hyper-caveating every mercy and good thing of God's. Can we not just present it without the caveats, he asks? And why not focus on good caveats, that highlight God's glory in His grace, rather than bury it in endless "but's"? Getting rid of the killer but

Solapanel. Images are deficient in worship because they always misrepresent. But are all concrete images wrong? It couldn't appear so (serpent in the desert, etc). So what do we make of the second commandment? Here's four principles. God has revealed Himself in His word, so His written word must be absolutely central. Second, look at how an image is used in our lives - e.g. golden calf versus children's picture Bible. Third, look at the context of the images. e.g. bronze snake had to be destroyed because it became an idol. Fourth, the principle of love and seeking others interests must govern this - if an image causes a brother to stumble, don't use it, etc. Getting rid of the killer but

Solapanel: What is mission? If everything is mission, its a meaningless term. "Missio Dei" sees everything that God does as fundamentally mission, but ends up seeing social reconstruction as the plan of salvation rather than to redeem sinners. "Cultural mandate" sees all of what Christians do as the mission. This equates mission with the Christian life, thus resulting in a loss of distinction and precision when it comes to talking about mission. ‘social action’ can be described as activity that leads to the alleviation of human suffering and the elimination of injustice, exploitation and deprivation. The danger here is to do that which the world thinks is fine, without any real propositional truth to go with it. "Making disciples of all nations" is the most fitting definition. Excuse me, but what’s ‘mission’-

Solapanel: When we preach the OT we must not reduce it to moralism, or drown it in allegory, but we need a biblical theology of response (to God) from what we read. "To just preach God and his promises fulfilled in Christ without also calling for and explaining repentance and faith is to leave out half the message." A biblical theology of response

Solapanel: This post discusses good powerful preaching, dull boring preaching, springboard anecdotal preaching, and so on. It's worth a read for a preacher. There is everything from lifeless textual analysis to sermons which have nothing to do with the text, popularized by online preachers. Surely preaching can be biblical and cut to the heart of our day. "The best preaching I hear is biblical, profoundly theological and thoroughly engaging. It is suffused with a sense of urgency and importance—not the self-importance of the preacher, but the importance of the living God and the word he wants us to hear. The worst preaching I hear might as well be the rehearsal of tomorrow’s shopping list—almost as coherent and every bit as memorable." Now what was that text again-

Here's a list of 101 gospel jobs. At the top is 'mother.' 101 gospel jobs

This post relating Zane Hodges should be read, I think, in light of Hays previous post (see yesterday). She says, "it struck me that this is indeed the ultimate task of theology, to know Christ better." [As Hays points out, this was a man who taught something profoundly opposed to Christ's own teaching - see: Not once saved, never saved]. The Ultimate Task of Theology- An Observation from Final Farewells

Patton on Santa: "Moral of the story: To truly celebrate Christmas presupposes that we are living an incarnational life 365 days a year. Don’t be so hard on poor Santa." Should Christians Play Santa-

A Roman Catholic is actually interested in the primary, contextual, source material for Luther! (title unknown)

Yep. Dave Armstrong is threatening to sue commentators. Recent Silly Stuff

Turk: "Now that the election is over, Obama faces the tough questions. And apparent he isn't giving "straight" answers." A Straight Answer [Kill the babies, stop the smoking. Gotta have your priorities straight, right?]

9Marks: Here's some good advice for pastor's struggling with despair. 1) Meditate on Scripture, particularly on the Gospel, and pray. 2)Talk with mature Christian brothers who will both comfort and correct you. 3) Share your struggles with the church. 4) Read Ed Welch. 5) Sing. 6) Walk outside. 7) Enjoy activities outside the church. Any Discouraged Pastors Out There- by Matt Schmucker

Eek. Extensive corruption in Chicago politics. Clouds- What Clouds-

Here's Al Mohler's chapel addresses on the Apostles' Creed. Mohler on the Apostle's Creed

Sinclair Ferguson's messages on how angels view Christmas: Sinclair Ferguson- An Angel's View of Christmas

Phillips has some really good thoughts and a slight chiding for parents on their small children and noise in church. Tots in the Tabernacle. This is a followup to his things that he can think of that a pastor wishes the congregation would know. Pithy Pre-pastorate Pastoral Pointers

Bayly defends calling sin a sin and using biblical language - even if it shows the shame and evil of deeds committed. Euphemisms and circumlocutions- marking or being marked

Bayly: "Planned Parenthood here in Bloomington just announced they've suspended the film's villain pending their own internal investigation. Child-murderer is suspended pending investigation of allegations she covered up statutory rape. What a precious piece of hypocrisy..." Right here in Kinsey City

Here's a paper on the definition of hypercalvinism. "Simply stated, it consists of two fundamental errors: a denial of duty-faith and a resultant denial of the universal call of the gospel. These fundamental errors are a departure from the teaching of Scripture as well as historic Calvinism. These errors were responsible for unbiblical teaching on evangelism and the proclamation of the gospel among 18th century English Baptists. However, as we have seen, the sad effect on evangelism is not the defining error, but a symptom. On the other hand, in my understanding, historic Calvinism has always maintained that it is the duty of unregenerate men to repent and believe. Calvinism also acknowledges that the gospel is to be preached to all men indiscriminately and that we are to beseech all to individually trust in Jesus Christ and Him alone for salvation. " What is Hyper-Calvinism-

Hays gives some thoughts on Dante's and Milton's ideas of heaven and hell and their influence, as well as disconnection from Scripture. Better to reign in hell

"We need to be known in our deepest secrets, our darkest fears and our most desperate hopes. In Christ we are known. Do not withdraw into a solitary world of your own making. Share your lives with others as you are able. But when others cannot enter into your world, do not carry your burdens alone. God is ever-present." On Being Known

Sproul's advice on time management: I realize that all of my time is God’s time and all of my time is my time by His delegation. Second, time can be redeemed by concentration and focus. Third, the mind can redeem valuable time taken up by ordinary or mechanical functions. Fourth, use your leisure time for pursuits that are life enriching. Fifth, find ways to cheat the “Sand Man.” Sixth, use drive-time for learning. Finally, in most cases a schedule is more liberating than restricting. R.C. Sproul on Time Well Spent

Haykin: "There is a charge that is making the rounds on the web that Jonathan Edwards (1703 - 1758) believed that Satan was initially a superior being to Jesus and that Jesus was an exalted man." "A close and careful reading of the text reveals simply this: Edwards is arguing that the unfallen Lucifer is a type of glorified humanity of Christ—the chief responsibilities of Lucifer before his fall have now been given to the glorified humanity of Jesus Christ. There is nothing heretical in this, though, in true Edwards style, this is something I had never thought of before." Jonathan Edwards on Christ and Lucifer- a misunderstanding making the rounds

Solapanel: MP3 sermons are great - but there is a significant danger. They come with no strings attached. No real community. To MP3 or not to MP3-

JT: Mark Hemingway on the Newsweek article: "So should I be surprised that Lisa Miller, Newsweek's religion reporter natch, can't even get through the first paragraph of her story without evincing an understanding of Christianity and its basic texts that is grossly oversimplified and distorted, filtered through an almost exclusively liberal political lens, not to mention catty and downright insulting?" Sadly, Newsweek knows they have young people on their side - even young evangelicals. This is a sad statement on the state of evangelicalism and the rampant rejection of Scripture. Newsweek's Revisionist, Religious Case for Gay Marriage

JT links to Sinclair Ferguson, who warns of the idea of "Santa Christ" who might be Pelagian, semi-Pelagian, or mystical. This is not the biblical Christ. Santa Christ-

Fred Sanders exhorts us to be more alert to the Trinity. "You can outline the first half of Romans this way: From chapter one up to chapter three, we have God the lawgiver, whose wrath is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness and ungodliness, who justifies both Jew and Gentile so he can be Father of both. Then from the middle of chapter 3 to the end of chapter 5 we see the Son of God as our propitiation, who takes our situation on himself and restores us to a right relationship with God. Then from chapter five to chapter eight the Holy Spirit comes to the front in applying the work of Christ and delivering us from sin." Know That You Know the Trinity

Here's some thoughts on a Christian philosophy of technology. Toward a Christian Philosophy of Technology

Ligon Duncan exhort's us to have a Gospel Culture in the local church. The Gospel and the Local Congregation by lduncan Here's JT's summary (e.g: "that your whole congregation would be able to articulate the Gospel, personally, in a compelling and understandable way;") A Gospel Culture in the Local Church

Here's a helpful definition of evangelism: Evangelism is – To bear witness to Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit, so that [1] people may come to put their trust in God, through Christ; [2] to acknowledge Him as their Savior; and [3] to serve Him as their King, [4] in the fellowship of His Church. ... The Gospel is a message. "When people say: "Preach the Gospel daily - Use words if necessary," Tim provocatively but rightly says: they may not understand the Gospel. The Gospel must be shared with words. It is a message. We can't tell it with our deeds (though our lives must reveal it effects). There is no such thing as wordless evangelism." What is Evangelism and What is the Gospel- by lduncan

Michael Bird gives some thoughts on the provenance of Philippians. "How does this pan out for Pauline chronology? If Philippians was written from Ephesus after Galatians and 1 Corinthians, then Paul probably composed it during ca. 55-56 not long after Timothy had returned from the visit to Corinth that Paul describes in 1 Cor. 4.17, 16.10-11 and after the tearful letter of 2 Cor. 2.1-4. Paul intends to send Timothy to Philippi (Phil. 2.19 = Acts 19.22) and to eventually visit himself (Phil. 2.24; 2 Cor. 2.12-13; = Acts 20.1)." Provenance of Philippians

Turretinfan argues that the seer in twilight is an example of a worldview containing the notion of libertarian free will. Seers, Choice, Open Theism, Molinism, and Calvinism

Bayly points out that there is nothing loving about Newsweek's article - that they really hate homosexuals. "Because the church has traded love for lust, the world is blind to the distinction. Because the church has turned her back on God's story and now uses the pulpit to narrate her own, truth is dead and the world is lost in narcissism. Because the church hates her sons, she doesn't discipline them and the world concludes the man who disciplines is a monster motivated by hatred." Newsweek hates homosexuals, actually

Yes, apparently someone actually thinks this is a 'contradiction' in the Scriptures. http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2008/12/08/contradictions-counting-offspring