July 21st, 2010 by Geoff Volker
RADICAL: TAKING BACK YOUR FAITH FROM THE AMERICAN DREAM by David Platt, published by Multnomah Books, 2010, 230 pages, paperback.
Here is a book that has caused quite a stir in evangelical circles. It is written by a young pastor of a 4,000 member megachurch in Birmingham, Alabama who has had his life radically affected by what he has experienced on some short-term mission trips to very unglamorous locations around the globe. His missions experience includes trips to the Sudan, China and India. As a result of his missions experience he has rethought his approach to the church and the Christian life. This book is his call to believers to take their commitment to their Lord to a new level.
One strength of the book is that the author David Platt in an incurable God-lover. This truth oozes through the pages and is very encouraging to the heart of a God-loving reader. He also emphasizes the concern that we not get trapped into a life of the pursuit of comfort and ease. This is a valid concern for us believers who live in America. The warning in Philippians 2:12-13 to work out our salvation with fear and trembling would seem to be referring to such a concern that David was expressing, which is that we not get overtaken by our culture. Also the emphasis on evangelism is always good in that it sensitizes us to our responsibility to take the good news to a dying world. Finally, his concern that we increase our awareness that we are part of a global plan of salvation is a good reminder. It is easy to become “provincial” in our outlook and not look broader than our own immediate situation. These are the positive things that I took from this book and my walk with the Lord is better for it.
Now I turn to the dark side. What are my concerns regarding David’s work. Unfortunately, they are multiple. My first problem is his use of scripture. He does seem to take verses out of context. This really concerns me since it gives the impression that he is “using” scripture to make his points rather than carefully handling the word of God to see what God would have us believe and do. In the first part of the book this can be seen in his use of Luke 9 and Matthew 10. David also makes many statements that though they sound good they are a bit off. He seems to be a man of passion but not one that gives careful thought to what he says. He also uses guilt to motivate his readers. What is strange is that after he makes guilt motivating statements he will then seek to qualify what he said. This is a good thing but then he goes on to use more guilt motivating statements. His emphasis on evangelism does seem to come from his own ministry emphasis. But the problem as I see it is that each believer does not necessarily have the same ministry emphasis. Some believers may emphasize a ministry of helps, some teaching, some mercy and some evangelism. One believer’s ministry emphasis is not necessarily another’s and each ministry emphasis is equally valid and important.
In closing, David Platt’s work is all about encouraging the believer to push the envelope in what it means to live for Jesus Christ. That is a praiseworthy aim but the book contained too many problems for me to recommend it as the book to read on that subject. I would recommend the book by John Piper “Don’t Waste Your Life” as a far better book on the same basic subject. David Platt is one of the good guys but good guys do not always write good books.
April 19th, 2010 by Geoff Volker
When we say that the law of Christ is the New Covenant era version of the law of God we are saying that we are not under the Old Covenant era version of the law of God, the Mosaic Law. These two eras of law are also two different eras in terms of emphasis. (more…)
March 4th, 2010 by Geoff Volker
Within the study of New Covenant Theology there is emerging a difference of opinion over exactly what is the Law of Christ. It is the opinion of this writer that the Law of Christ is the version of God’s law that we are to obey in this New Covenant era. (more…)
January 25th, 2010 by Geoff Volker
The Big Picture Story Bible, by David Helm with Illustrations by Gail Schoonmaker, published by Crossway Books, 2004, 453 pages, clothbound.
The Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm is a children’s book. You might be wondering, what is In-Depth Studies doing in reviewing a children’s book? Admittedly, this is not the sort of book that I would typically review. To be honest, I am usually a bit disappointed at most children’s books. The reason for my disappointment is that children’s books tend to be theologically deficient. (more…)
December 24th, 2009 by Geoff Volker
James 1:13-15
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown , gives birth to death.
In this blog I want to explore the relationship between a temptation and a test in the life of the believer. In seeking to understand the relationship between these two concepts it must be pointed out that the same event can be for the believer both a temptation and a test. How can this be so?
In my previous blog on the problem of evil I pointed out that our God is the first cause of all things, even evil, yet when evil is done those who do the evil and they alone are to be blamed for the evil. God can never be blamed for the evil as he is a holy God (1 John 1:5). When a believer encounters a temptation he is being tempted to dishonor his God. The source of this temptation comes either from the remaining evil within the believer or from evil outside of the believer. So, from the point of view of responsibility God cannot be blamed for the temptation since temptation is only concerned with the enticement to do evil. But, from the point of view of God as the first cause of all things, the same event that has been described as a temptation is also a test brought into the life of the believer by a loving Father who would never bring anything into the life of the believer that was not motivated by his love and for their good (Romans 8:28). The test is brought into the life of the believer in order to build him up not tear him down.
A temptation is also a test and a test is also a temptation. It all depends on your point of view. When we are tempted to do evil we must resist this temptation for we are being enticed to do something that dishonors the God whom we love (Hebrews 12:4). But, from another point of view the temptation can be also viewed as a test that our Father in heaven has brought into our lives in order to cause us to become more Christ-like and to increase our love for Him (Romans 8:28).
December 6th, 2009 by Geoff Volker
When you study Scripture at some point you will encounter the problem with evil. By that I mean you recognize that the God of heaven and earth is absolutely sovereign and determines whatever happens (Ephesians 1:11). You also see that man is viewed as absolutely responsible for his sin (Romans 9:18, Acts 4:27-28). Finally, it is also quite clear that the our God is perfectly holy and cannot do anything evil (1 John 1:5, Isaiah 6:1-4). On the surface this seems to be an irresolvable difficulty. How can a holy sovereign God determine events that are evil in themselves? (more…)
June 6th, 2009 by Geoff Volker
Triumph of the Lamb by Dennis Johnson, published by Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, 2001, clothbound, 384 pages.
It has been a while since I have enjoyed a commentary like this one. Dennis Johnson, who teaches at Westminster Theological Seminary in California, has written a commentary on the book of Revelation from an amillennial point of view. This commentary is not difficult to read or to follow. Dennis does an excellent job in showing how the book of Revelation reveals God’s plan for the end in the form of visions. These visions, by there very nature, are not to be taken literally. He shows how the apostle John took imagery from Ezekiel, Zechariah, Daniel and the plagues of Egypt to teach us about the fulfillment of history from Pentecost to the 2nd Coming, the New Covenant era. (more…)
April 9th, 2009 by Geoff Volker
BOOK REVIEW
The Prodigal God by Timothy Keller, published by Dutton, 2008, 139 pages, clothbound.
I am not a big fan of writing a negative book review, but in this instance I am making an exception. The book Prodigal God is very popular in Calvinistic circles. And since I live in those circles I feel compelled to say a few words about the book. Tim Keller is a PCA (Presbyterian Church in America) pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in downtown New York city. He is an excellent writer who is easy to read. He is a good communicator. He understands the necessity of the new heart in the life of a real believer. But having said all this I must now share my thoughts regarding his book (more…)
March 9th, 2009 by Geoff Volker
In these days of economic uncertainty and suffering it is good for the believer to have a biblical perspective on what is happening to him. What we are talking about is having a biblical attitude about all of life. What does Scripture say about how we are to view what is happening to us? Well…. I am glad that you asked that question for Scripture is quite clear on this issue. In Romans 8:28 we are told that everything will work out for our good if we are a believer.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28 NIV)
The reason that everything works out for our good is because our Father in heaven is controlling everything that happens to us and he is motivated in what he does to us by this love for us and his perfect wisdom. (more…)
December 4th, 2008 by Geoff Volker
I was doing some reading in Scripture and I came across Numbers 28. This is the chapter that describes the various offerings that must be done in the nation of Israel. There are the daily offerings, the Sabbath offerings, the monthly offerings, etc. Now, to be honest I normally do not find this portion of Scripture very stimulating. I typically race through it to get to something that it is more interesting or relevant. The detailed descriptions of the various offerings that were to be done by Israelites seem not only to be tedious reading but also a tedious way to live. So… how do we make sense of this section of Scripture. It is the word of God and therefore it is profitable for us to study (2 Timothy 3:16-17). The challenge is to find out how we are to view this passage so that we can find a proper application for our lives. (more…)
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