Tag Archives: Quotes

Theology of the Heart and the Head

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James Montgomery Boice write in his commentary on Psalm 139:

“Sometimes we speak of ‘doing theology’ today, and we often talk about the conflict between the head and the heart, saying that either one alone is inadequate. A theology that is all of the head is cold, dry, barren, and of little practical value. A theology that is all heart may be warm, comforting, and practical, but it will lack substance, and because it does it will be subject to every theological fad that comes along and will not hold up in hard times.”

Boice goes on to say that Psalm 139 is both head and heart, telling us of God’s nature, but in a very personal way. The Psalmist shows us how God is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent in our own lives. No matter what we think, or where we go, He is there and He already knows. He knows more about us than we know about Him, or ourselves. He is not distant to us, but involved in the life of the believer and all this is very comforting to those of us who struggle with the trials of life. He is a loving God who cares deeply about us and we can trust in Him.

For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

139 O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.
3 You comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.
5 You have hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.

7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10 Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall[a] on me,”
Even the night shall be light about me;
12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

13 For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;[b]
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.

19 Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!
Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men.
20 For they speak against You wickedly;
Your enemies take Your name in vain.[c]
21 Do I not hate them, O Lord, who hate You?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?
22 I hate them with perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
24 And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting.

Bob Stoops Steps In IT

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Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops recently stepped in it by saying the SEC really wasn’t that great of a conference even though it has produced the National Champion the last seven years. Here is what the infinitely wise coach said:

Listen, they’ve had the best team in college football, meaning they’ve won the national championship. That doesn’t mean everything else is always the best.

So they’ve had the best team in college football. They haven’t had the whole conference. Because, again, half of ‘em haven’t done much at all. I’m just asking you. You tell me.

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Rand Paul After His 13-Hour Filibuster

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In the conclusion to his 13-hours filibuster, Senator Rand Paul said:

“I sit at Henry Clay’s desk, and they call Henry Clay the ‘Great Compromiser.’ When I came to Washington, one of my fellow Senators said to me: Oh, I guess you will be the great compromiser. I kind of smiled at him and laughed. I learned a little bit about Henry Clay and his career.

“People think some of us won’t compromise, but there are many compromises. There are many things on which I am willing to split the difference. If the Democrats will ever come to us and say: We will fix and we will save Social Security, what age we change it to, how fast we do it–there are a lot of things on which we can split the difference. But the issue we have had today is one on which we don’t split the difference. I think you don’t get half of the fifth amendment. I don’t think you acknowledge that the President can obey the fifth amendment when he chooses. I don’t think you acknowledge that the fifth amendment, due process, can somehow occur behind closed doors.”

It is nice to know we have some Senators who are paying attention to the Constitution.

Quotable Quote

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From G.K. Chesterton… that seems to capture the mindset of the age. Hattip: Danny.

“But the new rebel is a septic, and will not entirely trust anything. He has no loyalty; therefore he can never be really a revolutionist. And the fact that he doubts everything really gets in his way when he wants to denounce anything. For all denunciation implies a moral doctrine of some kind; and the modern revolutionist doubts not only the institution he denounces, but the doctrine by which he denounces it. Thus he writes one book complaining that imperial oppression insults the purity of women, and then he writes another book (about the sex problem) in which he insults it himself. He curses the Sultan because Christian girls lose their virginity, and then curses Mrs. Grundy because they keep it. As a politician, he will cry out that war is a waste of life, and then, as a philosopher, that all life is waste of time. A Russian pessimist will denounce a policeman for killing a peasant, and then prove by the highest philosophical principles that the peasant ought to have killed himself. A man denounces marriage as a lie, and then denounces aristocratic profligates for treating it as a lie. He calls a flag a bauble, and then blames the oppressors of Poland or Ireland because they take away that bauble. The man of this school goes first to a political meeting, where he complains that savages are treated as if they were beasts; then he takes his hat and umbrella and goes on to a scientific meeting, where he proves that they practically are beasts. In short, the modern revolutionist, being an infinite skeptic, is always engaged in undermining his own mines. In his book on politics he attacks men for trampling on morality; in his book on ethics he attacks morality for trampling on men. Therefore the modern man in revolt has become practically useless for all purposes of revolt. By rebelling against everything he has lost his right to rebel against anything.”

Chesterton, G. K. (Gilbert Keith) (2012-05-17). Orthodoxy (Kindle Locations 532-536). . Kindle Edition.

The State of Religion

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If you recall, Team Obama had a Christian slated to make the prayer for the inauguration last week but it was discovered that Louie Giglio had preached against homosexuality some 15 years ago. Team Obama couldn’t have that so they brought in Myrlie Evers-Williams instead. She is a laywoman and when she prayed, she conveniently prayed without  mentioning God’s name. She prayed to us and about us instead. (See Al Mohler’s comments here about the Giglio incident). This should cause those of us in the true faith to be alarmed, but we’ve seen so much turning away from the true faith, that it’s a daily occurrence.

I really like Bart Gingerich take on the entire incident. He shows us that Evers-Williams prayer and the belief behind it is the end result of those who invent their own religion. I think he nails the problem of so much of what is wrong in America today. Even those who are inside the “church” want to be inside the church apart from the religion given to us by a Triune God, and just want to have religious experiences apart from true repentance and salvation.

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J.C. Ryle on Christ’s Preparation of Heaven

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I may have used this quote before, but it’s worth repeating. It is from J.C. Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John, concerning John 14:2, Jesus going to prepare a place for us.

“Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people: a place which we shall find Christ Himself has made ready for true Christians. He has prepared it by procuring a right for every sinner who believes to enter in. None can stop us, and say we have no business there. He has prepared it by going before us as our Head and Representative, and taking possession of it for all the members of His mystical body. As our Forerunner He has marched in, leading captivity captive, and has planted His banner in the land of glory. He has prepared it by carrying our names with Him as our High Priest into the holy of holies, and making angels ready to receive us. They that enter heaven will find they are neither unknown nor unexpected.”[1]

I think what struck me about it today is that by the time we get to heaven, we are ready for heaven. God has so worked in the believer’s life that he or she no longer need the trials of this life. They have endured enough and our loving LORD calls us to be home with Him. There are some days in which I wish that day would come more quickly than other days, however, I am trusting in HIM for His timing on my eventual call. May I live as He has called me to until that day.

[1] J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospel: John, Vol. 4, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI., 2007, p. 52

John Wayne — A True Conservative

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I was reading up on John Wayne, the Duke, over at Wikipedia last night and noted that he was a conservative and outspoke Republican. John Wayne died in 1979, shortly before I became interested in politics, so know whether or not he was a conservative was not on my radar at the time.

The article there quoted his response when asked about Medicare and Welfare. This is what he said:

I know all about that. In the late Twenties, when I was a sophomore at USC, I was a socialist myself — but not when I left. The average college kid idealistically wishes everybody could have ice cream and cake for every meal. But as he gets older and gives more thought to his and his fellow man’s responsibilities, he finds that it can’t work out that way — that some people just won’t carry their load … I believe in welfare — a welfare work program. I don’t think a fella should be able to sit on his backside and receive welfare. I’d like to know why well-educated idiots keep apologizing for lazy and complaining people who think the world owes them a living. I’d like to know why they make excuses for cowards who spit in the faces of the police and then run behind the judicial sob sisters. I can’t understand these people who carry placards to save the life of some criminal, yet have no thought for the innocent victim.

To bad there are not more conservatives like John Wayne in Hollywood today. The more I read about John Wayne, the more I like him and the more I see why he was such an American icon.

Pelosi Construct Sentence Coherent Not

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You know how much I love listening to Nancy Pelosi as she tries to make a case for her position and so often, fails to be logical at all. But this bit of blather takes it to a new level. In her accusation that Republicans are trying to exploit Jews for the upcoming election (as if Dems don’t exploit everyone for elections) she says this:

“I think [Obama] will” win the Jewish vote, Pelosi said, when pressed on the subject. “I think that he will, because the fact is when the facts get out. You know, as many of the Republicans are using Israel as an excuse, what they really want are tax cuts for the wealthy. So Israel, that can be one reason they put forth.”

What? I think the reporter is filling in the gaps, or trying to make some sort of sense out of it. After all, that fact is, that the facts get out and Republicans are using Israel as an excuse to lower taxes? How are those two subjects connected at all? I guess there was some hidden meaning in her statement “you know.”

And the final sentence: “So Israel, that can be one reason they put forth.” OK, Israel is another reason that they put forth tax cuts?

As Ronald Reagan was known as the Great Communicator, Nancy Pelosi is the Great Babbler.

The Need For Christ Crucified — J.C. Ryle

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The following is from J.C. Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, on John 6:1-14 when Jesus fed the 5,000.

Let us never doubt for a moment, that the preaching of Christ crucified, — the old story of His blood, and righteousness, and substitution,– is enough for all the spiritual necessities of all mankind. It is not worn out. It is not obsolete. It has not lost its power. We want nothing new,– nothing more broad and kind,– nothing more intellectual,– nothing more efficacious. We want nothing but the true bread of life which Christ bestows, distributed faithfully among starving souls. Let men sneer or ridicule as they will. Nothing else can do good in this sinful world. No other teaching can fill hungry consciences, and give them peace. We are all in a wilderness. We must feed on Christ crucified, and the atonement made by His death, or we shall die in our sins.

Even today, with all of man’s inventions and technological advances, we still need the same old gospel of Jesus Christ for salvation. Nothing will ever replace that need for mankind because no matter how we rationalize, we are still sinners in need of God’s grace.