Category: Blog
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Today George Herbert Died (1633)
March 1, 1633, George Herbert died of tuberculosis. He left as his major literary accomplishment a set of poems called The Temple, a nearly inexhaustible source of spiritual insight and guidance. Here is my favorite, The Bunch of Grapes. Joy, I did lock thee up: but some bad man Hath let thee out again: And…
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Today is Lewis Sperry Chafer’s Birthday (1871)
Lewis Sperry Chafer (February 27, 1871 – August 22, 1952) is famous for his role in promoting and consolidating dispensational theology. That pigeonholes him well enough, and he was happy enough to bear that label. In fact, he was proud to have been the first theologian to take up the task of thinking through all…
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Economic Asceticism?
Today is Ash Wednesday. I’m sitting here with ashes on my forehead and the words ringing in my ears, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” That’s a fact that none of us can escape. Of course, Lent is that liturgical season when we certainly are to acknowledge our sins for…
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Today “Rabbi” Duncan Died (1870)
John Duncan (1796 – February 26, 1870) was no Rabbi; he was a Scottish pastor who did missions work among the Jews in Hungary. Luminaries like Adolph Saphir (author of The Hidden Life) and Alfred Edersheim (author of The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah) were converted under his ministry. He was so involved…
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“Come, Christian Triune God Who Lives” (Francis Schaeffer)
Listen to Francis Schaeffer’s words from his 1972 book True Spirituality. In the chapter entitled “The Supernatural Universe,” he says: Little by little, many Christians in this generation find the reality slipping away. The reality tends to get covered by the barnacles of naturalistic thought. Indeed, I suppose this is one of half a dozen…
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Today Oscar Cullmann was Born (1902)
Oscar Cullmann was born on February 25, 1902, and lived until 1999. His most influential work was the book Christ and Time, in which he presented the biblical view of time and contrasted it with other theological ideas about time. According to Cullmann, the flow of time really matters to God, and the only way…
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Answers to Your Questions on Baptism
“How do you explain the apparent contradiction between John 7:39 and 1 Corinthians 12:9? In John 7:39 we are told that we must have faith before the Spirit is granted, while in 1 Corinthians 12:9, we are told that faith is a special gift not had until the Holy Spirit is received.” The answer to…
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Today Harry Ironside was Called to Church (1930)
At 10:30 in the morning on February 24, 1930, Harry Ironside’s phone rang. It was the assistant pastor of Chicago’s Moody Church, telling him that the board was in unanimous agreement that he should be the next pastor. Ironside (1876-1951) eventually accepted the call, and it would be the only pastorate he would serve in…
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Playground Morality
Elementary school is a rather treacherous place to learn to navigate as a child. The first time I ever read Calvin and Hobbes, I discovered a kindred spirit. Calvin’s view of elementary school was akin to an intergalactic prison where the alien life forms torture you for what seems like their own pleasure—at times I…
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Happy Birthday G.F. Handel (1685)
Georg Frideric Handel was born on February 23, 1685. He left us a body of musical work that is unsurpassed. His inescapable masterpiece is the sacred oratorio called Messiah, which is a comprehensive history of Western music and a singable systematic theology all wrapped up in one. G.K. Chesterton once said that popular misconceptions are…
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Today is Sarah Fuller Flower Adams’ Birthday (1805)
It’s really only for one hymn that we remember Sarah Adams (1805-1848), but what a hymn: “Nearer My God to Thee.” Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! E’en though it be a cross that raiseth me; Still all my song shall be nearer, my God, to Thee, Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer…
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Today is John Henry Newman’s Birthday (1801)
Today, February 21, is the day John Henry Newman was born. I will skip Newman’s biographical details and all the ways he makes my Protestant soul grumpy, and instead cut straight to a prayer that he published which I have always found very helpful. Here is the form I copied into a notebook several years…