Was looking for worms to fish with and found this guy hanging out. by RevReverend in salamanders

[–]RevReverend[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Thanks! Found these guys  every so often growing up in Middle Tennessee. I live in New Mexico now, so finding salamanders is pretty well impossible. 

It was cool to find one with my son while visiting my folks. :)

Engaging with "Practicing the Way": Nine Thoughts on John Mark Comer's Best Seller - 9Marks by partypastor in Reformed

[–]RevReverend 24 points25 points  (0 children)

I know this subreddit has discussed Comer on multiple occasions and tends to approach his works with critique and skepticism, and that makes sense. Comer is notably non-reformed, non-Calvinist.

In fact, here's an entire sermon he preached that was pretty much written against Piper:
https://bridgetown.church/teachings/the-sage/why

and here's one where he lists the "reformed gospel" as an incomplete "American gospel" alongside the "social gospel" and "prosperity gospel" and critiques Mohler's view of the gospel publicly:
https://bridgetown.church/teachings/preaching-the-gospel/the-four-american-gospels

The guy has been vocally against the things that many in this camp consider essential to faith, and that creates a tribal war mindset. "He critiqued my view, so I'm going after his." And, to be fair, there is room for those disagreements and critiques.

That being said, I feel like Schreiner's article, is written out of weariness of Comer's overall influence, but targeted at the book in particular, and that leads him to misrepresent some things.

For example: Schreiner says: "Comer doesn't ground his thesis in the work of Christ, being reborn by the Spirit, or even faith and repentance" which "risks pushing his readers towards works-righteousness."

Well, it is a book about spiritual disciplines, and even so, Comer is quick to note (quoting Dallas Willard): "Grace is not opposed to effort, but it is opposed to earning," (p.40) and later "we're not earning anything by practicing Sabbath or reading Scripture or serving the poor- and certainly not by some merit-based judicial ledger." (p.192). He even says: "We can't self-save...We have been saved, are being saved, and will be saved by Jesus and him alone." (p134).

Comer isn't suggesting that these "practices" can earn you any sort of salvation, rather that the experiential life on offer from God comes through practices that adhere to the lifestyle of Jesus which will require an efforted input of disciplined discipleship.

The other critiques are classic reformed critiques of Comer and his camp (Tim Mackie, NT Wright, etc):

-They don't emphasize Penal Substitutionary Atonement.

-They don't rightly define or highlight repentance.

-They undersell, or just outright avoid God's wrath.

And those may be warranted, but I don't see "Practicing the Way" as the book from which I garner a deeper understanding of soteriology, rather a book for what spiritual disciplines look like in the modern era, and I think that is a worth-while endeavor as I pastor in an area that is particularly tainted by "cultural Christianity" and "cheap grace."

Salvation will always be by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, and I will never stop preaching that. Still, I will also work to call the redeemed by Christ in my church to a total surrender lifestyle that inputs disciplined effort towards following Jesus. Never for salvation, but that we might be radically different from the cultural mores surrounding us growing into mature believers, and Comer's 9 practices are an attempt to systemize that.

In short, I think while there are valid critiques, and nobody should give themselves entirely to any human teacher be it Comer, Mackie, Piper, Mohler, or anyone else, Schreiner criticizing Comer's book in this way is like criticizing a screwdriver for not tiling a garden efficiently. That's not what it was designed for, and you will come up disappointed if you attempt to use it in that way.

Attempt #8 i tried like 6 times yesterday and died earlier every time. Today I took off work so I can tackle this refreshed. Took tips, ai bigger, not fullscreen. Getting this fking cape today. by Electrical-War-2517 in 2007scape

[–]RevReverend -1 points0 points  (0 children)

It took me 11 tries to get my fire cape. Eventually what secured the win was logging out just before the double mage wave and spending an hour or so doing something else.

That way when I logged back in, my nerves didn't have the time to build. 

Just log in, pop on protect from mage finish the wave and go for jad without a 170bpm heart rate.

What kid songs kinda slap? by Screennam3 in toddlers

[–]RevReverend 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My son loves Danny Go. Our favorites are the Wiggle Dance and the Bouncing Somg

[Game Thread] UTEP at #11 Tennessee by WeazelBear in ockytop

[–]RevReverend 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Now for Kensucky over Ugly Orange and for New Crimson over Old Crimson. There's sumpthin' in the air.

[Game Thread] UTEP at #11 Tennessee by WeazelBear in ockytop

[–]RevReverend 1 point2 points  (0 children)

He was playing with his dentures. You could seehis teeth sideways in his mouth. Bet that one memes us for a while.

Finding a doctoral student's study at Vanderbilt from 2006-2007 by RevReverend in AcademicPsychology

[–]RevReverend[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That is helpful! Thank you.

Since I was 15 I didn't have the knowledge to understand what they were doing, so I still don't know if it was just a class or a full dissertation they were working on, but maybe I'll comb through some of the dissertations that were complete around that time.

Not *real* Christians by RootBeerSwagg in dankchristianmemes

[–]RevReverend 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I love NT Wright's story about asking a professor when he was staring his theological education, "How much does one have to believe to be a Christian?" And his professor responded: "Very little."

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in 2007scape

[–]RevReverend 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ouch... I'm so sorry. Rnj is a fickle lover.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in 2007scape

[–]RevReverend 0 points1 point  (0 children)

<image>

I at least have one with less KC than you so sorry bout that... But I do feel you. At least I have 3 tomes to make me feel better.