Hot July Letters

God isn’t a cosmic sadist who loves to withhold blessing from His children. Fair. However—how do we speak about what looks very much like a pattern of intolerable cruelty apart from the illumination of faith? For some of His children, their life stories appear to be one hard providence after another, relentlessly, without relief. The major themes of their earthly lives are failure, frustration, and disappointment. Their earthly lives are the accumulation of losses and wounds that do not heal in this life. To be blunt, considered without the promise of the resurrection, their earthly lives are so shot through with misery that it would have been better if they’d never been born. One thing that sickens me is the tendency of pastors to tell white lies about God, to let Him off the hook for the earthly misery of His children’s lives. So—how do we talk about this candidly, like men, not telling white lies about what God allows to happen to His children?

Daniel

You’ve commented multiple times something along the lines of “we have all been affected by feminism probably more than we even realize.” If you had to pin point an area of practical wisdom (in marriage) in rooting out the down stream damage of feminism what would you say? Please specify for both the men and the women. Thanks for all you do!

Josh

A few scattered thoughts . . .
If AI proves, in the end, to have no other lasting value, at the very least it is able to give you exactly the illustration you need, no matter how odd.
PJ Media’s comparison of Candace Owens and Graham Platner was spot on. Both were “chosen” by their respective sides on the basis of superficial features that they believed would make them credentialed instead of who they really were. Or, in the words of the late but not so great MLK, they were not judged on the content of their character.
I agree that we’re at a potentially significant point where a cultural win here and there is not nearly enough to justify sitting on our laurels. PURSUE until every last idol has fallen.
You might like taking a gander at a Christian blogger whose site is entitled “Coffee & Covid.” He is a lawyer to spends all his free time analyzing cultural trends from 30K feet, and in the last six months of me reading his comments, he has been surprisingly spot on. No conspiracy-mongering . . . just reading the cultural/political room. As it turns out, having two eyes and a functioning brain can be quite the advantage these days.

Andy

This is not a critique. I am only asking a question based on something I have heard you say before but I can’t find where. If this is not the proper place for this I apologize.
In either a video or a book of yours I heard you say something to the effect of “If you want to live a full life you need to be disciplined.” Are you able to expand on the meaning behind “a full life” here? I didn’t want to assume what you meant but maybe that you meant allowing yourself to do all the things Jesus has given you liberty in without letting the rule you or something to that effect. I found the statement compelling and would appreciate if you could direct me to a resource or past post that addresses this.
Thanks for your ministry it has been a blessing to my family and I.

Kyle

This Scripture (which I have paraphrased with ( ) was in my Bible reading this morning. I couldn’t help it after having read all the news stories about your CNN interview. This is Acts 17:6-7—with apologies to Jason and Paul. “. . . they dragged (Douglas) and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. (Douglas) . . . [is] acting contrary to the decrees of (the Democrat party), saying there is another king—Jesus.”
Anyway, congratulations on your growing fame and I pray it doesn’t go to your head.

C&U

Enjoyed the NPR interview. It was one of the more reasonable interviews I’ve seen in a while. With all the interviews you’ve been doing lately, I’m curious what interactions look like before and after the interview.
How do you determine which interviews you say yes or no to?
Is there any stipulations that the hosts or you put on an interview?
Is there much conversation before or after the cameras are rolling? Has anyone ever pulled you aside and said “you know I don’t think you’re crazy, but I’d be fired for saying that.” Or alternately, “I think you’re a disgusting piece of trash.”
For the ones who come to Moscow, do they stay for church or other functions where they get a chance to meet Christ Church people? Or stay for dinner at the Wilson house?
Carry on.

RR

Over the last decade I have served in numerous capacities at a Presbyterian Church. I’ve preached, taught Sunday School classes, youth pastor, etc. but never have I been asked to preach at a funeral until today. I was wondering if there is anything in particular, or a few tips that you think would be important to keep in my mind when preparing the sermon, as well as leading the service. Oh, and one note of importance, the funeral is for my good friend’s father, but I know very little about him because he has kept to himself for the most part and wanted nothing to do with the Church .

S

I hope you’re doing well. In writing, I’ve noticed a modern “measurement” people have been using to determine whether females are receiving “proper representation” in media called the Bechdel Test. A quick internet search defines it here:
“To pass, a work must feature at least two named women who have a conversation with each other about something other than a man. It was introduced by cartoonist Alison Bechdel in 1985.”
Obviously, this isn’t something special or new necessarily, since this happens frequently even in older fictional works. It’s also, at face value, harmless. However, I’m more skeptical as to the reason it exists, and how people have used it since its inception in the 1980’s. What are your opinions on this, and how ought we to think of it in light of creating fictional works? I’m not someone who purity spirals, so I think that if something that isn’t sinful/evil exists as a way to tell a story, we’d be fools not to plunder the Egyptians. However, if something is flawed from the start, I’d like to know before I mix nuclear waste into my omelette, as it were.

ON

I’ve been reading your book Against the Church (acquired from the NQN dealz), and in the spirit of the Golden Rule, I believe I caught an errant Scripture quote (on page 106 of my Kindle version): “But this new life has come to pass in a new world, a world or age that Jesus called the Regeneration” should be a reference to Matt. 19:28, not Matt. 19:2. Christ healing the crowds may be a sign and portent of the regeneration (Isa. 53:5), but I never took you to be that subtle. So if you hadn’t already been made aware of it, there ya go.
And delightful book, by the way! As a Baptist, I concur in heartily applauding your evangelical-ness while being entirely bewildered by what you’ll do with the babies. Though I’m also a bit bewildered by your systematic: you really need to grant the reprobate the honor of “covenant member”? Hebrews 8:8ff, man!

Nicholas

Thank you for speaking about the Ogden guys (or Absalom, as I call Sauvé). Even if it weren’t for the Nazi stuff, he’s sketchy. He spends an odd amount of time online looking for people talking about him, leaving a snarky remark/reposting to summon his groupies, and then they fill the comment section with “I’m loyal to Brian!” cringiness. Mormons aren’t the only cultists in Utah. Come to think of it, awkward, downcast men were Hitler’s target audience too. Easy prey, I suppose.

HL

I was reading through the CREC Governing Documents and when I came across Article IV on The Broader Assemblies and was reading about their specific authority in A2k: “to mediate when a local church’s session is a party in a dispute with the session of another CREC church, with a CREC broader assembly, or with a non-CREC church,” I couldn’t help but wonder about how you sometimes write about the Ogden crew or about Joel Webbon (I agree with you!). Does that kind of thing get brought up in your presbytery or session? I didn’t even know what a session was so I assume this may not even apply to you since you alone aren’t the session. I was raised in nondenominational churches most my life so I’m just now learning about this kind of stuff. I read on your blog the timeline of events with the Ogden group stuff but I don’t remember there being anything on their about your Presbytery. Would they try to mediate in a situation like this? Was curious how it worked. Thanks for all you do!

JC

I understand your position to be that both the civil magistrate and the citizenry are subordinated to the Constitution as the highest legal authority in the land (an application of the Lex Rex). My question is about the threshold for resistance: How do we biblically transition from passive civil disobedience (refusing to obey an unlawful command) to active, armed rebellion against that same authority? At what point does a violation of the Constitution justify taking up arms under the direction of lesser magistrates?

Tyler

Just saw a couple of podcasts you did with great guys in Rome, GA. We barely missed you, our CREC congregation meets about 30 mins away in the town next to it, would have loved to have you worship with us. Our session of elders just approved the launching of an exploratory committee, with the purpose of doing recon on the planting of a CCS in our town. For the committee, what are 2-3 books or resources you would recommend them to read? Grateful for you!

B

I was looking at the video on surrogacy. What is your take on a child conceived with the egg of the mother who will raise him and the sperm of the father who will raise him? Something wrong with the mother’s parts, so a surrogate is used. Should Christians consider surrogacy to rescue all of those kids in fertility freezers?

Zeph

In the blog post titled “Juletters, you answered a question about church leadership that caught my attention. I am a member of a Baptist church and the very questions and thoughts James described are ones that we are having here. I would like to have more clarity on a couple of things you said in your response to him. These may be very basic questions. Do excuse my lack of knowledge about Presbyterian church polity.
You said that, “In our system, I as the lead pastor answer to the elders”. What do you mean you answer to the elders? You also said that your vote is “counted the same way as the others are, but is weighed differently”. How so?

Jiby

My wife and I are trying to raise our kids according to the principles published by Canon and are facing opposition from both families who embrace gentle parenting. I have two daughters, ages 2 and 7 months. Spanking is our primary tool for child discipline for our two-year-old who is more obstinate and defiant than I and my siblings were (according to my mom, we were pretty compliant). We vary between 1 to 3 swats and intensity depending on the offense. While staying with my parents for over a week, my mother demanded that we not spank our child while under her roof and that if we had to discipline my daughter, it had to be “time outs.” My wife had a separate conversation with her where my mother stated that we were committing “parental abuse” and that my daughter would grow to assault other people including us. I was spanked as a child and never dreamed of striking my mother; I have yet to receive an apology from her if what she did to my siblings and I was abuse. I agreed to my mother’s terms since we were staying with them; however, my daughter’s behavior deteriorated as the week progressed despite the “time outs.” She was screaming and fighting my wife. Our daughter’s behavior improved over a week after we returned home and resuming spanking. My wife and I live in west Michigan and my parents live in central New York (550 miles away by car). I told my wife that we will be staying in an Airbnb for a shorter duration instead of lodging with my folks for a week the next time we visit them. Fortunately my wife’s parents are local and we limit our time with them so our parenting doesn’t upset them too much. What advice do you have for how we deal with both families, especially for the conversation with my parents that we’ll no longer be staying with them until our children are old enough where we stop spanking? How do I deal with any fallout with my siblings and extended family? My mother is likely to draw others into our conflict because she is bitter that I rejected her worldview years ago. Thank you.
Sincerely,

Brent

I had read that on a NPR article you support slavery ? I’m not one to jump to conclusions. Thus, I hoping to get clarity from you. Thank you. Have a super evening.

Rick

I have a question about how to handle Santa. My wife and I have decided not to do Santa with our kids (4 and 1). We believe it’s a lie and takes the focus off of Christ at Christmas. It hasn’t been a problem until this year, but now our 4-year-old is aware of other kids at school having visits from Santa. Also, our family (who are all Christians) thinks our stance is ridiculous, but that hasn’t deterred us.
*By way of interesting observation, the most vehement opposition to parents not promoting Santa Claus has come from believers. It seems as though this really hits a nerve with Christians. I don’t know why . . . Conviction, maybe?
My question is this: how did your family handle this? And, more importantly, what should we tell our kids about Santa? So far, we’ve opted to say, “Santa doesn’t bring gifts to our house. Mommy and Daddy give you gifts.” Should we say “Santa isn’t real,” “Santa is pretend,” or “Santa is make-believe but was based on a real person?” Any advice is appreciated!

Caleb

It’s probably an understatement to call you “well-read”. Do you have any suggestions for someone who is interested in learning more about American history? Best authors? Preferably books that are as unbiased and non-revisionist as possible. I follow current politics but I am still leaning on my high school history class which was mostly just watching Band of Brothers.

Historically Curious

I can’t say I have ever figured out the passion you and many others have for the regulation of immigration, and widespread deportation—as opposed to, say, a new ID card and a slap-on-the-wrist fine for making the paperwork more of a nuisance. Actual criminals? Deal with them ourselves, no point turning them loose on a country of origin that clearly couldn’t hold them either. I can’t find any indication in Scripture that immigration is a problem for the government to “manage” to begin with—we owe that idea, historically, to the megalomaniacal progressive vision. Before that, all parties I am aware of seemed agreed that greater population was a good thing, a blessing.
Of course, “before that” citizenship also meant something—there were people other than bureaucrats and peons. And speaking of bureaucrats, a government that can arrest immigrants for summary deportation can call opponents “immigrants,” and with no proper process such “mistakes” are conveniently hard to rectify. Even supposing the current administration were acting in complete good faith, the precedent it sets for the future should alarm us all.
While I respect the dissenting justices in this ruling, I can’t see that they proved anything beyond the existence of an understandable undercurrent of dissent to the mainstream of the common law. Maybe the dissent would be better law; but it’s not the law we have. New circumstances may require new law: but until we get it we obey the old.
I quite agree with you that citizenship is a different matter than mere residence. But the citizenship question—”jurisdiction” and all—is quite handily answered but Justice Kavanaugh’s suggestion that we legally codify a new standard exemption to the standard “soil” definition of jurisdiction. You yourself noted this—and it seems to me could have ended your notice of the ruling there.
Respectfully,

Jonathan

Let me begin by expressing my deep and heartfelt gratitude to you for the many ways in which your life and ministry has helped me over the years. My childhood best friend attended New Saint Andrews before marrying a great girl he met there. My friend once took me to Christ Church where I got to hear you preach, and I even had the unique honor of attending a Bible study gathering at your father’s home—what an amazing man he was. You wouldn’t know me from Adam, but suffice it to say you have been one of the most influential voices in my life when it comes to faith, family, and Christian living. I wish I could say that I always lived out the advice you gave, but sadly as you will see here, that has not always been the case. I very much appreciate you—and would like to voice that at the outset. It’s precisely because of this high level of trust and influence that I am writing to you. Simply put, I trust your opinion more than most others. Should this letter make it to you, I am hoping that you might be willing to help me process an internal battle that has plagued me for a few years now.
For brevity’s sake I will try my best to get to the main point first and then provide some context. At the core of the matter is the question of whether I am really saved—if I am a Christian. I’m sure I am not the first person to approach you with questions regarding the warning passages of Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10, but between the years 2019 and 2020 I made a large-scale shipwreck of my life and have struggled to know whether I can have assurance of salvation since.
Having laid that foundation, here’s the context—
I was not raised in a Christian home, but if you would have asked me when I was converted I would have always told you that it happened at age eleven after hearing the Gospel from an extended family member. In the years that followed I became involved in a local youth group, was discipled by multiple pastors, taught at Bible studies, and experienced what I would call a very deep walk with the Lord. I married my high school sweetheart at age 19, attended church regularly, was baptized, and tried my best to grow in the faith. I studied the faith deeply—I read many books by authors such as: Jonathan Edwards, Calvin, John Piper, you, John MacArthur, etc. I say all this to communicate the fact that if in any way we are judged based on what we know, I knew the answers. I cannot claim ignorance.
As a 19-year-old husband, one thing that I brought into my young marriage that I had not yet dealt with was a lust issue. Nothing that would fall into the category of terribly out-of-the-ordinary or grotesque, but still sinful—still infidelity. This is something that I dealt with off and on for six years—and I was warned by my (then) wife and pastor / mentor on multiple occasions that I could lose my marriage if I did not cut this issue out of my life. Unfortunately, I succumbed to temptation again and again. Eventually at the age of 25 my worst fear came true—my wife left. We had pastoral oversight during this time and the pastor determined that there were Biblical grounds for divorce in his judgment if she no longer wanted to stay. I tried everything in my power to reconcile the relationship at this point, but it was too late. My wife filed for divorce, and so began a steep downward spiral in my life.
It was at this point that I went entirely off the rails. The pain and consequence of losing my bride was more than I could bear. When she left, I instantly lost an amazing family, my dog, all my money, all my furniture, everything—all in a day. I began going to bars and nightclubs, drinking heavily, abusing substances, sleeping around, fornicating, and sinning more than I ever had in my life. I became someone I never imagined that I would be. It was by all accounts a full-blown prodigal son rebellion moment. I was running from God—totally blinded by rage, grief, failure, and sorrow. The worst part was that it was my fault. People tried to tell me that my wife wanted to leave previously and that she had “found her way out” through the circumstances; however, whether this was true or not, I’ll never know. It didn’t change the fact that I was guilty—I was in the wrong.
This severe season of sin went on for at least a year—repeated, unrepentant, blatant rebellion. The whole time I knew that the way I was living was wrong, but I just didn’t stop. To this day when I see photos of myself and the deadness in my eyes during that time period it sickens me. I would pray from time-to-time, but most of it was just apologizing to God for the wreckage I had created in my life and marriage.
Time passed and eventually something particularly interesting happened. By chance, I became acquainted with a woman named M who was about my age, who knew who I was, and who also knew my story. In a pretty wild sequence of events, she told me that in 2019 my ex-wife’s sister had asked her to meet with my wife and encourage her as she was considering the divorce. M met with my ex-wife for coffee prior to the divorce and later told me that she had encouraged my ex to stay with me and reconcile the marriage during that meeting. I had never met M or ever heard of her before. Fast-forward a bit and in March of 2021 I married M and we now have one small son and another on the way.
My life since meeting M has moved in an upward direction. I’ve repented of my sins, started attending a fantastic church, started a family, and really been making an effort to move in a God-ward direction.
I am now 32 years old and throughout the past couple of years I have been trying to dig through the rubble of my past decisions to know where I stand with God. I’m trying to assess what happened, how I fell so far, and whether or not it is possible that a truly converted man could fall into such a horrendous state as I did. I know that my salvation has nothing to do with my works, and that it is all of Christ. I am leaning on Christ, trusting and believing that His sacrifice is enough for even the worst of sinners like myself. However, in my reading of Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10, I am finding myself wondering if these passages are saying that it is not possible for me to be restored to repentance in God’s eyes. It seems as though these passages are describing a category of person who has trampled underfoot the Son of God so grievously that they have essentially sinned themselves out of eligibility for salvation and out from under the covering of the sacrifice. If this is the case, then that is certainly a problem. I would greatly appreciate your insights on this, as well as any other counsel you may have.
With Much Sincere Appreciation,

F