Musing On Coffee

One of the greatest actors of our generation .

I don’t know too much about Jeff Durbin. From the relatively little I’ve heard, I thought he was a man of character, but watching his disrespectful and slanderous handling of John MacArthur’s teaching in this podcast episode actually brought tears to my eyes. I couldn’t finish it. I don’t know the motives in the hearts of these men that would cause them to post such an egregious misrepresentation of MacArthur’s beliefs, but a clear-thinking person would actually have to work to butcher his meaning and miss it this badly. To accuse such a faithful and consistent man of “ping-ponging,” being inconsistent, and not making sense, and perhaps even most arrogant and dishonoring of all, to attribute MacArthur’s bold action of defying the government to obey God during COVID of him being inconsistent to his own eschatological beliefs and behaving as though he held theirs is truly appalling and petty behavior. The sarcastic and disrespectful responses seen here in this clip are shocking. If these men didn’t actually know why MacArthur taught what he did, they would have been far better off to stay quiet and seek out the answers from the over 50 years of clear and faithful teaching that MacArthur left behind. They could have found the answers within minutes. Instead, we get this. Shameful.

Responding to the recent John MacArthur controversy.

A few further thoughts on the Durbin–MacArthur controversy and the distinction between losing here and overcoming in Christ: Revelation 6:9–11 portrays faithful saints being slain because of the word of God, while Revelation 12:11 says that they overcame by the blood of the Lamb and did not love their lives even unto death. They may be killed on earth and yet overcome in Christ. That is the distinction I understood MacArthur to be making when he said, “We don’t win down here, we lose,” and then clarified, “We lose on this battlefield, but we win on the big one, the eternal one.” His examples were explicit: “It killed Jesus. It killed all the apostles,” and, “They killed Him, they killed the apostles, and in every generation they kill the people who proclaim the truth.” The world really does hate Christ and those who belong to Him, just as Christ taught. MacArthur spoke about persecution, suffering, and death on this earthly battlefield. His statement did not deny every temporal victory, providential mercy, advance of the gospel, or season of rest granted throughout church history. The church may experience genuine fruitfulness and deliverance in this age while still suffering real losses until Christ returns. Yet even when the saints are persecuted, dispossessed, or killed, they overcome in Christ and will be openly vindicated when He comes. Revelation 6 and 12 display that pattern plainly. Micah expresses the same hope in God’s vindication: “Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy. Though I fall I will rise; though I dwell in darkness, Yahweh is a light for me. I will bear the indignation of Yahweh because I have sinned against Him, until He pleads my case and executes justice for me. He will bring me out to the light, and I will look on His righteousness” (Micah 7:8–9). Perhaps some expectations of continual growth and earthly victory have been shaped more by the unusual peace and prosperity experienced in the United States over the past half century than by the experience of much of the church throughout history. The United States has been an instrument of many real blessings, but it has also promoted and participated in much evil. Its prosperity and influence should not be confused with the victory of Christ’s kingdom. Yet none of this is a reason for passivity or despair. On the contrary, we are to be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that our labor in the Lord is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58). We must always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks about the hope within us (1 Peter 3:15). What is that hope? It is not confidence that every faithful labor will produce the earthly results we desire, that we will necessarily see revival, or that the church will finally triumph over the rebellious world before Christ returns. We may see visible fruit and revival according to God’s will, but our hope rests in Jesus Christ, crucified, risen, reigning, and coming again. In Him we have forgiveness of sins, reconciliation with God, and eternal life. Our final and public vindication will come when our Lord returns, raises us bodily, and brings us into the fullness of everlasting life with Him. Earthly treasures will perish, but our treasure is in heaven. Christ is our hope. Eschatology substantially shapes this disagreement. If Christ returns before the millennium, then the church does not finally subdue the rebellious world through historical progress before He comes. Paul likewise teaches that the rebellion precedes the day of the Lord (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Final public vindication arrives with the returning King and the resurrection of His people. But if Christ returns only after a prolonged era of widespread Christian ascendancy, then the statement “we lose down here” will naturally sound contrary to that expectation. MacArthur could have stated the distinction more fully or qualified his wording more clearly, but he did not need to, because nothing he said was false.

Some people are so poor, all they have is money Brady is currently single riding around in Miami in his $20M yacht. His children live with his ex-wife & her hubby