reformation universalis is moving and changing names.
Please visit our new blog Reformation Faith. It is still under construction.
Filed under: General
• 4:43 pm 4
Iain Murray on Unity
Between 1875 and 1892 George Müller travelled the world preaching with seven objectives in view. The fourth of these was, ‘To promote among all true believers, brotherly love; to lead them to make less of those non-essentials in which disciples differ, and to make more of those great essential and foundation truths in which all true believers are united.’
No real Christian could discount such an aim. Yet since these words were spoken Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: Denominationalism, Doctrine
• 3:47 pm 0
Spurgeon on Psalm 37
These verses from Psalm 37 were a great comfort to me of late. Spurgeon’s commentary add greatly to the understanding and application.
Verse 18. The Lord knoweth the days of the upright. His foreknowledge made him laugh at the proud, but in the case of the upright he sees a brighter future, and treats them as heirs of salvation. Ever is this our comfort, that all events are known to our God, and that nothing in our future can take him at unawares. No arrow can pierce us by accident, no danger smite us by stealth; neither in time nor eternity can any unforeseen ill occur to us. Futurity shall be but a continual development of the good things which the Lord has laid up in store for us. And their inheritance shall be for ever. Their inheritance fades not away. It is entailed, so that none cam deprive them of it, and preserved, so that none shall destroy it. Eternity is the peculiar attribute of the believer’s portion: what they have on earth is safe enough, but what they shall have in heaven is theirs without end.
Verse 19. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time. Calamities will come, but deliverances will come also. As the righteous never reckoned upon immunity from trouble, they will not be disappointed when they are called to take their share of it, but the rather they will cast themselves anew upon their God, and prove again his faithfulness and love. God is not a friend in the sunshine only, he is a friend indeed and a friend in need. And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. Their barrel of meal and cruse of oil shall last out the day of distress, and if ravens do not bring them bread and meat, the supply of their needs shall come in some other way, for their bread shall be given them. Our Lord stayed himself upon this when he hungered in the wilderness, and by faith he repelled the tempter; we too may be enabled not to fret ourselves in any wise to do evil by the same consideration. If God’s providence is our inheritance, we need not worry about the price of wheat. Mildew, and smut, and bent, are all in the Lord’s hands. Unbelief cannot save a single ear from being blasted, but faith, if it do not preserve the crop, can do what is better, namely, preserve our joy in the Lord.
Filed under: Providence, Psalms
• 5:36 am 1
Family Pics
Recent pics of the family. These were Easter Sunday.
Laura, Leslie and Helen. Then Daniel, Andrew and Adam along with Cocoa.
Filed under: Family
March 29, 2008 • 10:31 pm 0
Spurgeon on Psalm 37
These verses from Psalm 37 were a great comfort to me of late. Spurgeon’s commentary add greatly to the understanding and application.
Verse 18. The Lord knoweth the days of the upright. His foreknowledge made him laugh at the proud, but in the case of the upright he sees a brighter future, and treats them as heirs of salvation. Ever is this our comfort, that all events are known to our God, and that nothing in our future can take him at unawares. No arrow can pierce us by accident, no danger smite us by stealth; neither in time nor eternity can any unforeseen ill occur to us. Futurity shall be but a continual development of the good things which the Lord has laid up in store for us. And their inheritance shall be for ever. Their inheritance fades not away. It is entailed, so that none cam deprive them of it, and preserved, so that none shall destroy it. Eternity is the peculiar attribute of the believer’s portion: what they have on earth is safe enough, but what they shall have in heaven is theirs without end.
Verse 19. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time. Calamities will come, but deliverances will come also. As the righteous never reckoned upon immunity from trouble, they will not be disappointed when they are called to take their share of it, but the rather they will cast themselves anew upon their God, and prove again his faithfulness and love. God is not a friend in the sunshine only, he is a friend indeed and a friend in need. And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. Their barrel of meal and cruse of oil shall last out the day of distress, and if ravens do not bring them bread and meat, the supply of their needs shall come in some other way, for their bread shall be given them. Our Lord stayed himself upon this when he hungered in the wilderness, and by faith he repelled the tempter; we too may be enabled not to fret ourselves in any wise to do evil by the same consideration. If God’s providence is our inheritance, we need not worry about the price of wheat. Mildew, and smut, and bent, are all in the Lord’s hands. Unbelief cannot save a single ear from being blasted, but faith, if it do not preserve the crop, can do what is better, namely, preserve our joy in the Lord.
March 28, 2008 • 9:01 pm 1
The Reformed Faith
- Sola Scriptura: The Scripture Alone is the Standard
- Soli Deo Gloria! For the Glory of God Alone
- Solo Christo! By Christ’s Work Alone are We Saved
- Sola Gratia: Salvation by Grace Alone
- Sola Fide: Justification by Faith Alone
Reformed theology came out of the Reformation and in particular the theology of Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: Theology
March 21, 2008 • 7:05 am 0
Good Friday Post
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preached on 1 Corinthians 2.2 in February, 1977 on the 50th anniversary of his ministry in Aberavon.
For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 1 Cor 2.2
Here are some excerpts:
And so he [Paul] says, All right, I deliberately became a fool for Christ’s sake. So that is what he is clearly saying here-that he went out of his way, as it were, and deliberately decided that he would eschew everything else and all other knowledge; and, in simplicity and as one regarded as a fool and a babbler by these learned people in Athens and in Corinth, that he would know nothing among them save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
The great Apostle comes to this decision, this determination, not to know anything among them, save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Why did the Apostle come to this decision? Why should every preacher of the gospel and the Christian Church today come to this decision? I am convinced that the Church is powerless today and is ignored by the people because Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: Christianity, Gospel, Preaching & Preachers
March 14, 2008 • 10:16 am 0
Puritan Sermons
Puritanical! That usually carries some negative connotations. One online dictionary defines it as “of, relating to, or characterized by a rigid morality.” The obvious implication is that of or relating to the Puritans has negative rigidity connotations. Perhaps a synonym would be prudish.
But that is a poor word picture of the Puritans (more on that in another post). For now, suffice it to say that the Puritans are considered by many to have been some of the best preachers ever. They were excellent at what might be called experimental preaching. Joel Beeke says that
Experimental preaching stresses the need to know by experience the truths of the Word of God. It seeks to explain in terms of biblical truth, how matters ought to go, and how they do go, in the Christian life. It aims to apply divine truth to the whole range of the believer’s experience: in his walk with God as well as his relationship with family, the church, and the world around him.
Donna Campbell, a professor of English at Washington State University describes the structure Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: Preaching & Preachers
• 8:24 am 0
Free Hendriksen Commentary Set
Monergism.com is giving away a 12 volume commentary set by William Hendriksen & Simon Kistemaker this weekend. They are also giving away a 7-vol. set of sermons by Martin Luther and the Tim Keller book The Reason for God.
Click here to register to win.
Filed under: General
• 7:38 am 0
Gun Rights Part II
I posted previously on the DC gun ban case before the Supreme Court here. Ken Blackwell and Sandy Froman have posted part II of their series at Townhall.com. They write in part: D.C. v. Heller could become one of the most important cases in American history, with profound political and policy implications. Read the rest of this entry »
March 13, 2008 • 8:04 am 0
More Potty Talk
No. This is not about Mark Driscoll’s potty talk.
If you have not seen the story about the woman pried off the toilet seat after a two-year enthronement, well…check this story out!
Filed under: General
• 7:17 am 10
A Boy Named Sue
Now that I am a grandfather (the due date is in October) it is only appropriate that I start advising my daughter and her husband on names for my granddaughter or grandson.
Marion Tierney at the New York Times has an article about names. He writes in part:
[Johnny Cash] used “A Boy Named Sue” to present two hypotheses:
1. A child with an awful name might grow up to be a relatively normal adult.
2. The parent who inflicted the name does not deserve to be executed.
He goes on to say,
Studies showed that children with odd names got worse grades and were less popular than other classmates in elementary school. In college they were more likely to flunk out or become “psychoneurotic.” Prospective bosses spurned their résumés. They were overrepresented among emotionally disturbed children and psychiatric patients.
Some of these mental problems might have been genetic Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: General
March 11, 2008 • 4:07 pm 2
Find the Misnomer
Ok class. Here is tonight’s assignment. I have copied and pasted some sentences from Barak Obama’s website below. See if you can identify the “misnomer” in 10 seconds or less.
Barack Obama is the right candidate at the right time for so many reasons, not the least of which is his respect for gay rights and rational approach to faith in politics. Gay Christians have every reason in the world to support Barack Obama for President of the United States.
No cheating, and please explain your answer.
March 10, 2008 • 10:25 am 0
Contextualization
Several pastors and cultural critics have written about contextualization. Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: Christianity, Culture, Gospel
• 9:10 am 0
John Piper on the Prosperity Gospel
Filed under: Bad Theology, Christianity, Preaching & Preachers
March 8, 2008 • 10:45 pm 0
Do Muslims Worship the Same God as Christians?
I posted on a dialogue between Muslim clerics and some “leading” evangelicals back in December. That post will show that some evangelicals apparently believe that Christians and Muslims worship the same God. Hmmm. So why evangelize them? But, I digress.
John Piper wrote,
9. Don’t mislead them or give them false hope by saying, “Muslims worship the true God.”
This statement communicates to almost everybody a positive picture of the Muslim heart knowing, loving, and honoring the true God. But Jesus Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: Christianity, Doctrine, Evangelicals, Gospel, Theology, Worship
March 7, 2008 • 11:28 am 1
Our Despised Jesus (UPDATED)
Jesus, the despised of God and man. Amazing is it not? Not that man despises Him, but that God the Father despised Him.
Isaiah 53 says,
53:1 Who has believed what he has heard from us? [1]
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected [2] by men;
a man of sorrows, [3] and acquainted with [4] grief; [5]
and as one from whom men hide their faces [6]
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.4 Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation, who considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
9 And they made his grave with the wicked
and with a rich man in his death,
although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.10 Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him;
he has put him to grief; [7]
when his soul makes [8] an offering for guilt,
he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;
the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.ESV, my bold added.
Oh the love of God that He would put the punishment, the retribution and damnation Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: Worship
March 6, 2008 • 8:17 am 8
Gun Rights
Ken Blackwell and Sandy Froman have co-written an article (part 1 of 2) on the second amendment. Their article is concerning the case before the Supreme Court dealing with a challenge to the Washington DC gun control law. By the way, it is generally agreed that the DC ban on guns is the most severe in the country. DC also has the highest crime rate in the country.
This case should be of concern to all US citizens. How this case is decided will hinge on how the constitution is interpreted–either strictly or as a living document.
Here are a few excerpts:
The Supreme Court has never settled the controversy at the heart of the great American gun debate: Whether individual citizens have a constitutional right to possess private firearms. Now the High Court has agreed to answer this question, in what will most likely be a 5-4 decision that could go either way.The Second Amendment says, “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” The Heller case will decide whether the right to keep and bear arms refers to private, law-abiding citizens, or whether it is a right of the people “collectively” to have guns in the National Guard or other state militia units.The facts of District of Columbia v. Heller make this a perfect test case. In the District of Columbia, it’s a crime to have any sort of readily-usable firearm. It’s illegal to have any sort of handgun — even a broken handgun — in your home. Having a long gun (rifle or shotgun) in your home is a crime unless the gun is unloaded and either disassembled or disabled by a trigger lock, with ammunition stored in a separate container. If someone breaks into your home, you have no time to have a functional firearm that is ready to defend your life or your family. The D.C. gun ban is considered the most severe gun control law in America.The reason people come to opposite conclusions for this simple question stems from different approaches to interpreting the Constitution, the issues that are implicated in this case, and different philosophies about government — self-reliance versus reliance upon government.There are two different ways of reading the Constitution — sometimes described as “strict constructionism” versus the “Living Constitution.” Strict constructionism (the actual legal terms are “originalism” or “textualism”) requires judges to adhere to the words of the Constitution. A “Living Constitution” means that judges are free to interpret the meaning of the Constitution to make it conform to modern social trends.
My hope is that the justices will decide in favor of a strict interpretation of the second amendment. Hey, who sits on the bench is pretty important, as is who gets to appoint them. What do you think?
Read the article here.
Filed under: Government, Guns, Politics
March 5, 2008 • 9:50 pm 0
Courage from the Alamo
It was on March 6, 1836 when the Alamo finally fell to Santa Anna and the overwhelming assault by the Mexicans. But not before the courage and bravery of the men who would die fighting for independence were displayed.
William Barret Travis, a South Carolinian by birth, had become the leader. Knowing that he and his men were up against unbelievable odds, he wrote the following letter.
“To the People of Texas and All Americans in the World“:
Fellow citizens & compatriots;I am besieged, by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna. I have sustained a continual Bombardment & cannonade for 24 hours & have not lost a man. The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise, the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken. I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, & our flag still waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat. Then, I call on you in the name of Liberty, of patriotism & everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid, with all dispatch. The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily & will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days. If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible & die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country. VICTORY OR DEATH.
William Barret Travis
Lt. Col. comdt 2495
P.S. The Lord is on our side. When the enemy appeared in sight we had not three bushels of corn. We have since found in deserted houses 80 or 90 bushels & got into the walls 20 or 30 head of Beeves.
Travis
He gave this letter to rider Albert Martin to deliver. The letter, while unable to bring aid to the garrison at the Alamo, did much to motivate the Texan army and helped to rally support in America for the cause of Texan independence. It also cemented Travis’s status as a hero of the Texas Revolution.
Filed under: General
March 4, 2008 • 8:28 pm 0
Super Tuesday II
8:35 pm CST-
Huckabee drops out of the Republication race. McCain is the Republican nominee for president of the US.
Mrs. Clinton wins Rhode Island. Obama wins Vermont.
Mrs. Clinton leads in Ohio and Obama leads in Texas.
Any thoughts about McCain for the Republicans? For the Dems will Mrs. Clinton stay in the race? Does it matter? Will the media finally ask Obama some tough questions?
06:25 am CST 03/05/08-
Mrs. Clinton has won the Texas and Ohio primaries. Does she have a chance to win? Is more bruising campaigning on the Dem side good for Republicans? How does McCain stay in the news?
Filed under: Politics
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