In this episode, we welcome Aaron Renn, author of Life in the Negative World: Confronting Challenges in an Anti-Christian Culture, to explore the profound shifts in cultural attitudes towards Christianity and the broader implications for faith in the modern era. Renn, with a diverse background ranging from management and technology consulting at Accenture, to urban policy as a Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, and now a Senior Fellow at American Reformer, brings a unique perspective to the discussion. His extensive work has been featured in globally recognized publications such as The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, and The Atlantic.

Life in the Negative World considers the dramatic changes in societal views on Christianity, tracing the journey from the mid-twentieth century—when church attendance was at its peak—to the present day, where professing Christian beliefs often results in social demotion within elite circles. Renn examines the transition from a once Christianity-affirming society to one that is, at best, indifferent, and at worst, hostile to Christian morals and teachings. In our conversation, he articulates the lessons learned from over seven decades of Christian cultural engagement, offering insightful strategies for churches, institutions, and individuals to maintain their faithfulness in an increasingly adversarial environment.

This episode is not just a reflection on the challenges faced by modern Christians but also a guide on how to navigate these tumultuous waters with grace, resilience, and a deepened faith. Renn emphasizes the necessity for a diverse array of strategies to engage missionally with a world that often seems at odds with Christian values. Whether you’re a person of faith struggling to find your place in this “negative world,” a church leader seeking direction for your community, or simply interested in the evolving relationship between religion and society, this conversation with Aaron Renn offers valuable insights and hope for the path forward.

Join us as we discuss the implications of living out one’s faith in an era that increasingly marginalizes Christian perspectives, and discover how to embrace the challenges of the negative world with courage and conviction.

Links

• Balaji Srinivasan, The Network State
• James C. Scott, Seeing Like a State
• AaronRenn.com
• American Reformer

Chapters

• 00:07 Introduction
• 05:28 The Story behind the Book
• 09:08 The Three Worlds Model
• 12:55 The Benedict Option
• 16:53 Improvements from the Article to the Book
• 19:55 Life Examples among the Different Worlds
• 27:04 The Beginning of the Negative World
• 30:16 Practical Strategies for Living in the Negative World
• 41:53 Thoughts on Preparing for Dystopian Futures
• 49:56 Conclusion

Participants: Aaron Renn, Camden Bucey

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. A. Craig Troxel, Robert G. den Dulk Professor of Practical Theology at Westminster Seminary California. Dr. Troxel delves into his thought-provoking chapter on the communion of the saints from Theology for Ministry, a festschrift for Dr. Sinclair Ferguson.

What does it mean to build a spiritual community within the church? How can pastors cultivate a culture of love, service, and mutual respect, reflecting the Spirit-endowed riches of Christ’s gifts and graces? Dr. Troxel explores these profound questions, emphasizing the “one another” commands, the forms of mutual service, and the essential role of love in the life of the church.

Dr. Troxel also sheds light on the transformative power of worship and the vital role of the Spirit of God in animating the hearts of God’s people. He concludes with a compelling vision of the communion of the saints as more than just a gathering of individuals—it’s a sacred communion of those set apart for divine privileges and consecrated purposes.

Whether you’re a pastor, theologian, or simply someone seeking to deepen your understanding of community within the Christian faith, this episode offers rich insights and practical wisdom. Join us for a conversation that touches the very heart of what it means to be part of the body of Christ.

Dr. Troxel is the author of With All Your Heart: Orienting Your Mind, Desires, and Will Toward Christ (Crossway). His research interests include pastoral theology, Reformed spirituality, the doctrine of the church, and biblical teaching on the heart.

Chapters

• 0:07 Introduction
• 4:53 Preaching Courses at Westminster Seminary California
• 8:57 A Festschrift for Sinclair Ferguson
• 13:06 Studying the Doctrine of the Church
• 16:42 Building Community
• 25:41 Communion of the Saints
• 30:05 The Health of Our Ecclesiology
• 34:02 WCF Chapter 26 Of the Communion of the Saints
• 37:40 The Uniqueness of the Church
• 53:45 Encouraging Spiritual Vitality in the Church
• 57:34 Suggested Reading
• 1:06:03 Final Remarks
• 1:08:48 Conclusion

Participants: A. Craig Troxel, Camden Bucey

This the first installment of a quarterly series of interviews highlighting the Lord’s work in the lives and ministries of our Reformed Forum faculty. Up first is Jim Cassidy, president of the Reformed Forum board of directors and pastor of South Austin OPC in Austin, Texas. He sits down with Ryan Noha to discuss growing up Roman Catholic, giving up his life for the gospel, and serving the Lord in his family, church, and the work of Reformed Forum.

Jim, we have many longtime friends and supporters at Reformed Forum who know you well, but for those who are just meeting you for the first time or haven’t heard about your background, tell us how you made your way from Roman Catholicism into the OPC. How were you converted, and then how were you “born again” as one of Machen’s Warrior Children?

I appreciate that question. I think that growing up Roman Catholic has given me a particular perspective on the Reformation. When I was growing up Roman Catholic, the emphasis was very much upon the rules and doing what you’re supposed to do so that you don’t displease God. And if you don’t displease God, then you can get yourself out from underneath his wrath. So everything was geared towards this work of merit, whether it’s in the participation of the sacraments, going to church, not talking in church to your friends, kneeling properly, being an altar boy—you got some extra points for that. Now, they didn’t put it in those terms. But that’s sort of the message that was communicated.

As I was growing up and into college, I was under the impression that if you did enough good works, or if you did more good works than bad works, then you would go to either purgatory or heaven. But if you were a particularly nasty sort that did more bad deeds than good deeds, you would go to hell. Now, nobody I knew, despite the depravity that we exercised in our lives, thought that they were so bad as to be going to hell. And when they did something that was particularly bad, and they knew it, they would joke around and laugh and say, “Ha, I’m going to hell!” But it was not really taken seriously. I had this impression going into college.

It was there in college that I met a Baptist believer who was ministering to me and praying for me. His church’s youth group back home was also praying for me. And he was witnessing to me telling me about the gospel. When I told him my understanding of Christianity as I just explained it, he said, “No, that’s not how you get to heaven. You get into heaven by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.” And now, we know, and I know from hindsight, that that’s not itself the gospel: “Having a personal relationship with Jesus.” That’s more of an evangelical way of saying that it’s not on the basis of your works or your goodness that you get into heaven but by faith in Jesus Christ. And so I remember going to bed that evening and saying to Jesus that I wanted to have a relationship with him. I woke up the next day, and I began to read my Bible and basically haven’t looked back since.

Now at that time, I didn’t fully comprehend the gospel. I knew nothing of the Reformation. So my intent was to be a Catholic—a good Catholic—and to stay in the Catholic Church. My intent was to go around telling everybody that they need to have a “personal relationship with Jesus” because that’s what I was taught. At that point, a Reformed person who was part of a Protestant Bible study took me aside. He began to explain to me the differences between Catholicism and Protestantism, and he told me a little bit about the Reformation and “faith alone” and “grace alone” and all of that stuff. And when I went home over Christmas break during my sophomore year, I began to read Galatians. It blew my mind because Paul was articulating everything that I did not believe or that I was not taught growing up. In fact, it was the exact opposite of what I was being taught as I was growing up. It absolutely transformed and renovated my way of thinking about sin and salvation, the gospel—the whole nine yards. I quickly became very angry at the Catholic Church when I thought about the way that they were misleading me. My soul, and the souls of millions, was dependent upon the church proclaiming the truth and the true gospel, and Rome wasn’t doing that. It upset me very much.

I’ve gotten over my anger, but speaking to the issue of Machen’s Warrior Children, perhaps the reason that I am so dogmatically committed to Reformed theology is because I believe that it is as Warfield put it: “Christianity come to its own.” And if Reformed Christianity is “Christianity come to its own,” then we absolutely must stand for it; we must fight for it. Souls are at stake. I would never want our church to lose that message. I think Machen felt that way, too, even though he wasn’t raised Catholic. He was raised within the Presbyterian Church, but he was militant about the truth because he knew that it was a life-or-death situation. And I know it’s a life-or-death situation. So I believe in the Reformed faith and in zealously maintaining it, promoting it, preaching it, and teaching it because I believe truly that lives are at stake.

Amen, brother. I never tire of hearing how the Lord has brought a person to the understanding of that life-giving gospel: the gospel of Jesus Christ crucified, risen, ascended, and coming again. It’s only through union with him that we have any hope of salvation. It’s really that simple. We aren’t Reformed because we’re pugilistic, but because the Reformed faith is the only faith worth contending for. It’s radically consistent with Scripture, and that’s why we love it. That’s why we agree with Machen when he said on his deathbed, “Isn’t the Reformed faith grand?”

Yes. I think everybody has it within them to give their lives for something. We all know the brevity of our lives, and I think I think everybody wants to give their life to something that that counts, that makes a difference. Most of the time people identify the wrong thing to give their lives for. When I found and discovered the truth of the gospel as it was recaptured and re-articulated by the Reformers, I found something where I could say, I’m willing to die on that hill. I’m willing to surrender my life for the sake of that message because it has eternal consequences, even as the message itself is eternal as it says in the Book of Revelation, the “eternal gospel.” Without that understanding, we don’t have the gospel. We only have a man-made imitation of it as Paul says in Galatians, which is “no gospel at all.”

It’s really important for us to understand that we don’t want to be Machen’s Warrior Children, as it were, for the sake of making other people’s lives difficult. Or if we’re being just obnoxious, having a reputation for being that pugilistic guy who’s always looking to fight—we don’t want that. We don’t fight for the sake of the fight; we fight for the sake of the faith. We fight the good fight of faith. It’s important for us to keep our eyes on that because it’s that faith which will bring Christ’s children to maturity. And that’s part of what our goal is at Reformed Forum: to declare the whole counsel of God unto the people of God so that everyone in the church can be brought to the point of maturity in Christ, all to the glory of Christ, for the good of his church, and the evangelization of the lost. That’s something that we have to bear in mind.

We’re supporting the Great Commission of the church. We’re not the church; we’re not doing the Great Commission. Rather, we’re seeking to come alongside the church to support its mission to preach the gospel. And without understanding exactly what it is that the Scriptures teach about the gospel, we have nothing to offer the world. We have no evangel, no gospel to preach, unless we are clear, concise, and accurate in our proper reading of the Scriptures, aided by the Holy Spirit through the testimony of the church in the past and all the greats upon whose shoulders we stand. Without that, we don’t have a message that is worth living for. It’s not worth dying for. It doesn’t aid in the work of evangelism.

That’s right. Without that message, it’s not even evangelism at all. Now, on that note of discipleship, I’d love to hear how this all works out in your family life. Would you give us portrait of your family and then share a bit about how you seek to lead in such a way that the Lord would draw your wife and children into these glorious truths that we hold so dear?

My wife, Eve, is a great helpmeet to me. She has been there by my side in ministry for the last 20 years. I’m so very grateful. We’ve known each other longer than that, but we’ve been married in ministry for 20 years. We have three wonderful children, Caitlyn, Ian, and Anna, and they’re all great kids. I love them dearly. In terms of your question about discipleship, it’s a little bit different now because the kids are older. Eve has a job outside the home, and I have a job, of course. So we’re all going every which way, and our time together for regular, regimented family worship is not in the same pattern as it was when the kids were younger. We were very regimented. After our evening meal, we would have Bible reading, catechesis, and prayer. Now, my pastoral instinct to try to mitigate the awkward schedule of having older kids, one of whom is in college, is to take every opportunity to talk to them about the things of the Lord and to pray with them. I drive my daughter to school every day and we pray on the way to school; we talk about the things of the Lord and about the church. My kids are inquisitive, so they like to ask questions. I try to maximize those questions to illuminate the faith.

It’s much more dynamic, living as it is now in terms of ministry to the family, but I have to emphasize the importance of catechesis. My kids have a bedrock, a foundation, in the Catechism that they learned when they were younger. If I were to be honest and sober, I would say that they probably wouldn’t be able to recite word for word the vast majority of the Q and A’s that they learned as they were growing up, but the substance is there. And there are a few very key questions and answers that the kids still very much have burned or etched within their memories, such that it would go rote if I were to ask the question at random. Sometimes I’ll say, “What does every sin deserve?” in the course of conversation, and the kids instantly say, “the wrath and curse of God,” which is from the Children’s Catechism. There are some of those questions that are really familiar: Who made you? What’s your chief end? And however you might rephrase that question, they’ve got it; they know it. So it gives us something to build on as they as they grow older and as they mature in the faith.

Catechesis was the kind of thing that I did not grow up with. Catholicism would say, we do catechesis; the Catholic Church has a Catechism. But really, catechesis is a Protestant Reformational practice. When I was growing up, we read very little Bible. Even in Catholic parochial school, which I went to from first grade right through college, we studied very little in the Scriptures. And we certainly didn’t get regular, regimented catechesis, learning questions and answers in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. We were not well instructed at all. Despite the fact that we had religious training all throughout, we didn’t learn the faith systematically.

Nonetheless, that’s a beautiful thing that you can look back on God’s faithfulness today and see how he has worked through the “foolishness” of catechesis in your own family, in the next generation. You can share in the great joy that the Apostle John spoke about when he heard that his children, his flock, were “walking in the truth.” Tell us about your own church, your own flock. Where do you serve and how is the Lord using the means of grace to gather and perfect his people there?

Thank you for that. I love my church very much. And it’s a joy to be able to talk about the congregation and the work here in South Austin. I came here in 2014. The congregation in Pflugerville, Texas, which is just to the northeast of Austin, not very far outside city limits—that was the original South Austin Presbyterian Church actually. They were originally meeting in locations on the south side of the city. Then they were able to get a piece of land and build a building, but it was to the northeast in Pflugerville. They ended up moving up there, leaving the south side somewhat untended in terms of Reformed witness. Glen Clary was the pastor there before I arrived at Providence in Pflugerville. And they had a group at that church that was meeting for Bible study down on the south side. There were about 20 to 25 people that were traveling north from South Austin up to Pflugerville for worship on Sunday, and they were desirous of starting a work on the south side.

That Bible study had been going on for five years when they finally called me to come as a church planter. We started worship services in July of 2014, and we became a particular congregation in 2015. From there we began to grow and to develop as the Lord continued to add to our numbers. A couple of years ago, we were able to purchase the building where we now carry out our ministry. Not long after we started worshiping, after we particularized, we had a couple of families come to our church from the New Braunfels area, which is about 45 minutes south of here towards San Antonio. We ministered to those families, and they were desirous of starting a work in New Braunfels. This was funny, because we were praying from the very beginning that the Lord would allow us to become a church-planting church plant. We didn’t want to wait very long to start praying and thinking about the next church plant. And so that’s what ended up happening. Within five years, we ended up starting the work down in New Braunfels. And now in a couple of weeks’ time, Lord willing, the New Braunfels church is going to particularize as a new and regular congregation. We’re really excited about that.

South Austin OPC itself is a very mature congregation. The folks are very serious about the word. They’re absolutely committed to Reformed worship, to the inclusion of Psalms in worship—not exclusively, but inclusive psalmody—and to Reformed orthodoxy. Our elders are very good shepherds. They take good care of the people and are very attentive, patient, kind, and loving. Our deacons are the same. They’re attentive to the needs of the congregation and have done a great job tending to the flock. Anyway, that’s a little bit about us. It’s a congregation that I’m so very much in love with.

What are you preaching and teaching through these days in terms of sermon series or Sunday school, and what fruit is your ministry bearing in the congregation?

In the morning, we are going through the book of James. That has been very useful for all of us, myself, especially. James’ exhortation with regard to the use of our words has been transforming for me, and I think for others, as well. As Reformed Christians, we are a very principled people, and rightly so. We believe that we are to live on the basis of God’s Word, and so we live in a very principled way. And we believe that we can know God and how he wants us to live. But sometimes, when a principled mindset combines with the old nature, we can very quickly allow our zeal to overtake our holiness, our self-discipline, and our restraint. Then sometimes we speak out of a desire to be principled, to stand for the truth, but we do so perhaps in a way that’s not loving and kind and proper and biblical.

James’ exhortations on what it means to suffer have also been a tremendous help to me personally. He’s one of the few places outside of the Book of Job that you can find reference to Job. James is very concerned to instruct the congregation who is obviously suffering. They are suffering persecution and opposition from the world, and James is concerned to teach them what it means to suffer righteously. Sometimes, suffering righteously means guarding your words in such a way that when you’re attacked, you don’t return attack for attack and so forth and so on. That’s been very helpful, I think, to the congregation.

In the evening, I’ve been preaching on 1 Chronicles. We’re going to get to 1 Chronicles 5 this Sunday, Lord willing. The congregation has been remarkably receptive to that series. I thought it would be a flop, quite frankly, because, as you know, the first nine chapters of 1 Chronicles is just a list of names except in chapter four where you have the prayer of Jabez. Of course, much has been made of that by some. I did a two-part series on chapter four, focusing exclusively on the prayer of Jabez. There were some little polemics in those sermons, which is appropriate in this instance.

The emphasis that I’ve been trying to underscore, however, is that we are the people of God. Our identity in Jesus Christ is found with the people of God under the old covenant. So when we read these genealogies, we have to understand that they are our genealogies. We’re living in a day and age where there seems to be a renewed interest in family lineage and genealogy. You can take a prick of blood or saliva, send it to some company, and they’ll tell you who your people are. But that’s DNA. We’re talking about something that’s deeper than DNA, which is the covenant of grace. We’re emphasizing our unity in the covenant of grace with the people of old and now showing the way in which the people of God are a people of every tribe, nation, and tongue.

During Sunday school, we’ve been working through R. B. Kuiper’s book on the doctrine of the church, The Glorious Body of Christ. And I talked about that a little bit recently on a Christ the Center episode. That’s been really helpful, especially in the area of church authority and power. I think there’s a lot of confusion out there about what church power and authority is or is not. Kuiper gives us a tonic to avoid an evangelical sort of no-churchism on the one hand, and then a kind of Roman Catholic-authoritarian-dominating kind of approach to authority and power on the other. He gives us the Reformed position. That’s been very helpful and sparked a good deal of interesting conversation in our congregation.

Another area where Kuiper is so good is on the indestructibility of the church. Persecution not only does not destroy the church, but persecution is actually the seed bed of the church. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. The church grows from persecution. The world can’t destroy the church; rather persecution will only advance the cause of Christ in this world. When we suffer righteously, we are identifying most intimately with our savior in his sufferings. The pinnacle point at which we are to imitate Christ is precisely here, in our willing suffering. That doesn’t mean that we go out and ask for it or look for it. Some of the early church fathers were somewhat guilty in this regard, but normally nobody wants to suffer. At the same time, we are willing, like Jesus, and as he calls his disciples to do, to lay our lives down for our friends, the glory of Christ, and the building of the church.

That foolishness of the cross will never become less foolish to the world, but to those who are God’s elect, it is the power of God unto salvation. So keep preaching it, brother! Now we could continue discussing and rejoicing in the Lord’s good work through your ministry in the local church, but I’d love to hear how you are also striving to serve the church in her Colossians 1:28 work through your labors here at Reformed Forum.

My role at Reformed Forum is somewhat supportive, which is great because that’s what I think I’m good at that. I’m not the sort of person that excels at leadership and taking charge and making things happen. Our dear brother Camden, our Executive Director, is excellent at organization, administration, execution of tasks and what not. He’s got the big vision; he knows what he’s doing. I’m here simply as a board member, and as the president of the board, to support him and our faculty—to cheer everybody on and to assist in anything that needs to be done to accomplish our mission.

As a faculty member, I’ve been working on a number of things, including a class on the Gospel of John that I hope to be able to roll out sometime later this year. I also do blog posts and Christ the Center episodes. I try to encourage our Van Til cohort students on Discord (our chat platform). I just see myself as playing a supporting role, throwing myself in anywhere that the Lord opens up for me to encourage, help, and assist. Everybody over there at the new office is doing a great job in terms of getting my material for the Westminster Shorter Catechism classes [Qs. 1–38 and Qs. 39–107] into published, book form. I’ve been working on that manuscript, and hopefully that will come out later on this year.

With the busyness of the pastorate and family, finding time to be able to execute on those projects that I have on my desk is something that is moving along way too slowly. I wish that I was able to produce more as a faculty member, but I remain blessed. The Lord has been gracious and kind. I love what Reformed Forum is doing. To be involved at all is a privilege and an honor. I’m sort of like the free safety in football—just kind of standing by waiting to make an interception or to maybe a tackle. I’m looking to be there when I’m needed and then to fill in that gap as those needs arise. But really, if I aspire to anything, it’s to become the water boy.

That’s one thing that I love about working with you. And the same is true for the other brothers at RF. You have a servant heart. You’re just seeking to live coram Deo and to serve the church. I love that that’s in our mission statement. It’s in our blood, our spiritual DNA. We don’t want to be big shots or to replace the church; we want to be servants to her and to labor unto the glory of our Head, even Jesus Christ, who by his Spirit and word perfects his bride. It’s such a joy to labor with you as a like-minded brother in Christ, to know the bond of peace that we have by the Spirit.  

Psalm 133. It’s better than the oil going down Aaron’s beard and robe. Amen, and amen. And the feeling is mutual brother. Thank you for the great work here that you’re doing for Reformed Forum. We are exceedingly grateful and regard you as a gift from the Lord.

All that I’ve received is from him, and I praise him for that. As we look together unto the Lord to provide the increase for all of our labors, are there any particular things that our listeners and supporters can lift up in prayer on your behalf?

We always covet prayers, the prayers of the saints wherever they may find themselves, for our church and ministry in South Austin. We covet the prayers of God’s people everywhere for the ministry of Reformed Forum for everything that we’re doing, from recording classes to rolling out books and blog posts. Pray that the work of Christ by His Spirit would continue. And I would ask even that it would increase in my heart, so that as I become more like Christ, I will be more effective at showing others how to walk with Christ.

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Participants: Jim Cassidy, Joel Fick, Mark A. Winder

Paul appeals to the believers at Corinth to be united, and admonishes them to abandon their factionalism. Paul reminds them that he did not do anything among them that would draw attention to himself, but rather he pointed them entirely away from himself and directed their attention and affection to Christ alone.

Participants: Adam York, Glen Clary, Mark A. Winder

Our situation calls for serious self-discipline because the days are evil, and joyful celebration because God has rescued us from that evil in Jesus Christ.

Participants: Adam York, Glen Clary, Mark A. Winder, Mark Jenkins

The Rev. Brian L. De Jong, pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, joins Bob and Rob this week on Theology Simply Profound to discuss his new book, Honoring the Elderly: A Christian’s Duty to Aging Parents. Mr. De Jong explains the importance of thinking through difficult and complex issues related to how Christians are to honor their aging parents.

Participants: Brian DeJong, Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

In a book written to a church full of problems, what is there for which to be thankful? Explore the Apostle Paul’s passionate and pastoral tone as he tackles the problems in the Corinthian church.

Participants: Adam York, Mark A. Winder, Robert Arendale

On this week’s episode of Theology Simply Profound Rob and Bob explore the providence of God. Continuing to make our way through the Acts of the Apostles, we are at chapter 23-26 where Paul goes before Felix, Festus, and Agrippa. In what way do we see God working through these various circumstances in the life of Paul in order to bring about the salvation of his people to the ends of the earth.

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

On this week’s episode of Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob discuss the topic of discipleship as it arises out of Acts 18. Should the church disciple? If so, how and in what way? What does God say about discipleship?

Today on Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob discuss the contrast between Paul’s reception at Thessalonica and Berea. In Thessalonica, there was jealousy and hostility. In Berea, there was an examination of the Scriptures. How are we to receive the word of God preached to us through our pastors?

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

As a pastor of a church that confesses a Reformed and Presbyterian view of the fourth commandment, I often encounter questions as to how to observe it. The fourth commandment—to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy—is particularly challenging for people coming from evangelical backgrounds. Our contemporary culture is anti-Sabbath-keeping. Its socio-economic structures and “conveniences” make it increasingly difficult to observe the day. And while people generally maintain that the other nine commandments are morally binding upon Christians under the New Covenant, the fourth commandment is practically cast off. With this view so pervasive within the church, those worshiping in confessionally Reformed churches frequently struggle with how to observe the day. What do we do when my evangelical friend down the street invites me to a party to watch the game Sunday afternoon? What if my children’s sports team schedules a practice or a game on the Lord’s Day? Am I permitted to catch up on emails and reports before I head into the office on Monday? Is Sunday evening my opportunity to get my affairs in order for the coming week? In his wonderful new book, Devoted to God: Blueprints for Sanctification, Sinclair Ferguson provides an exceedingly helpful approach to such questions—in a footnote in the fourth appendix, no less!

When Christians ask: ‘Is it ok for me to do X on Sundays?’ the first response should normally be not ‘yes’ or ‘no’ but ‘Why would you be doing it?’ The most common answer to that question is probably ‘Because I don’t have time for it in the rest of the week.’ This highlights the importance of understanding the whole of the fourth commandment. The problem here is not how we spend Sunday; it is how we are using Monday to Saturday. We are living the week the wrong way round, as if there had been no resurrection! Use Sunday as a day of rest, worship, fellowship first and we will almost inevitably begin to discipline our use of time in the other six days of the week. Grasp this and the Sabbath principle becomes one of the simplest and most helpful of all God’s gifts. The burden-free day at the beginning of the week both regulates the days that follow and refreshes us for them. (Ferguson, 266n1)

Today, Rob and Bob commemorate the 500th anniversary Protestant Reformation with a discussion of the ongoing need for influence of the Reformation in the life of the church today. Happy Reformation Day!

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

In episode 86, Rob and Bob talk about what Paul and others have to say about the last days. Are they behind us or in front of us? Or, are we in them presently? And, in what way would the answer to those questions change our understanding of the Christian life?

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Rob and Bob discuss the basic history and shape of the Young, Restless, and Reformed movement of the past decade or so, depending on who you ask. And, somehow, we have this discussion in the context of Paul’s early ministry!

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Paul gave Timothy specific instructions to ordain elders and deacons as the leaders of the churches that they were planting. The Deacons who we were first introduced in Acts 6 were to be dignified, honest, and faithful, not addicted to much wine, convinced of their faith and doctrine, mature in life and faith. They are to be the husband of one wife managing their household well. All that just so they can sweep the floor after a Sunday lunch. What are all of the responsibilities of deacons? Are they to be listened to or just the guys that take the offering every Sunday? Are they to be respected in the office or is it just a stepping stone to eldership?

Participants: Melodie McKenzie, Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Christ the Center hits the road for a series of episodes at Bethel OPC in Wheaton, Illinois. In our first of the series, A. Craig Troxel speaks about Reformed spirituality. Dr. Troxel is pastor of Bethel OPC in Wheaton and teaches adjunct at Mid-America Reformed Seminary in Dyer, Indiana and Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He has taught courses on Reformed Spirituality at both institutions.

Participants: A. Craig Troxel, Camden Bucey, Charles Williams, Robert Tarullo

My wife recently told me that one of her friends will have to sell her house and move at the end of the summer. This particular friend has a large and vibrant garden into which she has poured many hours of hard work. While it is exciting to think about new beginnings and the opportunities that lie ahead, it is perhaps proportionately more difficult to leave your work behind. Even more painful is the knowledge that someone else will take possession of the house and be able to enjoy beautiful tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchinis, and all manner of produce without having hoed a single row, watered a single drop, or pulled a single weed. There seems to be something unjust about this turn of events. It is the peculiar sting of futility. The Old Testament authors know this pain. In describing the covenant blessings and curses, the LORD casts them in the image of the fruitfulness and futility of work. Speaking of the curses, he declares:

You shall betroth a wife, but another man shall ravish her. You shall build a house, but you shall not dwell in it. You shall plant a vineyard, but you shall not enjoy its fruit. Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, but you shall not eat any of it. Your donkey shall be seized before your face, but shall not be restored to you. Your sheep shall be given to your enemies, but there shall be no one to help you. Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people, while your eyes look on and fail with longing for them all day long, but you shall be helpless. A nation that you have not known shall eat up the fruit of your ground and of all your labors, and you shall be only oppressed and crushed continually, so that you are driven mad by the sights that your eyes see (Deuteronomy 28:30–34).

This is a horrific future. The thought of losing everything is bad enough. But to know that everything you love and the fruits of a lifetime of labor would be enjoyed by your enemies is even worse. Such a future would void your present life, rendering it empty and meaningless. “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” Thus writes Qoheleth in Ecclesiastes 1:2. The Hebrew word behind “vanity” is הֶ֫בֶל. This is often read with the sense of “emptiness.” But this causes problems for our interpretation of the book later on. Is the preacher (Qoheleth) really an existentialist? Is he advocating that we go about our present lives doing whatever we like because in the end it all doesn’t matter?

Strength for Today

I recently had the privilege of attending my presbytery’s Camp Westminster. David Veldhorst, associate pastor of Bethel OPC in Oostburg, Wisconsin, skillfully unfolded Ecclesiastes to a group of all ages. He presented a wealth of biblical truth on the book’s major themes and its application for our present life. One of these nuggets he relayed from Walter Kaiser, who believes the translation and interpretation of הֶ֫בֶל is the key to understanding the book. Following Kaiser, Veldhorst advocates that we translate הֶ֫בֶל as something like “transitory.” Life isn’t meaningless. It’s temporary, passing away. One reason for taking הֶ֫בֶל in this fashion is the way the translators of the Septuagint (LXX—the Greek translation of the Bible used by the NT church) translates הֶ֫בֶל. They use the word ἀτμίς, which is translated as “mist” or “vapor.” Consider James’s usage in James 4:14b, “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” The Louw-Nida lexicon explains James’s imagery: “An important connotation in the use of the term ἀτμίς is the fact that it disappears so readily. This is a particularly significant element in Jas 4:14. The closest equivalent of ἀτμίς is normally a term which refers to the steam rising from a boiling pot or cauldron.” Life is a vapor. It is not empty or meaningless; it passes quickly. Paul’s two-age eschatology adds a further dimension to this life dynamic. We presently live in the overlap of the ages—between grace and glory. We look back on the finished work of our Savior Jesus Christ, crucified, raised and ascended for sinners. Yet we also look forward to his second coming to consummate his kingdom in which we will be raised imperishable. The question posed by Qoheleth here is, “do our labors in this present life have any significance for that glorious future?” Paul emphatically says that they do. Just after speaking of the glorious future bodily resurrection, Paul concludes, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). Paul uses the word κενός (also translated “empty”) where the ESV translates “vain.” He encourages us that even though we look forward to the resurrection—a climactic Spiritual transformation—our labors in this life are not empty. They mean something even for the future. Earlier in 1 Corinthians 3, Paul wrote,

According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. (1 Corinthians 3:10–15)

There is a work rendered during the present overlap of ages that will endure. It is the godly activity of building upon the foundation laid in Jesus Christ. Even in saying this, Paul is building upon his inspired words a few verses prior in vv. 5–9. There, he combatted the Corinthian tendency to crown ministry celebrities. They looked at the ministry as something that generated fame and glory according to the pattern of the world. The Corinthians sought to align themselves with that glory and thereby elevate their personal status. Paul challenges this tendency:

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. (1 Corinthians 3:5–9)

Bright Hope for Tomorrow

While Paul combats the sin seeking one’s own glory, he also recalibrates our view of godly work completed in the church’s present mode of existence. Our labors in Christ even in this present earthly mode of existence are fruitful. We need not get upset if we do not personally reap the harvest. We are stewards of that which God has given to us. We ought to glory in all the fruitful labors in the kingdom—whether we planted, watered, reaped, or just observed. The sower and the reaper rejoice together (John 4:36). Since we seek the glory of the Lord, we need not regret that we missed out on the glory of any benefit. We have every Spiritual blessing in Christ in the heavenly places (Eph 1:3). We need not fear the futility of someone else enjoying the fruits of our labor, for we are one in Christ Jesus. Each of us will enjoy the covenant blessings, because we all are members of his body. The LORD spoke of this day to the prophet Isaiah, telling of the New Heavens and New Earth as the realization of God’s covenant blessings.

For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress. No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed. They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be, and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain or bear children for calamity, for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the LORD, and their descendants with them (Isaiah 65:17–23).

Christ reverses the curse of futility, and therefore your life is not void, empty, or meaningless. In Christ your life is guaranteed, full, and significant. It is fruitful. For this reason, work hard with the energy that Christ so powerfully works within you (Col 1:29; cf. Phil 2:12–13).

The people of God presently live in between grace and glory. We look back upon the finished work of Jesus Christ while also looking forward to his return, our resurrection, and the consummation of the New Heavens and New Earth. Speaking of the faithful, the author of the epistle to the Hebrews writes, “These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth” (Heb 11:13). While we live in the world, we do not ultimately belong in this world. We are citizens of heaven striving to enter our final rest. In this episode, we explore the biblical pilgrim motif and its application for the Christian life.

Further Reading

• Darryl G. Hart and John R. Muether, Seeking a Better Country: 300 Years of American Presbyterianism
• Danny E. Olinger and David K. Thompson, editors, History for a Pilgrim People: The Historical Writings of Charles G. Dennison
• Geerhardus Vos, The Pauline Eschatology
• _____, Grace and Glory: Sermons Preached in the Chapel of Princeton Theological Seminary
• _____, The Teaching of the Epistle to the Hebrews
• _____, Reformed Dogmatics, Volume 5
• Franciscus Junius, The Mosaic Polity
• _____, A Treatise on True Theology

Participants: Camden Bucey, Glen Clary, Jeff Waddington

Ministry in the body of Christ is trying. We face many challenges as we battle the enemy and the flesh. While some shrink before the battle, others dive in irresponsibly and flameout quickly. Camden Bucey reviews Zeal without Burnout: Seven Keys to a Lifelong Ministry of Sustainable Sacrifice (The Good Book Company) by Christopher Ash, which is a wonderfully encouraging and thoughtful book describing a godly approach to a lifetime of Christian sacrifice.

Participants: Camden Bucey

There are different ways to define “outreach.” At times, it is closely identified with the act of planting churches and evangelizing. Other times, it’s more closely identified with advertising and sharing information about the church. Everett Henes joins Jim Cassidy and Camden Bucey to discuss the local church’s ministry of outreach. Rev. Henes is pastor of Hillsdale OPC in Hillsdale, Michigan. His church planting experience adds a new dimension to our conversation. Listen as we discuss different conceptions of outreach and methods for reaching the community through developing relationships and proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Everett Henes, Jim Cassidy

Today we welcome Dr. John Bolt to speak about his new book Bavinck on the Christian Life: Following Jesus in Faithful Service. Dr. Bolt is the Jean and Kenneth Baker Professor of Systematic Theology at Calvin Theological Seminary. He served as the editor of the English edition of Bavinck’s magisterial Reformed Dogmatics. Join us as we speak not only of Bavinck’s dogmatic theology, but also how that theology relates to the Christian life.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy, John Bolt, Nathaniel Gray Sutanto

“I think we often think of perseverance as passive endurance. I hope to change that.” Thus writes Aimee Byrd, author of Theological Fitness: Why We Need a Fighting Faith, published by P&R Publishing in May 2015. Her goal is admirable and her theology is solid, yet the statement above reveals her audience’s elementary level understanding of the Christian life. While I enjoyed parts of the book, I would not recommend the Reformed Forum audience add this to their “to read” pile; it was too simplistic and left me numerous times wishing I was reading the various theologians she was drawing from rather than Byrd herself. That said, Byrd’s theology is solid and her focus is solidly on the gospel, so this book could be used as a tool to help a less-mature believer grow in their faith. In ten chapters, Byrd fleshes out Hebrews 10:23 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” She breaks down the verse into five parts, each with two chapters, and includes questions at the end of each chapter to facilitate use for small group study. The book weaves a fitness metaphor throughout, which I found helpful in chapter ten when discussing the Sabbath, but distracting at most other times. She gives many illustrations from her fitness experience and the martial arts, of which she seems very knowledgeable. Yet to carry a metaphor throughout the entire work felt forced and even distracting, especially when karate movie fight scenes or Ultimate Fighting Championship fights were included at length. Byrd uses the first three chapters to affirm and defend the belief that it takes theological fitness to hold fast. She has some good takeaway lines: “Our theology shapes the way we live.” “I propose that perseverance is an exciting exhortation for every Christian.” “How do we expect to run the race with endurance if we do not know the One we are running to?” “I am suggesting that our perseverance in the Christian faith is connected to our theological health.” She also defines the title of the book in this section:

Faith is a gift of God, but faith is a fighting grace. Theological fitness, then, refers to that persistent fight to exercise our faith by actively engaging in the gospel truth revealed in God’s Word . . . a trust in his promises that motivates us in holy living.

Chapter four goes into the particular fitness that all Christians have: Christ. A high point was her discussion of various ideas in Christendom that are man-centered and have a low view of the faithfulness of God. By way of contrast, these ideas show us what perseverance is not. The first Byrd presents is the “once saved, always saved” belief; pray the prayer and you’re in. In this view, however, the transformation into a disciple is forgotten. Byrd writes: “For them, perseverance isn’t like a race at all, but like a confidence in their own words, and maybe in the way they felt when they prayed them.” This view expects little of the faithfulness of God, says Byrd. The other view she discusses is that sin could forfeit one’s salvation; here, there is no assurance. Byrd writes, “This teaching also has a low view of the faithfulness of God. Its focus is on the faithfulness of the believer.” It leads to legalistic boundaries and fear. Byrd has some helpful reflections on what is true and false in both views. She diagnoses both as man-focused, and drawing upon the words of John Calvin, points the reader back to God’s grace to us in Christ. The next two chapters look at the “confession of our hope,” or rather who Jesus is and what he has done for us. She asks a good question:

Do you affirm the sufficiency of God’s Word revealed to us in Scripture, or do you find yourself looking for outside revelations?

Later, she includes a quote from Kevin DeYoung listing various “versions” of Jesus (Republican Jesus, Starbucks Jesus, etc.), and follows with some good analysis: “As passionate as we may feel about some of the above causes, these versions of Jesus are too weak. They are unable to save. Rather, they are different strategies for us to save ourselves.” She goes on: “We may be quick to proclaim a Jesus who gets behind our good causes, but this means of grace reminds us how evil our own sin is. Our Savior was cursed because of us, not only for the injustice in our midst. Are we as fervent to proclaim a bloody Savior? And if we identify ourselves with him, are we also willing to carry our own cross in his path?” Byrd clings tightly to Christ, and this section was a high point of the work. What follows in chapters seven through nine, however, was not as strong. She leans heavily on others, including Arthur Pink and Joel Beeke, but doesn’t add a lot herself. That said, who she leans on is solid! She challenges the reader to be honest about one’s own spiritual state:

The picture that we have of our own sanctification is far different from reality. We often have a tendency to think we are much farther along the path to holiness than we actually are.

What follows is a look at the discipline we undergo as children of God, and here I wished I was reading Pink’s An Exposition of Hebrews instead. The strength of this section came from the various theological quotes Byrd included. This became especially clear in chapter nine, where her inclusion of several sections of The Westminster Confession of Faith and some quotes from Michael Horton nearly destroyed her narrative altogether. Byrd has a high view of Christ and wants to point her readers to God and our eternal blessings in him. Near the end of this section, following some content by Joel Beeke, Byrd reflects,

We chase situational happiness over enduring joy . . . There’s nothing wrong with eating a good bowl of stew to the glory of the Lord. But in the life of Esau we see another example of misplaced trust. He looked to external means to be fulfilled. He was so sensual that even when he sought repentance it could not be found. Esau wasn’t sorry for his irreverence to his covenant relationship with the Lord; he was wallowing in his own self-pity when he realized the consequences. This is a grave warning for all who profess that our hope is in the Lord to live as we are called.

She also holds a high view of Scripture, and sees humanity in light of this truth: “Even when Adam was without sin, his goodness was dependent on obedience to God’s Word, to what God says is good.” Her words of warning are poignant yet pastoral:

All those who refuse to dwell on Mt. Zion with him for eternity insist on their own righteousness. By laboring to fulfill righteousness on their own, they will be faced with even greater horrors than Israel did on Mt. Sinai. But those of us who believe are counted as righteous, Abraham’s children of faith.

Perhaps this is why chapter ten was a fitting climax for the book. Here she connects her reason for physical fitness with Resurrection Day and eternity. Her inclusion of a CDC report on the importance of a rest and recovery period for a successful fitness routine is helpful. On fitness, Byrd writes, “For me, the goal of training and conditioning is active rest. I condition my body to have the fitness for an active life.” She then reflects on an exhortation from Spurgeon, “Just as Sunday is a taste of the believer’s heavenly rest in Christ, the constant restlessness of unbelievers in their own efforts is a taste of their eternal state. Here is an opportunity for us to share the good news of the gospel to those tired of struggling in their own efforts.” Unfortunately, this chapter is also filled with the ways she has felt validated in her life. I am glad she feels validated, but the text is much too personal and becomes distracting and very open to criticism. She should let the reader validate her work; I found it especially problematic when she discusses her writing projects. Byrd’s last chapter is focused again on Christ: “We keep looking to ourselves and need to be reminded of the gospel message.” She discusses our eternal rest as both a place and a status, and sanctification as “being conditioned for holiness.” The connection to eternity is made:“Active rest is freedom in our full recovery to holiness, freedom to fulfill our purpose to glorify God and enjoy him forever.” Byrd paints a hopeful picture:

This is the magnificent picture of active rest: living, worshiping, serving, and loving our great God without toil, without sin, in unity together, bearing his image perfectly.

The worth of this book, perhaps like all other books, is deemed as much from the work itself as its comparison to other books on the market today. When compared to other books written by female Christians, Theological Fitness is likely more gospel-centered, more theologically sound, more reformed, and, at least at times, more insightful. When compared to theological books as a whole, however, Byrd’s book is not as eloquent, thought-provoking, or rich as many other works its size. Depending on your preference as a reader or goal as a small-group or Bible study, thinking through these factors will help you determine if this book is worth picking up or passing over. I hope we hear more from Byrd, and as she develops her voice and strength as a writer, her next book doesn’t depend on an over-developed metaphor but dares to stand up on its own.  

While a senior in high school, I was pressed into playing the part of a court jester in our annual Canterbury festival. I was prepared with the perfect objection—I was unable to juggle. What jester cannot perform the most basic of jests? After voicing my handicap, I sat back and smiled. That is when the voice from the back of the room said, “I can teach him.” And so, it began. Sad and sorry described not only my attempts to juggle but also my classmate’s attempts at teaching! She simply said, “Throw the first ball up in the air. Then throw the other two at the same time and keep doing it.” Ahem. Yeah. What I heard was, “Manage the chaos.” But to my amazement, it worked. It took a little time but it wasn’t long before I was managing the chaos. This humorous story illustrates a not so humorous scenario. Imagine a person and their first tryst with a secret sin. Take gambling for example. I know of a small company in the area that occasionally takes employees to the local casino. Let’s imagine that while there, one of the employees is smitten with the whole thing. However, he knows his wife well enough to know that she would be neither amused nor approving. So, on several subsequent occasions, with money he has squirreled away, the man successfully sneaked away in order to satisfy his urge to gamble. This man has come to a watershed moment. Will he continue to nurture the dual life that he has set in motion by his engagement with sin and his attempts to hide it from those closest to him? On the other hand, will he simply stop? The problem is he has learned to juggle the disparate aspects of his life rather well. He may have felt a bit guilty when he deceived his wife about the money but, he thought, what harm is done? This scenario rarely ends well. The man who trains in deceit and becomes adept at the double life will eventually enlarge his interests. He will progress from a journeyman to become a deceitmeister, and the door of secret pleasure will be open wide to him—or so he thinks.

Judas the Deceitmeister

I have often thought about Jesus and Judas. Judas was a prominent figure among the Lord’s disciples. He was the trusted treasurer of the twelve. But Judas was also a thief. He was living a dual life and apparently juggling the chaos quite well. In other words, no one suspected a thing. Even John admitted that when Judas left the Passover meal to betray Jesus, “We supposed that, because he had the money box, that Jesus told him to buy things needed for the feast…or to give something to the poor.” But there were signs of a problem. Think specifically about Jesus’ final week. Mark tells us that Jesus retired to the home of some friends in Bethany for the evening.[1] While there, a woman came to the house carrying an alabaster jar full of expensive perfume. She walked over to Jesus and poured the contents on his head. Some were indignant. Why? Because the perfume might have been sold for over three hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor. Who was indignant? Do we know? John identifies the speaker as Judas Iscariot.[2] Clearly, Judas saw money that could have gone into the coffers poured out in waste. Now, this story reveals a number of things about Judas—and all who walk in his footsteps.

Dissecting the Double Life

First, this person will practice cunning cloaked in godly garb for personal gain. Cunning is difficult if not impossible to detect—it is, after all, cunning! On first hearing, who would have argued with Judas? Yet, Judas’ pious verbiage did not sound altogether pious to everyone, at least, not to Jesus. I mean, why not anoint Jesus? According to the Lord, the Disciples would always have the poor to serve but not Him to anoint.[3] Second, this person will seek allies among the godly. The woman, by her self-denying act, had brought upon herself the reproach of Judas. Imagine the reputation of Judas. The brethren esteemed him, which was a special feat since these Disciples were always looking for ways to be first among the brethren. So, it seems from the text that others, following Judas, scolded the woman. Thus, the calm condemnation of Judas appeared to be a condemnation followed by the judicious and godly. Judas was not only advancing his agenda but also insulating himself in the community. The previous two points may account for the third aspect. Judas had a god-complex. Upon looking at the accounts, what I find interesting is that when Jesus offered His support to the woman Judas reached a turning point. He betrayed Jesus. Now, that is suggestive. Perhaps Jesus’ public “opposition” to Judas in siding with the woman pricked his pride and stirred his jealousy. Possibly that is why Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss to the cheek, which implied equality, rather than a kiss to the hand, which implied respect. Regardless, the common theme in each of these points is the deceitmeister’s hatred for the Savior. [1] Mark 14:1–11 [2] John 12:4–5 [3] Matthew 26:11

Simple images have a way of simplifying stories. Movies have perfected this technique. Think of oranges rolling randomly about in the back of the vehicle. They are just fruit in chaos! But the image of aimless oranges can cull the chaos in almost any story. What do I mean? Think of a well-worn scene. A young well-to-do wife is having an affair with a man from the wrong side of the tracks. She only has so much time. As she recklessly drives to rendezvous with her lover the camera cuts to an image of a overturned grocery bag and oranges crashing about atom-like in the back of her vehicle. The oranges tell the story. The woman’s life is in chaos. She is living a double life. Heartbreakingly, this story is all too real and rather than recognizing chaos for the chaos it is and repenting as a result, some take their sin underground to live the double life. Growing up I had a friend who as a teenager found out that his father had fathered two families at the same time. The truth eventually emerged like pus from a boil. It was ugly. The man’s second wife uncovered his lie and she killed him. I wish that had been my only experience with that sort of ugliness but unfortunately it was only the first. As a pastor, I have seen the same unsightly wreckage but with one difference. Now, it’s my calling as a under-shepherd to get involved. So, in this article I want to reflect on what I am calling the pathology and the psychology of the double life.

The Pathology of the Double Life

The double life doesn’t start differently than any other sin. James says it best in the first chapter of his letter, “But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin…” Sin is born in our lives because we desire something that is lawfully off-limits. Our head may know to say no but our unchecked affections don’t seem to care. They want what the head knows better than to give. This is not very startling; pastors see it all the time. It is pattern dating back to Adam. But the double life does not begin when we engage in a sinful act. The dual life is set in motion when we develop a pattern of engagement with sin that we seek to hide from those closest to us. A person involved in this sort of cover-up will employ deception, rely on blame shifting, master the art of the con, and obsessively lie all in order to cover up the affair, the gambling, the drinking, and on and on. That is the double life and it is alive and well even in the church.

The Psychology of the Double Life

Now, why is it that the person living the double life is so hard to retrieve? Perhaps you say, “Because he covers it up so well!” True enough. However, there is something far more subtle and dangerous. Let’s take a minute to think about the psychology of the person living the double life. The person develops an attitude that is nothing short of superior. In other words, they possess an almost Gnostic mind-set; they know better. What do I mean? It’s simple really. They claim to have (in)sight that no one else has. They can see the hypocrisy of the one group (the church) and the sin of the other (some part of the world) when the fact of the matter is – they are engaged in the worst sort of hypocrisy and the worst sort of sin! But this Gnostic omniscience is, not surprisingly, accompanied by a god complex, which is to say, the person believes that he is more than competent to control the details of his dual life. Yet, and strikingly, this god complex does not lessen when the sinful behavior of his dual life is ushered into the light of day. In fact, even and especially when his dual life is exposed he judges himself a more capable judge than those proper authorities that God has set over him! The pride that once fed his god complex now only emboldens his superiority in the face of Christ’s under-shepherds. In other words, he still thinks that the oranges crashing about in the back of the car are under his sovereign control. But it only appears that way to him. Having looked at the pathology and the psychology involved in the double life next time we will look a bit closer at some specifics. In other words, when the double life begins to breakdown it will manifest certain characteristics. It is to these that we will turn the next time.

Tony Reinke joins us to speak about Newton on the Christian Life: To Live Is Christ, a new book in Crossway’s Theologians on the Christian Life series. Newton was a brilliant letter writer, and his vision for the Christian life shines brightly in these personal correspondences to friends and the people of his congregation. Listen as Tony Reinke unfolds this miraculous life in order to demonstrate fully the grace and truth of our savior Jesus Christ. Tony is a staff writer and researcher for desiringGod.org. He has also written Lit!: A Christian Guide to Reading Books. You can follow Tony on Twitter and read his updates regarding his several other writing projects.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Tony Reinke

Christ the Center is pleased to welcome Dr. Dane Ortlund to speak about Jonathan Edwards’s views of the Christian life. Ortlund is Senior Vice President of Bible Publishing at Crossway and the author of the book Edwards on the Christian Life: Alive to the Beauty of God. This book is in the Theologians on the Christian Life series edited by Stephen J. Nichols and Justin Taylor and published by Crossway. Join us for a fascinating discussion of a brilliant theological mind considering what it means to live before the beauty of Christ.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Dane Ortlund, David Filson, Jeff Waddington

Matt Perman is the author of What’s Best Next: How the Gospel Transforms the Way We Work, a book about productivity and the stewardship of time and work. Matt highlights all the good that can be gained from the literature on business and productivity, showing how the best principles observed by secular thinkers conform to the pattern of biblical teaching. Of course, the gospel the world did not know by its wisdom, so Matt’s gospel-informed advice goes beyond other literature in a particularly Christian way. Matthew Perman formerly served as the senior director of strategy at Desiring God Ministries in Minneapolis, MN, and is a frequent speaker on the topics of leadership and productivity from a God-centered perspective. He has an MDiv from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Project Management Professional certification from the Project Management Institute. Matt regularly blogs and contributes to a number of other online publications as well. He lives in Minneapolis.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Matt Perman

In this episode, Camden Bucey reviews The Gospel at Work: How Working for King Jesus Gives Purpose and Meaning to Our Jobs (Zondervan) by Sebastian Traeger and Greg Gilbert. Traeger and Gilbert note that many Christians fall victim to one of two main problems when it comes to work: either they are idle in their work, or they have made an idol of it. Both of these mind-sets are deadly misunderstandings of how God intends for us to think about our employment. The authors unpack the powerful ways in which the gospel can transform how we do what we do, releasing us from the cultural pressures of both an all-consuming devotion and a punch-in, punch-out mentality—in order to find the freedom of a work ethic rooted in serving Christ.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy

On this episode Camden Bucey reviews What’s Best Next: How the Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done (Zondervan) by Matt Perman. This is an excellent book about Christian productivity that will help you become effective in your labors through a biblical perspective on loving God, loving others, and being a good steward of your opportunities, time, and resources.

Publisher’s Description

Productivity isn’t just about getting more things done. It’s about getting the right things done—the things that count, make difference, and move the world forward. In our current era of massive overload, this is harder than ever before. So how do you get more of the right things done without confusing mere activity for actual productivity? When we take God’s purposes into account, a revolutionary insight emerges. Surprisingly, we see that the way to be productive is to put others first—to make the welfare of other people our motive and criteria in determining what to do (what’s best next). As both the Scriptures and the best business thinkers show, generosity is the key to unlocking our productivity. It is also the key to finding meaning and fulfillment in our work. What’s Best Next offers a practical approach for improving your productivity in all areas of life. It will help you better understand:

• Why good works are not just rare and special things like going to Africa, but anything you do in faith—even tying your shoes.
• How to create a mission statement for your life that actually works.
• How to delegate to people in a way that actually empowers them.
• How to overcome time killers like procrastination, interruptions, and multitasking by turning them around and making them work for you.
• How to process workflow efficiently and get your email inbox to zero every day.
• How your work and life can transform the world socially, economically, and spiritually, and connect to God’s global purposes.

By anchoring your understanding of productivity in God’s purposes and plan, What’s Best Next will give you a practical approach for increasing your effectiveness in everything you do. Includes a Foreword by John Piper

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy

I’ve worked through all of Matt Perman’s excellent new book, What’s Best Next: How the Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done, in an Adler-esque “structural” fashion, and now I’m enjoying a deliberate reading. Being sort of a GTD and lifehack geek myself, I was really interested to see this. Sometimes books in this department get a bad rap. Many of them deserve it, but you shouldn’t think of this book as yet more fuel for the self-help addicts. This is a book for everyone. Perman blends his rich understanding regarding approaches to productivity with a theological foundation. The resulting effort allows us to see our responsibilities, opportunities, and time from a biblical perspective. There is so much I’d like to share, but I believe one critical thing to recognize initially is the inadequate understanding of productivity many of us share:

When most people think of productivity, they think of efficiency—getting more things done in less time. This is a natural response to the villain of overload that we saw in the previous chapter. When we see so many things coming at us, our tendency is to speed up. This isn’t always bad, but if this is our first and primary solution, it will backfire. While efficiency is important, it works only when we make it secondary, not primary. It doesn’t matter how efficient you are if you are doing the wrong things in the first place. More important than efficiency is effectiveness—getting the right things done. In other words, productivity is not first about getting more things done faster. It’s about getting the right things done. (p. 43)

An understanding of productivity weighted heavily toward efficiency doesn’t account for so many aspects of the Christian calling. Think about your family, ministry, and other relational responsibilities. Would you say that time spent developing those relationships is “productive”? If we only think in terms of deliverables, we will be tempted to say that it’s not. Working with people often isn’t efficient, but it’s nevertheless highly important and significant. If a friend wants to get breakfast, but I have a ton of email to deal with, I may be tempted to think that I’m not spending my time wisely. If I think merely in terms of efficiency, I may feel like we’ve wasted the last hour or so because I have no deliverable to show for it. Thinking about these efforts in terms of effectiveness can free us for meaningful labors and ministry. I’ll have much more on this title in coming weeks, including a review on Reformed Media Review. In the meantime, please do yourself a huge favor and pick up a copy of this important book.

Today’s panel recently attended the 2014 Desiring God Pastors’ Conference titled, “The Pastor, the Vine, and the Branches: The Remarkable Reality of Union with Christ,” as representatives for Reformed Forum and Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, PA. The group speaks about the opportunity to spread the ministry of Reformed Forum beyond the bounds of Presbyterianism and the relationship of confessional Reformed theology to the broader, more loosely Reformed community. This episode also features an interview with David Mathis and Jonathan Parnell of Desiring God Ministries about their recent book, How to Stay Christian in Seminary. David Mathis is executive editor at desiringGod.org and an elder at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, MN. He has edited several books and is co-author of How to Stay Christian in Seminary. Jonathan Parnell is a writer and content strategist for Desiring God Minstries and co-author of How to Stay Christian in Seminary. The book was inspired by a series of blog posts at desiringGod.org. B.B. Warfield’s The Religious Life of Theological Students

Participants: Camden Bucey, David Mathis, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack, Jonathan Parnell

Caroline Weerstra speaks with Christ the Center about the Peniel Bible Conference, based on her article “The Early History of Peniel Bible Conference, Part 1: Zeal Without Knowledge (1933-1938).” The camp was associated with Calvary Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Schenectady, New York, Mrs. Weerstra’s home church. Though associated with a reformed church, the camp was very similar to the Wesleyan and holiness movements in theology and practice. Listen to understand how this camp became associated with the OPC and how Calvary Church finally remained in the OPC. Mrs. Weerstra is a mother of three, a blogger, and the author of several catechism workbooks for children. Her article “The Early History of Peniel Bible Conference, Part 1: Zeal Without Knowledge (1933-1938)” appeared in Vol. 75 No. 2 of the Westminster Theological Journal.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Caroline Weerstra, Jeff Waddington, John Muether

Dr. Mark Jones returns to Christ the Center to revive seventeenth-century wisdom about antinomianism from his forthcoming book Antinomianism: Reformed Theology’s Unwelcome Guest?. Antinomian thinking is rooted in a weak view of the person of Christ and leads to reducing sanctification to justification. Dr. Jones addresses Martin Luther’s relationship to antinomianism, the relationship between theology and practice, and the necessity of good works for salvation. Dr. Mark Jones is the minister of Faith Presbyterian Church, a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is also Research Associate in the Faculty of Theology at University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. Mark’s Ph.D. is from Leiden Universiteit (Oct. 2009) and his doctoral dissertation was entitled, “Why Heaven Kissed Earth: The Christology of the Puritan Reformed Orthodox theologian, Thomas Goodwin (1600–1680).” Dr. Jones has spoken on Christ the Center 249 and 218.

Participants: Camden Bucey, David Filson, Jared Oliphint, Jim Cassidy, Mark Jones

Dr. Jason B. Hood speaks about the imitation of Christ, based on the biblical theological study found in his book, Imitating God in Christ: Recapturing a Biblical Pattern. The teaching of imitation is sometimes clouded by a “gospel-centered” focus on justification that loses sight of the importance of sanctification in salvation. Dr. Hood clears away these misconceptions to show how the indicative of Christ’s person and work is consistent with the imperative of imitation of Christ. The episode also deals with the concept of the image of God, the imitation of the saints, and the biblical theological basis of imitation from Old Testament to New. Dr. Hood will soon be pastor of St. Margaret’s Anglican Church in Moshi, Tanzania, as well as a professor at Munguishi Bible College, part of the Anglican Diocese of Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. He has also served as an adjunct faculty member at Reformed Theological Seminary in Washington, DC and taught biblical theology of mission with the Memphis Fellows Initiative. Imitating God in Christ is published by IVP Academic.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jason B. Hood

In his little book, Letters to a Young Calvinist, James K.A. Smith indulges in a riff I have heard echoing through certain halls of the Reformed house of late. At the end of Letter XI, “On Being ‘Confessional’” he gives a swift sideswipe to the Westminster Standards. “But I have to confess that when I discovered the Heidelberg Catechism, it was like discovering a nourishing oasis compared to the arid desert of Westminster’s cool scholasticism.”^[1] This sets up his next letter, entitled “Beyond Westminster.” Smith’s evaluation of Heidelberg v. the Westminster Standards is one I’ve heard before and it is one I find to be rather unhelpful. Now, you will get no argument from me that the Heidelberg Catechism is a personal and pastoral treasure-trove. And of course the crown jewel in that vault is the opening question. Heidelberg Q&A #1 is in an elite class of Gospel summaries. I also recognize that there is a crisper and more pedagogically precise air about the Westminster Standards. But does that pervasive theological precision thus make the Westminster Standards an “arid desert” for our faith? Smith thinks so. “The latter (“continental”^[2]) confessions have an existential esprit about them that seems to seep into my soul in a way that Westminster’s more ‘logical’ approach does not.”^[3] But I think not. I don’t know how someone can read WCF 5.5 amidst grappling with their own sinful failures and not leave with a sense of encouraging clarity as to the purpose of God’s providence in their crucible. I don’t know how one can hear that we have been “taken into the number, and enjoy the liberties and privileges of the children of God,” and read that we are “pitied, protected, provided for, and chastened by him as by a father, yet never cast off” (WCF 12.1) and not flush with an inexhaustible sense of love and gratitude towards our Heavenly Father. I don’t know how one can read that “worthy receivers” of the Lord’s Supper spiritually “receive, and feed upon Christ crucified and all the benefits of his death” (WCF 29.7) and not want to sprint to the nearest celebration of the Lord’s Table. I don’t know how someone can answer that Christ is “ruling and defending us” and “restraining and conquering all his and our enemies” (WSC 26) and not rise to meet their life in this world with unshakable trust in their King. I don’t know how one can read that in our union with Christ, we are “united to one another in love,” and “have communion in each other’s gifts and graces,” (WCF 26.1) and not increase in how they cherish their relationships within the Body of Christ. We could be here all day and still barely scratch the service of the Westminster Standards. But I list these to put a face on something: it has been my experience that the Westminster Standards are soaked in the language of theological truth which inflames my soul. My first thought when I read Smith’s assessment of the Westminster Standards was, “Has he actually read them?” But, surely a man of his credentials has. So I suspect that maybe it is because he suffers from the same malady that infects many of my generation. It is the instinct that the moment theology begins to be ‘logical’ or more technically precise, it is as though someone poked a hole in its bottom to let all the life drain out of it. I get that instinct when I encounter it among immature Christians and the 11 year olds entering my junior catechism class for the first time. It befuddles me when I encounter it among my thoughtful and erudite Reformed brothers. I think the remedy for this malady is actually prescribed by Smith just before he launches into his polemic against the Westminster Standards. He compares the function of creeds and confessions to learning Greek grammar in order to read the Greek New Testament. “So also, I learn the ‘grammar’ of faith articulated in the creeds and confessions, not as ends in themselves, but as an invitation to read Scripture well, and as guides for faithful practice.”^[4] Smith is on the money here. The “grammar” given to us by our Reformed confessions allows us to read Scripture better and practice the Christian life more faithfully. But they do that in large part exactly because they have given us “logical” and technically precise boundaries to give clarity in those tasks. Isn’t that what grammar does after all, give an ordered set of nerves, muscles, and bones, so that living breathing use of language may move to its fullest potential? Theological precision, when understood and used rightly, supports life rather than draining it. It ought to give our personal faith and ministry to others greater vivaciousness and dexterity. It is not the case that precision in orthodoxy necessarily stifles doxology and piety. Far from it, such precision gives intricate expression to the multifaceted jewel of the Gospel. And such intricate expression lends depth of texture to the truth which cannot but open our lips in praise to our Redeemer and move our hands in faithful service to our King.

[1] James K.A. Smith, Letters to a Young Calvinist: An Invitation to the Reformed Tradition, (Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press, 2010), pg. 55. [2] Would Smith include the third installment of the Three Forms of Unity in this, the Canons of Dordt? [3] Ibid, pg. 59. [4] Ibid, pg. 52

Barbara Duguid speaks about John Newton’s writings on the Christian life based on her book Extravagant Grace: God’s Glory Displayed in Our Weakness. She appropriates John Newton’s wisdom to comfort and encourage Christians who feel guilt and failure in their fight against sin. Barbara Duguid is a counselor and member of Christ Presbyterian Church (ARP) in Grove City, Pennsylvania. She holds an advanced certificate in biblical counseling from the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation in Glenside, Pennsylvania. Melissa Kruger is the author of The Envy of Eve: Finding Contentment in a Covetous World published by Christian Focus (Christ the Center 276). She is on staff in women’s ministry at Uptown Church (PCA) in Charlotte, NC, a mom to three kids and the wife of Dr. Michael Kruger, President and Professor of NT at Reformed Theological Seminary Charlotte. Nancy Guthrie is the author of The Son of David, The Promised One, and The Wisdom of God, on the topic of seeing Christ in the Old Testament. Nancy is a member of Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee, and she speaks at conferences worldwide.

Participants: Barbara Duguid, Camden Bucey, Melissa Kruger, Nancy Guthrie

Aimee Byrd speaks about her new book, Housewife Theologian: How the Gospel Interrupts the Ordinary, with panel Camden Bucey, Nancy Guthrie, and Melissa Kruger. The topic of her book and of this episode’s discussion is the gospel’s particular applications to the lives of women, women’s role in the family and in the church, and the relevance of theology to mundane and ordinary parts of life. Housewife Theologian is published by P&R. Aimee Byrd blogs at Housewife Theology. She’s also a member of Pilgrim Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Martinsburg, WV where she teaches women’s bible study. And she’s just been announced as a regular contributor to the Mortification of Spin podcast with Carl Trueman and Todd Pruitt.

Nancy Guthrie is the author of numerous books and bible study curriculum (including video series) on seeing Christ in the Old Testament. Her latest is The Son of David: Seeing Jesus in the Historical Books. Nancy has joined us for several episodes of Christ the Center (CTC183, CTC224, CTC295).

Melissa Kruger is the author of The Envy of Eve published by Christian Focus, which she spoke about on Christ the Center episode 276. She’s also on staff in women’s ministry at Uptown Church (PCA) in Charlotte, NC, a mom to three kids and wife of Dr. Michael Kruger, President and Professor of NT at Reformed Theological Seminary Charlotte.

Participants: Aimee Byrd, Camden Bucey, Melissa Kruger, Nancy Guthrie

Today we welcome Melissa Kruger to the program to speak about her book The Envy of Eve: Finding Contentment in a Covetous World published by Christian Focus. Melissa is on staff in women’s ministry at Uptown Church (PCA) in Charlotte, NC, a mom to three kids and the wife of Dr. Michael Kruger, President and Professor of NT at Reformed Theological Seminary Charlotte.

Participants: Camden Bucey, David Filson, Melissa Kruger

We welcome William Edgar, Professor of Apologetics at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA, to the program to reflect upon Francis Schaeffer’s life and thought. Dr. Edgar focuses on Schaeffer’s Christian spirituality in Schaeffer on the Christian Life: Countercultural Spirituality, a unique and welcome addition to the literature on Schaeffer. Having spent time with Schaeffer at L’Abri in Switzerland and having been deeply influenced by Schaeffer’s ministry, Dr. Edgar’s book brings a warm tone to a rich and insightful treatment of the Christian life.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jim Cassidy, William Edgar

Camden Bucey and Jim Cassidy speak about William Edgar’s book Schaeffer on the Christian Life: Countercultural Spirituality published by Crossway. William Edgar, Professor of Apologetics at Westminster Theological Seminary, draws from his extensive personal experience with Francis Schaeffer to offer a portrait of the theoretical and practical sides of Schaeffer’s approach to the Christian life.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy

In Philippians 1:12-13 Paul writes, “I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.” Verse 13 is especially challenging in the Greek. It reads,

ὥστε τοὺς δεσμούς μου φανεροὺς ἐν Χριστῷ γενέσθαι ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ πραιτωρίῳ καὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς πάσιν. More literally: “So that, my chains revealed/manifest/known in Christ have become to the entire praetorium and to all the rest.”

The difficulty lies in how the datival phrases relate to the verb γενέσθαι and to each other. The phrase ἐν Χριστῷ (in Christ) is especially awkward, seeing that it follows φανεροὺς (revealed, manifest, known). Does ἐν Χριστῷ describe the way that Paul’s imprisonment has been made known, that it has been revealed in Christ? Are Paul’s chains somehow “in Christ”? Is ἐν Χριστῷ being used instrumentally, adverbially, or in some other sense? In other words, what has become known and how? One option is to understand Paul to be saying that the imperial guard has come to know that he is literally imprisoned because of his religious affiliation. Paul’s imprisonment is related to his ministry. Paul even notes how some of the brothers are preaching Christ out of envy, rivalry, and selfish ambition in order to increase his affliction in prison (Phil 1:15-17). Paul’s sufferings must then be related to the gospel ministry. But Paul may be introducing intentional ambiguity, using δεσμούς μου (my chains) in two ways. It is true that he is literally in chains for being a Christian, but it is also true that he is a bondservant of Christ (Rom 1:1; Gal 1:10). In one sense Paul’s chains belong to the imperial guard, but in another, even more significant sense, Paul’s chains belong to Christ Jesus. Having been delivered from the power of sin and death, Paul has been given to a new master; he is a slave of righteousness (Rom 6:18). He has been inseparably bound to Christ by the Spirit, who conforms his people to Christ’s image (Rom 8:29). There are two important aspects to Paul’s understanding of salvation: being united to Christ and being conformed to the image of the one to whom we are united. Lest we fall prey to the same error that besets many televangelists, we must be careful not to truncate this latter aspect. The image to which believers are being conformed is not merely the glorious image we see in Christ’s resurrection. It also involves suffering and death. Seeing these complementary aspects of salvation—union with Christ and christomorphic image conformity—we should then come to recognize the inextricable link between Christ, his personal sufferings, and his mystical body, the Church. This is why Paul speaks so frequently of his sufferings as the very sufferings of Christ. Consider the following:

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you. (2 Cor 4:7-12) But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. (Phil 3:7-11)

It’s clear that Paul understood his sufferings to be more than mere representations of Christ’s sufferings or consequences of religious affiliation. Indeed, his sufferings were Christ’s sufferings, because Paul’s entire life is characterized by his union with Christ. He declares this emphatically in Galatians 2:20,

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Gal 2:20)

Christ is most basic to Paul’s life, not simply as its source, but as its comprehensive, vivifying principle. Amazingly, this is true for all those who receive and rest upon Jesus Christ alone for salvation. And so whenever we consider Christian suffering, we must understand it within this grid. It is patterned after the life of our Lord (cf. Phil 2:5-11), and therefore is characterized by suffering unto glory. Christian suffering is neither ultimate nor meaningless, but comes with an end in view—both chronologically and teleologically. It terminates at the return of Jesus Christ, and it culminates in being raised unto glory to worship him forever.

Nota bene: Perhaps the most important thing I’ve read on Christian suffering is “The Usefulness of the Cross” by Dr. Richard B. Gaffin, Jr. It will be a tough read for most Christians, but it’s beautiful and richly rewarding.

From time to time, I’d like to kick-start a discussion by asking a thought-provoking theological question. Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron and one man sharpens another.” It is my hope that by conversing with others regarding a biblical response to the question, we might grow in our knowledge of Christ and his great salvation. In the spirit of fruitful discussion, here is our first question: Believers who have died are with the Lord (Luke 23:43; Phil 1:23; cf. WLC 86), but until the Lord returns in glory their souls are separated from their bodies (Rom 8:23; Ps 16:19, 1 Thess 4:14, 16; Isa 57:2). Is it proper to characterize this separation as form of suffering?