July 2010
8 posts
Dug Down Deep Chapt. 11-Humble Orthodoxy by Joshua... →
More free books online!
In this chapter of Dug Down Deep entitled “Humble Orthodoxy” Joshua Harris talks about the importance of not only loving and defending truth but also being humble and compassionate toward those with whom we disagree. Truth matters but so does our attitude.
The Glory of God - Christopher W. Morgan (Editor),... →
Apparently you can read the book online at crossway.org. Here is the link for the chapter by Richard Gaffin on “The Glory of God in Paul’s Epistles.”
WatchDugDownDeep_Carnahan.mov (by Covenant Life Church)
So I have seen this floating around the web and everyone talking about how good it was. I finally decided to give up 2 minutes of my life and watch it. And it was very, very good.
A Different Way to Look at the Reformed Faith
There is a very different way to look at the Reformed faith, and I would recommend it as an alternative to Clark’s. We begin with Jesus himself, who by his atoning death and resurrection built one true church (Matt. 16:18, Eph. 2:19-20). After the time of the apostles, he continues to rule that one church from Heaven, granting authority to elders and deacons (1 Tim. 3:1-13, Tit. 1:5-9, Heb....
“Biblical theology forms an organic whole. This means not only that one can...”
– Take Your Vitamin Z: Another Reason Why Biblical Theology is Vital
- D.A. Carson, Collected Writings on Scripture, p. 19
“The Family Tree of Reformed Biblical Theology”
– Midwest Center for Theological Studies: Owensboro, KY
Nick Patrick - Did Americans in 1776 have British... →
http://www.ptsem.edu/news/Egreetings/test/institute... →
A helpful calendar to read Calvin in a year (there are a couple online, but this is the only that first I saw that can be done without breaking the Sabbath).
June 2010
10 posts
Salty Mission | Living Within God's Story →
My latest post over at Living Within God’s Story…
A Redemptive-Historical Overview of John Chapter 3
From J. Dennison
Excerpt:
John 3:16
How does John use this term “cosmos”? Cosmos has no personal force. In John’s gospel the word “world” does not refer to individuals as in the paraphrase “God loves each and every person in the world.” No. rather cosmos has an ethical force in John’s gospel. It means the arena of ethical hostility to God and his...
Church Planting initiative aims to renew mainline... →
George Orwell: 6 Questions/6 Rules →
George Orwell has earned the right to be called one of the finer writers in the English language through such novels as 1984, Animal Farm, and Down and Out in Paris and London, and such essays as “Shooting an Elephant.”
Orwell expressed a strong dislike of totalitarian governments in his work, but he was also passionate defender of good writing. Thus, you may want to hear some of Orwell’s...
Union in Christ: A Declaration
“Union in Christ: A Declaration for the Church”
“He is before all things and in him all things hold together”
(Colossians 1:17)
With the witness of Scripture and the Church through the ages we declare:
I.Jesus Christ is the gracious mission of God
to the world
and for the world.
He is Emmanuel and Savior,
One with the Father, God incarnate as Mary’s son, Lord of all, The truly human one....
Sistine Chapel →
Pretty neat look at the Sistine Chapel. I think something gets lost when we only look at some of the paintings abstracted from the rest of the building. It is rather breathtaking…
Here’s some more info on it.
HT: Jim Hamilton
Score of Redemption
They are just lines, circles, and dots upon paper. Artistically, they don’t make sense; they don’t communicate. But it sprawled the page, fragile enough to be destroyed by a tear, crumble, or rip.
They sit lifeless on the page, unable to do anything. Each mark connected to the next, part of an unfolding progression eagerly awaiting a receptor. Each mark awaits for a falling hammer.
...
Wrightians and the Neo-Reformed: 'All One in... →
A very interesting article contrasting the T4G conference with the Wheaton conference.
For the T4G folks, protecting disputed doctrines against heresy is where good theology is born. Clear thinking comes from friction and protestation, from Hegelian dialectics (R.C. Sproul spoke on this), but not from compromise. The Patristic Fathers got it right whenever they were ironing out disputed...
Free Audiobook Download of the Month →
Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit (Unabridged) by Francis Chan
A follow up to the profound message of Crazy Love, Pastor Francis Chan offers a compelling invitation to understand, embrace, and follow the Holy Spirit’s direction in our lives. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We pray in the name of all three, but how often do we live with...
Intellectual Autobiography of John Frame →
May 2010
37 posts
Four Models of Counseling in Pastoral Ministry →
This is probably the best introduction to the various schools of Christian Counseling
Andrew Purves on “The Trinity: God’s...
Q and A with Andrew Purves on IVP →
Q: In what ways do you think ministry is lacking today?
Andrew Purves: Far too many ministers cast their ministry back upon themselves. The danger is ministerial messianism. The fact is, we can’t raise the dead, heal the sick, forgive the sinner, comfort the afflicted and so on. It comes as a shock, I think, when we finally discover we are not the Messiah. When we think it is all up to us, our...
Originality
“…independence such as Paul showed in his religion is only what every Christian must be able to claim, if his Christianity is to be real and vital and significant. Second-hand piety has always been the Church’s bane and a lamentable source of weakness to the Christian cause. Indeed, we might put it in the form of a paradox and say that the more original a man’s Christianity is, and the more the...
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy... →
Eric Metaxas on “Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy” from Socrates in the City on Vimeo.
Imputation
There is no such thing in Paul’s epistles as a mechanical imputing of the righteousness of Christ to sinners. Everything turns upon faith. Justification does not happen in a vacuum. It happens in a faith-pervaded atmosphere. … The sinful soul, confronted with God’s wonderful self-disclosure in Christ, and with the tremendous and subduing fact of the cross where the whole...
Oxford University Press →
Here is an amazing research tool. The Oxford Bibliographies Online looks like it will be the definitive place to begin when writing papers. Although Biblical Studies aren’t up yet, they should by the end of the year.
What Is It?
Broad range of subject modules from Buddhism to Criminology
Every subject area has an Editor in Chief and Editorial Board, ensuring scholarly accuracy,...
Non-Believing Clergy Report →
This is very sobering and sad… but Jude says “have mercy on those who doubt.” (v.22)
Preachers who are not Believers
Daniel C. Dennett and Linda LaScola
Center for Cognitive Studies*
Tufts University, Medford MA 02155
March 15, 2010
HT: Boyett
Some excerpts
Darryl is a Presbyterian who claims to follow Jesus, but “…it is arguable whether I am also a...
Interview with Bryan Chapell and Lig Duncan on the... →
HT: BTW
Eschatology and the Structure of 1 Thessalonians... →
Classical Protestant Resurgence: how the PCA got... →
Interesting Commentary at the Aquila Report
Amazon.com: Remythologizing Theology eBook: →
It has been a long time since I have been this excited about a title. I am currently reading his “Drama of Doctrine” and am very excited to dig into this one. The fact that they have finally put it on ebook is even better and way cheaper! Thank you Cambridge!
Christianity and Liberalism Conference Videos →
From the April 21-22, 2010
Covenant Presbyterian Church, Omaha, Nebraska
Speakers for the event were Dr. D.G. Hart, a Protestant church historian and speaker, and Parker T. Williamson, editor emeritus of The Layman.
Union with Christ: Worship and Ministry
According to [James] Torrance, through our union with Christ we share in his communion with the Father and in his mission from the Father to bring others into that communion. Christian life is characterized by the dual consequences of our life in Christ: worship and ministry. This is the meaning of being a Christian. This is the core practical theology of Christian faith.
The Crucifixion of...
Some Christians in the Public Square
Following the post about Calvin within the Huffington Post, here are some other Christians in the public square…
One of my favorite bloggers, Jon Acruff (who is hilarious), recently wrote an article for CNN. He even got a little 5 minute clip.
Then on the Glen Beck Show, President of WTS, Peter Lillback was on discussing his new book, “George Washington’s Sacred...
An Interesting Article from the Huffington Post... →
ht: Heidelblog
Household Armageddon
The scary stuff in the Bible seemed to have been prophesying our household that afternoon. It seemed that nothing was going right; Armageddon was ensuing. The kids were screaming, the house was in disarray, and everyone had an angry, nervous tick of the eye. The Doomsday Clock was at 11:59 and if given the chance, anyone in the house would’ve pushed the red button.
After some tears and...
Preach Christ.
Remember that exegesis is for preaching and teaching; it has no other use. So get out those tough commentaries and struggle in depth with the texts. Let most of what you do be dominated by the demands of the sermon as if your whole life and reason for being is to preach Christ, because it is. Claim a new authority for the pulpit, the Word of God, Jesus Christ, over you and your people. Commit...
Core of Christianity
Christianity at its core is not about subscription to a theological system or the authority of a sacred text or ethical perspectives, although they are all important. Christianity at its core is about the self-referenced claim by a person who said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). That person calls us into relationship with himself, which means communion with...
Three Things Union with Christ is Not
Personality as it is in Christ has far greater resources.
James Stewart argues what Union with Christ is not:
Union [with Christ does not imply] virtual absorption of a pantheistic kind.
Divine immanence does not impair or even destroy the distinctness of the human personality.
The man whom Christ begins to possess does not thereby cease to be himself.
A Man in Christ, pp.166-167
Salvation and Story
Salvation is the biggest word in the vocabulary of the people of God. The Exodus is a powerful and dramatic and true story of God working salvation. The story has generated an extraordinary progeny through the centuries as it has reproduced itself in song and poem, drama and novel, politics and social justice, repentance and conversion, worship and holy living. It continues to capture the...
Total U.S. Churches No Longer in Decline,... →
The Centrality of the Gospel by Tim Keller →
John 2: Structure and Biblical Theology - James T.... →
HT: Monergism
Mpumelelo Paul Grootboom: 'It's fantasy to... →
Interesting commentary on pinning the hopes of the nation on events (e.g. World Cup) and the problems S. Africa will eventually face.
First Edition of My Biblical Theology
John Calvin published his first edition of the “Institutes of the Christian Religion” when he was 26. Following in his footsteps, here is a sneak peak at the first edition of my Biblical Theology, complete with pop-up goodness…
Books in a Cigarette Pack - →
smoke’em if you got’em. Don’t forget about the dispenser as well.
Tim Lane on the importance of Union with Christ... →
Biblical Scholarship and Academic Evidence: Is... →
A great post about paper writing and leaning too much on references.