“I honestly do not see how it can be considered possible to separate Christ from His benefits. So when I speak of the imputation of the active obedience of Christ, this means that I am ultimately speaking of the imputation of Christ Himself, and there is no way to understand this apart from the Pauline idea of union with Christ. We may distinguish Christ and His benefits (as the Bible frequently does), but if we try to separate them, we are guilty of a very serious mistake.”
Having the Jim Jams Over Blasphemy Laws
Introduction: I want to begin with the fact that consistent Christians necessarily have a deep wariness over blasphemy laws. This is deep within our DNA, and I believe it is there for good reason. ...
A Paper-Mache Ordo
“The ordo is an illustration, a metaphor, meant to preserve a right understanding of God’s sovereignty in salvation. It is like a paper-mache model of an atom, hanging above a fifth-grade classroom. There is a point to the illustration, which must be grasped, but, once it is grasped, you ought to stop thinking of the atom as a teeny solar system.”
There’s a Thought
Faith Like a Carcass
[Responding to a rejection of active, living, obedient faith] “Apparently the only way to get through ambiguous justification debates is to insist that we are justified by an inert, dead, and disobedient faith. That way all the glory goes to Christ, and nobody gets the wrong idea.”
Srtrike Four
“A slight difficulty arises because, as readers of this blog know full well, I hold that there are two covenants, one before the fall and one after. I hold to the imputation of the active obedience of Christ, and I do so with robust gesticulations. And I deny that faith justifies because of any Boy Scout qualities it may have. Strike three. At this point, Clark needs to hand his bat to the bat boy and respectfully take his seat in the dugout. But he does nothing of the kind. He just assumes the stance again and looks at the pitcher with a steely gaze. ‘That all you got? Three pitches? I’ll hit one eventually. C’mon.’ Okay. I also affirm that justification is primarily about right standing before God. Strike four.”
Calvin Said That?
[On Calvin’s view that the “covenant of grace is common to hypocrites and true believers”] “If this is an error, it is an error within the Reformed pale—we share the error with no less than ol’ Jean himself. If it is not an error, then certain schoolmarm librarians at the John Calvin Memorial Archives and Book Stacks need to do a little less shushing and a little more reading.”
When Everything Starts to Converge on the Point
Introduction: I would like to thank Michael Riley for his respectful discussion of the relationship of Van Til's apologetic approach, on the one hand, and Christian nationalism on the other. ...
Letters That Make You Go Hmmmm
Letter to the Editor: RE: You are the Man, and You Are Responsible This is a very helpful post. It moves me another notch or two toward understanding this topic. I also understand the principle ...
Like a Purple Boa
“In the aftermath of this debate everybody could plainly see that I hold to a Westminsterian soteriology and that I wear the traditional Reformed ordo around my neck like it was a feather boa. Where did all the plain heresy go?”