F-Con: Tues Evening

Posted by Joe Thorn - 26/06/07

The first night of the Founders Conference was excellent. Dr. David Wells taught on the subject of Christology in the postmodern age. He explained that, in his view, there are essentially two competing views of spirituality in the west. One is a spirituality that begins “from below” and attempts to ascend upward. The other is a spirituality that begins above and descends downward. The first is a spirituality that begins with man that works toward something bigger - something transcendent. This is the common form of spirituality in America. The alternate spirituality is one that begins with God and descends to man in his sinfulness. This is a spirituality of grace, not merit. It was a beautiful message about the excellency and supremacy of the gospel of grace and the true nature of spirituality. For more info check out Timmy B’s recap of the message.

Dr. Wells baby!Afterward Timmy and I were invited to grab a late bite with Phil Newton, Sam Tullock and Dr. Wells at Applebees. During the dinner I asked Dr. Wells what theological works he would encourage young pastors to read. “What are the most critical volumes to digest?” He’s the “Andrew Mutch Distinguished Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary,” what do you think I’m going to ask him?! His answer was different than I expected. Instead of giving me a list of books, he said that pastors need to read substantive books that manage to be both scholarly and relevant. He also encouraged the reading of biographies of both Christians and non-Christians. Only after politely pressing him a bit about current trends in theology and current works that are valuable he gave up a few titles. He suggested some classics (eg. Kuyper on the Holy Spirit, Warfield on the Inspiration and Authority of the Bible), but the book that he pointed to first was Pierced for our Transgressions, by Steve Jeffery, Mike Ovey, and Andrew Sach. It doesn’t look like it’s readily available in the US at the moment, though you can order it via Amazon and wait 4-6 weeks. It looks fantastic.

Founders Fresh!

Posted by Joe Thorn - 26/06/07

I am staying in a hotel in Tulsa, OK for the 2007 Founders Conference. You know the Founders Conference right? This is where hyper-Calvinists gather to plot the takeover the the SBC while drinking beer, cussing, and… wait - am I confusing the Calvinists with the “missional” guys? I guess it depends on what Southern Baptist talking head you listen to. The truth is, the Founders Conference is a great time of biblical teaching, good fellowship and humble hearts. At least, that has been my experience. Yes, the teaching is coming from an Evangelical/Reformed/Baptist perspective, and I am grateful for it.

There has been a lot of chatter (and slander) about the Reformed population in the SBC, and a lot of speculation concerning this more recent “resurgence” of our theological heritage. I wonder if it is because people have tired of man-centered Christianity and in their search for the truth have discovered the sovereign Redeemer of the world revealed in the Bible. Or perhaps it is because our emphasis on the inerrancy of Scripture has lead to the rediscovery of the sufficiency of Scripture which has lead to the dismissal of various speculative beliefs and the embrace of many biblical doctrines long forgotten. Is it because of God’s gracious purpose in raising up men like R.C. Sproul, John Piper, Mark Dever, and others in the preaching of the true gospel of grace with great influence? Is it the precursor to revival? I don’t know. But I do believe that more people, especially within our younger generations, will discover and embrace a more Reformed theology because they do not feel a sense of obligation to tradition, or title, but rather have a radical dependence on the Scripture. Instead of asking, “Is this Southern Baptist?” they are asking, “Is this right?” We should all be asking such questions and allow the Scripture to give us the answer. For the record, I believe we all need to ask this question from within every perspective. Especially within our Reformed traditions. It is far too easy to become proud and think one system has settled every question. As a Calvinist I must not ask, “Is this Reformed?” but, “Is this right?”

Anyway, I am not sure how much blogging I will be doing while here but my good friend Toe Blister will be live-blogging the whole deal. So watch his blog for all the happenings.

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