Sad But True!

I am already going to interject my long series, "The Preciousness of Time," and encourage you to read and watch the following two blog posts from Dr. Voddie Baucham's website. The first one regards the foolishness of some who claim to follow Christ and yet support the Democratic Nominee: Click Here! The second one regards the foolishness of some people as to why they support the same individual: Click Here! Shocking? Perhaps initially. Sad? YES INDEED! Maybe Americans and misinformed (and I use that word very lightly) Christians will get what they deserve.

The Preciousness of Time (Part 1)

If there is one man I'd like to meet and learn from, it's definitely Jonathan Edwards. Having had the opportunity to take The Theology of Jonathan Edwards about a year ago, I came to learn firsthand why he is hailed as America's greatest philosophical theologian (just read his Freedom of the Will), a man of great affections for God (just read his Religious Affections), a man of great resolve (just read his Resolutions), and so much more (just read George M. Marsden's biography, Jonathan Edwards). What also amazed me about Edwards was his almost impeccable use of time and the profound determination he applied to maximizing it. He very faithfully lived by his resolution #41: "Resolved, to ask myself at the end of every day, week, month, and year, wherein I could possibly in any respect have done better." I know that an average man like myself will never become the genius that he was or leave such a deep footprint in both North American and Christian history, but I do long to make the most of my time, and thereby my life, even as he did. This deep spiritual longing of mine is not consistently exercised by this body of mine, however. I also know that I am not the only believer who is battling in this area, if not struggling in it on a daily basis. So, with you and this sinner in mind, I am going to post a long series on the godly use of time from Edward's "The Preciousness of Time" based on Ephesians 5:16 (dated December, 1734). My hope is that it will be of deep help to both you and me. Read, learn, and grow.

THE PRECIOUSNESS OF TIME

AND THE

IMPORTANCE OF REDEEMING IT

EPH. v. 16.

Redeeming the time.

Christians should not only study to improve the opportunities they enjoy, for their own advantage, as those who would make a good bargain; but also labour to reclaim others from thier evil courses; that so God might defer his anger, and time might be redeemed from that terrible destruction, which, when it should come, would put an end to the time of divine patience. And it may be upon this account, that this reason is added, Because the days are evil. As if the apostle had said, the corruption of the times tends to hasten threatened judgments; but your holy and circumspect walk will tend to redeem time from the devouring jaws of those calamities.—However, thus much is certainly held forth to us in the words; viz. That upon time we should set a high value, and be exceeding careful that it be not lost; and we are therefore exhorted to exercise wisdom and circumspection, in order that we may redeem it. And hence it appears, that time is exceedingly precious.

Right Doctrine Necessitates Regard for Church History

What do JWs, Mormons, and many cults who claim to rely on the Bible have in common? Pride! Pride that says, "All I need is the Bible regardless of what a long line of God's servants in the church, post the apostolic age, have and continue to teach." There is no doubt that the Bible should be our priority and the final rule and standard by which all spiritual teachings must be in accord with. Yet, the very process of coming to measure any spiritual teaching in light of God's Word necessitates a serious consideration of how a given spiritual teaching has been taught by the the church. Why? Because the chances of our own private interpretation or understanding of Scripture resulting in accuracy is much more slim than what the church has been teaching for nearly two millenniums. S. Lewis Johnson writes:

"To treat the church's historical understanding of Scripture lightly is to forget that it is the believing body that, through the centuries, carries on the theological enterprise with the Word in hand and accompanied by the enlightening Spirit. Thus, the largest part of any theologian's work comes from reverent consideration and response to the Christian theological tradition. The creeds of the church, the results of serious spiritual and theological strife, are more important than the views of individuals. We should begin our discussion with the assumption that the church is probably right, unless exegetical and theological study compel us otherwise. 'The proclamation of new discoveries,' Abraham Kuyper, the famed founder of the Free University of Amsterdam, wrote, 'is not always a proof of devotion to the truth, it is sometimes a tribute to self-esteem'" ("Role Distinctions in the Church Galtians 3:28" in Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, 164).

Forbid spiritual pride that imagines the Holy Spirit to be working solely in you but fails to realize that He has been in church history, and that rather diligently.

Ignornace of Scripture is No Joking Matter

"Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ." -St. Jerome

I must thank Rick Mansfield for posting this quote on his blog several weeks ago. You can check out his blog here: Click Here! His blog is especially informative when it comes to Bible translations and comparisons, whether you agree with his assessment or not.

Martin Luther on Monergism

Be sure to check out Luther's Rose Web at the bottom of this blog.

The Holiness of God National EXPANDED Conference

Wow! Take a look at the keynote speakers for Ligonier Ministries 2009 National EXPANDED Conference: Thabiti Anyabwile, Alistair Begg, D.A. Carson, Ligon Duncan, Sinclair Ferguson, Robert Godfrey, Steven J. Lawson, Al Mohler, R.C. Sproul, R.C. Sproul Jr., and Derek Thomas. I've never attended a conference with so many gifted teachers, not even at Shepherd's Conference (quantitatively speaking, not qualitatively). They will also be celebrating the great John Calvin's 500th birthday this year. You can read all about it at Ligonier Ministries: Click Here!

This Man is Clearly a Heretic!

Not to sound mean, but Joel Osteen is clearly a heretic. The gospel he preaches is a different gospel, and therefore is no gospel at all. He does not merely preach that one can have his best life now, but blatantly twists the sacrificial work and the cross of Jesus Christ to suit the unregenerate man's desire for the fleshly, the momentary, the here and now. This is not to say that believers are not to enjoy life (1 Peter 3:10-12) or even seek healing from infirmities (James 5:15-18), we should. But the true gospel produces the greatest joy since it delivers one from God's eternal judgment and provides the most necessary miracle from spiritual deadness (not sickness), thereby being the greatest miracle possible (it's more than just healing). This Osteen does not proclaim. He certainly needs prayer for the sake of his soul, unless it is too late (it is damning enough to receive the infinite wrath of God for denying the true gospel but to compound it by misleading millions of people by preaching the same lie is just, well, you know)! Check out this video for evidence: Click Here!

"But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!"

-Galatians 1:8-9

P.S., I must admit that "It's the blood of a champion" saying is a little funny, however (see it @ the 2:34 mark)!

I Believe In Order To Understand

Here is a worthy quote from Anselm of Canterbury, who was a very influential and brilliant medieval theologian. He was most famous for his long essays Monologian and Prosologian. The following is from the latter (Anselm of Canterbury The Major Works, p.87):

"I acknowledge, Lord, and I give thanks that You have created Your image in me, so that I may remember You, think of You, love You. But this image is so effaced and worn away by vice, so darkened by the smoke of sin, that it cannot do what it was made to do unless You renew it and reform it. I do not try, Lord, to attain Your lofty heights, because my undertanding is in no way equal to it. But I do desire to understand Your truth a little, that truth that my heart believes and loves. For I do not seek to understand so that I may believe; but I believe so that I may understand. For I believe this also, that 'unless I believe, I shall not understand [Isa.7:9]" (Emphasis Added).

Is Anselm correct? I certainly think so (see Matthew 16:17)!

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Anger & Self-Control

Check out what Dr. Lloyd-Jones had to say about anger and self-control: Click Here!

Follow Me, and I Will Make You Become Fishers of Men

In the Gospel of Mark 1:17 Jesus states, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men" (NASB). This saying is very commonly interpreted and taught as a call to evangelism or to be Jesus' evangelizers that believers throughout successive generations are to emulate. At first glance the parallel seems unavoidably obvious: "fishers" is a reference to the "to be" evangelizers (i.e., the disciples) whereas we too are to be such "fishers"; "men" refers to the unregenerate of the then era whereas the unregenrate of today are also such "men." The evangelistic tone is not silent. Yet, could Jesus have meant more than that? Perhaps! Consider the following excerpt from Dr. Kim Riddlebarger's sermon entitled "Repent and Believe" and judge for yourselves (Note: I need to think a bit more about Riddlebarger's exposition but I don't think I've yet to hear or read a clearer explanation of the verse than his):

"But think about this for a minute. Is fishing simply a metaphor for evangelism in the sense of merely telling people about Jesus? When Simon and Andrew cast their nets into to sea and caught fish to feed their families and sell some to others, what happened to the fish they caught? Were the fish saved? Were they invited into the boat? Or is there a sense in which the fish is caught against its will and then inevitably dies under the judgment of the fisherman? Perhaps we ought to rethink this 'I will make you fishers of men' thing a bit! First and foremost, fishing is a judgment motif, not an evangelistic motif! In fact, when Jesus summons these two men to become fishers of men, he is using an Old Testament image found throughout the prophets (Jeremiah 16:16; Ezekiel 29:4 ff; 38:4; Amos 4:2; Hab, 1:14-17). In these passages God is the judge who comes like a fisherman with a net or a hook to catch those who fall under his judgment, which is the fate of the fish we catch (except those of you who are 'catch and release' types). Therefore, when Jesus calls Simon and Andrew to be 'fishers of men,' he’s informing them that their new calling will be like that of their new master who has just summoned them. Simon and Andrew will preach a message which summons men and women to repent. Their preaching comes upon those who hear it like fish are caught in a net. This is not a 'take it or leave it' offer of salvation. This message summons us to repent and believe, just like a net pulls a fish into a boat. Once we hear it, we cannot ignore it. Therefore, all those who hear this message–the good news of God–cannot escape God’s judgment. When we hear the declaration of what God has done to save sinners from that wrath which is to come, we are obligated to respond. All who hear that this is God’s appointed time and that the kingdom has drawn near in the person of Jesus, must now do as Jesus says, 'repent and believe.' Those who are 'caught' through this preaching either die to themselves so that they might live unto God, or else they die under the judgment of God. But there is no sense that you can hear this message and then just walk away as though you had never heard it. You have been summoned. You are caught. You will be judged. This is every bit as inevitable as it is that the fish will die once out of the water. That Jesus calls men to engage in such fishing is yet another sign that the kingdom of God has drawn near. Through the proclamation of the good news, men and women throughout Israel will soon be summoned to repent and believe the gospel that Jesus will proclaim. Those who hear the words of Jesus and his disciples are just like fish caught in a net. God has them in his possession. They come under his judgment. That Jesus has this sovereign power is seen in the reaction of Simon and Andrew to Jesus’ call. Mark simply tells us in verse 18, 'At once [Simon and Andrew] left their nets and followed him.' Simon and Andrew are still fishermen, only they no longer fish for fish. Now they fish for men and women. Jesus has other disciples to call as well. As we read in verses 19-20, 'When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.' Those whom Jesus calls, do not resist. They follow their master because they have been summoned. Because God’s time has come and the kingdom has drawn near, Jesus now calls his disciples to follow him. This call to be fishers of men is not some impersonal plea to 'follow Jesus.' It is a direct summons by God himself, addressed to these particular men by that one in whom the kingdom draws near and through whom God fishes for men and woman. Cranfield puts it this way, Jesus’ 'word lays hold on men’s lives and asserts his right to their whole-hearted and total allegiance, a right that takes priority even over kinship.' This is what happened to Simon and Andrews and to James and John. It is what is happening here this morning. That time has come for you to repent and believe."

Dr. Voddie Baucham Tells It Like It Is

Check out Dr. Voddie Baucham's biblical assessment of women in office (yes, including Governor Sarah Palin). Read it from Reformed Baptist Blog: Click Here!

Note: What Dr. Baucham advocates is not "sexism" as the world would deem or "patriarchalism" as some evangelical egalitarians would argue, but rather is an excellent and bold example of biblical fidelity. By inference, his biblical fidelity would translate into the honoring of the female sex, which bears the very imago dei. Biblical fidelity would allow for no other conclusion than such. After you watch the two Christians, you tell me who you think is exercising biblical fidelity, the one who takes the text at its face value (Baucham) or the other who seeks a meaning beyond the plain meaning (Margaret Feinberg).

On another but related note, if you have been struggling with the the whole Judge Deborah issue, that is, how or why God allowed her to function as a "leader" (or so many people think ala the CNN lady), check out Wayne Grudem's Evangelical Feminism & Biblical Truth, pp.131-136.

Christless Christianity: An Oxymoron But A Reality

One of my favorite radio programs is the White Horse Inn (WHI) hosted by Dr. Michael Horton (Westminster Seminary, Cal) along with Ken Jones (Greater Union Baptist Church), Dr. Kim Riddlebarger (Christ Reformed Church in Anaheim), and Rod Rosenbladt (Concordia University). You may or may not agree with every nuance of their theology, but I deeply admire them for their consistent emphasis on the centrality of the person of Christ and the Gospel of Christ, as well as for keeping aflame the Protestant Reformation's recovery of the apostolic doctrine of justification by faith alone in Christ alone. I can honestly say that their ministry continues to help me appreciate the Savior more, though I humbly acknowledge how far and frequent I fall short of loving and obeying Him who is infinitely worthy of my devotion. I can't express just how much I love the WHI!

With that said, I strongly encourage you to check out the following resources available through this ministry:

1. Dr. Horton on Christless Christianity: Click Here!

2. Dr. Horton Interviews Dr. R.C. Sproul concerning Christless Christianity: Click Here!

I hope you find these resources helpful.