Washington DC Trip

Our family took a day trip to DC on Monday (Presidents' Day). Traffic was very light going into the city, and I got the best parking lot I've ever had near the Mall, just across the water from the Jefferson Memorial and about a block walk to the US Holocaust Museum. Off peak season and on a holiday is definitely a good time to visit Washington. We all went to the sobering children's exhibition "Daniel's Story" then Llew took the older children to the primary exhibition while I played with the younger children downstairs.

Here's the inside of the Museum. After this visit we caught the subway at the Smithsonian stop and went to the Gallieria/Chinatown stop to visit the International Spy Museum. We had heard some recommendations that this was a good place to visit. It was OK. Sort of a "Ripley's Believe it or Not" take on international history and espionage, but there were lots of interactive things for the kids to enjoy.

Two musems in one day was about all we could handle. After supper, we took another walk on the Mall past the Washington Memorial and on to the World War II Memorial. The latter is very impressive and a great follow-up to our visit to the Holocaust Museum earlier in the day. The children all agreed that none of them would ever want to go to war. The girls, in particular, said they would not want Sam, my oldest son, to have to fight in a war. Then I asked, "What if there were another situaton like the Holocaust? Wouldn't you want young men like Sam to go and fight for them?" "Yes," they reluctantly agreed. It made the memorial we were visiting and their appreciation of the sacrifice of others for liberty much more real.


JTR

Alexamenos worships his God

In last Sunday's message from Mark 15 on Christ's Suffering, I made mention of this crude drawing archaeologists found scratched on a wall in Rome. The photo above comes from Roland H. Bainton's book Faith of Our Fathers (Scribner's, 1944): p. 14. Historian Martin Hengel also makes reference to this graffiti in his classic book Crucifixion (Fortress, 1977) as an example of pagan animosity toward the scandalous preaching of Christ crucified:

There is an admirable illustration of this in the well known caricature of a crucified figure with an ass's head from the Palatine with the inscription 'Alexamenos worships god' (Alexamenos sebete [=sebetai] theon). There should be no doubt that this is an anti-Christian parody of the crucified Jesus. The ass's head is not a pointer to some kind of gnostic Seth-worship, but to the Jewish derivation of the Christian faith. One of the regular themes of ancient anti-Jewish polemic was that the Jews worshipped an ass in the temple (p. 19).

As the Apostle Paul put it:

1 Corinthians 1:22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

JTR

Children and Worship

Note: Last Sunday evening (2/8/09) I did a practical teaching, offering seven points on the topic of children in corporate worship. Here are my abbreviated notes:

1. It is appropriate for children to be included in the corporate worship gatherings of the church.

• Children have a capacity to serve the Lord (cf. 1 Sam 2:18).
• The people worshipped as one man in the days of Ezra (cf. Neh 8:3).
• NT worship assumes an intergenerational gathering (cf. Eph 5-6).

2. It is good for families to sit together in worship.

It is good for children to see their parents worshipping. Children understand that they and their family are not alone in the faith. It also provides a corporate witness. We see children as a blessing and not a burden (cf. Psalms 127-128).

3. Children need training in how to behave during worship services.

The Christian view is that children are a blessing and that they are stamped with the image of God. But it also recognizes that children are sinners who need guidance, instruction, and correction (cf. Proverbs 13:24; 19:18; 22:15; 29:17).

4. It is good for children to develop the disciplines of obedience and self-control.

Asking a child to sit quietly during a worship service is valuable for many reasons. First, children usually learn more than we give them credit. Second, even if they gain little in factual knowledge they learn other things. They learn obedience. They learn self-control. They learn that some occasions call for formality and reverence. Finally, they learn that not all things in life are designed primarily to suit them.

5. It is good for families with small children to be mindful of the needs of others in the worship service.

The key verse is Romans 12:10: "Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another."

I see two believers coming to a door in an eternal stalemate. One says, "After you." And the other says, "No after you." Each puts a priority on serving the other.

Parents will be mindful of how others (particularly those without children, like singles and older persons) might be distracted by what, for them, is normal.

6. It is good for the congregation to be patient and understanding of the needs of those with small children.

Those without children, likewise, will be especially understanding, patient, and supportive of the needs of families with children.

7. It is good for parents to take practical steps in training their children:

• Talk with children about what your expectations are for their behavior during corporate worship.
• Before you come into worship, take your child to the bathroom and explain that he will not be allowed to get up unless it is an extreme emergency.
• Model proper behavior in your own attitude and actions.
• Help your children participate in the service. Examples: Holding a hymn book together, standing, praying, reading, etc.
• Encourage older children to take notes on the sermon.
• Train proper behavior in family worship.
• Discuss the worship service over Sunday lunch or throughout the week.

JTR

Note: Evangel 2.11.09.

The worst Baptist Press story I think I've ever read

Yesterday I noticed just about the worst story I think I've ever read on Baptist Press (news service for the Southern Baptist Convention). Here's the link.

The article relates how "evangelist" Ronnie Hill gave away a new Chrysler 300 LX in a sort of "gospel raffle" (my words here, not ones actually used in the article) to a Methodist woman who, along with c. 10,300 other people, took the time to register for the raffle by listening to Hill's online three minute evangelistic appeal. The "winner" admits that when she registered for the raffle she did so "selfishly" but now she sees "the car is secondary" (but she's still keeping it).

But wait, there's more. Hill claims that 3,200 of those who listened to his three minute message have been soundly converted. I think as a follow up to this promotion, Hill should offer a new car to anyone who is able to find one of those 3,200 who shows any remote signs of authentic regeneration.

But wait, there's more. The car dealer who gave "evangelist" Ronnie Hill the best deal he could find on the car also had a testimony to share. As the article relates:

For Kelly Chadwick, general sales manager at the north Georgia dealership, Hill was an answer to his prayer as well. Chadwick, who attends Airline Baptist Church in Gainesville, Ga., said that while praying during his drive to work he asked God to help the dealership sell a vehicle the same day Hill called to buy the vehicle for the giveaway.

"It shows you that there's nothing God can't do," Chadwick said. "There's nothing that He can't handle."

Truly profound. Clearly, God was at work in this.

I don't know what makes this story worse. The fact that "evangelist" Ronnie Hill put forward this pitiful gimmick or that Baptist Press is promoting it so enthusiastically.

Too bad Paul didn't think of this before he wrote 2 Corinthians 2:17: "For we are not, as so many, peddling the word of God; but as of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ."

JTR

Exposition of Jude: Part 13 of 25

Note: This is a series of occasional verse by verse expositions of Jude. An archive of this and past commentaries may be found below under the label "Jude Exposition."

Jude 1:13: raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

Jude continues his relentless attack on false teachers in this verse. The author began to compile a list of five metaphors to describe these perverse instructors in v. 12. There he described them as "spots in your love feasts," "clouds without water," and "late autumn trees without fruit." In v. 13 he piles on two more condemning metaphors to complete the quintet.

Fourth, "raging waves of the sea." Can you imagine the tossing waves of an ocean during a violent hurricane? These men are never at rest. Their positions are constantly shifting, rising and falling with every wind of change (cf. Ephesians 4:14). They are never still, quiet, and content. Their constant movement issues in "foaming up their own shame." Their shameful deeds are like an unsightly scum churned up by their untoward actions.

Fifth, "wandering stars." From our perspective on earth, the stars always seem to be shifting in the heavens. They are not grounded, fixed, or constant. Likewise, these men are not reliable. One day they hold one opinion and the next the complete opposite.

Jude is bold to say that a terrible punishment awaits such men. A particular place is "reserved" for them. The God who keeps heaven for the righteous also holds hell for the ungodly. This place is described as "the blackness of darkness." Jesus concludes his Parable of the Wedding Feast with the king instructing his servants to cast out the guest who slipped into the celebration without a wedding garment: "Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 22:13). The same punishment is given the unprofitable servant in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:30).

Have you ever thought of hell as a place of continual darkness? A place where one gropes about in agony without ever seeing or finding? Any child who has ever been afraid of sleeping in a dark room, will understand immediately the terror of being locked in eternal night. Abiding in darkness is not the only description of the punishment that this vile place holds for it inhabitants, but it is one wretched characteristic of that place of perpetual gloom.

Note also that those who go to this place of darkness will abide there "forever." Hell is not a place of limited duration. The worm does not die and the fire is not quenched in that place (Isaiah 66:24; Mark 9:44, 46, 48). The smoke of that place rises forever and ever (Revelation 19:13).

Why does Jude pile up these frightening and vivid metaphors? There is, in fact, a gracious warning in his words. He is urging the false teachers to turn back to the ways of truth and godliness. He is also warning the saints not to follow after such men. Jude is a like a loving parent who calls out stern warnings to children who are getting too near a road with dangerous traffic.

Reflections:

• How are false teachers like the "raging waves of the sea"?


• How are false teachers like "wandering stars?"


• Does your life demonstrate stability and tranquility?


• Why does the image of hell as a place of perpetual darkness strike fear in our hearts?

JTR

Tri-State Particular Baptist Fellowship

Photo: Marcus Deel, me, and Byron Glaspy outside Beacon Baptist Church in Burlington, NC.

Last Monday (Feb 1) I had the privilege of speaking at a pastoral fraternal called "The Tri-State Particular Baptist Fellowship" in Burlington, NC. The meeting was hosted at Beacon Baptist Church. I gave one of three afternoon messages. My topic was "A Biblical Defense of Baptism by Immersion." JPBC Pastoral Assistant Marcus Deel and our new Pastoral Intern Byron Glaspy made the trip with me. We had a seven hour theological discussion on wheels during the trip down and back.

JTR

JPBC Deacons and Wives at Peaks of Otter

Photo: JPBC Deacons and Wives along with "Little John" Case and Llewellyn Riddle.

Photo: Saturday morning discussion. Outside was a beautiful view of the nearly completely frozen over lake where an otter was playing in one pool.

We had our annual JPBC Deacon and wives retreat last Friday-Saturday at Peaks of Otter in Bedford. We started this January tradition a few years ago. The Retreat is informal with time to get to know each other better, prayer together, discuss strengths and weaknesses in our church's ministry, and evaluate caring for our congregation.

JTR

Artusio Fan Club

Photo: Danny Artusio during a match.

The Cavalier Daily had a nice article on JPBCers Danny and Kyle Artusio yesterday. These are indeed two fine young men. My daughters have also enjoyed having them as their Sunday School teachers this year.

JTR

Evaluating and Avoiding "The Shack"

I was talking with some new attendees at JPBC the other day who were interested in pursuing membership in our body, and I was asking about how they came to be drawn to our church. They responded, "Well, you're just about the only church we attended that wasn't doing some kind of study on The Shack."

If you're not familiar with the book, you can read this extensive review by Tim Challies. Or watch these video blogs (The Shack: The Negatives; and The Shack: The Positive) by David Murray of Puritan Seminary.

JTR

Book Recommendation: "Among the Hidden"

One of our family's New Year's resolutions was to spend more time reading aloud to each other after supper. We just finished reading Margaret Peterson Haddix's Among the Hidden (Aladdin, 1998). This is a really compelling story. The children (not to mention the adults) were hooked.

Among the Hidden is set in a future totalitarian society which was undergone famine and civil unrest leading to an authoritarian government. Families are limited to two children and the law is ruthlessly enforced by the Population Police. The main character is a boy named Luke who is a "third child" forced to live in hiding. Not only is it a great story, but it got our family talking about things like government, citizenship, freedom, etc.

The book is the first in Haddix's seven part "Shadow Children Series." Next up: Among the Imposters.

JTR

I cannot slip through his fingers because I am one of his fingers

John 10:29: My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.

1 Corinthians 12:27: Now you are the body of Christ and members individually.

I recently read this account (in Joel Beeke, Living for God’s Glory, p. 117):

The great Scottish preacher Ebenezer Erskine (1680-1754) once visited a woman on her death bed and lovingly tested her readiness for heaven. When she assured him that she was ready to depart and be with Christ because she was in that hand from which no one could pluck her, Erskine asked, "But are you not afraid that you will slip through His fingers in the end?"

"That is impossible because of what you have always told us," she said.

"And what is that?" he asked.

"That we are united to Him, and so we are part of His body. I cannot slip through His fingers because I am one of His fingers. Besides, Christ has paid too high a price for my redemption to leave me in Satan’s hand. If I were to be lost, He would lose more than I; I would lose my salvation, but He would lose His glory, because one of His sheep would be lost."

May all those who are in Christ share in this assurance of our salvation.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article 1.27.09.

Were we admitted into the presence of a king...

Do you ever find worship boring? Sermons tedious? Prayer monotonous? Have you ever considered this a sympton of sin?

In his discussion of man's present condition in Human Nature In Its Fourfold State (Banner, 1964), Thoms Boston (1676-1732) observes that "Man's understanding is naturally overhwhelmed with gross darkness in spiritual things" (p. 81).

He proceeds to offer numerous proofs for this. Included in these is proof number four: "What a difficult task is it to detain the carnal mind before the Lord!" (p. 88). He concludes this proof: "Were we admitted into the presence of a king to petition for our lives, we should be in no hazard of gazing through the chambers of presence" (p. 89).

How would it change our interest in worship and spiritual things if we thought of ourselves as being brought before the King to petition for our lives?

JTR

Many a groan is heard from a sick bed

In his classic work, Human Nature In Its Fourfold State, Thomas Boston describes the Christian's struggle with sin:

Many a groan is heard from a sick bed, but never from a grave. In the saint, as in the sick man, there is a mighty struggle; life and death striving for the mastery: but in the natural man, as in the dead corpse, there is no noise, because death bears full away.

Our struggle with sin, in fact, gives us assurance that we are indeed saved. We are like sick men, getting better, and not dead men.

JTR

A Prayer for President Obama

Dr. Albert Mohler, President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, posted this prayer for President Obama on his blog today:

Our Father, Lord of all creation, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: We pray today with a sense of special urgency and responsibility. We come before you to pray for our new President, Barack Obama, and for all those in this new administration who now assume roles of such high responsibility.

We know that you and you alone are sovereign; that you rule over all, and that you alone are able to keep and defend us. We know that our times are in your hands, and that "the king's heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord" [Proverbs 21:1]. Our confidence is in you and in you alone. We come before you as a people who acknowledge our constant need for your provision, wisdom, and protection.

Father, we pray today for Barack Obama as he takes office as President of the United States. We pray that you will show the glory of your name in our times and in these days, confounding the wisdom of the wise, thwarting the plans of the arrogant, and vindicating those who do justice and practice righteousness.

Father, we pray with thanksgiving for the gift of government and the grace of civic order. Thank you for giving us rulers and for knowing our need for laws and ordered life together. Thank you for this nation and the blessings we know as its citizens. Thank you for freedoms unprecedented in human history. We understand that these freedoms come with unprecedented opportunities.

Lord, we pray with thanksgiving for the joy and celebration reflected on millions of faces who never expected to look to the President of the United States and see a person who looks like themselves. Father, thank you for preserving this nation to the moment when an African-American citizen will take the oath of office and become our President. Thank you for the hope this has given to so many, the pride emerging in hearts that had known no such hope, and the pride that comes to a people who have experienced such pain at the hands of fellow citizens, simply because of the color of their skin. Father, we rejoice in every elderly face that reflects such long-sought satisfaction and in every young face that expresses such unrestrained joy. May this become an open door for a vision of race and human dignity that reflects your glory in our differences, and not our corruption of your gift.

Father, protect this president, we pray. We pray that you will surround this president and his family, along with all our leaders, with your protection and sustenance. May he be protected from evil acts and evil intentions, and may his family be protected from all evil and harm.

We pray that the Obama family will be drawn together as they move into the White House, and that they will know great joy in their family life. We are thankful for the example Barack and Michelle Obama have set as parents. Father, protect those precious girls in every way -- including the protection of their hearts as they see their father often criticized and as he is away from them on business of state. May their years in the White House bring them all even closer together.

Father, we pray for the safety and security of this nation, even as our new president settles into his role as Commander in Chief. We know that you and you alone can be our defense. We do not place our trust in horses or chariots, and we pray that you will give this president wisdom as he fulfills this vital responsibility.

Father, grant him wisdom in every dimension of his vast responsibility. Grant him wisdom to deal with a global financial crisis and with the swirling complex of vexing problems and challenges at home and abroad. May he inspire this nation to a higher vision for our common life together, to a higher standard of justice, righteousness, unity, and the tasks of citizenship.

Father, we pray that you will change this president's heart and mind on issues of urgent concern. We are so thankful for his gifts and talents, for his intellect and power of influence. Father, bend his heart to see the dignity and sanctity of every single human life, from the moment of conception until natural death.

Father, lead him to see abortion, not as a matter of misconstrued rights, but as a murderous violation of the right to life. May he come to see every aborted life as a violation of human dignity and every abortion as an abhorrent blight upon this nation's moral witness. May he pledge himself to protect every human life at every stage of development. He has declared himself as an energetic defender of abortion rights, and we fear that his election will lead directly to the deaths of countless unborn human beings. Protect us from this unspeakable evil, we pray. Most urgently, we pray that you will bring the reign of abortion to an end, even as you are the defender of the defenseless.

Father, may this new president see that human dignity is undermined when human embryos are destroyed in the name of medical progress, and may he see marriage as an institution that is vital to the very survival of civilization. May he protect all that is right and good. Father, change his heart where it must be changed, and give him resolve where his heart is right before you.
Father, when we face hard days ahead—when we find ourselves required by conscience to oppose this president within the bounds of our roles as citizens—may we be granted your guidance to do so with a proper spirit, with a proper demeanor, and with persuasive arguments. May we learn anew how to confront without demonizing, and to oppose without abandoning hope.

Father, we are aware that our future is in your hands, and we are fully aware that you and you alone will judge the nations. Much responsibility is now invested in President Barack Obama, and much will be required. May we, as Christian citizens, also fulfill what you would require of us. Even as we pray for you to protect this president and change his heart, we also pray that your church will be protected and that you will conform our hearts to your perfect will.

Father, we pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, the ever-reigning once and future King, the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He and he alone can save, and his kingdom is forever. Above all, may your great name be praised. Amen.

The 1919 Statement of Belief

Baptist Studies Online is a new website. Their purpose:

Baptist Studies Online (BSO) is a website dedicated to the study of Baptist history and thought, with special emphasis on Baptists in North America. The purpose of BSO is to facilitate the scholarly study of Baptists by making available to researchers and students an online journal, a primary source library, a comprehensive collection of Baptist history-related links, and a regularly updated list of announcements related to the field. BSO is a collaborative effort by Baptist scholars from a variety of traditions, with technical support provided by Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina.

They also have an online journal (the Journal of Baptist Studies) edited by Keith Harper and Nathan Finn. In the second volume of this journal, they have re-printed an article I did a few years ago that appeared in the now defunct Faith & Mission. My article is titled, "The 1919 Statement of Belief and the Tradition of Confessional Boundaries for Southern Baptist Missionaries." In it I examine the 1919 Statement of Belief that was used by the Foreign Mission Board of the SBC as a doctrinal standard for Southern Baptist missionaries. The article makes the point that contrary to the views of many moderate Baptists, Southern Baptists have long held to the importance of doctrinal accountability for those who serve through their mission board, as the 1919 statement demonstrates.

JTR

For I have many people in this city

Acts 18:9 Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, "Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; 10 for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city."

In Acts 18, Luke records how Paul came to minister in the city of Corinth. He stayed with Aquila and Priscilla and worked alongside them as "tentmakers" (see Acts 18:2-3). Though working to support himself, Paul was also busy in ministry: "And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Jews and Greeks" (v. 4).

When Silas and Timothy arrived in Corinth to offer their support, Paul "was compelled by the Spirit and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ" (v. 5). When these opposed and blasphemed, Paul turned his attention to the Gentiles (v. 6). Paul’s ministry was not without fruit. One of those converted was a Gentile God-fearer named Justus who lived next to the synagogue (v. 7). Another was Crispus, "the ruler of the synagogue," who believed on the Lord together with his household (v. 8). Luke adds: "And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized" (v. 8). Note the fundamental Biblical pattern: the gospel is heard, believed, and only the converted are baptized.

Despite this fruit, Paul was apparently discouraged. In Acts 18:9-10, Luke tells how the Lord himself spoke to Paul and gave him the encouragement to speak and not be silent (v. 9). The Lord promised to be with Paul and to protect his life (v. 10). At the end of this encouragement, the Lord added, "for I have many people in this city" (v. 10). With this Paul stayed another year and six months, "teaching the Word of God among them" (v. 11).

As we consider this passage, let us think about our own ministry in the city of Charlottesville and the surrounding area. Yes, we have our own Corinth all around us. As Jeremiah wrote to the Israelites in exile, we should "seek the peace" of our city (Jeremiah 29:7). The greatest peace is, of course, knowing Christ. Like Paul we want with boldness to testify to one and all that Jesus is the Christ. If discouraged, we should also heed the Lord’s words to Paul: "for I have many people in this city." Indeed, as in Corinth so in Charlottesville, there are many people that the Lord has appointed to salvation in this city (cf. Acts 13:48: "and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed"). Yes, many will reject the gospel, but there are also many who will believe. We do not know who will respond. It might, in fact, be the very person we think least likely.

Let this give us great boldness in ministry in this place in this new year!

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for 1.15.09.

Venning on the Sinfulness of Sin

The Puritan Pastor Ralph Venning (1621-74) first published The Plague of Plagues in 1669, four years after the Great Plague of London. You can read the entire text online here. Greater than physical plague in Venning's mind was the spiritual plague of sin. Venning's work can be read in the Banner of Truth Puritan paperback series as The Sinfulness of Sin. Here are some quotes from Venning on sin:

"So what is done by any man would be done by every man, if God did not restrain some men from it by his power, and constrain others to obedience by his love and power…" (p. 30).

"As in God there is no evil, so in sin there is no good" (p. 31).

"All God's works were good exceedingly, beautiful in admiration; but the works of sin are deformed and monstrous ugly, for it works disorder, confusion, and everything that is abominable" (p. 32).

"The reason why they [sinful men] find so much fault with God is because he finds out their faults" (p. 49).

"How hard it is then to sin once, and only once. Sin grows upon us" (p. 166).

Sin persuades that "what may be sin in another cannot be sin in you" (p. 169).

"Sin promises like a God but pays like a Devil" (p. 170).

"God hates man for sin. It is not only sin (Proverbs 6:16, 19) but sinners that God hates, and that for sin. It is said of God that he hates the workers of iniquity (Psalm 5:5); not only the works of iniquity, but the workers of it" (p. 189).

"Sinners grow up faster than men do; they are old in sin when they are still young in years" (p. 191).

"Sin costs dear, but profits nothing; they make a bad purchase who buy their damnation" (p. 201).

"Sin is a very expensive thing: it cannot be maintained without great cost. Men might build hospitals at a cheaper rate than they can maintain their lusts. Some men's sins cost them more in a day than their families do in a week, perhaps in a year. Some starve their families to feed their lusts, which have turned many out of house and home, and reduced great estates to a crust of bread, quite apart from what will happen hereafter. Lusts consume health and wealth (Proverbs 5). Gluttony, drunkenness, and uncleanness are costly and expensive" (p. 202).

"You cannot stand at too great a distance from sin" (p. 267).

JTR

Listening Recommendations

Have some drive time and want to listen to something better than Rush or Sean Hannity? There are several good internet broadcasts featuring discussion of Christian life and theology that are worth a listen.

I recently discovered the "Christ the Center" broadcast of the Reformed Forum which features pastors, students, and professors with ties to Westminster Seminary discussing various doctrinal topics.

Several JPBCers also got me intersted in the weekly White Horse Inn program.

Apologist James White's weekly broadcast of The Dividing Line is also worth a listen (though I don't agree with his views on the text of Scripture).

JTR

The Blessing of Adoption

One of the great privileges of being a Pastor is that you get to be witness to and take part in key events in the lives of your people. On the last day of 2008 my family went to an adoption agency office in Northern Virginia to take part in an adopton finalization cemermony for the Minyards as they welcomed a beautiful new daughter to their family.

JTR

2008 Top Ten Books

Here are my top ten books (in no particular order) that I either read or re-read in 2008:

1. Joel Beeke & Dianne Kleyn, Building on the Rock Series (Christian Focus).

My family started reading this five book series as part or our evening family devotions last year and we completed the five book series this year. These simple stories illustrate Biblical and moral principles for children (and adults). Excellent!

2. Joel R. Beeke, Overcoming the World: Grace to Win the Daily Battle (P & R, 2005).

This is a gem for those who serve in pastoral ministry. It offers both great encouragement and deep challenges. I have given away about 20 copies of this book to fellow pastors over the course of the last year, always with the advice that they begin by reading the two practical chapters in the second half of the book on dealing with pride and criticism. Those two chapters will speak deeply to anyone involved in public ministry.

3. J. C. Ryle, Holiness (Evangelical Press, 2004 [originally published in 1879]).

I finally got around to reading this classic. I took the slow approach, reading it over several months. There is so much to process on every page. A stimulating, practical work on sanctification.

4. Theodore P. Letis, The Ecclesiastical Text: Text Criticism, Biblical Authority, and the Popular Mind (Institute for Renaissance and Reformation Biblical Studies, 1997).

Letis dares to challenge the assumption that the modern critical Greek text is superior to the "ecclesiastical text" (textus receptus). He argues that Warfield and others made too great a sacrifice when they accepted Wescott and Hort’s views of the Greek text in the name of seeking the inerrant "original autographs." Letis argues instead for divine preservation of the "apographs" (copies) of the received or ecclesiastical text.

5. Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (Signet, 1961 [originally written in 1813]).

OK, I have to admit that I am part of the Jane Austen male fan club (JPBC’s Stephen P. and Steve B. are also members). I got hooked watching the "Complete Jane Austen" series on PBS’s Masterpiece Theater and had to read her classic work. Austen is a master at understanding the human heart and in marveling at the ways of a man with a woman (Proverbs 30:19).

6. John Bunyan, Pilgrim’s Progress (original 1678, 1684).

I re-read the classic while we were in China this summer (mostly on airplanes). This time through I was struck on a deeper level by Bunyan’s Reformed soteriology.

7. Faith Cook, Troubled Journey: A Missionary Childhood in War-Torn China (Banner, 2004).

Faith Cook is an English Pastor’s wife (and a favorite author of my daughter Hannah) who grew up as an MK in China. In this little book, Cook manages both to honor her parents and at the same time critique their Hudson Taylor inspired mind-set of sacrificing family for ministry. A great book for adult children of ministers or missionaries or for anyone who needs to come to terms with childhood misgivings.

8. Joseph Pipa, Jr. Ed., The Worship of God: Reformed Concepts of Biblical Worship (Christian Focus, 2005).

I picked this book up at the Evangelical Forum in September. It is a collection of essays on worship from a theology conference at Greenville Presbyterian Seminary. This book really made me think hard about the regulative principles in worship and has had an impact on our worship practice at JPBC.

9. Joel Beeke, et al, Living for God’s Glory: An Introduction to Calvinism (Reformation Trust, 2008).

Yes, this is the third time you’ve seen Beeke’s name on my list. This book is a wonderful collection of essays on Calvinism. Beeke’s exposition of the five solas and TULIP is superb. But the key argument of this book is that Calvinism is more than soteriology, but a comprehensive worldview impacting one’s views on church, worship, ethics, marriage, family, etc.

10. Ji-Li Jiang, Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution (Harper Trophy, 1997).

Llew and I both read this book last summer before our trip to China. It is the sad story of a young Chinese girl and her family who suffered and persevered during the cultural revolution in China. A tremendous illustration of how sin destroys trust and community, but it also reveals hope and common grace.

A few honorable mentions: Andrew Bonar, Robert Murray McCheynne (Banner, 1960 [1844]); Peter Barnes, A Handful of Pebbles: Theological Liberalism and the Church (Banner, 2008); H. Rider Haggard, Pearl Maiden (Christian Liberty Press, 2003 [1903]); G. A. Henty, With Lee in Virginia (Dover, 2004 [1897]); Wilbur Pickering, The Identity of the NT Text II, 3rd ed. (Wipf and Stock, 2003); Voddie Baucham, Jr, Family Driven Faith (Crossway, 2007); D. A. Carson, Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor: The Life and Reflections of Tom Carson (Crossway, 2008); J. I. Packer, A Passion for Holiness (Crossway, 1992).

JTR