New Academy Schedule -- Fall/Winter 2007

Christ Reformed Church's Academy schedule for Fall/Winter 2007 has been posted. 

I am first up and will be teaching a course entitled "Eschatology and the Antichrist," based upon some of the themes in my spiritual autobiography The Man of Sin.
 

In November, Ken Samples will be teaching a course entitled "Testing the Christian Theistic Worldview," based on his new book A World of Difference (Click here: Riddleblog - The Latest Post - A New Book from Ken Samples -- You Need to Buy This One Too!).

For more information, Click here: Christ Reformed Info - Schedule of Academy Classes and Author's Forums.

As always our Academy Classes are free of charge.  They are held 7:30 p.m. Friday evenings @ Christ Reformed Church in Anaheim.  There will be time for Q and A.  Refreshments are served. 

If you live in Southern California, come and out and join us!  We'd love to meet you.  For those of you who can't make it, MP3's of the courses will be posted as in the past.

Tony Snow on the "Blessings" of Cancer

As you no doubt know, recently retired White House press secretary Tony Snow is fighting cancer.  Christianity Today approached Snow and asked him about his thoughts on being stricken with a potentially fatal disease.

Snow's response is wonderful.  I heartily recommend it to you.  Click here: Cancer's Unexpected Blessings | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

A New Book from Ken Samples -- You Need to Buy This One Too!

OK, there are two books you need to buy--this one and Horton's new book (see below)!

Ken teaches our Sunday morning Bible class at Christ Reformed Church, as well as in our Academy.   He's taught much of this material in both places.  This is good stuff!

Here's the publisher's catalogue blurb (from Baker Books):

Description: At a time when Christian belief is constantly challenged, understanding different worldviews can help Christians think and live faithfully. Kenneth Samples's own life-and-death crisis encourages believers to develop a worldview perspective based on truth, critical thinking, and logic. In A World of Difference, he addresses the historic Christian worldview and evaluates four modern-day competitors--Islam, naturalism, postmodernism, and pantheistic monism. The use of nine distinct and challenging tests shows how all worldviews should be assessed.

With compelling insight into Scripture, history, science, and theology, A World of Difference will challenge and strengthen your beliefs.

Author Information:

Kenneth Richard Samples is senior research scholar with a focus on theological and philosophical apologetics at Reasons To Believe, which provides research and teaching on the harmony of God's revelation in the words of the Bible and the facts of nature. An adjunct instructor of apologetics at Biola University, Samples also tackles tough faith questions in his book Without a Doubt: Answering the 20 Toughest Faith Questions.

Endorsements: "Christians can no longer afford to be ignorant of how to think and see the world in light of their worldview and alternative worldviews. A World of Difference is the right book at the right time."--J. P. Moreland, distinguished professor of philosophy, Biola University; author, Kingdom Triangle

"One of my biggest concerns for Christians struggling to make their way through the intellectual challenges of our age is that they often don't have the basic categories to think biblically about their own faith. Ken Samples's A World of Difference will give them those categories."--Kim Riddlebarger, co-host, The White Horse Inn;A Case for Amillennialism author, and The Man of Sin

Buy this book from Amazon.com, ChristianBook.com, Barnes & Noble, or your local bookstore.

Keeping Up With the Latest Christian Goodies . . .

For those of you who miss Marc Heinrich's hilarious blog Purgatorio (remember the tipping cow?--Click here: purgatorio - a panoply of evangelical eccentricities, un-orthodox oddities & christian cultural curiosities), there's a similar blog up and running (h.t. Shane Rosenthal).

You can find it here. Click here: A Little Leaven.

I like to keep up with the latest in Christian gadgets (like the Christian tire gauge, pictured above).  That's probably because my family owned a Christian Bookstore and I grew up with this kind of stuff.

Yes, I have repented . . . countless times . . . Anyway, there is some very funny stuff posted there.

Buy This Book -- New from Michael Horton

If you are at all interested in Reformed theology, the debate over the New Perspectives on Paul and related issues, then you must buy this book!  It is that simple!

I had a chance to read a couple of the chapters a while back before Michael sent them off to the publisher.  Michael's interaction with and evaluation of Drs. Wright, Dunn and Sanders is positively brilliant.

This is part three of Michael's projected four volume prolegomena.  While everything Michael writes is important to the Reformed churches, this one is especially timely.  It is must reading.

Click here: Amazon.com: Covenant and Salvation: Union With Christ: Books: Michael Scott Horton

A Friday Edition of "Who Said That?"

Who Said That?

"The God of Calvinism scares me; I'm not sure how to distinguish him from the devil. If you've come under the influence of Calvinism, think about its ramifications for the character of God. God is great but also good. In light of all the evil and innocent suffering in the world, he must have limited himself."

Since this was just posted elsewhere, you'll probably figure it out.  But it is worth considering anyway.   Please leave your guesses in the comments section below.  No cheating or google searches (but this exhortation never seems to work for some of you!) 

Update on Sunday, September 9, 2007 at 06:52PM by Kim Riddlebarger

Our favorite "Arminian" Roger Olson is at it again.  These words were penned in response to the recent bridge disaster in Minneapolis.  When John Piper tried to comfort those afflicted by this terrible tragedy with the doctrine of God's sovereignty, Olson replied with the words quoted above.

Nothing scares me any more than the living in a world where Olson's "god" is in charge--well, almost in charge.  Try as he will to stop bad things from happening, they do.  Click here: Baylor University || The Lariat Online

If My Covenant Responsibilities Include . . .

Most Christian husbands know that their covenantal responsibilities to their wives include providing and protecting.  Protection often includes killing spiders and other pests that invade the household.  I've killed black widows, caught crickets, and sprayed for ants countless times.  This is part of my duty in protecting and providing for my wife.  I'm sure she appreciates it.

But if I ever run into a spider's web like this anywhere near my home, my wife's on her own.  And we're moving . . . 

Here is the original story (Click here: Star-Telegram.com | 08/29/2007 | Giant web creates bug buzz)

Who Said That?

Who Said That?

"We are a people of different faiths, but we are one. Which faith conquers the other is not the question; rather, the question is whether Christianity stands or falls. . . . We tolerate no one in our ranks who attacks the ideas of Christianity . . .in fact our movement is Christian. We are filled with a desire for Catholics and Protestants to discover one another in the deep distress of our own people."

Leave your guess in the comments section below.  Please no google searches . . .  This one may surprise you! 

Update on Sunday, August 26, 2007 at 06:04PM by Kim Riddlebarger

Yup, politicians will say just about anything to get elected.  This comes from a speech Adolf Hitler gave in Passau, on October 27, 1928.  Amazing, isn't it.  

I wonder if anyone has ever done a study on the things such despots say before and then after they come to power. 

Gird Up Your Loins!

All you TBN fans might be interested in this bit of news.  Juanita Bynum was assaulted by her husband yesterday, Bishop Thomas Weeks III.  Mr. and Mrs. Weeks, of course, lead marriage seminars around the country.

I once saw Juanita Bynum preach a sermon on TBN in which she issued a call to men to exercise headship.  She kept yelling (screaming?) over and over again (with a voice that could melt glass) "gird up your loins!"  Its a wonder she could even speak afterward.

Bynum, who calls herself a "prophetess," is a former hairdresser and flight attendant, the perfect resume to be a regular preacher/prophetess on TBN.  Her lavish (dare I say it, garish) wedding to Bishop Thomas Weeks III was broadcast live on TBN back in 2002.  That tells you all you need to know about her role in certain Pentecostal circles.

Sadly, Bishop Weeks was arrested outside a hotel in Atlanta for assaulting her.  They are currently separated (Click here: Bishop charged with attacking evangelist wife | ajc.com).  While there is never any justification whatsoever for domestic violence and the good Bishop belongs in the slammer if he assaulted her, I cannot help but wonder if the breaking point for Weeks is that he finally had enough of being told to "gird up his loins."  

Meanwhile, Reformed Chicks Blabbling tells the whole sordid tale far better than I ever could (Click here: Reformed Chicks Blabbing: Juanita Bynum was attacked by her husband)  . . .

Life Is Good!

Got to take in last night's Angels - Yankees game at Anaheim Stadium.  Not only did the Yankees win the game (its a good thing we didn't go on Tuesday when the Yanks got crushed), but we got to see a couple of our favorite pitchers (Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera--both Christians, by the way).  Joe Torre passed Casey Stengel for second place on the all-time Yankees win list (a huge milestone) and we also got to see the Yankees' rookie phenom Joba Chamberlain strike out the side, including Vlad Guerrero on three pitches, one a very nasty slider.

I say "we" because my son David took me to the game for my birthday present!  This is a real milestone in my life.  David scored the tickets on his own (Yankees tickets are tough to get in Anaheim), and he paid for parking!  He even offered to buy me a hot dog!  Nice to watch your sons grow into honorable men. 

Meanwhile, my youngest son (now 17) has been paying close attention to my hints about what else I want for my birthday (like the Dream Theater official bootleg album in which they play the Deep Purple "Made in Japan" set).  So I'll make out all the way around . . .

Life is good!  Now, if only the Yankees can muster enough starting pitching over the next 30 games to make the playoffs!