Round the Sphere Again: The Gospel

What It’s Not
Russell Moore:  

What We Need
Yep, more books on the gospel (Dane Ortland at Crossway Blog).

And the priority of this gospel, the functional need of the gospel, the contesting of the gospel, the retaining of the gospel, the constant sidelining of the gospel, and the unified biblical testimony to the gospel all unite to say—yes, we need more books on this gospel.

Power to Perform
Don Carson, commenting on 1 John 5:

The truth is that Jesus’ commands “are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3), for in the new birth God has given us the power to perform what Jesus commands, the ability to overcome “the world” (1 John 5:4–5; cf. 2:15–17). Who, then, has this power to overcome the world? Those who are born again, those who have genuine faith, of course—and genuine faith is defined in terms of faith’s object, namely the truth that Jesus truly is the Son of God. 

Read more to see how confession of the truth and transformed living go together (For the Love of God).

And Alzheimer’s
Karyn Heath at Radical Womanhood:

I believe that we fail to see the fullest scope of God’s plan when we do not actively encourage one another to think rightly about God’s sovereignty over the last days of our lives.  Perhaps, I exaggerate, but it seems that we envision that each godly Christian is entitled the perfect death scenario. We want be in our right minds, surrounded by loving family and friends in graceful dignity or otherwise slip away to heaven gently in our sleep. An extended illness we might face with fortitude, but certainly not one that might steal away our memories or personalities on its way.  Yet in the very loss of self that terrifies us when facing Alzheimer’s or similar diseases is there not an unparalleled opportunity for seeing the transforming power of the Gospel?

Read the whole piece.

This Week in Housekeeping

Recently updated Theological Term of the Week post:

sufficiency of scripture

• Fixed the formatting to make it match the more recent posts. (This was one of the first theological term posts ever, so it needed a lot of fixing.)
• Removed dead links (There were several of them.) and began a search for new resources to link to.
• Added link to GotQuestions.org’s “What is the doctrine of the sufficiency of Scripture? What does it mean that the Bible is sufficient?”.
• Added link to Mark Thompson’s The Sufficiency of Scripture.
• Added link to Mark Dever’s  ”God Told Me” and the Sufficiency of Scripture.
• Added links to two sermons by John MacArthur: The Sufficiency of Scripture, Part 1 (mp3); The Sufficiency of Scripture, Part 2 (mp3).
• Added related terms: authority of scripture, canon of scripture, inerrancy of scripture, infallibility of scripture, inspiration of scripture, perspicuity of scripture, sola scriptura.

Thankful Thursday

I’m currently making my way through 5 books and enjoying them all. I’m never happier than when I have several books on the go. I’m thankful for books and for the ability to read and understand.

I’m thankful for the promise of blooms on the May Day tree. The May Day tree in blossom is something I look forward to every year. It’s like Christmas, only I don’t have to do the work to make the celebration happen.

I’m thankful for the expectation of many good gifts in the months to come: a producing garden, a lush lawn, summer’s outdoor activities, maybe a trip or two, and a new (first) grandchild.

I’m thankful that “he who began a good work in [me] will bring it to completion…” (something I think the nonlordship salvation advocates overlook, by the way). I’m thankful for God’s sanctifying work, even though it it’s a process that isn’t always (or even ever) easy. I’m thankful that God teaches and disciplines his own. 

Throughout this year I’m planning to post a few thoughts of thanksgiving each Thursday along with Kim at the Upward Call and others.