Christians are to work as though their boss is the Lord himself (Col.3:23), meaning we are called to pursue vocational excellence. And working with skill requires laboring wisely and thoughtfully. I have benefitted from a selection of carefully selected business books that have helped me to do this.

For the purpose of illustrating this further from my life, I’ll break this priority down into refined categories (and here, I will simply give his categories – Reine also gives specific examples of books he uses in each section):

I read for vision. I find that my vocational life gets scattered, and I frequently need to return to a few fundamental priorities.

I read to discover and leverage my God-given strengths. I greatly value books that help me determine personal skills.

I read to communicate clearly. The success of my job is closely tied to my ability to communicate clearly. Yet I’m forever beset by vagueishness.

I read to organize. …If my desk and inbox are ever clean, it’s because this book has helped me how to manage tasks and projects.

I read to improve my decision-making and problem-solving.

 

You get the idea that Reinke has in mind. Naturally, our specific callings in life will change the type of books we choose to read. But the point we take with us today, I hope, is that because our work in God’s kingdom deserves the King’s best, this is an area where we ought to be reading, “to pursue excellence” for the glory of God. What are you reading that is related to your vocation?

Carl Trueman, professor of church history at Westminster Seminary in Philadelphia, gives a brief summary of three new books that have crossed his desk. I have ordered two of them recently for the Seminary library (not the one on the Puritans). As it is Princeton’s 200th anniversary this year (see yesterday’s post), the biography on Hodge is one I plan to read this year. It is part of P&R’s “American Reformed Biographies” series. You may find any of these attractive for reading this year as well.

Here’s a start from Trueman’s post; read the rest at the link above (at the link on “Charles Hodge” name below, you will also find a brief video interview with the author):

Third, Professor Andrew Hoffecker’s biography of Charles Hodge.  I had the privilege of seeing this book in prepublication form.  It is a really delightful study of Hodge’s life.  Ironically, with no full biography of Hodge since that done by his son in the nineteenth century, 2011 saw two appear.   The one by Paul Gutjahr is excellent too, and its arrival in paperback will make it more accessible to more people, I am sure.  If you have the time, read both: Gutjahr is very readable but where Hoffecker really shines is in his treatment of the peculiarly Presbyterian aspects of Hodge’s career.  Gutjahr does not seem to see the significance, for example, of the clashes between Hodge and Thornwell and thus presents a Hodge more amenable to Everychristianman, so to speak; and while one does not need to be a Presbyterian to grasp these things, it helps — as Hoffecker shows.  A great read.

Also, here is a biographical piece on Crabbe found on Wikipedia:

He was born in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, the son of a tax collector, and developed his love of poetry as a child. In 1768, he was apprenticed to a local doctor, who taught him little, and in 1771 he changed masters and moved to Woodbridge. There he met his future wife, Sarah Elmy, who accepted his proposal and had the faith and patience not only to wait for Crabbe but to encourage his verse writing. His first major work, a poem entitled “Inebriety”, was self-published in 1775. By this time he had completed his medical training, and had decided to take up writing seriously. In 1780, he went to London, where he had little success, but eventually made an impression on Edmund Burke, who helped him have his poem, The Library, published in 1781. In the meantime, Crabbe’s religious nature had made itself felt, and he was ordained a clergyman and became chaplain to the Duke of Rutland at Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire.

Not Hope herself, with all her flattering art,
Can cure this stubborn sickness of the heart:
The soul disdains each comfort she prepares,
And anxious searches for congenial cares;
Those lenient cares, which with our own combined,
By mix'd sensations ease th' afflicted mind,
And steal our grief away, and leave their own behind;
A lighter grief! which feeling hearts endure
Without regret, nor e'en demand a cure.

But what strange art, what magic can dispose
The troubled mind to change its native woes?
Or lead us willing from ourselves, to see
Others more wretched, more undone than we?
This BOOKS can do;--nor this alone; they give
New views to life, and teach us how to live;
They soothe the grieved, the stubborn they chastise,
Fools they admonish, and confirm the wise:
Their aid they yield to all:  they never shun
The man of sorrow, nor the wretch undone:
Unlike the hard, the selfish, and the proud,
They fly not sullen from the suppliant crowd;
Nor tell to various people various things,
But show to subjects what they show to kings.

Come, Child of Care! to make thy soul serene,
Approach the treasures of this tranquil scene;
Survey the dome, and, as the doors unfold,
The soul's best cure, in all her cares, behold!
Where mental wealth the poor in thought may find,
And mental physic the diseased in mind;
See here the balms that passion's wounds assuage;
See coolers here, that damp the fire of rage;
Here alt'ratives, by slow degrees control
The chronic habits of the sickly soul;
And round the heart and o'er the aching head,
Mild opiates here their sober influence shed.
Now bid thy soul man's busy scenes exclude,
And view composed this silent multitude:-
Silent they are--but though deprived of sound,
Here all the living languages abound;
Here all that live no more; preserved they lie,
In tombs that open to the curious eye.

At the Gospel Coalition website, Andy Jones begins a year-long series on Princeton Seminary marking its 200th anniversary. For many years Princeton was a bastion of strong Calvinism and sturdy Presbyterianism in this country. It was the Seminary of the Alexander’s and the Hodge’s. But then it came under the spell of higher criticism and liberal theology, and Princeton became just another liberal Protestant Seminary. Of late there has been a few bright Calvinist lights shining there again, and the new Calvinists are taking interest in old Princeton, so this should be an interesting series. Here are a few paragraphs from the initial article to get us started.

The year 2012 marks the bicentennial of Princeton Seminary. In its modern form, Princeton had strayed far from its founders’ vision. Yet a look back at the early years and leaders of this venerable institution offers a storehouse of insights for navigating the issues facing the evangelical church today. Why should 21st-century Christians concern themselves with a 19th-century school in New Jersey? I can think of at least three reasons.

First, to be encouraged that we are not alone. Early Princeton bears a striking similarity to the Calvinist resurgence of our own day. The professors promoted Reformed theology while seeking to engage the rapidly changing world around them. We have much to learn from them, for better and for worse, as we seek to be biblically faithful in the modern world.

…In the 19th century, Princeton was a leader among conservative evangelicals in America. It was the “grand central station” for the “young, restless, and Reformed.” Through The Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review, a prominent voice in 19th-century religious journalism, it apprised Presbyterians of the latest thinking among biblical scholars, engaged in controversies facing the church, and responded to challenges in the surrounding culture.

This year-long series will take a look back at the people, controversies, and legacy of Old Princeton. The church today faces many of the same issues as evangelicals did in the early to mid-19th century. Future articles will examine a previous era of the church in order to gain clarity on our own.

Rev.G.Eriks spoke on “Knowing Truth in an Age of Uncertainty” and Rev.A.Lanning spoke on “Finding True Freedom in an Age of Uncertainty”. They both did an excellent job of making the complex errors of postmodernism simple and clear, and critiqued its influence on the church and college campus with plain Biblical truth and wisdom. The crowd overflowed with people of all ages, a real blessing and encouragement. The two churches did an outstanding job of planning and preparing this timely conference (including having book and literature tables out!). It is my hope that they will do another one in the future, on another such timely subject.

So, if you missed the conference and missed the live stream of it, you can still receive the benefit of the speeches. Click on the links above to find your way to the audio.

It is the last featured on Revelation article which I post about today. It is written by Dennis E. Johnson, who teaches practical theology at Westminster Seminary in California. He had the task of applying the book of Revelation to the church today, and he did a nice job of laying out “seven applications of Revelation”. I cannot give you all of them, nor can I link you to the ones I don’t quote here, since his article is not posted online at this time. But I can at least give you a taste of them. Here are two of the applications that I found especially encouraging for us as the church today:

Revelation Reveals Our Champion in His True Glory

As its title promises, this truly is ‘the revelation of Jesus Christ’ (1:1). It unveils Jesus and fixes our hearts and hopes on Him. He is the hero of each dramatic scene. He is the Son of Man foretold in Daniel 7, luminous in divine glory, who by His resurrection seized death’s keys and now walks among His churches. He is Judah’s Lion who conquered by being slain, redeeming people from all the earth’s peoples. He is worthy of worship from every creature everywhere. He is the Captain of heaven’s armies, riding into battle against His and our enemies, defending beleaguered saints, and finally destroying the Dragon and his beasts. Our Champion lifts our weary hearts with His promise: ‘Surely I am coming soon.’ We reply: ‘Amen. Come, Lord Jesus’ (22:20).

 

Revelation Calls Us to Stay Pure When Compromise Invites

Some of the first-century churches, like many churches in the twenty-first century, faced a subtler threat than persecution. Satan, the father of lies, tried to mislead believers through purveyors of false teaching (2:15,20). Material comfort and compromise with the paganism of the surrounding culture also proved alluring (2:14; 3:17). Such insidious assaults on wholehearted allegiance to Christ are still with us. Against the Devil’s lies and invitations to idolize pleasure and prosperity, Revelation calls us to keep our hearts and lives pure as befits those who will be the Lamb’s white-robed bride (3:4-5, 17-18; 7:9,14; 14:4; 19:7-8; 22:14-15).

160.  Confidence in God.   Psalm 61.  C.M. (4 stanzas)

1. O God, give ear unto my cry,
And to my voice attend;
Though far from home and from Thy house,
To Thee my prayers ascend.

2.When troubles overwhelm my heart,
Then Thou wilt hear my cry,
For safety lead me to the Rock
That higher is than I. 

3. A refuge Thou hast been for me
When storms of trouble lower;
When foes assail, then Thou hast been
My strong defense and tower.

4. Within Thy holy temple, Lord,
I ever will abide;
Beneath the covert of Thy wings
In confidence I hide.

In the verse which follows, he expresses the confidence which he had that he would dwell from this time forth in the sanctuary of the Lord…. It is noticeable, that now when he was returned from his banishment, and established within his own palace, his heart was set more upon the worship of God than all the wealth, splendor, and pleasures of royalty. We have his testimony in other parts of his writings, that in the worst calamities which he endured, he experienced nothing which could be compared to the bitterness of being shut out from the ordinances of religion; and now he accounts it a higher pleasure to lie as a suppliant before the altar, than to sit upon the throne of a king. By the words which immediately follow, he shows that he did not, like too many uninformed persons, attach a superstitious importance to the mere externals of religion, adding, that he found his safety under the shadow of God’s wings. Ignorant persons might conceive of God as necessarily confined to the outward tabernacle, but David only improved this symbol of the Divine presence as a means of elevating the spiritual exercises of his faith. I would not deny that there may be an allusion to the cherubim when he speaks of the shadow of God’s wings. Only we must remember, that David did not rest in carnal ordinances, the elements of the world, but rose by them and above them to the spiritual worship of God.

 

Taken from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (www.ccel.org)

Psalm 61

Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.

²From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

³For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.

⁴I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.

⁵For thou, O God, hast heard my vows: thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name.

⁶Thou wilt prolong the king’s life: and his years as many generations.

⁷He shall abide before God for ever: O prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him.

⁸So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows.

Though we do not know the precise historical setting for this psalm (at least that the heading indicates), David clearly penned it at a time in his life when he was removed from the city of Jerusalem and the house of God, and when he was overwhelmed with troubles. I have a note in the margin of my Bible that David wrote this when he had to flee Jerusalem after his son Absalom and his men took over the city (see 2 Samuel 15). If this was in fact the context, it was a grievous time in David’s life, not only because of the insurrection of his own son (part of God’s chastisement of David for his sin with Bathsheba), but also because it meant he was taken away from the signs of God’s presence with him and the means of grace.

Yet David finds that God has not forsaken him, that God still hears him, protects him, and has blessed him beyond measure (v.3-5). And so he confides in God and commits his way to Him (vss.1-2). And in the midst of pain and problems he still performs his vows and praises his God (vss.5,8). Do we not see Christ in this psalm as well? In the midst of his supreme desolation of suffering human rejection and the wrath of God, especially on the cross, – brought about by our sin and shame – still he trusts in His Father, calls upon Him for deliverance, and praises Him from the depths. In the midst of ultimate grief and pain still he performs His vow to endure all things for the elect’s sake! And that perfectly faithful suffering and obedience of Christ is our salvation!

That is why we now can and do make this psalm our own. For Christ’s sake, in the midst of our own suffering and pain, we cry and pray, we trust and wait, we sing and praise. Because God is our Shelter and Strong Tower, because we always abide in His tabernacle (Christ – see John 1:14)! Shall we not worship our great and glorious God this day with thankful hearts?! May He give us grace so to do.

Our second post today also concerns abortion. This time we let noted Christian theologian and ethics teacher, Dr. Al Mohler, speak to the issue. He posted this on his blog last Friday, January 20. I apologize for being a week late on these posts – better late than never – but they are always timely, because these “legalized” abortions (murders) go on every day. May we never become accustomed to this sin in our land, but remain Biblically sensitive to its evil and to the judgment of God on those who sanction it and commit it.

Here is part of what Mohler has to say about this sin of our culture (read the rest at the link above):

Most Americans will pay little attention to the 39th anniversary of the infamous Roe v. Wade decision. In 1973, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that a woman has a constitutional right to arrange the killing of the unborn life within her. Since that decision was handed down, more than 50 million babies have been aborted, at a rate of over 3,000 each day.

One of the most chilling aspects of all this is the sense of normalcy in American life. Abortion statistics pile up from year to year, and each report gets filed. Moral sentiment on the issue of abortion has shifted discernibly in recent years, as ultrasound images and other technologies deliver unquestionable proof that the unborn child is just that — a child. Nevertheless, the larger picture of abortion in America is basically unchanged.

…Just recently, Merle Hoffman, a major voice in the abortion rights movement and founder of Choices, a major center for abortions in New York City, has written a memoir, Intimate Wars. In telling her story, Hoffman calls for her colleagues in the abortion industrial complex to defend abortion as a moral choice.

…“Abortion is as American as apple pie.” Hoffman made that statement in a recent interview about her book. She laments that abortion is the cause of shame in some women and that shame attaches itself to abortion in the larger culture, even now. In her view, if women would start talking more honestly and directly about their abortions, the shame would be removed and women would discuss their abortions like they speak of “a bikini wax.”

Is Merle Hoffman right? Is abortion “as American as apple pie?” To our great shame, she has a right to make that claim. How can it be refuted when abortion on demand has been legal in this country for almost forty years, when one out of three American women will have an abortion, when within some communities far more babies die by abortion than are born?

In Merle Hoffman, the Culture of Death has found a new voice. Almost forty years after Roe v. Wade, abortion remains a central part of the nation’s moral landscape. Over 50 million unborn children have been aborted within the span of just one generation.