Coming Soon from Dr. Scott Clark

Scott Clark's new book, Recovering the Reformed Confession (from P & R), will be released in November 2008.

Having read several draft chapters, all I can say is this volume will provoke much discussion about what it means to be Reformed in our doctrine, as well as in our practice (preaching, sacraments, catechism, worship, and piety).

Not everyone will agree with Dr. Clark about every point he raises.  But this book will certainly provoke a discussion Reformed Christians need to have.  The book will force us to deal with this basic question--"are we going to be Reformed in both our theology and practice, or are we going to be Reformed in our theology, but remain evangelicals in our practice?" 

Speaking of B. B. Warfield and Other Interesting Links

Paul Helm has a great essay on how Charles Hodge and B. B. Warfield recommended that Christian scholars handle difficult Bible passages and various controversies.    Click here: Helm's Deep: Analysis Extra: 'The Phenomena'.

Logos is bringing out a twenty-volume set of Warfield's works.  This set (Libronix) includes the ten-volume "works" and ten other separate publications, including Counterfeit Miracles, Plan of Salvation and Faith and Life.  This should be very helpful. Click here: B. B. Warfield Collection (20 Vols.)

A noted Islamic cleric has ruled that the legal age for sex is nine.  No, I'm not kidding.   Remember, Mohammed married a six-year old.   As Muslims see it, there are two issues involved.  One is the marriage contract itself--which has no minimum age.   The second matter is the legal age for consummation of the contracted marriage, which this cleric regards as age nine.  As Islam spreads into the West, there are going to be more and more conflicts like this one.  What happens when a Muslim man is arrested by the local police for statutory rape (for sexual relations with a minor), when that minor is his wife, and when his religion (Islam) sees absolutely nothing wrong with sex between an adult male and a girl who is not yet of majority.   Wait . . .  Didn't that just happen in Texas and Utah with the FLDS?  Click here: Age no barrier to marriage in Islam

Speaking of the FLDS, ladies if you like their look (FLDS chic) you can now buy direct from the source.  Click here: MyFox Phoenix | FLDS women offer handmade clothes for sale online

Finally, did you know that a huge world-wide survey shows that the world's leading intellectuals are all Muslims.  I guess that is what happens when you conduct such a survey in Arabic.  Click here: Middle East Online
 

Reading Warfield . . . Where to Begin?

I recently received an email from someone (Mike Swope) asking what I thought was a great question.  Since B. B. Warfield is such an important theologian, and such a prolific writer (on the order of a Barth, or an Aquinas), where should someone begin if they wish to become more familiar with the Lion of Princeton?

I can answer this in one of two ways.  First, there would be my list of favorite Warfield pieces.  This would include a number of things "off the beaten path" so to speak (some of my favorites are more technical or obscure book reviews and journal articles). Then there would be the list of those essays/books which highlight Warfield's career and importance.  What follows is the latter (although there is some overlap).

Since much of Warfield's work is easily accessible (in the ten-volume set from Baker Books, or the five-volume set from P & R, from Warfield's Selected Shorter Writings from P & R,  or even on-line), let me set out a list of a few things just to get you started.  This list is suggestive only, and is by no means exhaustive.

Online sources:  Here's a great list (Click here: Warfield Index).  To get started, I'd simply suggest that you pick essays based upon your personal interests--Warfield wrote on virtually every theological topic of his day. 

Some of these essays are quite basic (i.e., introductory articles for encyclopedias or magazines), while others are much more technical (and written for theological journals).  But be sure not to miss the following (which include a sermon, a book review, and several ground-breaking articles on critical topics--just so you get a flavor of the scope of Warfield's massive output and mastery of his subject):

Click here: Warfield - On Faith in Its Psychological Aspects

Click here: Warfield - Faith

 

Click here: Warfield - On the Antiquity and the Unity of the Human Race

Click here: Warfield - Trinity

Click here: Warfield - The Person of Christ

Click here: Warfield - The Inspiration of the Bible

Click here: Warfield - The Real Problem of Inspiration

Click here: Warfield - A Review of Lewis Sperry Chafer's "He That Is Spiritual"

Click here: Warfield - The Christ that Paul Preached

Click here: Warfield - Calvin as a Theologian

Click here: Warfield - The Theology of the Reformation

Click here: Warfield - Mysticism and Christianity

Books:

It is my humble opinion that every Reformed Christian should read Warfield's The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible.  There is nothing like it.  It has generated no end of controversy (although it defends inerrancy) and although Warfield is crystal clear, his critics consistently misquote or misrepresent him.   This book is too important not to read.  Click here: P & R Publishing: Individual Title

I would also suggest reading Warfield's Plan of Salvation (which is available on-line--Click here: Warfield - The Plan of Salvation).

Every seminarian should read this short essay:  Click here: P & R Publishing: Individual Title

Essays: 

Since Warfield's main efforts are found in theological journals, here are a few which have been reprinted (in books) and which I think are must reading:

From Biblical and Theological Studies (P & R): "The Spirit of God in the Old Testament" (127 ff.).

From Studies in Perfectionism (P & R):  "The Theology of Charles G. Finney" (166 ff.).

From The Person and Work of Christ (P & R): "The Emotional Life of Our Lord" (93 ff.); "Christless Christianity" (265 ff.), "Imitating the Incarnation" (563 ff.).

From Calvin and Augustine (P & R):  "Calvin's Doctrine of the Knowledge of God" (29 ff.); "Augustine's Doctrine of Knowledge and Authority" (387 ff.).

From Studies in Theology (Baker): "Predestination in the Reformed Confessions" (117 ff); "Charles Darwin's Religious Life" (541 ff.). 

From Selected Shorter Writings, Vol 1:  "How to Get Rid of Christianity" (51 ff.);  "Hosea VI.7:  Adam or Man?" (116 ff.); "Jesus Christ the Propitiation for the Whole World" (167 ff.); "The Resurrection of Christ:  A Historical Fact" (178 ff.); "Antichrist" (356 ff.).

From Selected Shorter Writings, Vol 2:  "A Review of Herman Bavinck's De Zeherheid des Geloofs" (106 ff.); "Darwin's Arguments and Christianity and Religion" (132 ff.); "Review of John Miley's Systematic Theology" (308 ff.); "A Calm View of the Freedmen's Case" (735ff.)

This will get you started, but will barely scratch the surface of the body of Warfield's work. 
 

Muslim Plans to Convert the West and Other Interesting Links from Around the Blogosphere

Great to hear Pastor Todd Wilken and his producer Jeff Schwarz live again.  Be sure to listen to the very moving first hour of their return!  Click here: Issues, Etc. Radio Program

Believe it or not, Muslims planning to convert the decadent West to Islam, have what they think is a sure fire plan--"mut 'ah", that is multiple wives (up to four).  According to Mahdi Unite Muslims (MUM), when Westerners discover that they can have multiple wives  (legally) under Islam, they'll convert in droves.  Hmmm . . .  Not sure sure that Western women will be thrilled with this.  Divorce lawyers will love it, however!   Click here: Pajamas Media » Converting the West to Islam Through… Sex?

As evangelicalism continues its decline, adherents to paganism continue to grow.  By paganism, I mean real paganism, (Druidism, Wicca) along with all the ceremonies and pagan holidays that go with it.  Click here: Neopaganism growing quickly - The Denver Post.   Dr. Peter Jones has been a prophetic voice in this regard.   Be sure to check out his website. Click here: CWIPP: Christian Witness to a Pagan Planet

I love it when justice is served . . .   Those brave Episcopalians, who have left their ultra-liberal denomination, risked everything to do so (property, pensions, bank-accounts, etc.).  Now, blessedly, the court has ruled in their favor.  The church building belongs to the congregation, not the diocese.  Let the exodus begin!  Click here: Court: Episcopal dissidents can keep land - Faith- msnbc.com 

I've gotta get me one of these, kinda like a handicapped parking permit, only for pastors . . .  Its called a "pray and display" sticker and is issued (in the UK) so that pastors (and clerics from every religion under the sun) can double-park when paying a call upon someone in spiritual need.   As busy as  all the hospitals are around here, that might actually come in handy (pity the poor guys whose car gets blocked in the meantime!).  Click here: 'Pray and display' permits planned for religious leaders - Telegraph

"Issues, Etc.," Returns Today!

Welcome back, Todd and Jeff!  You can hear them here:   Click here: Issues, Etc. Radio Program

Who Said That?

"It should never be forgotten that the faith that is the condition of justification, is the faith that works by love. It is the faith through and by which Christ sanctifies the soul. A sanctifying faith unites the believer to Christ as his justification; but be it always remembered, that no faith receives Christ as a justification, that does not receive him as a sanctification, to reign within the heart. We have seen that repentance, as well as faith, is a condition of justification. We shall see that perseverance in obedience to the end of life is also a condition of justification."

Leave your guess in the comments section below.   Please, no google searches or cheating!  The fun is in the guessing! 

Update on Sunday, June 29, 2008 at 05:49PM by Kim Riddlebarger

This comment comes from page 326 of Charles Finney's Systematic Theology.    Once again this demonstrates that there is nothing new under the sun, and that if you reject justification sola fide, you'll end up somewhere down the road towards a final justification based upon works.

The Legacy of B. B. Warfield

Part One –The Legacy of B. B. Warfield

(Note:  This is the first in a new series on B. B. Warfield, taken from my Ph.D. dissertation, "The Lion of Princeton")

_____________

 

During his thirty-four year reign as the ranking theologian at Princeton Theological Seminary, Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (1851-1921) exerted tremendous influence upon much of American  Presbyterianism.  With his lucid pen and his passion to defend the Westminster Standards, there was little doubt about where Warfield stood on most every subject he addressed.

Even some eighty years after his death all one need to do is but mention his name in certain circles and you are sure to get a reaction, pro or con.  A number of those who have interacted with Warfield view him as a kind of brilliant but nevertheless obscurantist fundamentalist (cf. James Barr, Beyond Fundamentalism, Westminster, 1984, 141) or a thorough-going rationalist , who supposedly invented the notion of biblical inerrancy (Alister McGrath, A Passion for Truth: The Intellectual Coherence of Evangelicalism, InterVarsity, 1996, 169).  When viewed from this perspective, Warfield's most enduring legacy is to be seen in his important but misguided efforts in the heated controversy over the nature of biblical authority that dominated American Presbyterian circles in the latter part of the nineteenth century. 

To read the rest of this article, Click here: Riddleblog - The Legacy of B. B. Warfield

The End of the World and Other Interesting Links

Since the Netherlands has a reputation for its progressive secularism, it is a surprise that so many in that nation are expecting the apocalypse to occur in 2012.  Could it be that the Dutch are reading Tim LaHaye?  Of course not.  The secular Dutch are freaked out by a prediction regarding the end of the world found in the Mayan calendar.  And secularists think Christians are foolish?  Click here: Many Dutch prepare for 2012 apocalypse - UPI.com

Is it just me, or do both of these guys need to be smacked upside the head?  Obama twists Scripture--giving us the critical, moralistic reading of the Old Testament and the Sermon on the Mount.  Granted.  But James Dobson is a flaming Arminian who hates Calvinism.  I'm not sure Dobson can make better sense of the Bible than Obama.  Once again, politicians should give up biblical interpretation, and experts in child development should stop trying to be theologians.  Ugh . . .  And to think we've got five more months of this.  Click here: My Way News - Dobson accuses Obama of 'distorting' Bible

The recent Pew poll, which shows that Americans are a religious but largely pagan people, also found that California is a tad more pluralistic than most other states.  And someone had to pay a pollster to discover that?  That would be the LA Times, of course.  On my way to church I pass a large Sikh temple, an even larger Mosque, several happy-clappy evangelical churches, a CRC and an RCA (both of which are ashamed of their Reformed heritage and are doing very poor imitations of Calvary Chapel), two mainline Protestant churches with empty parking lots, as well as the  "Full-Gospel Tabernacle."  And I'm sure I'm forgetting some.  Once again, no surprises here.  Click here: Survey shows Californians less religious than rest of nation - Los Angeles Times

Finally, the nanny state cancels a local sportday because someone might get hurt.  I thought scrapes and scars were part of growing up.  Remember the scene in Jaws when everyone compares their scars?  The two things the nanny state hates the most are boys growing up to become men (including the bumps and cuts that goes with that), and the sound of laughter and revelry (the sure indication that people really do better when they are free from needless government intrusion).  Click here: Sports day cancelled because uneven playing field is a health and safety risk - Telegraph

The Evangelical Decline and Other Interesting Links

Here's yet another sad sign of the evangelical decline.  An amazing 57% of those who attend evangelical churches now say they believe that adherents of non-Christian religions might also be saved.  The more people anchor their faith in the subjective (religious experience), the less likely they are to see evangelical Christianity as a truth claim.  Some of us are hardly surprised by this news.  Saddened, yes.  But not surprised.  Click here: Religious Americans: My faith isn't the only way (OneNewsNow.com)

The PCUSA continues to lose members--some 57,000 last year alone (that's about the same number of people in the OPC/URC combined).  The loss is blamed on the church's liberal theology and blue hair--the church's aging membership.   Many congregations have left to join the EPC.  If you don't give people a reason to stay in your church, they won't.   The PCUSA isn't alone in this.  The Methodist Church has lost 23% of its membership since 1970, and the Episcopal Church is down 33% since the mid-sixties.  Of course, what these churches need is more liberal theology and "contemporary worship."

Here's a noted theologian/writer who believes that Jesus will return within the next 20-25 years.  That's not out of the ordinary.  The catch?   Harun Yahya is a Muslim (widely read around in the Muslim world) who believes that when Jesus comes back it will be as the Islamic Mahdi and a champion of the prophet Mohammed.  This is typical Islamic doctrine, but Yahya is as successful (in terms of sales) as Tim LaHaye.  That means a series of Islamic novels about the end times is sure to come.  Click here: Muslim creationist preaches Islam and awaits Christ - Yahoo! News

How many stories like this one will we read about before the presidential election in November?  Here's a preacher who told his congregation that God wanted them to vote republican.  That's bad enough.  It gets worse.  He was doing this to provoke an IRS investigation, hoping for a court fight.  Shouldn't a guy like this be looking for a new line of work?  He's obviously failed in his calling to preach the gospel.  And if he wants to change things so badly, why not just run for political office (an honorable calling), rather than commit such atrocious behavior in the pulpit.  Click here: ABC News: Pastors Use Pulpit to Challenge Election Law

Who Said That?

"The Word of God Himself . . . assumed humanity that we might become God."

Please leave your guess in the comments section below.  Please no google searches or cheating. 

Update on Monday, June 30, 2008 at 07:40AM by Kim Riddlebarger

This statement comes from Athanasius' On the Incarnation (Sec. 54).  Athanasius' statement  has given rise to the notion of theosis.

The problem with theosis is one of definition.  As several of the respondents pointed out, the concept grows out of 2 Peter 1:4 and takes a number of diverse forms--some orthodox, some not so.  There is the Orthodox trajectory (divinization), as  well as a Catholic/Augustinian trajectory (the final purification of the soul).  The Reformed understand this notion in terms of union with Christ and final glorification.  There is also a Wesleyan notion (Christian perfection), as well as LDS (man is eventually deified), and Word-Faith versions (man is a "little" god).