Just wonderin'

When I first came into the blogosphere my internet provider was "frontiernet.net". So when I showed up in sitemeter's all across the fruited plain people could see what city I am from, plus who my internet provider was. Then, this past March, I switched over to RoadRunner. For a while people could still see where I was from the only difference being that "rr" would be in place of "frontiernet.net".

Then suddenly one day I started appearing in sitemeters as "? unknown". Can anybody offer up an explanation? Is it possible that the people at sitemeter are four or five point Arminians? Is this an anti DoG thing?

:-)

The Carnal Christian Heresy

Hebrews 12:14 (New American Standard Bible)
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
14(A)Pursue peace with all men, and the (B)sanctification without which no one will (C)see the Lord.

Hebrews 12:14 (English Standard Version)
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
14(A) Strive for peace with everyone, and for the(B) holiness(C) without which no one will see the Lord.

Hebrews 12:14 (New King James Version)
New King James Version (NKJV)
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:

Question: Where would the so called "carnal Christian" stand here?

Where I Is Right Now

MacArthur and Ryrie. Respected names in Christian circles. MacArthur wrote "The Gospel According to Jesus", and Ryrie responded to that book with "So Great a Salvation".

Well, I'm reading them both at the same time. Actually I'm reading MacArthur's twentieth anniversary edition, which marks my third time through that book as I read the original both in 1994 and in 2005. While reading Ryrie's book I'm trying to see into his heart and mind. I want to pause and reflect on each of his points. He's very easy to read. He has a nice easy to understand and folksy style. I shall share my thoughts after I have finished both books.

The Lord willing I shall go down stairs in a few hours to, I hope, have a good bench-press workout. The Lord willing I hope to put up another 300+ pounds. This in order to continue a consecutive string of workouts begun the first week of August, 2005 wherein I put up at least 300 pounds one workout per week. If all goes well this will be the completion of the third year of that string. I began this string later the same year that my mom died. It is my way of acknowledging that life has gone on. Eventually age will catch up and I will no longer be strong enough to keep the string alive. Praise be to the Lord for graciously granting that the string has come this far.

I noticed on Bob Wilkin's blog that he has just had a bout with a kidney stone. Ouch! I had one of those in 2000. Very painful. May the Lord comfort him.

Enough rambling.

Mark

David's Graduation Pictures

One month and two days ago, IT HAPPENED!

David done graduated high school!~

Now I Gone And Done It

Yup, this past weekend I ordered and payed for Ryrie's "So Great A Salvation". I figured that since I'm reading through MacArthur's twentieth anniverary eddition of "The Gospel According To Jesus" I might just as well give Ryrie a fair read.

From the site meter I want to say "Hi" to Kevl from Canada and Brian from Bracey, Virginia. Hope y'all have found some interesting things here at BC blog.

Kevl, you know what I've noticed at your blog? You, Lou, and JP try to hammer on reformed people who use a systematic approach to interpreting scripture - actually, it is known as the "analogy of faith" approach, where scripture interprets scripture - and yet in order for you all to arrive at your own conclusions you too must be rather systematic. This whole idea of separating the call to salvation from the call to discipleship, well, before Chafer, just how much of Christian history is filled with people holding to such a notion? And do spare me the response of "since the writing of the New Testament". Tell ya what: let's go back to the Reformation, and coming forth from then, 'K?

Birthday Wishes

Two honorary Blue Collar folk celebrate birthdays today:

Gayla and Sam, aka "Scribe".

Please join me in wishing them a Happy Birthday.

Mark

A Thought

Authentic faith in Christ as Savior is exhibited in discipleship. No discipleship no faith, period.

What shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

by Dave Moorhead

Mark leads us to the mountaintop of his gospel in chapter 8. It is the Continental Divide of Jesus’ ministry. Jesus pulls away the veil and reveals himself and his ministry clearly to his disciples. (In the next chapter he is transfigured on a literal mountaintop and Peter, James, and John get to see who Jesus is!).

Jesus’ teaching in 8:27-38 should leave his followers without doubts. “Who do you say I am?” “You are the Messiah!” “OK, then. You need to know some things. I’m going to be rejected by our own religious leaders; I’ll be executed; and I’ll rise from the grave. If you want to follow me you need to count the cost. You’ll have to deny yourselves, take up your crosses, and follow in my footsteps.”

Jesus finishes his watershed teaching with some warnings. He says, “Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

Whoever wants to save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life will save it. Whoever wants to try to maintain control of his own life will lose it. Whoever is unwilling to surrender all his life to Christ will lose his life. Whoever sees Jesus and the gospel as more important than his own life will find life. This is exactly opposite of the flow of our society which is completely self-centered. In Christ’s kingdom the values are turned upside down! Those who lose are keepers! Instead of “finders keepers, losers weepers,” it’s, “keepers weepers, losers winners!”

Seriously, what good is it if we gain the whole world and lose our souls for eternity?And what do we have that we can use to redeem our souls?Finally, if we are ashamed to embrace Jesus’ words and ways; if we are afraid to live the radically Christlike life, we can’t expect Christ to recognize us when he comes! Will we take up the call of Christ and walk in his ways?

posted by Shiloh Guy

To the Vet again

Hey friends.

Today I shall be gone for a while. You see, my dog has yet another tumor. I discovered it last night after I got home from work. He just had one removed three weeks ago. Now this.

Please pray. Thank you.

Mark

A question to consider

Colin Maxwell's writing here brings a question to mind. From the previous post that I swiped from him - "J. Vernon McGhee wrote: ”It is clearly understood that the unregenerate man who practices these sins has no portion in the kingdom of Christ and God. If a professing Christian practices these sins, he immediately classifies himself. No matter what his testimony may be on Sunday or what position he may have in the church, such a person is saying to the lost world that he is not a child of God. To live in the corruption of the flesh is to place one’s self beyond the pale of a child of God.” [Comments on Ephesians 5:5] Again: Someone may say, ‘Wait a minute. You said a child of God could confess a sin and come back into fellowship with God.’ That is right, but a child of God cannot confess a sin and continue in that sin. That is a dead giveaway that such a person is not a child of God.” [Comments on Ephesians 5:4, following his statement: ”Fornication is a sin. Regardless of where you are or who you are, if you are living in fornication today, you cannot be a child of God.”]I’m sure there’s more I could add to that, but I’ve plenty to do today. Enough there for us all to chew on!"

The question: The woman at the well, whose story is told in John 4:6-29, did she go back to that man who was not her husband that night?

REASONS TO REMAIN A FREE GRACER:

by Colin Maxwell (who is on vacation and does not know that I have cut and paste this)

REASONS TO REMAIN A FREE GRACER:

1) If you think that preaching repentance to the unconverted is preaching a works gospel, then fine: Remain a Free Gracer!

We, Evangelicals, more or less agree with J. Vernon McGhee [comments on Ephesians 2:8-9] who answered the objection that one hadn’t been given the gift of faith with these words: ”That’s not your problem. Your problem is that you don’t want to give up your sins which the Bible condemns. Whenever you get sick of your sins, when you want to turn from yourself, from the things of the world, from religion, from everything the Bible condemns, and turn to Christ, then you will be given faith. You can trust Him.” (Actually, many of us believe that repentance flows from faith, rather than leads to faith as suggested by Mr McGhee, but we are one with him in the thought that a man cannot come savingly to Christ while determined to hold unto his sins.)

2) If you think that denying that someone who says that they believe in Jesus for everlasting life and then becomes an apostate, a chronic atheist etc., will still get to heaven is a travesty of John 6:47 etc., then fine: Remain a Free Gracer!

We, non Arminian Evangelicals, look for the evidence of the possession of the Holy Spirit who graciously, powerfully and infallibly enables God’s people to persevere unto the end. We run with HA Ironside’s comments: But, on the other hand, I am not so enthusiastic about the other expression, “the perseverance of the saints.” I believe in it; I believe that all saints--all really belonging to God--will persevere to the end, for the Book tells me, “He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved” (Matthew 24:13), and if a man starts out and makes a profession but gives it all up, he will never be saved, because he was never born again to begin with, he was never truly changed by grace divine. On the other hand, the reason he endures to the end is not because of any particular perseverance of his own. What I believe in, and what the Word of God clearly teaches, is the perseverance of the Holy Spirit. When He begins a work, He never gives up until it is completed. That is our confidence. [Eternal Security]

3) If you think that saying “It costs to be a Christian” is a typical statement by a works gospeller, then fine: Remain a Free Gracer!

We, Evangelicals, are quite happy to say so. Brother J. Vernon McGhee was happy to use this expression. In his comments on Luke 14:28-30, he says: ”It will cost something to make a decision for Christ. It will cost something to be His disciples. Think it over, friends, you should count the cost before you make the decision.” True, he goes on to make the difference between a Christian and a Disciple, but it is clear that he expects the interested enquirer to think long and hard because while salvation is a free gift, yet it does cost to be a Christian.

4) If you think that a professing Christian can live in sin and still be considered to be a true believer, then fine: be a Free Gracer!

We, Evangelicals, run again with J. Vernon McGhee who wrote: ”It is clearly understood that the unregenerate man who practices these sins has no portion in the kingdom of Christ and God. If a professing Christian practices these sins, he immediately classifies himself. No matter what his testimony may be on Sunday or what position he may have in the church, such a person is saying to the lost world that he is not a child of God. To live in the corruption of the flesh is to place one’s self beyond the pale of a child of God.” [Comments on Ephesians 5:5] Again: Someone may say, ‘Wait a minute. You said a child of God could confess a sin and come back into fellowship with God.’ That is right, but a child of God cannot confess a sin and continue in that sin. That is a dead giveaway that such a person is not a child of God.” [Comments on Ephesians 5:4, following his statement: ”Fornication is a sin. Regardless of where you are or who you are, if you are living in fornication today, you cannot be a child of God.”]

I’m sure there’s more I could add to that, but I’ve plenty to do today. Enough there for us all to chew on!

Repentance - Spurgeon

""We are to preach repentance in its perpetuity. Repentance is not a grace which is only to be exercised by us for a week or so at the beginning of our Christian career: it is to attend us all the way to heaven. Faith and repentance are to be inseparable companions throughout our pilgrimage to glory. Repenting of our sin, and trusting in the great Sinbearer, is to be the tenor of our lives; and we are to preach to men that it must be so.We are to tell them of the source of repentance, namely, that the Lord Jesus Christ is exalted on high to give repentance and remission of sins. Repentance is a plant that never grows on nature's dunghill: the nature must be changed, and repentance must be implanted by the Holy Spirit, or it will never flourish in our hearts. We preach repentance as a fruit of the Spirit, or else we greatly err."

From Charles Spurgeon's sermon "Beginning at Jerusalem"

Ryrie On Mark 8:35

From the RYRIE STUDY BIBLE
page 1499
notes on Mark 8:35 -The verse means this: Whoever would save his life (by renouncing the gospel and thus avoiding the risk of martyrdom) will lose it (eternally, because he has not believed the gospel);but whoever is willing to lose his life (as a martyr for Christ) will save it (i.e., will prove that he is a follower of Christ and an heir ofm eternal life).

Question: Is Ryrie here teaching a works salvation?

Carnal Christians?

Where did the idea that there are two kinds of Christians, carnal and spiritual, come from? It apparently originated in the mind of a dispensationist, yeah, that's right, a dispensationist. His name? L.S. Chafer.

Two kinds of Christians? Might just as well rewrite Romans 8 - you know, like put a whole lot of qualifying statements in there. For example: Romans 8:14 - For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God... should read "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God (though some might go on to be carnal, and therefore this verse should not necessarily be used to define all Christians) these are the sons of God".

You get the point.

A great paper on the subject can be found here...
http://electexiles.wordpress.com/2008/05/06/history-of-the-lordship-salvation-controversy/
Happy reading!

Thoughts On Repentance

Nate B., from Pulpit Magazine once said... “We are not saved on the basis of our works. We are saved, instead, on the basis of the finished work of Christ. But, in conversion, God gives us a new heart (through the regenerating work of His Spirit), with new desires. Those new desires consist (at least in part) of a love for Christ and a willingness to obey.”

Amen!

Why is it so hard to accept the fact that, just as the old nature made itself evident, so will the new?

I think Dr. Wayne Grudem summed up repentance best when he took his readers to Matthew 11:28-29. Jesus invites,in an evangelistic setting, people to come to Him, to take His yoke upon them, and to learn from Him. I did not know at the outset what Jesus would require of me in later years, and still don’t. I did not know at the outset How He wanted me to live, as taught in the Bible. It is all an ongoing learning process as He is my teacher. But, aside from the regenerating work of the Spirit how do I account for the desire to go on, even when facing trials much larger than I ever imagined possible for a Christian to go through?

Jesus, my Teacher, has taken me from the very early moments of my salvation experience right up to the present, some 35 years. The people who led me to Christ would today be classified as Lordshipers. They made sure that I understood that surrender to Christ as Savior would also be a surrender to Him as Lord. Doesn’t Luke 14 teach would-be disciples, those seeking salvation, to count the cost? I did. Who took me all this distance. Surely it wasn’t in my own strength or volition. I merely came to Him and took His yoke upon me and STARTED to learn from Him.

A Reminder From Spurgeon

"At the same time, it is a dangerous state of things if doctrine is made to drive out precept, and faith is held up as making holiness a superfluity. Sanctification must not be forgotten or overlaid by justification. We must teach plainly that the faith which saves the soul is not a dead faith, but a faith which operates with purifying effect upon our entire nature, and produces in us fruits of righteousness to the praise and glory of God."

Why I Would Not Recommend Lou Martuneac's Books

http://indefenseofthegospel.blogspot.com/2008/07/summary-of-lordship-salvation-on-single.html

Y'all Wanna See Lou Martuneac When He Is In Defense Mode?

https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=17893637&postID=6823074750748303347

Feel free to join in the fun.