Author: jetbrane
I am a Pastor of a small Church in Mid-Michigan who delights in my family, my congregation and my calling.
I am postmillennial in my eschatology.
Paedo-Calvinist Covenantal in my Christianity
Reformed in my Soteriology
Presuppositional in my apologetics
Familialist in my family theology
Agrarian in my regional community social order belief
Christianity creates culture and so Christendom in my national social order belief
Mythic-Poetic / Grammatical Historical in my Hermeneutic
Pre-modern, Medieval, & Feudal before Enlightenment, modernity, & postmodern
Reconstructionist / Theonomic in my Worldview
One part paleo-conservative / one part micro Libertarian in my politics
Systematic and Biblical theology need one another but Systematics has pride of place
Some of my favorite authors,
Augustine, Turretin, Calvin, Tolkien, Chesterton, Nock, Tozer, Dabney, Bavinck, Wodehouse, Rushdoony, Bahnsen, Schaeffer, C. Van Til, H. Van Til, G. H. Clark, C. Dawson, H. Berman, R. Nash, C. G. Singer, R. Kipling, G. North, J. Edwards, S. Foote, F. Hayek, O. Guiness, J. Witte, M. Rothbard, Clyde Wilson, Mencken, Lasch, Postman, Gatto, T. Boston, Thomas Brooks, Terry Brooks, C. Hodge, J. Calhoun, Llyod-Jones, T. Sowell, A. McClaren, M. Muggeridge, C. F. H. Henry, F. Swarz, M. Henry, G. Marten, P. Schaff, T. S. Elliott, K. Van Hoozer, K. Gentry, etc.
My passion is to write in such a way that the Lord Christ might be pleased. It is my hope that people will be challenged to reconsider what are considered the givens of the current culture.
Your biggest help to me dear reader will be to often remind me that God is Sovereign and that all that is, is because it pleases him.
View all posts by jetbrane
Did you ask Wilson for his interpretation?
You crack me up. I thought about putting a smart ass comment in the post down that line but I decided to let it go.
LOL
Bret
Sorry to hear that. I just got all of mine in the dirt. Too many little boy children playing too much baseball, no, wait, there is no such thing as too many little boy children playing too much baseball… 🙂
Cheers,
Teed
That is right!
The more little boys playing baseball the better!
Bret
If we did have too many little boys playing too much baseball, how would Wilson intepret that?
I wonder if anybody would care if I claimed the ability to interpret Wilson’s interpretations? If I did, where would it all stop before we decided it was nonsense from the start?
shades of Jeremiah vs. Hananiah (Jer. 28)
I was also thinking of John 9 and the blind man
Disciples — Who sinned this man or his parents that he was born blind.
(They were expressing the commonly held belief that the man’s condition was a direct result of sin and they were trying to interpret it.)
Jesus — “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.”
This is why I would be slow (slow is different then never) to interpret the signs of the times. I would be slow to pronounce this is that. If the Disciples didn’t get it write then what is the probability that I’m suddenly going to be able to pronounce “This is that.”
Note though, that Jesus here still confirms that History is God’s doing. The blindness didn’t happen by time plus chance plus circumstance but was what it was in order that the work of God might be displayed in his life.
In the end I remain suspicious about latter time prophets, Reformed or otherwise, pronouncing “this is that” judgments. It is a sure formula for accruing to much power and building cult like followings.
Bret
Bill,
Yes, not being able to see the beginning from the end does complicate matters. In the end I think this is a tough nut. On one hand we need to keep in mind that all that happens, happens by design and is from a God who is personally involved. On the other hand when we don’t have the ability to say “This is that” it makes the personal aspect of it harder to believe in and drives us towards seeing things as mechanical.
I think the Puritans got it right when they suffered trials. They knew they were sinners and that when hard times came it was always a good idea to fast, and to pray for God’s mercy and forgiveness. I don’t think we can ever go wrong by doing that, even when events cannot be traced back to a particular sin or reason that we can discern with our limited understanding.
Carmon,
Who could ever disagree with repenting and fasting and praying for God’s mercy at any time?
It is always good to pursue God in this way at all times.
Thanks Bill.
Bret