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.

For Tom, Michelle & Tommy J. – Pt. III

Dear Tom & Michelle & Tommy J.,

Matthew 6:9-13

9After this manner ought you to pray:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

10Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

11Give us this day our daily bread.

12And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

13And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

When we pray to God as “Our Father” we should realize what a privilege that is. In the Old Testament in your Bible God was very seldom addressed as a Father. However in the New Testament God takes upon Himself more frequently the title of “Father,” and Jesus Himself teaches us to address God as “Father.”

This addressing God as “Father” reminds us that God has adopted us and put us in His family and made us His children. So every time we pray Tommy J., we are reminded that God is to us a Father. As a Father we can be confident that God will always love us, provide for us, protect and defend us, discipline us, guide us, and give us all things necessary for life and for death. When we address God as “Father” we are reminded that God has taken responsibility for us and that we need not fear the devil or any mortal being. God as our “Father” is for us and so nobody of any consequence can be against us. Since God is “Our Father,” who of any import can be against us? Realizing and embracing that God is our “Father” because of Jesus dying for us, makes us a very brave, bold, and confident people.

One more truth that addressing God as “Our Father” reminds us of Tommy J., is that God is not a far away or distant God. God is as near to us as our earthly Fathers. Our relationship with God, because God is our Father can be intimate and tender. Our God is not a God far away but a God near to us.

Tomorrow Tommy J., we will look at why Jesus taught the disciples to recognize that God is in Heaven. Today we have learned of some of the benefits there is in having God as “Our Father.” We have learned of some of the character that creates in us when we know God is “Our Father.”

Let us close with a prayer,

“Our Father, we thank you that you are not a far away God who takes no interest in us but rather you are to us a Father. We thank you that because you are “Our Father,” we no longer need to have any fear except the fear of disobeying you. Father, we thank you that you are for us in all trials and rejoicings. Teach us to trust you and your ways with us knowing that a Father always does what is best for his children. Thank you again for Jesus who is our Elder Brother and whose death for us turned away your displeasure with us so that we might be able to call you “Father.”

In Jesus name we pray,

AMEN.

Carrie Prejean, Christian Reaction, and The Matter Of Deviancy

I’m sitting here listening to a internet radio interview that is produced by Liberty University with Miss California, Carrie Prejean.

http://www.afr.net/index.php?option=com_sermonspeaker&task=singlesermon&id=11203&Itemid=0

Thus far she has been compared to Eric Liddle and Queen Esther of the Bible. Carrie has been lionized for her bathing suit high heeled stand for Jesus for saying that she was raised to believe that marriage was to be between a man a woman when asked about her thoughts on that subject during the Miss USA contest.

This post is not so much about Miss Prejean. I spoke to that in a previous post. Really, I’m quite pleased that Carrie answered the question the way she did as opposed to saying that she hopes one day herself to marry another woman. Further, I’m even willing to grant that it took admirable character of a sort to answer the question the way she did knowing full well that it would likely cost her the Miss USA contest.

This post is instead about the evangelical / fundamentalist reaction to Miss Prejean. Remember, a scant generation ago fundamentalists, such as those who created Liberty University, were the ones who frowned on card playing, movie watching, and women wearing pants. The fundamentalists have come a long way baby. Now the fundamentalists are talking about how the barely dressed Carrie Prejean is a role model and that they intend to tell their youth groups and Sunday Schools about the parading nearly naked and faithful Carrie Prejean.

Please don’t get me wrong. I have no problem with playing cards, watching movies or women in pants. Indeed, the rapacious side of me has no problem with ogling soft porn models in their underwear. However, the better Angel of my nature still does think that a young lady publicly displaying her under wear and selling herself as a sex object in order to win a beauty prize probably still defies the Scripture’s call for modesty. Just call me old fashioned.

I don’t know what to attribute the Christian community’s exalting of Miss Prejean to. Maybe it is because there is such a desperate need for heroes that the Christian community will glom onto anybody. Maybe everybody else grew up and I’m just being my usual curmudgeon, “why can’t anybody else see this except me” self. However, I think it more likely that what has happened is that even the Fundamentalists have defined deviancy down. In 2009 homosexuality serves as the definitional bar for deviancy, and so today a soft porn model can be seen as a hero for Jesus by Evangelicals and Fundamentalists for taking a mild stand against homosexual marriage. In 2049 it may be that Liberty University will be giving an award to and singing the praises of a transsexual Beauty Queen who took a stand for Jesus by mildly denouncing the push for mainstreaming bestiality.

Obviously the problem here is that the Christian community is allowing the culture to define deviancy, which has the added advantage of allowing Christians to partake in the deviancy of soft-porn, whether by being a soft porn model or by lusting after the soft porn models, while still giving them the ability to be self-righteous about homosexual marriage. This is a deal if there ever was one as Christians can satisfy both their lusts to be a Sex object or to objectify women and their need for feeling superior to other people all at one time.

If your a sinner like me any deal that allows me to be a horndog and sanctimonious at the same time is better than 2 for 1 coupon day at the adult bookstore peep show.

Egalitarian Democracy

Unbridled Democracy when under the influence and control of egalitarians yields the anarchy engendered by the inevitable flattened sameness that egalitarians favor, a rampant polytheism due to the equality of all gods, and finally an anarcho-tyranny where the worst elements of culture are allowed to create anarchy in the name of egalitarian Democracy while the best elements of culture are tyrannized and punished by the state because the best elements are opposed to egalitarian Democracy.

In Light Of Carson’s Warning McAtee Invokes Lloyd-Jones

“Failure to distinguish between the gospel and all the effects of the gospel tends, on the long haul, to replace the good news as to what God has done with a moralism that is finally without the power and the glory of Christ crucified, resurrected, ascended, and reigning.”

D. A. Carson
Thelimos

I couldn’t agree with this quote more. However, as D. Marty Lloyd Jones used to teach one can fall off the razor’s edge of truth on both the left side and the right side. Dr. Carson has given us a proper warning regarding falling off one particular side of the razor’s edge of truth. The reality that Dr. Carson would have us to be aware of is, is the danger of failing to distinguish between the gospel and all the effects of the Gospel. However, there is another warning that needs to be raised against another danger and that is the danger in failing to articulate the reality that the Gospel does have effects and consequences.

If we were to frame it in similar ways to Dr. Carson we might say something like this,

“Failure to articulate to the Church that the Gospel has effects tends, on the long haul, to replace the truth that because we have been raised with Christ we are to walk in newness of life, with an anti-nomianism that is finally without the power and the glory of Christ crucified, resurrected, ascended, and reigning.”

I am more than willing to admit the danger of which Dr. Carson speaks. There is a great danger in the Church today to exchange the Gospel for moralism. However, I wonder if those who are so excited to raise their voices in warning against moralism will also raise their voices in warning against anti-nomianism.

We must remember Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd Jones warning that one can fall off the razor’s edge of truth in two different directions.

For Tom, Michelle & Tommy J. – Pt. II

Dear Tom & Michelle & Tommy J.,

Matthew 6:9-13

9After this manner ought you to pray:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

10Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

11Give us this day our daily bread.

12And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

13And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Yesterday we ended by asking how it is possible that God would hear our prayers. Another way we might ask this is how is it that God can be addressed as “Our Father.”

Tommy J., most people consider it automatic that God should hear prayers but they forget that God being Holy and pure He cannot remain Holy and pure and be in a relationship with those who are not Holy and pure. So, again we ask, “how is it that God can be addressed as “Our Father.(?)”

The answer to that Tommy J., reveals how loving God is. God can be called “Our Father” because God Himself takes the initiative to take away our sin by providing someone who served as a substitute for us. We couldn’t come to God with our sin and call Him “Our Father,” so God provided Jesus Christ as the one who, by His death, would bear the sins of those, and serve as the substitute for those who trust in Christ. The Bible says,

“Jesus, who knew no sin God made to be sin on our behalf; that we might become the righteousness of God in him.(II Cor. 5:21)”

Tommy J., it is because of the death of Jesus Christ for sinners like you and me that His people can call God “Our Father.”

This means Tommy J., that those who don’t trust in Christ as the one who is their substitute, cannot call God their “Father.” This is why the Bible says that “no one can come to the Father except through Jesus (John 14:6).”

So, Tommy J., we can call God “Our Father” when we pray because God provided Jesus Christ as a substitute to take away the sins of those whom God loves.

Tomorrow Tommy J., we will begin to look at how the Lord’s prayer continues to teach the followers of Jesus how to pray.

Since we are learning how to pray, let us end with a prayer,

“Our Father we thank you for being Our Father and for loving us so much that you sent Jesus to make known to us your love for us as a Father. Father, we thank you that gave Jesus to us as our substitute and that you hear our prayers because of the death of Jesus on the Cross as our substitute. We thank you that we can call you ‘Our Father.’ In Jesus Name We Pray …. AMEN”