Summer is upon us, and that means that activities shift while the kids are out of school for several months… One such shift is that our church does not hold home Bible Study groups for the summer, so to fill the gap, a friend and I have started a Puritans Book Club.

The first selection is The Almost Christian Discovered, by Matthew Mead. Written in 1661, the title comes from the words of Agrippa in Acts 26:28:

Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.

The premise of the book is simple:

You have here one of the saddest considerations imaginable presented to you, and that is how far it is possible a man may go in a profession of religion and yet, after all, fall short of salvation; how far he may run and yet not so run as to obtain. This, I say, is sad, but not so sad as true; for our Lord Christ plainly attests it: “Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.”

In other words, Mead challenges us, like Peter, to be diligent to make our calling and election sure. This is not only the command of scripture, but it is the duty of every converted heart. As Mead points out, “They who can hear such truths as this without serious reflection and self-examination, I must suspect the goodness of their condition.”

Like the rest of the Puritans, Mead lays out his argument carefully, always appealing to scripture to demonstrate the truth of his arguments. We’ve just started reading through this book, Shannon and I, and I am looking forward to the challenge, the conviction, and the wisdom to be gained. I’ll be blogging through it here (promise!), so be sure to stop back periodically for updates.

There are very many in the world that are almost, and yet, but almost Christians. Many are near heaven and, yet, are never the nearer. Many are within a little of salvation, and, yet, shall never enjoy the least salvation. They are within sight of heaven and, yet, shall never have a sight of God.

How about you? How do you make your own calling and election sure? How do you discern that in your family members, your friends, so that you know who to share the Gospel with most diligently? Share in the comments…

Yeah, it’s been a while. I didn’t really go anywhere, I just wasn’t here posting. So, here we go. I will be posting some site updates later, but for now, here are a couple of outstanding recent finds in the blogosphere:

The Evangelical Outpost – Fads and Fixtures: Ten Deadly Trappings of Evangelism
Joe Carter talks about some of the dangerous trends in evangelism that have become so ingrained, they’re now unfortunate fixtures. If you read only one of these links, read this one.

Unity Starts With Defining True Doctrine
Jim Bublitz has a 2-part series on the relationship between doctrine and unity (yes, they go together), quoting the Doctor (Lloyd-Jones, not Who, McCoy, Watson, or Maturin):
Part 1
Part 2

Mom’s Week
Just in time for Mother’s Day, Pulpit Magazine is publishing a series on great mothers of the Bible.

Atheism Debate on Nightline
Apparently Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron debated two atheists on Nightline. I haven’t watched it yet, but Melinda at Stand to Reason provides some interesting analysis.

The State of Post-Modernism
And speaking of Stand to Reason, this post from Brett is pretty interesting. He quotes John Mark Reynolds: “Post-modernism does not exist as a powerful, popular cultural force.”

Attention True Believers…
Dan Phillips tries (and fails) to find the Gospel in Spider-Man 3. I have to point out, though, that I whole-heartedly reject part of his conclusion: “Spider-Man 3 is a fun, expertly-done movie.”

And Lastly…
Everyone seems to be raving about paper wallets, so I guess I’m going to have to be a sheep and put one together for myself.