Semper Reformanda: Trauma?

Posted on August 25, 2022 by blund

Not many years ago, we were told we needed a new reformation, this time of deeds, not creeds. That was Rick Warren in 2005, some 17 years ago using church growth methods. The emergent movement took postmodern thought and said we need a new trajectory, a reformation not from a new (biblical/theological) center, but with a new direction.

Now we are a long way from those naïve decades, and so a new call arises:

The church needs a new racial reconciliation mov't, one that's minority-led and trauma-informed, employs a robust theology of repentance/repair, centers core concerns of communities of color, recognizes racism's structural dimensions, embraces asymmetrical roles/responsibilities.
— Duke Kwon (@dukekwondc) July 7, 2022

Now comes the call for yet another reformation, this time employing the most up-to-date methods of the zeitgeist: trauma, structural/systemic measurements, and intersectionality.

Continue reading →

Is Your Good News Good? An Approach to a Reformed response

Posted on April 22, 2020 by blund

Gilbert_Gospel Greg Gilbert has responded in an article entitled “‘Jesus Is King’ Is Not Good News: A Response to Scot McKnight and Matthew Bates” at 9Marks. This is his rejoinder following the response to his T4G sermon. All the relevant links can be found above.

Rather than trying to suss out whether Gilbert or Bates/McKnight is more correct, I’d like to suggest a alternative, Reformed approach. Back when the Lordship controversy was raging between Zane Hodges and John MacArthur, Michael Horton et al didn’t endorse MacArthur, but instead pointed out inadequacies with both sides, and produced Christ the Lord: The Reformation and Lordship Savlation (book). I’ve observed the usefulness of that title elsewhere. I don’t think Hodges=Bates/McKnight, or Gilbert=MacArthur. But it might be useful to consider some Reformed categories, rather than just lumping in with Gilbert, in this debate also.

Distinctio sed non Separatio

Reformed theologians constantly demanded we distinguish concepts without separating them. The persons of the Trinity, Jesus’ divine and human natures, justification and sanctification in union with Christ, and the Church as institution and organism were all concepts that needed to be distinguished as different, but could not ultimately be separated. Like the heads and tails of a coin, they were distinct but indivisible.

The Bates/McKnight camp is fond of emphasizing the Kingship of Jesus, even going so far as to equivocate “Messiah” for “anointed King.” While this is certainly true, and gloriously true!, it leaves out at least two other aspects of Jesus’ anointed work: prophetic and priestly. As Heidelberg Catechism #31 puts it, being the “Christ” or “Messiah” means that Jesus is our Chief Prophet, our High Priest, and our Eternal King. Continue reading →

Grace For Burned Out Christians

Posted on June 13, 2016 by blund

Last night we had a great start to our church seminar for when we face burn out or spiritual exhaustion; or get burned by a pastor, another Christian, or a church. Some of the resources we used are presented here. Here are some other Diakonos lectures from the past.

One of our main speakers, Brent Howland of International Messengers, was unable to be present last night due to his missions schedule. He will be presenting his material at a later date, Dv. We look forward to his teaching on “A Gospel Primer For Burn Out.”

Our first active session was “Withering: A Biblical Theology of Burn Out.” Exploring the word נָבֵל, navel, as well as various biblical instances of this spiritual drought, the following passages were surveyed:

Moses | Exodus 18:14 – 23

Israel | Deuteronomy 8:1 – 10

Elijah | I Kings 19:1 – 8

Solomon | Ecclesiastes 2:9 – 11

Disciples | Matthew 14:22 – 27; John 6:60 – 69

Solutions to this nabol tibol were desiring God’s Word (Ps 19:7 – 11), covenant prayer (Ps 120:1), communion with the risen Christ (Matt 11:25 – 30), evangelical obedience (Deut 8:1 – 2), and meditating on our eschatological rest (Heb 4:8 – 11).

Our second presentation was by Dr. Rod Rosenbladt, professor and minister in the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, via the magic of the internets. His seminal talk, “The Gospel For Those Broken By the Church,” is below. Continue reading →

Spirit Is Contra Sin, Not Contra Nature

Posted on May 5, 2015 by blund

Spirit_Instagram (see all my Instagram photos)

The above quote is a beauty by Michael S. Horton on a (not so) recent episode of the White Horse Inn, entitled “Gifts of the Spirit.”

In discussions over nature and grace, this aspect of the Spirit’s working in the life of the believer is important to remember. And it isn’t just the Spirit. As Horton reminds us: “In every work of the Trinity, the Father speaks in the Son and by his Spirit, who is at work within creation to bring about the intended effect of that word… What’s true in our salvation is also true in providence… Once we recover a greater sense of God’s ordinary vocation as the site of his faithfulness, we will begin to appreciate our own calling to love and serve others in his name in everyday ways that make a real difference in people’s lives.”

The other link the WHI crew suggest is this helpful defense of cessationism by Dr. Richard B. Gaffin. I don’t agree with every premise or conclusion of the article, but for those looking for a top-tier, accessible response to the continued gifts of the Spirit will find a lot that is helpful to begin the discussion, especially the closing paragraph.

May we walk more and more in the Spirit!

Horton on the Holy Spirit at Moore Annual Lectures

Posted on September 8, 2014 by blund

Michael S. Horton, the J. Gresham Machen Professor of Systematic Theology and Apologetics at Westminster Seminary CA, was the speaker for the Annual Moore College Lectures for 2014. Held August 14 – 22 in Sydney, Australia, the schedule was as follows:

Public Lecture: How the Spirit Changes Everything Public Evening lecture

Lecture 1: Lord and Giver of Life

Lecture 2: The Spirit of Christ

Lecture 3: The Spirit of Holiness

Lecture 4: The Spirit and the Bride

Lecture 5: The Age of the

The video recording of the lectures are also available here. The audio lectures can be found here, and a sample is given below.

From the brief snippets of the lectures that I’ve listened to, I have found this to be classic Horton, bringing the text of Scripture into new light. Whether it is emphasizing the legal duties of paraclete in John 14 in the covenant lawsuit, or how unbelieving Israel is identified with the world so that Christ’s disciples are excommunicated as latreia, there will be a lot to appreciate for those who enjoy vintage Reformed theology from fresh exegesis.

You can find out more about Dr. Horton’s travels and teaching in Australia here.

Your Own Exclusive Jesus

Image

Know what you believe and why you believe it at the White Horse Inn.

What Is the Definition of Missional?

Posted on April 25, 2013 by blund

Jeff Vanderstelt on the definition of “missional” (around the 1:55 mark of this video):

A man stood up at a conference and said, “Missional is the new ‘seeker’… the church finally getting its hands dirty.” Someone asked me to respond to him.

When we say missional, what we mean is:

God’s church is so saturated in the gospel and the mission of Jesus, that they see themselves as the sent ones of Jesus in all of life, to make disciples who make disciples, so that the earth is saturated with people who love Jesus and God is glorified in all things. That’s what I mean when I say missional… I want you to understand there are lots of definitions out there, but I when I say [missional] that’s what I mean.

Could you get behind that definition of “missional?” Why or why not?

Certainly, some terms need to be parsed out. As much as I appreciate Vanderstelt’s ministries, I’m not sure his definition of “God’s church” is the exact same as the Reformed confessions. Nevertheless, there is a lot of good here to chew on.

Vanderstelt also suggests that we ought not quibble over terminology: Why I’m tired of Hearing About “Missional”.

For more, go back to WSCal’s 2008 annual conference Missional & Reformed: Reaching the Lost & Teaching the Reached. The audio lectures up for free are:

Why the Mission Needs the Marks of the Church
The Mission and the Confession of the Church: Friend or Foes?
Why the Marks of the Church Need the Mission
Mission According to Paul
Mission in a Pluralistic Age
Mission and Missions: Evangelism in the 21st Century
Missional and Reformed (Q&A Session)

Michael Horton sums it up: “The mission of the Church is to evidence & execute the marks of the Church.”

Amen.

Ten Propositions from Christ the Lord

Posted on August 22, 2012 by blund

After the Lordship-Salvation controversy between John MacArthur and Zane Hodges in the 1980’s, the White Horse Inn crew released Christ the Lord: The Reformation and Lordship Salvation (Baker, 1992). At the end of their collection of essays, ten propositions are put forward. Here they are for you to chew on. Thoughts?

It is impossible that saving faith can exist without a new nature and thereby new affections (love, a desire for holiness, and so on).
Saving faith is nevertheless not the same thing as such affections or desires and does not include in its definition the effects of which the new birth is the cause.
It is not enough to say that we are justified and accepted by grace alone, for even Rome has agreed that is is only by God’s grace that we can become transformed in holiness. We must add that we are justified by grace alone through faith alone, and it is a great error to change the meaning of faith to include acts of obedience and repentance in an effort to make a disposition other than knowledge, assent, and trust a condition of justification.
The definition of saving faith is: Knowledge, which we take to mean the intellectual grasp of the relevant historical and doctrinal facts concerning Christ’s person and work and our misery; Assent, or the volitional agreement of our hearts and minds that these facts are true; and Trust, which is the assurance that these facts that are true are not only true generally, but true in my own case. In this way I abandon all hope for acceptance with God besides the holiness and righteousness of Christ.

Continue reading →

John Calvin’s Birthday

Posted on July 10, 2012 by blund

July 10 is the 503rd anniversary of John Calvin’s (1509 – 64) birthday. Many blame Calvin for coming up with a novel and unbiblical theology that centered on predestination. I think that, not only was Calvin’s theology eminently biblical, but it wasn’t novel either. I’ve looked before at similarities between Calvin and Thomas Aquinas. On this his birthday, consider a few quotes comparing Calvin’s so-called “5 Points” with select quotes from the early Church Fathers.

TOTAL DEPRAVITY
Justin Martyr (A.D. 150): “Mankind by Adam fell under death, and the deception of the serpent; we are born sinners…No good thing dwells in us…For neither by nature, nor by human understanding is it possible for me to acquire the knowledge of things so great and so divine, but by the energy of the Divine Spirit…Of ourselves it is impossible to enter the kingdom of God…He has convicted us of the impossibility of our nature to obtain life…Free will has destroyed us; we who were free are become slaves and for our sin are sold…Being pressed down by our sins, we cannot move upward toward God; we are like birds who have wings, but are unable to fly.”

Origen (A.D. 185): “Our free will…or human nature is not sufficient to seek God in any manner.”

UNCONDITIONAL ELECTION
Irenaeus (A.D. 198): “God hath completed the number which He before determined with Himself, all those who are written, or ordained unto eternal life…Being predestined indeed according to the love of the Father that we would belong to Him forever.” Continue reading →