You all know that I love Apple Inc. I love Macintosh computers, iPods, the whole bit (though the jury still out on the iPhone). But alas the halo has dimmed. The angel’s wings have been clipped.

You see, this past Sunday, an accident of freakish proportions happened. Lyndsay had sat the Macbook down and walked away. The place where she sat it was below a book shelf upon which sat a speaker system. Somehow (possibly invisible goblins) some books that were on the shelf with the sub woofer fell over and pushed the sub woofer off the shelf and onto the Macbook shattering the screen.

If you did not catch the first part of this article, you should probably read it. This article will make sense on its own, but to get the big picture read part I. I am trying to keep this simple and to the point. It’s difficult. But we’ll see what happens.  If it gets too bogged down for you just see where I "cut to the chase" near the end.

The ninth chapter of Paul’s epistle to the believers in Rome is a central passage of scripture for those who believe in the doctrine of predestination or unconditional election. Though I felt that unconditional election (UE) conflicted with other scriptures such as Isaiah 1:15-18 and Ezekiel 18:30-31, passages like Romans 9 has kept me from dismissing it out of hand. Also I respect John Calvin and his teaching. Furthermore Martin Luther believed in election. I am not so bold that I will claim to understand the scriptures better than these two giants. They dedicated their very lives to the study, defense, and teaching of scripture. I do well if I can just find time to read my Bible everyday. So I hold these great teachers in high esteem. However I do see points of scripture that are not consistent with UE.

This is going to be long, but I will keep it simple.

I have long considered myself to be “pretty much” a Calvinist. Now do not let that word scare you off. I am not about to launch into the deep murky waters of arguing the most minute points of theology. I find such conversations to be divisive and they often miss the point of such discussions, namely to become more familiar with God and His word. Those kinds of conversations turn into a striving to be right. Unfortunately Calvinists/Reformed folks are notoriously confrontational in matters of theology. This is not where I am going.

For those who are not sure exactly what I mean by Calvinism, I am referring to the system of theology which focuses mostly on the topic of soteriology (how we are saved) and can be summed up by the very handy acrostic T.U.L.I.P. Following is an explanation of these five points of Calvinism. After each you will see a number that tells how much I agree with that particular point on a scale of 1 to 10.

Over the last several months I have had an on-again-off-again personal study of the book of James going. Here are some thoughts I had as I was recently studying James 4:1-4.

“Every good and perfect gift comes from above…” (James 1:16). If what I desire is good, pleasing, and perfect then it will come from above. If I lust after a thing (even if it is an otherwise good thing) the I will have twisted the desire into something evil and ungodly. A Godly wife is a good thing, but to lust after a girl (who may make a good, Godly wife) or to covet another’s is sin.

Lust and covetousness for any thing, pleasure, or possession is sin. And once the thing is gained, it is wholly unsatisfying to the lustful, covetous heart. Ask God for what you need and He will give a good and perfect gift.

Josh H.

Today we heard Eric Simmons and John Piper (twice). Both talks were very good. Being a history buff I was most thrilled by the topic of Piper’s first talk, “William Tyndale”. What an awesome guy he was! Anyway here are some photos we’ve taken throughout the day. Also be on the look out for some photos on Lyndsay’s site.

Josh H.