Rob Faircloth

6June2017

What Does the Gospel Say About Sanctification

June 6, 2017Written By robfaircloth

As a test, I frequently ask people “What does the Gospel say to that?”

For example, if the topic is gender confusion, I try to help people formulate a broader response in light of the Gospel. But people typically respond with law of some kind:

Genesis says God created man male and female
You should not lie with a man as you would lie with a woman
They exchanged the glory of God for a creature

All of these are some form of “just stop it.” They are true, and are legitimate expressions of God’s will for us in the area of gender identity. But they don’t get to the heart. The Gospel provides a more comprehensive response — including law — that addresses what has happened to distort the heart’s desires.

But in the last few years I noticed that in relation to a believer’s sanctification, not only in the area of mortifying certain sin but also in general spiritual growth, there is an increasingly tendency to tell people things like “just remember the Gospel.”

Continue Reading “What Does the Gospel Say About Sanctification”

6April2016

Christian Perspectives on Government & Culture

April 6, 2016Written By robfaircloth

Christians should understand government and culture in order to engage, understand, and influence it. Earlier I listed a few helpful secular resources for Christians. Here, I suggest resources from the Christian viewpoint on government and cultural issues.

One Nation Under God.

Of recent vintage, Ashford and Pappalardo give principles for engaging culture in the Kuypernian tradition. They discuss “sphere sovereignty” — recognizing that government and church have different roles and responsibilities — and “thick” and “thin” approaches to presenting the Christian worldview — when it’s appropriate to cite the Bible, for instance, and when to use persuasion that is less dependent on Scripture and more accessible to the non-Christian.

Continue Reading “Christian Perspectives on Government & Culture”

29March2016

Christians Should Read these Secular Resources on Government

March 29, 2016Written By robfaircloth

If you’re like me, you didn’t pay much attention in high school civics class. My learning in earnest about government systems and civic life, particularly how they relate to the Christian life, began much later. But being an informed citizen requires much more than reading someone’s voter guide and watching the news. Here are a few things to help you be a more informed, voting citizen.

The Declaration of Independence & Constitution. One great feature of the United States’ foundational documents is that they are relatively short. Compared to the length of the annual Federal Register or even the Supreme Court’s ruling in a case of average significance, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States are positively light reading.

If you are interested in politics and government — in other words, if you are inclined to voice an opinion about politics and government — you really should know what our fundamental civic documents actually say.

Continue Reading “Christians Should Read these Secular Resources on Government”

29February2016

Good Resources for Personal Devotions

February 29, 2016Written By robfaircloth

I have not always been a fan of “devotionals,” which I mostly considered sappy and sentimental emotional drivel with no real substance or power to effect me.

This might be due to the fact that my grandmother loved Open Windows, which fit, in my perception, the unfavorable assessment described above, and she turned dog-eared each page to the center as she completed it, resulting in an odd self-supporting mantle decoration that she would leave out for a few weeks.

My early encounter with less than satisfactory devotional materials did not extinguish the desire to find something useful in that genre. But it hasn’t been until now, some thirty years after my conversion to Christ, that I am comfortable recommending devotional materials to friends and church members.

guide to christian living

A Guide to Christian Living (John Calvin). This is not your normal morning devotions a la Open Windows, by any means, and many will refuse to consider this to be devotional because it is John Calvin, after all, and he is dry, cold, and emotionally barren (isn’t he?).

If you already have a copy of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion, you already have this, because this material constitutes one of the chapters there. It has remained relatively unchanged, even through the many revisions and additions Calvin made to the Institutes. This has been excerpted from the larger work, and reprinted as a stand-alone book.

Calvin’s Guide is wonderfully pastoral, but theologically rich and divided into sections of a couple of paragraphs each, which lend themselves easily to a morning devotion and meditation throughout the day.

The Mystery of Providence (John Flavel). This might actually be more difficult to employ for your daily devotions than Calvin’s Guide, but should you choose to use it this way, you will be pleasantly surprised. Flavel explores God’s sovereignty in all areas of our lives, and gives practical means to observe him more readily and to increase our devotion because of him.

Saving Grace (C. John Miller). In the “devotional” format that most will recognize, Miller’s daily meditations print the day’s Bible text and offers a suggested thought or meditation.

Heart of the Matter: Daily Reflections for Changing Hearts and Lives, (ed. CCEF). This daily format devotional is edited by the Christian Counseling and Education Foundation, and has submissions by David Powlison, Paul David Tripp, and Timothy Lane, among others. Daily Bible passages are cited, but the text of them is not printed.

for the love of God

For the Love of God: A Daily Companion for Discovering the Riches of God’s Word (D.A. Carson). Carson’s works are in two volumes, and track the M’Cheyne yearly Bible reading plan. Carson focuses on one of the Bible passages each day and offers insights and devotional encouragement.

John Piper’s Devotionals. John Piper has several good devotional works, including Taste and See, A Godward Heart, and A Godward Life. Any of these would be edifying, although they tend to be longer than the traditional “devotional” format of a few paragraphs.

If one includes the desktop, tablet, laptop and smartphone formats, there are even more good devotional resources, but these suggestions focus solely on printed, book formats.

If you know of other good devotional resources, I’d love to hear from you.

24February2016

Five Good Books for Bible Study

February 24, 2016Written By robfaircloth

There are many resources to help the lay Bible student understand the Bible better. Dictionaries, concordances, commentaries, handbooks, research software…I’ll suggest those things which should be in every Bible reader’s “study kit” later, but for now, I have a few suggestions for resources that address Bible study generally.

Knowing Scripture, R.C. Sproul

In Knowing Scripture Sproul covers why the believer needs to study God’s Word, what hermeneutics is and why it’s relevant, practical rules for interpretation, and good tools for Bible study, among other things.

One of the motivations a believer should have in reading and studying Scripture is to be a good theologian. Sproul asserts that “No Christian can avoid theology. Every Christian is a theology. Perhaps not a theologian in the technical or professional sense, but a theologian nevertheless. The issue for Christians is not whether we are going to be theologians, but whether we are going to be good theologians. A good theologian is one who is instructed by God” (25).

Knowable Word, Peter Krol

If you haven’t looked into subscribing to the books from Cruciform Press, you should.

This short book from Peter Krol, through Cruciform Press, focuses on practical Bible study, employing the method of Observation, Interpretation, and Application.

Krol includes many helpful resources in addition to a description of the method.

Grasping God’s Word, J Scott Duvall & J Daniel Hays

This resource was designed for use in Christian colleges and for seminary work, so it is the longest and most thorough of the resources I recommend here.

But, don’t let that intimidate you. If you are looking for an introduction to Bible study that will challenge you, or want a refresher to help hone and refine your Bible study skills, this is for you.

Journey into God’s Word, J Scott Duvall & J Daniel Hays

journey into gods word

You might notice the same authors listed on this resource as the previous recommendation. This is a condensed version of Grasping God’s Word, and can be read in a sitting or two. It is about the same length as Knowable Word.

However, don’t be tempted to merely read. Do all the exercises and employ the methods suggested, and your Bible study and understanding will improve as a result.

A Basic Guide to Interpreting the Bible, Robert Stein

Although I’ve listed R.C. Sproul’s book first in this list, if you were to choose only one of these to get started, this book from Robert Stein would be the one I recommend.

Stein covers all the important preliminary questions regarding Bible study, potential pitfalls and interpretation errors, as well as particular rules for interpreting the various genres (literary styles) of the Bible.

40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible, Robert Plummer

40 questions about interpreting

The content of this resource is much the same as Knowing Scripture, Grasping God’s Word, and A Basic Guide, but is in the “40 Questions” format.

Some people like this approach because it permits looking up various issues according to the questions typically raised about them.

However, if you don’t like this format, you would get the same help with Bible study from some of the other resources suggested here.

Let me know your thoughts on these resources, or if there are others you would include on the list!

1February2016

Good Resources on the Spiritual Disciplines

February 1, 2016Written By robfaircloth

This week I’ll begin a series that explores the spiritual disciplines and an outline for thinking about them that I have found to be the most useful.

Here I describe some of the better books on the disciplines. There are books that stand out in their treatment of individual disciplines, such as fasting and prayer, which I’ll take up as the series progresses.

This list includes those that aim to set out a complete list of spiritual practice.

Richard J Foster, Celebration of Discipline. I cut my disciplines teeth on Foster, although I had earlier read Bridges’ Practice of Godliness (arranged by the fruit of the Spirit). Today Foster would not be my first choice, and the reader should be alert to the Quaker “inner light” influence coming through.

Donald S Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. I have benefited much from Whitney’s treatment of the disciplines here. There are many other resources that accompany this volume, and a website in addition.

Donald S Whitney, Ten Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health. This does not treat the spiritual disciplines per se, but is a good companion volume to Spiritual Disciplines.

Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace. This sat on my shelf for years before I finally picked it up and read it recently. It isn’t organized by the various disciplines, which might be why I put it aside for a time. But Bridges here provides a great resource for understanding spiritual growth through the disciplines, and the vital role that our understanding of grace plays in it.

R Kent Hughes, Disciplines of a Godly Man. Other notable resources by Hughes include Disciplines of a Godly Family and Disciplines of a Godly Young Man. His wife, Barbara, wrote Disciplines of a Godly Woman. All are worth reading.

If you are beginning a study of the disciplines, or beginning again, I recommend Whitney’s two books — Spiritual Disciples for the Christian Life and Ten Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health — together with Bridges’ book — The Discipline of Grace.

What are your suggestions?

Check back here for my post series on the subject.

14March2013

The Reformed Pastor: he disciplines the flock

March 14, 2013Written By robfaircloth

In The Reformed Pastor, Richard Baxter challenges pastors to lead their congregations in light of the responsibilities of the calling of God and the proclamation of the gospel.

One of these responsibilities is the exercise of church discipline. Many of us would prefer to leave this idea of church discipline with Baxter in the 1600s, as though we have progressed far beyond such antiquated notions of holiness and sanctification, which are obviously personal and optional preferences akin to Baxter’s hairdo and clothing choices.

Baxter advocates for initial private attempts by the pastor to bring a sinner to repentance, acknowledging the need for particular skill in the matter and sensitivity to the particular temperament of the offender. Even so, Baxter emphasizes the need to “shake their careless hearts” with respect to the sin that they commit. Baxter anticipates the objection that his hearers would surely raise, and which might as well have been prepared for those in our own time who don’t immediately agree with the concept of biblical church discipline. Those protestors would suggest “there is little likelihood that public reproof will do them good,” and that instead they would be “enraged by the shame of it.”

In response, Baxter proposes primarily that it is of little consequence to suggest that God’s “ordinances” (commands) are useless. The utility of a command from our perspective is not the test, but rather our faithfulness to obey it. Further, Baxter argues that there is great utility in “shaming of sin and humbling the sinner,” and in a time such as ours in which “self-esteem” is put forth as the god who led us out of the land of Egypt, and in which we maintain a contra-Pauline philosophy that sin should abound so grace may abound all the more, he could be speaking to our hubristic generation, directly.

Baxter also addresses the fact that discipline is not only for the offending believer, though the goal is repentance and restoration to church fellowship, but that it is also for the witness and testimony of the church. For if the church proclaims the sufficiency of the gospel for salvation, and asserts that those who are in Christ are new creatures transformed by the grace of God, lives that remain unchanged and bound in sin testify more loudly than those proclaimations and assertions. Church discipline is not easy, or popular, yet for Baxter the reformed pastor is duty-bound to so disciple the flock.