Numerous people pointed me to some recent tweets from Todd Friel in the last few days and asked for a response. I think doing so is worth the time because it clearly outlines some of the practical implications of Credobaptist theology over against a Paedobaptist one. Friel wrote: Todd Friel is known for his work on the program Wretched Radio, and works in the area of discernment. He has been a constant critic of mega-church ideologies, the prosperity gospel, and... Read more
Post by Nathan Rinne I know that title is audacious. I’m like a moth who can’t stay away from flames. I am ready to be challenged on this, and quite honestly, I don’t feel terribly strongly about the statement. But I suspect that it is true. Let’s see how I do in defending this. First of all, I take the following to be an American value: “We should work hard to make sure that each person, without exception, is treated... Read more
In the past decade, the ESV has become the go-to Bible for many in the Lutheran and Reformed traditions. The official CPH material for the LCMS now uses the English Standard Version, as do most of the popular Reformed study Bibles. While I like the ESV, I think the exclusivism with which some people use the text is problematic. One of the primary issues I have with the ESV is the translation of the term monogenes (such as in John... Read more
One of the problems in contemporary theological scholarship is that it has sometimes aligned itself more-so with the academy than the church. Men and women sometimes enter the field of theology, not to further the work of Christ’s church, but instead to join the broader academic community and prove their bona fides to other scholars. There is then a lot of conversation of who has the most academically reputable degrees from the most well-known institutions. Seminaries are more willing to... Read more
Yesterday, an interesting story broke about Rachel Dolezal, a leader in the NAACP in Spokane, Washington. Supposedly, she had been portraying herself as a black woman for quite some time, changing her appearance and stating that she had African American parentage. Her parents spoke to the media, informing the public that her geneology is European. The only non-Caucasian part of her ancestry is Native American, and it makes up a small percentage. There has been quite a bit of outrage... Read more
(by Eric Phillips) There’s a medieval hymn by Rabanus Maurus, Veni Creator Spiritus, composed in Latin in the 9th century, which has been translated and set to music in many different ways so as to give us many different modern hymns. I counted 15 different versions of it in the list given for “Rabanus Maurus” on Hymnary.org. In the Lutheran Service Book, it’s given us hymns 498, 499, and 500. Now, 498 and 499 have the same translation, by one... Read more
Post by Nathan Rinne “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” — I John 4:10 “If religions can be defined as ‘doctrines of salvation’, the great philosophies can also be defined as doctrines of salvation (but without the help of God).” — Luc Ferry “[philosophy is like a religious conversion]… It involves “a total transformation of one’s vision, life-style, and behavior.”—... Read more
On today’s program, I deviated from my normal topics to discuss the LGBTQ movement, and transgenderism in particular. I talked about how Christians should respond to this issue, and where the church has fallen short in the past in doing so. Here is the program Read more
(By Eric Phillips) In the screen capture, I look like I’m trying to conjure up spirits, but I assure you I am not. This is the sermon I preached last Sunday on Ezekiel’s vision of the Throne of God (6:1-8) and the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. Read more
I recently responded to a post by Kevin DeYoung on the issue of assurance here. He recently wrote a blog post in response to his critics (I was certainly not the only one) here. He mentioned that of the several responses, “some of the critiques were petty and personal,” (hopefully not mine!) but others were thoughtful. This post is an attempt to clarify some of the confusion He responded to one particular post, that by Chad Bird, and in doing... Read more
Just and Sinner
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