Tonight's Academy Class

Ken Samples continues his Academy series "Learning Skills 101: Learning How to Learn." 

You are invited to join us tonight (November 20 @ 7:30 p.m.) at Christ Reformed Church when Ken will be lecturing on "Logical Fallacies, Part 1."

As always, there will be refreshments and a time for question and answers following the lecture.

For more information, click here, http://www.christreformed.org/

Christianity Today Interviews Mike Horton

There's a  great interview of Mike Horton by Mark Galli in the latest Christianity Today covering Michael's two newest books, Christless Christianity and the Gospel-Driven Life:  Click here

There's even a Bible study based on Mike's books at the end of the article.  Click here

What on earth is the world coming to?  John Frame doesn't like Mike's Christless Christianity, but CT gives Mike a major plug?????

"If We Walk in the Light" -- 1 John 1:5-2:2

The Second in a Series of Sermons on John's Epistles

Imagine stumbling through life in complete darkness, not knowing where you are going, and unable to avoid danger or disaster.  For the Apostle John, walking in darkness is a powerful metaphor depicting the fate of those apart from Christ–forced to live as slaves to sin, in complete ignorance to the things of God, and at the mercy of false teachers who claimed to be “enlightened,” but who are completely in the dark about the things of the Lord.  As John opens this epistle, he reminds us that God is light, and because we have eternal life, we walk in the light of God’s revelation of himself in the person of Jesus Christ, the word of life made manifest in the flesh.

We return to our series on the Epistles of John.  As we saw last time, the three epistles we know as 1st, 2nd, and 3rd John were written by the Apostle John, who is also the author of the Gospel bearing his name.  We know this to be the case based upon the grammar and style of these epistles, which repeatedly allude to, or are dependent upon, the gospel of John.  As I mentioned last time, it is highly probably that these epistles were written after John had completed his gospel.  Christian tradition tells us that John had fled Jerusalem at some point before the destruction of the city in 70 A.D., eventually relocating to Ephesus, where it is believed that he lived well into old age, dying during the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan.  Since I spent a fair amount of time on background material last time, I would ask you to consider the previous sermon so as to understand the situation in which these epistles were written.  

Since we are covering new ground, it is important to briefly recap John’s purpose in writing before we work through our text.  Based upon the content of these epistles it is reasonable to conclude that they were written for the purpose of explaining and elaborating upon themes within John’s gospel, as well as to correct the errors of various false teachers who were distorting things John had stated earlier.  This will become clear shortly when we come to verses 6-2:1, in which John responds to a series of errors being taught by those who departed from the faith.  

Like the Book of James, John’s first epistle is probably a sermon of sorts in which John proclaims to us that Jesus is God manifest in the flesh, who came to earth to bring the word of life.  At many points, John simply sets out the truth regarding the person and work of Christ in full confidence that the truth will cast out all error.  At the heart of this truth is the fact that Jesus is God manifest in human flesh who came to save us from our sins.  This is the light of the gospel, and those who know and understand Christ’s person and work will walk in that light.  Walking in the light means repenting of our sins, loving our brothers and sisters, and living confidently in the hope of eternal life.

To read the rest of this sermon:  Click here

Samples and I Have "Issues"

Ken Samples and I were both guests on "Issues, Etc." yesterday.

Ken discussed the Vatican's recent (and rather surprising) interest in extra-terrestrial life:  Click here

I was on to discuss Jerome's and Augustine's response to the fall of Rome, and the lessons to be learned from their differing reactions.  Click here

A Letter from a Martyr

Wes Bredenhof recently posted a portion of Guido de Bres' letter to his mother, written shortly before his execution in May of 1567 (http://www.bredenhof.ca/).

This is a very moving and encouraging letter, especially when we consider that de Bres was imprisoned under the worst of conditions (in the sewage of the prison).  But as he wrote to his mother, de Bres seems to bask in the assurance of his salvation and the hope of the resurrection.  No doubt, this is what Tertullian meant when he said that the that "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church."

For background, here's Rev. Bredenhof's discussion of de Bres's martyrdom, followed by the first portion of de Bres' letter to his mother.

http://ia311027.us.archive.org/1/items/BredenhofArticles1/TheMartyrdomOfGuidoDeBres.pdf

http://ia341335.us.archive.org/0/items/HeartAflame/HeartAflame.pdf

Thanks Wes, for posting this wonderful letter!

Who Said That?

"The being described in his 5 points is not the God whom you and I acknowledge and adore, the Creator and benevolent governor of the world; but a demon of malignant spirit.  It would be more pardonable to believe in no god at all, than to blaspheme him by the atrocious attributes of Calvin."

You know the drill.  Leave your guess in the comments section below.  Please, no google searches or cheating.  Answer to follow next week.

Update on Saturday, November 14, 2009 at 08:58AM by Kim Riddlebarger

This is taken from Thomas Jefferson's letter to John Adams on April 11, 1823

Audio from Friday's Academy Lecture Posted

Here's the audio from Ken's Academy 
lecture (11/13/09) "Intelligent Reading 6 
/ Intro to Logic 2:  Learning How to 
Learn - Part 6"
Click here

This Week's White Horse Inn

Is Living Like Jesus Enough?

Some postmodern Christians have begun to argue that what we believe is not as important as what we do, and that Christianity is primarily about "living like Jesus." But are good works enough? Don't we have to believe something? On this edition of the program the host discuss this issue with Michael Wittmer, author of Don't Stop Believing: Why Living Like Jesus is Not Enough.

http://www.whitehorseinn.org/

Tonight's Academy Lecture -- "Learning How to Learn"

Join us tonight (November 13) at 7:30 p.m. when Professor Kenneth Samples continues the Academy series entitled “Learning Skills 101: Learning How To Learn (Part 6)”

The Study Skills 101: Learning How To Learn class is specifically offered to help believers sharpen their thinking, reading, and speaking skills. This course can be directly helpful to teachers, parents (especially homeschool parents), and students, particularly adult students who want to engage in a lifelong journey of intellectual discovery and learning. This class can serve as a fun and challenging opportunity to clear the mental cobwebs that too often accumulate with the passage of time and age. All educational levels can benefit from the content of this class. Come and learn the enduring insights of famed philosopher and educator Mortimer J. Adler by studying his best selling work How to Read a Book. -- Professor Kenneth Samples.

Textbooks: How to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren and A World of Difference by Kenneth Samples

Instructor: Professor Kenneth Samples, Senior Scholar of Apologetics at Reasons to Believe, Adult Education Instructor at Christ Reformed Church, Anaheim.

B. B. Warfield on Faith, Reason and the Holy Spirit

(From chapter seven of my dissertation, The Lion of Princeton)   

In the forward to fellow Presbyterian Francis Beattie's book Apologetics:  or the Rational Vindication of Christianity, Warfield, ironically, if not prophetically, anticipated much of the criticism which would be leveled at him by those who are in many ways his direct theological descendants.  It is primarily based upon Warfield's remarks about reason in this essay that many of his critics have reached their negative assessment about Warfield's apologetic.  A brief evaluation of Warfield's essay will be extremely helpful in determining many of Warfield's own views on these matters, since Warfield specifically discusses several of the issues under debate.

Lamenting the twin enemies of rationalism and mysticism, Warfield notes,

The mystical tendency is showing itself in our day most markedly in a wide-spread inclination to decline Apologetics in favor of the so-called testimonium Spiritus Sancti.  The convictions of the Christian man we are told, are not the product of reasons addressed to the intellect, but are the immediate creation of the Holy Spirit in his heart.  Therefore, it is intimated, we can not only do very well without these reasons, but it is something very like sacrilege to attend to them.  Apologetics, accordingly, is not merely useless, but may even become noxious, because tending to substitute a barren intellectualism for a vital faith.

Many of these same charges have been leveled against Warfield himself.

Quickly dismissing the rationalists, since what they need is "not less Apologetics but more Apologetics," Warfield indeed seems quite perplexed about the role of apologetics proposed in the Encyclopedia of Sacred Theology, recently published by Abraham Kuyper.  There are two primary issues about which Warfield takes issue with his esteemed Dutch friend.  First, Warfield is concerned that Kuyper has adopted a "mystical" conception of apologetics, which in effect, results in the practical depreciation of apologetics altogether.  Second, Warfield is concerned that Kuyper's understanding of theological encyclopedia is unduly confused, and may in fact, amount to a departure from historic Reformed practice. 

To read the rest of this essay, click here