NEW BLOG

Blah-G Blog has moved to a new site!

Ok...I have moved my blog to here: http://blahlog.wordpress.com

This is my last post here so update your Feeds and links!

Cheers,

CR

John Barach: Pre-Fall Covenant

Remember when it was okay

John Barach blogged today and said, "Remember when it was okay for Reformed writers to speak like this?" He then goes on to quote S. G. DeGraaf to challenge the meaning of Covenant of Works. As my research has shown the Covenant of Works has not always been constructed the way it is today among the non-FV'ers. However, as time has gone on the doctrine of the Covenant of Works gains "clarity" and receives its "mature" formulation.

Remembering when Reformed talked a certain way doesn't prove anything however or does it? Remember when it was ok to not have a fully worked out doctrine of the Trinity, redemption, etc? Remember when that was ok? However, now that time has gone on and those doctrines have been developed would it still be ok to talk as if they hadn't?

Would it still be ok to plop myself down in the early part of the 16th century when the imputation of Adam's sin, covenant of works, etc wasn't full developed and those things were even often denied? Is it ok to just plop ourself down anywhere in history and jump into the middle of a theological development and begin in the middle as if there hasn't been any work done?

Truly wondering.

http://barach.us/2007/02/28/degraaf-on-the-pre-fall-covenant/trackback/

Cheers.

CR

Chinese Food Order Prank

Chinese Food Order Prank

Japanese Pranks: Part 3

Japanese Pranks: Part 3 Large Crowd Prank

Japanese Pranks: Part 2

Japanese Pranks: Part 1

Japanese Pranks: Part 1

Tattoo

Tattoo You

* If you're wondering why I've been posting only random junk its because I'm working on a Covenant of Works paper. Cheers!

Nice Sign

Nice Sign

Your body is a temple

Your body is a temple

Some of you will appreciate this incorrect interpretation of I Cor. 16:9

Florida Election Recount

Wolf-Tracker: Sheep Protecting Software

Wolf-Tracker: Sheep Protecting Software

If you're orthodox and theologically sound and you correct someone who is in err you might just be a wolf! I know some pastors who probably check this thing every day...and update it too! Good grief people!

Well, here is one of the good reasons to be in the United Reformed Church - these types of things just aren't our problems. Can you imagine a guy like the one below in the article coming into a URC and trying to pull that? It wouldn't happen. These guys prey on the intellectually challenged.

MENLO PARK, Calif. — When Brent Libby started attending Green Valley Baptist church, he was surprised at the icy reception he received.
The reason: the pastor knew all about Libby. He'd read about him on WolfWarning.com, a website which chronicles bad behavior by local church-goers. Libby's file included a photograph and comments written by his former pastor that said, "Argues with me over minor doctrinal points after every service. Thinks he knows Greek. Not interested in maturing, just debate. Wolf rating: 3

*Wolfwarning.com is currently down due to too much traffic at their site

Journals n Blogs and the future

Mark Horne has a very interesting article on our present changing world as it concerns the media forms of theological journals and blogging. This is a well written article that answers some questions and provokes a few more.

The hastening death of the theological journal

Why Dr. Kline Is Feared?

Wonder No More!

Charles Finney: "Wolf In Sheep's Clothing?"

"No doubt there is a jubilee in hell every year, about the time of the meeting of the General Assembly." Charles Finney Lectures on Revivals of Religion

100 Reasons Why I'm A Presbyterian

100 Reasons Why I'm A Presbyterian

Reason #1


Baptism (full-immersion) in a Russian Winter

Pastor EZ: Going to Court

An old friend, Pastor Emeal "E.Z." Zwayne, walks up to a bunch of people waiting for the local court to open and bust out preaching at them. Leaving aside the fact that he spent 9/10 of the time mounting an evidential argument and barely squeezed in a bare naked gospel for the last 10th...he's too cool. He does this kind of stuff all throughout the week.


(Come to source to watch video)

First Epistle of Clement A.D. 30-100

First Epistle of Clement A.D. 30-100

"Let us clothe ourselves with concord and humility, ever exercising self-control, standing far off from all whispering and evil-speaking, being justified by our works, and not our words."

Compare a few paragraphs later:

"And we, too, being called by His will in Christ Jesus, are not justified by ourselves, nor by our own wisdom, or understanding, or godliness, or works which we have wrought in holiness of heart; but by that faith..."

Confusion or context?

Ante-Nicene Fathers Vol. 1, Hendrickson Publishers Inc., 2004
The First Epistle of Clement; page 13

The Task!

The Task!

Dr. L. Duncan gave a challenge to first semester seminary students in his Patristics class last semester that I have undertaken and I think, now that I've almost completed a volume, I'm gonna stick with it. Dr. Duncan's challenge is for us to complete the entire famous Church Fathers set, pictured above, by the time we graduate. Now having a wife and two kids I know I won't complete this task by graduation but I will, no doubt, be well on my way. As my passion becomes stronger each day to study church history I think reading this massive collection of primary sources will be invaluable to this passion.

Let's Go To The Library Part II - Oxford

Let's Go To The Library Part II
The Oxford Libraries



The largest of the various Oxford libraries is the Bodleian Library with a stock of over 6.5 million items and a staff of over 400. It is a legal deposit library with extensive research collections and is mainly reference-only. The Bodleian Library is the main research library of the University of Oxford. It is also a copyright deposit library and its collections are used by scholars from around the world.

Oxford has an extremely rich and diverse library service provided by over one hundred libraries. There are major research libraries, libraries attached to the faculties, departments and other institutions of the University, and college libraries.

Interesting fact:

Until fairly recently, before being granted access to the library, new readers were required to speak aloud the declaration printed below. This oath is now printed on the application form readers must sign in order to obtain their ticket:

I hereby undertake not to remove from the Library, nor to mark, deface, or injure in any way, any volume, document or other object belonging to it or in its custody; not to bring into the Library, or kindle therein, any fire or flame, and not to smoke in the Library; and I promise to obey all rules of the Library.

Thank you once again for going to the library and remember BOOKS ARE COOL!!!

These were the good ole days?

Do not say, "Why is it that the former days were better than these?"
For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this. Ecc. 7:10

Favorite Quote

When we do the Twoth.com interviews we always ask what the person's favorite quote is. Well I think I found one of my own! "give 'em Watts, boys!"

During the war, while American colonists were engaged in battle with British soldiers, they ran out of wadding for their muskets. A local pastor who was nearby ran into the church and gathered up the hymn books. He then proceeded to tear out the pages and gave them to the soldiers to be used as wadding in their muskets, as he yelled out "give 'em Watts, boys!"

Covenant Children: Baptized into the shadows?

Covenant Children: Baptized into the shadows?

I found this while reading a fellow blogger's site. Good stuff.

“A few churches still take seriously the doctrine of the covenant as it relates to the children of believers, baptize these children because they’re in covenant, and actually count them as members of the church. Those churches insist, and rightly so, on their being full members” (R. B. Kuiper, The Glorious Body of Christ, p. 210).

Let's Go To The Library Part I - Yale

Let's Go To The Library Part I: Yale University

There is nothing cooler than being around books and no better place to do that than, the Yale Libraries. There are several libraries housing hundreds of thousands of books per building. Each building is divided into specific branches of study. In particular let me show you some pictures of the history and divinity library. To all my friends that love books...enjoy!

The following pictures are of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale. Housed here is everything from rare history to theology.

Next comes the Divinity Library housing:

• Records of Christian missionary activities overseas.
• Records of Protestant Christian religious work among college and university students.
• Personal papers of American clergy, evangelists, and religious leaders, particularly those involved in missions, ecumenical work, or student work, those from the New England area, and those of Congregational background.
• Personal papers of Yale Divinity School faculty, deans, and prominent alumni.
• 

I can't wait to do research here! If you love books these pictures are too awesome!

Ignatius: Sola Fide and Working It Out

Ignatius: Sola Fide and Working It Out

Ignatius having a faith in Christ speaks,

"Let fire and the cross; let the crowds of wild beasts; let tearings, breakings, and dislocations of bones; let cutting off of members; let shatterings of the whole body; and let all the dreadful torments of the devil come upon me; only let me attain to Jesus Christ."
Epistle of Ignatius to the Romans



Some droppings from my devotional readings this morning.

Enjoy,

Chris
www.twoth.com
www.rehersfamily.com

@ home sick

So the kids and I stayed home from church today as we are all under the weather...which is harder for me to work through because of my back issues. Flu like symptoms seem to love to congregate there and amplify the situation.

Anyway...not being in church today makes me want to re-post this statement that I found awhile back:

All the quiet time in the world cannot replace the faithfully preached Gospel, the bread and the cup, and the communion of saints each Lord's Day.Or as the Puritans put it, echoing David: "The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob!"

Princeton Seminary: How the mighty have fallen

The following is part of an ongoing comedy show at PTS

If you're viewing this via a Feed you will need to go here to see the Princeton short clip http://www.rehersfamily.blogspot.com/

Dr. N.T. Wright , right?

So I'm finally sitting down to get a handle on what is the NPP according to NT Wright, not Dunn and Sanders but Wright for if any of these guys is right its going to be Dr.Wright, right? I know, shame on me for not looking into this already. Seriously I’ve read nothing about NPP and it’s probably a good idea I have a working knowledge of what it is. As my usual practice is, I go to the proponents of said doctrine first. It seems backwards to pick up say Guy Waters book then go read N.T. Wright or others.

The following comments are not going to be about the theology itself proposed in the NPP but rather two surprise encounters I had while sifting through Dr. Wright this weekend.

The Surprise:

What is so disarming about Dr. Wright is he claims to be wholly committed and unswayable grounded in maintaining integrity to the Holy Scriptures. He speaks of his “heartfelt and lifelong commitment to scripture.” He believes that as the church better understands the scripture the better she is for worship, preaching, and all of common life.
These kinds of things preface almost every lecture he gives on the subject. He also claims to have not come to these conclusions because of reading Dunn or Sanders but because he was trying to think Paul’s thoughts after him as a matter of obedience to the scripture. All that is to say, this isn’t your “run of the mill” false teacher that so many American Christians claim him to be.

The second surprise was to find that he has spent a good deal of breath and ink in disagreeing with Sanders and Dunn. Dr. Wright, at one point even refers to there being more new perspectives on Paul as there are writers publishing about it and that he disagrees with nearly all of them. Huh? I’ve always been taught that these guys are all in one accord on everything on NPP, they are drinking buddies; i.e. they are NPP. Odd. There seems to be, like in almost everything, poor misrepresentations or to put it rightly, bearing false witness.

In conclusion I post these two surprises because it sure removes the cloudiness from the water so that you can hear what Dr. Wright is saying a little more clearly.

AND no I am not going to post what I think of the actual doctrine of NPP...that's never the intent of my personal blog. I'm a student and I'm just cracking the issues with NPP...I would be an idiot to publish my views online.

Come on get a clue! =)

Enjoy,

Chris R
http://www.twoth.com/
www.rehersfamily.com

Well its WWJD Friday

Well its WWJD Friday and heres what I'll be doing this weekend outside of my studies:

I'm finally going to listen to the 2005 AAPC on NPP debate between Rev. Dr. Gaffin and Rt.Rev.Dr. N.T. Wright. I got the nice looking CD package right here in front of me...should be some good stuff.

If there remains any more time I would like to cut into another CD package I got - Great Deliverance The Life of Justification with Leithart, Lusk, and Wilson - although I might have to put that off until next week.

Sure is great not being a tv-watching sportsfan...I get more time to waste doing other things like my line-up for the weekend =)

Cheers,

Chris

Calvary Chapel "Moses Model" for Church Government Exposed

Not all Blah-g readers make it over to Dr. Riddlebarger's Riddleblog so I wanted to post this article here...the original source is from Christianity Today. The article basically exposes the Calvary Chapel model of church government "Moses-Aaron Paradigm"...really makes you thankful to be in a church that takes government seriously on behalf of the flock of God.

Just to give ya'll a little taste here this is classic:

"Other churchgoers say Calvary Chapel pastors also don't like to be questioned. During the investigation for this article, Smith cautioned CT's reporter: "The Lord warns, 'Don't touch my anointed. Do my prophet no harm.' I think that you are trying to do harm to the work of God. I surely wouldn't want to be in your shoes."

Read the article HERE

CR

What am I reading?

After being asked by a few people here is what I am reading...I am not one of those guys who can read one book at a time...I've got to be reading several...shoot I have to...Im still in school!

For School:

The Story of Christianity - Justo L. Gonzalez

Readings In Christian Thought - Kerr

Princeton Seminary Vol 1-2 - Calhoun (Re-reading)
Colonial Presbyterianism - S.Donald Fortson III - (Hot off the press btw)

The Presbyterian Enterprise - Armstrong, and others...

The Presbyterians - Balmer and Fitzmier

The Presbyterian Controversy - Longfield

Solomon's Song of Love - Glickman

The Messaih and the Psalms - Belcher

A Theology of the New Testament - Ladd

Intro to NT - Guthrie

Biblical Theology - Vos
God & Adam - Ward

Why Do I Suffer - Currid

The Federal Theology... - Girardeau

Understanding Dispensationalists - Poythress

Ok there are a few more for school that I have to read too tires to keep listing them...

Yes in the midst I have some I am reading for mere torture I mean pleasure as well:

Against Christianity - Leithart

Kingdom Prologue - Kline

A case for Amill - Riddlebarger

Exploring Jewish Literature of the Second Temple Period - Helyer

Plus various works by Vos for next month's Crypta Interview with Dr. Vos

There you go.

Twoth RSS Feed me!

Twoth Interviews are now available via a feed! Check it out.

HERE!!!!

Don't have a feed client? Do you like visiting more than one blog and want to get them all under one application?

Try the Omea reader:

Get it HERE!!!

Dr. Scott Clark's Memo To Pat Robertson

Dear Pat,

SHUT UP. Just shut up! You are not getting any messages from God. It's the cashew chicken you had for lunch talking to you, not God. Please.
rsc

NetFinney Good Stuff

I found this while blogging...funny stuff




Net Finney Guards Families Against the Harmful Effects of Calvinism
LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA



It is a situation that is becoming all too common. An unsuspecting individual begins to innocently search the internet for information on a particular subject and suddenly finds his or herself faced with the perils of Reformed theology.

"I was helping my ten-year-old son do a report on American Government." Said Kenneth Lyons, a concerned parent. "We were about to research America's election process, so we went to Google and typed in "election." The phone rang and I stepped out for no more than 5 minutes, and when I returned I found Eric reading some article by a guy named R.C. Sproul about believers being "elected" and "predestined" by God for salvation. I just freaked out! I didn't know what to do."

Lyons' story is not unique. Families and entire churches are discovering daily the theological risks of surfing the internet.







"We lost our pastor to this mess." Said Olivia Karnes, a member of Lynchburg Church of God. "We had begun to notice that Brother Smith's preaching was changing. He started preaching through Ephesians every Sunday. The next thing he did was he stopped doing altar calls! Then it all came out one Sunday. They found sermons on his computer from all these Calvinist guys and links to blogs like The Pyromaniacs, and Calvinist Gadfly. There was no choice. We had to let him go. Our church is still healing from this crushing blow."

But it was these kinds of stories that prompted a team of students and professors at Liberty University to develop a software that would protect people from accidentally or intentionally being exposed to Calvinism on the internet. Net Finney, named for the famous 19th-century Pelagian evangelist Charles Finney, effectively filters out 99.9% of Calvinist and Reformed literature and media on the internet.

"We think this is a tremendous step in stopping the spread of Reformed materials." Said Dr. Ergun Caner, president of Liberty University's theological seminary. "Now parents can rest easy letting their kids surf the web without the fear that they will turn into Calvinists."

In addition to blocking Calvinist and Reformed media the software will automatically filter any Calvinistic content out of sermons by renowned 19th-century Baptist minister Charles H. Spurgeon.

"It's an exciting development." Said Pastor James Yeates of New Hope Baptist Church, Lynchburg. "This Calvinism thing is literally infecting our Southern Baptist Churches. I hope this helps put a stop to things."

by Tominthebox News Network

Seminary and the Stockmarket

Well I'm looking around my room and I've decided that if I buy some stock in Avery office products I might be able to cash in once I graduate.
Holy notebooks! I am burried in white folders! How many will I have aquired by graduation?!?!

Chris

My Personal Library

Click HERE to see what books I've added over the last year to my personal library...I will update as there are a few more from recent purchases. Eventually, I'll add every single book I own but most of my books aren't even in the same state as me!

Vos and Seminary

Ok so I'm sifting through some Geerhardus Vos for an interview for the Crypta and I came across something very interesting to me as it relates to seminary.

Vos had been teaching at Theologische School in Grand Rapids and was asked for a year to come over to Princeton, which he declined at first. What pushed him? What made Vos reject his original premise for not going to Princeton? The answer is revealed in a letter to Herman Bavinck where he states that the work at his current seminary wouldn't sustain him for the long run. This was the case for the young students who studied there were, in his estimate, poorly educated and the accomplishments from the work the students produced were so small that he lost heart. Besides the other residing professors weren't producing solid work either.

This struck fear into me as a seminary student and gave me a wake up call. Though there are a number of things one can take from Vos' statements on this, one rings loud for me and that is:

You can go to seminary and get by and get the degree. You can meet the qualifications. You can crank out the papers. You can cram for the exams. You can graduate. I take it that is the normal course one charts through their time in seminary.

However, there is an alternative. Your lectures can be viewed as sitting at the feet of very able men of God. All of my professors are accomplished authors and theologians. With that understanding I pay attention with a peculiar respect and interest intent on learning, full aware of the privilege that has been given me to be there. Also, instead of just writing a paper and producing the type of work that would make Vos want to resign, I can write as though I was really trying to further Christianity, to add and make an impact in the particular area I choose to write in. To realize that I have the privilege to turn my papers into men who are doctors of their specific areas of study and have already been published in these areas is an enormous blessing.

I can write to satisfy a class requirement or I can write to publish and try to join the labors for all of Christendom. Some view writing papers as just fulfilling a requirement and that the professor can careless what you write about for it’s just a requirement you and him are fulfilling; your's being a grade and his being a job. Apparently, with Vos and I am sure many other, seminary student's work does count! It does matter!

This is graduate school. This is not a Bachelor's degree. This is not undergrad work where you memorize facts and regurgitate them for tests. We are to understand our subjects and interact with them not merely recall facts. We are to be past the point of cramming for a research paper and turning in mediocre work. We are supposed to be writing as though our paper would be proposed for publishing. Dr. John's Frame grading scale for written assignments highlights this:

A: Good grasp of the basic issues, plus something really extraordinary, worthy of publication...

A-: An A paper, except that it requires some minor improvement before an editor would finally accept it for publication.

I am no scholar nor pretend to be, evidenced by my grammar and punctuation. However, I work hard and I seek improvement with every step. The amount of inspiration I receive from Vos' comments to Bavinck is immeasurable and thought I would pass it on.

Twoth - Dr. Kim Riddlebarger

Hop on over to www.twoth.com and read the interview with Dr. Kim Riddlebarger, this weeks Twoth post!

The Tiki Bar

Ok, I have come to love this show, The Tiki Bar. This is grass roots, web show, gone big time. The show focuses around a Tiki Bar. There a crisis will evolve and Dr. Tiki will have to prescribe an alcholic beverage to solve the problem. In the end what you get is decent entertainment and a recipie for a darn good drink! Not bad for 10 minutes of your time.

The show is rather random and would appeal to some of my friends that are into all things random. Check it out. http://www.tikibartv.com/tikibar_display.php?pver=qh&vid=28

United Reformed Church and my future

Dear friends and family,

I have spent the last year wrestling with my allegiances to the Reformed and Presbyterian Church. I mean to distinguish them as two distinct institutions in creed and practice. My allegiance in that I have been a member of the URC for several years now but have had more dealings in the Presbyterian Church for the greater half of 2006 and now into 2007 being in Mississippi. I have wrestled over the confessions; Three Forms of Unity and the Westminster Confession of Faith. I love all these creeds and confessions and would stand by either.
However, as I contemplate where I am heading, both theologically and pastorally one place resonates better for me. Many of you know my peculiarities - a liturgical service is more consistent from church to church, meaningless illustrations in the pulpit are a no no, Lord's Supper every Lord's day, and increasingly moving toward exclusive singing of inspired texts, the URC fits like a glove with less waves being made and less explanations for my views. I mean in a reformed church you don't have to spend a good deal of time convincing the folks about the frequency of the Lord's Supper and you generally know what your gonna get when visiting URC to URC. That has not been my experience in the Presbyterian Church. =)

Anyway these are not all the issues, of which I will be keeping off cyberspace. I have wrestled privately for sometime now and will be in dialog with Pastor Tom Morrison and the Consistory at HDURC. They invited me on Feb.11, 2007 to begin conversation about my future in the URC. Though we will be entering into the very beginnings I am going to pursue ministry within the Reformed Church...I am a Heidelberger. Also, the availability of open pulpits and opprutunities of church plants will all play a factor at the time of my graduation. In other words, in the end I may not end up in the URC but it will be my initial aim.

Rev. Jesse Pirschel, my Orthodox Presbyterian friend, introduced me to the Dutch confessions when we were ministering in Slovakia in the late 1990's and have been doing my morning mediations from them, off and on, ever since. I love em and would be honored to labor in the Reformed church.

I would encourage you to pray for me that God's will to be abundantly manifest so that His maximum glory will be given to Him in all that I put my hands to. Thank you friends and family.

Quote that hits close to home

I was combing a friends website and found the following quote. I must say nothing sums up my position on personal piety more than this:

All the quiet time in the world cannot replace the faithfully preached Gospel, the bread and the cup, and the communion of saints each Lord's Day.Or as the Puritans put it, echoing David: "The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob!"

The Tid Bits: Part I

History of American Presbyterianism

The Tid Bits (Part I)

Sent to America in 1683 by the Irish Presbytery of Laggan, Rev. Francis Makemie was the chief promoter of an American presbytery. He was later arrested for preaching in a private home without a license for doing so.
Education for ministry early on:

From its foundations in American soil, Presbyterianism has always maintained an educated pulpit, a traditional Scottish ideal of a learned minister. This was held to without waver even in times of great shortage of preachers. This is amazing to think about in today’s climate. David Evans was one such man who was forbidden to continue to preach until he was sufficiently grounded in the original languages and in theology. In fact, concerning Mr. Evan’s preaching prior to education it was said of his action, “it was unanimously agreed that the said Evan had done very ill, and acted irregularly thus invading the work of the ministry, and was thereupon censured.” Mr. Evans did go on to receive training and education and was properly ordained to minister as a Presbyterian in November of 1714.

Order of worship in the early days:
Rev. James Anderson refers to using the Scottish Directory which is the earliest evidence of how they ordered worship in church service. The Presbytery – Growth:

By 1716 the Presbytery was growing and could now be divided into four presbyteries according to geographical locale and one collective meeting yearly, the General Assembly. High influx of Scotch-Irish immigrants began to pour into America. Many of which lived profane lives and the new frontier of America was a licentious playground for them. The Presbytery was not exempt from such and had to establish courts to deal with such among its own ranks.
Adoption Act:

I was surprised to discover that the early American Presbyterian Church didn’t have an adopted confession of faith. Though many acknowledge the WCF as their creed is was still only held in general and not a document that was officially adopted.
Then the question is raised: What is a church without a creed?

Reason given to adopt the WCF:

• A bar needed to keep out of the ministry those corrupt in doctrine
• A bar for those currently in ministry may depart and begin to propagate false teaching. But because they never publicly received the truth they can’t identify it though they can smell it.
• The infancy stage of the Presbyterian Church meant a situation of poverty. Therefore, they were unable to erect an institution to educate future pastors. Hence, they relied upon other places to supply their pastors. To what were they to hold these foreign ministers to without a confession?
• The changing times brought into the church new ideas and it was easy to have ones doctrine blunted and thus the need of a confession for constant reminder and sharpening.
  

The Adoption Act of 1729. The WCF is adopted by the early American Presbyterian Church. No infallibility is claimed of the Westminster Divines. Each minister is able to state his own scruples with the WCF.

*Clippings from my notes crammed together. Sorry no footnotes and I haven't gone back to edit them to make sure everything is without grammatical errors...these are here for friends and family. My notes are taken from The Presbyterians by Randall Balmer and John R. Fitzmier and The Presbyterian Enterprise Edited by: Maurice W. Armstrong, Lefferts A. Loetscher, and Charles A. Anderson. Some notes may also be added from Dr. Andrew Hoffecker's class currently being taught at RTS Jackson, MS on History of American Presbyterianism.

The Log College & Machen

I will be writing a number of papers this semester including:

The Log College: A good foundation?
This paper will explore the beginnings of the Log College; the germ of the NJ College, Princeton.

also

The Life and Times of J.G.Machen
Exploring the life and times of Machen as it relates to early American Presbyterianism

I will be posting tid bits as they become available to me. I've read a good deal that I think yall find interesting. Check back soon for dat!
CR

St. Paul Presbyterian School - The Kids

St. Paul Presbyterian School sent out a letter today stating that they made the hard decision to close down the school. As you know, Ian and Lauren have been receiving their education there which was a huge answer to prayer as to how to educate them with me attending seminary and Summer working.

I am asking for your prayers for wisdom as to our next course of action with the kid's education. I am enthusiastic about the prospect of educating them myself. They were only in school 3hrs a day and during times when I didn’t have class. So the kids being in school was never a relief so that I can attend class, so that’s not really a factor.

The factor is, can we possibly put another thing on our plate? My zeal says yes! Let's work as hard as we can. We are in Mississippi to work. We sure aint here cuz we wanna be so lets burn them candles and get er down. But, additional wisdom would be nice.

Thanks,
CR

John Piper New Book on Depression

I just finished reading Dr. Piper's newest addition on depression. He address's a number of key issues with his usual powerfully Christ-centric persuasion. Particularly helpful are the sections on the physical aspects of depression and the use of medication. This is a very short read of around 79 pages. If you have ever struggled with any form of melancholy you will want to pick this up. I, personally, went through a most violent period of depression stemming from my back injury that sent me down a darkened road of melancholy and Piper's book helped me to better intelligently understand that period of my life. Once again, I am very thankful to Dr. Piper's work.

Philosophy Final

I have my Philosophy final in a day 2/2/07 . Pray for me.

Second Semester Is Upon Us

Well my second semester at RTS has arrived and it brings a whole new...um...workload. I am doubling my workload this semester in preparation for the amount of study time, I think, I will need to be used to by the time my 3rd semester hits.
I am taking:

History of Christianity II: Reformation - Today
I had this class today...first class of the semester. After successfully completing Hist I: Acts - Renaissance I fell in love with the Medieval church period. Which was a surprise because I wasn't looking forward to this class as much as I was to reformation church history. To my surprise I think I enjoy this portion of history, prior to the reformation, more than the reformation.
Maybe I'm a cryptic-catholic? /smile Work Load: Again another Case Study paper and loads of reading but this time we have much more leeway on picking our own sources to read. We have two required text but then we get to choose some 1000 pages of our own choice, which is really nice to narrow in on what subjects we are interested in. As usually I will try to limit most of my reading to primary sources.


Covenant Theology
There are two tracks a "normal" and the "advanced" track. I would like to take the advance track because you end up doing more work and writing in the subject of covenant theology. It seems, however, that a prerequisite is to have read and mastered Vos Biblical Theology and O.P.Robertson's Christ of the Covenants. I've pretty much have read both these works but I can hardly say, "I've mastered Vos." So we shall see. I attend that class tomorrow, 2/1/07, I will find out then. Work load is heavy for the amount of credits, or so it seems. Four precise papers and a good amount of reading.

Poets
This will be Dr. Currid’s last semester at RTS so I wanted to be sure to get a class in with him. He is like the Indiana Jones of reformed theology. Dr. Currid has extensive archaeological field experience. He was the Director of the Agricultural Project at Tel Halif, Israel; Field Archaeologist of the UNESCO Project at the excavation of Carthage, Tunisia; and staff archaeologist at Tell el-Hesi and Bethsaida, both in Israel. He has written several commentaries in the EP Study Commentary Series and serves as editor for that series. He has also written two books in the discipline of archeology and has recently published another book about suffering.

History of American Presbyterianism
Yes, I am looking forward to this class…big time! I am just hoping it doesn’t get canceled as there are only four of us taking it so far. Loads of reading, of course, and 20 page paper. This is going to be a good one. The syllabus is awesome. Plus, I love sitting under Dr. Hoffecker.

Gospels & Acts
Finishing this class up. RTS Virtual class.

I'm really excited about this semester for I've really undergone some significant changes in my attitude. When I began seminary I was kind of excited and then somewhere towards the end of my first semester I was just kind of here. I’ve been trying to get here for six years with loads of passion! I finally get here and my steam has run out. A very odd feeling. I’ve been rejuvenated by a number of sources, the Spirit, the Bible, family, and others. I am ready for this semester and to attack it with joy in the Lord. Should be good!

Latest Project

Visit twoth.com for my latest project.

Monster Truck Show

Well the family headed off to the Monster Truck Show last night, Mississippi style!
Interesting...simply imteresting.

,

World of Warcraft is feeling

This song was professionally recorded in a studio and if you pay attention to the words you will recognize many of the references to WoW...enjoy!

Lyrics:

You look good in high-res
You've got uber chat skills
Won't you grind quests with me - endlessly
Tanking mobs is my role
I maintain aggro
But the rogue doesn't know, he's not MT (main tank) tonight

World of Warcraft is a feeling
Who needs a social life
I can't wait to log in,
Hop on a griffin

Stockades, gnomer, SM
Won't you join me, on an instance farming run
Let me hit the vendor, free up some bag space
Once I repair, I'll be good to go

World of Warcraft is a feeling
Who needs a social life
Stratholme, Scholo, and UBRS
He just dropped my valor helm
How could I roll a 6?
Grats to my guildmate, but I can't believe this shit

This is the best game
This is the best game I've ever played
This is the greatest game
World of Warcraft you're the greatest game
World of Warcraft you're the greatest game
The best game I've ever played
Woah
I can't wait to log on
Hop on griffin
World of Warcraft, a World of Warcraft
A reality.

Darth Jerk

Ian's 7th Birthday!

Halloween in the Townhomes

Create Your Own!