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Larry P. Arnn on Being Ruled by Technical Experts

"The economic policies being proposed these days are very bad. But the principles behind them are worse. They represent a return to the idea that the American Revolution repudiated--the idea that some are equipped by nature or training to manage the lives of others without their consent....Rather than looking on us as equal beings with a set nature--such that none of us should rule another in the way that God rules man or man rules beast--our political leaders today have been taught to see us as material to be shaped and perfected by experts who have the proper technical training."

Larry P. Arnn, "Education, Economics, and Self-Government." Imprimis, December 2009.

Holiday Pictures

Here is my family, minus a baby boy plus a nephew, at the Bass Performance Hall where we watched the Nutcracker last Saturday.



And here is that baby boy.

Are Christians Sinners or Saints?

"We should always view ourselves both in terms of what we are in Christ, that is, saints, and what we are in ourselves, namely, sinners....while we should always rejoice in the righteousness we have in Christ, we should never cease to feel deeply our own sinfulness and consequent unworthiness."

A "Puritan preacher was reputed to have said, 'Even our tears of repentance need to be washed in the blood of the Lamb.' So our best works can never earn us one bit of favor with God. Let us then turn our attention from our own performance, whether it seems good or bad to us, and look to the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is God's provision for our sin, not only on the day we trusted Christ for our salvation but every day of our Christian lives."

Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace

New From Crossway: The Gospel in Genesis by Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Martyn Lloyd-Jones says that our condition cannot be understood apart from the third chapter of Genesis. All was perfect in the garden until Adam and Eve rebelled. They didn't trust God. They wanted something more. Instead, they found misery, and they were cast out of Eden . Since then, man has been trying to regain entrance into paradise. But there is only one way, and God has provided it.

In the Gospel in Genesis: From Fig Leaves to Faith, Dr. Lloyd-Jones stresses two main points. First, we know nothing about God or our own condition without God's word. "The Bible, far from being remote from life, is the only book that really does deal with life as it is." And second, believing and obeying God leads to peace and happiness, but sin leads to misery.

Chapters one through six are taken from the account of Adam and Eve's fall in the third chapter of Genesis. The last three chapters deal with Noah and the flood, the tower of Babel , and Abraham. Lloyd-Jones sees these as literal, historical accounts, and in each of them he sees a picture of man's lost condition and need for Christ.

These nine sermons are full of substance, yet simple to understand. Dr. Lloyd-Jones was a clear and logical communicator. This book is more evangelistic than many of the Doctor's works; every sermon has a clear gospel message. It would make the perfect gift for an unbelieving friend.

If you are looking for an in-depth, verse-by-verse commentary on Genesis, this is not it. But if you want a book that makes you think, convicts you, and points you to Christ, you won't be disappointed.

World Magazine Too Reformed?

From the letters section of this month's World:

"Please cancel my subscription immediately. After several years of enjoying World, we are irreversibly put off by the influence of John Calvin..."

There also happens to be an interview with J.I. Packer in the December 5th issue. "In his ninth decade, J.I. Packer continues to point a distracted evangelicalism toward the right path."

Where else can you read about politics, education, and J.I.Packer?

Thanks to my friend David Williams for introducing me to World.

The Book on Preaching

Preaching & Preachers

Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Zondervan


Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones believed in expository sermons with substance. While the pastor of Westminster Chapel, London, he preached through entire books of the Bible, often delivering more than one sermon per verse. (His sermons from 1 John fill five volumes!) He believed that "the primary task of the Church and of the Christian minister is the preaching of the Word of God."

In Preaching and Preachers, the Doctor urges preachers to take their calling seriously. "The most urgent need in the Christian Church today is true preaching." With that in mind, he shares what he learned through his many years of pastoring and preaching. Chapters (there are 16 of them) deal with the character of the preacher, congregations, the preparation of the sermon (and the preacher), the shape and form of sermons, illustrations and humor, and the act of preaching itself. I particularly benefitted from the chapter, "What to Avoid."

I'll often enjoy a book enough to read it twice. This is one that I've read three times--I've certainly benefitted from it more than any other book on preaching. The author's style is straightforward and enjoyable to read. He is dogmatic at times, and in a few places it is evident that these lectures were delivered several decades ago. (He lists the tape-recording of sermons as a "peculiar and special abomination" of the time.) However, the practical advice he gives will never be outdated.

This is the book on Biblical, theological, expository preaching. Preachers would benefit from reading it, but their congregations would benefit even more.

Review: Studies in the Sermon on the Mount

Studies in the Sermon on the Mount

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Eerdmans

You needed to be early if you wanted a seat in London’s Westminster Chapel while Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones was the pastor. But it wasn’t a praise team, special effects, or food that drew the crowds. It was the pastor’s expository preaching.

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones was known for his clear, verse-by-verse preaching through large sections of the Bible. One series was through the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). After pressure from those who heard the sermons, Lloyd-Jones agreed to have them published. The sixty sermons were originally published in three volumes. They are now available in one 585 page book.

Dr. Lloyd-Jones covers the fifth chapter of Matthew, with particular emphasis on the beatitudes, in part one of Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. Part two deals with the sixth and seventh chapters of Matthew. The entire sermon, says the doctor, gives a description of what the Christian is meant to be. It is not a code of ethics; nor is it a description of life in a future age. The sermon is not meant for unbelievers. It can’t be applied to nations or governments. But it is for believers in Jesus Christ, and it is as relevant today as it was when it was first delivered.

The chapters in Studies retain the sound of sermons. They are written in short, simple sentences with the key ideas explained, illustrated, applied, and repeated. This style not only benefitted the hearer, but it benefits the reader. When you’ve finished a chapter, you feel like you’ve learned something.

Studies in the Sermon on the Mount is the most thorough commentary on these passages that I have found. And Lloyd-Jones’s explanations of the verses are the most consistent, logical, clear, and helpful that I have read or heard.

I admit that reading a sixty chapter commentary sounds tedious, but this book is really a joy to read. It is theological and practical. It can be used as a reference or devotional. I have read it through twice and have read some chapters several times. It is one of the most valuable books on my shelf, and I suppose that if I had to get rid of all but one (other than the Bible), this would be my pick.

Look Beyond

"Civilization goes round and round in cycles. There is no forward advance. There is no end. There is no reaching the ultimate objective. Life is simply a futile procedure. Round and round we go. We rise. We suceed. We fail. We fall. Down they go--dynasties, empires, individuals. That is always true. It is because of the flaming sword and the cherubim at the east end of the garden of Eden. Man will never get back there by his own efforts; he is incapable of it. He is not allowed to; he has been driven out--that is the judgment upon sin. But that is only the present; there is something beyond," Martyn Lloyd-Jones, The Gospel in Genesis: From Fig Leaves to Faith.