jeff ronk

@Svigel Silverado Tombstone And… my wife would say… Quigley Down Under.

Your top 5 Westerns. Go!

Done! Not quite in time for Holy Saturday, but close. Highly recommended. Go get it! a.co/d/063CwYuI

Matthew Y Emerson in “He Descended to the Dead: An Evangelical Theology of Holy Saturday” channeling Marc Cortez, interpreting Karl Barth… I think I have to agree…🤔

Big words here- Barth insists that "an adequate anthropological ontology must begin with christological reflection, decisions regarding the state of human ontology during any intermediate state would have to begin with the biblical portrayal of Christ during his entombment."

“…he regards the prayer of the destitute and does not despise their prayer.” Psalm 102:17 1. We are all destitute. 2. The Lord and Creator of the cosmos hears our prayer. Big stuff, that.

From “He Descended to the Dead: An Evangelical Theology of Holy Saturday”. Good read, this. And a good warning not to muck up a bunch of important doctrines this Easter season. 😬🫣😳

“For Balthasar, however, it is not the one God who pours out his wrath, but only the Father. This is a bifurcation between the persons of the Trinity not only at the level of action but also at the level of attributes, since now only the Father is wrathful.” Matthew Y. Emerson

“He took out the package and unwrapped the battered book…. ‘I wonder what agonies have settled here. Give me a used Bible and I will, I think, be able to tell you about a man by the places that are edged with the dirt of seeking fingers.’” Steinbeck- East of Eden

Update! “Moby Dick” was good. “East of Eden” is good- but a hard read. Caro’s “The Power Broker” is weirdly compelling. But, man- it’s long. Emerson’s “He Descended to the Dead” is a good pre-Good Fri read. & Staples’ “Paul and the Resurrection of Israel” is a real banger.

Helpful observation/reminder from @jasonstaples: “As a rule of thumb, when Paul's vocabulary or syntax seem especially obscure, it is often a signal that he is alluding to or borrowing scriptural language….” From “Paul and the Resurrection of Israel”.

@lukestamps I’ve started reporting posts as well. Not sure it does anything- but man… there’s just too much egregious abuse and grossness…

Me with all the nazi anons in my mentions

@KyleStrobel Almost finished! Review incoming! Thank you for putting words to so many of my thoughts and feels.

Today is release day for When God Seems Distant. Our prayer for this book is that it would be a lighthouse guiding to Jesus in the experience of life that often feels tossed by the storms of this world.

Isaiah 44- also a banger. In case you were wondering…

Isaiah 43 is a banger. Just thought I’d share…

@lukestamps Transformation as something that we suffer is a great way to express our experience of the means. Flies in the face of how we tend to understand suffering. Thanks for these thoughts.

2. The means (efficient cause) of SF is the reconciling work of Jesus Christ applied to our lives by the Holy Spirit. God enlists our grace-enabled efforts, but we cannot manufacture our own transformation. It is something we suffer more than something we do.

9.5 theses on spiritual formation: 1. The goal (final cause) of SF is the glory of Christ. It’s not finally about our own moral improvement or spiritual experiences but about enhancing the reputation of Christ in the world.

Psalm 50 is really something.

@lukestamps That’s not to excuse or deny the unscriptural approaches to formation that had developed by late medieval times, but it does make comparing medieval and reformed spiritual formation difficult.

@lukestamps It’s a little tangential, but I wonder about how much of the difference b/w medieval & reformed spiritual formation is related to literacy rates, access to the written word, etc. Lack of direct access to scripture by the layman seems to be a significant hurdle.

I agree with much of Bingham's criticism of Comer here, but I think Reformed folks can still read other traditions with benefit, provided they have a strong home base, so to speak.

More context.

“…the love for one’s neighbor is not a self-vindicating thing which comes up quite spontaneously and naturally out of the human heart.” Bavinck- The Wonderful Works of God