Letters of the New Dawn 2023

I am appalled. I am aghast. I got excited that you listed ‘Amie’ as a song you like. But then I see that it’s by Counting Crows?!? C’mon man! Pure Prairie League or nothing. It’d be like if you listed ‘Wagon Wheel’ as a favorite song, but you said you prefer the new Darrius Rucker version instead of the original Old Crow Medicine Show one. Covers are a waste. Stick with the originals.

Best Wishes

Nate

I hope I’m not the only one who tells you this, but you should continue to write more of your fiction novels. They are always enjoyable.

AH

“We are a project that fights back, that gets underfoot, that tries to unravel what the Spirit is knitting.” Re: the section that vividly describes us as paintings that keep playing Slip-n-Slide across God’s palette in a foolish attempt to improve His work of art…it reminded me of Corrie ten Boom’s illustration of God weaving the beautiful tapestry of our lives. Only, we see it from the underside, where the strings cross-cross and tangle in ways that sometimes provide hints of what the finished work will be but too often only look like a jumbled mess. If I may extend her metaphor and dovetail it with yours, the temptation is to snip the strings and rearrange the perceived chaos into the weave that we, in our misguided thinking, believe God is trying to create. But all this does is cause the strings to unravel. Both are poignant reminders that we really ought to stop being so retardant.

Andy

Thank you for your ministry. I was wondering, is there another Man Rampant in the works? Are you familiar with Michael O’Fallon? He has a ministry/organization called Sovereign Nations. He is a friend of Dr. White apparently and close friend of James Lindsay, the man who has been pivotal in exposing all of the Marxist ideologies from CRT to Queer Theory, etc, etc . . . this ties into my first question about Man Rampant, it would be a very interesting interview with either of those men.

Anyhow, thanks again. May the Lord continue to bless and further the kingdom through your labors.

Jeremy

Will you please explain what is so astonishing about “Messiah ben Joseph” . . . i.e. why it is so much more than “merely” Joseph being a Type of Christ?

I read your article twice, and looked at the description/reviews on Amazon, and totally don’t understand what the (reverently) “big deal” is.

Would you please go into a some more detail to explain what is so “new” and astonishing about this book/concept?

Thanks!

Robert

I am reaching out to you to request that you read Does the Birth Control Pill Cause Abortions written by Randy Alcorn, and if you would publicly address this topic. I feel many Christains are awfully deceived by the birth control industry and I feel that this message needs to get out to as many people as possible.

Thank you,

Dustin

Singleness as Affliction: This article was so helpful and made me feel so much better about my displeasure with being single. Thank you so much for your encouragement, Pastor Doug!

I was wondering if you have any advice for a 32-year-old man longing for marriage and a family, but hasn’t had any luck yet. I’ve been on several dates with Christian women, mostly off of Christian dating apps, and have either been rejected or just wasn’t feeling it myself. Plus, I live in CA so solid churches with godly young women devoted to living biblically are scarce. I pray often that this season of singleness would end, but that doesn’t seem likely to happen anytime in the near future. I don’t look at porn and I steer clear of all situations that would lead me into sexual immorality, but the temptation to look upon women with lust is so strong. I’m trying to find a church that is biblically sound, but most of them that are don’t really have an abundant demographic of young single women. What do you think I should do? Am I wrong to be seeking a wife? Should I try harder to put it out of my mind and let it happen when it happens? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for your ministry. It has been such a huge and impactful influence on my walk with the Lord! God bless!

Matthew

On Avoiding Romantic Reverie

What advice would you give on whether or not to pursue a woman who is faithful to the Lord and exhibits qualities one would look for in a future wife and mother of your children, and is even attractive, but you do not feel “compelled,” “infatuated,” “fallen in love,” “butterflies in stomach,” or any other emotional designation? I keep hearing people respond to this question by saying that I’d be settling and would live to regret it, but I can’t help but wonder if a woman of such admirable qualities is so rare that I should just pursue her and let whatever feelings come about later.

Daniel

A few days ago he was talking with a brother about the goodness of pleasure, as a lawful use, of creation (according to John Calvin comments in his comment on Genesis). and this friend told me that the commandment to bear fruit and populate the earth also carries a good dose of pleasure and joy! to which I replied: imagine how much, that I even hope to bear fruit in the new earth in the resurrection! … I ask: what do you think of my wish, will it be possible?

The fact of sin does not, I believe, take away the mandate and the goodness of having children, unless one believes that having children without the pain of childbirth is theological folly.

PS: sorry for the grammar, I use google translate, thank God for it!

Dante

Despite the fact that in introducing “A Brief Introductory Glossary . . .”, you had hoped for “a good bit of discussion,” I do not recall reading a single letter regarding that post in the following month. Please stay true to your word.

Nathan

First off, my deepest thanks for your teaching; it has been incredibly helpful to me as a husband, father, and child of God. You’re doing great work and it is yielding beautiful fruit all over the world. Please, keep it up for as long as you can.

Second, many weeks back one of your readers wrote to ask if you knew of any works covering each of the books of the Bible at a high level. I have one to recommend highly: a sermon series called Route 66 (finding Jesus in each book of the Bible), by Paul Viggiano, pastor of Branch of Hope OPC (which hosted the recent Bahnsen conference you spoke at). There’s one roughly 45 minute sermon per book and they can be found here:

Lastly, I recently decided to refer to spankings as “percussive sanctification” and wanted to share the turn of phrase for critique and/or mutual enjoyment.

In Christ,

Brent

I just finished reading “N T Wright Rides a Pale Horse.” Very good. I hope you sent him a complimentary copy!

dj

I’m concerned about an answer you gave to a question on your August 1 series of letters.

Q: What are your beliefs on concupiscence, and specifically, as it pertains to homosexuality?

Noah

A: Noah, I believe that the stirrings of such desire are temptation, to be resisted but not confessed, and that indulgence and expression of such desire is to be confessed to God as sin. Under no circumstances should it be made an aspect of your identity.

Likewise, you gave a similar answer to a question at the Sexual by Design Q&A, at time stamp 1:01:05:

These things were brought out in a recent episode of “Conversations That Matter” with Jon Harris:

Why do you say that sodomite desire falls under temptation? Are you not saying the same thing as Sam Allberry and the Revoice controversy? James tells us that unnatural desire is sinful, because it breeds sin, which leads to death when it is fully formed. Is it not rather true that the temptation precedes the desire? In other words, the desire or the stirring thereof is not the same as the temptation. Both the desire and the action of sodomy are unnatural and should be mortified, killed, not just the action. Wouldn’t you agree? Will you take Jared Moore’s public call for repentance seriously? Are you not at this moment outside of orthodoxy for saying that it is acceptable for a Christian to have sinful desires without confessing them?

On another note, there was a part of “Ride Sally Ride” where Asahel kissed his girlfriend at her baptism, before they were married. That shocked me, considering your very strong stance against stirring up the desire for fornication with a young woman through physical affection and compromising situations, as you outlined in “Her Hand in Marriage”.

I hope you’re just being inconsistent. Please consider what I’ve said and retract these convictions.

CR

In the case where one spouse commits adultery, confesses and repents, and establishes a track record of genuine repentance and a new way of life, how long is the window open for the other spouse to have biblical grounds to seek a divorce? At what point does it transition from “because of what the offender did this situation is un-redeemable and you are free to seek a divorce” to “your spouse is a changed and reconciled individual and you are just keeping this in your back pocket so a divorce at this point would be sinful?”

FO

I have a friend who has been talking about where Jesus went when He died on the cross, she says He went to hell . . . do you believe that He went to Hell Or Heaven?

It says “And He answered him, Truly I tell you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise” (Luke‬ ‭23‬:‭43‬ ‭AMPC‬‬). But she argued that it was actually, I tell you today, you will be with Me in Paradise, meaning eventually, not TODAY

Thank you!

In Christ,

Eve

Regime Dictionaries in Clown World

Pastor: Well written: “and therefore He is immutably loving. Thus any ethical system based on Him will reflect those characteristics.” AMEN! Now, please consider reflecting this immutable love more often and in ways other than polemics. Maybe a 5:1 non-polemic to polemic ratio? 10:1? By the Spirit, we would all benefit and the Kingdom would advance. Love, Build! Godspeed,

Christian

I’ve been reading through Chilton’s “Days of Vengeance”. In the Introduction he argues for the early date of Revelation, and the entire New Testament canon, from the position that Daniel 9:24 prophesies the ending of the canon when it says that it seals up vision and prophecy. It would seem that this would put the end of the seventy weeks of years at 70 AD. I am partial to the idea of the canon being completed by 70 AD, and I read his source with pretty hearty agreement with most of the internal evidence suggesting this. However, I am still not sure how to count the weeks of years. It seems that a very literal 490 would put you at roughly 34 AD. At which time there is no judgment that would look like the abomination of desolation. However, to put the last “half week” off until 66 AD creates a gap that is not stated by the text of Daniel. That being said, there are multiple passages in Revelation that suggest that the 3.5 years was at the time of judgement such as 12:14. It also seems implied by the Olivet Discourse, Daniel 7:25 and Daniel 9:24-27. This would put approximately 40 years between the first 3.5 years and the last 3.5 years of the last week of Daniel. Which would parallel the concept of judgement that should lead to repentance after the Exodus. The question is, where do you place the last half week, and why. Thanks.

Jeremy