What are we to make of the question of perseverance and time? Some might want to say that God gives Himself in the present, and only in the present. A gift by definition, has to be received in the present in order to be a gift, right? No, not if we want to speak biblically. …
Berkouwer on Regeneration
With regard to the historic Protestant doctrine of regeneration, a lot could be said, and I believe a lot more should be said. One of the things we will discover is that there is more careful nuance than might be found in the peroration of a hot gospel hedge preacher. At the same time, the …
Look! Girls!
So let me tell you a little bit about my recent reading, which will then help you understand where the following comes from. I recently listened through all C.S. Lewis’s Essays, and have now listened to most of The Abolition of Man (again). I am currently reading God Is Not a Story by Murphy (which …
The USS Eschaton
Please bear with a few juxtaposed quotes, followed up by a very brief observation. “We have contrived that their very language should be all smudge and blur . . .” (C.S. Lewis, Screwtape Proposes a Toast). “The gospel was not ‘believe in Jesus and you will have eternal life’. It was the public announcement that …
Interview With Nate
Really enjoyed our time with the Apologia gang while they were here in Moscow. Here is one interview they conducted (with more to follow). The topic is enjoyment of God, reading the story you are in, moment by moment. Do you really believe what you think you do?
Does Nature Have a Nature?
I just finished listening to a talk which addressed the question of whether regeneration should be defined as a change in nature, and was reminded of something from Wodehouse. Some minds are like the soup in a bad restaurant — better left unstirred. Two basic things came to mind, and I will let them float …
Confession and Works
One of the things that is very much part of the DNA of our public ministry is the teaching that Christians need to keep short accounts with God, confessing their sins regularly and honestly. The teaching of Scripture on the subject is plain enough. “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: But whoso confesseth …
Such That the Culture Notices
So it appears that I owe N.T. Wright an apology. For years I have read him as a postmillennialist who wouldn’t admit it, one who inexplicably wouldn’t use the standard terminology. But it now seems that this is not accurate at all — he is more like an amillennialist who won’t use the standard terminology. …
No Need to Count the Barnacles
In a previous post, I alluded to the important matter of the marks of the church. Historically among the Reformed, these have been considered as Word and sacrament. Some have added a third mark, that of discipline, but I think this represents a small but significant confusion. This is a fallen world, which means that …
A Nut Brown Discomfort
Timothy LeCroy has written about ecumenism and the Eucharist here, and a couple of things come to mind. Please keep in mind that I write with the porridge of my Scots Calvinist heritage sticking to my ribs, so to speak, and while this does not blow up the ecumenical venture, it does make it more …