My Christmas Custom

One of things I love to do as Christmas approaches, is to wait until no one is home, crank up Handel's Messiah on my stereo, and read the Scripture texts as they unfold throughout the three parts of the oratorio.  I can't sing worth a hoot and don't even try.  I wouldn't (and didn't) make a very good charismatic.  But Handel's Messiah just does me in . . .  I keep thinking throughout that this is only a very faint foretaste of the heavenly choir!

You can listen to a great live performance of the Messiah here:  Click here: Handel's 'Messiah' from Philadelphia : NPR Music

Here's a list of the Scripture texts from the 53 sections:  Click here: Worship Map Lyrics:Handel's Messiah (text)

Mike Horton in USA Today

When USA Today wants to know "where is Christ in Christmas?" they know who to ask!

"Horton blames Christians themselves for taking the Christ out of Christmas. `Secularism cannot be blamed on the secularists, many of whom were raised in the church. We are the problem,' he says."

To read the article, Click here: Where is Christ in Christmas? - USATODAY.com

Had It With Government Bureaucrats?

I'm OK with rendering unto Caesar (well, sort of).  After all, Jesus commanded us to do so.  But at times Caesar can be so dim-witted, ham-fisted, and just plain difficult to work with.  How many enjoyable experiences have you had at the DMV, the Social Security administration, or at the tax-assessor's little shop of horrors?  Here's the ultimate way to render unto Caesar, and yet protest his overbearing ways at the same time--pay with coins!  Frank Alford is my new hero!  I can't wait for my next trip to the DMV!  But I've got some coin rolling to do first. . .   Click here: Man Pays $21K Property Taxes In Coins - Money News Story - WFTV Orlando

Here's the story of yet another public-school parent protesting the use of religious music during the "winter holiday" program at the local elementary school.  The problem--the parent is protesting the songs which mention Rudolph and Santa because they are overtly "religious."  What????  Click here: School board reinstates Rudolph, Santa | StarNewsOnline.com | Star-News | Wilmington, NC

Some Anglicans are quite upset about the church's efforts to evangelize Muslims.  That's probably a good indication that those Anglicans who worry about such things are in need of evangelization themselves.  Click here: Church of England to debate whether Christians should try to convert Muslims - Telegraph

Times are tough.  So, church attendance is up.  Click here: Bad Times Draw Bigger Crowds to Churches - NYTimes.com

The Canons of Dort, Second Head of Doctrine, Refutation of Errors, Article Seven

Synod condemns the error of those . . .

VII Who teach that Christ neither could die, nor had to die, nor did die for those whom God so dearly loved and chose to eternal life, since such people do not need the death of Christ.

For they contradict the apostle, who says: Christ loved me and gave himself up for me (Gal. 2:20), and likewise: Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? It is Christ who died, that is, for them (Rom. 8:33-34). They also contradict the Savior, who asserts: I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:15), and My command is this: Love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends (John 15:12-13).
__________________________

As the authors of the Canons conclude the second head of doctrine (which deals with the death of Christ), they make the point that the Arminian error regarding the cross is most easily and effectively refuted by simply looking at those biblical texts which explicitly teach that Jesus Christ died for specific individuals.

Remember that for the Arminian, Jesus Christ did not need to die to satisfy God’s justice.  Accordingly, he did not die for specific sinners, but only potentially for everyone in a general and non-effectual sense.  As we have seen, the Arminian scheme is completely arbitrary, since Christ's redemptive work is not about satisfying the retributive justice of God, but is instead a demonstration of God’s moral governance of the universe and love for sinners.  The cross was not a necessity, but the result of God’s arbitrary decision to save in this manner.  This means that Jesus does not die for the elect so as to satisfy God’s wrath towards them and to secure their salvation (as taught by the Reformed).  Rather, Jesus dies to make everyone savable upon the condition of the exercise of their wills, as manifest in their personal faith in Christ.

The "indefinite" atonement of the Arminians is easily refuted when we look at what the Scriptures teach and as summarized by the Canons:  “Christ loved me and gave himself up for me (Gal. 2:20), and likewise: Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? It is Christ who died, that is, for them (Rom. 8:33-34). They also contradict the Savior, who asserts: I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:15), and My command is this: Love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends (John 15:12-13).”

What more can be said?

God, UFOs and Darwin

A new Harris Poll reinforces what we knew all along. When it comes to religion, Americans profess to believe orthodox Christian doctrine--but only to a point.  Upon closer inspection, many of those polled are as superstitious and ill-informed as we feared. (Click here: Washington Times - Beliefs in God, UFOs prevail).

Here are some of the results:

"Overall, more people believe in the devil, hell and angels than believe in Darwin´s theory of evolution."

"80 percent say they believe in God; among those who attend church weekly, the number is 98 percent."  Makes you wonder about the 2% who don't believe in God but go to church anyway!

"Three-quarters believe in miracles, 73 percent believe in heaven, 71 percent say Jesus is the Son of God and 71 percent believe in angels."

Seven out of 10 say Jesus Christ rose from the dead and that the Bible is, all or in part, the "Word of God."  That's higher than I would have guessed.

"More than two-thirds - 68 percent - believe in the `survival of the soul after death' and would describe themselves as religious.  About 62 percent think that hell exists, 61 percent believe in the Virgin Birth and 59 percent say the devil exists."

"Fewer than half - 47 percent - said they believe in Darwin's theory of evolution; a third said they did not believe in it while 22 percent were not sure what they thought.  A full 40 percent said they believe in creationism, though the question did not elaborate on exactly what that term meant."  Again, I am a bit surprised by the fact that fewer than half of those polled believe in evolution.

"44 percent of the respondents said they believe in ghosts, 36 percent say UFOs are real while 31 percent believe in both witches and astrology.  About a quarter believe in reincarnation, or `that you were once another person.'"  This gives me pause when you consider that a whole bunch of people who profess to believe in the deity of Christ and his resurrection, also believe in ghosts and UFOs.

America is a very weird place when it comes to religion.

The Caves of Cappadocia

Here's a very interesting look at the caves of Cappadocia (in Turkey), where Christians hid during times of great persecution. This is amazing.  But it would be a real bummer if you had claustrophobia and had to live in such a place for days on end. Click here: Derinkuyu, the mysterious underground city of Turkey | Corner Mystery

This photo essay of aging celebrities is a powerful reminder of our fallen nature and how life in the fast lane takes a toll.  I think it is time for Tom Jones and Tina Turner to retire.  Click here: Aging disgracefully | Metromix South Florida

According to funeral homes, the new craze is to be buried with your iPod or cell-phone.  It seems to me that one the great blessings in being absent from the body and present with the Lord is to finally be rid of such things.  Click here: Bury me with my cell phone - Computers- msnbc.com

The cat did it.  And it wasn't an accident.  Click here: Man: Cat shot me by mistake - UPI.com

"The Hand of the LORD" -- Judges 3:12-30

The Sixth in a Series of Sermons on the Book of Judges

You have probably heard me say that the Bible is an “earthy” book. I say this because of passages like the one before us. When we read the account of Ehud–the shifty left-handed assassin–and Eglon–the obese bad guy–it becomes clear that we can’t expect the Bible to conform to the socially accepted standards of Victorian England. To the prudish Victorian’s chagrin, the Bible describes bodily functions, it depicts all kinds of sinful behavior (including sexual behavior) and the Bible makes no bones about how foolish and sinful people can be. In the very “earthy” passage we are covering this Lord’s Day, the author of Judges takes delight in poking fun at Eglon’s weight and even describes a crowd of people waiting outside the toilet while Eglon relieves himself. The Bible doesn’t tell us these things to entertain us or make us laugh. The Bible (in this case the author of Judges) describes what really happened in the days of Ehud–one of the judges whom God raised up to rescue Israel from their enemies. That said, what did happen is funny, and the author of Judges intentionally uses this humor to make an important theological point. God will rescue his people in the most surprising and mysterious of ways. And human behavior, while sinful, is often times so foolish as to be funny.

We resume our series on the Book of Judges. Last time, we covered the bare-bones account of Othniel in Judges 3:7-11. Othniel was a man whom God raised up to rescue Israel from eight years of oppression at the hands of Cushan-rishathaim, king of Mesopotamia. In that very brief account, there are virtually no details given about what happened. We are only told that when YHWH called Othniel to rescue Israel from king “double-evil” from the east, YHWH placed his Spirit upon Othniel, who was then empowered to led Israel to victory over their enemy. That victory over Cushan-rishathaim, ensured that Israel would have forty years of peace. But even in this short report of Othniel, we see the familiar pattern found throughout this section of Judges. Israel turns away from YHWH and so YHWH sends an oppressor. The people of God then cry out to YHWH for help, before YHWH has pity on his people and sends them a rescuer (deliverer, judge), who then defeats those oppressing Israel. The outcome is that Israel enjoys a time of peace, before the whole process repeats itself.

But unlike the account of Othniel, our passage for this Lord’s day is replete with all kinds of interesting information–in fact, there may be too much information here. We learn that YHWH’s chosen deliverer is an assassin named Ehud, who is distinguished because he is “left-handed.” This is significant, because if you were to look up “right hand” in a concordance, you’ll find a significant number of references to God’s “right-hand” which he is said to stretch out, the symbol of his might and power. But Ehud, Israel’s unlikely deliverer, is left-handed. In fact, as one writer tells us, this whole account of Israel’s second judge is “left-handed,” meaning that what happens in this passage is totally unexpected, especially if we contrast this account with the earlier business-like account of Othniel which had no similar details.

To read the rest of this sermon, click here

Horton Has Issues -- Again!

Mike Horton was on "Issues, Etc." yesterday, discussing his new book, Christless Christianity.

Here's the link: http://www.issuesetc.org/podcast/Show122121608H2.mp3

A Great Essay from Mike Horton

Here's the link to Michael's essay, "To Be or Not To Be: The Uneasy Relationship between Reformed Christianity and American Evangelicalism"

Click here: Modern Reformation - Articles

Two Kingdom Confusion? I'll Say!

Here's a classic case of what we mean when we speak of confusing the two kingdoms (the kingdom of Christ, and the civil kingdom).