Some Things of Note

I’m in the process of mulling some stuff around my brain right now so I have nothing substantive to post. However I wanted to share with my readers a couple of items that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The first item I found at the Euangelion blog about the White Horse Inn’s critique of NT Wright and his new perspective. I haven’t listened to the audio yet and I anticipate hearing it. What I did like was the nice critique of the critique of NT Wright that Michael Bird gives. It was very balanced. I also happen to think that NT Wright isn’t quite as dangerous to Christianity as some would have us think. Here is my favorite paragraph from Bird’s critique

4. Justification based on our “total life lived” and no “imputation”. Genuinely valid points! I often grimace when I read some of Wright’s one-liners on the future element of justification and I don’t like what he does with the Holy Spirit here as the energizer of works. But I’ve found that if you read him widely and closely enough, he seems to come down on the view that works are finally instrumental rather than evidential and you certainly don’t lose assurance on his take (see his commentary on Rom. 8.1). For Wright everything that the imputation of Jesus’ active obedience gives you, he would say you get from Jesus’s faithfulness and union with Christ. Like others in the Reformed tradition I think union with Christ is the key matrix for justification and imputation is a necessary corollary from that relationship.

His comments about how there is some continuity between Wright and Reformed preachers John Piper and John MacArthur and Michael Horton.

Second item on my list are these two cross-examination videos on purgatory. I may have posted them before, I don’t know. I really like them because they demonstrate the importance of knowing a.) the Bible and to be able to follow the thought of the passage all the way through; and b.) the importance of knowing Greek and Hebrew. Also I love the humility displayed by James White while still being able to bring an intensity to the debate.