“Our preaching must not be articulate snoring. There must be power, life, energy, vigour. We must throw our whole selves into it, and show that the zeal of God’s house has eaten us up” (Charles Spurgeon, Lectures to My Students, p. 226).
Is Food a Privilege?
Just a few more comments in response to Green Baggins’ latest. I think we have already covered the basic issues, but a few points really need to be emphasized. The first is that I agree that our inability to get the church in history to correspond name-for-name with the church in the eschaton is not …
Terriers of Orthodoxy
“If we really believe the truth, we shall be decided about it. Certainly we are not to show our decision by that obstinate, furious, wolfish bigotry which cuts off every other body from the chance and hope of salvation and the possibility of being regenerate or even decently honest if they happen to differ from …
The New Ordinary
Yesterday’s Easter sermon was called “The New Ordinary” and can be found here.
Peter Leithart on Penitential Seasons
Last Sunday, I preached on penitential seasons, which you can listen to here. The outline for the message can be found here. And Peter Leithart has been kind enough to engage with some of my argument here and here. Just a couple comments in return. I agree with much of what Peter says, especially the …
Christ’s Death and Ours
We know that in His death, Jesus Christ conquered death. This was obviously in concert with His resurrection from the dead, but Scripture speaks of Christ’s death having a singular power over death as well. “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; …
Let’s Be Reasonable
God created us as reasonable creatures. To adopt rationalism is to make an idol out of reason, but for all that, we should still seek to be reasonable. The word alogos represents a failure at this place. In one place it is translated as unreasonable (Acts. 25:27). This is in the mouth of the pagan …
How Many Bars?
“To swing to and fro on a five-barred gate is not progress, yet some seem to think so” (Charles Spurgeon, Lectures to My Students, p. 217).
The Halfway Covenant
Lane continues to interact with my book in his recent post on the relationship of a profession of faith with the half-way covenant. This is an issue that, in my view, requires some untangling. First, let me summarize was the half-way covenant actually did. The New England Puritans were paedobaptists, but they required a (high-bar) …
Cheerfulness is not Froth
“A great distinction exists between holy cheerfulness, which is a virtue, and that general levity, which is a vice. There is a levity which has not enough heart to laugh, but trifles with everything; it is flippant, hollow, unreal. A hearty laugh is no more levity than a hearty cry. I speak of that religious …