Working at CBMW I have been exposed to a fair bit of polemics – whether it be about women in ministry, the Trinity, or the meaning of certain terms in Scripture (like headship, authority, submission ,etc).  It is easy for one to get caught up in controversy.  Its energizing.  It puts purpose behind your efforts.  As a Christian, I can be thankful for historical controversies.  Our faith and understanding of Christ is furthered because of efforts of men who have thought deeply in order to guard against heresies.

But controversy can be consuming.

1. It can divert our attention away from feeding our souls on the more necessary things.  I do not want to diminish the importance of theological controversies.  I am thankful that men devoted their lives to defend the Trinity, justification, or the divinity of Christ.  Yet, many of these men kept the Gospel at the center.  They did not let controversy divert their attention away from their own increase in holiness, letting the love of Christ improve upon their hearts and lives.  We must be careful that our attention to controversies are fueled by the loved of Christ and the preservation of the Gospel.
2. Controversy has a tendency to fuel pride and the desire to be right.  The more we invest into whatever controversy we are involved in the more we have to lose.  Corrupt desires to be right can cause us to be dishonest in our writings, with others, and  even with ourselves.
3. We must guard against the tendency to lose our desire to love our brothers and sisters in the midst of controversy.  Dysfunctional desires to win arguments can cause us to misrepresent our opponents, create straw arguments, or paint opponents in an unfavorable light.

These are lamentable fruits of evil desires and contrary to the Gospel.  Keeping the fruits of the Spirt in mind when amidst controversy is helpful.  Ask questions like:

1. Am I acting with self-control?  Is something other than a redeemed heart and affections controlling my words and temper?
2. Do I desire to be right to such an extent that I am willing to put down or, even, hate others?
3. Am I patient with others, even when they are not with me?
4. Do I desire to continue in controversy more than I desire peace?

As Christians, we should be faithful to the Gospel and defend it whenever there is compromise.  We should be firm, steadfast, and courageous.  Yet, these are not contrary to the fruit of a redeemed heart.

Classic Dr. Russell Moore:

Southern Seminary had their own panel discussion on the topic of multi-site churches, which has spawned much discussion and debate.  I do think clear and biblical arguments against multi-site campuses have been given, so I am not going to rehearse them.  You can read a few here:

John Meade

Thabiti Anyabwile (very pastoral)

I wanted, however, to make an observation.  It seems that many who argue for multi-site campuses and who argue, biblically, for the necessity of eldership in the local church speak out both sides of their mouths.  What I mean is this, an argument for eldership in the Church is based upon the regular practice of the NT church.  Throughout the NT, churches were governed in some way by male elders and they were given the task of shepherding the flock.  Since this was the normal way in which the apostles set up local churches, then it should be normative for churches today.  Many on the pro-multi-site church debate argue for biblical eldership this way, yet do not apply this same sort of reasoning to their understanding of how a local congregation should gather.  The normal way in which the NT church functioned was to “gather together” – since the meaning of the word Church in the NT is “gathering.”

At the end of the day, it seems like pragmatism.

Here are all three parts of CBMW’s response, with myself, Denny Burk, and James Hamilton, to the TIME magazine article “The State of the American Woman.”

I mentioned earlier this week that I have begun reading Counsel from the Cross by Elyse Fitzpatrick and Dennis Johnson.  It has proved to be a very practical, gospel-guided book.  Chapter 2 is very helpful.  They point to 2 Cor. 3:18 as the main source of sanctification for the believer: “We all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” along with 2 Cor. 4:6, “God has shone in our hearts the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.”  What Fitzpatrick and Johnson seek to answer is how might we see his face?  How are our hearts and minds informed and illumined by the gospel? They give four basic ways:

(1) In the Word Preached

“The Word of God, in particular, the gospel message, which is the integrating center of the whole Word of God, is the means that the Spirit uses to transform the hearts and minds of the elect.”

(2) In Baptism

Baptism is an ongoing sign to assure believers of the washing of their sins, our union with Christ in his death, and in our new resurrected  life.

(3) The Lord’s Supper

A sign to confirm our confidence in the Gospel.  ”We are seated with him, dining at his table, eating the meal that he paid dearly to purchase.”

(4) Fellowship with other Believers

“The Gospel of Jesus Christ – that we are all more sinful and flawed that we ever dared believe but more loved and welcomed that we ever dared hope – is meant to be lived out in relationship: each of us assuring, reminding, confronting, counseling, and listening to one another, praying for one another, and bearing one another’s burdens.  It’s here, within gospel-centered relationships, that the Spirit will reveal the Son to us.”

The Associated Press released an article Evangelists Target Spiritually Cold New England. It is an encouraging trend to see more and more evangelicals aiming at New England for church planting.  The statistics of unbelief in New England are daunting.  In Boston, MA only 2% attend an Evangelical church and many of those churches are closing.  The article is right in saying that many Christians now are calling New England a lost people group.  A large percentage of people not only did not grow up attending church but their parents and grandparents never attended church as well.

Chris Bass, pastor of the newly planted Redeemer Fellowship Church, and pastor Wes Pastor, president of NETS Institute for Church Planting were both mentioned in the article.  The ministries of Bass and Pastor are prayed for often by my family and local church.  In the dark and cold spiritual climate of New England these are two bright lights. May the Lord bless and increase their work of the Gospel!

My father, Phil Starke, sent me a very special gift in the mail yesterday.  He is an artist, professionally, and, also a reformed Christian.  He did his first painting of a Reformer or Church history figure and sent it to me as a gift.  This is a painting of John Calvin to commemorate his 500th birthday.  I wish I had a better camera to capture this image.  Its an amazing painting.  What a treasure for our household to cherish!

I’ve recently picked up Counsel from the Cross: Connecting Broken People to the Love of Christ by Elyse Pitzpatrick and Dennis Johnson.  I have enjoyed reading books and articles from both of these authors and I am excited to go through this book.

Paul Tripp writes about this book:

A triumph of a maturing biblical counseling movement. Elyse Fitzpatrick, a counselor with uncommon insight into common problems, teams with Dennis Johnson, a seminary professor with a firm fix on justification and the centrality of the gospel, to produce a cross-centered counseling tool. Expect to find the refreshing intersection of the liberating truth of the cross and the power of the gospel to move counselees and impart hope. This book is a major contribution not only to biblical counseling but also to the person in the pew.

I got to sit down with Jim Hamilton and Denny Burk to discuss the recent TIME article “The State of the American Woman.”  Here is part 1.

Here is the entire conversation:

CBMW Responds to TIME (Full Version) from CBMW on Vimeo.

This is sort of a unique year for Reformation Day, since it is Calvin’s 500th birthday.  Here are some suggestions as to what you can do to commemorate Reformation Day and Calvin’s birthday:

As a family:

Read John Calvin (Christian Biographies for Young Readers) by Simonetta Carr.

Read Reformation Heroes by Joel Beeke

Reformation Heroes is not a children’s book. It is an attractive, “coffee table” style illustrated guide to the great names of Reformation history. However, many parents will find it a useful tool for bringing the stories of these heroes into the hearts and minds of their own children.

Watch Luther

Great biographical movie on Martin Luther based very closely upon the biography Here I Stand by Roland Bainton.

Listen to Martin Luther’s famous speech Here I Stand at the Diet of Worms read by Max McLean for free until November 1.

By yourself

Read Douglas Bond’s historical novel on the life of John Calvin The Betrayal.

Read a new (there are lots this year) or old biography of John Calvin.  Here are a few suggestions:

New

John Calvin: a Pilgrim’s Life by Herman Selderhuis – This is actually the one new biography I have read.  It is different than any other biography I have seen.  Its reads like a discussion throughout, not an academic biography.  Its enjoyable and I recommend it.

Calvin by Bruce Gordon – I have not read it, but I have heard it is the new standard.

Old

John Calvin: a Biography by T. H. L. Parker – This is my favorite biography on Calvin.

Happy Reformation Day!

One of my favorite children’s book is Sinclair Ferguson’s Big Book of Questions and Answers About Jesus. Now he has a new children’s book entitled The Plan: How God Got the World Ready for Jesus. This book looks fantastic!  You can Preview the PDF.

Here is the Publisher’s description:

Publisher’s Description: Before the dawn of time a plan was made… a plan to save and a plan to love, a plan to rescue and a plan to send. One after the other people were sent to be where they were needed to be.

In the distance wise men ride camels through the desert. A star glimmers in the night sky. They have a long way to go and many months of travel ahead of them.

Some shepherds stand guard over their flock of sheep as a young couple struggle the last few miles of a tiring journey desperate for shelter and a place to sleep.

All have been sent to one place for one event that will change the world forever. The one and only saviour of the world will be born that night in a stable, in a little country called Israel in a little town called Bethlehem.

The key part of the plan is a baby and His name will be Jesus for he will save his people from their sins.

It still amazes me how practical the Puritans were.  Chief among them in practicality was Richard Baxter.  I wrote earlier last week on Richard Baxter and redeeming the time in his book Christian Directory.  Still reading further, Baxter comments on “The Special Duties of Husbands to Their Wives.”  His chief concern for men when leading a home is that they be fit for the task.  He writes, “He must labor to be fit and able for the government (leadership role) which he undertaketh.”

Striving to be godly and sanctified is the labor he describes.  Baxter writes, “An ungodly or irreligious man is both a stranger and enemy to the design of God for the Christian home.”  Men who desire to be married and lead their families should labor to fit themselves for the task.

May God give us strength to resist sin, lead our families to glorify God, and treasure his Gospel.

Recently, I have been contributing to the Devotional Christian.

Below are some posts that I have submitted:

The Gospel Sustains and Strengthens for Real Life

Christian, Consider Jesus

God Will Keep You from Stumbling

I have been deeply impacted by the writings of J. I. Packer and, more and more, am influence by Carl Trueman.  Trueman gives an interesting 5-minute video explanation of how Packer has influenced him and the modern evangelical Church.

A book that I have never read all the way through and probably never will (948 pages – double column – small print – over 1 million words!) is Richard Baxter’s Christian Directory.  Yet, I consistently go back to it, over and over, for practical, Gospel-centered direction for the Christian life.  One helpful section Baxter writes on is the redeeming of time.  The entire section is very practical for the Christian who desires to grow in godliness and lose their worldliness.  Below is a summary of his major points and a list of “time thieves”:

1. The greatest time waster or time thief is idleness and sloth.
2. Excess of sleep.  ”When the sluggish person spends hours in bed, which neither their health nor labor need, merely out of swinish love of sleep…”
3. Inordinate adorning of the body.
4. Unnecessary pomp and entertainment.
5. Needless and senseless gluttony.
6. Idle chatter.
7. Vain and sinful company.
8. Inordinate amount of sports.
9. Excess of worldly cares and business.
10. Vain, ungoverned, and sinful thoughts.
11. Inordinate amount of time reading vain books, romances, unprofitable studies undertaken for vain glory or to please a carnal mind.
12. The master-thief of time is an ungodly heart, for it never intends to glorify God

May we strive to have godly hearts that desire to glorify God whether we eat or drink or whatever we do.

Sunday’s opinion column at USAToday takes a critical look at Tim Tebow’s evangelical and exclusive Gospel.  The author, Tom Krattenmaker, praises Tebow’s leadership, talent, citizenship, and good behavior, but bemoans his doctrine.  He makes an interesting statement, “But there’s a shadow side to this. If their take on God and truth and life is the only right one — which their creed boldly states — everyone else is wrong.”  He at least gets that right.  He writes about Tebow,

But there’s more to his story. Tebow does his missionary trips to the Philippines under the auspices of his father’s Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association. The Tebow organization espouses a far-right theology. Its bottom line: Only those who assent to its version of Christianity will avoid eternal punishment.

He continues:

Certainly, Tim Tebow must be applauded for the good he does working on his father’s missions, but he should be seen, too, as one who promotes a form of belief that makes unwelcome judgments about everyone else’s religion. Let’s not forget the twinge that is felt by sports-loving Jewish kids and parents, for example, or by champions for interfaith cooperation, when adored sports figures like Tebow use their fame to push a Jesus-or-else message.

For Krattenmaker, Tebow’s exclusivism is contrary to our country’s rising pluralism, which he sees as a “defining and positive reality in American life.”

I was recently listening to Pardon-the-Interruption – a sports show with Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon on ESPN – and Tony Kornheiser, who is regularly hard on evangelicals, said that Tebow will probably go down in the top 3 of greatest college football players.  Tebow’s athletic greatness and public likability has overshadowed his unpopular trust in a biblical Gospel – though he makes every effort to be explicit about it.  It will interesting to see how long the public can tolerate his outward trust in the exclusive saving work of Christ and his witness to it.  We may start to see more articles like this about Tebow.  May God grant him persevering strength.

Very excited for the release of Speaking the Truth in Love: The Theology of John Frame.

Publisher’s Description: Speaking the Truth in Love: The Theology of John M. Frame is a Festschrift honoring Prof. Frame’s career in seminary teaching – but this book does not merely collect essays on the subjects of Frame’s interests, it analyses Frame’s own work in the fields of theology, apologetics, ethics, worship, the church, and others. The authors include Wayne Grudem, Richard Pratt, Paul Helm, Vern Poythress, Bruce Waltke, William Davis, William Edgar, Peter Jones, Reggie Kidd, and others who are familiar with Frame’s work. Many are Frame’s former students and colleagues.

This is the first large scale analysis of Frame’s distinctive approach. The essays go into considerable depth, comparing Frame with other approaches and applying his ideas to many fields that Frame himself has not explored.

Bill Mounce has an interesting post today on his decision to be on the translation committee of the NIV 2011.  What is, seemingly, controversial is that Mounce chaired the ESV translation committee.  I do believe Mounce has put to rest any controversy, yet I have some questions that his post doesn’t answer:

• He writes about translation philosophy: “But if you have been reading this blog very long, you will know that I strongly believe in different translation philosophies, that there is not a “One Size Fits All,” and that the translator’s responsibility is to be consistent with that stated philosophy.”  I wished Mounce explained what he means by this statement.  Its unclear what exactly the point is.  He says there is not a “one size fits all” translation philosophy, but what does he mean by “all”?  All translations, or translators, or readers, societies, purposes, what?  I’m not exactly sure.  I’m also wondering how he keeps these different translation philosophies as such tension?  Its not as if these translation philosophies stand on their own.  They are usually stated and developed in response to competing philosophies.
• Also, he is assured that the use of gender inclusive language will be put back on the table for a vote, otherwise he would not have committed to be a part of it.  If he is voted down on his stance on exclusive language I wonder whether or not he will remain on the committee.

For the most part, Mounce’s post is encouraging.  Mounce is giving a talk at ETS entitled Can the ESV and TNIV Coexist in the Same Universe? The title of the paper seemed peculiar when I first read it, but after reading his post today I wonder if some of my questions will be answered.

Below is a video from Zondervan on an upcoming book Four Views on Moving Beyond the Bible to Theology.

The video doesn’t include Daniel Doriani (who I would probably agree most with) and the video doesn’t really give many details about the book.  Yet, the contributors look great and it looks to be an interesting interaction.

The ETS Annual Meeting in November will have a panel discussion on the topic that includes all the contributors.