Finding and Fulfilling One’s Calling in the Lord

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:10)

Every person is a unique creation of God. Besides outward physical differences, each person inwardly reflects the image of God uniquely, in the combination of personality traits, gifts, motivations and talents they have received. God does not allot His gifts arbitrarily, and the way He puts each one together has purpose. He means for each individual He has called to Himself to fulfill certain God-given works, and accordingly, in His design of each person, He bestows gifts and talents that will enable each to fulfill their God-given callings.

At the same time, God’s purposes in and through mankind are not realized through individuals working alone and separately. God has called us to Himself as His body. When each member of the body plays the part he or she is designed to be and do, the entire body benefits and the purposes of God are achieved (1 Corinthians 12). In writing about Christian calling and vocation, Os Guinness has differentiated between "a primary call, which is by the Lord, to the Lord, for the Lord" and a "secondary call, which is what we do as we follow the Lord- meaning, we do everything as unto him. And, of course, the secondary should never become the primary." In this article I am in agreement with Guinness' definition of calling-- that first, we are called by the Lord to Himself, and that what we do for Him is important but secondary.

If we lived in an ideal world that had not fallen into sin, God’s distribution of gifts among His people would likely have produced a harmonious working together according to God’s purpose. But we live in a fallen world, and so the fulfillment of God’s purpose in His people and through His people involves not only, as we have briefly discussed, gifting them with various natural and spiritual talents, and binding them together in community, but also, the spiritual transformation of the character of each person. This process, called sanctification, involves everything God brings into one’s life, which God uses to test our faith and to perfect our souls in the image of Jesus Christ. We are called to be a holy people, and someday God will complete the work He has begun in His people, bringing us to full maturity and glory (1 Peter 1:3-25, James 1:2-4, Eph 4:1-16). In his letter to the Ephesians the Apostle Paul writes about the marvelous privileges the children of God have through Jesus Christ, that we have been forgiven of our sins and adopted by God, all as part of His marvelous plan of redemption through Jesus Christ:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth (Ephesians 1:3-10)

In searching out the will of God for our life’s vocation, and seeking to fulfill the role(s) God calls us to play, several questions should be asked. One might begin by asking, "What are my unique talents, gifts and motivational patterns? What am I naturally good at doing? What do I like to do most? Also, what kinds of needs in the world drive me? What am I motivated by?" The answers to these questions reflect things about us that are not accidental, but are indicators and clues to one’s God-given calling, because they are within us by design.

But how do we develop and use these God-given gifts in a God-honoring way? Does He hand out gifts and talents just so that we can pursue "self-actualization" and maximize our own potential? Certainly as we have been saying, God gives gifts that He means for us to enjoy, develop and use. But to what end? The Bible states that "the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45)." Likewise, we will find the fulfillment of our gifts when we use them to serve others, and not only for our own benefit.

We must remember too that our identity in God is made up of more than just the sum of our gifts. Our value is not in what we achieve, but in who we are and to whom we belong– for we are people made in the image of God; and we are those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. We are being transformed into Christ-likeness by the mighty hand of God working in us by His very own Spirit, and we have nothing in life that we have not received by God’s provision. Anything that we are able to achieve in this life is from God, who gives the talent, the opportunity and the strength. We belong to God, and we are called to the staggeringly amazing privilege of being not only His servants, but friends of the living God, because He knows us and we may know Him (Philippians 1:6, 2:13; 1 Corinthians 4:7, 6:19-20, 2 Cor 3:18, Ecclesiastes 2:24, John 15:15).

Keeping in mind all these wonderful biblical truths, we recognize that to discover our particular callings we must get busy using and developing our gifts in service to others. For whether or not we have a specific career or arena of service, we already have a commission: to preach the gospel and to teach everything that Jesus commanded, to make disciples and to be ambassadors for Christ (Matthew 18:19-20; 2 Cor 5:20). So in whatever circumstances we find ourselves, we can take action through which we'll gain real-life experiences that will provide useful feedback, confirming and encouraging the talents we possess. We'll discover through this valuable process which gifts and talents are our best and strongest, and this will give us direction as to which gifts ought to be further developed. At the same time, we will be blessing others by using our gifts, rather than just trying to figure out what they are in a theoretical vacuum.

So the process of discovering one’s particular calling involves being a good steward of that which God has given, and remembering that in our service our ultimate purpose is to exalt and glorify God, and not ourselves (1 Cor 10:31; 2 Cor 5:13). For this reason it may be that although God has given us certain gifts that we enjoy using, sometimes the needs of the kingdom may outweigh one’s particular preferences for the "where, what and whom" of our service. The Lord may "close a door", and open a new path of opportunity in its place. As we see from various examples in Scripture Moses, Jonah, etc.), we may be challenged by needs God presents, to go and serve in ways we would not have expected nor would we have chosen. Even then, with the call comes an equipping that comes from the Lord. Generally however, we can still expect that the gifts and talents, the inner motivations and burdens we find consistently within us over time, are good indicators of the direction God has designed for our lives.

Let us get busy then, developing the gifts we’ve discovered, through training (school and study if necessary) and through practice, that we may grow those gifts in fruitful service and gain confirmation of our calling. Let us remain confident that God is overseeing our lives, reigning over past, present and future circumstances. We may feel frustration that we are not achieving more, or that we can only do so much at present, but let us be faithful in the little things, that the Lord may increase our opportunities. Our ability to truly bless others in a lasting way is in proportion to who and what we are as people. Remember that being a godly man or woman is the highest priority in a life of service to the Lord. Let us not then, neglect our personal walk with God as we seek to serve in His kingdom. The Lord will faithfully reward each one for his service to Him, and the reward will be just and fair, measured out on the Lord’s scale of perfect wisdom and righteousness. We may not be as gifted as others, but we can serve with a heart that is pure in its devotion to the Lord, and this is what the Lord really desires from us. Serve with excellence, and to the best of your ability, and never stop striving to improve. But remember that your godly character, reflected in service to God and man that is motivated by love, is the most important thing to God. So whether in your service to God you are granted the opportunity to touch many lives or just a few, the critical component is humble dependence upon God for the love and power to serve Him rightly.

The Way of Love

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love (1 Corinthians 13)

For further reading and study:

Calling, Postmodernism, and Chastened Liberals/A Conversation with Os Guinness

Thank God For Work, Pt 1 by Justin Taylor
Thank God For Work, Pt 2 by Justin Taylor

Misc links on Vocation -Insights from Gene Veith

Teachings and links on Vocation at Monergism.com

Tags: finding your calling, vocation, the will of God

Thoughts on GodTV and the Lakeland "Revival"

In Discernment, Revivals, and Godly Common Sense Dan Edelen over at Cerulean Sanctum has done a very good service for the Christian community by writing a piece that carefully analyzes, according to biblical standards and common sense, the current so-called "revival" happenings taking place at a series of meetings at "Ignited Church" in Lakeland, Florida. The "Lakeland Revival" meetings are being helmed by Todd Bentley, and Ignited Church is pastored by Stephen Strade.

I am in in complete agreement with Dan Edelen when he reminds us that "real miraculous works from God are often imitated by the Enemy". The mere fact that some kind of supernatural events and even healings may be taking place is no proof that the things taking place in Lakeland are of God.

Underdeveloped, unexamined theology
Personally I think that the reason many Christians flock to such events and/or look to them for hope of revival is because of the lack of discernment that comes with having an underdeveloped and/or unexamined theology. I have observed GodTV many times before the current broadcasts featuring the Lakeland "revival". It seems every time I turn on GODTV I observe people seemingly lost in trance, rocking back and forth, swaying as they listen to a worship band, waiting for God to "show up" in some kind of tangible way. The preaching of the word of God is rarely to be heard, and when it does come, it seems all kinds of theological nonsense is spouted. I realize I'm not providing specific examples, but what I'm saying is that the teaching and preaching I've heard does not seem to be based on systematic, thorough examination of scripture, in its grammatical and historical context. Rather, verses are quoted to prove points, but the context is neglected of who the verse was originally to and why is not taken into consideration, as if all verse in Scripture can simply be plucked out at random and be considered relevant to us today or as promises to the modern believer. In other words, this is typical Christian TV fare-- light on substance and theology, heavy on entertainment and emphasizing experience above all. And how can we know that something is of God, according to God TV? Well, we know that God is moving because people are falling down, "slain" by the power of the Spirit; or people shake uncontrollably, allegedly as a result of the power of God coming upon them, and other such experiential manifestations.

It's Time to Wake Up
Brothers and sisters, when are we going to wake up? This clamoring after signs and wonders is not faith, it is a sign that we have not yet become free of fleshly notions about what it means to be spiritual. When I hear Todd Bentley going on about how an angel named Emma speaks and directs him, I'm reminded how different the New Testament attitude is towards such revelations. Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, had a genuine heavenly experience. But unlike modern day preachers who build entire ministries based on their alleged heavenly encounters, and go on in great detail about such encounters and write books about them, Paul only mentions his experience to make the point of its relatively unimportance to his mission for the Lord. In 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, Paul writes of his own personal supernatural and heavenly encounter, though in humility, he refers to himself in the third person:

... Though there is nothing to be gained by it, I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven— whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise— whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. Though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Was Paul a success or a failure?
But notice that Paul's heavenly experience did not thereafter turn him into someone who was blessed of God with great finances or with perfect health. Unlike teachers on GodTV and at the Lakeland revival, Paul does not portray the Christian life as one where the most important thing is an "experience" of God that proves itself by financial prosperity and healing for the body. If one were measuring the success and genuineness of Paul's ministry by the measures used today-- that when God "manifests" Himself He always brings signs and wonders that provide healing and prosperity to those "hungry" enough to reach out for God-- well, then Paul was a dismal failure!

For it would seem Paul didn't know that he was supposed to pray to be delivered from "weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities" and instead walk in the "FOG" (favor of God), and claim his "birthright" as a "child of the king". But Paul knew what he was talking about, while these false teachers today don't know what they are talking about.

Hear Paul speak to this age, with words of profound heavenly wisdom, as he tells believers about their true riches in Christ:

See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God. (Colossians 2: 8-19, emphasis mine)

Growth that is from God
Do we want to grow with a "growth that is from God"? Let us pay heed to Paul's counsel then-- and not lose sight of what our true riches are and how they come to us. Is it wrong to seek healing for the body? Of course not. Is it wrong to seek to improve our financial situation, particularly if we are struggling to make ends meet? Of course it isn't. But let us seek the counsel of Scripture on how to go about finding healing or making money, and at the same time, trust in the Lord's grace and provision. Let us learn to think spiritually, by being careful readers of the word of God, and so be able to know what is most important as believers-- our connection to Christ, our Head. Let's be discerning so that we don't get taken in by those who are re-defining the Christian life to make it into something that it not-- a "magical" experience whereby money fills our pockets and we don't know where it came from, or saying the "touch of God" is equivalent to rolling around on the floor like a dog and barking.

When there are true riches to be had in Christ, through communion with Him that comes through abiding in His truth and practicing it, why "spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy (Isaiah 55:2)? I certainly don't claim to have experienced the depth of this communion myself. But that's the kind of experience with God I think is worth striving after-- the kind that makes us mature, full of the fruit of the Spirit, more godly, more compassionate and yes, wise and discerning, able to judge correctly (Romans 12:2, 1 Corinthians 2:14-16, 1 Corinthians 14:20).

Tags: Lakeland revival, Todd Bentley, false revival, discernment, signs and wonders, true spiritual riches

Adrian Warnock Interviews John Piper

In a 4 part video series posted below, Adrian Warnock, the prolific, "reformed charismatic" UK blogger, interviews the rarely-interviewed John Piper, who is pastor of Bethelehem Baptist Church, a well-known author, and founder of Desiring God Ministries. Among other interesting questions and responses, Piper responds to a question about where does his passion in preaching come from.

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Part 4

Tags: Adrian Warnock, John Piper, interview, 'Reformed Teaching'

Resources: The Theology Program and 2 New Podcasts

I am currently taking the Spring 2008 Introduction to Theology course provided by The Theology Program (TTP) of Reclaiming the Mind Ministries. It's a program that describes itself as "a comprehensive and in-depth training program for the layperson". So far I have enjoyed the course, which personally I'm taking as a way of further exploring the idea of going to seminary.

However I believe most folks who take this course and enroll in TTP are not necessarily intending to enter seminary but nevertheless desire quality, seminary-level resources for learning theology. Thus far I have found the materials to be of excellent quality (downloaded videos and workbook, website resources). Course books must be purchased, although alternate free readings are offered to those who may not be able to afford the required textbooks. Each week, there are 2 online class sessions in which students interact with the instructor and with each other. Weekly assignments and comments are posted online and students may interact with one another's comments on the course blog. The course may be taken for free, or students may enroll in the more challenging certificate program. Certificate courses are $100 per course, and some scholarships are available. Successful completion of the series of six courses earns a certificate.

Instructors for the course are C. Michael Patton, Th.M, and Rhome Dyck, Th.M, both graduates of Dallas Theological Seminary. The aim of the program is to learn about theology historically and biblically, and to gain a methodology for the study of theology that is pursued in an irenic (peaceful), rather than a polemic fashion. Though Mr. Patton is a Calvinist and a cessationist, the program does not attempt to convert participants to these particular views. Rather, the course is about learning how to "do theology". As written on their website,

The contents of TTP are created from a broadly evangelical perspective, engaging other traditions in a persuasive yet gracious manner. In short, we seek to help people think theologically by understanding what they believe and why they believe it.

It has been quite interesting to interact online with others from varied backgrounds who are taking the course, and the weekly assignments and discussions are challenging in that they don't ask students just to regurgitate answers, but to thoughtfully engage with the material. of course the more time and effort one puts into the course work, the more benefit one will derive from the material.

My only frustrations (which may be more personal rather than problems with the course) is that the chat discussion sessions seem a bit superficial in their engagement with the material. I don't think it's easy in a chat room environment to stay focused on the material and not be distracted by all the extra commenting going on. My other frustration is with the broad, irenic approach that characterizes the program. On the one hand, I can see the benefit of this approach, in its openness to hear and engage all viewpoints. Having an accurate understanding of other viewpoints, even those one disagrees with, would help one to think through one's own positions better and develop more strongly considered convictions. On the other hand, I think it important to come to conclusions, and it seems that the irenic method may lend itself to the postmodern tendency of endless discussion and reluctance to point to what is true and to reject what is false. Nonetheless taking the course has been a good experience and I would recommend it especially to those who have no plans to attend seminary but want a structured, quality program for gaining a strong foundation in Christian theology.

The Program also emphasizes trying to bring this program into local churches, and persuades interested students to facilitate this process. Since many if not most churches don't provide systematic theological training, this program may be useful for helping laypeople learn theology. But I'm not yet entirely sure whether I think a program like this would be superior to one that teaches more didactically (from a reformed viewpoint).

New Podcasts/Players- "The Theology Program: Introduction to Theology Course" and "Best of Apologetics Podcast"

Having discovered a method for creating podcasts of audio materials posted on the web, I have created two new resources. One is an audio podcast of all the sessions from The Theology Programs- Introduction to Theology Course, which I described above. You'll find this resource at this link on my ReformingChristianity.com Netvibes page.

Also, under the Apologetics section here on Jordan's View, I've created a "Best of Apologetics Podcast Player", into which I'll regularly post Christian apologetics audio from a variety of sources.

My Nephew's Commercial

Hey friends

My nephew Joshua (youngest son of my brother Daniel and sister-in-law Sheila) stars in this new commercial for Underjams! He's a great little guy, full of energy-- I think the commercial captures a bit of his real life personality-- although now he's looking older than in the commercial. I'm a proud uncle, of course. Also, his older sister, Lydia Jordan --is quite an accomplished actress... I think I'll need to do an interview with her here, just so I can keep up with all the projects she's been involved in so far!

Of course, my nephew Christopher, oldest of the three siblings, is quite impressive too-- he ponders physics (for fun), can solve the Rubik's cube, does magic tricks, and has done a fair amount of acting himself. It's a pleasure watching them all grow up so smart and accomplished (great job, Danny and Sheila!)

Responses to An Evangelical Manifesto

On May 7th 2008, a "representative group of Evangelicals in America" issued a statement titled "An Evangelical Manifesto: A Declaration of Evangelical Identity and Public Commitment", during a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The conference and manifesto are their attempt to clarify the meaning of the term "Evangelical" and also to correct negative perceptions of the Evangelical movement. At the same time, the document challenges Evangelicals to follow a more Christ-like, "civil" way of pursuing common objectives. It encourages all who are of like mind about its analysis and prescriptions for Evangelicalism to demonstrate solidarity with its aims by signing the Manifesto.

At the press conference, Dr. Os Guinness, a chief architect of the document, spoke of its dual purpose, saying that the Manifesto is intended for two groups, "an internal audience calling for reformation of evangelicals", and an "external audience... a call to a re-thinking of the evangelical position in public life, and openly, a call for civility" in the "global public sphere". The Manifesto, written by a steering committee of nine, was signed by over 80 well-known evangelicals and is accumulating hundreds of other signatures, although some well-known Evangelicals such as Al Mohler, James Dobson, Pat Robertson and Rick Warren have not signed.



The Manifesto has drawn mixed reactions from bloggers and columnists across the blogosphere and web. Several analyses, by journalists Alan Jacobs and Frank Pastore, and Christian blogger Dan Edelen (see links below), find little by way of practical application to be drawn from the statement, which they assess as too theoretical and not as direct, specific and focused as a manifesto ought to be.

Questioning "An Evangelical Manifesto"- Frank Pastore

A Show About Nothing- Dan Edelen

Come On, You Call This a Manifesto?- Alan Jacobs


Others, such as Darrell Bock and Daniel Wallace (both professors at Dallas Theological Seminary), have been positive, citing the Manifesto's call to civility in the global public square, its humble tone and moderate prescriptions, as good, necessary steps towards recovering respect and credibility to the Evangelical movement. They would urge many to sign the document. Joe Carter, blogger of Evangelical Outpost also has signed the manifesto and has generally positive thoughts on it.

Darrell Bock: Why a Manifesto from Evangelicals? Why Now?- Darrell Bock

Evangelical Manifesto - Part 2- Daniel Wallace

I particularly resonated with the assessments of the manifesto made by Bill Muehlenberg and Albert Mohler (links below).

Both writers praise the analysis of issues that the manifesto gets right, yet also point out its weaknesses, especially noting its failure to give more specifics. For example, Mohler writes, "what the document never makes clear is how to hold to deep moral and political convictions, based in biblical principles, without running the danger of identification with a political agenda -- at least to some extent", and again, "The Manifesto is brave in calling for and end to 'culture warring' that threatens to unravel the society and shut down civil conversation and deliberation. But its bravery does not extend to any specific proposals about how this can be done."

Mohler, who has not signed the Manifesto, concludes his critique with the following words:

In the end, I must judge "An Evangelical Manifesto" to be too expansive in terms of public relations and too thin in terms of theology. I admire so much of what this document states and represents, but I cannot accept it as a whole. I want it to be even more theological, and to be far more specific about the Gospel. I agree with the framers that Evangelicals should be defined theologically, rather than politically, culturally, or socially. This document will have to be much more theological for it to accomplish its own stated purpose.

An Evangelical Manifesto: An Assessment

An Evangelical Response to "An Evangelical Manifesto" Albert Mohler

"An Evangelical Manifesto" -- Continuing the Conversation

Having now read the Manifesto through a couple of times and taken in various commentaries, I've come to some of the same conclusions as others. First, the Manifesto seems to be misnamed, as it lays out no strong, specific agenda for implementation of its purposes. Although it rightly decries politicization of the gospel, the document and surrounding press conference seemed mostly aimed at correcting the public image of Evangelicalism (a seemingly political or public relations endeavor). In a time when political correctness rules the media and an increasingly vocal secular influence strives to remove all vestiges of religious and particularly Christian influence from the public square, this document seems too accommodating to the times. The Christian gospel by its very nature is exclusive. It is also a call to repentance and is therefore offensive, a stumbling block to many. Yet the Manifesto seems more preoccupied with civility than with bold proclamation. Certainly the Manifesto affirms the basic truths of Christianity, yet its conciliatory and defensive tone is not inspiring, and its prescriptions seem to open the door to an inclusivism that will ultimately affect not only with whom we align ourselves, but also the content of the message. Like Mr. Mohler, I would have preferred that a Manifesto that declares that "Evangelicals should be defined theologically, and not politically, socially, or culturally" would present a more theologically-based call to action. I am also concerned that evangelicals I admire for their sound theology are nowhere to be found on the list of signatories, but some about whom I would have theological concerns are.

For further information:

An Interview with Os Guinness about the Evangelical Manifesto

An article titled An Evangelical Manifesto by Matthew Kratz at The Truth Will Set You Free blog, does a fine job of quoting and summarizing the key points of the Manifesto.

Press Club and Interview photos about the Manifesto

Why Some Leaders Won't Sign the Evangelical Manifesto

Tags: An Evangelical Manifesto, Al Mohler, Os Guinness, National Press Club

T4G 2008 Conference Audio (New Podcast Player)

If you weren't able to attend the Together for the God 2008 conference (neither was I), there are many good web resources that can help you get a feel for what the conference was like. Even better, allow you to listen to the messages of the conference. In a previous article I pointed you to some of those resources.

Now you can listen to all the 8 main speaker messages, and the six panel discussions in one convenient place-- right here on Jordan's View! Just click on my T4G 2008 Podcast Player!

Be Blessed in Him,

Alex

Tags: Together for the Gospel 2008, T4G 08, Reformed Conference, Christian, Gospel

James White vs Steve Gregg on Calvinism: UPDATED

4-26-08
Listen to all the debates right here, on Jordan's Podcast Player!

Updates: Day 4 and Day 5 of the Steve Gregg vs. James White Debates on Calvinism are now available, plus a Debate Wrap-Up segment. Carla Rolfe has been following the debates and offers interesting observations.

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James White of Alpha and Omega Ministries has been engaging in a 5 day series of debates with Steve Gregg of The Narrow Path, on the subject of Calvinism (HT: Carla Rolfe). I've never heard of Steve Gregg before, but noticed that he has many MP3 teachings on various subjects at his site.

I've have sometimes heard it said that we're all born Arminians (that is, by nature, everyone is more inclined to believe Arminianism than Calvinism). But apparently-- I've not yet had the chance to listen-- Mr. Gregg opens the debates by claiming that only someone trained in Calvinism will be able to find it in the Scriptures and that otherwise, one coming to Scripture would find it neither Arminian nor Calvinistic.

In response to this claim I have read several testimonials from around the web of Calvinists who say that this wasn't their experience: rather it was through the reading of Scripture alone that they came to embrace the doctrines of grace.

Personally, I came to believe in the tenets of reformed teaching by re-examining Scripture passages that reformed teachers were pointing to. As I meditated on these Scriptures I became convinced that the Calvinist reading of them was both correct and true.

In any case, I think that one's personal experience in these matters is not the critical issue. Do the Scriptures lend their support to the Calvinist argument or to that of the Arminian? I think one can determine these things from one's own reading of Scripture. Also it seems to me that Arminian objections tend to have a strong emotional base-- that is, they think Calvinist doctrines like unconditional election and God's absolute sovereignty over all things necessarily makes God both arbitrary and despotic. How can God, who is supposed to be Love, create beings He knows ahead of time will spend eternity in hell? I admit that I don't have a full answer for this, but I plan to examine this issue in a soon-to-come post.

Coming back to the debate between White and Gregg, here are links to MP3s for the first 3 sessions of the debate:

Day 1 of the Steve Gregg vs. James White Debate
Day 2 of the Steve Gregg vs. James White Debate
Day 3 of the Steve Gregg vs. James White Debate

At his site, James White has also examined Steve Gregg's teachings on Calvinism in a number of earlier programs:

Archive to all the Critiques on Steve Gregg

Tags: James White, Alpha and Omega Ministries, Steve Gregg, The Narrow Way, Calvinism vs Arminianism, Reformed theology, Debate on Calvinism

Widgets Overboard!

Some may have thought I was going "overboard" with widgets here on Jordan's View. Well, now I've thrown "overboard" a whole bunch of widgets; made them "walk the plank", as perhaps Jack Sparrow might say. I guess these widgets weren't that essential since now that I've dumped them I can barely remember what they were. Anyway I believe the blog is now uploading much more easily, though the last two enhancements I added-- the one that turns each article into a podcast you can listen to, plus the green "share" button-- still manage to slow things down a bit. But it's certainly loading better and faster than it was just earlier today.

I've also been tweaking what I previously titled the "Reformed Podcast Player" and am now calling "Jordan's Podcast Player". I've changed the colors and added fresh audio-- just click and you can easily listen to the 5-part debate on Calvinism between James White and Steve Gregg that I mentioned in a previous post. I'm going to try to add I have added all the recent "Together for the Gospel Messages" to the player T4G 08 Podcast Player so that you can listen to all the messages in one convenient location. I've also brought this podcast player to a more prominent place on the blog, because I think it's especially important to bring to readers' attention the strong, interesting excellent teaching/preaching going on in reformed circles nowadays, that we may all be challenged and edified. Feel free to recommend any messages or preachers-- now that I've finally figured out how to quickly add messages to the player, I plan on keeping it updated regularly.

Plus, if you go to this site you can subscribe to this "Best of Reformed Podcasts" feed, or, get the flash player for your own site.

Tags: Reformed Podcast Player, Jordan's View, Together for the Gospel 2008, TG4 2008 Messages, James White vs Steve Gregg debates, podcast player, widgets

Widget Overload?

Well, I have been noticing lately how long it sometimes takes to upload my blog page, what with all the widgets I've accumulated and added over time. For those who have visited Jordan's View and given up because it was taking way too long to upload, my apologies. I'm often frustrated too when the widgets don't work or slow things down. It may be time to trim some of them away...

Tonight it seems there was problems with vodpod (which powers the Jordan's Video section) and also Clustermaps (the little graphic down at the bottom right that shows what countries visitors to Jordan's View are from), so page loading was especially slow.

Anyway, thanks to all the new visitors who had the patience to load up the blog and read the articles. You're the best.

Blessings,

Alex

How to Get a Reformed Education for Free Online

I bet you were thinking-- what other cool reformed stuff can Jordan come up with? (OK, so maybe you weren't thinking that, but throw me a bone, huh?)

Anyway I have added today yet another scrolling link list to the Reformed Theology section in my sidebar. It's a section titled "Free Reformed Christian Classics (Old and New)" and contains numerous links to great classic, contemporary (and best of all, free) resources for your study and edification.

Many of these books are required reading at reformed seminaries, and because they are in the public domain, you can read or download them online for free!

Among the links are two that recommend particular books to read as a way of gaining a seminary-level education at home. One of these links, Sound Advice for Studying Theology at Home I have already recommended to you. Another link is a Recommended Reading List from Reformed Theological Seminary-- this list contains books that the seminary recommends one reads (after the Bible and the Westminster Confession) "in preparation for the seminary journey".

I hope that you'll find something here for your edification. Reading and studying these works will not of course earn you a degree from a reformed institution, but you will be getting a good reformed education.

Here's the list so far (will be expanded as I discover new resources):

# A Body of Practical Divinity by Thomas Watson
# Confessions of Saint Augustine
# Creeds Confessions and Catechisms
# De Servo Arbitrio “On the Enslaved Will” or The Bondage of Will by Martin Luther
# Death of Death in the Death of Christ by John Owen
# Historic Baptist Documents
# Holiness by J.C. Ryle
# Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin
# Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers by John Owen
# Online Books by John Piper
# Outlines of Theology by A.A. Hodge
# Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
# RTS Recommended Reading List
# Sound Advice for Studying Theology at Home
# Summary of Christian Doctrine by Louis Berkhof
# The Bondage of the Will by Martin Luther
# The Creeds and Confessions of Christendom
# The Plan of Salvation: Five Lectures Delivered by B.B. Warfield
# The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment
# The Reformed Pastor by Richard Baxter
# Why I Believe in God by The Rev. Cornelius Van Til, Ph.D.

Tags: John Bunyan, A.A. Hodge, John Piper, Cornelius Van Til, reformed resources, free online books, Thomas Watson, Richard Baxter, Martin Luther, John Owen, John Murray, Louis Berkhof, J.C. Ryle, Augustine, Creeds and Confessions, historical Baptist documents

Great Free Reformed Seminary Resources!

In the course of doing preliminary research on reformed seminaries to attend, I have come across many helpful (and usually free) resources. For example, Desiring God Ministries (John Piper) features two articles recommending particular reformed seminaries and also distance education opportunities.

In my Reformed Theology sidebar section, you'll find a scrolling link list titled "Seminaries and Education (Reformed)" that includes these article links, as well as links to many reformed institutions.

But what I really want to bring to your attention today is the fact that there are high-quality free seminary course materials one can subscribe to, or download, from such well-regarded seminaries as Reformed Theological Seminary, Covenant Theological Seminary or Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. These resources were already available here on Jordan's View in the Christian Teaching section under "Free Seminars, Seminary and Christian Courses".

But to make it more convenient to listen to the free lectures provided by these reformed schools, I have created the following tabs at my ReformingChristianity.com Netvibes Universe:

• Reformed Theological Seminary-OT and NT Courses
• RTS Courses- Church History
• RTS Courses- Practical Theology
• RTS Courses- Theology
• Covenant Seminary - Apologetics, Missions & Preaching
• Covenant Seminary- Word, Theology, Church History

On these pages you can click on a link to listen to or download any lecture title. I find this a more convenient way to listen than using an iTunes subscription, which requires downloading each file.

Additionally, there are excellent reformed ministries that provide top-notch training materials at low cost. Reclaiming the Mind Ministries/The Theology Program aims to offer "comprehensive and in-depth theological training for lay-people", and provides inexpensive and/or free versions of their materials. I have enjoyed reading Parchment and Pen, the prolific blog of C. Michael Patton, president of Reclaiming the Mind Ministries and a Calvinist teacher/writer.

Third Millennium Ministries, an Evangelical Christian parachurch ministry in the Reformed tradition, has Richard L. Pratt, an adjunct professor of Old Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary, for its president. Its mission is to "equip church leaders in their own lands by creating a multimedia seminary curriculum in five major languages in fifteen years." The materials at this site may also be purchased at modest prices and/or downloaded in free versions.

As one strongly considering entering seminary, I really appreciate the availability of these outstanding free resources, which I am beginning to utilize in preparation for more formal training. I hope this article also helps others find and make use of them.

Other Good Resources:
Dimensions of the Faith at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (Free on-line theological education program)

Sound Advice for Studying Theology at Home

Doctrine and Theology (Audio and Multimedia links at Monergism.com)

Biblical Training

Tags: reformed seminaries, Reformed Theological Seminary, Covenant Theological Seminary, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Reclaiming the Mind Ministries, The Theology Program, Third Millennium Ministries, Parchment and Pen blog

Together for the Gospel 2008- Resources and Coverage (Updated)

UPDATE, 4-26-08: Now you can listen to all the main session messages from Together for the Gospel 2008 right here on Jordan's View. Just go to Jordan's Podcast Player the T4G 08 Podcast Player in the left sidebar, and click on the message you want to listen to.

The Together for the Gospel 2008 Conference is happening this week. With great reformed speakers like John McArthur, Al Mohler, Ligon Duncan, John Piper, Mark Dever, CJ Mahaney, RC Sproul, and Thabiti Anyabwile preaching, I would have loved to have been there. But the live-blogging coverage provided by Tim Challies, plus the free audio resources being made available at the Sovereign Grace Ministries website, is the next best thing.

Audio Resources: Together for the Gospel 2008 (right-click to download)

General Sessions:
Sound Doctrine: Essential to Faithful Pastoral Ministry (Ligon Duncan)
Bearing the Image: Identity, the Work of Christ, and the Church (Thabiti Anyabwile)
The Sinner Neither Able nor Willing: The Doctrine of Absolute Inability (John MacArthur)
Improving the Gospel: Exercises in Unbiblical Theology (Mark Dever)
The Curse Motif of the Atonement (R.C. Sproul)
Why Do They Hate It So? The Doctrine of Substitution (Albert Mohler)
How the Supremacy of Christ Creates Radical Christian Sacrifice (John Piper)
Sustaining a Pastor’s Soul (C.J. Mahaney)

More Free Audio Resources- Together for the Gospel (T4G) Conferences
T4G Media- 2008/2006 Conferences

Tim Challies' Live-Blogging Coverage:
T4G - Welcome & Ligon Duncan
T4G - First Panel Session
T4G - A Welcome from Mark Dever
T4G - Day One
T4G - John MacArthur
T4G - Mark Dever
T4G - Day 1 Photos
T4G - Bearing the Image
T4G - R.C. Sproul
T4G - Discouragement in Ministry
T4G - Day 2 Photos
T4G - John Piper
T4G - Day 3 Photos
T4G - The Importance of Books

Video Coverage:
Speaker Highlights
T4G Conference Reflections

British Coverage:
The Blue Fish Project (David Bish)

Tags: Together for the Gospel 2008, Tim Challies, live-blogging, conference resources, John McArthur, Al Mohler, Ligon Duncan, John Piper, Mark Dever, CJ Mahaney, RC Sproul, Thabiti Anyabwile

Web 2.0 Enhancements at Jordan's View

Hey friends,

I love trying out new web technologies that add practical value to this blog. From the beginning, I envisioned this blog as not only a place to communicate Christian truths through articles, but also as a web resource center. So the idea was to create links in my sidebar to point people to excellent web resources, and have those links organized according to categories. Thanks to ingenious hacks developed by technically-minded folks like Stephen Webber at Singpolyma Technical Blog and Hans at Beautiful Beta, I have been able to enhance features on my blog in ways I desired, but would never have been able to figure out on my own. For example, the sidebar link mentioned above were converted to mostly scrolling lists that one may show or hide, just by clicking on the title.

In addition, thanks to improvements Blogger made to its platform after being acquired by Google, I am able to categorize all posts easily, using their "labels" system.

Then there are the more "Web 2.0-type" enhancements I've added, such as the Jordan's Video section powered by vodpod that lets me share videos, or the Music Live Video Collection (powered by YouTube) I added at the bottom of the blog that lets me share favorite music video performances.

The web 2.0 enhancements continue this week, with the addition of a "Share" button next to the title of every post. This button comes courtesy of madKast. Clicking the button brings up a pop-up that allows readers to easily bookmark the post using their preferred service, or send the article by email to a friend. And today I have added a "Listen" button (powered by Odiogo) that when clicked allows you to hear a podcast of the article being read. Other options are to download an MP3 version, or subscribe to the Jordan's View podcast. What's really amazing is that the work of creating these podcasts was done entirely by Odiogo-- all I had to do was set up an account and provide my feed information. The voice that reads the articles is automated, yet sounds pretty human and is mostly clear and understandable.

So if Jordan's View is taking a bit longer to load these days, please do be patient. I think these latest features are worth the little extra time it takes to load the blog.

Tags: web 2.0, Jordan's View, podcast, Odiogo, madKast, Google Blogger platform

Calvinism or Bust!

I wrote not too long ago and asked, what is all the fuss about Calvinism? In that article, I was commenting on the contemporary resurgence of Calvinism in America as a way of introducing reformed theology to those who are perhaps new to it or just curious. Recent articles in the blogosphere continue to examine the "revival" of Calvinism. In Why Reformed? Nathan Pitchford presents five reasons he thinks reformed theology has caught on, especially with a younger generation.

I also mentioned recently Scott Lamb, who in his review of Young, Restless, Reformed: A Journalist's Journey with the New Calvinists (the book by Collin Hansen that expands on his original article in Christianity Today), questions whether the resurgence of interest can really be viewed as a widespread movement, and warns that believing one's own press clippings is not a good direction for the reformed movement to follow. Nathan White at Shepherd the Flock also comments on these happenings in his article Reformed revival not as good as it seems, noting that "even though numbers [of Reformed] are tiny compared to other more mainstream movements," nevertheless, "Reformed influence is bringing a sort of 'sanctified’ influence upon many conservative, American Christians/ministers."

A few months back, Tom Ascol had posted an interesting article examining some Southern Baptists' reaction to the rise of Calvinism-- Southern Baptist Evangelists lament the recovery of Calvinism-- and he critiqued their stated concerns and observations about Calvinism's rising influence as being mostly inaccurate.

Of course, if a movement becomes popular enough that there's money or fame to be gained through it, the dangers of greed and lust for power arise and threaten to corrupt motives. Is it really likely though, that this movement would appeal to the masses in the way the health and prosperity message has? Probably not. But a doctrinally sound message, that is bold by its uncompromising adherence to Scripture, will appeal to those hungry for "meat" in their theology, substance in their preaching and a more serious discipleship. May reformed leaders and teachers remain true to preaching the truth of God's powerful gospel, come what may, popular or not.

Tags: Calvinism, Young Restless Reformed, reformed revival, Southern Baptists, reformed resurgence

How Do We Know the Will of God, Part 2 (The Way of Wisdom)

One reader expressed irritation with my recent article How Do We Know the Will of God: "Experientially" or through Scripture? (I'm not sure if he thought it was too long, or just off-base, or both). Then he said,

...it seems to me that the approach you are prescribing is the common sense approach than anybody ought to know to do - even if they believe God regularly gives specific direction. The problem only arises when you say that a common sense approach ought to supersede and eliminate the possibility of God speaking in a more direct sense. It's such a blanket assertion, and it's hard to support from scripture.

Just for my own curiosity, can you supply just one example from scripture where a person is praised for deliberately avoiding direct direction from God, or condemned for seeking it? Because you can find tons of examples of the opposite, and it begs the question of when and why did things switch.

I think that these are good and challenging questions, to which I'd like to respond. At first I was going to reply in the comments section, but then realized that if he thought my article was overly long, what would he think of a page-long response in the comments section? But seriously, I think it would be more beneficial to address the questions raised in a new article. So here goes.

First, I wouldn’t necessarily describe the approach to God’s will I’m talking about as merely "common sense". I think that, yes, "common sense" is involved in making good decisions, meaning, one should use one’s intelligence in making choices. But the critical thing for Christians in discerning God’s will is His Word, because that is His revelation to us, and tells us what He thinks and commands (which may or may not always agree with our "common sense"). So basically I concur with the reformed view that says God’s word is sufficient to instruct us in everything we need to live godly lives that please God. Thus we don't necessarily need to hear an extraordinary "word from the Lord" in order to make good choices.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

James Montgomery Boice, in an article titled "the Sufficiency of the Word of God", wrote:

[The Bible] is what God has given us to indicate how we are to live and what we are to do to please him. All we need is in the Bible. So if there is something we want or think we need that is not in the Bible— what job we should take, who we should marry, where we should live— it doesn't matter what we do as long as we are obeying what God teaches about living a godly life. That doesn't mean that God does not have a detailed plan for our lives. He does. He has a detailed plan for all things, ordering "whatsoever comes to pass," as the Westminster Confession of Faith has it. But it does mean that we do not have to know this plan in advance and, indeed, cannot. What we can know and need to know is what God has told us in the Bible.

Second, I do not think that the approach to finding God’s will I’m talking about necessarily "eliminates the possibility of God speaking in a more direct sense". God can do whatever He wants at any time to communicate with His people. But the question is, how does He usually communicate? What is normative for today? In the Bible there are examples of God giving direct supernatural guidance to a very select group of people over a period of hundreds of years. The frequency of these direct revelations is sporadic, and aside from the select group, the Bible doesn't record that the majority of God-followers were getting personal revelations from Him. So this mode of hearing from God it would seem was not the norm but the exception. Besides, the direct revelation seen in the biblical examples is qualitatively different from what is being talked about by Eldredge and teachers along his lines. As argued in the previous article, the biblical examples reveal direct, supernatural, unmistakably-from-God revelations that came externally— via prophetic utterances, audible voices, angelic visitations, visions. These were not given in response to requests for guidance, but initiated by God to give special instructions to His people. This is certainly not equivalent to the "hearing from God", mystical approach Eldredge and others advocate, which seeks guidance for life decisions by "listening" for God to speak via internal hunches or impressions. The former is objective and God-initiated; the latter, highly subjective and initiated by human beings.

My reader asked for an example from Scripture "where a person is praised for deliberately avoiding direct direction from God, or condemned for seeking it."

The challenge made here though, misses the point: in biblical examples showing God speaking directly to people (e.g., Noah, Moses, Isaiah, Peter, Paul), we're not told that the persons involved were seeking direct revelation from God! But once they received the apparently unsought but direct revelation from God, they were obviously expected to obey it. A quote from Gary Gilley may be helpful here:

While God chose to occasionally give special leading to a few of the important New Testament leaders, we never find those individuals seeking such guidance (or being commanded to do so). Peter was sleeping on a roof, Paul was headed to a different country, Philip was involved in a preaching campaign. All of them were busy serving the Lord when the Lord chose to redirect them. As a matter of fact, the last time we find an example of God’s people seeking His specific will is in Acts 1:24-26 with the choosing of Matthias to be an apostle. And here they do not hear the voice of God, or even feel a prompting but rely on a game of chance. It is altogether questionable to me that the right decision was made through this methodology. Later Christ would handpick Paul as Judas’ replacement, leaving little room for Matthias to be part of the Twelve (emphasis mine)

The question of whether it's right or wrong to seek "direct direction" from God depends on our motives and our method. What we are really seeking, when we ask God to directly speak to us? Such seeking would be wrong if we're asking God to reveal secret information that He has not promised to reveal (Deuteronomy 29:29). God doesn't function in the believer's life as a kind of cosmic fortune-teller, revealing future events so we can plan accordingly. When we ask God to reveal secret information about the future, information He hasn't promised to give and forbids us from seeking, in effect we're practicing divination, which is indeed condemned in Scripture.

But if what we mean by seeking God "directly" is that we're humbly seeking His wisdom so that we can make choices that honor Him, yet not necessarily expecting an audible voice to speak to us from heaven, or even a strong inward impression, then I think we're approaching the guidance issue more biblically.

The Way of Wisdom
Of course, we ought to seek God and His will for our lives, but how are we instructed to do this? This is where I think the "way of wisdom" approach described by Garry Friesen and others provides a practical, biblical model. We should pray for wisdom (James 1:5), and of course, search out and obey the wisdom of Scripture to apply its commands concerning God's revealed moral will (Psalm 19:7-11, Psalm 119). We may seek the counsel of godly, mature, experienced persons (Job 12:12, Proverbs 11:14, 24:6). Knowing God's providential care for us, we can consider opportunities that present themselves as perhaps pointing towards His will in particular decisions we face. Yet as we seek God’s will through all these means, we should also understand biblically how God will communicate His answers. Should we be expecting God to reveal the future to us? Again, James 4:13-16 takes it as a given that creatures do not and cannot know the future, and that therefore our plans and choices are always contingent on God's sovereign control of all of life. Ecclesiastes 7:14 makes a similar point, saying "In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him." These verses teach that as we plan our lives and make choices, we must trust God in His providence, rather than proceed as if we can chart out a perfect course based on our presumptions about what lies ahead-- for how can finite creatures who don't know what tomorrow will bring devise perfect plans for the future? The implications of these verses, I believe, rule out an underlying assumption of the "hearing from God" approach- that we will be able to "hear" from God so clearly as to know exactly what to do, because we're getting direct, "inside" information from the God who knows all. I think these verses say "no" to such an idea. Only God knows the future, and that's the way it's supposed to be.

Or because God spoke to a relatively small number of people in the Scriptures directly and supernaturally, does that mean believers today should expect to hear from God in the same way? Again, the advocates of the "hearing from God" approach aren’t even saying that exactly— they're saying God speaks to us primarily through direct, supernatural, internal promptings. But when we look to the epistles written to instruct the church on the critical matter of knowing and doing God's will, do we find anything that resembles this teaching-- that we should be expecting to hear God speak to us directly via inner guidance? There are individual verses that perhaps sound as if they could support this view, but these are commonly misinterpreted (see Gary Gilley's article, God's Will, Lost or Found - Part 2). In the New Testament, God's will is sometimes:

1. What actually happens, as guided by the providential hand of God- (e.g., Romans 1:10, 15:32; 1 Peter 3:17, 4:19) ;
   
2. Moral directives--what God commands and desires His people to do (e.g., 1 Thessalonians 4:3,5:18; 1 Peter 2:15,4:2; 1 John 2:17).

Guidance for the Decision of Marriage
It is revealing to see the instruction the New Testament gives for what is certainly one of the most important decisions in life: whether or not to marry, and how to select a spouse. According to Paul's teaching in 1 Corinthians 7, we have liberty to marry or to remain single-- neither is a sin. If the "hearing from God" approach were one advocated by Scripture, here is one place especially you would expect to find Paul saying a believer should not proceed with marrying a particular person unless (or until) he or she received strong inner confirmation that "this is the one". But Paul's counsel to believers is not that they wait for a special word from the Lord that will tell them whether, and whom, they ought to marry. He advises believers that they have freedom to make a choice, and that each person ought to take into consideration their own God-given gifting and desires, so that they may decide whether being married or staying single is best in terms of maintaining "undivided devotion to the Lord". If one chooses to marry, they may marry whomever they wish, so long as that person is a believer (1 Corinthians 7:39).

Finally, my reader had said "... you can find tons of examples of the opposite, and it begs the question of when and why did things switch." I'm not quite sure what was meant here, especially the first part of the statement. If it is meant that you can find tons of examples of people seeking direct revelation from God, we've already shown that in the biblical examples the ones who received direct revelations from God were not in fact seeking them. Perhaps the meaning here is that many received direct revelation in Bible days, so why shouldn't that be the case today? I would agree that there are a number of examples in both the Old and New Testaments of God speaking directly to certain people. However, as already stated, I would qualify this by noting that it wasn't "tons" of people who were getting revelation of this kind, but a select and relatively small group of God-followers. And again, these revelations were not given given by God in response to sought after guidance about God's will, but mostly God chose certain prophets to reveal in an unmistakable manner His plans, vision and agenda for His people.

So has God's way of communicating to His people indeed changed since the coming of Jesus Christ and completion of the New Testament? Bob DeWaay writes,

The teachings of Jesus Christ are contained in the New Testament and constitute the further divine revelation that Moses promised when that new "Prophet" came. These writings are authoritative and combined with the Old Testament constitute "the revealed things" (Deuteronomy 29:29) that belong to us. This is the limit of authoritative, divine revelation. Prophecy in the New Testament is not adding to authoritative revelation, but exhorting from it and applying it. Just as the Old Testament prophets (except Moses) were not law­givers but law-appliers, so are the "prophesying ones' in the New Testament. The other function of Old Testament prophets was to inerrantly predict the future of Israel and her Messiah. Since the One to whom the prophets pointed has come and spoken in full and final revelation, that role no longer exists. All the prophecies about the future that we are allowed are already contained in the Bible (from The Dangers of Divination by Bob DeWaay)

DeWaay's argument to me is very convincing. If the full and final revelation of God is found in Jesus Christ, and if the New Testament is a Spirit-inspired record of all of the teaching of Christ and all other instructions that are authoritative for the Church, then of what value are so-called prophecies that may be inaccurate? Or how can we ever be certain that our inward impressions concerning God's will are really God speaking? The way of wisdom approach is much more helpful, since through it I can make decisions I know are pleasing to God (because they abide by His teaching) and at the same time, trust that God is working providentially in all my choices. The "hearing from God" approach leads to second-guessing myself, as I question if I really heard from the Lord and try to judge this by whether subsequent events prove my choice a good one. But in the way of wisdom I can fully rest in God's providence after I've made a decision, so long as I know from Scripture that the choice was not against God's moral will.

I think it very fortunate that we have such fine teaching resources available to us on this topic of God's will, through men like Friesen, DeWaay, and Gilley, among others. I recommend to all the following articles for further study (some of the links also were provided with the previous article):

Overview: Principles of Decision-Making by Garry Friesen

God's Will and Christian Liberty- Explaining God's Revealed Will and God's Providential Will by Bob DeWaay

God’s Revealed Will- Understanding God's Boundaries by Bob DeWaay

The Problems with Personal Words From God- How People Become False Prophets to Themselves by Bob DeWaay

Contemporary Christian Divination- The False Claims and Practices of Christian Mystics by Bob DeWaay

The Lord Told Me – I Think! by Gary Gilley

Guidance and the Voice of God by Phillip Jensen and Tony Payne-- a review by Tim Challies

God's Will Lost or Found, Part 1 by Gary Gilley
God's Will Lost or Found, Part 2 by Gary Gilley
God's Will Lost or Found, Part 3 by Gary Gilley
God's Will Lost or Found, Part 4 by Gary Gilley
God's Will Lost or Found, Part 5 by Gary Gilley

Decision Making and the Will of God by Garry Friesen- A book review by Greg Gilbert

Recommended Books on God's Will (Way of Wisdom Approach)
Decision Making and the Will of God: A Biblical Alternative to the Traditional View
Guidance and the Voice of God
Decisions, Decisions: How (And How Not) to Make Them
Discovering God's Will

Garry Freisen's reviews of books on God's Will

Previous Article in this Series
How Do We Know the Will of God: "Experientially" or through Scripture?

Tags: the will of God, finding the will of God, knowing the will of God, the way of wisdom, Garry Friesen, Bob DeWaay, Gary Gilley

Religion in the Public Square-Debate: Should Religion Have a Place in Politics or Government?

On March 6, 2008, The Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia sponsored a lively and fascinating debate on the resolution: "Religion should have no place in politics or government", as part of the National Discussion and Debate Series.

Rev. Barry Lynn, Executive Director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and Jacques Berlinerblau, Associate Professor and Director of the Program for Jewish Civilization at Georgetown University's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, spoke in favor of the resolution. Chuck Colson, Founder and Chairman of Prison Fellowship Ministries, and Bishop Harry Jackson, Senior Pastor of Hope Christian Church, argued against it. Evan Thomas, Editor at Large of Newsweek, moderated the debate.

At the link above, you can watch the debate in its entirety, or download video or audio of the entire debate Transcripts of the debate and a question and answer session are also available.

Facebook Online Community: National Discussion and Debate Series

Tags: Miller Center of Public Affairs, National Discussion and Debate series, debate, religion and politics, religion and government, Rev. Barry Lynn, Chuck Colson, Jacques Berlinerblau, Bishop Harry Jackson, Evan Thomas

Blips on the Blogosphere 15

Young, Restless, Reformed...and So What? Scott Lamb reviews Colin Hansen's book, "Young, Restless, Reformed" and asks whether the surge of Calvinists today really represents a major influence/trend in Christianity, or if it's mostly a minor, "in-house" phenomenon. He raises good points about how those in the reformed camp should view their own "movement".

Al Mohler's articles look at trends in society and culture with keen insight, and from a reformed Christian perspective. In Marriage and the Glory of God Mohler reminds of that the biblical purpose of marriage is not primarily personal happiness but rather is a vehicle for developing personal holiness, to the glory of God.

And in Digital Natives and Digital Nomads -- New Tribes of the Internet Age Mohler reminds us that today's young generation, for good or bad, are children of the Internet, and that ministry in our age and into the future must appreciate this.

HERE A "CHRIST," THERE A "CHRIST," EVERYWHERE A "CHRIST-CHRIST"! A kind of spirituality that is "New Age" in its ideas has made its way into the church, and one of its biggest deceptions is presenting Christ not as the God-man who is Lord of Creation and to whom we must answer, but pointing people to the "christ" within themselves. Thus everyone is supposedly "indwelt by an immanent christ-spirit" by which the individual may realize their own "divinity". Read the above article for further insights on this phenomenon.

Book Review - "Still Growing" by Kirk Cameron
An autobiography by Kirk Cameron is reviewed by Tim Challies. With all the unfortunate models we have of celebrities whose fame and success ultimately proves to be their undoing, it is refreshing and inspiring to see one man's turned around for good by the power of faith in Jesus Christ.

How Do I Fit Rewards into My Grace Centered Theology? A Theology of Rewards
Michael Patton begin an interesting discussion about the theology behind rewards in heaven. Is the ability to performs works that earn us rewards in heaven (not works towards salvation of course), empowered by God's grace alone? Or is working for rewards properly seen as synergistic, so that one's efforts here on Earth is the determinative factor in the size of one's heavenly rewards?

Tags: Young Restless Reformed, Scott Lamb, Tim Challies, rewards in heaven, Kirk Cameron, Al Mohler, false christs, biblical purpose of marriage

Blips on the Blogosphere 14

Should We Really Call It a "Quiet" Time? "Quiet times" is a common "Christian-ese" phrase that refers to time one spends alone with God, in the Word and prayer. David Powlison, guest-blogging on Justin Taylor's blog Between Two Worlds, thinks the phrase may not be entirely apt, considering that God may want us to shout rather than be quiet during such times. Interesting reflections and helpful suggestions. See also: Hearing, Praying, and Speaking the Word by Justin Taylor.

6 Reasons Pastors Should Blog
These six good reasons why pastors should blog, posted by Abraham Piper, son of John Piper, seem to me to be also appropriate reasons for anyone involved in ministry to blog.

Let’s Talk About Sex—Or Not
The always interesting Dan Edelen talks no-nonsense about sex. Or does he?

The Last Evangelical in America
Joe Carter talks about why he's simply unwilling to give up on the term "evangelical".

The London Institute for Contemporary Christianity I stumbled upon this site and then realized that the Mark Greene who is its Executive Director is a friend I used to go to church with! God seems to be really using this man in the UK.

Tags: David Powlison, Justin Taylor, Abraham Piper, Dan Edelen, Joe Carter, Mark Greene, LICC

New Facebook Group: "League of Reformed Bloggers"

Dear "reformed" friends, brothers, sisters and comrades:

Are you seeking a place to connect with like-minded "reformed" men and women? People who would affirm that the doctrines of grace provide an accurate biblical portrait of salvation? Do you enjoy reading reformed blogs such as Pyromaniacs, Adrian Warnock, CampOnThis, Challies.com, Alex Chediak, Jollyblogger, Josh Harris, Together for the Gospel and others? Are you looking perhaps to join in conversation about these great doctrines with other believers, in order to learn more? Do you want your own life and ministry to grow in the grace of God as you apply these doctrines to your life? If so, joining my new Facebook group, "League of Reformed Bloggers" might help.

The group aims to "establish a network of bloggers of a "reformed" theological persuasion-- to interact, encourage, exhort, discuss, debate, and work together to spread the gospel. The name of the group comes from a similar network that bloggers Adrian Warnock and David Wayne began on the web." (Mr. Warnock and Mr Blayne are being invited to participate).

What are you waiting for? Establish a Facebook account, if you don't have one already, and please do come and join us!

Blessings,

Alex

Tags: Facebook, Facebook group, reformed theology, League of Reformed Bloggers, Pyromaniacs, Adrian Warnock, CampOnThis, Challies.com, Alex Chediak, Jollyblogger, Josh Harris, Together for the Gospel