Reformed Forum

This week on Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob bring their discussion of John Bunyan's, The Pilgrim's Progress, to a close. Here Christian, Hopeful, and Ignorance make their way through the River and to the Gate. However, only Christian and Hopeful enter; Ignorance has a completely different end. We hope you enjoyed this walk through The Pilgrim's Progress with us.

Leonardo De Chirico speaks about evangelical responses and assessments of Roman Catholicism post-Vatican II. Vatican II was an ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church held from 1962–1965 and widely interpreted as bringing the Catholic Church into a new relationship to the world and other religions. De Chirico analyzes the several prominent evangelical scholars, including G.C. Berkouwer, Cornelius Van Til, and John Stott, in order to identify various strengths and weaknesses in evangelical perspectives on modern Roman Catholicism. De Chirico concludes that evangelicalism typically misses how two foundational aspects of Catholic theology (the relationship of nature to grace and a Christological ecclesiology) serve to undergird an entire theological system. Leonardo De Chirico planted and pastored an Evangelical church in Ferrara (northern Italy) from 1997 to 2009. Since 2009 he has been involved in a church planting project in Rome and is now pastor of the church Breccia di Roma. He earned degrees in History (University of Bologna), Theology (ETCW, Bridgend, Wales) and Bioethics (University of Padova). His PhD is from King's College (London) and it was published as Evangelical Theological Perspectives on Post-Vatican II Roman Catholicism (Bern-Oxford: Peter Lang 2003). https://vimeo.com/347560188

This week's episode of Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob continue to discuss John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. We discuss Christian and Hopeful's conversation with Ignorance and Temporary. The pilgrim's attempt to engage them on important spiritual matters like the nature of backsliding.

We turn to pages 212–213 of Vos' book Biblical Theology: Old and New Testaments to discuss the mode of reception of the prophetic revelation. In the fourth section of his book, Vos continues to contrast the modernist conception with that of confessional orthodoxy. He stresses that revelation does not originate naturally but is in its essence, "a real communication" from God to the prophets. Our study of Vos is focused on biblical theology, or what Vos termed "the history of special revelation." A modernized conception of revelation construes history as natural and mechanical in character. History is encased in patterns of natural cause and effect. It is a closed reality. For the Kantian, the mind of man imposes rational categories onto nature. Others view the mind and discovering natural and immutable laws, which don't exhibit any variation. It is an anti-supernaturalist conception of history. For the modernist, supernatural revelation cannot exist in the sphere of natural history. Vos, however, is unwavering in his commitment to the self-attesting word of God, which is a supernatural word from the transcendent God, who nevertheless condescends voluntarily to speak to those made in his image. https://youtu.be/-TEzQ7P6rEA

This week on Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob discuss John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. In this episode, Christian and Hopeful find themselves at first forgetting the warning of the Shepherds about their upcoming journey and end up falling into a net, but they learn from this forgetfulness. Then comes Atheist walking toward them with back toward Sion and the Enchanted ground where they feel very sleepy in faith. How do they deal with Atheist? And how do they stay awake?

Glen Clary and Camden Bucey speak about the ministry of the Holy Spirit and cessationism. We discuss how the pouring out of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost is a unique event of redemptive-history just as unrepeatable as the death and resurrection of Christ. As individuals are effectually called and united to Christ by faith, they are incorporated into the Spirit-baptized body of Christ. https://vimeo.com/345008740

The week on Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob continue to discuss The Pilgrim's Progress. Our discussion recounts the story of Little-faith robbed by Faintheart, Mistrust, and Guilt. There is wonderful pastoral insight here from Bunyan on the care of souls for those believers with little faith, weak faith, who struggle greatly on their pilgrimage to the Celestial City.

Jeffrey S. McDonald speaks about his book, John Gerstner and the Renewal of Presbyterian and Reformed Evangelicalism in Modern America (Wipf & Stock, 2017). It is published in the Princeton Theological Monograph Series. John Gerstner (1914–96) was a significant leader in the renewal of Presbyterian and Reformed evangelicalism in America during the second half of the twentieth century. Gerstner's work as a church historian sought to shape evangelicalism, but also northern mainline Presbyterianism. He wrote, taught, lectured, debated, and preached widely. Jeffrey S. McDonald is the pastor of Avery Presbyterian Church in Bellevue, Nebraska and an Affiliate Professor of Church History at Sioux Falls Seminary, Omaha. https://vimeo.com/343473458

Christopher Watkin speaks about his book Thinking through Creation: Genesis 1 and 2 as Tools of Cultural Critique. Watkin looks to the early chapters of Genesis for foundational doctrines about God, the world, and ourselves. In so doing, he advocates for a robust engagement with others about contemporary culture and ideas. Dr. Watkin completed his Bachelor's and Doctoral degrees at Cambridge University. He lectured at Cambridge for a couple of years before moving with his family to Australia, where he now works as a lecturer at Monash University in Melbourne. He is the author of a number of academic books in the area of modern European philosophy, including Difficult Atheism (2011) and French Philosophy Today (2016), both with Edinburgh University Press. Over the past few years he has written four books published by P&R Press. Three of them are in the Great Thinkers series: Jacques Derrida (2017), Michel Foucault (2018) and Gilles Deleuze (forthcoming). Links to Thinking through the Bible Main site: https://thinkingthroughthebible.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Thinking-Through-the-Bible-455889715164228/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_bible https://vimeo.com/341707234

This week on Theology Simply Profound, Rob and Bob continue to discuss The Pilgrim's Progress. We find Christian and Hopeful having found some much needed rest and refreshment in the Delectable Mountains. Afterwards, these pilgrims encounter Ignorance in a land of Conceit, Turn-away in the town of Apostasy, which Christian to recount a story of one Little-faith robbed by Faintheart, Mistrust, and Guilt.