But shun profane and vain babblings. II Timothy 2:16
Beware of false prophets. Matthew 7:15
Flee fornication. 1 Corinthians 6:18
Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin. Romans 6:13
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7
Abstain from all appearance of evil. I Thessalonians 5:22
Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called? James 2:7
What are you watching?
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
Strong's opinion
"The Revelation 20:1-10 passage constitutes a part of one of the most figurative books of Scripture. It ought to be interpreted in a manner that does not contradict the plainer statements of Scripture." -- Paraphrase of A. H. Strong from his Systematic Theology
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Jesus' charming name
Jesus, I love Thy charming Name,
'Tis music to mine ear;
Fain would I sound it out so loud
That earth and Heaven should hear.
Yes, Thou art precious to my soul,
My Transport and my Trust;
Jewels to Thee are gaudy toys,
And gold is sordid dust.
All my capacious powers can wish
In Thee doth richly meet;
Not to mine eyes is light so dear,
Nor friendship half so sweet.
Thy grace still dwells upon my heart,
And sheds its fragrance there;
The noblest balm of all its wounds,
The cordial of its care.
Philip Doddridge, 1717.
'Tis music to mine ear;
Fain would I sound it out so loud
That earth and Heaven should hear.
Yes, Thou art precious to my soul,
My Transport and my Trust;
Jewels to Thee are gaudy toys,
And gold is sordid dust.
All my capacious powers can wish
In Thee doth richly meet;
Not to mine eyes is light so dear,
Nor friendship half so sweet.
Thy grace still dwells upon my heart,
And sheds its fragrance there;
The noblest balm of all its wounds,
The cordial of its care.
Philip Doddridge, 1717.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
In Memoriam
Funeral services for A. D. Munsinger are scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Thursday, January 15, 2009 at Autry Funeral Home Chapel, in Jacksonville, Texas. Bob Goodnight, Adrian Neal and Kevin Gentry will be holding the services. Visitation will be 6:00-8:00 p.m. Wednesday, also at Autry Funeral Home. Burial will be at the Taylor Cemetery in Gallatin. Bro. Munsinger is survived by his wife, four children, friends and other family.
Brother Munsinger has been a friend of our family since before I was in our family.
"Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord."
Brother Munsinger has been a friend of our family since before I was in our family.
"Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord."
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Parallels between Philippians 2 and John 13
Some of the parallels between this hymn (Philippians 2:5-11) and Jesus washing the disciples feet (John 13:1-17) are intriguing:
John 13:4 - He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments...
Phil 2:7 - But made himself of no reputation...
John 13:5 - ...he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet.
Phil 2:7 - ...and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.
John 13:12 - So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again...
Phil 2:9 - Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name
John 13:13 - Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.
Phil 2:11 - And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
John 13:4 - He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments...
Phil 2:7 - But made himself of no reputation...
John 13:5 - ...he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet.
Phil 2:7 - ...and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.
John 13:12 - So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again...
Phil 2:9 - Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name
John 13:13 - Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.
Phil 2:11 - And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Old Baptist quotes (6)
"Does God put a premium on ignorance in the ministry? We know the he has no use for the pride of learning, but neither does he care for the arrogance of ignorance." -- A. T. Robertson, Baptist author and educator
"Go directly to the Bible for truth. If truth is accepted second-handed, a man will find himself like the carpenter that sawed each board by the one had just sawed instead of by the first board every time." -- Clem Boggs, United Baptist preacher, Lawrence County, Kentucky
Being a carpenter by trade, I especially liked this illustration. When I cut rafters, every rafter was marked and sawed according to the pattern. It could have become quite a mess to mark the next one by the one I had just sawed instead of going back to the pattern. The Bible gives the pattern. We need to go back beyond what is a copy of the pattern to the pattern itself, to be sure we are cutting correctly.
"Go directly to the Bible for truth. If truth is accepted second-handed, a man will find himself like the carpenter that sawed each board by the one had just sawed instead of by the first board every time." -- Clem Boggs, United Baptist preacher, Lawrence County, Kentucky
Being a carpenter by trade, I especially liked this illustration. When I cut rafters, every rafter was marked and sawed according to the pattern. It could have become quite a mess to mark the next one by the one I had just sawed instead of going back to the pattern. The Bible gives the pattern. We need to go back beyond what is a copy of the pattern to the pattern itself, to be sure we are cutting correctly.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
The kingdom and priesthood of Christ.
PSALM 110 PART 2
L. M.
Thus the great Lord of earth and sea
Spake to his Son, and thus he swore:
"Eternal shall thy priesthood be,
And change from hand to hand no more.
"Aaron and all his sons must die;
But everlasting life is thine,
To save for ever those that fly
For refuge from the wrath divine.
"By me Melchizedek was made
On earth a king and priest at once;
And thou, my heav'nly Priest, shalt plead,
And thou, my King, shalt rule my sons.
Jesus the Priest ascends his throne,
While counsels of eternal peace,
Between the Father and the Son,
Proceed with honor and success.
Through the whole earth his reign shall spread,
And crush the powers that dare rebel;
Then shall he judge the rising dead,
And send the guilty world to hell.
Though while he treads his glorious way,
He drinks the cup of tears and blood,
The suff'rings of that dreadful day
Shall but advance him near to God.
Isaac Watts (1674-1748)
The Psalms of David, 1719
L. M.
Thus the great Lord of earth and sea
Spake to his Son, and thus he swore:
"Eternal shall thy priesthood be,
And change from hand to hand no more.
"Aaron and all his sons must die;
But everlasting life is thine,
To save for ever those that fly
For refuge from the wrath divine.
"By me Melchizedek was made
On earth a king and priest at once;
And thou, my heav'nly Priest, shalt plead,
And thou, my King, shalt rule my sons.
Jesus the Priest ascends his throne,
While counsels of eternal peace,
Between the Father and the Son,
Proceed with honor and success.
Through the whole earth his reign shall spread,
And crush the powers that dare rebel;
Then shall he judge the rising dead,
And send the guilty world to hell.
Though while he treads his glorious way,
He drinks the cup of tears and blood,
The suff'rings of that dreadful day
Shall but advance him near to God.
Isaac Watts (1674-1748)
The Psalms of David, 1719
Friday, January 09, 2009
Baptist Roots in America
Baptist Roots in America: The Historical Background of Reformed Baptists in America, Samuel E. Waldron, Booton, NJ: Simpson Publishing. 1991, paperback, 50 pages. ISBN: 096225083X. $6.95 (This book is out-of-print. A PDF version can be downloaded at Simpson Publishing for $2.00.)
At the time he wrote the book, Sam Waldron was a pastor of the Reformed Baptist Church of Grand Rapids, MI. He is now a pastor of the Heritage Baptist Church of Owensboro, Kentucky and Professor of Systematic Theology at the Midwest Center for Theological Studies.
Other books and pamphlets by Waldron include A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, The End Times Made Simple, A Reformed Baptist Manifesto: The New Covenant Constitution of the Church, To Be Continued? and Faith, Obedience, and Justification: Current Evangelical Departures from Sola Fide.
This book is not a history of Baptists in America, or even a history of the Reformed Baptist movement in America. Waldron's purpose is to demonstrate the Baptist roots of the mid-twentieth century Reformed Baptist movement in America. He also declares why he thinks the movement was needed. He sees Reformed Baptists as the true successors of the Particular Baptists, and finds modern fundamentalism & evangelicalism to be a deviation from historic Baptist thought.
First is a brief chapter on "The Rise of Particular Baptists in America". This is brief look at Baptist history in early America giving information on the rise and then the growth of the Particular Baptists.
Second, Waldron looks at "The Decline of Particular Baptists in America". In this chapter he undertakes to answer the question "What happened?" "How did Calvinism and the Particular Baptist heritage almost totally disappear by the mid-twentieth century in America?"
After noting what he sees as an "innate tendency" of the depraved heart to compromise or reject God's truth, Waldron posits seven specific major factors for the decline of Particular Baptist theology. They are:
1. The American, Democratic Ethos -- popular American ideas of freedom, equality, fairness, independence, rights, etc. were against the Calvinistic theology of election, particular redemption and irresistible grace.
2. Revivalism -- though originating in a Calvinistic base, Waldron sees American revivalism as degenerating into anti-creedalism and Arminianism.
3. Methodism -- the Methodists were most frequently the frontier combatant and companion of the Baptists as Americans spread south and west, influencing the thinking of Baptist church members.
4. Inclusivism -- Baptist common battles for religious freedom, etc. may have caused them to emphasize fellowship around these common principles rather than separation over diverse doctrines in other areas.
5. Hyper-Calvinism -- reaction against "hyper-Calvinism" may have driven some to the opposite extreme.
6. Modernism -- as Waldron puts it, the anti-creedalism that opened the door to Arminianism could not be shut later against modernism. Modernism hides behind anti-creedalism, claiming the same rule of faith and practice as the orthodox believer while denying the very faith they hold.
7. The Fundamentalist movement -- too much emphasis on the fundamentals to the exclusion of a healthy emphasis on other doctrines (soteriology & ecclesiology); dispensational premillennialism; Keswick/higher life teaching rooted in Wesleyan perfectionism.
In the third chapter, Waldron briefly notes "The Rise of Reformed Baptists in America". He gives little particular elements of the historical rise, but rather focuses on some general elements that paved the way for the Reformed Baptist movement -- the popularity of Charles H. Spurgeon, the writings of A. W. Pink, the influence of Reformed theologians such as J. Gresham Machen, and the accleration in reprinting Puritan and Reformed literature. He does seem to pinpoint the original rise of the Reformed Baptist in the northeastern United States in the 1960s. It is interesting that this theology should resurrect in the location where it most likely first died.
Finally in his "Concluding Observations", Sam Waldron warns against the danger of hyper-Calvinism, encourages the upholding of Reformed confessional Christianity (for Baptists particularly found in the 1689 London Confession); and exhorts Reformed Baptists to impact American Christianity for its betterment. He insists the name "Reformed Baptist" is a good one -- the bearers are both Reformed and Baptist. In contrast, many Baptist and Reformed believers deny that one can be both.
When I first noticed this book on paperbackswap.com, I got a misconception of what it was supposed to be. I was initially disappointed to find that this book would not contain much historical information about the rise of Reformed Baptists in the 1960s. Once I understood the purpose of this book, I was able to appreciate it for what it is rather than depreciate it for what it isn't.
My Landmark and Primitive Baptist friends will both object to some things posited by Waldron. I also have disagreements with some of Waldron's assertions and positions. For the most part the book hits on target. It is correct that the Particular Baptists early on became the dominant Baptist group in the United States. It is equally true that sovereign grace soteriology was held by these Baptists and that it gradually diminished among the mainstream of its descendants. Waldron probably emphasizes too much the "death" of this soteriology (and perhaps underemphasized Baptist ecclesiology), since it was continued without interruption by the Primitive Baptists. He evidently concludes them out of the heir-ship of this theology because of some things he views as "hyper".
Waldron's seven major factors for the decline of Particular Baptist theology are certain to find detractors. He has done a good job in advancing the reasons behind the soteriological shift. There is probably something here with which almost everyone can agree or disagree. My thought is that readers might most readily draw back from points 1, 3, and 7 -- the American democratic ethos, Methodism and the Fundamentalist movement.
With a little thought one should be able to see how the average American, emphasizing his freedom and independence, might chafe under a "Calvinistic" system in which God chose who would be saved, fully paid for it, and sovereignly gave it to that person without his asking. The fact that others reconciled it in their minds is not evidence that the majority did not.
Methodism's role might surprise some. But as Americans spread south and west, Methodism was the chief rival for the hearts, minds and souls of the people as the Baptist farmer-preacher tended his flock and the Methodist circuit-rider rode his circuit. Rivalry turned to respect as Baptists and Methodists lived in the same communities, shared the same meeting houses, and married into one another's families. A trek through the minutes of an ancestral Georgia church brought this home to me in an unique way. At the beginning of the 19th century, these Baptists would not allow the Methodists to use the Baptist-owned meeting house. Within 40 years they were adopting a resolution of great appreciation to the Methodists for allowing the Baptists the use of their house while they were building a new one!
On first reading many might recoil from the idea of fundamentalism negatively affecting the Baptist heritage. Some early fundamentalist leaders were predestinarians, and fundamentalism shared agreement with Baptists on the fundamentals of the faith. But the struggle with modernism called for emphasis on the fundamentals and inattention to other doctrines so that fundamental soldiers might combine together to battle modernism. Ben M. Bogard's early jibes against fundamentalist J. Frank Norris (and their later collaboration) help make the point. Though fundamentalism initially agreed on the fundamental of the literal second coming of Christ, over a period of time dispensational premillennialism captured the fancy of most fundamentalists. Though the large number of Baptists who embrace dispensational premillennialism might think otherwise, it contains some elements unfriendly to Baptist soteriology and ecclesiology. I think back to the many times the Scofield Reference Bible was highly recommended to me, with the caveat that Scofield was right on everything but the church. Well, if he was wrong on so important an issue, his other views bears scrutiny as well!
Waldron does a good job presenting his thesis. I am not persuaded to admit to some of his points. I think the Baptist heritage was preserved in various ways through the period in which he finds the great dearth. But the emphases of the rising Reformed Baptists should cause us to inspect our faith, shine the light on any deficiencies, and sound once again the cry "Back to the Bible."
At the time he wrote the book, Sam Waldron was a pastor of the Reformed Baptist Church of Grand Rapids, MI. He is now a pastor of the Heritage Baptist Church of Owensboro, Kentucky and Professor of Systematic Theology at the Midwest Center for Theological Studies.
Other books and pamphlets by Waldron include A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, The End Times Made Simple, A Reformed Baptist Manifesto: The New Covenant Constitution of the Church, To Be Continued? and Faith, Obedience, and Justification: Current Evangelical Departures from Sola Fide.
This book is not a history of Baptists in America, or even a history of the Reformed Baptist movement in America. Waldron's purpose is to demonstrate the Baptist roots of the mid-twentieth century Reformed Baptist movement in America. He also declares why he thinks the movement was needed. He sees Reformed Baptists as the true successors of the Particular Baptists, and finds modern fundamentalism & evangelicalism to be a deviation from historic Baptist thought.
First is a brief chapter on "The Rise of Particular Baptists in America". This is brief look at Baptist history in early America giving information on the rise and then the growth of the Particular Baptists.
Second, Waldron looks at "The Decline of Particular Baptists in America". In this chapter he undertakes to answer the question "What happened?" "How did Calvinism and the Particular Baptist heritage almost totally disappear by the mid-twentieth century in America?"
After noting what he sees as an "innate tendency" of the depraved heart to compromise or reject God's truth, Waldron posits seven specific major factors for the decline of Particular Baptist theology. They are:
1. The American, Democratic Ethos -- popular American ideas of freedom, equality, fairness, independence, rights, etc. were against the Calvinistic theology of election, particular redemption and irresistible grace.
2. Revivalism -- though originating in a Calvinistic base, Waldron sees American revivalism as degenerating into anti-creedalism and Arminianism.
3. Methodism -- the Methodists were most frequently the frontier combatant and companion of the Baptists as Americans spread south and west, influencing the thinking of Baptist church members.
4. Inclusivism -- Baptist common battles for religious freedom, etc. may have caused them to emphasize fellowship around these common principles rather than separation over diverse doctrines in other areas.
5. Hyper-Calvinism -- reaction against "hyper-Calvinism" may have driven some to the opposite extreme.
6. Modernism -- as Waldron puts it, the anti-creedalism that opened the door to Arminianism could not be shut later against modernism. Modernism hides behind anti-creedalism, claiming the same rule of faith and practice as the orthodox believer while denying the very faith they hold.
7. The Fundamentalist movement -- too much emphasis on the fundamentals to the exclusion of a healthy emphasis on other doctrines (soteriology & ecclesiology); dispensational premillennialism; Keswick/higher life teaching rooted in Wesleyan perfectionism.
In the third chapter, Waldron briefly notes "The Rise of Reformed Baptists in America". He gives little particular elements of the historical rise, but rather focuses on some general elements that paved the way for the Reformed Baptist movement -- the popularity of Charles H. Spurgeon, the writings of A. W. Pink, the influence of Reformed theologians such as J. Gresham Machen, and the accleration in reprinting Puritan and Reformed literature. He does seem to pinpoint the original rise of the Reformed Baptist in the northeastern United States in the 1960s. It is interesting that this theology should resurrect in the location where it most likely first died.
Finally in his "Concluding Observations", Sam Waldron warns against the danger of hyper-Calvinism, encourages the upholding of Reformed confessional Christianity (for Baptists particularly found in the 1689 London Confession); and exhorts Reformed Baptists to impact American Christianity for its betterment. He insists the name "Reformed Baptist" is a good one -- the bearers are both Reformed and Baptist. In contrast, many Baptist and Reformed believers deny that one can be both.
When I first noticed this book on paperbackswap.com, I got a misconception of what it was supposed to be. I was initially disappointed to find that this book would not contain much historical information about the rise of Reformed Baptists in the 1960s. Once I understood the purpose of this book, I was able to appreciate it for what it is rather than depreciate it for what it isn't.
My Landmark and Primitive Baptist friends will both object to some things posited by Waldron. I also have disagreements with some of Waldron's assertions and positions. For the most part the book hits on target. It is correct that the Particular Baptists early on became the dominant Baptist group in the United States. It is equally true that sovereign grace soteriology was held by these Baptists and that it gradually diminished among the mainstream of its descendants. Waldron probably emphasizes too much the "death" of this soteriology (and perhaps underemphasized Baptist ecclesiology), since it was continued without interruption by the Primitive Baptists. He evidently concludes them out of the heir-ship of this theology because of some things he views as "hyper".
Waldron's seven major factors for the decline of Particular Baptist theology are certain to find detractors. He has done a good job in advancing the reasons behind the soteriological shift. There is probably something here with which almost everyone can agree or disagree. My thought is that readers might most readily draw back from points 1, 3, and 7 -- the American democratic ethos, Methodism and the Fundamentalist movement.
With a little thought one should be able to see how the average American, emphasizing his freedom and independence, might chafe under a "Calvinistic" system in which God chose who would be saved, fully paid for it, and sovereignly gave it to that person without his asking. The fact that others reconciled it in their minds is not evidence that the majority did not.
Methodism's role might surprise some. But as Americans spread south and west, Methodism was the chief rival for the hearts, minds and souls of the people as the Baptist farmer-preacher tended his flock and the Methodist circuit-rider rode his circuit. Rivalry turned to respect as Baptists and Methodists lived in the same communities, shared the same meeting houses, and married into one another's families. A trek through the minutes of an ancestral Georgia church brought this home to me in an unique way. At the beginning of the 19th century, these Baptists would not allow the Methodists to use the Baptist-owned meeting house. Within 40 years they were adopting a resolution of great appreciation to the Methodists for allowing the Baptists the use of their house while they were building a new one!
On first reading many might recoil from the idea of fundamentalism negatively affecting the Baptist heritage. Some early fundamentalist leaders were predestinarians, and fundamentalism shared agreement with Baptists on the fundamentals of the faith. But the struggle with modernism called for emphasis on the fundamentals and inattention to other doctrines so that fundamental soldiers might combine together to battle modernism. Ben M. Bogard's early jibes against fundamentalist J. Frank Norris (and their later collaboration) help make the point. Though fundamentalism initially agreed on the fundamental of the literal second coming of Christ, over a period of time dispensational premillennialism captured the fancy of most fundamentalists. Though the large number of Baptists who embrace dispensational premillennialism might think otherwise, it contains some elements unfriendly to Baptist soteriology and ecclesiology. I think back to the many times the Scofield Reference Bible was highly recommended to me, with the caveat that Scofield was right on everything but the church. Well, if he was wrong on so important an issue, his other views bears scrutiny as well!
Waldron does a good job presenting his thesis. I am not persuaded to admit to some of his points. I think the Baptist heritage was preserved in various ways through the period in which he finds the great dearth. But the emphases of the rising Reformed Baptists should cause us to inspect our faith, shine the light on any deficiencies, and sound once again the cry "Back to the Bible."
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Has God shown you some things?
A story of two old Primitive Baptist deacons in the wilds of the Georgia flatwoods, as told by John Crowley of GA:
One deacon was always having dreams and visions which strongly supported his own notions of church politics, etc. Seeing the other brother somewhat sceptical, the dreamer said, "Don't the Lord ever speak to you?" "Well," the sceptic replied, "He's SHOWN me a few things, but He's never actually SPOKE to me....and now I know why. He spends all his time talking to you."
One deacon was always having dreams and visions which strongly supported his own notions of church politics, etc. Seeing the other brother somewhat sceptical, the dreamer said, "Don't the Lord ever speak to you?" "Well," the sceptic replied, "He's SHOWN me a few things, but He's never actually SPOKE to me....and now I know why. He spends all his time talking to you."
Monday, January 05, 2009
The bride, the Lamb's wife
In the age to come, the bride is with those who inhabit the New Jerusalem, according to John's writing in Revelation 21:
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away...I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;...And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it. And there shall in no wise enter into it any ...but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Who are these people? Is it not all who are written in the Lamb's book of life?
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away...I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;...And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it. And there shall in no wise enter into it any ...but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Who are these people? Is it not all who are written in the Lamb's book of life?
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Complete in Him
Colossians 2:10 And ye are complete in him...
Hungry? Jesus said, I am the bread of life.
In the dark? Jesus said, I am the light of the world.
Outside? Jesus said, I am the door.
Fearful? Jesus said, I am the good shepherd.
Dead? Jesus said, I am the resurrection, and the life.
Lost? Jesus said, I am the way.
Unlearned? Jesus said, I am the truth.
Disconnected? Jesus said, I am the vine.
Hungry? Jesus said, I am the bread of life.
In the dark? Jesus said, I am the light of the world.
Outside? Jesus said, I am the door.
Fearful? Jesus said, I am the good shepherd.
Dead? Jesus said, I am the resurrection, and the life.
Lost? Jesus said, I am the way.
Unlearned? Jesus said, I am the truth.
Disconnected? Jesus said, I am the vine.
Saturday, January 03, 2009
More than a hypocrite
Am I a Pharisee?
If I travel far and wide to convert others to a religious affiliation rather than preach the gospel -- I am a Pharisee.
If I exalt my forefathers, history and traditions above the commands of God -- I am a Pharisee.
If I relentlessly, though insidiously, attack the words of God -- I am a Pharisee.
If I observe outward motions without inward movement -- I am a Pharisee.
If I follow the letter but not the Spirit -- I am a Pharisee.
If I major on minors and minor on majors -- I am a Pharisee.
If I feign righteousness and devotion -- I am a Pharisee.
If I travel far and wide to convert others to a religious affiliation rather than preach the gospel -- I am a Pharisee.
If I exalt my forefathers, history and traditions above the commands of God -- I am a Pharisee.
If I relentlessly, though insidiously, attack the words of God -- I am a Pharisee.
If I observe outward motions without inward movement -- I am a Pharisee.
If I follow the letter but not the Spirit -- I am a Pharisee.
If I major on minors and minor on majors -- I am a Pharisee.
If I feign righteousness and devotion -- I am a Pharisee.
Friday, January 02, 2009
Will power
One man said it took a lot of will power....
but he was able to give up trying to quit smoking!
but he was able to give up trying to quit smoking!
Thursday, January 01, 2009
This year thou shalt die
Jeremiah 28:16-17 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the LORD. So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.
Death is certain (Thou shalt die)
The wages of sin is death, and all have sinned
It is appointed unto men once to die (Heb 9:27)
Eccl 8:8 There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.
Job 30:23 For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living.
Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Death is soon (This year)
Our life is ever on the wing, And death is ever nigh;
The moment when our lives begin, We all begin to die. (Watts)
James 4:14: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
Job 14:1: Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
Death is certain (Thou shalt die)
The wages of sin is death, and all have sinned
It is appointed unto men once to die (Heb 9:27)
Eccl 8:8 There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.
Job 30:23 For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living.
Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Death is soon (This year)
Our life is ever on the wing, And death is ever nigh;
The moment when our lives begin, We all begin to die. (Watts)
James 4:14: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
Job 14:1: Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
2009 in (brief) review
Links to a few of the 300-something posts this past year:
A Baker's Dozen
What say ye?
To respect
New book, available in July
A tree's story
Every Church a Seminary
Restoring Integrity in Baptist Churches: a Review
Restoring Integrity: our view of God
Latin, Greek and Hebrew
The troubles of Job
The Holy Kiss
The Relationship of Christians and Government
Proorizo in the King James Bible
My word shall not return void
Time, with an unwearied hand,
Pushes round the seasons past,
And in life's frail glass, the sand
Sinks apace, not long to last:
Many, well as you or I,
Who last year assembled thus;
In their silent graves now lie,
Graves will open soon for us!
By John Newton
A Baker's Dozen
What say ye?
To respect
New book, available in July
A tree's story
Every Church a Seminary
Restoring Integrity in Baptist Churches: a Review
Restoring Integrity: our view of God
Latin, Greek and Hebrew
The troubles of Job
The Holy Kiss
The Relationship of Christians and Government
Proorizo in the King James Bible
My word shall not return void
Time, with an unwearied hand,
Pushes round the seasons past,
And in life's frail glass, the sand
Sinks apace, not long to last:
Many, well as you or I,
Who last year assembled thus;
In their silent graves now lie,
Graves will open soon for us!
By John Newton
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Tending towards innovation?
I first heard the word "McDonaldization" several years ago when my son mentioned in some context I don't remember. Something he was reading or studying in college, I think.
"McDonaldization" is a term used by sociologist George Ritzer in his book The McDonaldization of Society (1995). He describes it as the process by which a society takes on the characteristics of a fast-food restaurant...Predictability – standardized and uniform services. "Predictability" means that no matter where a person goes, they will receive the same service and receive the same product every time when interacting with the McDonaldized organization. This also applies to the workers in those organizations. Their task are highly repetitive, highly routine, and predictable...The predictability of such places is also ensured; the customer can assume that the quality, taste, price, quickness, and variety will remain the same in every single restaurant in a chain. The ways in which the food is prepared, the products used to make the meals, and the amount of a product one is given are universal...McDonaldization
While predictability and standardization have certain advantages in certain contexts, are we moving toward a society where all things should be predictable and standardized and all people should think the same things? McDonaldization means that no customers of McDonalds (or any McDonaldized should expect anything else than standard fare. It also means that McDonaldized employees should not show any tendency towards innovation or taking initiative.
At times we must overcome McDonalization -- and tend towards innovation and initiative.
This made me think of story (probably apocryphal) that I posted last year. An elderly couple went to breakfast at a restaurant where the "Seniors' Special" was two eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast for $1.99. The husband ordered the special but his wife did not want the eggs. The problem was -- without the eggs, she would not be having the special, so the waitress was going to charge $2.49 cents for ordering a la carte. When the customer found out the waitress was serious, she ordered the special. "How do you want your eggs?" the waitress asked. "Raw and in the shell," the woman replied. She took the two eggs home.
Or how about the college student who couldn't get a grilled chicken salad at the college cafe. She ordered a grilled chicken sandwich with extra lettuce. She saved the buns for her dog, cut up the chicken and voila -- grilled chicken salad!
"McDonaldization" is a term used by sociologist George Ritzer in his book The McDonaldization of Society (1995). He describes it as the process by which a society takes on the characteristics of a fast-food restaurant...Predictability – standardized and uniform services. "Predictability" means that no matter where a person goes, they will receive the same service and receive the same product every time when interacting with the McDonaldized organization. This also applies to the workers in those organizations. Their task are highly repetitive, highly routine, and predictable...The predictability of such places is also ensured; the customer can assume that the quality, taste, price, quickness, and variety will remain the same in every single restaurant in a chain. The ways in which the food is prepared, the products used to make the meals, and the amount of a product one is given are universal...McDonaldization
While predictability and standardization have certain advantages in certain contexts, are we moving toward a society where all things should be predictable and standardized and all people should think the same things? McDonaldization means that no customers of McDonalds (or any McDonaldized should expect anything else than standard fare. It also means that McDonaldized employees should not show any tendency towards innovation or taking initiative.
At times we must overcome McDonalization -- and tend towards innovation and initiative.
This made me think of story (probably apocryphal) that I posted last year. An elderly couple went to breakfast at a restaurant where the "Seniors' Special" was two eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast for $1.99. The husband ordered the special but his wife did not want the eggs. The problem was -- without the eggs, she would not be having the special, so the waitress was going to charge $2.49 cents for ordering a la carte. When the customer found out the waitress was serious, she ordered the special. "How do you want your eggs?" the waitress asked. "Raw and in the shell," the woman replied. She took the two eggs home.
Or how about the college student who couldn't get a grilled chicken salad at the college cafe. She ordered a grilled chicken sandwich with extra lettuce. She saved the buns for her dog, cut up the chicken and voila -- grilled chicken salad!
Monday, December 29, 2008
Church history...
"Church history is, like all other history, an account of what somebody sees, and the account becomes at most a conscientious interpretation. In spite of all effort, the historian must write as he sees with the facts which are at his command." -- Buell H Kazee in The Problem of Baptism in History, 1965, p. 97
Sunday, December 28, 2008
84 percent
An interesting tidbit -- Associated Press says that Gallup polls from 1994 to 2005 show that 84 percent of non-Christians say they celebrate Christmas.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the famous English preacher of the last century, wrote, "We have no superstitious regard for times and seasons. Certainly we do not believe in the present ecclesiastical arrangement called Christmas ... we find no scriptural word whatever for observing any day as the birthday of the Saviour; and consequently, its observance is a superstition, because (it's) not of divine authority ..." (Quoted from Metropolitan Pulpit Series, Pilgrim Publications: Pasadena, Texas, 1871, p. 1026).
From Should Christians Celebrate Christmas?
Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the famous English preacher of the last century, wrote, "We have no superstitious regard for times and seasons. Certainly we do not believe in the present ecclesiastical arrangement called Christmas ... we find no scriptural word whatever for observing any day as the birthday of the Saviour; and consequently, its observance is a superstition, because (it's) not of divine authority ..." (Quoted from Metropolitan Pulpit Series, Pilgrim Publications: Pasadena, Texas, 1871, p. 1026).
From Should Christians Celebrate Christmas?
Friday, December 26, 2008
Sovereign Ruler of the skies
Sovereign Ruler of the skies,
Ever gracious, ever wise,
All my times are in thy hand,
All events at thy command:
Times of sickness, times of health,
Times of penury and wealth;
Times of trial and of grief,
Times of triumph and relief.
Plagues and deaths around us fly,
Till He bids we cannot die;
Not a single shaft can hit,
Till the God of love sees fit.”
Sovereign Ruler of the skies,
Ever gracious, ever wise,
All my times are in thy hand,
All of events at thy command.
His decree who formed the earth
Fixed my first and second birth;
Parents, native place, and time
All appointed were by him.
He that formed me in the womb,
He shall guide me to the tomb;
All my times shall ever be
Ordered by his wise decree.
Times of sickness, times of health,
Times of penury and wealth;
Times of trial and of grief,
Times of triumph and relief;
Times the tempter’s power to prove,
Times to test the Savior’s love;
All must come, and last, and end
As shall please my heavenly friend.
Plagues and death around me fly;
Till he bids, I cannot die.
Nor a single shaft can hit,
Till the love of God sees fit.
John Ryland (1753-1825),
Ever gracious, ever wise,
All my times are in thy hand,
All events at thy command:
Times of sickness, times of health,
Times of penury and wealth;
Times of trial and of grief,
Times of triumph and relief.
Plagues and deaths around us fly,
Till He bids we cannot die;
Not a single shaft can hit,
Till the God of love sees fit.”
Sovereign Ruler of the skies,
Ever gracious, ever wise,
All my times are in thy hand,
All of events at thy command.
His decree who formed the earth
Fixed my first and second birth;
Parents, native place, and time
All appointed were by him.
He that formed me in the womb,
He shall guide me to the tomb;
All my times shall ever be
Ordered by his wise decree.
Times of sickness, times of health,
Times of penury and wealth;
Times of trial and of grief,
Times of triumph and relief;
Times the tempter’s power to prove,
Times to test the Savior’s love;
All must come, and last, and end
As shall please my heavenly friend.
Plagues and death around me fly;
Till he bids, I cannot die.
Nor a single shaft can hit,
Till the love of God sees fit.
John Ryland (1753-1825),
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Old Baptist quotes (5)
"Our Lord took a towel and girded himself and washed their feet, ay, washed the traitor's feet, and gently handled that heel which had been lifted up against him; washing from it the dust gathered in its secret walk upon the traitor's errand." -- Charles Spurgeon, sermon The Teaching of the Foot-Washing, Oct. 12, 1879
"In the world they criticize: 'Do you see that spot? What a terrible walk that man must have had this morning—-look at his feet! He has been very much in the mire, as you can see, for there are the traces upon him.' That is the world’s way. Christ’s way is very different. He says nothing but takes the basin and begins to wash away the stain." -- Charles Spurgeon, sermon The Teaching of the Foot-Washing, Oct. 12, 1879
"In the world they criticize: 'Do you see that spot? What a terrible walk that man must have had this morning—-look at his feet! He has been very much in the mire, as you can see, for there are the traces upon him.' That is the world’s way. Christ’s way is very different. He says nothing but takes the basin and begins to wash away the stain." -- Charles Spurgeon, sermon The Teaching of the Foot-Washing, Oct. 12, 1879
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