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Today in Blogworld 1/12/09

What a weekend. On Thursday (my son's birthday) we noticed he was starting to get sick. By Friday we had no doubt. So, Friday night we took him to the ER because his temperature was up to 104 and he was having trouble breathing. We were sent home around 2 AM. We then went back the next day and found out he has pneumonia. But he's been doing much better since then...and he's actually playing today. Here are a few links from the last few days:

Michael Patton makes me wonder if I really do want to go to seminary.

Do you have somebody in your life that is too much? Jay Adams offers advice on what to do.

JT nicely sums up the posts on reading on Tony Reinke's blog. JT also sums up the recent Day with Don at Mars Hill Church. Be sure to check these out.

Great news: CCEF is redesigned online and now has a blog. (HT: JT)

Is Satan Pro-Man? Piper answers.

Over the next week or so Michael McKinley (from 9 Marks) will be posting interviews with Steve Timmis author of Total Church. This should be good. Check out part 1.

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A Review of The Doctrine of Repentance by Thomas Watson


Author: Thomas Watson

Pages: 122 pages

Publisher: Banner of Truth

Price: 6.00

Genre: Puritan Paperback/Christian Living


Quick Summary:

Repentance: One word used frequently in the Bible yet little does it touch our lips. Apparently the problem is not relegated to the 21st century in America. It must have also been a problem in Puritan England. And for the church of Puritan England Thomas Watson wrote The Doctrine of Repentance; first published in 1668. The Lord has saw fit to grace our society with this work on repentance.

As the back cover comments, “Knowing what repentance is, and actually repenting are essential to true Christianity”. Watson hopes to show us what repentance is and what it really means to repent. Watson spends the early part of this work on unmasking counterfeit repentance and displaying the nature of true repentance. The latter part of the book is Watson’s passionate plea for his readers to repent.

What I Liked:

The first half of the book really shines. In our “tolerant” world the one thing we can not bear to tolerate is the mention of sin. When someone out of such a culture comes to understand the gospel such words as repentance can still be difficult to swallow. We are often tempted to confuse feeling sorry or confession with repentance. Watson makes clear what repentance really is: “True leaving of sin is when the acts of sin cease from the infusion of a principle of grace, as the air ceases to be dark from the infusion of light”. Watson writes in a clear, practical, and yet penetrating manner.

What I Disliked:

Sometimes the lines are blurred as to who exactly Watson’s audience is. Is he speaking to an unrepentant believer or to an unrepentant unbeliever? Perhaps his exhortations would have remained the same but I found myself confused by certain parts. For instance, “Till the sinner repents, God and he cannot be friends”. (59) Is this talking about the unbeliever, if so then I whole-heartedly agree? But if this is talking about the believer it causes me to pause and consider whether Watson is really correct on this point.

The first part of the book really shines but in the second half when Watson exhorts toward repentance the motivation he uses is not necessarily grounded in the gospel. In reading The Godly Man’s Picture there were times when I thought Watson got a little off track in his understanding of the gospel, I sense the same thing in this work. But then again, it could always be me that is off track.

Should You Buy It?

I would most certainly recommend this book. Even considering the things that I dislike this work is still a very important work. If one is considering a study on repentance I would suggest adding Watson’s work to your list, but do not stop there. You also need to read How People Change by Timothy Lane and Paul Tripp. It would also serve the reader well to read an excellent work by Kerry Skinner: The Joy of Repentance

Rating 3.5 out of 5 stars.

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Monday's Ministry Musings: Could You Reach You?

"Could I now reach who I once was?"

This is the question that Zack Eswine asks in the introduction to his book Preaching to a Post-Everything World. Hiding behind a Calvinistic "only God reaches people" will not suffice. With that one rule--how would you answer that question? Would the way you preach, teach, minister reach who you once were?

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Review of Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography by Iain Murray


Author: Iain Murray

Pages: 504

Publisher: Banner of Truth

Price: 21.78

Genre: Biography


Quick Summary:

Who was Jonathan Edwards? That question invites a polarity of answers. Was Jonathan Edwards a cold theologian or a man passionate about the glory of God? Was he a man that preached more on the delights of heaven or the fires of hell? A great divine or a great tragedy? Who was Jonathan Edwards?

In this biography Iain Murray exposes the reader to the real Jonathan Edwards. Murray attempts to wrestle Edwards out of the hands of the demonizing biographers of recent scholarship and reintroduce the Edwards that was actually known by his contemporaries. Murray takes us into the mind of the great divine as well as into his heart. The reader not only observes Edwards in his study but also with his child on his lap. Edwards is seen not only as one passionately pleading with sinners but also earnestly praying for his children. Murray traces the life of Jonathan Edwards from boyhood to death to legacy and shows us the many different facets of this great man of God.

What I Liked:

In the introduction Murray says that we “fail to understand Edwards aright until the record of his life begins to [kindle a fire in our souls].” Murray’s goal is not only to reintroduce Edwards to the reader but to introduce the reader to Edwards’ God. Our author succeeds. Iain Murray is one of my favorite biographers. He does a wonderful job of letting the subject speak for himself. As you turn the last page of an Iain Murray biography you cannot help but respond in worship. Not, of course, worship directed neither to Murray— nor to his subject—but worship directed to the God they both serve.

What I Disliked:

Occasionally, Murray will let Edwards off the hook a little early. In his effort to rescue Edwards from his highly critical biographers, occasionally Murray will be under critical. This is, however, the exception and not the rule. Overall, it is historically reliable.

Should You Buy It?

This is perhaps the best biography written on Edwards—definitely so in the last 200 years. Even if you own numerous biographies of Edwards this particular work also uses material from recent studies that will not be found elsewhere. This book would be a great addition to any library.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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