Category: theology

Nightline debate: Does Satan exist?

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Mark Driscoll, preaching pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seattle, will be one of the participants on tonight’s program. If you can’t stay up to watch, the program is also online. Here is how ABC promoted the event:

The devil — also known as Satan, Lucifer and Beelzebub — has become the primary antagonist in almost every major religion. He is seen as the rebel, a serpent and a fallen angel who tempts mortals into committing sin, and preys upon their despair. But does Satan really exist?

That question will be debated Friday, March 20, when “Nightline” tackles the controversial and sensitive issue in the third installment of the “Face-Off” series.

The “Nightline Face-Off” launched two years ago by asking the question “Does God Exist?” The Face-Off aired on ABCNews.com and more than 15,000 comments were posted on the Web site as viewers engaged in the debate.

The conversation will pick up with a debate on the devil in Seattle at the Mars Hill Church, moderated by Dan Harris, who covers faith issues for the network.

Watch the “Nightline Face-Off” Thursday, March 26, 2009, on ABCNews.com and at 11:35 p.m. on “Nightline”

 

Click on the image to go the Nightline site to see the program.
Click on the image to go the Nightline site to see the program.

ESV Online Study Bible to be sold by itself

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As a followup to yesterday’s post, Crossway Books has announced that it will be selling the ESV Online Study Bible as a standalone for $19.99. As you may recall, you can access the ESV Online Study Bible this month free of charge. It is also offered for free for those who purchased an ESV Study Bible in print. This standalone option is good way for those who would want to try it out without necessarily purchasing the print study Bible.

Why consider this? Here is what the Crossway Web site says:

ESV Online Study Bible provides additional unique features, including the ability to create personal online notes; to search and follow interactive links between notes, maps, articles, charts, timelines, illustrations, and cross-references; to listen to audio recordings of the ESV; and to access additional resources not available in the print edition.

Behold the Lamb of God, the precious wrath remover for all who believe

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There are three weeks until Easter, when we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his sin-atoning death on the cross outside of Jerusalem approximately 2,000 years ago. Let us not forget or slight the magnitude of what that death means for all of us. From John Piper, pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis:

[W]e see this precious wrath-removal in John 3:36: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (John 3:36). This means that when John says, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,” he doesn’t mean that every person in the world is saved. He means every person in the world—Jew or Gentile—will be saved if they believe in Jesus and follow him. If they believe, their sin has been taken away by the Lamb. If they believe, God’s wrath has been removed by the Lamb.

There is no race, no nationality, no ethnicity, no socio-economic status excluded. To as many as receive him, who believe on his name (John 1:12), their sins are taken away (John 1:29; 1 John 3:5) and the wrath of God is removed (John 3:36; 1 John 2:2) and they are made the children of God (John 1:12) and given eternal life (John 3:16).

The second coming of Christ: good news and bad news

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Since this is the season where we celebrate the first coming of Christ and his sacrificial death for sinners, we should also think about his second coming when it will be much different. You can reasonably say it will be both good news and bad news for everyone who has ever lived.

It will be good news for those who have trusted him with their life and have accepted his death as payment for their sins. We should eagerly look forward to it, for this world is not our final destination and as children of God we long to be with the one we belong to for eternity.

But, as John Piper points out, we should not be quick to believe rumors about his second coming:

Jesus is going to return to earth. I pray very soon. He said that before he comes—periodically throughout history—some people would think he has already come.

If they say to you, “Look, he is in the wilderness,” do not go out. If they say, “Look, he is in the inner rooms,” do not believe it. (Matthew 24:26)

Then he gave two reasons not to believe such rumors.

The first is that his coming will be globally unmistakable. It will be as publicly unmistakable as lightning.

For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. (Matthew 24:27)

And that brings us to the bad news. For those who don’t believe, it will be a terrible time of realization that all hope is gone:

The second reason for not believing these rumors is that he will come like vultures come on a corpse.

Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. (Matthew 24:28)

When the world is as ready for judgment as road kill is for the vultures, then he will come in great wrath.

The Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. (2 Thessalonians 1:7-8)

This will not be private, secret, or pleasant for unbelievers. He will come “on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30). And the judgment will be like vultures sweeping in on the corpse of human rebellion.

Who was John Calvin?

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This year marks the 500th anniversary of reformer John Calvin’s birth. To mark that anniversary, Reformation Trust has published a collection of essays from some of the top reformed teachers and pastors looking at Calvin’s life, ministry and teachings. The list of authors in the 20-chapter book is impressive:  Derek W. H. Thomas, Sinclair B. Ferguson, D. G. Hart, Harry L. Reeder, Steven J. Lawson, W. Robert Godfrey, Phillip R. Johnson, Eric J. Alexander, Thabiti Anyabwile, John MacArthur, Richard D. Phillips, Thomas K. Ascol, Keith A. Mathison, Jay E. Adams, Philip Graham Ryken, Michael Horton, Jerry Bridges, and Joel R. Beeke.

About the book, D.A. Carson says: “On the five-hundredth anniversary of John Calvin’s birth, it is utterly fitting that a book of essays should appear that is designed for ordinary Christians, not scholars. The scholars will have their conferences, of course, and rightly so, but here is a collection of essays that will inform and move ordinary readers to grasp something of the profound gift God gave to the church in the person and ministry—and especially the writings—of Calvin.”

Ligonier Ministries, of which Reformation Trust is a division, is selling the book as well as offering a sample chapter online. It would do anyone well to better understand a man who had a profound effect on church history and was probably one of the greatest Christian thinkers.

Time Magazine notices: There’s something about those Calvinists

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Time Magazine lists Calvinism — or rather, the “New Calvinism,” as it calls it — as one of the 10 Ideas Changing the World Now. It comes in at No. 3:

Calvinism is back, and not just musically. John Calvin’s 16th century reply to medieval Catholicism’s buy-your-way-out-of-purgatory excesses is Evangelicalism’s latest success story, complete with an utterly sovereign and micromanaging deity, sinful and puny humanity, and the combination’s logical consequence, predestination: the belief that before time’s dawn, God decided whom he would save (or not), unaffected by any subsequent human action or decision.

Read the rest here.

Meditation: Why it’s not about clearing your mind

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When you talk about meditation with someone you can often be talking about different things entirely. The other day in the paper there was an article about yoga which mentioned the benefits of a healthy mind and body.

As a Christian, I want to have a healthy mind and body. I want to bring glory to God through doing my best to be healthy because our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. But for Christians to practice yoga is a misunderstanding about what the Bible means by meditation and the way the world sees meditation. They are two different things entirely.

In the article, it is briefly explained that yoga was developed as a way of preparing the body for meditation. And while it goes on to say that the Western practice of yoga is a set of postures, there is more to it than that. Even the instructor, while trying to deflect concerns, hints at the real reason behind yoga:

“Some are skeptical of yoga at first — some think it’s a religion or something, but are surprised to find the movements and breathing exercises help them.”
Frazier said she hopes her students derive some of the same benefits from practicing yoga she has.
“Yoga brought me a new compassion for my self,” she said. “Yoga is embracing what is, an acceptance of reality.”

The idea of embracing yourself and “acceptance of reality” is not harmless exercise talk but in fact echoing tenets of Hinduism and Buddhism. That, and the fact that yoga brings “compassion for my self” should sound alarms for any Christian. Is that what yoga and meditation brings? Compassion for ourselves? When I am alone with my thoughts, rather, this is what confronts me: I am not good. Consider what the Bible says about how we should meditate:

  • This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. (Joshua 1:8)
  • but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law hemeditates day and night. (Psalm 1:2)
  • I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds. (Psalm 77:12)
  • I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. (Psalm 119:15)
  • I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands. (Psalm 143:5)

Notice in those verses what is lacking? Yes, any reference to self or self worth. Instead, we are to focus on God’s greatness and his majesty. Why? Because only He can save us from our terrible conditions. “Clearing” your minds won’t make it go away, it’ll just mask the problem.

While yoga may not be advertised as a religion class, by going through the routine you get the same effect. Even in the “non-religious” Western world. Christians should beware.

The ESV Online Study Bible — for free

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Crossway Books has announced today that, for a limited time, the ESV Online Study Bible will be available to everyone for free. This means that the complete ESV Study Bible with all its notes, charts, articles and maps can be accessed for free.

I have had access to it for about a week now since my ESV Study Bible arrived and I can say that it is a tremendous research tool for indepth study of the scriptures and extremely helpful in understanding the scriptures and answering questions. An added benefit of the ESV Online Study Bible is the ability to take notes and have them available anywhere you have Internet access.

Thanks so so much to the folks at Crossway Books for making this available. I would strongly encourage all to take advantage of this offer and check out this resource.

The ESV Online Study Bible is now available for free for a limited time.
The ESV Online Study Bible is now available for free for a limited time.

Are we ready for tough times ahead?

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The coddled Western world will sooner or later give way to great affliction. And when it does, whose vision of God will hold? Where are Christians being prepared for great global sorrows? Where is the Christian mind and soul being prepared for the horrors to come? Christians in the West are weakened by wimpy worldviews. And wimpy worldviews make wimpy Christians. God is weightless in our lives. He is not terrifyingly magnificent. His sovereignty is secondary (at best) to his sensitivity.

— John Piper, Spectacular Sins and Their Global Purpose in the Glory of God (13)

We don’t have to imagine as hard these days to envision tough times in our country. But tough economic times aren’t the same as tough times to be a follower of Christ. It is good to turn to Christ for comfort, but some times we need more than just comforting words. We need words of warning. There is evil in this world and it touches every one of our lives. The fact that we live in comfort in our Western world is a providence of God, but we should not look at it as the only way.

In John Piper’s Spectacular Sins, cited above, he examines how evil in our world not only fail to nullify God’s purpose to glorify Christ they — by his providence — succeed in making his purpose come to pass. And through understanding this, we can be strengthened in our own lives in the difficult times that will surely come.

The book is one of many that you download for free as a PDF onto your computer. If you still prefer to hold a book in your hand, you can purchase it here.

You’re not OK: God’s love is conditional yet unconditional

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David Powlinson, in his booklet “God’s Love: Better Than Unconditional,” examines what people are intending when they talk about God’s “unconditional love” for them and how they may be not getting it right:

We can do better. Saying “God’s love is unconditional love” is a bit like saying “The sun’s light at high noon is a flashlight in a blackout.” Come again? A dim bulb sustains certain analogies to the sun. Unconditional love does sustain certain analogies to God’s love. But why not start with the blazing sun rather than the flashlight? When you look closely, God’s love is very different from “unconditional positive regard,” the seedbed of contemporary notions of unconditional love. God does not accept me just as I am; He loves me despite how I am; He loves me just as Jesus is; He loves me enough to devote my life to renewing me in the image of Jesus. This love is much, much, much better than unconditional! Perhaps we could call it “contraconditional” love. Contrary to the conditions for knowing God’s blessing, He has blessed me because His Son fulfilled the conditions. Contrary to my due, He loves me. And now I can begin to change, not to earn love but because of love.

. . . You need something better than unconditional love. You need the crown of thorns. You need the touch of life to the dead son of the widow of Nain. You need the promise to the repentant thief. You need to know, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” You need forgiveness. You need a Vinedresser, a Shepherd, a Father, a Savior. You need to become like the one who loves you. You need the better love of Jesus.

If you’re still not convinced, consider a recent post where John Piper examines specific scriptures that point to how there are conditions God has set before us. Consider:

Matthew 25:46 — And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.

Romans 5:1 — Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ

Romans 8:28 — And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

John 14:21 — Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.

James 4:8 — Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

But also consider what aspects of God are really unconditional. That is, his electing love:

Ephesians 1:4-5 — even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will

Acts 13:48 — And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.

The danger we need to guard against is having too high a regard of ourselves and too low a regard for God. If we are “OK” we don’t need a savior, and that’s just not the case.

HT: Justin Taylor