Mike Horton on YouTube

A snippet from Mike Horton's recent lecture at the 2007 Miami Pastor's Conference has been posted on YouTube.  Check it out. 

Click here: YouTube - Michael Horton "What is the Gospel?"

Who Said That?

"Our loss is gain
In wisdom and in skill
To future dates and other smiles
And so we send into the
Chain of all enduring time
Our heritage
Our hope
our friend.
Goodbye [deceased].
Your people thank you for
having lived.
Earth is better for your having lived.
Men and women are children
are alive today
Because you lived.
We thank you for coming to us.
We do not contest your right
to go away.
Your debts are paid.
This chapter of thy life is shut.
Go, now, dear [deceased] and live
once more
In happier time and place."

OK, you know the drill.  Who said that?  Please, no google searches or cheating.  Leave your guesses in the comments section. 

Update on Saturday, December 8, 2007 at 07:10PM by Kim Riddlebarger

This mindless drivel comes from the funeral service of the Church of Scientology.  What a load . . .

More Interesting Links

Be warned, Pat Robertson doesn't like it much when you photoshop his picture.  Click here: Spring student sues school over Pat Robertson image (w/video) | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle.

Richard Roberts may have resigned as president of ORU, but still might keep that huge salary.  Click here: Will Richard Roberts Let Go of ORU? | Liveblog | Christianity Today.

Meanwhile, as Roberts tries to keep that big pay check coming, a benefactor has come forward to bail out ORU from its huge debt.  The only catch--Richard Roberts needs to be shown the door and the benefactor wants two seats on the board.  That's an easy one.  "See ya Richard and pull up a couple of chairs!"  How come there is no Reformed benefactor who can give 70 million to some truly worthwhile cause?  Is a hospital built by faith-healers really the best place to sow seed for the kingdom? Click here: Oral Roberts University Gets a Lifeline - AOL News

The soon to be Rev. Andrew Compton has a series of worthwhile links to a debate  over natural law between Dr. David VanDrunen and Dr. Nelson Kloosterman.  I'm with Compton on this one, VanDrunen clearly carries the day.  Click here: A Dialogue Between David VanDrunen and Nelson Kloosterman on Natural Law « Confessional Reformed Contemplations.

Finally, readers of this blog will be relieved to know that a recent poll of Christians determined that beer drinking is probably acceptable.  Click here: Christians Consider Drinking Beer Acceptable According to ChristiaNet.com Poll - Christian Newswire.  In honor of this wonderful news, I'm really going to enjoy my cold one tonight.  Poll-driven ethics can sure relieve the troubled conscience!

In honor of the above-mentioned poll, but sure to check out the Lutheran Advent calendar.  Click here: Riddleblog - The Latest Post - Lutheran Advent Calendar   

The Canons of Dort, First Head of Doctrine, Article 1

With this post, I'm beginning a new series at the Riddleblog entitled, "notes on the Canons of Dort."  This is material which I prepared some time ago when I took our congregation through the Canons during our evening service.  Those notes will be edited and posted here.

The goal of this series is to go through the Canons of Dort, article by article, and explain many of the basics of the Reformed faith, especially those associated with the so-called "five points of Calvinism."  It is my hope that you will find this helpful, edifying, and that you will discover as I once did, the Canons are not the theological bogeyman people make them out to be.  The Canons are biblical, non-speculative and very pastoral.  They deserve to be read and studied by God's people.

It has long been my concern that many "five point" Calvinists are not familiar with the document which gave the five points confessional status in the Reformed churches.  Hopefully, this series will in some measure help rectify that shortcoming.

This series is designed to be a basic introduction to the Canons, so all of you arm-chair theologians out there, please keep this in mind as the series unfolds. 

 Article 1: God's Right to Condemn All People

Since all people have sinned in Adam and have come under the sentence of the curse and eternal death, God would have done no one an injustice if it had been his will to leave the entire human race in sin and under the curse, and to condemn them on account of their sin. As the apostle says: The whole world is liable to the condemnation of God (Rom. 3:19), All have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23), and The wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23).*

______________________________________________

I.  The Canons begin with the human condition as set forth in the Scriptures.

• All of humanity is subject to the just judgement of God [Romans 3:19]
• All have sinned and fall short of God’s glory [his righteous requirements for perfect obedience— Romans 3:23]
• The human race is under the curse—which is death [Romans 6:23]

Too often Americans approach matters of sin and grace from a cultural rather than a biblical perspective.  Since this is the case, many of our contemporaries begin the discussion of human sinfulness and God’s grace with a far different set of  presuppositions than we find in Scripture and which are summarized in the opening article of the Canons. 

This difference in presuppositions explains why there is so much anger and confusion whenever a Reformed Christian even mentions the five-points of Calvinism in a non-Reformed context.

According to most of our contemporaries, we must not begin this discussion with the fact of human sin, but with a kind of democratic egalitarianism.  In other words, most Americans already assume the notion to be true that “God isn’t being fair with his creatures, unless everyone has an equal chance at heaven."  While it is easy to acknowledge that we are sinners, it is not easy to take that admission to the obvious conclusion--because we are sinners, we are guilty before God.  In fact, when you take this as far as Scripture does--we are sinners, we are guilty before God, and we are unable to do anything to save ourselves from God's anger toward our sins--then the trouble begins.

II. These typically American presuppositions are as follows:

• All men and women have an equal opportunity to go to heaven and God would not be acting fairly if any were somehow deprived of that to which they are entitled—they must deprive themselves.
• Of course, all have sinned, but free will and natural ability remain.  We are not robots after all.
• We are may be guilty , but we still have the ability to remove the curse from ourselves with Christ’s help, if only we are willing.

These different presuppositions (The Reformed--"we can do nothing to help ourselves" v. the American ideal--"everyone should be given an equal chance to go to heaven") explains why Reformed theology strikes so many Americans as a strange and cruel.  The theology set forth in the Canons does not begin with the rosy estimation that most Americans have about human nature--it begins with a biblical realism about human sin and a great confidence in God's grace to save his people from their sins. 

The Canons therefore strive begin where Scripture does--with the biblical teaching regarding the sinfulness and inability of men and women to save themselves.   Because we begin with humanities’ sin, guilt and inability to come to faith, God’s grace is seen as a rescue of those [the “elect”] who deserve God’s wrath, but are instead chosen to be the recipients and beneficiaries of God's mercies in Christ.  

III.  This is an age-old debate

• Those in the Augustinian tradition emphasize God’s graciousness to sinners—it is God who saves sinners from beginning to end.
  
• Those in the Pelagian tradition focus upon humanities natural ability—salvation from sin stems from acting upon our knowledge of God’s commands.  If God commands something, it is because we have the ability to carry out that command.  (Ironically, this has more in common with Kant’s categorical imperative “ought implies can” than it does with the biblical estimation of human nature after the fall!).
• Most American Christians are “semi-Pelagian.”  Simply put, semi-Pelagians see human salvation from sin not so much as a divine rescue in which men and women who are described as “dead in sin” require a resurrection from death to life before they can even respond to God.  Semi-Pelagians often speak of salvation as a kind of transaction in which God contributes grace and men and women contribute faith.  He has done his part, now its up to you . . .
  

As Augustine once said, “the grace of God does not find men fit for salvation, but makes them so.”  This is a fundamental choice every Christian must make--either we can save ourselves by acting upon the proper information (Pelagianism), God will help us save ourselves (semi-Pelgianism), or God save sinners who can do nothing to save themselves (Augustinianism). 

The Bible speaks to this matter directly.  "We are dead in sins and transgressions,” (Ephesians 2:1).  We are by nature “children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3), we “do not seek God” (Romans 3:11), and like the leopard, “we cannot change our spots” (Jeremiah 13:23).  In fact, we cannot even come to God unless he first draws us to himself (John 6:44, 65).  How, then, can we say as our contemporaries do, that our salvation depends upon our choice, our willing, our efforts, even if God helps us do these things. 

Scripture is clear that the latter is not the case.  In the first chapter of John’s Gospel we read, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13).  And, as Paul says in Romans 9:16, “It does not, therefore, depend on man’s desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.”

We are fallen and enslaved in sin.  If God did not act first in our lives, no one would have any hope of heaven nor enjoy the comfort of eternal life.  Indeed, the wrath of God would still abide on us.  That is where Scripture begins when addressing the matter of sin and grace.  This is where the Canons begin as well.

All Israel Was Passing Over on Dry Ground -- Joshua 3:1-17

The Fourth in a Series of Sermons on Joshua

In the history of every nation, there are those defining moments which give that nation its character and which determine the course of its future.  Israel’s crossing of the Jordan River is certainly one such event.  From the days of Abraham–some four hundred years earlier–the promise of dwelling in the land of Canaan had been the dream of every Israelite since.  Having been delivered from their bondage in Egypt, the people of God have spent the last forty years in the wilderness, waiting for this glorious day to come.  In terms of the course of redemptive history, Israel’s crossing over the Jordan River into the land of Canaan is on a par with the crossing of the Red Sea.  Crossing the river into Canaan changes everything.  In this event, we see God working mighty wonders, fulfilling his covenant promises, and setting the future course for his people.  Israel will now enter Canaan as a great nation, about to inherit that land God had given them.  And all the inhabitants of Canaan are terrified, because they know that Israel’s God is the LORD and that he will give his people the land he has promised them.  

As we continue our series on the Book of Joshua, we now come to Joshua chapters 3-4, which describe a monumental event in Israel’s history, that day when God’s people cross the Jordan River and enter the land of promise.  Because of the importance of this day in Israel’s history, Joshua covers this material in substantial detail.  In chapter 3, Joshua describes the events associated with the preparation for the crossing (the topic for this sermon).  And then in chapter 4, Joshua recounts the building of a memorial to commemorate the crossing and the entrance into the promised land (the subject of our sermon next time).

As we have seen, the people of Israel are camped at Shittim on the plains of Moab eagerly expecting the news which they have waited so long to hear.  In chapter 1, Joshua issued the command for the people to spend three days in preparation for crossing the river.  The officers then went through the camp and spread the word among the people.  There can be no doubt that everyone was excited and filled with anticipation.  Joshua also used this three days to gather intelligence upon the land around Jericho as well as the morale of its inhabitants.  As we saw in chapter two, Joshua sent two spies into Jericho to gather this important information.  Aided by Rahab–a Canaanite prostitute who lived in the city and who hid the two spies from her own king, who had discovered that the two spies were in the city–the spies had reported back to Joshua that the people of Jericho were terrified of YHWH and that they were well aware of YHWH’s promise to give Israel the land of Canaan.  Everything was falling into place just as God had promised.  Israel was ready to move, and the Canaanites will melt away before the Israelite advance.

To read the rest of this sermon, click here

An Interesting Question

David Neal asks an interesting and important question:

"When are reformed writers going to start writing books in language that the average person can understand. They are plenty of good books out there on eschatology but I can't give many to may friends because they are over their heads. It seems to me if the message is going to get out, it is going to have to be understood. I am speaking for myself also. It seems to me we should be trying to reach the masses."

David, as someone who has written extensively on this subject, let me address some of the reasons why books on eschatology tend to be difficult.  Then, I'd like some feedback from regular readers of this blog on a couple of things (see below).

First, most of us who write on eschatology do so because there are already many books written on the subject expressing nutty or erroneous ideas which demand a response.  Most writers take the sensationalist approach and attempt to tie current events directly to the Bible.  These books tend to be the easiest to understand because they appeal to recent headlines.  But such writers mistakenly come to the Bible looking for evidence that the latest headline can be explained by Scripture.  They tend to avoid the hard work of comparing Scripture with Scripture and then developing a comprehensive picture what Scripture itself says about the course of history in light of God's gracious promises. 

Other writers begin with a number of faulty presuppositions which color everything they say or do when they write about end times (i.e., dispensationalists). My published writings are addressed to those Christians who have already read much of this stuff and who want to consider other (and I would argue, more biblical) options.  This means that I am writing books for people who already know the lingo and who already have some basic understanding of the issues.

Second, not everything in the Bible is easy to understand.  On the one hand, biblical eschatology is as simple as "Jesus Christ is coming again to judge the world, raise the dead and make all things new."  We could stop right there.  But you know that Scripture itself doesn't stop at this simple confession.  Jesus speaks of the future  in difficult ways (especially in the Olivet Discourse).  Paul speaks of the future (especially in his two letters to the church of Thessalonica).  Peter speaks of the end of the world in the third chapter of his second letter.  And then there is the Book of Revelation.  This is not an easy book to understand.  The structure of the book is complicated--it is an epistle, it contains prophecies and it utilizes a difficult literary genre, apocalyptic.  This means the subject of eschatology as presented in the Bible itself is difficult and requires careful thought and biblical exegesis.

Third, there are some basic resources on this topic which you might consider.  You can start with the helpful charters prepared by Mark Vander Pol (Click here: Riddleblog - Eschatology Charts).  There are introductory articles by others (Click here: Riddleblog - Links to Helpful Books, Essays, and Charts, as well as stuff I have written (Click here: Riddleblog - Theological Essays -- scroll down to the essay, "What's A Thousand Years Among Friends."  You can also read my sermons on Revelation (Click here: Riddleblog - Sermons on the Book of Revelation (pdf)

Fourth, I would simply ask you, "do you have a hobby, or any other special interests?"  "Do you have a specialized vocabulary at work?"  If you can say  "yes" to any of these, I would challenge you to realize something already obvious--virtually all aspects of life require that we learn technical terms or a specialized vocabulary.  Why shouldn't Christians be willing to learn the language of the Bible and theological discourse?  If you have watched enough baseball to understand the "infield fly rule," or enough football to understand the "fair-catch signal" on a punt, then you've invested enough time and energy on these things as it would take to master the biblical and theological terms required to understand most books on eschatology, including mine. 

Fifth, it is my experience that Reformed amillennialism is much simpler (conceptually) than is dispensationalism.  Part of the problem is that Reformed Christians speak about things (especially eschatology) in ways quite different from most evangelicals.  I found Reformed amillennialism tough at first because I was raised a disepnsationalist and it just sounded "different."  In a sense, I had to unlearn the eschatology of my youth, and then learn a whole new Christ-centered hermeneutic and a new approach to reading Scripture.  And yes, this is a lot of work!  And it took some time and effort.  But it was well worth it when huge portions of the Bible suddenly came alive for me.

Now, for those who regular readers, is there be any genuine interest in (or is there a real need for) a series on this blog entitled something like "Amillennialism 101" in which I would explain the basic terms and set out the primary biblical evidence for Reformed Amillennialism? 

This would be done in a very simple and non-polemical format.  If there is a need for this, I'd be willing to tackle it.  But don't just say "yes" unless there is truly a need.  What things should be included?  What format would be the most useful? Mr. Neal makes an important point in this regard and there may be some good ways to address it.

Let me know what you think in the comments section. 

Who Said That?

"The descendants of those who crucified Christ... have taken ownership of the riches of the world, a minority has taken ownership of the gold of the world, the silver, the minerals, water, the good lands, petrol, wells, the riches, and they have concentrated the riches in a small number of hands."

Leave your guess in the comments section below.  Please no google searches! 

Update on Sunday, December 2, 2007 at 07:20PM by Kim Riddlebarger

Its no surprise that our socialist/communist neighbor to the south, Hugo Chavez, would buy into the Jewish conspiracy theory nonsense.  After all, Ahmadinejad is his best buddy these days.  If socialists like Chavez can't control it, tax it into oblivion, or nationalize it, then they blame someone else for their failure.

More Interesting Links

Lee Irons has an insightful discussion of John M. G. Barkclay's response to N. T. Wright's understanding of Paul and Empire (two parts).  Click here: The Upper Register Blog

Ron Paul is probably not happy about this endorsement!  Click here: FOXNews.com - 'BunnyRanch' Brothel Owner Endorses Underdog GOP Candidate Ron Paul - Politics | Republican Party |

Has the gospel gone "green" at your church.  Stay tuned, this might explain the funny light bulbs and the recycling center in the narthex!  Click here: More churches preaching 'environmental gospel' (OneNewsNow.com)

You might say the Kentucky creation museum is "evolving."   Click here: Kentucky's Creation Museum expanding - USATODAY.com

Remember Ron Popeil?  If you don't, here are eleven of his essential inventions including the Veg-O-Matic and the Pocket Fisherman.  Click here: Howstuffworks "11 Items Sold by Ron Popeil"

I'll bet you didn't know there were two "White Horse Medias."  The other one thinks the USA is the beast of Revelation 13.  Click here: Pentagon and Senate Report from Steve Wohlberg

New Book from Horton, Godfrey, Riddlebarger, Venema, Hyde, et al

Rev. Michael Brown (pastor of Christ United Reformed Church of Santee, and Mike Horton's pastor) has put together a fine collection of essays for deacons and elders.

Here's the description from the editor:

Called to Serve is a book designed to help train and equip elders and deacons for their task as officers in Christ's church. It is the work of twelve authors, including Michael Horton, W. Robert Godfrey, Kim Riddlebarger, Cornelis Venema, and Danny Hyde. There are chapters on the nature, duties, and spiritual life of elders and deacons, why elders must know, love, and defend sound doctrine, how elders should oversee the minister's administration of sacraments and maintain its purity, church discipline, family visitation, diaconal ministry, how an elders' meeting functions, etc. There is also an appendix that outlines a ten-week training course for elders and deacons that can be used as a training course for potential new officers or as a refresher course for those already serving in office. 

For more information about the book, Click here: pilgrim people-christ urc-reformed - the latest post

To order, Click here: Amazon.com: Called to Serve: Essays for Elders and Deacons: Books: Michael Brown

Through the Obedience of the One -- Romans 5:12-21

The Twelfth in a Series of Sermons on Paul's Epistle to the Romans

Earlier in Romans, Paul spoke about the gravity of human sin and its impact upon the human race.  Paul’s assessment of the human condition is bleak: “there is no one righteous, no not one.  All have turned away.”  But Paul has also spoken of the way in which ungodly sinners (including Jew and Gentile) are delivered from their sins through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  In Romans 5:12-21, Paul will deal with the source of human sin (Adam) as well as contrast Adam with that one who undid the consequences of Adam’s sin (Jesus Christ–the second Adam).

If the first eleven verses of Romans 5 were packed with important theological terms, the last ten verses of Romans 5 deal with two of the key figures in the drama of redemption–the first of the human race and the savior of the human race.  The first man, Adam, is both the biological as well as the federal head of the human race and our representative before God.  Adam served in both of these capacities during a time of probation in Eden under terms of the covenant of works.  In Genesis 3 (our Old Testament lesson) we read of how Adam’s probation turned out–not very well.  As the Puritans used to say “in Adam’s fall, sinned we all.”

But death is not the final word for God’s people.  Where sin abounds, grace super-abounds!  As the second Adam, Jesus Christ stands as the living head and federal representative of all those redeemed and justified, all those whom the father had chosen in Christ, and for whom he performs his priestly work.  Throughout Romans 5:12-21, Jesus is depicted by Paul as the second Adam, whose perfect obedience unto death (unlike the disobedience of the first Adam), effectively overturns the sentence of death which now hangs over the human race as a result of Adam’s fall into sin.

While this is a very important passage, doctrinally speaking, it is also one of the most widely interpreted.  The key point is the meaning of the phrase in verse 12, “because all sinned.”  A brief word about the structure of the passage and the subsequent history of its interpretation is necessary.  The main point of contention can be seen by looking at any modern English translation of this passage.  Verse 12 ends with a dash, indicating that Paul breaks off in mid-thought in verses 13-17 to explain what he just said.  It is not until verse 18 that Paul returns to and completes the thought broken off in mid-sentence in verse 12.  Keeping this in mind is important to understand the passage correctly. 

To read the rest of this sermon, click here