How are we to understand the teaching of Genesis regarding Adam as an historical person? What is your view?
Want to know more about the debate? Get a copy of Four Views on the Historical Adam, part of the Zondervan Counterpoint series of debates within the Christian community among scientists, Old Testament scholars, New Testament scholars, Ancient Near East literary scholars, church leaders/pastors and others in-between about how we are understand the message of the Bible.
Introduction #1 — Matthew Barrett, California Baptist University:
In the popular mind, the thought of a “Calvinist” conjures up thoughts of “predestination”, “horrible decree”, “hellfire and brimstone”, “condemnation”, and “rigid”. Basically, what you get is a sourpuss. Not a lot of fun and happy thoughts here, as “Calvinism” for a number of folks today gives Christianity a bad name.
I never thought that the power of a poem on video could viably challenge such as assessment. But I think I have found something that might do just that.
John Piper served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota for 33 years, and he is currently the chancellor for Bethlehem College and Seminary, and founder of DesiringGod.org. John’s theological hero is the 18th century colonial preacher, Jonathan Edwards, probably the greatest American philosopher ever…. and a Calvinist.
What gets me about Jonathan Edwards is that he was able to have this awesome, even terrifying, view of God’s majestic sovereignty on the one hand, as well as a tender, joyous fondness for the “sweetness” of God on the other. How was he able to put these two things together?
John Piper’s most popular book is Desiring God, Meditations of a Christian Hedonist, which is nothing more than a contemporary exploration of Jonathan Edward’s faith and thought. John wrote a poem recently, and he invited a few friends to add their voices to help him read the poem: D.A. Carson, R.C. Sproul, Alistair Begg, Thabiti Anyabwile, Matt Chandler, and Sinclair Ferguson.
This really surprised me. It may not change your view of a “Calvinist”, but it might give you some pause to ponder. I would like to know what you think.
Additional Resources:
Just in case you thought that Calvinism was on the periphery of the evangelical church these days, you might want to rethink that and look into the recent CrossCon student missions conference, held in Louisville, Kentucky, the last week of 2013. The Gospel Coalition posted a number of videos from this new missions conference, an event designed to mobilize a new generation of young college students. I recently talked to one of the 4,000 students who attended. It was quite an experience from the report I received.
“We live between Eden and Heaven. Sometimes, it’s going to hurt.”
Jim Davis, author of Why Me? (And Why That’s the Wrong Question)
One of the things I enjoy most about blogging is all the reading that goes with the job—particularly when I find a new blogger who has something original and insightful to say. There are a lot of bloggers who are curators of other people’s material, and there are the big-blog guys everybody reads (many of them are a team rather than an individual behind the keyboard), but if you’re willing to look a little deeper you can find some really wonderful voices in the blogosphere.
Jim is a constitutional attorney from Birmingham, Alabama, a Bible study teacher, and a writer—he’s not associated with the Garfield comic strip (penned by another Jim Davis). What I appreciate most about his writing is that he always puts it on a level playing field. Like Clarke, he can see more than one side to an issue, and he keeps his eye on the big picture when others tend to let their emotions slant their thinking.
Jim has a new book, Why Me? (And Why That’s the Wrong Question), just released by Leafwood Publishers and available on Amazon. Jim asked me to review the final draft for his publisher, and I was happy to oblige with this review:
If knowledge is knowing the answers to questions, wisdom is knowing which questions are important and why. Jim Davis brings a refreshing perspective to the topic of pain and suffering in Why Me? (And Why That’s the Wrong Question). This book is packed full of wisdom and reality, and the topic is treated honestly—with biblical integrity, and with respect. We should be preparing ourselves for pain and suffering now because it is inevitable. Instead of focusing on answers (that only God can give), Jim focuses on the questions. Readers will appreciate Jim’s voice; he has a gift for applying the Bible to a hurting world in a way that is insightful, comforting, and helpful. I wholeheartedly recommend this book, both as a group study and for personal discipleship. In Jim’s words, “We live between Eden and Heaven. Sometimes, it’s going to hurt.”
I told Jim when he asked for the review that I am no expert on pain and suffering. I’ve been blessed with an exceedingly pain-free life. Exceedingly. But what I didn’t tell him is that the title of his book is an echo from a sad chapter of my family’s otherwise benign history. It was decades ago, but I can still hear my mother’s voice, saying those words (more than once). It was an honest question for her, as it is for so many people, but it was not the right question. This is an honest, insightful, comforting, and helpful book.
When you are in church singing a hymn or contemporary worship song, how often do you think about what the words mean? Music is a powerful vehicle for expressing praise to God, no matter what the style or genre is. But it is the lyrics in the song that have the greatest importance.
Perhaps one of most illuminating controversies in 2013 was over one particular contemporary hymn, In Christ Alone, written by Stuart Townend and Keith Getty. Several years ago, a Baptist group put out a hymnal, Celebrating Grace, including the song by Townend and Getty. The Baptist hymnal read verse 2 like this:
In Christ alone who took on flesh Fulness of God in helpless babe This gift of love and righteous-ness Scorned by the ones He came to save Till on the cross as Jesus died The love of God was magnified For every sin on Him was laid Here in the death of Christ I live
In early 2013, the hymnal revision committee of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A (PCUSA), the largest mainline Presbyterian denomination in America, liked this version and asked the original songwriters if they could put the song in their new hymnal. Unfortunately, there was a “small” problem. It appears that the Baptist group had altered verse two (note the line in bold above), and they had failed to tell Townend and Getty about the modification. The original version was actually this:
Till on the cross as Jesus died The wrath of God was satisfied
The songwriters would grant permission to the Presbyterians to use the song so long as they would keep the original wording. The Presbyterian hymnal committee refused the songwriters’ conditions and therefore dropped the song from the new hymnal.
You will not be singing In Christ Alone from any PCUSA hymnal anytime soon.
But for you Presbyterian “rebels” out there who “can’t get no satisfaction”, you can clandestinely sing along with it here (I promise not to tell your pastor) 😉
(SIDE NOTE: Kristyn Getty, married to Keith Getty, the songwriter, is a niece to Irish/British apologist John Lennox who teaches at Oxford).
So what’s the big deal? Brewing in our churches today is a theological controversy regarding the nature of the atonement: When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, what was that all about? What did Jesus accomplish? Continue reading
This Advent season, we sang the English version of the great German carol, Es ist ein Ros entsprungen, more commonly known to English speakers as Lo! How A Rose E’er Blooming.
No one knows who originally wrote it, though it appeared in a German hymnal in Cologne in 1599. The familiar tune was written by Michael Praetorius in 1609. Many hands have been involved in the development of this carol over the years. Having up to 23 stanzas at one point, an American, Theodore Baker, originally translated the first two stanzas into English in 1894. Several other verses in English were added by others later to give us this:
Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming from tender stem hath sprung! Of Jesse’s lineage coming, as men of old have sung. It came, a floweret bright, amid the cold of winter, When half spent was the night.
Isaiah ’twas foretold it, the Rose I have in mind; With Mary we behold it, the virgin mother kind. To show God’s love aright, she bore to men a Savior, When half spent was the night.
The shepherds heard the story proclaimed by angels bright, How Christ, the Lord of glory was born on earth this night. To Bethlehem they sped and in the manger found Him, As angel heralds said.
This Flower, whose fragrance tender with sweetness fills the air, Dispels with glorious splendor the darkness everywhere; True Man, yet very God, from sin and death He saves us, And lightens every load.
O Savior, Child of Mary, who felt our human woe, O Savior, King of glory, who dost our weakness know; Bring us at length we pray, to the bright courts of Heaven, And to the endless day!
And who is this “Rose”, you might ask? You could rightly say “Jesus”, but in the original German version, the “Rose” was understood to be “Mary”. Some medieval interpreters of the Bible understood the “Rose of Sharon” in Song of Solomon 2:1 to be an allegorical representation of Mary. But presumably through the influence of Michael Praetorius, a moderate Lutheran who had an interest in improving relations between Protestants and Catholics, and others like him, the carol gradually shifted its focus to center on Christ. As is made explicit in verse 2 above, the prophet Isaiah in chapter 11 speaks to Jesus as being the fruit derived from the stump of Jesse. Mary’s role is clear as the Christ-Bearer.
As with many carols, they often take on different expressions. I have included three below: The first version is our church band’s rather avante-garde bluegrass interpretation, loosely based on the second brilliant version by Sufjan Stevens. Our band here includes my friends: Doug Deberry on acoustic guitar, Peter Budnikas on banjo and singing, and our fearless leader, Glenn Lavender, on portable upright bass and singing. Glenn is the worship leader for our church, formerly the bass player with the internationally popular band, Downhere. The mandolin player is some guy they found in between writing blog posts on something called “Veracity” 😉 . If you are looking for a more traditional rendering, have a listen at the majestic, classical version at the bottom by opera legend Ren´ee Fleming singing with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
