The Riddleblog

Putin's Invasion of Ukraine and Kyiv as a Spiritual Quest

A number of years ago I ran across a fascinating essay claiming that Vladimir Putin was engaged in serious talks with the Russian Orthodox Patriarch to restore the church to its former dominance in Russia. Putin openly expressed his willingness to fund new church construction and repair, and work closely with the Patriarch to ban from the Russian state all those forms of Christianity perceived as hostile to Orthodoxy. The JW’s were singled out, but Evangelicals were also targeted as threats because they were engaged in “proselyting” among the orthodox. In exchange for Putin’s money, the Orthodox Patriarch would restore the title “Czar” and grant it to Putin in a grand coronation ceremony to be conducted in the rebuilt orthodox cathedral in Moscow. It sounded far-fetched then, not quite so much now. Since “Vlad the Invader” (I’m happy to grant him a royal title) has moved against Ukraine, I searched long and hard for that essay, but have not been able to find it.

But I did find this recent essay on Putin’s ties to the Russian Orthodox Church and Patriarch Kirill which makes a similar point, and contains a number of fascinating insights about Putin’s motives (Putin's Spiritual Destiny).

On Putin’s professed interest in Kyiv (note: Kyiv is the Ukrainian spelling—Kiev is the Russian name). . .

“The spiritual choice made by St Vladimir still largely determines our affinity today” Putin wrote only last year. “In the words of Oleg the Prophet about Kyev, `let it be the mother of all Russian cities.’”

To read the rest, follow the link below

Kim RiddlebargerFebruary 26, 2022 Comments

Putin Plots, the Lord Laughs

I know several Christians now living in Ukraine. I know that there are many others—including many Reformed and Presbyterian missionaries and seminary/Bible school teachers—planting churches there. Please pray for their safety and that our Lord will turn this despicable Russian invasion into long-term good. The words of Psalm 2 come to mind—as these powerful words are being read and prayed by many Ukrainian Christians. They know that as Putin plots, the Lord laughs. They have taken up the chief Christian weapon—prayer. They know that the days ahead will be exceedingly difficult and as the beast rages against the people of God and the gospel, their hope is in the Lord to deliver his people. Let us pray for them, their safety, and for the spread of the gospel.

To read the rest, follow the link below

Kim RiddlebargerFebruary 24, 2022 Comments

An Exposition of Article Twenty-One of the Belgic Confession: The Atonement

We do not go to church to perform a ceremony appease the wrath of the angry God. We do not shed the blood of some poor animal and then consume it in flames as a burnt offering unto God. Nor do we sacrifice a virgin, or throw one of our children into a volcano as a form of human sacrifice. We do not perform some a ritual intended to purify us from our sins and to make God happy with us. Ministers of word ans sacrament are not priests, nor do we celebrate the Mass, offering the transubstantiated the body and blood of our Lord as an unbloodied sacrifice unto the Father so that God’s wrath toward our sins is turned away. We do none of these things. Why? Because we have a great high priest who has already turned aside God’s anger toward our sins! Therefore we assemble to hear yet again that Jesus has already, once and for all, satisfied God’s righteous anger toward our sins when he suffered for us upon the cross, because his sacrifice for sin paid our debt in full.

We are working our way through that section of the Belgic Confession which deals with the work of Christ (Articles Twenty and Twenty-One). Before we move ahead to consider Christ’s work as our high priest–who satisfies the justice of God on our behalf–we need to keep in mind the context in which Christ’s priestly work takes place. That context is human sin. If we do not consider the suffering and dying of our Lord in its biblical context–which is human sinfulness–then we really do risk misrepresenting or misunderstanding what Jesus does on our behalf. In the suffering and dying of our Lord we do not see a picture of human worth, as so many of our contemporaries seem to think. Rather, in the cross, we see the gravity of our sin and the horrible cost that our blessed Lord Jesus paid to redeem us from our sins.

To read the rest, Article Twenty-One: "We Know Nothing But Jesus and Him Crucified"

Kim RiddlebargerFebruary 21, 2022

The Blessed Hope Podcast -- Postscript to Season One, The Book of Galatians

In a postscript to season one of the Blessed Hope Podcast (our series on the Book of Galatians) I address three issues.

First, what happened after Paul composed his letter to the Galatians? We turn to the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15 for an answer.

Second, I tackle listener questions.

Third, I have some comments about N. T. Wright’s new commentary on Galatians.

To listen to this episode, follow the link below.

To listen to the series: The Blessed Hope Podcast

Blessed Hope PodcastKim RiddlebargerFebruary 19, 2022Jerusalem Council, Acts 15 Comments

Musings ( 02/16/2022)

Dr. Godfrey continues his series, “What Is Going on Right Now?” These lectures are “must listen”

Dr. Robert W. Godfrey: "What Is Going on Right Now?" (9)

Dr. W. Robert Godfrey: "What Is Going On Right Now? (10)

The more progressivism seeks to replace religion (especially Christianity), the more it becomes an alternative religion: Craig Carter: “The Religion of Progressivism”
Critical scholars push the long refuted “Bauer Thesis” yet again. The Jesus of history, and the Jesus of the early church are supposedly not the same person. Here’s a basic response: Michael Kruger Reviews "After Jesus, Before Christianity"
To read the rest of my “Musings” follow the link below

Job -- The Suffering Prophet (10): God Answers Job from the Whirlwind

God Answers Job from the Whirlwind

Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar have had their say. So has Job. So has Elihu. Now Job will get the very thing he has been demanding–an audience before God. But when God speaks to Job, things will be much different than Job has been expecting. There will be no formal indictment with charges for Job to answer. The Lord will not give Job a detailed response to his list of questions, nor respond to Job’s specious charges that YHWH has not treated him fairly. Instead, God will cross-examine Job through a series of questions designed to teach Job true wisdom. In the end, Job not only will be much wiser, he will be humbled. Yet at the same time, Job will be assured of God’s favor toward him, even in the midst of his trial by ordeal, which blessedly comes to an end.

We move to the climatic closing chapters of the Book of Job (38-42). God speaks to Job from the midst of a whirlwind. At long last we get an answer to the question which has dominated this entire story so far–why do the righteous suffer? More specifically, why does Job suffer? But the answer Job receives from God is not one Job expects nor even necessarily likes. In fact, some would consider God’s words to Job no answer at all. In Job 38-42 we finally discover what God means when he says in Isaiah 55:8, “my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord,” and in Psalm 145:3 and Isaiah 40:28 when we read that God’s “greatness is unsearchable.” In our weakness, God condescends to teach Job that God’s thoughts, ways, and greatness transcend anything humans think or imagine. As a result, Job will be thoroughly humbled and transformed in his thinking before, in his grace, God restores to Job all those things which had been taken from him during his trial by ordeal, which is now blessedly completed (chapter 42).

To read the rest, follow the link below

Reflections on JobKim RiddlebargerFebruary 14, 2022God answers JobComment

Warfield on William James and the Difference Between Mere Moralism and True Religion

In his short essay, "What Is Calvinism?" (from the Presbyterian, Mar. 2, 1904, 6-7), B. B. Warfield writes,

"`There is a state of mind' says Professor William James in his lectures on `The Varieties of Religious Experience,' `known to religious men, but to no others, in which the will to assert ourselves and hold our own has been displaced by a willingness to close our mouths and be as nothing in the floods and waterspouts of God. [James] is describing what he looks upon as the truly religious mood over against what he calls `mere moralism' `The moralist' he tells us, `must hold his breath and keep his muscles tense': and things go well with him only when he can do so. The religious man, on the contrary, finds his consolation in his very powerlessness; his trust is not in himself but in his God; and the `hour of his moral death turns into his spiritual birthday."

Says Warfield in response, "the psychological analyst [William James] has caught the exact distinction between moralism and religion. It is the distinction between trust in ourselves and trust in God. And when trust in ourselves is driven entirely out, and trust in God comes in, in its purity, we have Calvinism. Under the name of religion at its height, what Professor James has really described is therefore just Calvinism."

William James, by the way, once called himself a Methodist without the Savior.

B. B. WarfieldKim RiddlebargerFebruary 11, 2022William James, Moralism and Religion

Sanctification and Good Works: The Cause and Effect

“Sanctification and Good Works: The Cause and the Effect” — The Westminster Shorter Catechism Q & A 35

I have heard Christians recite the following formula: “Christians are saved by grace, justified by faith, and sanctified by works.” On first hearing, this sounds right as the slogan attempts to capture three important biblical emphases. Yes, we are saved by grace and not by our works (Romans 6:14; Ephesians 2:8). Yes, the ground of our justification are the merits of Christ, which become ours through faith alone (Romans 3:28; Galatians 2:16). And yes, good works will be found in the lives of those who are saved by grace and justified by faith (Ephesians 2:10; James 2:18). But here is where the slogan takes us in the wrong direction–we are not sanctified by our good works.

This is an important point and is often misunderstood. The reason why the last part of the above formula is incorrect (“sanctified by works”) is because when discussing sanctification, the formula confuses the cause (God’s grace) with the effect (good works). To put it another way, while the process of sanctification inevitably leads to the production of good works, good works do not produce our sanctification.

To read the rest, follow the link below

An Exposition of Article Twenty of the Belgic Confession: "The Justice and Mercy of God in Christ"

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” There is probably not a Christian alive who does not know this verse from memory. Yet, is there anyone reading this who can recite Romans 3:25 from memory? “Whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.” Both of these verses tell us something very important about the death of Jesus Christ. But why do we tend to memorize verses which speak of the love of God while often overlooking those verses which speak of the justice of God? This question brings us to the topic of Article Twenty of the Belgic Confession which deals with the justice and mercy of God in Christ. It also brings us to one of the greatest problems in the Christian church today, a sentimental understanding of the cross.

We move from those articles dealing with our Lord’s incarnation (Eighteen and Nineteen) to those dealing with the work of Christ (Twenty and Twenty-One). In fact, we cannot speak of our Lord’s person–the Word who became flesh, who possesses two distinct natures (one divine, one human) joined together in one person (Jesus of Nazareth)–without also speaking of our Lord’s saving work on our behalf. The person and work of Jesus Christ are inseparably linked. Jesus Christ is that redeemer promised throughout the Old Testament, even from the moment of the fall of our race into sin. Jesus is also the mediator of the covenant of grace, making him the only mediator between sinful men and women and the Holy God.

To read the rest: Article Twenty of the Belgic Confession: A Most Perfect Love

Kim RiddlebargerFebruary 7, 2022

Isaiah 65:17-25: A Millennial Reign on Earth? Or a Vision of a New Heaven and Earth (the Eternal State)?

One of the most remarkable prophetic scenes in all the Bible is Isaiah’s vision of a new heavens and earth (Isaiah 65:17-25). Isaiah’s vision speaks of the created order being renewed and transformed to such a degree that former things will not be remembered. Jerusalem, too, will be renewed as her years of mourning turn to joy. The scene given us by Isaiah speaks of long life, the bounty of the land, carnivores (lion and wolves) eating straw with lambs and oxen, and with poisonous serpents no longer feared. Although Isaiah’s vision was given in the eighth century BC, it points ahead to the distant future; both to the coming messianic age (Christ’s first advent) and to the final consummation at the end of the age (Christ’s second advent).

The nature of Isaiah’s prophecy raises questions about when and how the scene will come to pass. When the prophet speaks of long life is he speaking literally—that the current human life span will be extended past one hundred years, and that carnivores will become herbivores? Is he foreseeing that the earthly city of Jerusalem will be the center of piety and the worship of YHWH? Or is Isaiah speaking of things which are eternal (a post-consummation new heavens and earth) using temporal earthly images (which people can understand) to point to eternal things which, on Isaiah’s side of Christ’s resurrection, would be impossible to understand.

There are several interpretations of this passage familiar to those interested in eschatology: (1) The dispensational view, (2) The postmillennial view, and (3) The amillennial view. We will take them up in order.

To read the rest of this essay, follow the link below

Job -- The Suffering Prophet (9): "I Know My Redeemer Lives"

Job’s Faith Is Re-Kindled

Despite all appearances to the contrary, and despite the cruel counsel coming from his friends (most recently Eliphaz), Job still expects vindication. Job knows that God is good, keeps his promises, and that some how and in some way, his ordeal will end and it will be clear to all that Job is not hiding some secret sin.

As the dialogue between Job and his friends continues to unfold, in Job 16:18-17:3, the glowing embers of Job’s faith reappear. With this hope arises, as Job calls out his erst-while friends for their cruel and self-righteous counsel. He calls them “mockers.”

O earth, cover not my blood, and let my cry find no resting place. Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven, and he who testifies for me is on high. My friends scorn me; my eye pours out tears to God, that he would argue the case of a man with God, as a son of man does with his neighbor. For when a few years have come I shall go the way from which I shall not return. `My spirit is broken; my days are extinct; the graveyard is ready for me. Surely there are mockers about me, and my eye dwells on their provocation. Lay down a pledge for me with you; who is there who will put up security for me?’

Job now realizes that the answer to the “why?” question (which he has asked of YHWH), along with his personal vindication before his friends, might not come until after his own death. But yes, Job will get his answer. He will be vindicated—if not in this life, then certainly in the next. His friends do not understand nor, apparently, do they care to.

To read the rest, follow the link below

Kim RiddlebargerFebruary 2, 2022

Pastor Buzzkill (Best of the Old Riddleblog # 7)

From October of 2015

Pastors are always more than a little apprehensive during weddings. Why? Because even though the couple you just married are thrilled that after months of preparation they have finally been pronounced man and wife, that moment is immortalized on film. Every pastor who conducts a wedding knows they are one slip-up away from an American’s Funniest Home Video submission.

There in the background, behind the obvious joy of the moment, is pastor buzzkill-caught with a disapproving scowl on my face even as the newlyweds express their heart-felt joy.

I'm glad this charming couple has found humor in this photo--they teased me with it--and I'm sure they know there was nothing about that day of which even remotely I disapprove.

Here is yet another reminder that the camera catches all, including my lunch backing up, or that moment when I started to relax, or even when my thoughts began to turn to what it is that I was to do next in the ceremony.

Whatever I was thinking or digesting, here I am, pastor buzzkill in all my glory! The moral to the story, "smile!" Even when it hurts to smile!

And to you young ministers reading this, don't eat fast food in a rush before conducting a wedding . . . A verp awaits

Kim RiddlebargerJanuary 31, 2022

Eusebius (the Church Historian) and the Image of the Beast

Occasionally, we find in church history an account of an event long since past but which sheds much light on difficult biblical passages. Such information may even give us pause about our own long-held interpretations of certain passages and might push us to further reflection and study. The famed church historian, Eusebius, recounts one such event.

Eusebius was born about 260 A.D. and died in 348/349. He lived during the Constantinian Period in the Roman province of Syria Palestina (which includes the modern nations of Israel and Syria, as well as portions of Jordan, Turkey, and Egypt). Eusebius is best known for his Ecclesiastical History (which covered the apostolic age until his own) and his unfinished Life of Constantine. Eusebius was an early sympathizer of Arius, but eventually signed off on the homoousion.

In his history of the church, Eusebius recounts an event which sheds some interesting light on one biblical passage which has long perplexed interpreters—Revelation 13:13-15. There we read that the second beast [from the land] “performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain." This beast performs signs, including making an image of the first beast speak. He also coordinates the persecution of the faithful.

To read the rest, follow the link below

Musings ( 1/26/22)

Carl Trueman addresses the question, “What do we do when we discover that our favorite theologians have feet of clay? Since they all do, it is worthwhile taking the time to consider what we should think of them when we learn of their flaws and foibles.

While we are on the topic of the flaws and sins of our heroes, what about the accusation of racism raised against Machen? Scott Clark addresses Machen's racist comments in his private correspondence
All partisan opinions aside, it is painfully obvious that Joe Biden simply is not very good at being President. “All of you people get off my lawn!”
To see further musings, follow the link below

An Exposition of Article Nineteen of the Belgic Confession: The Two Natures of Christ

In order for any of Adam’s fallen race to be saved, God must act to rescue us from the consequences of our sin. God does so in the person of his eternal son, Jesus Christ, through whom God reveals his justice and mercy. In Jesus Christ, God takes to himself a true human nature and comes to earth to do for us those very things sinners cannot do for themselves; fulfill all the righteous requirements of the law and provide an all-sufficient sacrifice for sin. This is why we must believe and confess that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. We must also believe and confess that Jesus Christ remains but one person. But how can this be? How can two distinct natures–one human and one divine–co-exist in one person? This very important question brings us to a discussion of what theologians call the “hypostatic union” of Christ–two natures, yet one person.

Article Nineteen deals with the two natures in Christ (the divine and the human) and the way in which they are related and yet remain distinct. The reason this question must be addressed at this point in our confession is because the prior article dealt with the incarnation of our Lord. When the word became flesh so as to save us from our sins, the question necessarily arises, how can God truly take to himself a human nature? And if he does, how can both human and divine natures co-exist in a single person? Thus the question we seek to answer is not something theologians speculate about to give them something to do. Rather, it is a question raised by the biblical data itself. How we understand these two natures and their relationship to each other says a great deal about what God did in Jesus Christ to save us from our sins.

Click here to read this exposition: Article Nineteen: "We Profess Him to be True Man and True God"

Belgic ConfessionKim RiddlebargerJanuary 24, 2022Christ's Two Natures

The Blessed Hope Podcast -- Episode Fourteen (Season Finale): "Boasting in the Cross of Christ" (Galatians 6:11-18)

In the first century Greco-Roman world crucifixion was something that polite and well mannered people didn’t talk about. Considered a cruel instrument of torture and shame, nevertheless, the cross is the one thing in which the Apostle Paul chooses to boast–not just any cross, but the cross of Jesus Christ, where the guilt and power of sin which enslaved us are removed and broken. And yet, because it was an instrument of shame, Paul’s opponents in Galatia (the Judaizers) refuse to preach the cross of Christ. Instead, they are the champions of human merit earned through “works of the law.” They boast about the number of coverts they have made, yet they neither obey the commandments the champion nor can they see that the crucified and risen Jesus has ushered in the New Creation and established the true Israel of God. We have come to the end of Paul’s Galatian letter–the Magna Carta of Christian liberty. When he closes out this letter, Paul points us back to the cross of Jesus Christ, a fitting way to conclude our time in this remarkable letter.

Note: We have completed the first season—our series on Galatians. Please get your questions about Galatians in for the postscript episode. Use the “contact me” tab to send them my way.

To listen to this episode, follow the link below.

To listen to the series: The Blessed Hope Podcast

I Was On Distilling Theology Discussing Credo Baptism (LBC 1689) and Paedo Baptism (3FU/WCF)

I was recently a guest on the Distilling Theology Podcast. We had a great discussion about Credo Baptism (of the London Baptist Confession of 1689 sort) and Paedo Baptism of the Reformed Confessions (The Three Forms of Unity, and the Westminster Confession).

You can listen here: Distilling Theology: Episode 80 -- A Discussion of Credo v. Paedo Baptism

Kim RiddlebargerJanuary 18, 2022Comment

Job -- The Suffering Prophet (8): Job's Argument with Eliphaz About Suffering

The Pain Inflicted by Friends Trying to Help

There is a much greater pain than his sores, sleeplessness, and loss of all his children and possessions–the knowledge that Job’s friends think he has committed some secret sin, that he is guilty before God, is lying when he denies he’s sinned, and has therefore brought about his terrible ordeal.

From the perspective of Job’s friends (Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar), the reason why Job lost all of his possessions, his children and his health is very simple. God is holy, therefore he must punish all sin. In this they are correct. Since it is obvious that Job is being punished by God (to their way of thinking), there can only be one explanation. Either Job, or his children, have committed some horrible sin which has kindled the wrath of God.

But Job knows he is innocent of such a sin. His heart is broken because he has no idea why God is subjecting him to such terrible suffering. Even as he cries out to God, lamenting his sad state and asking “why?” Job knows that his friends have no clue as to why he is suffering. Although arising from a sense of loyal friendship, Job knows their attempts to “comfort him” are actually cruel, self-righteous diatribes which have no basis in fact.

To read the rest of this reflection, follow the link below

Reflections on Job, Biblical Events, Biblical TheologyKim RiddlebargerJanuary 17, 2022

Should I Get a Bus and Go on Tour? (Best of the old Riddleblog # 6)

From the March 2011 Riddleblog, Harold Camping’s “Save the Date” Tour.

I've been thinking about going on tour to promote my own two books on eschatology (A Case for Amillennialism and The Man of Sin).

I could get a rig like this one, and use flashy graphics to announce that "No one knows the day or the hour” -- Matthew 24:36

From the Old RiddleblogKim RiddlebargerJanuary 15, 2022Harold Camping, Date setting Comments

Jesus Christ -- The Israel of God

If we stand within the field of prophetic vision typical of Israel’s prophets after the exile, and we look to the future, what do we see? Israel’s prophets clearly anticipate a time when Israel will be restored to its former greatness. But will that restoration of Israel to its former glory mirror the former days of the Davidic monarchy—i.e. a restored national kingdom? Or does the prophetic vision of restoration point beyond a monarchy to the ultimate monarch, Jesus the Messiah, who is the descendant of David, YHWH’s servant, and the true Israel?

The prophetic vision given the prophets is remarkably comprehensive. The nation had been divided, and the people of both kingdoms (Israel and Judah) were taken into captivity or dispersed as exiles throughout the region. Judah was exiled to Babylon five centuries before the coming of Jesus. Since the magnificent temple of Solomon was destroyed by the armies of Nebuchadnezzar and the Levitical priesthood was in disarray, any prophetic expectation related to Israel’s future would naturally speak of a reversal of fortune and the undoing of terrible calamity which had come upon the nation. The restoration to come in the messianic age therefore includes not only the fate of the nation, but also the land of Canaan, the city of Jerusalem, a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem (the so-called “second temple”), as well as the long anticipated heir to David’s throne—the coming Messiah.

Yet, once Israel’s Messiah had come, and the messianic age was a reality, how do the writers of the New Testament understand these Old Testament prophecies associated with Israel’s future restoration?

To read the rest of this essay, follow the link below

Amillennialism, eschatology, Biblical Events, Biblical TheologyKim RiddlebargerJanuary 13, 2022 Comments