This week on Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob discuss Louis Berkhof’s little book, Summary of Christian Doctrine. We turn to chapter XXII, “Sanctification and Perseverance.” After too long of a break from recording, Rob and Bob were able to sit down together to discuss God’s work of sanctifying his people, the nature of good works, and how God’s people persevere to the end. 

Participants: Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo

Ryan Noha and Camden Bucey discuss Reformed Academy and the newest course to launch on the platform, titled Union with Christ: The Benefits of His Suffering and Glory. This latest course is taught by Lane Tipton, and we include the tenth and final lecture toward the end of this episode.

Video Chapters

00:00:00 Introduction
00:04:13 The Courses at Reformed Academy
00:11:49 Future Course Availability
00:14:15 Podcasts, Videos, and Chapter Markers
00:16:06 The Process of Producing a Course
00:22:53 Translating the Course Videos
00:29:26 The Global Reach of Reformed Academy
00:38:06 How to Help
00:45:05 Union with Christ and Sanctification
01:37:42 Conclusion

Participants: Camden Bucey, Ryan Noha

Jim Cassidy reviews Grounded in the Gospel: Building Believers the Old-Fashioned Way, by J.I. Packer and Gary Parrett, published by Baker Books.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy

I love Logos Bible Software. Several months ago I created a customized reading plan to guide me through Charles Hodge’s three volumes by the end of year. Next year I plan to work through Richard Muller’s Post-Reformation Reformed Dogmatics. The discipline of reading through rich theological and historical works in conjunction with my daily reading of Scripture has been a blessing. Often, I’m surprised by the timeliness and applicability of the sections for contemporary theological conversations. As Qohelet likes to say, “There’s nothing new under the sun.” This morning I came across this wonderful passage:

Antinomianism has never had any hold in the churches of the Reformation. There is no logical connection between the neglect of moral duties, and the system which teaches that Christ is a Saviour as well from the power as from the penalty of sin; that faith is the act by which the soul receives and rests on Him for sanctification as well as for justification; and that such is the nature of the union with Christ by faith and indwelling of the Spirit, that no one is, or can be partaker of the benefit of his death, who is not also partaker of the power of his life; which holds to the divine authority of the Scripture which declares that without holiness no man shall see the Lord (Heb. 12:14); and which, in the language of the great advocate of salvation by grace, warns all who call themselves Christians: “Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Cor. 6:9, 10.) It is not the system which regards sin as so great an evil that it requires the blood of the Son of God for its expiation, and the law as so immutable that it requires the perfect righteousness of Christ for the sinner’s justification, which leads to loose views of moral obligation; these are reached by the system which teaches that the demands of the law have been lowered, that they can be more than met by the imperfect obedience of fallen men, and that sin can be pardoned by priestly intervention. This is what logic and history alike teach. (Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, 3:241)

How can the law, which brings death also be described as the way of life? How can the same letter be the path of life when it once condemned us? The difference hinges on pneumatology. The Holy Spirit applies the life, death, and resurrection to his people. While justification is a critical aspect of the ordo salutis, we receive even more than the imputed righteousness of Christ by grace alone through faith alone through the gospel. That same saving faith unites us to Christ, who has become for us “wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Cor 1:30). When the Spirit works in and through his people (Phil 2:12–13), they obey God’s law out of love rather than servile fear or a desire to merit salvation. The life-giving Spirit (1 Cor 15:45) makes it our delight (Ps 1:1–2).

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

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

Participants: Kevin DeYoung, Nick Batzig, Rick Phillips

Mark Jones and Jared Oliphint speak about Tullian Tchividjian’s Jesus + Nothing = Everything. Rev. Tchividjian is pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale and blogs at the Gospel Coalition. Dr. Jones published a review of the book at MeetThePuritans.com. Jared Oliphint’s review will appear soon at Reformation21.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Mark Jones

Dr. Lane G. Tipton, the Charles Krahe Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary, teaches on sanctification in this special presentation from Alive with Christ: Saving Union with Christ. This series of addresses comes from the Fall Seminar on Reformed Theology, held on November 12 and 13th 2011 at Calvary Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Ringoes, NJ. This is the fourth installment of the series. The entire series is as follows:

1. A Biblical Overview: Dr Richard Gaffin
2. Regeneration: Dr Lane Tipton
3. The Good Work Begun: Dr Richard Gaffin
4. Sanctification: Dr Lane Tipton
5. Questions and Answers
6. The Gateway into Fellowship with the Triune God: Rev. Jeff Waddington (Sunday School)
7. The Gospel: Dr Lane Tipton (Sunday morning service)
8. Glorification: Rev. James Cassidy (Sunday evening service; sermon re-recorded in March 2021)

Participants: Lane G. Tipton

Panel

• Richard B. Gaffin, Jr.
• Jeff Waddington
• James Dolezal
• Jim Cassidy
• Camden Bucey

Bibliography

Participants: Camden Bucey, James Dolezal, Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy, Richard B. Gaffin Jr.