T4G’08 Day Two

There’s no way I’m going to be able to fit everything from today into one blog entry and simultaneously, keep is reasonably short. Here’s the synopsis of the day:

• Session 1 – John McArthur
  Topic: The Sinner Neither Able or Willing – The Doctrine of Absolute Inability
• Session 2 – Mark Dever
  Topic: Improving the Gospel – Exercises in Unbiblical Theology
• Session 3 – R.C. Sproul
  Topic: The Curse Motif of the Atonement
• Session 4 – Al Mohler
  Topic: Why Do They Hate It So? – The Doctrine of Substitution

I’ll start at the top. I’ve never heard John McArthur speak before (in person) so I’m kind of a McArthur newbie. I haven’t read any of his books, so my slate for John McArthur is pretty clean. He presented a superb teaching about the doctrine of depravity. In my opinion I would almost say a water-tight argument. I say almost only because I’m not smart enough to ask the right questions which would attempt to poke holes in his superb presentation.

Next was Mark Dever. I had some issues with him. In his argument to protect the Gospel from “improvements” he basically ruled out all opportunities for contextualization of the message. Basically that just means our attempts to make the Gospel relevant. I disagree with that. No matter what your approach you always present the Gospel to people in language they will understand, which is contextualization. I do agree with him that the Gospel should never be reduced to pragmatism. Pragmatism changes the Gospel to a message that sacrifices the least amount of depth for the most amount of converts. Put another way, you decide, based upon your context, the presentation of the Gospel that will win the most people to Christ. We should never choose a “version” of the Gospel for evangelism. It should be the whole Gospel, or none at all.

R.C. Sproul was the third speaker today. All I can say is it is perhaps the best sermon I have EVER heard. I leaned over to Sean and said, “That might be the best sermon I’ve ever heard . . . no offense.” He agreed. I must confess I was so wrapped up and captivated by the message that I took few notes. I will definitely provide a link to this sermon once it becomes available. Everyone should hear it. Sean said it made him want to get saved all over again. I felt the weight and presence of the Holy Spirit when R.C. spoke (not that it was him) like I have with few people in my life. It was truly one of those moments in life I will not soon forget.

Our final speaker for the day was Al Mohler. I must admit that by the time 7:00 PM rolled around I was fatigued and mentally exhausted. But nonetheless, I tried to keep up. It goes without saying that Al Mohler did a superb job with defending the doctrine of atonement and explaining why people despise it. He is an intellectual giant, a great speaker, and he did an excellent presentation. Too bad I was incapable of keeping up with him by this time of the night. If they offer a place to submit comments and suggestions for 2010, I’m going to suggest that Al Mohler be the mid-morning speaker. The grogginess of early morning and fatigue of late evening aren’t conducive to keep pace with him.

A few side issues. Sean and I did not get to meet John Piper today, despite that we were first in line to meet him. For some reason, he did not come to the afternoon session. We’ll try again tomorrow.

I did get to speak with the worship leader, Bob Kauflin, for a few moments tonight. I was actually impressed that he vaguely knew who I was. He read my name tag and told me my name was familiar. Several months ago I had made a series of comments on his blog. When I told him that it all came back to him.

John Piper is first thing in the morning. He’s the one I am wanting to hear most, but I must admit that topping R.C. Sproul’s sermon today is going to be difficult even for Piper.

Day three next.

T4G'08 Day Two

There’s no way I’m going to be able to fit everything from today into one blog entry and simultaneously, keep is reasonably short. Here’s the synopsis of the day:

• Session 1 – John McArthur
  Topic: The Sinner Neither Able or Willing – The Doctrine of Absolute Inability
• Session 2 – Mark Dever
  Topic: Improving the Gospel – Exercises in Unbiblical Theology
• Session 3 – R.C. Sproul
  Topic: The Curse Motif of the Atonement
• Session 4 – Al Mohler
  Topic: Why Do They Hate It So? – The Doctrine of Substitution

I’ll start at the top. I’ve never heard John McArthur speak before (in person) so I’m kind of a McArthur newbie. I haven’t read any of his books, so my slate for John McArthur is pretty clean. He presented a superb teaching about the doctrine of depravity. In my opinion I would almost say a water-tight argument. I say almost only because I’m not smart enough to ask the right questions which would attempt to poke holes in his superb presentation.

Next was Mark Dever. I had some issues with him. In his argument to protect the Gospel from “improvements” he basically ruled out all opportunities for contextualization of the message. Basically that just means our attempts to make the Gospel relevant. I disagree with that. No matter what your approach you always present the Gospel to people in language they will understand, which is contextualization. I do agree with him that the Gospel should never be reduced to pragmatism. Pragmatism changes the Gospel to a message that sacrifices the least amount of depth for the most amount of converts. Put another way, you decide, based upon your context, the presentation of the Gospel that will win the most people to Christ. We should never choose a “version” of the Gospel for evangelism. It should be the whole Gospel, or none at all.

R.C. Sproul was the third speaker today. All I can say is it is perhaps the best sermon I have EVER heard. I leaned over to Sean and said, “That might be the best sermon I’ve ever heard . . . no offense.” He agreed. I must confess I was so wrapped up and captivated by the message that I took few notes. I will definitely provide a link to this sermon once it becomes available. Everyone should hear it. Sean said it made him want to get saved all over again. I felt the weight and presence of the Holy Spirit when R.C. spoke (not that it was him) like I have with few people in my life. It was truly one of those moments in life I will not soon forget.

Our final speaker for the day was Al Mohler. I must admit that by the time 7:00 PM rolled around I was fatigued and mentally exhausted. But nonetheless, I tried to keep up. It goes without saying that Al Mohler did a superb job with defending the doctrine of atonement and explaining why people despise it. He is an intellectual giant, a great speaker, and he did an excellent presentation. Too bad I was incapable of keeping up with him by this time of the night. If they offer a place to submit comments and suggestions for 2010, I’m going to suggest that Al Mohler be the mid-morning speaker. The grogginess of early morning and fatigue of late evening aren’t conducive to keep pace with him.

A few side issues. Sean and I did not get to meet John Piper today, despite that we were first in line to meet him. For some reason, he did not come to the afternoon session. We’ll try again tomorrow.

I did get to speak with the worship leader, Bob Kauflin, for a few moments tonight. I was actually impressed that he vaguely knew who I was. He read my name tag and told me my name was familiar. Several months ago I had made a series of comments on his blog. When I told him that it all came back to him.

John Piper is first thing in the morning. He’s the one I am wanting to hear most, but I must admit that topping R.C. Sproul’s sermon today is going to be difficult even for Piper.

Day three next.

Together For the Gospel Eve

It’s the night before the conference, and we made it safely to Louisville, KY. I’m looking forward to hearing John Piper, C.J. Mahaney, and Al Mohler speak, among others. I’m looking forward to the worship as well, being led by Bob Kauflin. If you want to know more about the conference, go to the website.

What I’m hoping to gain from this is simply new insight and deeper understanding of the power of the Gospel. I’ve been looking forward to this conference because it’s an inter-denominational effort, not just Southern Baptists, but also, Sovereign Grace churches, conservative Presbyterians, and other evangelical denominations. The diversity in the crowd will make the event unique. I will keep you posted as the week goes on. Pray for us (myself, Pastor Sean, and Pastor Trevor) as we attend that God would inspire us and do something cool in our hearts.