For those of you who have been following this series, this brings to a conclusion our series of study questions through Calvin’s Institutes. Congratulations. As my granddaughter Daphne would say, “I dood it.” Book 4/Chapter 20
Sunny Sea
We are very grateful to God for last night’s safe arrival of our 14th grandchild, Marisol Helen Wilson, a gift of God to Nate and Heather. She weighed in at 9 lb. 12 oz., and appears to like everybody.
Justin and Emily
Since the entrance of sin into our fallen world, we have a tendency to divide things that belong together, and to put together things that should be kept distinct. We blur what should be sharp, and we divide what should be blended. Although the creation of marriage antedates the entrance of sin, sin has entered …
The Crowning Gift
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the …
The Lesser Magistrates
Book 4/Chapter 20 The royal person (section 28) 1. Whom should we serve in the civil realm? 2. Why are there “many princes”? 3. What should we then do? God will vindicate (section 29) 1. What do we not examine? 2. Are we to be subject to men who are evil in character? 3. When …
State of the Church 2009
INTRODUCTION: This is a season for personal inventories, and for resolutions. This is appropriate and fitting . . . unless one of your resolutions needs to be to rely less on resolutions and more on actually doing something. Assuming your resolutions help you get things done, you don’t want to lose ground here in order …
Don We Now Our Gay Apparel
Look at this. Two UK posts in a row. After hearing my daughter express herself in our living room on this subject more than once, I encouraged her to put it in prose that sings. And so she did. Right here. If this were a Blandings story, and if Bekah were Baxter, this is the …
How Not to Lower the Net
There is not really a delicate way to get at one of the root problems with modern higher ed without confronting the emotional engine which drives those problems. And when we confront that engine we discover that the problem is caused by the atomosphere we all live in, and not by this or that nefarious …
Obeying the Ungodly
Book 4/Chapter 20 Unjust magistrates (section 24) 1. Does Calvin believe that magistrates are capable of great wickedness? 2. What does this do in the minds of men who must live under such? A foundational lesson (section 25) 1. What should our first reaction be when we find ourselves governed by a wicked magistrate? Obedience …
War on Overworked Metaphors
Just a quick, additional example of how we should draw political conclusions from what everybody knows, this time with some criticism for the neocons. What with the Christmas Day bomber guy and all, we are seeing another round of debate between the neocons, who say we need to treat this thing like a war, and …