Martin Luther on Christmas

There are many Christmas legends surrounding Martin Luther. According to one source...

Legend has it that Martin Luther began the tradition of decorating trees to celebrate Christmas. One crisp Christmas Eve, about the year 1500, he was walking through snow-covered woods and was struck by the beauty of a group of small evergreens. Their branches, dusted with snow, shimmered in the moonlight. When he got home, he set up a little fir tree indoors so he could share this story with his children. He decorated it with candles, which he lighted in honor of Christ's birth. (www.christmas-tree.com)

Whether or not the great Reformer began this tradition may be speculative, but one thing that we are absolutely certain of, was his devotion to the real meaning of the season. Consider this small extract from a Christmas Day Sermon preached from his Wartburg Church pulpit from 1521-1522...

How could God have shown his goodness in a more sublime manner than by humbling himself to partake of flesh and blood, that he did not even disdain the natural privacy but honors nature most highly in that part where in Adam and Eve it was most miserably brought to shame? so that henceforth even that can be regarded godly, honest and pure, which in all men is the most ungodly, shameful and impure. These are real miracles of God, for in no way could he have given us stronger, more forcible and purer pictures of chastity than in this birth. When we look at this birth, and reflect upon how the sublime Majesty moves with great earnestness and inexpressible love and goodness upon the flesh and blood of this virgin, we see how here all evil lust and every evil thought is banished.

With profound clarity of thought and expression Dr. Luther once again leads us to honor our Savior at this special time of the year.

So with that thought, Two Institutions wishes you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Machen, The Savior of the SBC?

Several months ago if you had asked me who J. Gresham Machen was I would have told you that he was some Presbyterian professor from the turn of the century. Honestly, I knew very little about the profound impact that he had in his day and the legacy that he left for us to follow in ours. Machen's theology and approach to ministry may very well be the key to finding the glue that will hold together a convention like the SBC that finds itself in the midst of growing pains.

Consider the historical context into which Machen was thrust. He had modernists like Fosdick on one side who under the influence of German higher criticism and the social gospel were laboring to set aside the atonement for a theology that was in line with modern sensibilities. On the other side, there were fundamentalists who had retreated to their conclaves, and were eschewing everything of science, academia and culture that was not in the King James version of the Bible. Yet in the wake of such extremes, Machen found a middle ground in his Cross centered, Reformed, theology that makes him a model for us all to follow. If we as Southern Baptists want to see our denomination stand up to the challenges of our day and the days ahead, we would do well to look to Machen.

Having said this I highly recommend a couple of books that I am reading on the man and his theology:

"J. Gresham Machen: A Guided Tour of His Life and Thought" by Stephen J. Nichols and

"Christianity and Liberalism" by J. Gresham Machen

My Top Ten Last Minute Gift Book Buys List will be posted soon!

The Supremacy of Christ

If there has been one consistent theme that the Lord has been teaching me this Christmas, it has been the supremacy of Christ. To celebrate this season from tradition, or out of duty or obligation or even fascination wont satisfy the deep Christmas longings of your heart. The power of the gospel to transform from death unto life in the unbeliever and from life unto abundant life in the believer flows from a proper reverence of the supremacy of Christ. Don't let this timeless truth slip by you this holiday season.

There was a wonderful book written on the subject which I hope to read soon but can wholeheartedly recommend notwithstanding entitled, "The Supremacy Of Christ In A Postmodern World." by David F. Wells. Check back soon, I will be posting the Two Institutions absolutely best last minute gifts list soon. Emmanuel, God with us!

Faithful To The Season And To Our Readers

The Christmas rush is upon us. With all of the spiritual, familial, and social commitments that this time of the year requires, it can be tough to get to everything on your schedule. In the rush that accompanies this season, however, we do not want you, our loyal Two Institutions readers, to want for content.

To that end, I will ask that you exercise a little flexibility in our posting schedule. We will, most likely, be posting smaller, more frequent posts at irregular intervals over the next few weeks. So, check back often for the gems we plan to share when we get breaks from our holiday schedules.

And just so you don't go home empty handed let me give you three nice Christmas freebies:

First, be sure to check out this free tract entitled: The Character of An Old English Puritan, or Non-Conformist. It was frequently referenced in Dr. J.I. Packer's lectures pod casted on Itunes U by RTS and mentioned by me in my last post.

Second, be sure to check out this podcast produced by InQuest Ministries of Steve Wright discussing his new book entitled reThink.

Third, in case you haven't seen any cool Christmas light shows, check this one out.

Merry Christmas, and stay tuned!

The Puritan Way

In my study of the Puritans, I have learned that stereotyping is satans way of keeping us from goodness. The Puritans, as a lot, have been far too criticized and looked over as antiquated and backwards. I am learning to look at these our spiritual fathers in a whole "new light" (no pun intended Daniel and Shubal). Consider the following:

1. Puritans had a much better sense of humor than you might expect.
2. They didn't go around lifeless, dull, and dispassionate (in fact it was quite the opposite was true.)
3. They knew what it meant to make churches out of their families with Dad's serving as pastors.
4. They were intent on authentic worship and discipleship.
5. They believed in social action and reached into the community to help all in need.

If you have a hard time believing this, I urge you to surf over to itunes and look for the itunes U section. There you will find a series of wonderful lectures by Dr. J.I. Packer on all aspects of Puritan ideology, philosophy, and practical pursuits. The best part of all is that these podcasts are 100% free. Take advantage of this glimpse into the real life of Puritanism. What you find might just surprise you.

Click on this link to go to the Packer podcast lectures.

Theopedia Has A New Editor

Okay, so its not a paying gig but I was invited to join the editor team at Theopedia. I strongly urge you all to visit the site which can be found by clicking here. There is a wealth of good info on demand and the best part of all, its free!

My first edit was of the article on Christian Fundamentalism. The entry can be found by clicking here. My edit of this entry starts with the last paragraph that begins with, For example, it should be noted... I felt compelled to add a salient point about J. Gresham Machen and whether or not he is considered a fundamentalist in the strict sense. I happen to be reading an autobiography about him so the point seemed extremely relevant and timely to me. Besides I agree with the good doctor, I'm really more a Calvinist than a fundamentalist anyway and would agree with but don't feel worthy enough to consider myself of the "Princeton School".

Building Bridges Audio

If you haven't taken the opportunity already, I would highly urge that you listen to the audio of the sessions conducted at the Building Bridges Conference. Thanks to the good folks at Lifeway all of the sessions can be found by clicking here:

Building Bridges Sessions Audio

The conference may have ended but lets not let the dialogue end. If you are an Arminian or a Calvinist your comments are welcome here.

The Importance of Re-reading

For anyone who has pursued higher education, or for those who have not, going back and re-reading books is very valuable. After completing 8 years of under and post graduate education, I was excited three years ago about the chance to finally read some books that I wanted to read as opposed to reading books that I had to read. This was a lot of fun and I learned a lot, but here recently I have felt the need to get back to my roots so to speak. On my shelves in my office sit tons of books that haven't been picked up in years. Some I must confess, will never be picked up again. However, I do have a list of books that I want to re-read again. My reasons are varied, but primarily I feel as if I did not get to really read these books the first time through. The first book that I picked up to re-read was Desiring God by John Piper. Whether you like Piper or not this book is one that should be read. Here are a couple of quotes that stood out to me the second time through that I didn't quite grasp the first time.

"The most precious truth in the Bible is that God's greatest interest is to glorify the wealth of His grace by making sinners happy in Him."- p. 159

"Not to pursue our joy everyday in the Word of God is to abandon the revealed will of God. It is sin."- p. 152

"When our back is to the breathtaking beauty of God, we cast a shadow on the earth and fall in love with it. But it does not satisify."- p. 293

"If you come to God offering Him the reward of your fellowship instead of thirsting after the reward of His fellowship, then you exalt yourself above God as His benefactor and belittle Him as a needy beneficiary- and that is evil."- p. 111

As I grow older I understand more fully the need to have absorbed more in my first go round with learning. It is for that reason that I am enjoy this season of re-reading. Whether it was an arrogance that prevented me from seeing truth the first time around or just a simple desire to read what was required to satisfy a course, I do no justice to what I was taught to learn if I do not desire to continue learning.