The Thoughts of Ryan-C

"The saving power of faith does not lie in itself but in the object of its trust."

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 09:40:32 -0500

“The saving power of faith does not lie in itself but in the object of its trust.”

- Sinclair Ferguson, The Holy Spirit

"The human will does not attain grace through its freedom, but rather attains its freedom through..."

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 21:46:41 -0500

“The human will does not attain grace through its freedom, but rather attains its freedom through grace…”

- Augustine, On Reprimand and Grace

"Inasmuch, then, as strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor 12:9), whoever does not own himself..."

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 19:12:33 -0500

“Inasmuch, then, as strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor 12:9), whoever does not own himself to be weak, is not in the way to be perfected.”

- Augustine, Anti-Pelagian Writings

"Just as the soul is the whole life of the body, God is the happy life of the soul."

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:37:17 -0500

“Just as the soul is the whole life of the body, God is the happy life of the soul.”

- Augustine, On the Free Choice of the Will

"Infinite and yet an infant. Eternal and yet born of a woman. Almighty, and yet nursing at a woman’s..."

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 09:26:25 -0400

“Infinite and yet an infant.
Eternal and yet born of a woman.
Almighty, and yet nursing at a woman’s breast.
Supporting a universe, and yet needing to be carried in a mother’s arms.
Heir of all things, and yet the carpenter’s despised son.”

- C.H. Spurgeon

"Christianity not only leads its members to believe people of other faiths have goodness and wisdom..."

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 22:15:53 -0400

“

Christianity not only leads its members to believe people of other faiths have goodness and wisdom to offer, it also leads them to expect that many will live lives morally superior to their own. Most people believe that, if there is a God, we can relate to him and go to heaven through leading a good life. Let’s call this the “moral improvement” view. Christianity teaches the very opposite. In the Christian understanding, Jesus does not tell us how to live so we can merit salvation. Rather, he comes to forgive and save us through his live and death in our place. God’s grace does not come to people who morally outperform others, but to those who admit their failure to perform and who acknowledge their need for savior.

Christians, then, should expect to find nonbelievers who are much nicer, kinder, wiser, and better than they are. Why? Christian believers are not accepted by God because of their moral performance, wisdom, or virtue, but because of Christ’s work on their behalf. Most religions and philosophies of life assume that one’s spiritual status depends on your religious attainments. This naturally leads adherents to feel superior to those who don’t believe and behave as they do. The Christian Gospel, in any case, should not have that effect.

”

- Tim Keller, The Reason For God

"And when it says ‘all your heart, all your soul, all your mind,’ it leaves no part of..."

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 22:31:09 -0400

“And when it says ‘all your heart, all your soul, all your mind,’ it leaves no part of our life free from this obligation, no part free as it were to back out and enjoy some other thing; any other object of love that enters the mind should be swept towards the same destination as that to which the whole flood of our love is directed.”

- -St. Augustine, On Christian Teaching (De Doctrina Christiana)

Matthew 22:37 | 1 Corinthians 10:31

Fire in the Sky

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 18:22:00 -0400

Fire in the Sky

"Even though reason and will can sometimes suppress desire and lust, these are in turn often subdued..."

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 10:00:06 -0400

“Even though reason and will can sometimes suppress desire and lust, these are in turn often subdued and put into the service of lust… The heart is so subtle that it can even deceive the understanding head.”

- Herman Bavinck, Our Reasonable Faith

"The moment philosophy deduces a principle for the conduct of life from its world view, it tries to..."

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 20:12:34 -0400

“The moment philosophy deduces a principle for the conduct of life from its world view, it tries to open up a way to redemption in the knowledge of the mind, the moral deeds of the will, and the experiences of the heart.”

- Herman Bavinck, Our Reasonable Faith

"He put an end to the law of death which barred our way; and He made a new beginning of life for us,..."

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 19:55:50 -0400

“He put an end to the law of death which barred our way; and He made a new beginning of life for us, by giving us the hope of resurrection. By man death has gained its power over men; by the Word made Man death has been destroyed and life raised up anew.”

- St. Athanasius

Bavinck is legit. Glad I chose to take the Theology class that...

Mon, 10 Oct 2011 18:12:13 -0400

Bavinck is legit. Glad I chose to take the Theology class that uses him for a textbook….

"Man is an enigma whose solution can be found only in God."

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:08:19 -0400

“Man is an enigma whose solution can be found only in God.”

- Herman Bavinck, Our Reasonable Faith

Got to love me some Fleet Foxes

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 14:10:34 -0400

Got to love me some Fleet Foxes

"I preach the gospel every week, because you forget it every week."

Sat, 17 Sep 2011 14:26:05 -0400

“I preach the gospel every week, because you forget it every week.”

- Martin Luther, http://cl.ly/AAuJ

"Those who don’t seek God in Christ, won’t find him."

Sat, 17 Sep 2011 10:06:06 -0400

“Those who don’t seek God in Christ, won’t find him.”

- Martin Luther, http://cl.ly/AAuJ

"It’s very hard for a man to believe that God is gracious to him. The human heart [alone]..."

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 13:13:23 -0400

“It’s very hard for a man to believe that God is gracious to him. The human heart [alone] can’t grasp this.”

- Martin Luther, http://cl.ly/AAuJ

"You will never find Jesus so precious as when the world is one vast howling wilderness. Then he is..."

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 10:47:29 -0400

“You will never find Jesus so precious as when the world is one vast howling wilderness. Then he is like a rose blooming in the midst of the desolation, a rock rising above the storm.”

- -Robert Murray M’Cheyne

Enjoying some Scottish music this morning…

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 10:32:17 -0400

Enjoying some Scottish music this morning…

Book Review : With Calvin in the Theater of God

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 18:00:31 -0400

With Calvin in the Theater of God : The Glory of Christ and Everyday Life

Essentially this book spawned out of a conference that existed to celebrate the 500th birthday of John Calvin. Several men were given topics regarding Calvin’s life and theology to teach on and eventually it was adapted and turned into this book. As I read the book, I didn’t really know what to expect. I knew I’d be getting some biography, some theology and a bunch of other scraps and here and there, and what the book ended up being was a great collection of essays/sermons that covered the basic worldview that Calvin lived and promoted. If we embrace the quote that “all the world is a stage,” Calvin would take that quote further and say that the stage is ultimately within the Theater Of God. This book is about our lives on that stage in this theater and what Calvin envisioned the Christian life would be. If you are looking for a brief overview of Calvin’s theology, this is a nice introduction that is relatively easy to read. All of the authors that contributed to this work are quite talented and have a way with words, which makes it an enjoyable read as well. What I’d like to do is post a quote from each essay that I feel most adequately describes the overall theme of each chapter…

Chapter 1 : At Work and Worship in the Theater of God

“Calvin was a faith-possessed pilgrim who had a singular passion to know God and make him known. Calvin was a Christian pilgrim, journeying by faith through the ups and downs of life, with this firm conviction: that by faith in Chris alone he belonged to God, and nothing in this world could ever change that.” -Julius Kim

Chapter 2 : Bad Actors on a Broken Stage

“Sensing God’s love when we are in the midst of situations where human affairs seem to turn and whirl at the blind urge of fortune assures us ‘that God’s singular providence is still keeping watch to preserve [us], and will not suffer anything to happen but what may turn out to [our] good and salvation,’ and having the opportunity sometimes to recognize the final, providentially ordered outcomes in situations where it seemed that God was making sport of us goes a long way toward assuring us that he ‘always has the best reason for his plan.’ “ - Mark Talbot

Chapter 3 : The Sacred Script in the Theater of God

“A man argued into the kingdom can be argued out of it. If, however, he is converted to God, nothing can separate him from the love of God in Christ Jesus.” - Douglas Wilson

Chapter 4 : The Secular Script in the Theater of God

“No one ought to doubt that civil authority is a calling not only holy and lawful before God, but also the most sacred and by far the most honorable of all callings in the whole life of mortal men.” - John Calvin

Chapter 5 : Living with One Foot Raised

“Calvin was deeply moved by Paul’s declaration that ‘our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body.’ Therefore, wrote Calvin, ‘as Christ is in heaven, in order that we may be conjoined with him, it is necessary that we should in spirit dwell apart from this world… Christ, who is our blessedness and glory is in heaven; let our souls, therefore, dwell with him on high.’ Again, it was not primarily his anticipation of his ‘lowly’ body being transformed that stirred his heart to look forward to the resurrection and the new heavens and new earth, but rather that ‘in heaven’ we find Christ! Christ, who is our blessedness and glory, is in heaven. Let our souls, therefore, dwell with him on high.” - Sam Storms

Chapter 6 : Jesus Christ as Denouement in the Theater of God

“Jesus is the way God gives, as well as what God gives. He’s the price, and he’s the pearl.” - John Piper

I hope each of those quotes revealed some of who Calvin was and how his passion for the Glory of Christ fueled his life on earth. If you want to learn more about Calvin, this book is a great place to start.

To buy this book, head over to WTSBooks…