Required reading Reformed Doctrine of Predestination by Loraine Boettner (Available from Amazon or free on the internet, here for example).Continue Chapter 28 (Calvinism in history) by reading point 10 (John Calvin).
My summary The last major point of this chapter on Calvinism in history is a mini biography on Calvin himself.
Firstly, we see Calvin's rise to teacher and pastor of the evangelical church of Geneva.
Then we look at his publications: the Institutes, the commentaries, the voluminous correspondence.
Next we look at the influence of Geneva on the world.
Finally, a number of pages are dedicated to defending Calvin's role in the death of the heretic Servetus.
What grabbed me This chapter would be a good summary of Calvin's life for those who may not know much about it.
I was particularly interested in what Boettner had to say about Calvin's writings.
For the record I do intend to read the Institutes within the club at some point - but I am waiting a few years because I assume many read through them when Calvin's 500th birthday celebrations went on last year. As for Calvin's correspondence, we will be starting that on Saturdays later this year.
But I don't think we will ever read his commentaries in the club so I want to quote what Boettner said about them: 'In addition to the Institutes, Calvin wrote commentaries on nearly all of the books of both the Old and New Testaments. These commentaries in the English translation comprise fifty-five large volumes, and, taken in connection with his other works, are nothing less than marvelous. The quality of these writings was such that they soon took first place among exegetical works on the Scriptures; and among all the older commentators no one is more frequently quoted by the best modern scholars than is Calvin. He was beyond all question the greatest exegete of the Reformation period. As Luther was the prince of translators, so Calvin was the prince of commentators.'
I read his commentaries each week for sermon preparation and they are very good. Don't miss out. They are free all over the internet.
Whenever you need to teach on a particular passage, don't overlook this valuable resource that God has given to his church.
Next week's reading Conclude Chapter 28 (Calvinism in history) by reading point 11 (Conclude) and also read the Appendix.
Now it's your turn Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
Required reading City of God by Augustine (available from Amazon or free on the internet, here for example) - Commence Book 17 by reading Chapters 1 to 8. My summary Now we look at the development of the City of God through the era of the prophets which Augustine says begins with Samuel.
Augustine says that in the Old Testament we can find three meanings of the text in reference to the City of God. Sometimes the text refers to the earthly City of God at Jerusalem. Sometimes the text refers to the City of God in the Heavenly city of Jerusalem. Sometimes it refers to both.
Augustine then unpacks the threefold meaning in some of the prophecies in the books of Samuel. We look at the words of Hannah, the man of God who spoke to Eli, Samuel and Nathan.
What grabbed me Many good examples today of how to see Christ in the Old Testament.
And although I have said before that I don't agree with every allegory that Augustine finds in the Scriptures, this comment is good advice 'Now in my opinion it is certainly a complete mistake to suppose that no narrative of events in this type of literature has any significance beyond the purely historical record; but it is equally rash to maintain that every single statement in those books is a complex of allegorical meanings.'
We can go to two extremes - only recognise historical meaning or only find allegory. Walking the line in the middle takes great wisdom.
Next week's reading Conclude Book 17 by reading Chapters 9 to 24.
Now it's your turn Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
Required reading Life and Diary of David Brainerd by Jonathan Edwards (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Parts 3 and 4. My summary In Parts 3 and 4 we see Brainerd begin to preach and hear a little of his appointment as a missionary to the Indians.
In these parts Brainerd reflects a lot upon his depravity and how depressed his sin makes him feel. This depravity also leads him to claim that his preaching is terrible.
However throughout the diary entries there is also record of many moments of sweet consolations from God. What grabbed me Two things particularly grabbed me today. Firstly, it was in prayer with other believers that Brainerd felt closest to heaven: 'This day, being about to go from Mr. Bellamy’s at Bethlehem, where I had resided some time, I prayed with him, and two or three other Christian friends. We gave ourselves to God with all our hearts, to be his for ever: eternity looked very near to me, while I was praying. If I never should see these Christians again in this world, it seemed but a few moments before I should meet them in another world.'
Secondly, Brainerd's assessment of himself as a preacher is quite confronting: 'I had the most abasing thoughts of myself’, I think, that ever I had; I thought myself the worst wretch that ever lived: it hurt me, and pained my very heart, that any body should show me any respect. Alas! methought, how sadly they are deceived in me! how miserably would they be disappointed, if they knew my inside! Oh my heart! And in this depressed condition I was forced to go and preach to a considerable assembly, before some grave and learned ministers; but felt such a pressure from a sense of my vileness, ignorance, and unfitness to appear in public, that I was almost overcome with it; my soul was grieved for the congregation; that they should sit there to hear such a dead dog as I preach. I thought myself infinitely indebted to the people, and longed that God would reward them with the rewards of his grace. I spent much of the evening alone.”'
At first I was tempted to laugh at this paragraph. But then I thought that Brainerd is actually assessing all preachers correctly. Every minister is a vile dead dog and the only reason anyone listens to him with profit is by the grace of God.
Next week's reading Read Part 5. Now it's your turn Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
Required reading Bunyan's Holy War (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Chapters 9 and 10.
My summary In Chapter 9 the people of Mansoul return to the city with great rejoicing at the grace shown to them. They request Emmanuel to come in and live in their town. Emmanuel accepts and comes into Mansoul with his captains and the takes up residence there. The image of Diabolus is destroyed and the image of Shaddai is set up once again.
In Chapter 10 we shift to a court scene where the Diabolians are put on trial. They deny the charges but witnesses are brought forward who testify against them. Nine Diabolians are condemned (Incredulity, Forget-good, Lustings, Atheism, Hardheart, Falsepeace, Notruth, Pitiless and Haughty) and are crucified. Except Mr Incredulity who escapes the town and reports to Diabolus.
What grabbed me Enjoyed the description of the people's reaction to Emmanuel living in the town: 'Now, the ancients and elders of the town of Mansoul thought that they never should have enough of the Prince Emmanuel; his person, his actions, his words and behaviour, were so pleasing, so taking, so desirable to them. Wherefore they prayed him, that though the castle of Mansoul was his place of residence (and they desired that he might dwell there for ever), yet that he would often visit the streets, houses, and people of Mansoul. ‘For,’ said they, ‘dread Sovereign, thy presence, thy looks, thy smiles, thy words, are the life, and strength, and sinews of the town of Mansoul.’ Besides this, they craved that they might have, without difficulty or interruption, continual access unto him (so for that very purpose he commanded that the gates should stand open), that they might there see the manner of his doings, the fortifications of the place, and the royal mansion-house of the Prince. When he spake, they all stopped their mouths and gave audience; and when he walked, it was their delight to imitate him in his goings.'
They just can't get enough of him. Oh what a joy it will be to see Jesus face to face!
Next week's reading Read Chapter 11.
Now it's your turn Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
Required reading Practical Religion by JC Ryle (available from Amazon or free on the internet, here for example)- Read Chapter 13 (The best friend). My summary Today we look at how Jesus is the best friend we could ever know.
Firstly, Jesus is a friend in need and we are the neediest creatures on God's earth because we are sinners.
Secondly, Jesus is a friend in deed - particularly his work at the cross.
Thirdly, Jesus is a mighty and powerful friend who can pardon the chief of sinners, convert the hardest of hearts, preserve to the end all who believe and give the best gifts to those who love him.
Fourthly, Jesus is a loving and affectionate friend and we see this particularly in his reception of sinners and in his dealings with sinners.
Fifthly, Jesus is a wise and prudent friend who never spoils His friends and makes no mistakes.
Sixthly, Jesus is a tried and proved friend. He has had friends of: (i) every rank and station in life; (ii) every age; (iii) every possible temperament and disposition; (iv) every condition in life; (v) almost every nation and people and tongue.
Seventhly, Jesus is an unfailing friend who never changes, never goes away from His friends and goes with His friends wherever they go.
What grabbed me Great chapter. What a friend we have in Jesus!
Particularly liked one of the points of application at the tend: 'Know, in the next place, that "if you are not one of Christ's friends, you are a poor miserable being." I write this down deliberately. I do not say it without thought. I say that if Christ is not your friend, you are a poor miserable being. You are in the midst of a failing, sorrowful world, and you have no real source of comfort, or refuge for a time of need. You are a dying creature, and you are not ready to die. You have sins, and they are not forgiven. You are going to be judged, and you are not prepared to meet God: you might be, but you refuse to use the one and only Mediator and Advocate. You love the world better than Christ. You refuse the great Friend of sinners, and you have no friend in heaven to plead your cause. Yes: it is sad but true! You are a poor, miserable being. It matters nothing what your income is: without Christ's friendship you are very poor.'
If any of you who may stumble across these words on this blog and do not know Jesus as your friend, please realise that you are missing the greatest friendship you could ever have. Put your faith in Jesus today.
Next week's reading Read Chapter 14 (Sickness).
Now it's your turn Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
I've decided that the next Sunday Supermen title will be 'The life of John Knox ' by Thomas M'Crie (available from Amazon or free on the internet, here for example).
By my calculations we'll finish our current Sunday Supermen title, 'Life and diary of David Brainerd', sometime in November 2010 and so we'll start 'The life of John Knox' then.
Required reading Freedom of the Will by Jonathan Edwards (available from Amazon or free here) - Continue Part II by reading Sections VII to X. My summary
Today Edwards continues to show the inconsistencies in claims that the will is free.
In Section VII we see that using the term Indifference by Arminians brings no meaning to the discussion: 'I wish such refiners would thoroughly consider, whether they distinctly know their own meaning, when they make a distinction between an Indifference of the soul as to its power or ability of choosing, and the soul’s Indifference as to the preference or choice itself; and whether they do not deceive themselves in imagining that they have any distinct meaning at all.'
In Section VIII it is shown that the claim is false that there is no Necessity to what the Will does: 'On the whole, it is clearly manifest, that every effect has a necessary connexion with its cause, or with that which is the true ground and reason of its existence. And therefore, if there be no event without a cause, as was proved before, then no event whatsoever is contingent, in the manner that Arminians suppose the free acts of the will to be contingent.'
In Section IX it is noted that if Understanding influences the Will, then the Will is not free.
In Section X we see that if Motives influence the Will, then the Will is not free: 'Now, if motives dispose the mind to action, then they cause the mind to be disposed; and to cause the mind to be disposed is to cause it to be willing; and to cause it to be willing is to cause it to will; and that is the same thing as to be the cause of an act of the Will.'
What grabbed me Today Edwards indicates again the damage that Arminians do to the doctrine of God if they view the will as free: 'If this view of the Understanding be that alone which doth move the Will to choose or refuse, as the Doctor asserts, then every act of choice or refusal, from a man’s first existence, is moved and determined by this view; and this view of the Understanding exciting and governing the act, must be before the act. And therefore the Will is necessarily determined, in every one of its acts, from a man’s first existence, by a cause beside the will, and a cause that does not proceed from or depend on any act of the Will at all. Which at once utterly abolishes the Doctor’s whole scheme of Liberty of Will; and he, at one stroke, has cut the sinews of all his arguments from the goodness, righteousness, faithfulness, and sincerity of God, in his commands, promises, threatenings, calls, invitations, and expostulations; which he makes use of, under the heads of reprobation, election, universal redemption, sufficient and effectual grace, and the freedom of the will of man; and has made vain all his exclamations against the doctrine of the Calvinists, as charging God with manifest unrighteousness, unfaithfulness, hypocrisy, fallaciousness, and cruelty.'
Next week's reading
Conclude Part II by reading Sections XI to XIII.
Now it's your turn Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
Required reading Thoughts on preaching by J. W. Alexander (Available from Amazon or free here) - Continue the section entitled 'Homiletical paragraphs' by reading 'paragraphs' 74 to 110.
My summary There wasn't much about preaching itself in today's paragraphs.
There were quite a few reflections on nature as well as comments on reading and writing. What grabbed me I still am grappling with Alexander's encouragement of a distaste for reading: 'Much may be learned without books. To read always is not the way to be wise. The knowledge of those who are not bookworms has a certain air of health and robustness. I never deal with books all day without being the worse for it. Living teachers are better than dead. There is magic in the voice of living wisdom. Iron sharpeneth iron. Part of every day should be spent in society. Learning is discipline ; but the heart must be disciplined as well as the head ; and only by intercourse with our fellows can the affections be disciplined. Bookishness implies solitude ; and solitude is apt to produce ill weeds: melancholy, selfishness, moroseness, suspicion, and fear. To go abroad is, therefore, a Christian duty. I never went from my books to spend an hour with a friend, however humble, without receiving benefit. I never left the solitary contemplation of a subject in order to compare notes on it with a friend, without finding my ideas clarified. Ennui is not common where men properly mingle the contemplative with the active life.'
I understand the point Alexander is trying to make that we should never minimise human relationships, but it seems as though he belittles books completely. Yet he comes across as completely well-read himself.
I know that I would not be the pastor that I am and have any confidence in what I do without extensive reading.
Next week's reading Continue the section entitled 'Homiletical paragraphs' by reading 'paragraphs' 111 to 142. Now it's your turn Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
