Let your yes be yes…

Recently I’ve tried at two different places to get a price match on a particular product (both websites boastfully saying that they will do that to get your business) and the response of both was an apologetic, “I’m sorry but we can’t do that.” I just had to laugh. I guess I’ll have to stick with the place that has the lowest price.

Miscellanies

It’s been a while and I know my myriad of readers are pining for a new post. Here’s a smorgasbord of things from the past week or so.

Bruce Ware gives a talk on a philosophy of teaching, particularly related to teaching your children. Personally, I think this would be helpful for anyone to listen to, not just parents. As I listened to it, I kept thinking to myself, “Everyone should hear this.” One thing he said in talking about trying to get from the head to the heart was that people don’t do what they know, they do what they love. It’s not enough to know the truth, you must love it. He also had a brief rant about The Shack and the reason it is so popular is because it presents God as we’d like him to be, not the way he truly is.

My good friend James Dolezal defends the credobaptist position. I haven’t listened to it yet (hope to this week), but I’m sure to be stimulated and helped. I’ll be teaching on baptism in a few weeks and am also planning on going through the new three views book on baptistm, with Sinclair Ferguson defending paedobaptism.

If you are in the UK, the BBC is showing a 6 part series on the history of Christianity by Diarmaid MacCulloch. You can watch the episodes on the BBC iPlayer. This has also been released as a book by MacCulloch, which if his book on Cranmer or the Reformation are anything to go by, it will be excellent.

Tim Keller’s book Counterfeit Gods is one of the best things on idolatry that I have read. The chapter on success was particularly convicting. Read it.

Trace Bundy (check him out on youtube) will be playing a concert at Carrubbers this Saturday night. If you are near Edinburgh it would be well worth your time to come to it. He’ll do things on the guitar they you’d never imagine or believe. Good stuff.

Just when you thought you were safe, something else comes your way.

Lastly, a quote from D A Carson, “Perhaps the greatest benefit of democracy is that it provides a peaceful way of turning blighters out every few years, and selecting others.”

Behold the Lamb of God

While we’re thinking about music, this year is the 10th anniversary of Andrew Peterson’s Behold the Lamb of God. In celebration there is a 10th anniversary 2-disc edition being released which has a live disc and a remastered disc with an new song on it as well. You get an immediate digital download of the live album when you purchase the 2-disc set.

If you have not heard this album, you should. It tells the story of Christmas, but more than that it tells the story of the whole scriptures. A biblical theology set to music, masterfully told, and beautifully played/sung. We got the DVD last year, and watching it will be a Luehrmann Christmas tradition for years to come. Depending on the size of your church and music resources, you can buy a full musical score with everything needed to produce it at your church. For the hackers like me, there is a song book (which also includes mandolin and hammered dulcimer parts too!). I’m not sure how early you start listening to Christmas music, but we find some of the most Christ-focused songs in this genre. So, get started today!  Be blessed as you listen to the story of Christ, the Lamb of God.

Beauty Will Rise

Steven Curtis Chapman’s new album Beauty Will Rise was released today. The songs are described as personal psalms, all written over the last year and a half after his daughter Maria died. I grew up on Chapman, but haven’t really listened to him in the last 12 years or so, but I thought I’d revisit him with this album, and I’m glad I did. The album is intensely personal and is laced with hope and trust in the midst of confusion, doubt, and difficult circumstances. It was a blessing to listen to walking through Edinburgh today. HERE is a great interview about the album.

The Seed of the Word

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but Seeds Family Worship scripture music albums are some of the best things around for the family. It is scripture put to music, but it’s not hokey and its style and instrumentation is such that it is something that adults enjoy listening to as well. It’s a great way to get the word implanted. The website also has some other resources. And, it looks like when you buy a CD it comes with 2 in the case so you can give one away. How good is that! I hear a DVD is in the works. Maybe in time for Christmas? We’ll see. Enjoy and benefit from the good folks at Seeds Family Worship.

The Fingers of God

Last week we escaped up to the northwest coast of Scotland for a few days of rest. The scenery was absolutely stunning. Here are a few pics from our trip.

Travel with John Calvin

My guess is most of us didn’t make it to Geneva for the Calvin500 events. Perhaps the next best thing arrived in the post today. It is the latest DayOne book in the ‘Travel With’ series, which is on John Calvin. If you haven’t read any in this series (which is quite extensive now: Knox, M’Cheyne, Martyrs of Mary Tudor, Bible in the British Museum, Bunyan, etc.) you are missing out. They are fantastic brief (120 pages each) biographies that have voluminous pictures and extremely helpful information if you want to visit these places. They are worth reading even if you aren’t going to be going to Geneva or Frankfurt. We have benefited from a number of these here in the UK. It would be great if DayOne did some city specific ones instead of just people specific. I’ll have to let them know.

The other one that came with Calvin in the post is on Egypt. My wife has been, but I haven’t, so this will have to do.

Some thoughts on Baptism

Here are a few of my initial thoughts on baptism, particularly thinking about the continuity it has (or doesn’t have) with circumcision:

- circumcision identified people with the visible people of God  – it was not a sign of circumcision of the heart (salvation from sin)

- baptism IS a sign of being baptized with Christ into his death and resurrection – identifying not merely with the visible church, but pointing to the reality, the salvation from Christ that makes one a part of the invisible church

- circumcision was a sign of the redeemed from Egypt, not the redeemed from sin

- baptism is a sign of the redeemed from sin

Consolation

When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. Psalm 94.19

What are you?

We recently ordered a dress for wee Anna and here was the dropdown menu to choose the title prefix to my name. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such options. Perhaps I should have chosen ’squadron leader?’