Showing posts with label some here some there. Show all posts
Showing posts with label some here some there. Show all posts

19 June 2015

Some Here, Some There — June 18, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Small but fun start; check back at noon TX time to see what I've added.
  • Valerie and I did a whirlwind road trip to California over the last nearly two weeks, passing through the LA area, the Sierra, Sacramento in CA; and also parts of Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and a bit of Colorado. We saw beautiful, awesome sights and cool weather patterns. Twice, the car's GPS — precursor of Our Coming Robot Overlords? — tried to kill us. But maybe, from your perspective, the scariest thing we saw was this:
  • It's a real thing. We didn't stay there.
  • Did I drink Peet's Coffee? Of course. Did we go to Bob's Big Boy? What do you think?
(Click to enlarge)
  • Wait...what? Rick Warren as an action movie star? Well, sort of? Hm; do you think Christ and His Gospel will be the star and center of that movie?
  • Doug Wilson's muse has stepped in and said "HOWDY!" again, in a big way. Some delectable quotations: "The elites have consumed the Christian legacy they inherited, and the prodigal son is wondering how he can possibly afford to host the next bash."
  • And, "Behind all the trans-sexual, trans-racial, trans-dictionary foolishness is the central foolishness of a race of sinners that wants to be trans-mortal." 
  • And, "this problem is not solved by gospel centrality, if all you mean is that your precious gospel is centrally placed in your jeweler’s box, and that the jeweler’s box is centrally hidden under the bed." 
  • There's more. Just read it.
  • Hm. In honor of Father's Day... I described a scene like, in passing, this in a recent sermon:


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Posted by DJP on Friday, June 19, 2015

15 May 2015

Some Here, Some There — May 15, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Priorities allowing, I'll try to expand later. First thing in the morning I'm doing a podcast on BibleWorks 10.

UPDATE: here's the link to the podcast.
  • Russell Moore has seen the Avengers sequel, and he finds in it a theme that I think might infuriate self-proclaimed "angry atheist" writer/director Joss Whedon. But even Whedon, witty and creative as he is, can't change the way he's made and what he innately knows to be true, despite his angriest efforts (Romans 1:18ff.).
  • A reader points me to a new site started by friends called Defending Marriage. Its ambitious aim is to be a clearing house of news, material and information for Christians on marriage-related issues in the news. It looks interesting, check it out.
  • Doug Wilson has been on one of his rolls in recent weeks. If you haven't read And all God's people said "Wut?", you must. It's about N. T. Wright and Genesis. Then he talks about the differences between Wright and C. S. Lewis on the evolution issue.
  • Doug's first post reminded me of this post and this post from years ago. What's particularly interesting is looking at some of the outrage against me and us for even asking questions about Wright's very own words, because he is so wonderful about the Resurrection. Look at his trajectory in years since. It's an interesting case-study.
  • Lyndon Unger continues his thorough examination of "Christian" cohabitation over at Cripplegate.
  • Kevin DeYoung gives six reasons why church membership matters, and they're worth pondering and using. 
  • Kevin's article isn't primarily a Biblical exposition of the topic. This sermon works hard to deliver the goods Biblically and persuasively, and has been distributed a lot as well.
  • Denny Burk reviews DeYoung's recent book on homosexuality, which I'm looking forward to reading.

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Posted by DJP on Friday, May 15, 2015

01 May 2015

Some Here, Some There — May 1, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Very brief to start, will try to expand a bit up to noon, Texas time.
  • Oh, you have got to see this. I was on the fence about doing an SHST today, but this pushed me over — I had to do one, if only to send you to Tom Chantry's TGC-nuanced version of "Imagine."
  • Then, and relatedly, I think a lot of you somehow missed the Janet Mefferd interview. You shouldn't've. Read, and share: Part One; Part Two.
  • Kregel's 40 Questions series has now produced 40 Questions About Creation and Evolution. Read the review by Bob Hayton.
  • I love happy endings. Here's the testimony of a professor's conversion as a young man from Scientology (!) to faith in Jesus Christ.
  • M'man Mike Riccardi taps academics to give a good word on the Greek term translated "homosexual."
  • Interesting, in prepping to preach Ephesians 1:13 about being sealed with the Holy Spirit, to find Lloyd-Jones held that sealing was equivalent to baptism, and was a post-conversion experience. Even more interesting to realize that his reasons and conclusions were very like Sandemanianism (Dallas doctrine/no-lordship/gutless grace). Listen to the sermon here.
  • This week's But We Haven't Changed Our Mind About Jesus/Irony Can Be Pretty Ironic award winner.

  • Have a good weekend. Live like you're being watched. You are.
  • That's not what I meant, but anyway...

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Posted by DJP on Friday, May 01, 2015

17 April 2015

Some Here, Some There — April 17, 2015

by Dan Phillips

.Here you go. Updates until noon, TX time.
  • Is the doctrine of substitutionary atonement a later invention, unknown to earlier Christians after the close of the Canon? Michael J. Kruger both says and shows "no."
  • Here's one Borg who not only is not in despair over the world's increasing attempts to assimilate Christians; indeed, he finds it cause of hope and optimism, observing that "Persecution has always proved fruitful to the church."
  • So, I guess R. Scott Clark is arguing that the fact that The World-Tilting Gospel emphatically lays out the distinctions between justification and sanctification in Biblical terms rather than explicitly leaning on a confession... I'll probably eventually end up Socinian? Hm. Well, yeah, I'll be sure to watch out for that.
  • I don't take it personally; assume Clark hasn't read the book. Other confessionals such as Lig Duncan found it useful. But, anyway.
  • Clarification: I add this Saturday, without changing the wording of the previous two bullet-points. It was already clear I wasn't suggesting that Clark was interacting with TWTG, per se. Insofar as Clark is warning (to quote his later tweets to me, which I appreciate) against "reading Scripture by itself, by one's self, or reading Scripture as if no one has ever read it before," I quite agree. That spirit generally indicates a foolish unteachable arrogance often condemned in Proverbs and elsewhere. Both over-dependence on confessions, and arrogant unconcern for them and previous great students of Scripture, are dangers.
  • Over at Practical Shepherding, brother Brian Croft asks (and answers) "How do I encourage my pastor?" They're good pointers. I'd add one more: join your pastor in loving and serving the local church of Christ that he loves and serves. Become a member, attend all the meetings you can, get to know your fellows, love and encourage and exhort them, serve. Join him in trying to practice the preached word. Nothing is more encouraging (3 John 4 — walking!).
  • Last week, we noted how The Gospel Coalition seems to have strayed from its stated raison d'être by reaching out to pagans to figure out what to do about racism. Over at the DBTS blog, brother Mark Snoeberger notes more within this mission-drift, suggesting that perhaps TGC should rename itself The Coalition for the Advancement of Realized Eschatology.
  • A hard trajectory to watch, to be sure; but not hard to understand. TGC stops its ears to Gospel-loving critics not on the clubhouse in-list, and only shows much passion in sneering off the same. Who does that leave?
  • Denny Burk offers some good thoughts (hey, I said "Denny Burk") on reparative therapy.
  • I like Denny, it's no secret. He's a solid Biblical scholar and thinker, and he's a real guy. For instance, that same blog today has Denny's top ten things he loved about the new Star Wars teaser trailer.
  • Over at Cripplegate, Jesse J. slaps leather and deftly exposes Westboro Baptist Church for what it really is.
  • The irony that, in the video Jesse's pastoral associate is out on the street, preaching the gospel, behind the Westboro folks who are protesting that Jesse's church doesn't preach the gospel on the street — thus not in any way doing what Jesse's church is at that moment doing.
  • That 99% Charismatic Fringe Update #1 — horrible story: a (A) female "pastor" (b) who hears God talking to her apart from Scripture (c) in a Pentecostal-affiliated church (d) starves a two-year-old to help drive a "demon" from him.
  • That 99% Charismatic Fringe Update #2 — horrible eisegesis.
  • But yeah, everyone was right to criticize Strange Fire and ignore Sufficient Fire. No real need for either. Move along. Bring on the dancing bears.
  • I may be over-subtle. One of the biggest LOTR fans I know didn't catch the Aragorn-speech allusion that opened this sermon on the person and work of the Spirit.

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Posted by DJP on Friday, April 17, 2015

10 April 2015

Some Here, Some There — April 10, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Here's today's assortment. Come back for updates through to noon, Texas time.
  • You may have heard about this:
  • Even a "Reformed Episcopalian" wonders, "Is an organization committed to unity around the Gospel in danger of losing the Gospel?"

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Posted by DJP on Friday, April 10, 2015

27 March 2015

Some Here, Some There — March 27, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Once again, start small, grows until noon TX time.
  • If you (like me) never wander to First Things, you probably missed Carl Trueman on the 20th anniversary mourning Evangelicals and Catholics Together. It's informative and thought-provoking and a bit snarky (hel-lo! Trueman!), and has wonderful quotables. Such as:
  • "...stadium platform ecumenism is personality heavy and doctrine light. It has placed some very theologically inept people in positions of significant public influence based solely on their ability to pull a crowd. Not all of its senior leaders ultimately seemed particularly clear even on the nature and importance of the doctrine of the Trinity."
  • "...can one really claim to agree on the Gospel of God without first agreeing on the God of the Gospel?"
  • "Before we start thanking the Lord that we are not like other men, we should ask ourselves whether our own alternative ecumenism, so often controlled by a few unaccountable powerbrokers and by big money, really possesses more integrity."
  • Bam.
  • And this, from the What Could Go Wrong? department:
  • The Jolly Scott, Prof. David Murray, has a very helpful note on 1 Timothy 4:10. That's one of those verses, like 1 John 2:2, that folks with a deficient view of God's saving work plop down on the table, as if the mere citing of the verse is contraindicative to affirming God's sovereign grace — blissfully unaware that the verses are at least as problematic for their own view.
  • Here's a review of Logos 6 from Jason Helopoulos. My own is forthcoming.
  • This just gives me a chuckle. I'd shared that a poor pastor, given TWTG as a gift, found it "terribly disappointing." I guess my readers have found his review "terribly disappointing," as currently 167 have found it unhelpful, to 9 who found it helpful. And I'm not certain what those nine mean, because I know at least two whom the review "helped" decide to buy the book.

  • Here, BTW, is Olson's article, subtitled Them Calvinists SO 'TUPID! Olson is helped to his conclusion by failing to allude to, let alone deal with, as much as one verse of Scripture.
  • And here, BTW and more helpfully, is Doug Wilson's first takedown thereof. (To be evenhanded, it is also without Scripture references; it is more of a very effective exercise in Proverbs 26:5.)
  • To me, Roger Olson is kind of the Bob Dylan of theology. In that every time I take a sample of actual product, I am baffled at the reputation.
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Posted by DJP on Friday, March 27, 2015

13 March 2015

Some Here, Some There — March 13, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Here y'go. Updates through noon, TX time.
  • Over at the indispensible (I keep telling you that) DBTS blog, John Aloisi fills in popular gaps about Patrick, missionary to Ireland.
  • God gave cats a lot of the 'tude quotient of the animal kingdom. Deal with it.
  • So much damage has been done by incomplete and false repentance, and by confessions that aren't really confessions, that you will want to bookmark this fine essay by Doug Wilson. Anymore, I find I have to listen to confessions like a lawyer reads a document.
  • Ah, Christianity Today.
  • It's sad. When I was a young Christian, Christianity Today was a terrific magazine, with substantive articles and book reviews and all. And even then, in the 70s, it wasn't fully what it had been. Then came embrace of female preachers, shoddy handling of the days of creation... and it's been downhill since.
  • Now some female writer tried to redeem the monstrous Margaret Sanger. In Christianity Today!
  • Thankfully, the indispensable Denny Burk tersely notes that "Sanger’s legacy has a body-count," and pretty thoroughly fisks the CT article. Denny's piece features many quotables... and the meta isn't even too bad! (Yet.)
  • Doug Wilson writes about the same issue, noting that the pro-aborts "disproportionately target black boys and girls — with the connivance of black quislings", and that "they have a kill rate much higher than that of the Ferguson Police Department." He adds that, "as bad as Sanger was, she wasn’t as ghoulish as her heirs are."
  • Check out what William Gurnall has to say to those who choose to sleep during sermons.
  • Bacon donut hot dog. That is all.
  • For good reason, at one point, Stan Gale did not want a funeral to be held when he died. But now, for good reasons, he's changed his mind.
  • No, the order of the last two items is not meant to send a message.
  • Me, I'd like one. Not for dueling hagiographies, but to give "me" one last chance to preach Christ, in the person of whoever does the funeral preaching Christ. Funerals are, or should be, a great opportunity (Eccl. 7:1-4).
  • Here's a post from 2009 about paper pastors vs. local church pastors.
  • Here's a post from this month about podcast preachers vs. local church pastors.
  • BTW, in case you didn't notice: I posted on one of my "off" days, telling how to search Pyro for past articles.
  • If the Lord doesn't come first, one day I'll die. I just don't want to die in a dumb way.
  • Aimee Byrd commends a book offering help and encouragement to women who have suffered a miscarriage.
  • The popular atheist dodge-topic of slavery in the Bible receives a treatment by Fred Butler.
  • Concluding with one of my very favorite Po-Motivators:


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Posted by DJP on Friday, March 13, 2015

06 March 2015

Some Here, Some There — March 6, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Small start; expect updates through noon, TX time:
  • Sigh.
  • Holy mackerel. I thought we had a couple of funny things happen on our honeymoon. But those were nothing, nothing. You have got to read professor David Murray's hair-raising tale of his "worst ever" honeymoon. If you don't gasp and yelp a couple of times, check for a pulse.
  • Then there was this picture, crying out for a caption. I heeded the call:
  • Pastoral morale tip: are you about to share a "concern" with your pastor, something about something he's done or said, or hasn't done or said? Fair enough, and often very needed, and very appreciated. But also ask yourself: have you ever told him that you learned something — anything? — from him doing what he pours his life and soul into? Learned anything, been helped or encouraged, been reproved or corrected... anything? Isn't that also fair enough?
  • Pastoree morale tip: brother pastor, are you about to speak a word of exhortation, correction, or even rebuke to one of your dear ones? Fair enough, and a crucial part of your calling. But remember that whatever you say, however you intend it, will be heard as about 5-10X more intensely-said than you meant it. So isn't it best to assume a tender heart and conscience, and err on the side of grace, gentleness, and kindness? Sort of a Matthew 7:12 type deal? Isn't that also fair enough?
  • On pastoring, here's a worthy word from William Gurnall, who's in the course here of warning pastors against being accessory to their flock's ignorance which, he says, a pastor can become...
By his unedifying preaching, when he preacheth unsound doctrine, which doth not perfect the understanding, but corrupt it. Better he did leave them in simple ignorance, than colour their minds with a false dye, or when that he preacheth is frothy and flashy; no more fit to feed their souls, than husks the prodigal’s belly, which, when they know, they are little wiser for their soul’s good. Or when his discourses are so high flown that the poor people stand gazing, as those who have lost the sight of their preacher, and at the end of the sermon cannot tell what he would have. Or those who preach only truths that are for the higher forms of professors, who have their senses well exercised, excellent may be for the building of three or four eminent saints in the congregation; but in the meantime, the weak ones in the family, who should indeed chiefly be thought on, because least able to guide themselves, or carve for themselves, these are forgotten. [William Gurnall and John Campbell, The Christian in Complete Armour (London: Thomas Tegg, 1845), 118.]
  • Someone in Facebook loaded this:
  • To which I — NO FAN of the NIV, as you well know — replied:
  • When this, plus some simple statement of facts and logic, did not seem to penetrate, (— does it ever, with KJV-onliers?) I created this:

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Posted by DJP on Friday, March 06, 2015

27 February 2015

Some Here, Some There — February 27, 2015

by Dan Phillips

And off we go. There may be updates, as usual, up to noon TX time.
  • The murder of the 21 Egyptian Copts provoked a lot of heat, and debatable light, as to whether they should be classed as "Christians." Kevin DeYoung gives helpful historical and doctrinal framing. I've always appreciated how Kevin writes and speaks. The article includes some very nice turns of phrase, such as "It’s unclear whether Nestorius was actually a Nestorian." Then, later, "it’s unclear how much of Eutychianism came from Eutyches." History is hard.
  • There is much interesting and informative push-back in the meta, and (as I think is customary), zero response thus far from Kevin. One of the respondents is a poor soul who self-identifies as a "coptic orthodox christian" [sic]. He does, I think, a great deal of damage to his own case, aggressively crusading against truths we all hold dear and essential and for practices we rightly condemn.
  • But my personal fondness for DeYoung was increased by a particular phrase. My family (particularly my dear and only daughter) has had to wrestle with, and tease me for, my tendency to phrase things negatively. "Are you not going to finish that?" So imagine my joy in Kevin's wording here: "For my part, I’m unwilling to say the non-acceptance of Chalcedon is no big deal." Kevin, you are my brother.
  • Baronelle Stutzman is (A) a profile in courage and conviction, and (B) clearly not an "evangelical academic."
  • Doug Wilson adds some excellent commentary.
  • I wonder if The Gospel Coalition has blocked Wilson? They have to feel torn about him. He's a celebrity and witty... but has edges and little patience with pretentious frippery.
  • The smiling Scot, Prof. David Murray, offers ten Biblical formulas to cultivate a more joyous, positive attitude.
  • Murray also pointed to Brad Hambrick's favorite posts on anxiety.
  • This Wednesday's text in Psalm 3 will take me into the arena of the imprecatory prayers in the psalms. Some recent thoughts on that were offered at Reformation 21, and by Barry York.
  • The living breathing fog machine that is Rob Bell has rhetorically attempted to ennoble his amorous pursuit of the present age by framing homosexuality and its specifics as a cure for "loneliness" and a species of "love." Anyone who opposes, we're told, is overfond of 2000-year-old letters. Michael J. Kruger responds, winning the internet for the day by quoting from the movie Tombstone.
  • Also, as to the appeal to "love" you might remind yourself of this. As to his sneering denigration of God's word, this.
  • Everyone who attended Sufficient Fire is ready to answer this sad, unintended confession of ineptitude from Anne Graham Lotz:
  • Deuced thing about "the slippery slope fallacy" is how individuals keep providing illustrations of its non-fallaciousness. Like John Walton.
  • This fellow has been one of my most effective (if unwitting) salesmen so far:

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Posted by DJP on Friday, February 27, 2015

20 February 2015

Some Here, Some There — February 20, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Here we go. Updates expected through noon, Texas time.
  • First, all of the Sufficient Fire sessions are online, video and audio. You're welcome, and thank you who supported it by your attendance, giving, and prayers. Now please continue to pray for the outreach and ongoing impact of the conference, as the talks can go around the globe, wherever the internet reaches.
  • For all my parts... I recommend the audio.
  • "Pirate Christian" captain Chris Rosebrough created a series of false prophet billboards in the same spirit as Phil's classic and unrivalled Po-Motivators. Enjoy!
  • Andy Stanley continues to wobble. Historically, wobbly wheels seldom fix themselves.
  • English comedian Stephen Fry illustrates that even the most vacuous nonsense, given voice in a cultured English accent, can keep one from being instantly hooted off the stage.
  • And then Doug Wilson comes along to expose it as the vacuous nonsense that it is.
  • My own take on Fry's rant is briefer. Fry is asked to suppose that it's all true, only to reveal immediately that he has not the faintest notion of what it all being true would even mean.
  • There is a new addition to Phillips' Axioms.
  • The non-Christian loved one of a non-Christian friend dies. What do you say? Here are some concise, helpful thoughts.
  • I'm not the only pastor who will profit from Todd Pruitt's thoughts for pastors in our public prayers.
  • For my dear wife:
  • It continues to be true that the best aspect of Justin Taylor's attempt to save face for day-wigglers is the posts generated in response, of which Dr. David Shormann's recent post is a particularly fine example.
  • Denny Burk repeats some of the best advice you can give a pastoral candidate: get fired in the interview. I've said in interviews, "What I do is teach and preach the Bible, to the best of my ability, all the time, every time. If you don't want that, you don't want me. If you do, we should talk." One church said, "Thanks, goodbye." Another church said, in effect, "Welcome to Texas."
  • Good heavens, what a foolishly and impossibly-worded poll. How would you even answer? Like, "I think children should always be spanked; I think children should be sort of spanked; I think children are dainty little angels best suited for ivory pedestals and cupcakes." What? Worse than meaningless.
  • Finally in case you're not hungry enough already, mankind's latest essential invention: bacon-wrapped-crust pizza:

  • To end on a deep note, or something like:

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Posted by DJP on Friday, February 20, 2015

13 February 2015

Some Here, Some There — February 13, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Because my dear and only daughter squawks if I don't have one up by midnight (and I can't have that), here's a first edition. There will be additions up to noon, Texas time, as usual.
  • Hokey smokes! David Murray (aka The Jolly Scotsman) shares an amalgamation of >500 online preaching resources.
  • Adam Parker talks about how right, normal, and Biblical it is for a man to long for male friendship. Does not talk about how to find it.
  • Here's the Director's Cut, so to speak, of the most recent sermon in the Ephesians series. It failed to record, so I re-preached it (with my lovely wife comprising the audience at church), and as they say considerably revised and extended my remarks. It closes Ephesians 1:4-6, giving fourteen reasons why election must be unconditional, plus doing some questions and answers about predestination, election, free will, evangelism, and more.
  • It's been suggested that this be added to the next Pyro conference. To which I say: noted.
  • Background on the Crusades from Kevin DeYoung.
  • Unicorns in the Bible? Um... hunh.
  • Hungry? You will be.
  • Left off one obvious best bacon meal, though. The one that's...


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Posted by DJP on Friday, February 13, 2015

06 February 2015

Some Here, Some There — February 6, 2015

by Dan Phillips

This will be one of those "start small but mighty" Fridays. Check back after noon, TX time.
  • The best part of Justin Taylor's post on the days of Genesis continues to be the response-pieces. Mark Snoeberger of DBTS offers a detailed (and very good) response to the propping up of old-earthism by Justin Taylor that we noted last week. Really enjoy his style. Refreshing contrast.
  • (One of Mark's commenters opined that the post was thoughtful, careful, and respectful. What a terrible thing to say. Don't let that stop you from reading it.)
  • Plus: As I've often remarked, when Doug Wilson is good, none is better. As he is when he weighs in on the days of creation. Many thinkables and quotables.
  • I wonders: did TGC block 9Marks after this tweet?


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Posted by DJP on Friday, February 06, 2015

30 January 2015

Some Here, Some There — January 30, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Short post this week, at least for starters. And probably for keeps, though we'll see.
  • Indeed, Christopher Ames hits very hard at the "We need prestige desperately" impulse that seems to drive many Top Men and their attendants.
  • Things I Wonder: does Christianity Today have an Invention-of-squeakingly-self-important-angsty-titles Department?
  • It was great seeing all of you who supported the Sufficient Fire conference by coming last week. Phil, Frank, and I had a wonderful time bringing the word and meeting you all. David Regier was there and gave me a gift by providing his expert mad piano skilz as I sat at the (excellent) visiting musicians' drum set. David's a pro; I never was, and haven't touched a drum set in probably 5 years or more. But here is the part that Bill O'Neill — who travelled all the way from Vermont — captured:
  • To quote the late great Terry Kath, for my part of it, "It was fun! I don't know about anything else."
  • It was a terrific time, overall. Phil and Frank's talks were tremendous, the mood was joyous, and the fellowship was choice. Josh Feinberg organized the whole with many wonderful volunteers helping him. Praise God that overall, the event itself was a...
  • People who did not come ask if the sessions will be online. They are not at present. I'll let you know if that changes. But if you want to support what we did and would like to support our making it available, contact Josh Feinberg. He'll show you how.


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Posted by DJP on Friday, January 30, 2015

16 January 2015

Some Here, Some There — January 16, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Here y'go, in the last post before the Conference!


BTW, catch me for a full hour on The Janet Mefferd Show today, Friday, from 3pm-4pm Texas time.
  • When someone uses "God is not the author of confusion" in reference to feelings of confusion in discerning God's personal will, you can rest assured that you are in the presence of someone to whom "exegesis" is, at best, a Scrabble word.
  • You're welcome.
  • Todd Pruitt brings the goods on Beth Moore, who he calls a prophet for an undiscerning church. Like Pat Robertson, like Todd Bentley, like Perry Noble, like Mark Driscoll, like Joseph Smith, like Ellen G. White, and like a host of others, Moore has "Jesus" tell her things He doesn't tell anyone else.
  • You see, this is why the Sufficient Fire conference is so needed. Go now, find out if any registrations are still available, and come.
  • Did I mention Perry Noble? You all know about Noble's crazy statements about the Ten Commandments and Hebrew. Well now he's issued an apology of sorts, which in itself is rare enough in the God-tells-me-stuff-He-doesn't-tell-you set.
  • You see, parenthetically, if God tells you stuff straight-up...why bother studying Hebrew?
  • Concerning Noble's apology, Fred Butler has offered his thoughts in a careful, nuanced, helpful post sensitively subtitled It's All God's Fault I'm an Idiot.
  • Which all just goes to show you that...
  • Also, James Duncan responds to Noble's "apology."
  • Over at The Gate of Crippledness (got my Hebrew on), Steven Ingrino offers a detailed survey of books he does and doesn't find helpful in expounding the Gospel of Mark.
  • At that same blog, the gate was left slightly ajar, allowing this stray entry.
  • I will admit I'm small enough that I wondered if delicate souls who have blocked me and removed Pyro from their blogrolls — but who do still read Cripplegate — had a pea under their mattress that day.
  • Carl Trueman defends Beth Moore.
  • OK, not really. But it was fun writing it, and it was fun picturing Carl's eyebrows as he read it.
  • So the government will test the religion of homeschooled kids and see if they need to jail the parents. Where, East Germany? Nope; right here, in Oba-merica. In Virginia, no less. [See update in comments, below.]
  • Here are the doors to the dream church, in many Christians' minds:
  • On Texas in the early days: "Texas seemed to have more Baptists than people..." Texas hasn't changed. Nor have Baptist math-skills. Interesting read.
  • Phil Johnson updates and comments on the controversy surrounding the book The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven, written portentously enough by a gent called Malarkey.
  • From Pulpit and Pen comes some very troubling backstory. (h-t Robert Sakovich)
  • I invented a cartoon superhero when I was a yoot, trying to draw. His name was Malarkey Man. Little-known fact. You're welcome.
  • In our family, we (or at least I) would call this "yet another unmarketable talent."
  • Lyndon Unger, the Bare-knuck Canuck, continues getting Biblely about "shacking up" (i.e. serial fornication by roommates), in part two of his series.
  • I would not be caught dead using (or thinking) the "the Gospel is true because it's good news) argument. That said, I'm having real trouble understanding how "Your life is short and meaningless and the universe cares nothing for you" is better news than the Gospel.
Updates possible through noon.

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Posted by DJP on Friday, January 16, 2015

09 January 2015

Some Here, Some There — January 9, 2015

by Dan Phillips

Here we go. Remember, this is likely to receive updates through noon, TX time.
  • Here's a thoughtful dad's-eye review of the recent Disney musical Into the Woods. Unfortunately it's a Roman Catholic rather than Christian perspective, but still instructive.
  • I just saw, and loved, Through The Eyes of Spurgeon. Great film, joy to watch. I recommend it heartily.
  • Only two nits would I pick. One is, I didn't love the suggestion that Spurgeon was bipolar. It struck me as anachronistic and, as one who knew well someone afflicted with that disorder, not a good fit.
  • The other: I didn't love the suggestion that "Bishop" Vinter had lied to Spurgeon to get him to preach the first time. So I've put up the story in Spugeon's own words.
  • So here's another step in America's march towards an Are-you-now-or-have-you-ever-been-a-Bible-believing-Christian? society: Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran fired (no pun) for being a known Christian.
  • Kevin Bauder has been doing a series on The Gospel Coalition, noting the oddities in its actual alliances and shunnings. Most recently, he notes its embrace of charismaticism. Bauder notes that "charismatic theology leads to some truly vicious extremes, a tendency that produces two other problems. The first is that even the more moderate charismatics (who may personally repudiate those extremes) seem unable to apply any sort of theological brake to charismatic thought as a whole. The second is that charismatics tend to embrace extreme figures on the basis of their shared charismatic experience." I do believe he's playing our song...or we, his. Either way, same song.
  • If you think you'll never hear a professed Christian trying to weekend-at-Bernie's the concept of shacking up... well, enjoy your stay in Neverland. Meanwhile here on Earth, Lyndon Unger begins a series on the subject with a robust affirmation of the sufficiency of Scripture.
  • On that topic, seriously, openings for the Sufficient Fire Conference are dwindling and unlikely to last too long: so register, and come.
  • Remember how the PCUSA jumped the sharked decades ago when it defrocked faithful witness J. Gresham Machen? And you know how relatively Biblically faithful people still choose to stay-in, you know, to be "witnesses"? You know what the PCUSA does to folks like that when they get too noticeable? Well... it defrocks them.
  • Duh!
  • Think of all the things the PCUSA doesn't care whether its ministers do. And it doesn't care if you disagree... as long as you keep the money coming in. But wait... shouldn't the Machen matter have taught us that?
  • So: are you not feeling enough of a cowardly, rutted failure at personal witnessing? No? Here, let me help:
  • You're welcome. (H-T David Murray)
  • Thom Rainer offers a post with a looong meta on the topic of church announcements. Years ago a pastor-friend's announcements seemed to go on forever, and I commended shortening them since he was simply restating what was already in the bulletin. He did shorten them, and said the result was that nobody knew what was happening, because they were used to not reading their bulletins.
  • One's tempted sometimes to say "We have a variety of meetings through the week. But you already know that. So let's pray and take the offering."
  • As long as we're dealing with things-that-are-bring-reconsidered, here are Bob Hayton's thoughts on the Sunday Evening Service. Hayton leans against, but links to arguments of the opposing view.



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Posted by DJP on Friday, January 09, 2015
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