Coram Deo ~

Looking at contemporary culture from a Christian worldview

Monthly Archives: December 2016


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BOOK REVIEWS and NEWS

book reviews

A Peculiar Glory by John PiperA Peculiar Glory: How the Christian Scriptures Reveal Their Complete Truthfulness by John Piper. Crossway. 304 pages. 2016
****

This is Piper’s first major work since 2011’s Bloodlines: Race, Cross, and the Christian. His objective is to answer the questions of how are we to know that the Scriptures are the word of God, how can we trust the Bible, and what do the Scriptures claim for themselves. Piper’s main passion has been toward the non-scholarly. He asks how the common (non-seminary trained, non-scholar) Christian has a well-grounded trust in Scripture. How can they know for certain that the Bible is confirmed by the peculiar glory of God?

He begins with his own biographical story about the Bible. He asks the reader ‘on what do you stand?’ He writes that God was holding onto him by making the view compelling. Piper didn’t just hold a view of Scripture, he was held by His glory through His Word. He tells us that he went from being a teacher of the Bible in Bible College to a preacher of the Bible for 33 years at Bethlehem Baptist Church.

He then looks at what the Scriptures claim for themselves, and how we can know such claims are true. His concern is the Bible’s self-attestation, or the internal witness of the Holy Spirit. He then looks at what books make up the Scriptures. From there he looks at what the Scriptures claim for themselves through the Old Testament, Jesus and the Apostles. Piper writes that he believes in the inerrancy of the original manuscripts, though we do not have the original manuscripts at our disposal.

He then addresses the main questions that are listed above. He concludes the book with six chapters on how the Scriptures are confirmed by the peculiar glory of God.

Piper contends that God’s Glory and His Word are inseparable. He draws heavily from Jonathan Edwards, John Calvin, the Apostle Paul (specifically 2 Corinthians 4:3-6) and Westminster Larger Catechism question 4 to address the questions the book poses. He argues that the Bible exposes us to the glory of God and in that way gives us complete confidence that it is, indeed, God’s own word.

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THIS & THAT and Favorite Quotes of the Week

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CHRISTMAS:

  • The Blessing(s) of Immanuel. Scotty Smith prays “Lord Jesus—Immanuel, God very with us, and God so very much for us, I cannot read this favorite Scripture without thinking about Advent, and why you came, and why you’re coming again. The hopes and hurts, fears and tears of all our years are met in this passage. You are all we need, and way beyond all we can imagine.”
  • Is the Virgin Birth Essential? Kevin DeYoung writes “There are a lot of questions here, but the underlying one seems to be this: is the virgin birth really that essential to Christianity? The answer is a resounding “Yes!”
  • Christmas Gift Guide. The Babylon Bee has rounded up a list of unique and memorable gifts you can give to your family and friends this Christmas, conveniently sorted by the theological leanings of the recipient.
  • Who Was St. Nicholas? Kevin DeYoung writes “With what little we know about St. Nicholas, it is safe to say he would not be pleased to know he had eclipsed Christ in the hearts of many as the central figure of Christmas.”
  • How God Became a Man. David Mathis writes “It is striking how little we know about most of Jesus’s life on earth. Between the events surrounding his celebrated birth and the beginning of his public ministry when he was “about thirty years of age” (Luke 3:23), very few details have survived.”  

IN THE NEWS:

  • Betsy DeVos, Trump’s Education Pick, Is A Billionaire With Deep Ties To The Christian Reformed Community. Sarah Pulliam Bailey writes “DeVos is politically known in Michigan for her push for private school voucher programs, a position that has been controversial within public education circles. But in religious circles, the DeVos name is synonymous with key philanthropic efforts in Christian communities. DeVos, 58, graduated from Calvin College, a Christian Reformed Church school that is named after the famed Protestant reformer John Calvin, where the DeVos name is well-known.”
  • The Sad Case of Tullian Tchividjian. Alistair Begg often states “The best of men are men at best”. Tullian Tchividjian, a pastor who was formerly in my denomination and who had been one of my favorite authors continues to stir up controversy After being deposed of his pastoral credentials, he has returned to the pulpit and is planning to release a new book soon. Recently, several pastors have called on him publicly to repent.
  • “‘I Loved Heresy…But the Holy Spirit Found Me’ — Thomas C. Oden (1931-2016) and the Recovery of Christian Orthodoxy” Albert Mohler writes “Thomas C. Oden, one of the most gracious and respected theologians of our times, died yesterday at age 85. Professor Oden made the pilgrimage from theological liberalism, and what he acknowledged as an infatuation with heresy, all the way to the orthodox affirmation of biblical Christianity. His story is one of the greatest theological testimonies of our age. The following is an edited transcript of my conversation for “Thinking in Public” with Dr. Oden about his life and times and the trajectory of his theological pilgrimage.”
  • Creating Silence. In this interview with Rev. James Martin, S.J., Martin Scorsese talks about his new movie Silence, starring Liam Neeson as Father Cristóvão Ferreira, a Jesuit who recants his faith after undergoing torture, and Andrew Garfield (Hacksaw Ridge) and Adam Driver as two younger Jesuits, Fathers Sebastião Rodrigues and Francisco Garupe, respectively, whose mission is to find their mentor. They, too, find themselves submitted to torture and struggle with whether to apostatize. Also check out the video in which Scorsese talks about his faith.
  • If the U.S. had 100 people: Charting Americans’ Religious Beliefs and Practices. Aleksandra Sandstrom and Becka A. Alper from the Pew Research Center write “About 218 million of the United States’ roughly 245 million adults say they believe in God. Such deeply personal views might seem abstract or distant when expressed as large numbers, but this is not the only way to look at religious belief in the U.S. What if we looked at our data about people’s religious beliefs and practices through a slightly different lens – that of small community, rather than a huge country?”
Courtesy of World Magazine

Courtesy of World Magazine

CHRISTIAN LIVING:

  • Don’t Go to Bed with Your Anger. Marshall Segal shares five reasons (among many) for us to consider why God is good to ask for our anger each night.
  • Can We Do Whatever We Want in Heaven? In this episode of the “Ask Pastor John” podcast, John Piper responds to the question “In Heaven, will we be permitted to do anything we want?” Listen to or read his response.
  • Lord, Deliver Me from Distraction. Jon Bloom writes “Our fundamental and most dangerous problem in distraction is in being distracted from God — our tendency to shift our attention orientation from the greatest Object in existence to countless lesser ones. The Bible calls this idolatry.”

TO MAKE YOU SMILE:

Doug Michael’s Cartoon of the Week

Doug Michael’s Cartoon of the Week

10+Favorite+Quotes

  • The magi were pagans who served pagans. Yet God spoke to them; that’s what he does. The faith is not for insiders, it’s for listeners. Dan Doriani
  • May our passion for Christ always be greater than our passion for a pleasant and easy life. Burk Parsons
  • The Lord’s mercy often rides to the door of our hearts on the black horse of affliction. Charles Spurgeon
  • We must never offer the benefits of the gospel without the Benefactor Himself. Sinclair Ferguson
  • True humility will lead us to be bashful about ourselves and boastful about Jesus. Scott Sauls
  • Formal Christianity is often the greatest enemy of the pure faith. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
  • Tolerance isn’t about not having beliefs. It’s about how your beliefs lead you to treat people who disagree with you. Tim Keller
  • Truth cannot be sacrificed at the altar of pretended tolerance. Real tolerance is deference to all ideas, not indifference to the truth. Ravi Zacharias
  • The Day of no more cancer, abuse, human slavery, addiction, betrayal, shame, poverty, racism, hunger, evil, hatred and idolatry is coming. Scotty Smith  

sinclair-quote


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My Review of the Movie MOANA

moanaMoana, rated PG
***

It is rare that I’ll see a film after it’s been in the theatres for a few weeks. Usually I’ll see a film its opening weekend; Moana is an exception. I really had no interest in seeing the film when it first came out, even after seeing the previews. However, due to word of mouth from family and friends, strong positive reviews from critics and viewers, and a lack of other good options, I decided to check out the film that has now topped the box office all three weeks since its release, with an accumulated total of more than $145 million in ticket sales.

This animated film from Disney is funny, visually stunning, features excellent animation, has catchy songs (from Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, as well as co-writers Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foa’i), good writing, and overall positive messages. There are also a few concerns which I’ll address later.

The film is directed by two-time Oscar nominee Ron Clements and Oscar nominee John Musker, with co-directors being Oscar winner Don Hall and Oscar winner Chris Williams. The screenplay is by Jared Bush, who also wrote Zootopia, one of my favorite films of the year. The film had a budget of approximately $150 million.        

We first meet the young Moana (Auli’i Cravalho), the only daughter of Chief Tu (Temuera Morrison), as a toddler, living with her family on a peaceful Polynesian island about 2,000 years ago. (“Moana” is the Polynesian word for ocean or sea. It is also a common Polynesian word for the color blue.). As she hears stories being told by her Gramma Tala (Rachel House), Moana is immediately captivated, while we see other toddlers cry.

The film begins with “in the beginning”, but it’s not the “In the beginning” that we would know from Genesis 1. In this beginning the earth was all water until Te Fiti, a beautiful island rose up. At the heart of the island was a stone that was believed to give the ability to create life. However, one day a demigod name Maui (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) stole the stone. As he does so, Te Ka, a giant, evil lava monster (who could be scary for young viewers), confronts Maui and he loses the stone and his magical hook.  The hook allows him to transform himself into a large hawk, as well as other animals.

Even at a young age Moana feels called to the ocean though her father prohibits it; she is never to go beyond the reef. She later finds out more about her people’s background which explains why she’s so drawn to the sea. Her grandmother tells Moana, who is preparing to one day be the leader of her people, that unless someone can return the stone to the heart of Te Fiti, their island will be destroyed. We hear that the fishermen can no longer find fish around the island and we see diseased coconuts. Something must be done. Gramma tells Moana that the ocean has chosen Moana to be the one to save her people. So, Moana, along with a hilarious chicken, sets out beyond the reef to enlist the demigod Maui to save her people.

When Moana is shipwrecked on an island, it turns out to be the island where Maui is living. And he is very full of himself with tattoos covering his body that he talks to, and they respond back. (Although this is a computer animated film, Maui’s tattoos are actually hand-drawn animation). Maui thinks everyone should be grateful for and to him, for all he has done as a demigod. He evens signs an autograph for Moana on her oar. Although he initially refuses to go with Moana, and he certainly doesn’t want to face Te Ka again, he eventually reluctantly agrees.

Moana shows courage as she seeks to save her people and their island. As they begin their journey Maui several times tries to throw Moana into the ocean, only to have the ocean, which is a living character in this film, put her right back on the boat. On their way to the lava monster, they have to recover Maui’s magical hook from Tamatoa (Jemaine Clement), a crab living well under the ocean’s surface.

The film is based on stories from Polynesian mythology. We hear of demigods, reincarnation and see Moana speaking to a spirit. The film is fun to watch and the songs are catchy. It will also give Christian parents an opportunity to compare this fictional story with the Biblical story of creation and the true savior.


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FAITH AND WORK: Connecting Sunday to Monday

Faith and Work News ~ Links to Interesting Articles

  • u-s-mintMeet the Christian Who Transformed the U.S. Mint. In telling us the story of Ed Moy, Bethany Jenkins writes “And it wasn’t just a fancy, slick marketing campaign. It was connecting a deep part of being meaning-makers—of who God made us to be—to the larger narrative of working for the public good, loving our neighbors, and contributing to human flourishing. And people responded by enjoying their work.”
  • Work Is Central to the Forgotten Message of Advent. Hugh Whelchel writes “What does the Advent Season have to do with our work? Everything. This connection is part of the forgotten message of Advent.”
  • Respect for Dangerous Work. Luke Bobo writes that he enrolled in his city’s 11-week Citizens Police Academy because he needed to be fair and allow those men and women to share their side of the story. He states that he enrolled because I wanted to learn about their line of work.
  • How to Connect Sermon Application to People’s Jobs. I enjoyed two classes at Covenant Seminary with Dan Doriani. Here he writes “Believers often wonder how they can serve God and neighbor at work, and often doubt the value of their work. But pastors can help, and the strategic sermon illustration is a leading tool in our arsenal. A good illustration is like a parable, presenting a case that is both particular and universal, specific and common.”
  • Christians Should Not Fear Speaking about their Faith at Work and in Public Places, Theresa May Says. Steven Swinford writes that the British Prime Minister said people should be able to celebrate Christmas as she endorsed a report which said that Christianity should be “celebrated, not denigrated”.
  • Insights I Have Learned About Failure. Ron Edmondson writes “I’ve had failures – but I’m not a failure. Because I got back up every time I failed.”
  • Reputation.  In this “Minute with Maxwell”, John Maxwell states that a reputation is something that takes a while to earn, but it can be destroyed in an instant.
  • An Attitude of Gratitude. In this “Tuesday Tip”, Dr. Alan Zimmerman gives us five actions that will help us toward an attitude of gratitude.
  • Why Giving Thanks Gives You an Edge. Michael Hyatt writes “There are at least three ways gratitude encourages resilience. And these apply to athletes, entrepreneurs, parents, leaders … anyone.”
  • What John Maxwell Taught Me About Building Relationships. Paul Sohn shares five key principles from John Maxwell’s book Winning with People that will help you improve your trust-ability with your direct reports, colleagues, and bosses.
  • Connecting Real Faith to Real Work. Jason Dollar writes “The idea that most vocations are secular while only a few (like pastors and missionaries) are sacred is an idea that is being successfully challenged.”
  • The Way Home Featuring Bryan Chapell. Listen to this podcast as Daniel Darling talks to Bryan Chapell about his transition from seminary leadership to local church ministry and what advice he has for young pastors today.
  • Solution.  In this “Minute with Maxwell”, John Maxwell states that he asks his team members that when they bring a problem to him they also bring three possible solutions to the problem.

your-work-matters

  • 7 Reasons Why Our Work Matters. Austin Burkhart writes “Our work is one of the primary tools God uses to transform us into his glorious image. And that, if nothing else, is a great reason to get up and go to work today.”
  • Your 9-to-5 Is Not in Vain. Andre Yee writes “In our performance-driven world, fruitlessness is usually a difficult pill to swallow (especially for the more driven personalities among us). We expect immediate results and we can quickly become discouraged when we fall short of our own expectations.”
  • Mastering Work When Work Masters You. RJ Grunewald writes “We spend a large portion of our day trying to become masters of our work. We train, we hustle, and we network all for the sake of having more control and more influence in our jobs. What many of us have also realized though, is despite our best efforts to master our work, we often feel like our work has mastered us.”
  • Grace for Monotonous Work. Andre Yee writes “Unfortunately for me, not all the work I do daily is creative. In fact most of our work is of the repetitive and monotonous type — interspersed with occasional opportunities for creativity. This is true of much of our work that must get done every day, both in the office and at home.”

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THIS & THAT and Favorite Quotes of the Week

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Christmas:

  • Christmas Traditions. Enjoy this article that I wrote last Christmas season.
  • Free Downloadable Advent Readings. Download one or both of these books of Advent readings from John Piper.
  • Jesus’ Remedy to Holiday Loneliness. Scott Sauls writes “While being “the most wonderful time of the year” for some, the holidays can be lonely, alienating and isolating for others. Loneliness, alienation, and isolation often come from struggles related to family.”
  • The Problem with Our Holly Jolly Christmas Songs. Russell Moore writes “We have a rich and complicated and often appropriately dark Christmas hymnody. We can sing of blessings flowing “far as the curse is found,” of the one who came to “free us all from Satan’s power.” Let’s sing that, every now and then, where we can be overheard.
  • I. Packer on Having the “Christmas Spirit” and the “Christian Snob”. Randy Alcorn shares these challenging words from J. I. Packer about what it means to truly have a God-honoring “Christmas Spirit.” Packer states “The Christmas spirit does not shine out in the Christian snob. For the Christmas spirit is the spirit of those who, like their Master, live their whole lives on the principle of making themselves poor–spending and being spent–to enrich their fellow humans, giving time, trouble, care and concern, to do good to others–and not just their own friends–in whatever way there seems need.” http://www.epm.org/blog/2016/Dec/5/j-i-packer-christmas-spirit.”
doug-michael-cartoon

Doug Michael’s Cartoon of the Week

Christians and Culture:

  • Are Chip and Joanna Gaines Cultural Heretics? Trevin Wax writes “Pray for Chip and Joanna and their church. The cultural inquisition is coming.” See also Samuel D. James’ 10 Questions For Buzzfeed.
  • Grappling with the Fears of Technological Change. Tim Challies writes “We do not know the future, but as the saying goes, we do know the One who holds the future. And not only do we know that, we know what God is accomplishing in history. We know the end to which God is directing history. We know who will bring this world’s history to its beautiful conclusion.”
  • Are You Addicted to the Internet? David Murray offers these eight questions to help you with this question.
  • Why We’re Obsessed with the Hit Show This is Us. Russell Moore writes “The secret to This is Us is less about ogling some other, strange, dysfunctional family as it is about seeing in it our own.”
  • The Shack Movie. The movie version of the best-selling book The Shack by Paul Young will be in the theatres March 3. Here is the first trailer for the film. Though the book resonated with many, I had serious concerns with it. I’ll point you to this review by Tim Challies.
  • Freedom of Conscience on Hacksaw Ridge. In this episode of Breakpoint, Eric Metaxas, writes of the new film Hacksaw Ridge, one of my favorites of the year, which he calls an “amazing, powerful film about one man who was willing to give his life, but whose conscience and deeply held religious beliefs would not allow him to take the lives of others.”
  • Jesus Did Not Insist on His Rights. Watch this minute and a half video excerpt from Sinclair Ferguson’s wonderful teaching series Sermon on the Mount in which he examines how the gospel teaches us to be countercultural in exercising our rights.
  • People are Judging You Silently. Tony Reinke writes “The most effective advertisements tap into our deepest insecurities, if we let them. Ads promise us a new and better ‘me’ a million different ways. But Christians know a better promise and a better way.”

Christian Living:

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My Favorite Christmas Music

christmas-music-graphicI love to listen to Christmas music. Although I already have an extensive collection of Christmas music, I usually buy a few new albums each year to add to the collection. For example, this year I added Matt Redman’s first Christmas album.

I switch over to listening to almost entirely Christmas music a little before Thanksgiving all the way through to Christmas Day. I’ve built a Christmas playlist from my iTunes library which currently includes 233 of my favorite songs.

Christmas music is like the actual celebration itself – both secular (Santa Claus, snow, jingle bells and gift giving) and sacred (the greatest gift of all – the birth of Christ). I enjoy both types of Christmas songs. I enjoy the Christmas music from many artists, some new, such as Chris Tomlin, Keith and Kristyn Getty, Michael W. Smith, Steven Curtis Chapman and Michael Buble, and some classic, such as Andy Williams, Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Perry Como, Tony Bennett, Elvis Presley and Dean Martin.

Here are my 10 favorite Christmas albums:

The Andy Williams Christmas Album This 1963 classic album has special memories for me as my Mom used to put this one on as we were going to bed when I was growing up.

The Andy Williams Christmas Album This 1963 classic album has special memories for me as my Mom used to put this one on as we were going to bed when I was growing up.

Behold the Lamb of God – Andrew Peterson Less a Christmas album and more a tour through the Bible about the coming of Christ. Looking forward to hearing this album performed live this week.

Behold the Lamb of God – Andrew Peterson   Less a Christmas album and more a tour through the Bible about the coming of Christ. Looking forward to hearing this album performed live this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Christmas Song - Nat King Cole This 1967 album features the title song that Nat King Cole is probably best known for. A great album to put on when wrapping gifts.

The Christmas Song – Nat King Cole This 1967 album features the title song that Nat King Cole is probably best known for. A great album to put on when wrapping gifts.

the-promise

The Promise: A Celebration of Christ’s Birth – Michael Card Biblically based lyrics from one of my favorite artists.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

James Taylor At Christmas – James Taylor This 2006 release is JT’s collection of holiday favorites. A later edition included two additional songs.

James Taylor At Christmas – James Taylor
This 2006 release is JT’s collection of holiday favorites. A later edition included two additional songs.

Christmas Songs – Jars of Clay Jars of Clay is one of my favorite bands. They always pursue excellence and that is displayed nowhere better than on this 2007 album.

Christmas Songs – Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay is one of my favorite bands. They always pursue excellence and that is displayed nowhere better than on this 2007 album.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glory in the Highest: Christmas Songs of Worship – Chris Tomlin The first of two Chris Tomlin Christmas albums, the second being last year’s Adore: Christmas Songs of Worship.

Glory in the Highest: Christmas Songs of Worship – Chris Tomlin
The first of two Chris Tomlin Christmas albums, the second being last year’s Adore: Christmas Songs of Worship.

In the Spirit – Michael McDonald This 2001 release was the first of Michael McDonald’s Christmas albums, and still my favorite.

In the Spirit – Michael McDonald
This 2001 release was the first of Michael McDonald’s Christmas albums, and still my favorite.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Charlie Brown Christmas – Vince Guaraldi Who doesn’t love this music that we get to hear each year as we watch the classic cartoon A Charlie Brown Christmas?

A Charlie Brown Christmas – Vince Guaraldi
Who doesn’t love this music that we get to hear each year as we watch the classic cartoon A Charlie Brown Christmas?

A Christmas Song – Russ Taff Russ Taff took chances with this 1993 album, styled after Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Ray Charles and Tony Bennett. It’s been one of my favorites ever since.

A Christmas Song – Russ Taff
Russ Taff took chances with this 1993 album, styled after Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Ray Charles and Tony Bennett. It’s been one of my favorites ever since.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are my 10 favorite Christmas albums. You could also throw in any compilation by Frank Sinatra, Michael W. Smith, Steven Curtis Chapman, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, Perry Como, Tony Bennett and Elvis Presley.

What about you? Please share some of your favorites by clicking on ‘Comment’.


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BOOK REVIEWS and NEWS

book reviews
hillbilly-elegyHillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance. Harper. 272 pages. 2016
****

The author admits at the start that it is a bit strange for a 31-year old who hasn’t really accomplished anything to be writing his memoir. But I respectfully beg to differ with him. He has accomplished something – a lot; J.D. Vance is a survivor.

He writes that he almost squandered all of the talents he had, until he was rescued, primarily by a few key members of his family. Admitting that he has a complicated relationship with his parents (his father gave him up for adoption, and his addict mother subjected him to living with man after man, many of them she would marry), he tells his and his people’s story of growing up in the Appalachian town of Jackson, Kentucky and then later in the Rust Belt town of Middletown, Ohio.  Because of the instability of his mother, he was primarily raised by his beloved (and foul-mouthed) grandmother (Mamaw), who claimed to be a Christian, but despised organized religion and didn’t go to church, and her husband Papaw, the most important man in his life. He would teach J.D. that the measure of a man is how he treats the women in his life. Papaw voted for Reagan, but after that, only for Democrats. His sister Lindsay, who once looked after both of them when she was just out of high school, is very dear to him as well, along with his Aunt Wee.

Vance, a political conservative, and professing Christian, writes of his people – Scotch-Irish (Hillbillies, Rednecks or Hill People), and their migration from Kentucky to Middleton along the “Hillbilly Highway”.  Poverty would follow them from Kentucky to Ohio.

As he grew up Vance would see Middleton and the neighborhood he grew up in deteriorate. As industry left town, shops closed. Armco, which he states pretty much built the town, was purchased by Kawasaki Steel Corporation in 1987.

Vance’s story reads like someone who has been in the foster care system. He had no overall stability, bounced from living with his mother (and various men), to his grandparents, and even his biological father, who was by then a devout Christian. But he never did go into the foster care system, writing that he once lied to a judge to save his mom from imprisonment, which allowed him to continue to live with her and his grandparents.

J.D. grew up amongst much irrational behavior (drinking, drug use, violence, etc.). His Mom tried to commit suicide and once threatened to kill J.D. At one time, she demanded that he provide a urine sample for her so that she wouldn’t lose her job.

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