Evangelical Materialism and the Functional Denial of Scriptural Authority

I have often talked about the Materialist assumption at work in our culture. It is just assumed that everything that exists has some kind of scientific or physiological explanation. I heard a BBC reporter talking about the Scopes Trial and the 'teaching' of evolution. He corrected himself with the 'science of evolution' - implying that science is factual and based on actual things that can be verified while teaching is just theoretical or philosophical and thus subjective in a way 'science' is not. The poor lost man doesn't understand that science - especially as it's being understood in a Materialist framework is just as philosophically rooted and dependent as any other religious system.

Two Tales of Theological Confusion

There is a great deal of confusion out there. This hardly needs to be said but I was reminded again of it on a recent Sunday when talking to a very zealous and proud CREC member who launched into a criticism of Sacralism. He's really opposed to the idea of the Church being intertwined with the government.

Kuyper and Schilder on Eschatology and Culture

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/beginning-at-the-end-of-all-things/

The theology and thought of Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) is riddled with contradictions. On the one hand contemporary Dominionists wishing to posit a monistic view of society will quote Kuyper's famous dictum : 'There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!'

It's a pretty bold statement suggesting the boundaries of the Kingdom are all encompassing and there can be no room for dissent.

Herman Bavinck's Monism and Redefinition of the Kingdom (II)

One can only sit back in wonder when reading a statement like this:

It is on this basis that Bavinck can say: “There is thus a rich revelation of God even among the heathen—not only in nature but also in their heart and conscience, in their life and history, among their statesmen and artists, their philosophers and reformers.”

Herman Bavinck's Monism and Redefinition of the Kingdom (I)

https://www.wyattgraham.com/p/what-does-herman-bavinck-mean-by

Reading this article about Herman Bavinck (1854-1921), I found myself overwhelmed by a flood of thoughts. His influence is profound and growing and yet is this something to celebrate?

The Architect of Modern Evangelicalism (II)

In many cases his interpretation of culture, politics, and geo-politics will leave the American reader confused. Profoundly conservative, his views on economics are not at all in line with the American Right - and certainly not its waxing Libertarian wing. He condemns laissez-faire policies and the utilitarian arguments that capitalism so often resorts to. He understands that 'money creates power' and warns against it - but then still spends the whole of his life chasing after power and relying on alliances with those who possess wealth. I find it remarkable that he clearly understood and accepted the notion that a Christian political order without a regenerate populace would necessarily result in an oppressive system. It's something American Evangelicals largely do not grasp and of course they don't want to hear it as it flies in the face of the narratives about freedom and liberty. Americans can still dream and fantasize in a way never afforded to the claustrophobic ordering of nations in Europe.

The Architect of Modern Evangelicalism (I)

I recently finished reading James Bratt's 2013 work - Abraham Kuyper: Modern Calvinist, Christian Democrat. I cannot recommend it enough. It was an excellent work, well done, and at times even something of a page turner. While some American readers might struggle at times with the dynamics of 19th century European politics, enough is explained that I think most will be able to persevere through it.

The Covenant of Works and Mosaic Law Misapplied

https://www.douglasvandorn.com/post/a-christian-nation-or-the-covenant-of-works-applied-to-the-nations-undoing-bad-christian-argument

If it was our duty to redeem culture or apply Christian teachings to society, the end result would not be in keeping with the vision of Right-wing Republicanism. A study of Europe and the rise of Christian Social Teaching (of which Abraham Kuyper is the Reformed representative) reveal that those wrestling with these questions are just as likely to come to very different conclusions than what has emerged within the American theological and political spectrum. For these Americans, 'Biblical' turns out to be something that arose within a specifically American context and mindset.

Glorying in their Shame: Celebrating the Magisterial Reformation's Sacral Heritage (I)

or

The Distorted Thinking Which Dominates Reformed Political Thinking Today

https://americanreformer.org/2023/07/reformed-political-theology-today/

The article errs in its opening salvo. Psalm 2 must be interpreted in light of the New Testament. The tension Kennedy looks for is not there. The New Testament reveals Psalm 2 to be eschatological.

As a consequence of this error, there is an admittedly substantial heritage which Kennedy merely perpetuates. Begging the fundamental question, he offers nothing by way of remedy.

Two Kingdoms and the Reformed Tradition (II)

Common Grace is a reality, a mercy, and restraint while the Church bears witness in the world and (this is critically important) wins by losing. We win by bearing the cross, we conquer by being sheep for the slaughter. By living as pilgrims and rejecting the world, we testify against it and to the spiritual powers that undergird it – and proclaim a way of life, a coming Kingdom, and a coming doom. This is foolishness to the world, madness, and supremely unappealing and unattractive. Only people who have lost their minds would embrace such a message and calling – or so it would seem. It's tragic that the majority of Christians think the same as the world does on these points and view such glory and victory, such testimonies to the power of the Holy Spirit as pessimism, defeat, cowardice, and offensive foolishness. One wonders if such thinking has in fact grasped even the broad strokes of the gospel message and the core principles of New Testament doctrine – let alone its ethics. No wonder Christ's words concerning mammon (and the security and power it represents) are incomprehensible to them.