Halloween…A Rather Informed Read
Sally Thomas over at First Things has an excellent post on participating in Halloween entitled “The Drama of Hallomas”, which I highly recommend. You may not agree with her particular applications, but it’s historically and practically informed!
As a friend of mine observed recently, there is something medieval about Halloween. The masks, the running around in the dark, the flicker of candles in pumpkins, the smell of leaves and cold air—all of it feels ancient, even primal, somehow. Despite the now-inevitable preponderance of media-inspired costumes, Halloween seems, in execution, far closer to a Last Judgment scene above a medieval church door, or to a mystery play, than it does to Wal-Mart. . . . Read the whole thing
God’s Providence
Kevin DeYoung has a fine post on God’s providential care and the practical implications of it.
After listing numerous passages for supporting God’s meticulous hand in all things, DeYoung admonishes us to “move past merely tolerating God’s sovereignty to joyously embracing it. If God’s providence is found so often in the Bible that its truth is unavoidable, maybe God doesn’t mean for us to hate it.”
I don’t know about you, but I’ve spent a lot of cycles not embracing the things that I know to be true about God’s providence. For example, I know in my head that: [Read on...]
What if…
What if our churches, instead of spending so much time on so many skits and props and lighting, and audio, and…, we instead challenged God’s people to memorize and dramatically recite Scripture before the congregation?
Listen as this man proclaims God’s Word and immerse yourself in holy entertainment!
Introducing…
Dr. Eleonore Stump, Robert J. Henle Professor of Philosophy at St. Louis University, one of my favorite contemporary philosophers. With specialties in medieval and Thomistic philosophy and philosophy of religion, Dr. Stump has made significant contributions to Christian philosophy.
I highly recommend her tender and profoundly moving paper “The Mirror of Evil”, in God and the Philosophers, Thomas Morris (ed.), (Oxford University Press, 1994) pp. 235-247.
Learn more by browsing to Dr. Stump’s online papers section, which contains a wealth of outstanding philosophy.
On Women in Ministry
Ben Witherington has a fine, high-level post on why women should be allowed every opportunity in the Church based upon their giftedness and not excluded solely because of gender.
See his Why Arguments against Women in Ministry Aren’t Biblical.
Needless to say and for the record, I’m a full-blown biblical egalitarian but do not see this as a show stopper for where or how I worship.
Have You Heard the One about … ?
I’m sure you’ve probably heard this joke, but I find it rather revealing. It goes something like this:
A man finds himself in rising waters up to his waist with no way out. Suddenly a boat approaches and a lifeline is thrown to him. The people on board yell out “Grab the lifeline, we’ll save you!” The man at risk responds “It’s okay; I’m trusting God!” The boat retreats. As the waters rise just above neck line, the victim feeling desperate hears a helicopter approaching and soon another lifeline is offered to him from above. The people in the helicopter yell out “Grab the lifeline, we’ll save you!” He responds, “It’s okay; I’m trusting God!” The helicopter withdraws, the waters rise and the flood waters overcome him. Immediately upon death, the man is caught up to heaven and storms into the throne room of God saying, “What happened, God!? I was trusting you to save me!” God responds, “I sent a boat and a helicopter.”
Cute. But this does say something about how God communicates to us in everyday life. [Read on...]
Blessed Be the Tie that Binds
In an earlier post, I mentioned originale peccatum (original sin) and offered some thoughts there.
Here I’d like to balance that out just a bit with this offering from John Calvin:
“There is within the human mind, and indeed by natural instinct, an awareness of divinity. This we take to be beyond controversy. To prevent anyone from taking refuge in the pretense of ignorance, God himself has implanted in all men a certain understanding of his divine majesty. . . . Men of sound judgment will always be sure that a sense of divinity which can never be effaced is engraved upon men’s minds. Indeed, the perversity of the impious, who though they struggle furiously are unable to extricate themselves from the fear of God, is abundant testimony that this conviction, namely, that there is some God, is naturally inborn in all, and is fixed deep within, as it were in the very marrow.”
from John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1960), 43, 45-46.
The Bible declares that humanity is created after the image and likeness of the Creator (Gen. 1:26). All humans are the created representation of God on earth. Though the image and likeness of God is undeniably tainted by sin, Scripture indicates that the imago Dei still remains after the Fall (Gen. 9:6; Rom. 2:14-15; 1 Cor. 11:7; Jm. 3:9). It is unlikely, therefore, that God’s image has been lost altogether due to sin. In all the creative work of God it is humanity alone who is made after the divine image. Hence, the imago Dei is what sets us apart from the rest of creation. Moreover, not only does sin bind everyone together, since all are sinners, so too does the fingerprint of our Maker unite us!
Surely this should make a difference in how we treat one another. What do you think?
We’re Going to be Parents… well sorta!
“The righteous care for the needs of their animals” (Proverbs 12:10).
Philip of Macedon, our beloved 5-yr old Manchester, will soon have a lifelong companion. Sometime the first week of December Ms. Phoebe of Thessaloniki will arrive. A huge thanks to our special breeders who take such care of these fine animals at Rustic Lane Manchester Terriers!
Are We Going to Die in Our Religion or Die in Our Devotion?
This is a tremendously moving and inspiring example of a passionate man immersed in God’s Word and sold out to God’s purposes. Please consider taking the time to listen. After quoting Scripture from memory for almost 5 minutes, the sermon begins at ~5:00. But do not skip ahead. Take in God’s Word and let it have its way with you!
David Platt: SBC Pastors Conference 2009 on Vimeo.
HT: Zac via e-mail
Ethiopia Now Has Two Less Orphans!
My good friends and family in Christ Xavier and Anne Pacheco have officially heard today they are the new parents of Yemisrach (Yemi) and Abenezer (Abe). 
Please join me in celebrating our God’s gracious hand in all the details getting these children to them!
