“If God does not exist, then nothing matters.
If God does exist, that is all that matters.”
The words of an unnamed skeptic as quoted by Dr. Bill Brown in the DVD series re:View, episode #02: “Sign/Ultimate Questions.”
Valentines and Catheters
“Humid professions of undying love and tear-stained sonnets are all well and good, but they can’t compete with the earthy love of Deb helping me change and drain my catheter pouches each day…”
The words of New York Times editor Dana Jennings from his Valentine’s column reflecting on his wife, marriage, genuine love, and his battle with aggressive prostate cancer.
Blunt Force Trueman: Facebook
“…the church should show this generation of text and web addicts where real friendship and community lie, not with some bunch of self-created avatars on Facebook but with the person next to them in the pew on Sunday, with the person next door, with the person they can see, hear, touch and, of course, to whom they can talk, and who is created not in webworld but by the mighty Creator.”
Ouch. The ever honest Carl Trueman.
Fiction v. Scripture?
“Words are powerful things and none can be more injurious than many to be found in fiction. For the reason stated in the second part of the book, I believe the Bible is not fiction.”
From Iain Murray’s latest book, The Undercover Revolution (p. viii), his argument that, based upon the undermining of British ethics by fictional lit in the 19th and 20th centuries, fictional literature poses a danger to the non-fiction genre of Scripture.
All words, even fictional words, are powerful, mind-shaping tools—either powerfully bad (The Shack) or powerfully good (C.S. Lewis). Murray tips his hat to good fiction on the first page, but I don’t think this is enough. Few literary genres provide more untapped potential for the spread of the gospel in the 21st century than fiction. May the Church run towards the genre of fictional literature and celebrate those who use fiction to communicate eternal truth.
Gospel Awareness and Self-Analysis
“The Puritans and [Jonathan] Edwards had the highest view of the mercy of God. In a sense their high view of the mercy of God is what gave them the courage to be self-analytical. But I think people reading them who are not grounded in a high view of the gospel can become depressed and introspective.”
David Powlison, CCEL podcast: “Biblical Counseling and the Puritans.”
Piper v. Wright
“In order for us moderns to understand the story of Israel rightly, we must understand the biography of Saul [Paul] rightly. This is what Piper sees, and what Wright does not. This is the hinge upon which everything turns.”
Douglas Wilson reviewing N.T. Wright’s latest book, Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision (IVP, June 2009).
Tony Reinke 