Why Do We Highly Value the Opinions of Famous People?

It is an alchemy of the modern age, that the cult of celebrity is so able to transform the limited proficiency of entertainers into a presumption of all-around expertise, one which the public too often accepts for gold. Men and women whose vocal cords vibrate nicely are somehow assumed to also possess definitive knowledge on every subject they might pontificate upon; their views on government, environment, and spirituality are held above the conclusions of professional historians, scientists, and ministers. The magic of celebrity makes every Bono a de facto Plato; his opinions are revered as godlike revelation. Homer’s proverbial warning not to heed the voice of sirens remains as true as ever. Therefore do as Odysseus: fill your ears with wax whenever you hear celebrities spouting their ideas with disproportioned authority, or else risk being enchanted by fame into acknowledging an otherwise unqualified perspective.

Speaking the Truth in Love… on the Internet.

Anyone with two-cents-worth of opinions and a pinch of conviction knows how easy it is to launch into an argument with those holing different views. We see it all the time, but especially on the Web. Perhaps it is because forty-by-forty-pixel avatars in online forums project less sense of personhood than being face-to-face with that person having the same discussion. Walls of sans-serif text make it easier to speak our minds without equal regard for the people we spout off at. You have probably noticed in the middle of a comment thread debate, how easy it is to slip into human reductionism—that is, reducing the entire personal existence of an opponent to nothing more than his or her (seemingly) wrong view. We treat others as less than people, as mere wrong ideas.

Read more »

Learning wisdom from our spiritual parents

“Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching.” — Proverbs 1:7

Our Father is God and our Mother is the Church. “The Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.” [Gal. 4:26] This is so because Christians are born of the Father by the power of the Spirit through the ministry of preaching, which is the office of Christ’s bride. Further, we are nurtured at the breast of Christ’s church, for here we find the milk of the gospel, expressed in preaching and sacraments, to sustain us. Thus true wisdom comes from God’s word, not independently, but as interpreted through the lens of sound ministers through the ages. “Forsake not your mother’s teaching,” but weigh it carefully.

“He cannot have God as his Father who does not have the church for his Mother.”
— Cyprian of Carthage (Died 258)

Can Voting Secure Godly Government?

Over in the Reformed Steakhouse, conservative pundit John Loftus wrote (in gratuitous capitals, no less),

WE WILL NEVER GET GODLY GOVERNMENT BY VOTING FOR MEN WHO HAVE NO BIBLICAL VIEW OF CIVIL GOVERNMENT….

I responded that we will never get godly government by voting, either. Voting—even for the most ideal candidate—can never insure elected officials will honor their duty to walk according to the moral law, regardless of platforms and promises. We can vote in David and watch him become Saul over night.

Rest assured, we will get godly civil government the moment God chooses to give it to us. That moment just happens to come, I believe, no sooner than Christ’s return. Until then, governments will fall terribly short of the standards expected of the church. We therefore await the time when they shall be made a footstool unto the Lord Jesus, praying God inclines them to rule wisely for the benefit of the Church. Kings’ hearts are in the hand of the Lord. If we spend more time arguing about politics than praying God’s “will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” we have ourselves to blame.

Reflections on Titus 3:3-8

Burned Out on Books? Simple Tricks to Read More Consistently (and Like it)

Are your reading habits inconsistent at best? Well, I have some tips to motivate and improve your reading. But before sharing them, I want to address a particular type of reader, the “burned out scholar”. This is the sort who devotes his or her self, whether for personal or vocational reasons, to a particular genre of literature and consumes every book in their path for a time before burning out. I see this often among serious students of Christian theology. They read all of the big-name Puritan classics, gobble down four or five systematics, and a dozen commentaries. Then they go blind for the next few years, touching spiritual books only rarely.

Not only is this kind of regimen mentally fatiguing for the majority of people, it is also intellectually and personally unbalanced. By focusing on only one aspect of knowledge, even the very best one, readers miss out on developing other parts of their minds that are important as well.

Since 2009, I have adopted a plan to always be reading at least three genres simultaneously:

1. Something technical or theoretical (theology, philosophy, scientific, mathematical)
2. Something practical or devotional (books on sanctification, building community, etc.)
3. Something historical or fictional (including memoirs, letters, and poetry)

I try to read from all three each day, in half-hour installments. This tends to relax my mind between books, like switching gears, and I’m not burned out by any one type. And because of the frequent change of subject matter, I find I have a lot more will to read. It’s similar to the way that people watch five sitcoms back-to-back without becoming bored.

And one last trick: I keep a book or two on my person at all times so that I can nibble at them while standing in line at the grocery store, or getting a cup of coffee. If I can knock down just ten pages a day in this fashion, it will usually add up to one or more completed books each month, merely from those times I spent waiting or would otherwise have been unoccupied.

And by the way, if you want to know how well my plan worked in 2009, take a look at my reading list for that year. I’m sure you can do just as well. And if you wonder where you’ll find time, start by cutting the hours spent grazing TV and the Internet. There are deep mines to be explored in books and the treasures of literature far exceed the value of what lies easily on the surface of most other media.

Meditating on Heavenly Rewards

The reward which awaits believers in heaven, aside from the possession of the Son himself, can be nothing better than satisfaction, in the truest and deepest sense, that he or she has been a vessel through whom Christ was glorified. What is more, to know these sacrifices, however weak and small and half-hearted, are accepted and appreciated by Him, and were themselves wrought by his grace. I imagine the more one has served Jesus in this way, has “crowned Him with many crowns”, the deeper his or her sense of heavenly satisfaction shall be when we behold the Savior face to face. But it just may be the character of Christ to reward all saints alike on account of his union with them, for he is heir of all.