This review is appearing in the current edition of the Journal of Modern Ministry (edited by Dr. Jay Adams). You can view the Journal’s site here. Though I am still relatively young, I am old enough to remember libraries that relied upon card catalogs. In the days before computers were used to index and organize…
October 31, just two weeks from now, will mark the 489th anniversary of the day that Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the church at Wittenburg. In so doing he struck a match, beginning a fire that quickly spread throughout Europe and throughout the world. Having become increasingly disillusioned with the…
Blogs have provided a unique platform for a great many people. As blogs have gained some degree of credibility beyond the blogosphere, members of the mainstream media often turn to bloggers for opinions. A lot of bloggers, despite losing confidence in the mainstream media, still consider a mention in a major magazine or newspaper to…
You may have had opportunity by this time to browse through Christianity Today’s “The Top 50 Books That Have Shaped Evangelicals.” “These are books that have shaped evangelicalism as we see it today–not an evangelicalism we wish and hope for. Books that have been published since World War II–not every book in the history of…
I thought it would be interesting to contrast two books I have received in the past weeks. The first quote is from Steve Lawson’s Foundations of Grace which I wrote about a couple of days ago. In this quote he contrasts Calvinism and Arminianism: Never have two systems of thought been more polarized. The first…
There seems to be a great deal of disagreement about how we ought to define the word discernment. A quick Google check reveals a wide variety. One says it is “perception of that which is obscure” and another says “the ability to feel or perceive something with the use of the mind and the senses.”…
Yesterday, after much anticipation, I received the first book in what promises to be an outstanding series. Foundations of Grace, by Steve Lawson is the first of five volumes in Lawson’s forthcoming series A Long Line of Godly Men and only the second title published by Ligonier’s new publishing division, Reformation Trust Publishing. The purpose…
Today is Thanksgiving Day here in Canada. Unlike our friends in America, we celebrate Thanksgiving in October. Where the American Thanksgiving has a storied history and ushers in the holiday season, we Canadians really have no idea why we celebrate this day that ushers in the Fall season. Thanksgiving comes when the leaves are entering…
When doing research for my book last week, I came across some wise words of John MacArthur that seemed appropriate to share in the Lord’s Day. These are taken from his commentary on 1 Corinthians. A caring minister of Christ cannot be insensitive to the feelings, needs, and opinions of his people. He should not…
Dr. Mohler posted an article this morning that grabbed my attention. I had something else I had wanted to say today, but have chosen instead to interact a little bit with Mohler’s article. Mohler writes about an essay that appeared in a recent edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education (the essay, sadly, is only…
Yesterday’s edition of USA Today published an article entitled “Courts are asked to crack down on bloggers, websites” and subheaded “Those attacked online are filing libel lawsuits.” Written by Laura Parker, it details an increasing number of lawsuits launched by companies and individuals against bloggers. It begins by discussing Rafe Banks, a lawyer in Georgia,…
This wasn’t quite how I had imagined my homecoming from the Desiring God conference. In retrospect, I guess ordering the shepherd’s pie at Brit’s in downtown Minneapolis was where I went wrong. By the time I reached Milwakuee on the first leg of my trip home I was feeling a bit “off.” By the time…
A couple of days ago I responded briefly to an article that appeared in Scientific American (link). I did not attempt a thorough defense of creationism that would convince a person who was committed to evolutionism. I sought primarily to show that the argumentation used was, at best, high school level, and that the arguments…
I’ve gone and done it. This is my very first podcast. For those who don’t know, a podcast is really just an audio file that can be listened to either through a normal media player or through a kind of subscription. Both options are available to you. If you don’t know about podcasting and don’t…
Scientific American is a popular science magazine with a monthly circulation approaching 700,000. Including foreign language editions, the circulation increases to over 1,000,000. First published in 1845, it is the oldest continuously published magazine in the United States. Quite needless to say, it is not a publication that is particularly friendly to creationism. How unfriendly…
Every soul thirsts. It may not be felt every moment, but to some degree every soul thirsts after something it does not have. We are rarely content in our current condition and it seems that this is the way we have been Divinely wired. But while we all thirst, we do not all thirst in…
Today I present a brief reflection on Sunday, providing some historic viewpoints on the Lord’s Day as summarized in various creeds and confessions. I do not think my commentary would be helpful or necessary: The London Baptist Confession says: As it is the law of nature, that in general a proportion of time, by God’s…
It looks like the whole mess at Ligonier may (thankfully!) be drawing to a close. This afternoon two statements were posted to Ligonier’s web site. The first was from Ligonier’s Senior Management and the second from CEO Tim Dick. Since I have posted on this matter in the past, I may as well carry on…
If you were to do a Google search for the term “planned neglect” you would likely encounter a host of articles dealing with politics. At the forefront you would find articles about New Orleans and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Many locals, dismayed at the way the disaster was handled, charged various levels of government…
The Wiggles are big business. The group of four Aussies, who got their start fifteen years ago, are now among the world’s most popular children’s entertainers. Its four members (Anthony, Greg, Murray and Jeff) and their friends (Dorothy the Dinosaur, Wags the Dog, Henry the Octopus and Captain Feathersword the friendly pirate) have been entertaining…