We are far enough into this meltdown that we are starting to see its effects on individuals, and this of course includes individuals in the church. We are talking about layoffs, losses in retirement accounts, housing investments going south, and all the rest of it. If Christians are called to understand the times they are …
On Not Watching the Punch and Judy Show
As Obama is settling in to doing his thing, a couple of observations. The first is that Obama is a very different kind of slick than Bill Clinton was. Clinton’s was more a function of greasiness than anything else. Obama is disciplined, sharp, shrewd, and fully capable of coopting thin veneer conservatives. And all the …
What Is Enough For Us?
Book I/Chapter 10 The Creator God (section 1) 1. What should it be enough for us to do? The Attributes of God (section 2) 1. What attributes are announced by God’s name? 2. What three things about God are necessary for us to know? Heathen Knowledge (section 3) 1. How can we know that the …
Simple Unbelief
We have already considered the verb that expressed unbelief (apisteo), and the noun apistia is obviously related Jesus did not do many miracles in His hometown because of their unbelief (Matt. 13:58; Mk. 6:6). The disciples were unable to cast out a particularly stubborn demon because of their unbelief (Matt. 17:20). It is striking that …
So Preach as Though There Were Men Standing in the Back Waiting to Arrest You
“The hallmark of the apostolic method of preaching was boldness. Again and again as we read Luke’s account we are arrested by the power and boldness that characterized the way in which the gospel was proclaimed by those early preachers . . . This characteristic boldness is all the more striking when we compare it …
But Then It Didn’t
“A variant that was not sent down from the top was ‘the revolution of the sixties,’ a sort of Rousseauist hope that by destroying the ‘hypocrisy’ of petty bourgeois, Christian-tinged morality and conventions, a new ‘Age of Aquarius’ would drop down out of somewhere” (Harold O.J. Brown, The Sensate Culture, p. 229).
In Other Words, No More Than a Quarter Inch Deep
[Speaking of 1 Peter 3:3] “Women in the Roman world used to really ‘crank up the volume’ in their personal appearance. The problem addressed by Peter is not hair-arrangements in themselves, or the perfidy of pony-tails. No, Peter is directing his attention to women who were ostentatious, making a display of themselves. The women of …
Westminsterian Assurance
In his most recent post on assurance and apostasy, Lane frames the question of assurance this way: “Can a believer be absolutely assured of his own salvation in knowing that he is decretally elect?” In this, as with so many other details of our controversy, what Lane says is suspect when you hold it next …
And Another Thing . . .
With the release of Dandelion Fire just a few weeks out, it seemed wise to let you know that Canon Press has an offer of book plates signed by the author for those who pre-order.
Reining in Fanatics
Book I/Chapter 9 Fanatical appeal (section 1) 1. Why do some abandon Scripture? 2. How can they justify this? What argument do they use? 3. How does Calvin answer this from Paul? The Holy Spirit (section 2) 1. Why do we need a distinguishing mark or test to tell if it is the work of …