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On December 14, 2017 By In Scribblings

RIP, R.C. Sproul

UPDATE: The Sproul family has shared the sad news with us that our founder, Dr. R.C. Sproul, went home to be with the Lord this afternoon. Please pray for the Sprouls. Further updates will be available soon.

I’ve been reflecting on Dr. R.C. Sproul’s life as he nears the end of his earthly journey.

I lived in Pennsylvania in the late 90’s. I had arrived to study a year in America. The evenings were cold in December. The only distraction I had at night was an old radio that worked half the time. One particular night, I turned on the radio to the sound of Handel’s Messiah. The lecturer was clear and poetic in his delivery. I listened intently for 20 minutes or so to a lecture on Augustine. “You’ve been listening to Renewing Your Mind with Dr. R.C. Sproul,” the voice concluded after each episode. I retired to my room early every evening to hear his talks.

Though my curiosity increased with each year, my commitments to my synergistic theology prevailed. I simply could not embrace a theology that took away my liberty to have a voice in my spiritual condition. The following winter I returned to Pennsylvania for Christmas. It was there that I read Michael Horton’s “Putting Amazing Back into Grace.” His brilliant analysis of John’s gospel pierced me and persuaded me to put down my lingering hesitations of Reformed Theology.

Returning to college after changing my convictions gave me a tremendous sense of liberty to explore and read unhindered by past traditions. I immediately read “The Holiness of God” and “Chosen by God” and experienced the closest thing to a revivalistic episode. I was awed as Isaiah was in chapter 6. I am sure I cried with the new knowledge of a God who was far more glorious and powerful than I ever believed.

Years later, I had the joy of sitting under his teaching ministry in Sanford and had the opportunity to interact with him on numerous occasions.

I am deeply grateful to R.C.’s labors. He made theology accessible to me and millions of others. He taught that Jesus is Lord over everything and his sovereignty extends to every molecule. May he die as he lived: in the comfort and faithfulness of his God. Soli Deo Gloria.

“If God is the Creator of the entire universe, then it must follow that He is the Lord of the whole universe. No part of the world is outside of His lordship. That means that no part of my life must be outside of His lordship.” -R.C. Sproul

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On December 8, 2017 By In Scribblings

The Importance of Scholarship

I am often amazed at the level of diversity even within my Reformed tradition. Dutch, Scottish, Continental, Puritan Augustinian, Calvinistic, Bucerian, etc.The intramural debates within intramural debates get microscopically precise. It’s a luxury of a highly Christianized society. In a society that does not have to concern itself with persecution, there should be a greater investment in translating books into the common language, delve deeper into scriptural truths, and grow in theological knowledge. We are seeing this in a revival of translations of unknown Latin texts into English, sending of American scholars to educate third-world countries, an explosion of missiological works around the world, and more. My conclusion, then, is two-fold:
 
First, good scholarship is for the sake of the people. It is needed more than ever today. We should not fall prey to old fundamentalist dogma that all scholarship is tainted by liberalism. We need good pastor/theologians in the Church. Ministers are shepherds who ought to lead well and this requires adequate preparation. Historically, the most influential leaders in the Church were also the most theologically equipped.
 
Secondly, we still suffer from a dichotomy between theology and practice. It’s a hangover of pietism which purposefully kept these two apart. But pietism needs to die and replaced with a pastoral anthropology. In other words, man is created to love God in order to love his fellow man better. This love of God is to be grounded in a deeper understanding of who He is.
 
When scholarship is uninterested in the practice of faith it will die a thousand deaths and fail to bring life to future generations. But when scholarship is conveyed clearly, as a gift of God about Himself, scholarship becomes a delicious exercise worthy of sharing with hungry souls.

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The Essential Trinity: New Testament Foundations and Practical Relevance published by P&R.

On December 6, 2017 By In Books, Podcast

Episode 21: The Essential Trinity with Dr. Brandon Crowe

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On this episode Pastor Uri Brito interviews Dr. Brandon Crowe, Associate Professor of New Testament Studies at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. Brandon is the co-editor of The Essential Trinity: New Testament Foundations and Practical Relevance published by P&R.

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On November 30, 2017 By In Interviews, Podcast, Theology

Episode 20: A Conversation about Advent

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In this Episode of the Kuyperian Commentary Podcast, Pastor Uri Brito and Mr. Sean Johnson discuss the next season of the Church Calendar: Advent. The season of Advent, which comes from the Latin word adventus meaning “coming” or “visit,” begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve. Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year for Christians.

Pastor Uri explains how this section of the church calendar helps give us a picture of the Gospel in a Biblical promise and fulfillment paradigm. “Advent and Christmas work together… and when we skip Advent we’re missing that first portion of the Gospel. “He also recommends the book: The Liturgical Year: The Spiraling Adventure of the Spiritual Life by Joan Chittister.

Mr. Sean Johnson continues to emphasize the importance of observing Advent with, “Anything that you want to enjoy seems to deserve the service of expectation… Anything that you can await is going to be enjoyed more.” Both believe that Advent adds to the importance and significance of our greater Christmas feast. Brito reminds us that: “If we have a major event like Christmas on December 25 and we simply arrive at Christmas without haven’t spent the season prior to that in preparation for Christmas, I think over the years—it trivializes the event. It becomes something you do, not something you expect.”

Advent 2017 will begin on Sunday, December 3 and ends on Sunday, December 24. The liturgical color for Advent is purple, Kuyperian Contributor Steve Macias also wrote on its significance here.

 

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On October 26, 2017 By In Books, Podcast

Episode 18: The Blessing Life

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In this episode of the Kuyperian Commentary Podcast, Pastor Uri Brito interviews Dr. Gerrit Dawson.

Dr. Dawson is the Senior Pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Baton Rouge, LA and the author of The Blessing Life: A Journey into Unexpected Joy, IVP Press. In this interview, KC host, Uri Brito, engages Dr. Dawson on the biblical definition of blessing rescuing it from its misuse in evangelical discourse.

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On October 19, 2017 By In Podcast

Episode 17: Rusty Reno, First Things Economics with David Koyzis

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In this episode of the Kuyperian Commentary Podcast, Dr. David Koyzis and Pastor Uri Brito discuss an article published by First Things‘ editor R. R. Reno in which he is cautiously raising questions about “The Spirit of Democratic Capitalism.”

Dr. Koyzis published his written thoughts on the subject “Trees and Three-Legged Stools: Reno and Gregg on Novak’s legacy” with the appropriate background information here.

The two outline the three-decade long history of this economics discussion and ask the question, “How would Abraham Kuyper view these issues today?”

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On October 11, 2017 By In Podcast

Biblical Interpretation with Dr. Gregg Strawbridge

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Originally recorded in 2015, this interview is focused on the nature of Biblical interpretation espoused by the Biblical Horizons and the Theopolis groups led by James B. Jordan and Peter Leithart.

The lectures offered at the 24th Biblical Horizons Conference, 2015, can be found and purchased at wordmp3.com. The 2015 Conference featured talks from Peter J. Leithart on Revelation, James B. Jordan (4 talks) on Joshua, Jeff Meyers (3 talks) on Wealth in Luke and Acts, Rich Bledsoe (2 talks) on Psychotherapy and Drugs, and Uri Brito (1 talk) on Christian Counseling from Jay Adams to David Powlison, and some psalmody/services and interviews.

Gregg Strawbridge, Ph.D., is the pastor of All Saints Church in Lancaster, PA. He became a committed follower of Jesus Christ at age 20, discipled in the context of a University Navigator Ministry. As a result of personal discipleship he went on to study at Columbia Biblical Seminary (M.A., Columbia, SC, 1990), as well as a Ph.D. in education and philosophy (USM, 1994)

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On October 4, 2017 By In Podcast

Episode 16: Colin Kaepernick and the NFL Culture War

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In this episode of the Kuyperian Commentary Podcast, Pastors Uri Brito and Andrew Isker discuss the recent brouhaha over the flag and the NFL. They discuss the religious nature and culture of the NFL as well as various American idolatries.

On August 26, 2016, then–San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick quietly remained seated during the National Anthem at 49ers pre-season game. A few weeks into the new ritual, he was asked about it: “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” explained Kaepernick.

Since then some players have continued the protest, but “gasoline was poured onto the fire,” said Andrew Isker, at a campaign rally for failed Republican Senatorial candidate Luther Strange. At the event, President Trump criticized the on-going protests as, “a total disrespect for our heritage,” and encouraged NFL owners to fire protesting players. Trump described a scenario where NFL owners would react to the protest with, “Get that son of bitch off the field right now, he’s fired. He’s fired!”

Pastor Isker explains how the protests have revealed the political worldview of the NFL as aligned with the entertainment industry. “Their views, especially in the case of Kaepernick, are radically to the left and the NFL has more-or-less given cover to allow this.”

They conclude with a call to worship the Triune God as the most central act of the Christian. This is a helpful discussion. Please leave your comments.

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On September 27, 2017 By In Podcast

Episode 15: Interviewing C.R. Wiley

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Contributors Uri Brito and Dustin Messer introduce the listeners to author and pastor, C.R. Wiley. We learn about Pastor Wiley’s pastoral and writing ministry and his book, Man of the House: A Handbook for Building a Shelter That Will Last in a World That Is Falling Apart, as well as his new fiction series published by Canon Press. You will not want to miss this!

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On August 10, 2017 By In Scribblings

Abortion’s Logical Insanity


The now viral five-minute segment with James Franco’s Philosophy Time took a turn for the worst when Princeton Professor Liz Harman attempted to articulate a rationale for abortion. She summarizes:a

But, what I think is actually among early fetuses there are two very different kinds of beings. So, James, when you were an early fetus, and Eliot, when you were an early fetus, all of us I think we already did have moral status then. But we had moral status in virtue of our futures. And future of fact that we were beginning stages of persons. But some early fetuses will die in early pregnancy due to abortion or miscarriage. And in my view that is a very different kind of entity. That’s something that doesn’t have a future as a person and it doesn’t have moral status.

The segment highlighted that the abortion logic is bankrupt. The argument is that morality is only endowed to a fetus if we allow the baby to have a future. The if is determined by the mother’s choice to grant the fetus life outside the womb. Over the years, pro-choice advocates have worked hard to establish the right of the woman to not choose life. Of course, the benefits of allowing the fetus to grow all 40 weeks, the benefits of life itself and by what authority a woman’s decision can determine the moral status of a fetus are not discussed. Philosophizing about such ideas would be self-defeating.

In essence, abortion’s logic is insane. For all the talk about morality and status, the abortion academia now proclaims a rationale devoid of morality to prove the morality of killing an unborn human being. This is insane! And I like to think James Franco’s befuddled reaction means he knows it also.

  1. The entire transcript is on Daily Wire  (back)

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