RSS

Monthly Archives: November 2008

Goodbye coach Fulmer

It is a sad day today in college football, especially for many University of Tennessee fans, I being one. Today Coach Phillip Fulmer coached his last game as the head football coach at Tennessee. He has basically been forced out of the position he has held for 17 seasons. Coach Fulmer’s accomplishments include an NCAA Football National Championship in 1998, and a 150-51 coaching record. That is just shy of winning 75% percent of his games as the head coach at Tennessee. It is the third highest winning percentage in active coaches with at least ten years of experience. Coach Fulmer has been on the sidelines for UT for 422 games, dating back to 1968. That is all together 35 seasons as a player, student assistant, offensive line coach, offensive coordinator, and head coach. A truly amazing, and devoted man to the University of Tennessee family. The whole story by ESPN can be found here.

Today coach Fulmer ran out of the locker room and through the “T” with his players for the last time. I wonder if he is thinking about the disappointing season this year? I wonder if he is focused on the game at hand against their border state rival Kentucky? If I know him, he is. The coach is indeed going out a winner.

The final score tells the tale. Kentucky 10, Tennessee 28. Goodbye coach. We love you.

3 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 29, 2008 in college football, Phillip Fulmer, University of Tennessee

Men of the scarlet and gray 2.0

22 Nov

A new year, different score, but same result. Final score: UM 7 – OSU 42. The Buckeyes seem to have reached the domination number over the Wolverines this time ’round. It’s now five in a row against our very old rivals UM. You know, that school up north. This is the first time in history either team has won that many in a row over the other in this, the oldest of rivalries. The picture above is one of Beenie Wells’ long runs against the Michigan defense today.

One last little tid bit. At the end of the game today the television camera focused on the OSU Marching Band playing in front of the players before heading to the locker room and someone had unfurled a rather large banner that read: “Rich Rodriguez, Welcome to the Big Ten”. I loved it. If I find a picture of it I will post it here.

Again that final score: UM 7 – OSU 42

4 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 22, 2008 in Buckeyes, college football, The Ohio State University Buckeyes, University of Michigan, Wolverines

Preaching tips from Dr. Ruth?

21 Nov

I heard about the sermon below on Way of the Master Radio during a conversation between Dr. Phil Johnson and Todd Friel. Where’s the gospel? I see self help and therapy. I wonder how much longer this gimmicky, sensationalistic, babble will continue from the pulpit? I pray that it is close to running it’s course. I also pray for God to lead folks away from this stuff and into a local church that preaches the gospel.

3 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 21, 2008 in Ed Young, Phil Johnson, Preaching, Todd Riel, Way of the Master Radio

Give Me Five – Unconditional Election

20 Nov

The next point in my brief postings of the Five Points of Calvinism is called “unconditional election.” The doctrine of unconditional election is thoroughly based in scripture. It is a doctrine that in affect claims that before the earth was formed God chose who would come to salvation through His son Jesus Christ. There are many texts in scripture that affirm this doctrine of unconditional election. One of my favorites for God’s sovereignty and election is the whole context of Romans chapter 9. Charles H. Spurgeon states of Romans 9 in his sermon on Unconditional Election, September 2nd, 1855:

So long as that is written there, not the most violent contortions of the passage will ever be able to exterminate the doctrine of election from the Scriptures.

This was a doctrine fully accepted within the protestant church until to the late 19th century and the teachings of Charles Finney. I used to believe and teach this as well. But a few years ago I came to understand, through scripture and the gentle dialog of a dear brother in Christ, that the most illogical theology is one that would teach that God is sovereign in everything else except salvation. They would claim that everything else is under God’s sovereignty except when it comes to something as eternal as the soul of man and his salvation. It isn’t even debated that God chose His people, the Israelites, as stated in the whole of the bible. Why is there an exception for the salvation of men from their sins?

One of the best explanations of God’s unconditional election is provided by Dr. James White in the video below. In the video Dr. White mentions some song lyrics by Steven Curtis Chapman. Those lyrics can be found here.

2 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 20, 2008 in Charles H. Spurgeon, Dr. James White, Five Points of Calvinism, Jesus Christ, Romans, Theology, unconditional election

August Rush

13 Nov

Our family just finished watching the most incredible movie tonight. Netflix, our movie rental place delivered it to our mailbox today. All of us have been waiting for this one to arrive so we plopped it right in. Sorry for the commercial. The movie is “August Rush“. It is not my typical genre, but it is going to be one of my all time favorites. Usually the movies I like have to be filled with adrenaline and good dose of testosterone. But this movie appealed dramatically to my passion for music. If you haven’t seen it, I would definitely recommend. It is rated PG and would appeal to all family members. It is sure to be in our DVD library soon. I have provided one my favorite scenes for the movie. My favorite scene is the ending but I won’t spoil that for you. Check out the short clip below.

7 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 13, 2008 in August Rush, Family, Music, Personal

Church Leadership Interview Series

13 Nov

Today I received my newest Sovereign Grace Ministries newsletter. In the newsletter was a link to an “in-progress” series of interviews aimed at pastors and church leadership. I just listened to the most recent one titled “The Pastor and His Time.” It was excellent. I hope and pray that pastors would find take advantage of this great resource. I plan on listening to the other ones as time allows. Here is the byline for the series:

“Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching” (1 Timothy 4:16 ESV). This podcast features a conversation on theology and leadership with C.J. Mahaney (president of Sovereign Grace Ministries), Jeff Purswell (dean of the Sovereign Grace Pastors College), and Joshua Harris (senior pastor of Covenant Life Church). Pastors in particular will benefit, but everyone is invited to listen in.

If you have not heard of this series, I would suggest that anyone who is a pastor, in a leadership position at their local church, or loves their pastor to listen to this. I have provided the link below.

Sovereign Grace Leadership Interview Series

2 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 13, 2008 in church leadership, interview, pastors, Sovereign Grace

Give Me Five – Total Depravity

12 Nov

In the next few weeks I’d like to post some brief things to explain and affirm the Five Points of Calvinism. Hopefully this will create some dialog with those who would argue against and with those who would affirm with additional resources.

When we speak of total depravity, we are speaking in terms of man’s natural condition apart from any grace given by God to restrain or transform man. Since the fall of man through Adam, the natural man (not transformed by God’s grace) has been in rebellion against God. This is supported in Romans 3:9-10.

9 What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;

In the video clip below, Mark Driscoll, Pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington provides a great illustration of total depravity and God’s election.

1 Comment

Posted by barrydean on November 12, 2008 in Christ, Five Points of Calvinism, Mark Driscoll, Theology, Total Depravity

Tesla – Forever More

11 Nov

One of my favorite bands of the late eighties and early nineties is Tesla. Named for the Serbian-American inventor and electrical engineer Nikola Tesla, this band had some diverse music that fluctuated between head-banging hard rock to edgy blues rock. This band may have actually been the first rock music our youngest daughter Crysta heard. She was within weeks of being born when Robin and I attended their 1992 concert in Tampa, Florida. Tesla have sold over 16 million albums in the United States as of this year. Tesla has wrongly been categorized as a glam metal band with the likes of Def Leppard and Poison. I think it’s namely due to the fact their popularity rose about the same time as those “polished” metal bands. The band has proudly proclaimed that their music is pure guitars and drums with no synthesizers or anything to distort their sound. Their previous six studio albums have all proudly proclaimed “No Machines.” As a guitar player myself I recognized that their musicianship and skill set Tesla apart from all the other “hair” metal bands of the eighties and nineties. The current band lineup is still Jeff Keith on lead vocals, Frank Hannon on guitars, piano, and Hammond organ, Brian Wheat on bass, and piano, and Troy Luccketta on drums. The only exception to the lineup is Dave Rude who replaces Tommy Skeoch on the second guitar.

Read the rest of this entry »

6 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 11, 2008 in Forever More, Music Review, Tesla

The Weeds of Anger

09 Nov

During our adult bible study on Sunday mornings we are reading through a book by Jerry Bridges call “Respectable Sins – Confronting the Sins We Tolerate“. This week we looked at the sin of anger. Very often we tend to tolerate this sin because we believe anger is justified in many cases and in certain situations. Although the bible does provide some examples of righteous anger, the main focus of teaching is on our sinful anger, and our sinful reactions to other people’s actions or words.

Today we looked at the chapter in the Bridges book titled “Weeds of Anger”. One of the first things Bridges points out is the scripture we have all used to provide justification for our anger. You know the verse in Ephesians 4:26:

Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.

According to Bridges, the apostle Paul is not granting us permission to be angry, let alone commanding it, as the imperative mood might suggest. Rather, Paul takes for granted that we will become angry, and he is telling us how to handle it. Basically Paul is saying “Don’t hold on to your anger. Get over it quickly.” As Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show liked to say “Nip it in the bud.”

Also in this chapter, Bridges leads the reader to look at some of the long term results of anger, what he calls “weeds of anger.” He chooses the term weeds because it emphasizes something we dislike that takes root and is often difficult to get rid of. Bridges discusses five noxious weeds that spring up from unresolved anger. The fives weeds are:

Read the rest of this entry »

3 Comments

Posted by barrydean on November 9, 2008 in anger, Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate, sin, Weeds of Anger