Do You Have a Light?

Ferene Visky:

Richard [Wurmbrand] could not abide any fanatical legalism in his congregation.  He once received a report that one of the brethren had been found to be a secret smoker.  Now that was not the custom in that congregation.  Without delay, the elders of the church convoked and decided to expel the man.  Before passing the resolution, they summoned the culprit.  As the proceedings began, Richard took out a packet of cigarettes, leisurely lit one up, and to the utter amazement of the elders, began to smoke.  No one was expelled.

Quote of the Day

Matthew Henry (H.T. Wes White):

[Jesus] did not keep the sabbath according to the tradition of the elders and the superstitious observances of the Pharisees, but he kept it according to the command of God, and therefore, no doubt, he was of God, and his miracles proved him to be Lord also of the sabbath day. Note, much unrighteous and uncharitable judging is occasioned by men’s making the rules of religion more strict than God has made them, and adding their own fancies to God’s appointments, as the Jews here, in the case of sabbath-sanctification. We ourselves may forbear such and such things, on the sabbath day, as we find a distraction to us, and we do well, but we must not therefore tie up others to the same strictness. Every thing that we take for a rule of practice must not presently be made a rule of judgment.

Master’s Thesis

My master’s thesis on Daniel Williams and the 17th century neonomian-antinomian controversy can be downloaded on this page.

Book Sale

The best selling books of 2011 at Westminster Bookstore are 50% off retail until January 12.

 

Quote of the Day

D.A. Carson:

People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord.  We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.  (Reflections, Christianity Today, 7-31-00.)

On Understanding Van Til

When I was in seminary in the mid-90′s I had to read Cornelius Van Til’s book The Defense of the Faith.  Even though I had taken a number of philosophy classes in college, I still found Van Til’s book quite difficult.  This book by John Frame and this book and especially this book by Greg Bahnsen were instrumental in helping me understand and read Van Til.

I should also mention this book by Frame too.  Bahnsen and Frame differ on some issues, which Bahnsen addresses in his book on Van Til.

Questions of the Day

Which of the following benefits flow from sanctification?  Or is the Westminster Shorter Catechism wrong?  Should the Catechism have said that all of these benefits flow from justification in order to be “gospel-centered”?

Q36:  What are the benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from justification, adoption, and sanctification?
A36:  The benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from justification, adoption, and sanctification, are, assurance of God’s love, peace of conscience, joy in the Holy Ghost, increase of grace, and perseverance therein to the end.

Derek Thomas on Himself and John Stott

Over at Ref21 Derek Thomas recounts his conversion, reflecting upon the influence and teaching of John Stott.  Here is one paragraph that jumped off the screen in light of current debates:

Forty years later I wonder if Stott publisher would baulk at the word “duty.” Some would find it less than “gospel-centered.” But discipline was a mark of Stott’s life and I am grateful for the impulse he gave me to provide some semblance of structure into the shape of holiness. Truth is, I can name a dozen or more “Christians” who failed to persevere and today make no profession of faith. They began well but did not endure. Some were personal friends whose apostasy grieves me in ways I find difficult to relate.

Two of the Five

Horton Responds

In the 200th episode of Christ the Center, Lane Tipton critiqued Michael Horton.  Horton responds to Tipton here.  The discussion on the relationship between faith and justification bears a striking resemblance to the debate the English Dissenters had in the last decade of the 17th century, which was the subject of my ThM thesis.  Since Horton appeals to Berkhof, let me draw your attention to this post, which is a section of a paper I wrote on Witsius and justification before faith.  See also this post on Witsius, Union and Justification.