FT December 2003: Opinion: Johnny of the Cross Peter M. Candler, Jr

"...Yet his life cannot be reduced to a metaphor. It was more than just one of noble ambition or grandeur of design; Johnny’s virtues were just as hard-fought as his vices. In life Johnny Cash struggled for and against the God whose grip on him was so frustratingly and thankfully relentless that it was able to absorb all that fierce rage and all those addictions. Johnny could sing about murder and God in the same song and with the same voice because to do otherwise would have been dishonest. At the same time, he let that despair, agony, and rejection stand on their own—he lent them integrity. There was no serious salvation unless there was first some serious sin. Cash echoed St. Paul: “It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.” But there is at least one thing that Cash never was, and that is a moralist. He did not chalk doubt up to a misunderstanding. Rather, Cash showed that doubt is itself proper to faith. A God who could not stomach the darkest moments of His creation was not worth our worship, much less a song..."

Dispensationalism's Development

by James R. Mook, Th.D.

Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology

Capital Bible Seminary

"In 1958 C. Norman Kraus said that "Dispensationalist scholars show little historical self-awareness." He asserted as evidence that "no attempt has been made to write a definitive history of the movement." (Dispensationalism in America: Its Rise and Development (John Knox Press, 1958) p. 71) Today, forty years later, there still is no fully developed definitive history of Dispensationalism. But in the last three decades there has been a greater attempt of self-awareness as the movement has developed.... "

[This article gives a brief overview of the history of Dispensationalism. Of interest is this comment on Progressive Dispensationalism (PD). ~ The Billy Goat ~]

"Developments within a theological tradition usually result in a mainstream that attains the balance between honoring prior theologians within the tradition, carrying on common central distinctives from these thinkers, and yet articulating those distinctives in newer forms. Whether PD is truly a new development within the Dispensationalist tradition can be assessed by asking three questions: 1) Does PD consciously respect prior theologians in the Dispensationalist tradition? 2) Does PD positively seek to continue the common central theological distinctives of these prior theologians in the tradition? 3) Are PD's distinctive new tenets really central traditional teachings in new forms, or are they departures from the central distinctive beliefs of the tradition?"

WORLD December 20, 2003: 'Baptized imagination'
By Andrew Coffin

"The creative men and women behind the Lord of the Rings trilogy didn't always accept or understand Tolkien's themes, but his worldview still comes through powerfully in the films. The result is a profoundly Christian vision for the postmodern world..."

Amen to that! ~ The Billy Goat ~

Carl F.H. Henry, Theologian and First Editor of Christianity Today, Dies at 90 - Christianity Today Magazine (Posted 12/08/2003)

"Theologian, journalist, and evangelical leader Carl F.H. Henry died Sunday, December 7, at age 90 in his longtime home of Watertown, Wisconsin. Henry made it his life's work to present biblical Christianity as intellectually credible and historically true. On the battlefields of modern theological thought, spanning seminaries, denominations, and media, Henry shaped the defenses of evangelicalism with two goals in mind: preserving truth and attracting nonbelievers...."

"Rings" director wants to film "Hobbit"
Mon 8 December, 2003 16:27

By Emma Thomasson

"BERLIN (Reuters) - New Zealand film director Peter Jackson, tipped to win an Oscar for his "The Lord of the Rings" epic, says he would like to make "The Hobbit" prequel to the trilogy and work with some of the same actors again....."

Yes! Go for it Peter!

~ The Billy Goat ~

The Chariots of God

I was walking along a road. It was dark but not so dark that I couldn't make out the images around me. As I looked over my left shoulder, I saw them. Whirling pillers formed like tornados... They were in an even row equally spaced apart, and I sensed, though I did not actually see them, that there were others of these whirling tornado like pillers on my right as well. I was not afraid and continued walking. At the point where the funnels were touching the ground there were sparks flying, like you see when grinding metal... The night sky was somewaht hazy but I could make out that the stars were there, though not clear.

At some point it hit me what the whirlling pillers actually were.. "ANGELS!". I shouted. "They're Angels!" I have no idea who I was saying that to for it seemed I was alone.

All of a sudden the whirling pillers rushed by and I felt myself being carried up. I could see the stars clearly, but they started to blur like they do in a Star Wars movie when you hit warp. I was shooting through the universe. Stars were streaking by...

I was awake. I turned over in my bed.... I wondered, "Was what it was like for Elijah?"

~ The Billy Goat ~

Thoughts On the Nature of Hell
There is a real hell; an existence without God. There are those who don't want to be answerable to the God who created them. They want to be God in His place. They sing songs about "I did it MY way."

It's as though God lets such people have what they want. They want to live forever without Him in their lives so He says to such people, "OK, Here it is. You can have it."

Existence without God. Cut off from the true source and origin of all life. Alone with one's self. All restraint gone. No grace or goodness. Left to be consumed by selfishness, bitterness, and unrepentant pride.

Yes, there is a hell. and I'm not convinced it ends in some kind of annihilation...

It's not so much about fire and endless smoke, whatever horrible reality those images point to. It's about life apart from God. Seperated from the source of all love and goodness and kindness and mercy. It's about choosing to live that life apart from God and worshiping the idol of "self".

And I'm not going to get into debate about non-believers who never had a chance to hear the Gospel or any of that. And I don't pretend to know who specifically will nessecarily end up in hell. God can worry about that without my help... He's better at that then I am anyhow. But this I know and believe; there is a hell.

I want to be with God. I want to live with Him. I want to see the face of Jesus and fall on my face before Him. One look at Him... That's all I want. One look at Him... and nothing else will matter... There are times I can hardly wait...

~ The Billy Goat~

Recommended Reading: "The Great Divorce" by C. S. Lewis and "Deadline" by Randy Alcorn

Recovering from Legalism-Quiz
"You might be a legalist if....

1) You feel you have to meet everyone's expectations and win the approval of your friends and family.

2) You are convinced that all moral and ethical issues are cut and dried -- gray areas are for people who are soft headed and soft hearted.

3) God's love depends on what you do.

4) You think that all of your problems are caused by your sins.

5) You think that you fall short because you didn't have enough faith, because your faith is not strong enough, because you haven't prayed enough, or because you need to be a better person.

6) You are convinced that God is predisposed to be angry with you, and that your main goal in life is to try to keep God happy by doing things that will impress him.

7) Your spiritual life is defined and determined by an authoritative, charismatic leader or by a controlling physical organization, church, or group rather than a personal and direct relationship with God.

8) You tell your children not to do something in church or around church families that you allow in your home.

9) You believe that you are a member of the one true church and that all other Christians are sincere, but sincerely wrong and deceived.

10) You think a person's character can be determined by their clothing, hairstyle, piercings or tattoos.

11) You worry that people might be taking advantage of grace if it's preached "too much"—and then those people might do anything they want.

12) You feel guilty if you didn't attend every service and activity of your church."

It's late and I really should be in bed. We did some Christmas shopping tonight. I really enjoy the Advent time of the year even though it gets hectic. I'm thankful for belonging to a church that enjoys it also and is not afraid to whole heartedly celebrate the glorious truth the season points to. God came to earth as a man (Philippians 2). Immanuel - God with us. And His name is Jesus, that is "one who saves". What wonderous love this is indeed! Blessed be the Name of the Lord! May you know His presence, love, and peace.

~ The Billy Goat ~

Theology Constrained

How can we fully know You?
Though what we know is truth,
Being glimpses You let us see of You.
Beyond our finite measure,
Unbound by feeble mind of man,
Reasoning and logic fail
The whole of You to unveil.

In eternal glory
When freed from curse and sin,
We finite still will be
In light of Your infinity,
As we bow in humility
With reverent awe and love.

Now dimly through a glass we see,
One day we’ll see more perfectly,
Yet in all of eternity
We’ll never fathom all of Thee
For You alone are God.

Copyright © March 10, AD 2003,
All rights reserved.

` The Billy Goat ~