Preparing for my last sermon, I found some choice quotes from Calvin on submitting to traditions. (These are from the Institutes 3.19.7-11, with tiny modifications for readability). We are not bound before God to any observance of external things which are in themselves indifferent (“adiafora”), but that we are now at full liberty either to … Continue reading »
Tagged with books …
Blog Problems
I tried to upgrade this blog to WordPress 3.2 and ran into various difficulties. After a little bit of effort, it seems to be back up and running again. If history is any guide, however, there will be glitches I’ll need to iron out over the next few days. So be patient. Thanks.
Early Christmas Present
I got this because it was almost as cheap as Dogmatics in Outline. We’ll see how much of it I actually read. With advances in medicine, I figure I have at least 40 years, which would be only 16 pages a month: a veritable walk in the park. Darrell Guder says this is the older … Continue reading »
Radical Reformission
I just finished reading Mark Driscoll’s Radical Reformission. He’s right on about the missional character of the church and some of the things that prevent us from being faithful to that calling. It’s also very enjoyable reading. The problem with my pastoral job is that I don’t really know what I’m doing. So I read … Continue reading »
Do the Dead Grieve?
Reading C. S. Lewis, I was struck by this thought: If, as I can’t help suspecting, the dead also feel the pains of separation (and this may be one of their purgatorial sufferings), then for both lovers, and for all pairs of lovers without exception, bereavement is a universal and integral part of our experience … Continue reading »
Dealing with the Devil
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”—John 10:10 As a rule, Presbyterians don’t talk much about the devil. But this month, we’re going to begin reading C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters in the pastor’s Bible study. The book imagines a correspondence between … Continue reading »
Interviews with N.T.Wright
The Presbytery next door had a pastor’s retreat with N.T. Wright as a guest speaker. Great chunks (all?) of his talks are now on YouTube at LRPtv (Los Ranchos Presbytery TV). If you’ve never heard of Wright, you owe it to yourself to listen to some of these.
Mechanical Bible Study
On a lark, I just posted an item about a search I did for all the verses in the New Testament that matched certain criteria. I’m posting this note because it might not be obvious that I’m aware of some dangers inherent in a too-mechanical study of the Bible. First, as I considered the problem, … Continue reading »
Read and Comment
From Dallas Willard’s The Divine Conspiracy: The “real” world has little room for a God of sparrows and children. To it, Jesus can only seem “otherworldly” — a good-hearted person out of touch with reality. Yes, it must be admitted that he is influential, but only because he affirms what weak-minded and fainthearted individuals fantasize … Continue reading »
First Entry
Hey. I’ve set up a blog for the church website. Let’s see where we go from here. Update: and now I’m able to access it from my blogging tool.