The Doctrine of Hell

Obviously, Hell is not a popular topic in our day and age. Yet, the man of God must be committed to preaching the whole scope of biblical revelation. How then is the Christian minister to do so? Is he to stutter and stammer and dance around the hard truth, like a popular preacher did so recently on a major primetime talk show? Or is he to adopt a "grip it and rip it" approach, and let the chips fall where they may? Or perhaps there is a third way.

Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, wrote an insightful article called Preaching Hell in a Tolerant Age. I think that he has much to say to us as we consider how to minister in a culture that rejects the doctrine. To read his article click here.

C.S. Lewis on Forgiveness

He writes:

"I find that when I am asking God to forgive me I am often in reality (unless I watch myself very carefully) asking Him to do something quite different. I am asking Him not to forgive me but to excuse me. But there is all the difference in the world between forgiving and excusing. Forgiveness says, 'Yes, you have done this thing, but I accept your apology; I will never hold it against you and everything between us two will be exactly as it was before.' But excusing says, 'I see that you couldn't help it or didn't mean it; you weren't really to blame.' If one was not really to blame then there is nothing to forgive. In that sense forgiveness and excusing are almost opposites...And if we forget this, we shall go away imaging that we have repented and been forgiven when all that has really happened is that we have satisfied ourselves with our own excuses. They may be very bad excuses; we are all too easily satisfied about ourselves."

It seems to me that this is the perpetual state of the American church. We are all too satisfied with ourselves. We see God as some cosmic grandpa who cares much for our satisfaction and little for our sin. We see Him as a constant Christmas of sorts. He is a never-ending train of gifts who expects us simply to "be good." God is a gigantic Santa Claus who smiles at us with his rosy, red cheeks and winks at our "tiny" indiscretions. That is honestly the state of a large number of Christians. Unfortunately, it is the state I am in many times.

It is only once we come to grips with what sin means to God, what a horrid offense it is to Him that we will truly behold His glory and grace. It is only then when we will understand forgiveness. When we realize that God has really forgiven us (for a truly inexcusable offense), that is when grace becomes truly amazing.

"They may be very bad excuses; we are all too easily satisfied about ourselves."

Are you BLIND???

I saw something funny yesterday at a fine eatery's drive-through. As I pulled up to the window to pay, I noticed that there was a sign there. It read: Braille and Picture Menus Available Upon Request. Now I realize it was a big sign, but two things struck me as rather odd. First and most obvious, why have a sign for a blind person? Second, why have this unusual sign in a drive-through?

Not really thought provoking I know, but I wanted to share it with you.

Wake Up!

Gentlemen, here is a post that truly will convict me the next time I get drowsy in Dr. Robinson's New Testament class. Dr. Mohler has written the first section of a three-part commentary on The Pastor as Theologian. Here's a brief excerpt from today's post, and I'm including a link to the whole article here.

The transformation of theology into an academic discipline more associated with the university than the church has been one of the most lamentable developments of the last several centuries. In the earliest eras of the church, and through the annals of Christian history, the central theologians of the church were its pastors. This was certainly true of the great Reformation of the sixteenth century as well. From the patristic era, we associate the discipline and stewardship of theology with names such as Athanasius, Irenaeus, and Augustine. Similarly, the great theologians of the Reformation were, in the main, pastors such as John Calvin and Martin Luther. Of course, their responsibilities often ranged beyond those of the average pastor, but they could not have conceived of the pastoral role without the essential stewardship of theology.

Let's give ourselves whole-heartedly once again to the difficult task of truly understanding God's Word!

Sola Scriptura!

Christ the Lord is Risen Today!

"But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said." Matt. 28:5-6

This is the reason for our joy and existence. Let us meditate on this today.

"Christ, the Lord, is risen today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once He died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia!

Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia!
Our triumphant holy day, Alleluia!
Who did once upon the cross, Alleluia!
Suffer to redeem our loss. Alleluia!"

Christ the Lord is Risen Today, Charles Wesley. 1739

Life After Seminary

My apologies, gentlemen, but this post is primarily for Ben Hames to answer. Ben, would you please give us a brief overview of your first year after seminary? Specifically, what unique joys and challenges has daily ministry life brought? Which ones did you expect and which caught you by surprise?

Ben, as you approach ordination exams with the presbytery, know that I am praying for you. Guys, if you do not know, this can be a very arduous experience, and so I encourage you all to give Ben concentrated focus during this time. I'm looking forward to hearing what you've got to say!

Open or Closed

What should we do at the communion of our Lord's Supper? Is it a time for a very exclusive, local body of believers? Or, is it a time to celebrate the unity of believers in Christ?

I would argue that the Lord's Supper table should be opened to all who have professed in Christ as Lord and Savior and are walking accordingly. There will be only one required at the marriage supper of the Lamb, faith in Christ as Lord and Savior. The Passover was a feast for all those who had faith in God. Closing the communion of believers (who have examined themselves) and God seems to place unnecessary stipulations on salvation. Maybe, I'm wrong. If I am, I'd like to know it.

Exclusive Brethren

My blogger friend, Matthew, over at Dyspraxic Fundamentalist, answers my questions about the practices and theology of the Exlusive Brethren, who are located in the motherland.

Libertarian Freedom Experiment

Ross,

I went over to thinkingdeeply.com and saw this post. I know what libertarian freedom is, but can you translate this for me?

"Benjamin Libet conducted a series of experiments that seem to undermine a libertarian view of free will. In Libet’s experiments, each subject was asked to form spontaneously an intention to wiggle his or her finger within a thirty second time interval. When the subject decisively formed the intention, he was instructed to note the time this occurs. While subjects were deciding when to wiggle their fingers, Libet was measuring the neural activity in each person. Libet discovered that a significant increase in neural activity typically preceded the reported time when the agent claimed to have formed the intention (on average by about 500 milliseconds). In other words, the physical causal nexus was well-established to guarantee the resultant action before the agent had decisively formed an intention to act in a certain way. The results of the experiment led Libet to conclude that a person’s feeling of willing was actually ineffectual to bringing about the intended action. Instead, Libet concluded that one’s experience of conscious willing is caused to occur by unconscious physical events. If this is so, then there seems to be scientific data that rules out the efficacy of a person’s will."

Thanks.

another gospel?

Another Gospel has been found! Well, actually it was found several years ago, but conveniently now just before Easter this Gnostic "Gospel of Judas" has been revealed to the public in a National Geographic news conference yesterday.This will be a topic of conversation with folks around us, especially with the Da Vinci Code movie coming out soon. To put it simply, the early church rejected these gospels (gospel of Thomas, gospel of Judas, etc) not because they didn't like what they said, but because they weren't true.

Here are some great resources to learn about the gospel of Judas and how we as Orthodox Christians need to respond to those who ask us about the text.

From Traitor to Hero? Responding to “The Gospel of Judas” -Al Mohler's commentary on the issue
The Gospel of Judas et. al. - part one Ben Witherington's blog on the issue

Broken Cisterns and a Broken Heart

In the spirit of confession and encouragement, I'd like to let you gentlemen in on some heart struggles I've been staggering through this week. For all of this week, and yes, even now, I've been experiencing a sense of hopelessness and dissatisfaction with life. I've loathed responsibility, both at work and with my academic coursework. A life of freedom and pleasure is what I've craved, but I've found that to be a mirage which only leads me further into the desert.

I've missed my wife this week (she's been in Arizona), but that is not the cause of it. Rather, I've allowed the temptation to total selfishness that comes with no responsibility to rule in my heart, and I've rejected the structured joy of living under the lordship of Jesus Christ. It's a frustrating paradox, isn't it? Seeking pleasure yet finding only misery!

God has not abandoned me, however, and his gospel promises remain true: I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Perhaps the most convicting and consequentially healing passage of Scripture God has shown me is from Jeremiah 2:12-13:

Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

The broken cisterns of selfishness and leisure have left me thirsty, but by God's grace, I am beginning to drink of the refreshing gospel of Christ. Be encouraged, brothers, and pray for me. I am grateful to our Lord for you all.

Tension

Today, as I sat in Ethics, I began to ponder something the teacher said. We were discussing capital punishment and our reaction to it as Christians. He said that believers live in a world that does not function as it ought to. As I allowed this thought to seep in and take root, I realized something that had been apparent to me for a long time. Christians will inextricably live lives of constant tension on this earth. Think about it.

Luther said it this way: simul iustus et peccator. We are simultaneously justified and sinner. This is a paradox. How can we be sinner and justified at the same time? In the same way, we are to love and desire justice and equally to love and give forgiveness. For example, a Christian juror should be equally saddened by handing down the verdict of guilty and sentencing to death and joyful about seeing justice accomplished. Almost all of the Christian life should be seen in this way. Think for a moment about the death of a saint (by that I mean simply a believer). We, as finite beings, see death as an end to our relationship with this world and all its entailments. It is a time when we mourn because we will no longer experience the fellowship of this loved one. However, Psalm 116:15 answers the question of the death of a believer in a different way. It says, "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." There is an obvious tension here. Listen to the words of Paul in his letter to the Philippians: "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account." Paul saw the benefits of both living and dying. He really grappled over the benefits of living and dying. We also ought to feel this tension in our lives. We ought to desire to depart and be with Christ, but at the same time, long to remain for the sake of Christ.

Romans 7 and 8 is the highlight of tension in the life of a believer. In Romans 7, we have the old and new man warring against one another. Both striving for victory, one having already conquered. However, the constant battle remains until I am glorified in Heaven with Christ. That old man will continuously knock on the door of my will seeking the smallest crack through which he can gain a foothold. The new man will have to be ever diligent in defending my heart and mind. You can almost hear the despair in Paul's words when he writes in 7:24, "Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" Paul sees this struggle very clearly, but he does not despair. He answers with Romans 8. Some would argue that this is the magnum opus of Paul's magnum opus. The tension we feel has been resolved Christ. That is why he can say: "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." All the tension of this life are conquered in Christ.

The whole point of this is to say that we should never be comfortable as Christians. We should be at odds with the world as it is because it is not as it should be. Comfort is the bed in which sin lies waiting. This is something I struggle with daily. I allow myself to be comfortable. Tension is a healthy thing. It causes to be aware and mindful. It ought to cause us to think biblically. It ought to cause us to long for Christ because that is the only place we will find true comfort. He is where all tensions end and where true peace begins.

Just some food for thought.

Postwhat?

A blog discussion on what it means to be "postreformed." I'm interested in Drew and Ben's opinion on this topic.

Monday Night

Sorry Michael. Looks like your team hit the skids. You can't be that upset about LSU losing though, can you? At least you made some sort of prediction and did not simply admit that you preferred watching women's tennis.

Prediction for Monday night: Gators by 6.