Session 2 Derek Thomas on the Holy Spirit and the Trinity is here. Good stuff once again, taking what should be familiar material and presenting it with freshness.
A blog featuring whatever I fancy, often on the Christian faith but not exclusively
Showing posts with label Holy Spirit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holy Spirit. Show all posts
Carey Conference 2019 Day 2 Sessions 2-4
 |
| Robert Strivens, Jonathan Worsley, Bob Letham, Bill James |
 |
| Bob Letham |
 |
| Henry Dixon |
Bob spoke this time on The trinity, creation, and the world around us and although this is more difficult ground to cover he was again very helpful. Henry spoke first of how difficult prayer can be then of how the Spirit helps us and finally on the fact he prays for us. He spent most time on the second point suggesting ways in which the Spirit helps - giving power over sin, giving spiritual life, leading us, directing us into God's love and giving fervency of speech. Some of this, as Henry suspected, is controversial but widely held among even cessationist theologians. The question session was lively and far reaching and one of the best such sessions I have been involved in. Besides matters connected with the Trinity we got on to infant salvation, the authorship of Hebrews and fencing the table, etc. A good day, I also managed a trip to the nearby Denbyware factory shop in the afternoon with my son and his family. Haven't been there in ages.
Holy Ghost Revival
This has just appeared on my Published Articles blog
 |
| Trey Ratcliff Flickr |
In Acts 19 we read of a group of Ephesians who had not even heard that there was a Holy Spirit. When reading that verse in public one Church of England minister was heard to say that it was apparently also true, for the most part in most of the Anglican churches of his day. A W Tozer of the Christian and Missionary Alliance similarly remarked that if the Holy Spirit was withdrawn today most of what goes on in the name of Christianity would probably continue unaltered tomorrow. We live in the age of the Spirit but for many professing Christians it makes little difference to their every day lives.
From time to time sincere Christians have woken up to this great neglect of the Holy Spirit or the Holy Ghost and have reacted by seeking to draw attention to him in various ways. Now the Spirit's role is in fact not to draw attention to himself but to the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus says in John 15:26 When the Counsellor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me.
I believe in the Holy Spirit
Given this fact, it is important that, in the right sense, we can honestly say 'I believe in the Holy Spirit'. This is what C H Spurgeon used to say to himself as he ascended the stairs of the pulpit of the Metropolitan Tabernacle pulpit to preach. By that he did not mean 'I have neither prepared a message nor prepared myself for this moment but I believe God can do something anyway' . Rather, he meant that having prepared himself to preach and having prepared his message to be preached he wanted to rely for conversions and for making an impact on Christians on neither of those things or both but only on the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven.
In the 18th century John Newton used to recommend young ministers to prepare their messages as if there was no Holy Spirit and then to preach them as if all depended on nothing but the Holy Spirit. In this way he sought to stress the paradox revealed in Scripture that, on the one hand, exalts the teaching that God is sovereign and yet at the same time insists on human responsibility. There is no way that we can logically reconcile these two clear biblical doctrines. Abraham Kuyper used to say that if we find a way to reconcile the two then we have misunderstood. Humanly speaking they truly do seem antithetical. They find their resolution ultimately only in the mind of God.
Practically
B B Warfield called Calvin 'The theologian of the Holy Spirit' because of the careful and thorough way Calvin set out the doctrine of the Spirit for the first time. Good Calvinists should have a clear theology of the Spirit in their heads. In practical terms, however, how are we to truly believe in the Spirit and honour him as we should yet give proper weight to the important doctrine of human responsibility? Perhaps something along the lines of John Newton's advice will serve us best. If we truly honour the Holy Spirit we will certainly notice references to him as we read the Scriptures, his inspired Word. We will be conscious of the need of his help when we come to pray. We will want to do nothing to make him grieved with us or to quench his fire in others. We will long to know him at work in conversion and sanctification; in illuminating his Word and guiding his people into truth; in restoring and renewing his people. On the other hand, we will also see the need to work hard at winning people to Christ; at seeking to grow in grace; at maintaining Christian unity; to know God's will and live to his glory. Belief in the Holy Ghost should not lead to some sort of spiritual inertia but to a tremendous confidence in God that he is with us, strengthening and helping and nourishing and using us to his praise as we live for him. The genuine fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, etc (Galatians 5:22).
Anointed
There are many example of men in Scripture who were filled with the Spirit but the greatest example of such a man is the Lord Jesus himself for he was filled with the Spirit without measure. His very title Christ or Messiah means 'Anointed one'. He was anointed not merely with oil but with the Spirit himself. The Spirit of God was upon him enabling him to do what he did.
If we are Christians we too have an anointing. As C S Lewis once put it, we are little Christs. We will then look for the leading of the Spirit, for his guidance and help and power and blessing, as we endeavour to live lives that reflect the patterns laid down for us by the Saviour. That is what keeping in step with the Spirit is all about.
Never forget the Holy Spirit - not by talking about him or promoting the mere name but by actively seeking to keep in step with him in all he does.
This article first appeared in Grace Magazine
Midweek Meeting December 16 2015
I forgot to say that we had our meeting on Wednesday as usual with a decent number present though one or two were missing. We looked again at subjects around the three Rs - Revelation, Redemption and Regeneration. The week before we looked at regeneration and evangelism and this week we came on to assurance and sanctification. We got to those from the fact that, like regeneration, these are works of the Spirit that follow on from his initial work of regeneration. That still leaves me with two subjects to tackle next time, hopefully. The prayer time was fine too.
Every Chapter 02 - Ephesians
In every chapter of Ephesians you will find references to the Trinity - To God, to the Father, to the Son (Christ) and to the Spirit.
Chapter 1
1-4
Paul,
an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To God's holy people
in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from
God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly
realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For
he chose us in him before the creation of the world
… 5-17
… he
predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, … he
made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good
pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, ... to bring unity to all things in heaven
and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been
predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in
conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were
the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his
glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the
message of truth, ... you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is
a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those
who are God's possession - to the praise of his glory. For
this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus
and your love for all God's people, … I
keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious
Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you
may know him better. … 20
…
he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his
right hand in the heavenly realms, … 22,
23
And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head
over everything for the church, which
is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Chapter
2
…
5-8 But
because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us
alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions ... And God raised us up with Christ and
seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order
that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his
grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by
grace you have been saved, ... it is the gift of God - … 10-13
For
we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance … remember that at that
time you were separate from Christ ... without hope and without God in the world. But now in
Christ Jesus you ... have been brought near by the
blood of Christ. … 16
... in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by
which he put to death their hostility. … 18-22
For
through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
Consequently, you are ... fellow
citizens with God's people ... built
on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus
himself as the chief cornerstone.
In
him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy
temple in the Lord. And
in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which
God lives by his Spirit.
Chapter
3
1,
2 For
this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you
Gentiles - Surely you have heard about the administration of God's
grace that was given to me for you, … 4-12
... you will be able to understand my insight into
the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to people in other
generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy
apostles and prophets. This mystery is that through the gospel the
Gentiles are heirs together with Israel ... sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus. …
Although I am less than the least of all the Lord's people, this
grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of
Christ, and to make plain to everyone the administration of this
mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, .... His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold
wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities ... according to his eternal purpose that he
accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him and through faith in
him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. … 14
For
this reason I kneel before the Father, … 16-19
I
pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power
through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in
your hearts through faith. And I pray that you ... may have power, together with all the Lord's
holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love
of Christ, ... - that you
may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. … 21
to
him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all
generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Chapter
4
3-7
Make
every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of
peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to
one hope when you were called; ...
one
God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.
… 11-16
So
Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the
pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so
that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in
the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature,
attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. …
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every
respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From
him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting
ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its
work. ... 18
They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life
of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening
of their hearts. … 21
… when
you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the
truth that is in Jesus. … 24
and
to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness
and holiness. 30
And
do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for
the day of redemption .... 32
Be
kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as
in Christ God forgave you.
Chapter
5
1-6
Follow
God's example, ... and
walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up
for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But among you
there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of
impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy
people. … No immoral, impure or
greedy person ... has any inheritance in
the kingdom of Christ and of God. ... because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are
disobedient. … 14
... "Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and
Christ will shine on you." … 18-21
Do not get drunk ... be
filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns,
and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the
Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submit to one another out of reverence
for Christ. … 23-25
For
the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the
church, his body, of which he is the Saviour. Now as the church
submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in
everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the
church and gave himself up for her … 29
... no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for
their body, just as Christ does the church – … 32
... I am talking about Christ and the
church.
Chapter
6
…
5,
6 Slaves,
obey your earthly masters ... just as you would obey Christ. ... as slaves of Christ, doing
the will of God from your heart. … 9
… there is no favouritism with him. … 11
Put
on the full armour of God … 13
... the full armour of God, … 17-19
Take ... the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions ... keep on praying for all the Lord's people. … 23,
24
... love with faith from God the
Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to all who love our Lord
Jesus Christ with an undying love.
Fesko on the fruit of the Spirit
Having read John Fesko's book on the tabernacle recently I dug out my unread copy of his The fruit of the Spirit is .... It is a tiny book that just goes through the passage in Galatians 5, its distinctive being the way it draws on the Old Testament material that Paul must have in mind when he writes. It is worth checking out.
More again on the Geoff Thomas Festschrift
We are now due to print I understand. The final contents list looks like this
Table of Contents:
Part I: Geoff Thomas: A Faithful Instrument of the Spirit
1. Hugh Geoffrey Thomas: A Biographical Appreciation — Gary Brady
2. A Minister Who Has Produced Ministers — Paul Levy
Part II: Salvation and the Spirit of Christ
3. The Spirit and the Word Incarnate: John Owen’s Trinitarian Christology — Carl Trueman
4. The Relation of the Righteousness of God and the Spirit of God in Romans 1–8 — Sam Waldron
5. The Illumination of the Holy Spirit — Joel Beeke
6. The Holy Spirit and Human Responsibility — Fred Malone
Part III: Growth and the Spirit of Holiness
7. A Gracious Willing Guest: The Indwelling Holy Spirit — David Jones
8. John Owen on the Spirit’s Ministry in Guarding the Believer’s Heart — Michael Haykin
9. Professor John Murray and the Godly Life — John J. Murray
10. Living by the Spirit’s Sanctifying Ministry — Ian Hamilton
11. John Owen and Spiritual-Mindedness: A Reflection on Reformed Spirituality — Derek Thomas
12. The Spirit of God in the People of God: A Celtic Spirituality — Iain D. Campbell
7. A Gracious Willing Guest: The Indwelling Holy Spirit — David Jones
8. John Owen on the Spirit’s Ministry in Guarding the Believer’s Heart — Michael Haykin
9. Professor John Murray and the Godly Life — John J. Murray
10. Living by the Spirit’s Sanctifying Ministry — Ian Hamilton
11. John Owen and Spiritual-Mindedness: A Reflection on Reformed Spirituality — Derek Thomas
12. The Spirit of God in the People of God: A Celtic Spirituality — Iain D. Campbell
Part IV: Ministry and the Spirit of Counsel and Might
13. The Holy Spirit and the Call to the Ministry of the Gospel — Stephen Turner
14. The Empowering Work of the Holy Spirit — Conrad Mbewe
15. The Supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ and Apostolic Ministry — Austin Walker
16. An Elizabethan Cameo: The Ministry of Edward Dering — Robert Oliver
17. Passion and the Spirit’s Sovereignty in the Thinking and Evangelistic Preaching of Martyn Lloyd-Jones — Gary Benfold
13. The Holy Spirit and the Call to the Ministry of the Gospel — Stephen Turner
14. The Empowering Work of the Holy Spirit — Conrad Mbewe
15. The Supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ and Apostolic Ministry — Austin Walker
16. An Elizabethan Cameo: The Ministry of Edward Dering — Robert Oliver
17. Passion and the Spirit’s Sovereignty in the Thinking and Evangelistic Preaching of Martyn Lloyd-Jones — Gary Benfold
Lost for words
For some time now I have been planning with many others to put together a sort of Festschrift in honour of my father-in-law Geoff Thomas. It is now nearing completion and will be out on October 15. It will be called The Holy Spirit and Reformed Spirituality and will contain two biographical essays (one by me and one interviewing men now in ministry who have sat at Geoff's feet in the past) plus a number of biblical, theological and church historical contributions including the following
- Carl Trueman, “The Spirit and the Word Incarnate: John Owen's Trinitarian Christology.”
- Sam Waldron, “The Relation of the Righteousness of God and the Spirit of God in Romans 1–8.”
- Joel Beeke, “The Illumination of the Holy Spirit.”
- Fred Malone, “The Holy Spirit and Human Responsibility.”
- David Jones, “A Gracious Willing Guest: The Indwelling Holy Spirit.”
- John J. Murray, “Professor John Murray and the Godly Life.”
- Ian Hamilton, “Romans 7:14–25: Life in the Spirit This Side of Glory.”
- Derek Thomas, “John Owen and Spiritual-mindedness.”
- Iain D. Campbell, “‘The Spirit of God in the People of God’: A Celtic Spirituality"
- Stephen Turner, “The Holy Spirit and the Call to the Ministry of the Gospel.”
- Conrad Mbewe, “The Empowering Work of the Holy Spirit.”
- Austin Walker, “The Supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ and Apostolic Ministry”
- Robert Oliver, “An Elizabethan Cameo: The Ministry of Edward Dering.”
- Gary Benfold, “Passion and the Spirit’s Sovereignty in the Thinking and Evangelistic Preaching of Martyn Lloyd-Jones.”
That looks to me like a book worth reading regardless of any Geoff Thomas connection. Any way during the conference I presented him with the book (actually a dummy copy). He was "lost for words" and told me he would never trust me again, which is fair enough. Thanks for the photo Miska. Thanks to EMW too for the opportunity. The book is to be published by RHB.
Christopher Ash Hearing The Spirit
It was great to be with over 40 others this morning hearing Christopher Ash of the Proclamation Trust outlining his recent book on Word and Spirit. These are the chapter headings:
1. The Spirit, the Word and His words
2. The Spirit, the Word and the Cross
3. The Spirit, the Word and His Apostles
4. The Spirit, the Word and the Bible
5. The Spirit and understanding the Bible
6. The Spirit and other spirits
6. The Spirit and other spirits
7. The Spirit at work in the world and the church
In chapter 1, mainly from the fist half of John’s Gospel, we are going to think about Jesus the eternal Word (as John calls him in John 1:1-3) and the words He spoke. We shall see an intimate connection between the two, and see how Jesus made the Father known by words.
Chapter 2 is also mainly from the first half of John’s Gospel, and focuses on the weakness of Jesus’ words and His paradoxical failure effectively to reveal the Father until after the Cross and therefore until the Holy Spirit was poured out on God’s people. This will highlight for us how vital is the work of the Spirit.
Chapter 3 explores the vital provision Jesus made for the continuation of His words through the Spirit-led teaching of His apostles.
Then in chapter 4 we draw the line from the words of Jesus, through the words of His apostles, to the words of the Bible, both New Testament and Old Testament. We ask the question, ‘Where do we find the words of Jesus today, since Jesus is no longer physically on earth?’ It is all very well saying how wonderful were His words, but that does us no good unless we can still hear them. We shall see that every Bible word is Jesus’ word, and that we cannot and must not separate Jesus the Eternal Word from Bible words. This is a vital link to establish, for – if it is true – it means we have access to Jesus’ words today, and the Father can be made known to us too.
Chapter 5 is a harder chapter. You may prefer to omit this on first reading perhaps and come back to it later. It builds on the argument of chapters 3 and 4 to ask what principles ought to guide us in interpreting the Bible so we understand it aright.
In chapter 6 we think about why it matters to be Bible Christians. We shall see that there are plenty of spirits out there just waiting to put on the Holy Spirit’s clothes and pretend to be Him. It is an important cautionary study.
Then in chapter 7 we take a good look at the wonderful work the Holy Spirit does both in the non-Christian world and in the Christian church.
Finally, in conclusion, we ask how we today can listen to the Spirit, and how this relates to the Bible. In all our study, we must remember that knowing the Father depends upon these truths.
Hodge Word and Spirit
Hywel Jones drew our attention to a letter of Charles Hodge (to a Dr Watt) preserved in the recently republished biography by Archibald Alexander.
DR. HODGE TO DR. WATTS
Princeton, October 5th, 1865,
My Dear Sir : —
Wistar has handed me your letter relating to the question raised among your brethren concerning the Witness of the Spirit. As you request an immediate answer, it is impossible for me to do more than state in a few words the view which I have been led to take on the subject, without any attempt to sustain that view either historically or exegetically. I write for you alone, as I have no idea that anything I say will be worthy of the attention of your committee.
We must, of course, renounce all hope to understand the mode of the divine operation either in nature or in grace; as we have no idea how mind operates on matter, or matter on mind, we cannot understand how God produces the effects which in the Scriptures are attributed to his agency. The fact is all we can expect to know.
1. It seems to be plainly taught in the Bible, and to be the commonly received doctrine, that in the external world God operates constantly through, with, and without second causes. Whatever in the external world, as in plants and animals, is indicative of design is to be referred to the present agency of mind, ie, to God. Matter cannot produce life, much less an immaterial, intelligent substance. Such substances, however, are constantly produced under the providential agency of God. The human soul operates in like manner through, with and independently of the functions of the body. Every time we speak or write, this threefold mode of exercise is evinced.
2. It is no less plain from Scripture and universally believed in the Church that the Spirit of God operates immediately on the soul. In the regeneration of infants this must be assumed.
3. It seems also clear that in the dealings of the Spirit with the souls of believers there is a constant exercise of His power in connection with and independent of the truth. We know not how one spirit operates on another; how evil spirits controlled the thoughts and feelings of the demoniacs, and of course we cannot pretend to know how the Holy Spirit controls the action of our minds, how He
excites our affections or gives the truth a greater power over them at one time than at another. But He is more immediately present with our souls than the soul is with the body, and constantly controls them in a way consistent with the nature of mind and the laws of spiritual intercourse.
4. We are clearly taught that saving faith rests on the witness of the Spirit and with the truth. This is represented in Scripture as something different from the evidence which the word itself contains of its own truth. It is "an unction from the Holy One." It is "the demonstration of the Spirit." The Spirit produces in our minds the infallible conviction that the Bible is true. This conviction is not the product of a process of reasoning, nor a conclusion from the facts of our own consciousness. If it were it would not be infallible, and our faith after all would rest in something human and not in the power of God.
5. In like manner the Spirit witnesses to the believer that he is a child of God. The assurance of his adoption the Apostle refers to two sources; first, the conscious filial exercises of the soul towards God, and, secondly, the witness of the Spirit, who bears witness together (summarture) with our spirits that we are the sons of God. Although compound words are frequently used in the same sense with the simple forms, this is only to be assumed under the stress of the context.
When the context admits of the full and proper force of the word it should be retained; much more when that force is required by the connection. The passage simply teaches that the Spirit produces in the mind of a believer the assurance of his adoption: as in Rom 5:5, He is said to produce the assurance that we are the objects of God's love.
There is no real ground for the charge of enthusiasm or fanaticism against this view of the subject,
(1). Because it attributes to the Spirit nothing out of analogy with the constant operations of God in the external world and on the minds of men in his providence.
(2). Because it is consistent with the constant representations of the Scriptures relating to the intercourse of the soul with God. We not only address Him and reveal or rather express to Him our thoughts and feelings, but He manifests Himself to us. We not only aver our love to Him, but He also reveals His love to us. The soul of the believer lives, or should live, in constant fellowship or intercourse with the Father of our spirits. He is at no loss for means and modes of communiating with his children.
(3). When our Confession attributes saving faith to the witness of God not only by or through but with the truth, it does not teach that God makes any new revelations. The word is true. It declares itself objectively to the reason, the conscience, and the affections to be true, and God by His Spirit affirms it to be true. There is no new revelation there. Neither is there in the witness of the Spirit to the believer's adoption. He is a child of God. He has all the filial affections of a child. The Spirit produces assurance that what is true is true. The soul is not left to deductions from its own imperfectly nderstood or partially interpreted consciousness. God gives it a peace which passes understanding.
The fanatics at the Reformation and in all times have abused the doctrine of the inward teaching of the Spirit. So they abuse the doctrine that He witnesses to the adoption of believers. But in neither case have they any just reason for their perversions. And the Reformers as you know gave up their doctrines on neither point from fear that the truth would be abused.
I fear these few remarks will not be of much service to you, but I am not able to write more.
Your friend, very truly, Charles Hodge.
JOC Calvin 06
Our penultimate paper was again from Sinclair Ferguson - on Calvin and the Holy Spirit. Dr Ferguson spoke about the fact that there is teaching about the Spirit everywhere in Calvin leading to B B Warfield's famous remark that he was the theologian of the Holy Spirit. That is not to say that it is was a central dogma. Calvin, of course, is very much a Trinitarian theologian and so we would expect plenty on the Spirit. First, there were two background matters
Polemical background 1. There was a need to deal with the way the church had robbed the Spirit of its place and replaced it with its sacraments. Solus Spiritus is a Reformation watchword we ought not to forget.
2. Also there were those who divided the Spirit and the Word, the fanatics that Calvin, like others down the ages, had to deal with.
Theological background Calvin was very clear about the deity of the Spirit as he was about that of the Son, a non-derived deity. With that he is very keen to remember the three when talking about any one of the persons and to remember their Trinitarian roles. He traces this out in creation, under the old covenant and the new then on beyond that to the Spirit's work in us today. The Spirit breathes out the Scriptures and illuminates us.
The rest of the paper dealt with four emphases in Calvin. 1. The ministry of illumination Calvin spoke of the inner work of the Spirit. We do not sit in judgement on Scripture. We must let Scripture speak for itself. Illumination is something more than a noetic experience. The Word is made to humble us. Luke 24 is the great paradigm for Calvin. 2. The ministry of regeneration
The Spirit not only enlightens the mind and reveals Christ, causing the heart to burn but transforms the person. Calvin actually talks about the Christian life before coming to regeneration as we understand it. He uses the phrase "regeneration by faith" something we would not want to say today. He has a much more unified view of things than later regeneration. He tends to speak of regeneration not only as what happens at the beginning but an ongoing thing. What the Spirit does first is to unite us to Christ. He will sometimes prefer in Christ over through Christ. This union is effected by the Spirit. He brings it about and maintains it. He joins us not to a mystical Christ but to a real Christ. Taking Psalm 133 he sees the oil as falling first on to Christ's head and then on to his body. This union involves mortification and vivification - external and internal. We are united to the whole Christ as whole people - body and spirit.
3. The ministry of adoption
Fascinatingly he has a section in Book 3 on the titles of the Spirit. First, he puts Spirit of adoption or sonship. This is how important he saw the sonship of the Christian. This was one of his great discoveries. Although he spoke of assurance of this sonship as part of faith by that he meant as a definition. Even in the context he makes clear that in experience does not always fir with that definition. The now and the not yet and the spiritual war we are in are important factors to keep in mind. We are sons and yet we are waiting for final adoption as in Romans 8.
4. The ministry of communion3. The ministry of adoption
Fascinatingly he has a section in Book 3 on the titles of the Spirit. First, he puts Spirit of adoption or sonship. This is how important he saw the sonship of the Christian. This was one of his great discoveries. Although he spoke of assurance of this sonship as part of faith by that he meant as a definition. Even in the context he makes clear that in experience does not always fir with that definition. The now and the not yet and the spiritual war we are in are important factors to keep in mind. We are sons and yet we are waiting for final adoption as in Romans 8.
The reason why Calvin is so emphatic in his understanding of the Lord's Supper is that he sees that God's power can come to us only through Christ incarnate. What Calvin believes the Lord's Supper does is to bring us to the real Lord Jesus. At the table we have communion with Christ not with the Spirit. Of course, he is in heaven and just as the role of the Spirit is to close the space time gap that all are faced with since the disciples so he also closes the space time gap at the table so that we trust in him not just in the story about him. This explains too his keenness on the sursum corda at the table - lift your hearts to heaven.
He closed with what I think is the quotation here.
He closed with what I think is the quotation here.
Right on Don
I read this from Don Carson this morning (For the love of God reading)
The most important factor in the life and service of David is that the Spirit of the Lord comes upon him “in power” (16:13). This is the regular experience of those prophets, priests, kings, and a few other leaders, who were given special roles under the terms of the old covenant. However difficult it is to be discerning in such matters, one cannot say too often or too loudly that what the church needs are leaders with unction—a word favored by the Puritans. It simply means “anointing,” i. e. an anointing by the Spirit. Is that too much to ask, in an age when under the terms of the new covenant all of the covenant people of God receive the Spirit poured out at Pentecost?
Spirit not intermittent
I came across this helpful quotation from Bonar's Life of John Milne of Perth on page 150 of Iain Murray's new book on Lloyd-Jones.
The Holy Spirit is not intermittent; not limited to revival seasons. Parents give good gifts at all times; and more so God. We are commanded to do all duties in the Spirit; to live, walk, pray, work in the Spirit. We should not be blamed for carnality if the Spirit were not always attainable. God is not impoverished by the abundance of bestowment. Like the sun, He is never exhausted.
Great Weekend 02
On the Sunday Geoff preached. In the morning he looked at the Ephesians who had not heard of the Holy Spirit in Acts and applied it in a non-second blessing cessationist manner. It satisfied our Charismatic friend as Geoff simply stuck to the text.
We had lunch together following that. Still being larger than usual we used the chapel to get us all in. There were a few extras. I unearthed the minute book appointing me. Quite unspectacular in style. My favourite line is the matter of fact "We need to give £100 a week extra". There was a message from a lady in New Zealand who was given a tract some years ago, came in was converted and moved on 5 weeks later. She could remember the text (Galatians 3). So encouraging. We also sang happy birthday to Mike who is 50 and Geoff (we'd celebrated as a family the day before) and Ben, one of our teenagers.
We also had tea together and then in the evening service Geoff preached on being sealed with the Spirit in line with his earlier message. Just great stuff. Some of the congregation had not heard Geoff preach before. I think they thought he was just there as my relation. They were pleasantly surprised. Eleri's brother-in-law Glyn was there in time for the final bit. He'd been speaking at a young life get together in Quinta. Most of the family had to be straight off after the evening service. It's been great seeing everyone.
Hymn of the week 18
On Sunday we sang what has been described as "one of the best modern hymn texts about the ministry of the Holy Spirit". We used Blaenwern, as suggested in New Christian Hymns. The tune was written by Welsh schoolmaster William P Rowlands (1860-1937) during the revival of 1904-05. It became popular later when Billy Graham used it for What a Friend We Have in Jesus.
The hymn itself is by retired Canadian schoolteacher [Edith] Margaret Clarkson (b 1915). She herself says the hymn was written at the Severn River, Ontario, in 1959. She says "I had been asked by Stacey Woods, then general director of the Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship in Canada and USA, to write a teaching hymn on the Holy Spirit for use in student work. He felt there was a great scarcity of teaching hymns on this subject." It appeared first in Anywhere Songs (1960, copyright IVP) and was quickly picked up by British hymnals. "At the request of the committee working on IVCF's Hymns II" she says "I wrote the extra four lines (last quatrain of stanza 1) in order to adapt the text to an eight-line tune, rather than the four-line tune used earlier. This version appeared in Hymns II, which was published in 1976. In 1984, in an effort to remove all archaisms from the text and make it totally contemporary, I made the final revision ... the only one that will be authorized for publication in the future. All my Inter-Varsity hymns were turned over to Hope Publishing Co. in 1986; Hope now holds the copyrights."
For your gift of God the Spirit,
pow'r to make our lives anew,
pledge of life and hope of glory,
Saviour,we would worship you.
crowning gift of resurrection
sent from your ascended throne,
fullness of the very Godhead,
come to make your life our own.
pow'r to make our lives anew,
pledge of life and hope of glory,
Saviour,we would worship you.
crowning gift of resurrection
sent from your ascended throne,
fullness of the very Godhead,
come to make your life our own.
He, the mighty God, indwells us;
His to strengthen, help, empow'r,
His to overcome the tempter,
ours to call in danger's hour.
in His strength we dare to battle
all the raging hosts of sin,
and by Him alone we conquer
foes without and foes within.
He, himself the living author,
wakes to life the sacred word,
reads with us its holy pages
and reveals our risen Lord.
He it is who works within us,
teaching rebel hearts to pray,
He whose holy intercessions
rise for us both night and day.
wakes to life the sacred word,
reads with us its holy pages
and reveals our risen Lord.
He it is who works within us,
teaching rebel hearts to pray,
He whose holy intercessions
rise for us both night and day.
Father grant your Holy Spirit
in our hearts may rule today,
grieved not, quenched not, but unhindered,
work in us His Sovereign way.
fill us with your holy fullness,
God the Father, Spirit, Son;
in us through us, then forever,
shall your perfect will be done.
in our hearts may rule today,
grieved not, quenched not, but unhindered,
work in us His Sovereign way.
fill us with your holy fullness,
God the Father, Spirit, Son;
in us through us, then forever,
shall your perfect will be done.
PS I just checked and found that I also chose this hymn back in May. See here. I managed to find five verses on that occasion. This time I missed one of the best verses:
He who at creation’s dawning brooded on the lifeless deep,
still across our nature’s shadows moves to wake our souls from sleep;
moves to stir, to draw, to quicken, thrusts us through with sense of sin;
brings to birth and seals and fills us - saving Advocate within.
Archive 3 Desert Island Books
Some while ago I sent my very good friend Darby Gray to a desert island to see what books he might like to read there. The Bible, Calvin's works, Matthew Henry's commentary and Pilgrim's Progress were already provided he just had to add five more. He wrote
Narrowing down to just five books is no easy task. One is thankful to have the Bunyan, Henry, and Calvin available. In thinking about this, a number of great favourites have had to be by-passed, such as Spiritual Disciplines by Don Whitney, a book I have very much enjoyed more than once.
1. Like many other castaways I am keen to take a biography with me. Reading the lives of others is both pleasant and instructive. The two volumes by Iain Murray on Dr. Lloyd-Jones instantly spring to mind as does Roland Bainton's volume on Martin Luther. Dallimore's two volumes on Whitefield or even his single one on Spurgeon are attractive possibilities too. Dallimore and Murray are superb biographers. The latter's large work on Edwards and his smaller one on John Murray are also contenders. However, I think I will plump for Ned B. Stonehouse's wonderful Biographical Memoir of J. Gresham Machen. There is a slight degree of hagiography involved here no doubt and much of the attraction is the atmosphere the book breathes - leisurely, verbose, refined, from a bygone age. Machen's life was no easy one, however, as he struggled with the attractions of German liberalism, served in France in the Great War and defended the faith in face of a vicious onslaught from modernism, being instrumental in founding Westminster Theological Seminary. His attitude to fundamentalism, temperance, Billy Sunday, church relations, the Sabbath, etc, are interestingly revealed. It is hard to think of a more moving or a more challenging 20th century biography.
2. The 'Princeton' atmosphere is so fine that I really would like more than just one smattering for my desert island reading. I did think of trying the trick that others have used and ask for a set of works, namely 10 volumes of B B Warfield. However, some of that would involve hard work on my part and so I will instead take the easy option and go for the next best thing to biography, Church history, and order the two volumes by David B. Calhoun on old Princeton Seminary, Faith and Learning 1812-1868 and The Majestic Testimony 1869-1929. Partly it is the writing but chiefly it is the subject matter of these lovely descriptions of experiential Calvinism that hooks me. From log college to premier university, the story is a fascinating one on many fronts. The glimpses of the Alexanders, the Hodges, Machen, Warfield, as well as a host of lesser known men, is fascinating. The persistent re-emergence of vital godliness amid thoroughgoing and painstaking theology is no small part of the attraction that the books hold.
The one snag with such a book would be the references to other books just out of reach. There is an interesting description, for instance, of J A Alexander beavering away in a New York hotel during the summer months on his commentaries on Psalms, Acts, and Mark, lost deep in thought or getting frustrated and breaking for a half an hour of Dickens or a walk in the streets. 'Well, this is the most delightful and exciting occupation I can conceive of,' he said, 'it is better than any novel that I ever read.'
3. At the risk of wallowing and basking even more in the glory of old Princeton and Westminister let me add a third less obvious choice. If I wanted another obvious one I would have gone for J W Alexander's Thoughts on Preaching. However, I want something doctrinal. I know little of the late Edwin H Palmer except that he was a Christian Reformed pastor, a lecturer at Westminister Seminary and executive secretary of the committee that produced the NIV Bible. The same clarity he brought to that project is found in the two books he authored, one a study guide on The Five points of Calvinism and the other (my choice) on The Holy Spirit, His Person and Ministry. Here are 16 clear, well set-out, warm-hearted, simple studies that it would be a joy to re-read and to study again.
4. My final two choices would both be by Puritans. I notice too that like two out of my last three choices these have both been published or republished (these two as Puritan paperbacks) by the Banner of Truth Trust. How thankful we ought to be to God for the Trust's continued commitment to the Reformed faith.
First, I mention John Flavel's Mystery of Providence (as it is known). I will never forget reading it for the first time and being introduced to the whole idea of providence. It led to my seeing things and discovering things about God's goodness that I never would have seen otherwise. Originally published in 1678 there is not a book like it for opening up the subject of God's providence. What a joy it would be to contemplate, even if banished to a desert island, the goodness of God revealed in providence. The book is in three parts. Firstly it deals with the evidence for Providence; then the duty, method, and advantages of meditating on it; and finally the practical implications and problems and the advantages of keeping records.
5. My final choice was written just over 25 years earlier. Another Puritan work, Thomas Brook's Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices was first published in 1652. The very title teaches a lesson and the contents pages themselves contain more lessons than many books produced since, for all their boasts. I believe he lists some 41 devices and over 200 remedies. Obviously time has moved on and written today such a book would no doubt have different things to say, but as a manual for the daily fight with Satan (from which a desert island would offer no rest) nothing can beat it. Perhaps the section warning against the false inferences from the cross actings of Providence would begin to come alive on a lone desert island. Brooks would help me to see that many things contrary to our desires are not contrary to our good and that God's hand against me does not mean his love and heart are not set on me. He would help me to see that such a cross providence would do me good (no doubt through reading these books) and help me on my way to heaven.
1. Like many other castaways I am keen to take a biography with me. Reading the lives of others is both pleasant and instructive. The two volumes by Iain Murray on Dr. Lloyd-Jones instantly spring to mind as does Roland Bainton's volume on Martin Luther. Dallimore's two volumes on Whitefield or even his single one on Spurgeon are attractive possibilities too. Dallimore and Murray are superb biographers. The latter's large work on Edwards and his smaller one on John Murray are also contenders. However, I think I will plump for Ned B. Stonehouse's wonderful Biographical Memoir of J. Gresham Machen. There is a slight degree of hagiography involved here no doubt and much of the attraction is the atmosphere the book breathes - leisurely, verbose, refined, from a bygone age. Machen's life was no easy one, however, as he struggled with the attractions of German liberalism, served in France in the Great War and defended the faith in face of a vicious onslaught from modernism, being instrumental in founding Westminster Theological Seminary. His attitude to fundamentalism, temperance, Billy Sunday, church relations, the Sabbath, etc, are interestingly revealed. It is hard to think of a more moving or a more challenging 20th century biography.
2. The 'Princeton' atmosphere is so fine that I really would like more than just one smattering for my desert island reading. I did think of trying the trick that others have used and ask for a set of works, namely 10 volumes of B B Warfield. However, some of that would involve hard work on my part and so I will instead take the easy option and go for the next best thing to biography, Church history, and order the two volumes by David B. Calhoun on old Princeton Seminary, Faith and Learning 1812-1868 and The Majestic Testimony 1869-1929. Partly it is the writing but chiefly it is the subject matter of these lovely descriptions of experiential Calvinism that hooks me. From log college to premier university, the story is a fascinating one on many fronts. The glimpses of the Alexanders, the Hodges, Machen, Warfield, as well as a host of lesser known men, is fascinating. The persistent re-emergence of vital godliness amid thoroughgoing and painstaking theology is no small part of the attraction that the books hold.
The one snag with such a book would be the references to other books just out of reach. There is an interesting description, for instance, of J A Alexander beavering away in a New York hotel during the summer months on his commentaries on Psalms, Acts, and Mark, lost deep in thought or getting frustrated and breaking for a half an hour of Dickens or a walk in the streets. 'Well, this is the most delightful and exciting occupation I can conceive of,' he said, 'it is better than any novel that I ever read.'
3. At the risk of wallowing and basking even more in the glory of old Princeton and Westminister let me add a third less obvious choice. If I wanted another obvious one I would have gone for J W Alexander's Thoughts on Preaching. However, I want something doctrinal. I know little of the late Edwin H Palmer except that he was a Christian Reformed pastor, a lecturer at Westminister Seminary and executive secretary of the committee that produced the NIV Bible. The same clarity he brought to that project is found in the two books he authored, one a study guide on The Five points of Calvinism and the other (my choice) on The Holy Spirit, His Person and Ministry. Here are 16 clear, well set-out, warm-hearted, simple studies that it would be a joy to re-read and to study again.
4. My final two choices would both be by Puritans. I notice too that like two out of my last three choices these have both been published or republished (these two as Puritan paperbacks) by the Banner of Truth Trust. How thankful we ought to be to God for the Trust's continued commitment to the Reformed faith.
First, I mention John Flavel's Mystery of Providence (as it is known). I will never forget reading it for the first time and being introduced to the whole idea of providence. It led to my seeing things and discovering things about God's goodness that I never would have seen otherwise. Originally published in 1678 there is not a book like it for opening up the subject of God's providence. What a joy it would be to contemplate, even if banished to a desert island, the goodness of God revealed in providence. The book is in three parts. Firstly it deals with the evidence for Providence; then the duty, method, and advantages of meditating on it; and finally the practical implications and problems and the advantages of keeping records.
5. My final choice was written just over 25 years earlier. Another Puritan work, Thomas Brook's Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices was first published in 1652. The very title teaches a lesson and the contents pages themselves contain more lessons than many books produced since, for all their boasts. I believe he lists some 41 devices and over 200 remedies. Obviously time has moved on and written today such a book would no doubt have different things to say, but as a manual for the daily fight with Satan (from which a desert island would offer no rest) nothing can beat it. Perhaps the section warning against the false inferences from the cross actings of Providence would begin to come alive on a lone desert island. Brooks would help me to see that many things contrary to our desires are not contrary to our good and that God's hand against me does not mean his love and heart are not set on me. He would help me to see that such a cross providence would do me good (no doubt through reading these books) and help me on my way to heaven.
This article originally appeared in The Evangelical Library Bulletin, Banner of Truth Magazine and elsewhere.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)