Mr Trueman, our survey said...

Last summer, during an interview on Justification with the Revd Dr Mike Ovey, Professor Carl Trueman said this "What would concern me I think is if I was preaching Justification and was never vulnerable to the accusation of antinomianism. If nobody could ever make that criticism of my preaching, then I'd be pretty confident that I wasn't preaching the doctrine that Paul preached."


Now take that and compare it with the following:

the real litmus test, if I may be so bold, is to manage to be accused simultaneously of antinomianism and legalism. When you have gotten to the point where any stick is good enough to beat you with, then you really have something. This is like what one Puritan called the bracing experience of "living in the high mountain air of public calumny." The legalists think you are a libertine, and the libertines think you are a fusser, and they all say so in loud voices. That's the ticket. (via Smells Kind of Musty)

In other words,                            "Mr Trueman, our survey said eh urgh!"

Ridiculously miraculous footage of God's providence

Or, what the pagans sometimes like to call 'luck'

Back to the Future

With the first kipling on the way, I was rather struck by this insightful comment by Neil Postman

Children are living messages we send into a time we will never see.

Here's praying then that our littl'un of the Covenant bestows the message of Grace to many many many who I will never see and to that end I pray that with the Spirit's help I heed the words of Deuteronomy 4:40 this day and always.


What are you praying for yourself and your children?

Justification by Faith and Table Fellowship

Following some comments I made at a while ago at The Blue Fish Project on the Law in Galatians here is an excellent video that puts some of what I was trying to say then in a much clearer way



Leithart - Justification by faith and Table Fellowship from Canon Wired on Vimeo.

Collect for today

Though I'm not keen on people praying to the Son, prefering instead that we follow the pattern our Lord gave us, here is a great prayer to our elder brother, Jesus Christ that I commend for your meditation.

Lord Jesus Christ, King and elder brother, I thank you that you have rescued me from sin and death through your own death and your triumphant resurrection. May you always move me to welcome your leadership and protection in my life. In your name I pray, Amen.

Via: Why "Jesus is Lord" is Good News

Quote/Thought for the day: which version of salvation?

Calvinists take the verses outlining God's sovereignty at face value (which they should do), and explain away the apostasy passages. Arminians take the apostasy passages at face value, and explain away the glorious promises of a guaranteed perseverance. Thought experiment. What would happen if you took them all at face value? You would get in trouble with everybody, like the guy in the Civil War who tried to make peace by walking in between the armies with a blue coat and gray trousers. (Via No Root in Himself)

So seriously, what would happen if we took the classic Calvinist texts (e.g. Matthew 11:25-27, John 6;65, Acts 13:48) and the classic Arminian texts (e.g. Deuteronomy 30:19, Isaiah 1:18-19, John 7:17) seriously? Is it time to abandon the trad distinctions and start the CalviArmi? For a more helpful answer see the wise advice given at No Root in Himself

Worldy in a positive way

You've got to love the Puritans. Despite all the bad press they tend to receive, their positive affirmations of life and enjoying all the good things God's world offers just keep coming up. Hear for example what Richard Baxter says:

God hath given us several senses that so we might enjoy the delights of them all (from The Saints' Everlasting Rest)

So, rather than withdraw from the world, Baxter (and his fellow Puritans) saw the wonderful intricacies in creation as a gift from our gracious God to enable us to enjoy Him further as we delight in His world. Sadly this has not been my common experience in contemporary evangelical circles here in the UK where often the  concerns focus on saving souls whilst ignoring the delights of creation: the gorgeous taste of butter on toast, the wonderful smell of a freshly cut grass, the arresting sight of a snow covered mountain, the immeasurable warmth felt in holding one's wife or child, the comforting sound of a gentle running stream. This is not to say evangelism is not important - it is. Nevertheless all around us, are innumerable chances to receive the gift of Creation as a key aspect to what the Puritans saw as our primary calling: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.