This episode is an eschatological intrusion as Dr. Lee Irons joins Pilgrim Talk for the third time to talk about the life and theology of Meredith Kline. Dr. Irons discusses with us Kline's contribution to Biblical Theology, Kline's theological influences, the conflict with John Murray over the covenant of works, and Kline's critique of theonomy. We close our discussion with Dr. Irons giving a brief overview of Kline's writing, and he gives some helpful suggestions on where a person should start reading. 

Previous Episodes with Dr. Irons: 

Book and Resources for Meredith Kline 

Marriage is for our joy and God's glory. Yet on this side of the Fall, marriage is full of difficulty, sin, and struggle. How does the Christian enjoy God's good design in marriage and glorify God through it? How does the gospel undergird, shape, fuel, and give marriage its telos? 

1 Peter 2:1-3 Because we have tasted the goodness of the LORD in the gospel, we are to put away ungodliness and crave the word. In this episode we talk about sanctification and the vital necessity of the Word for our growth as Christians. 

Can we know God, and if so, how do we come to know him? If God is distinct from his creation, can we use positive and true language to describe him?

These questions are addressing epistemology- that is how do we know what we know. Every philosophical tradition or theological system has at its foundation assumptions and convictions answering the question “how do you know.”

The doctrine of the knowledge of God and our theological method used to arrive at this doctrine shapes our understanding of our relationship with Him and our trust in what He has said. 

What is man's highest good? The guys are bumping with Bavinck again looking at his Wonderful Works of God and discussing how Bavinck answers this question. 

The way of the Pilgrim is centered on corporate worship on the LORD's Day. The pilgrim travels to and from the LORD's Day as they make their way to the heavenly city in the Christian life. Corporate worship is vital for the Christian life. 

Jeff Johnson joins John and Dylan to discuss his important and controversial new book The Failure of Natural Theology: A Critical Appraisal of the Philosophical Theology of Thomas Aquinas. How the Christian theologian arrives at doctrinal truths is as important as those doctrines themselves. Johnson in this interview highlights the main problems with Aquinas' theological method and further clarifies some of his points in the book. The question of the usefulness of natural theology in theology is an important question that both the ordinary pastor and regular church member in the Reformed tradition must wrestle with. Any version of natural theology that undermines the sufficiency and authority of Scripture is a natural theology that is no friend to the Christian faith. 

The Failure of Natural Theology: A Critical Appraisal of the Philosophical Theology of Thomas Aquinas

1. Book- https://freegracepress.com/collections/new-releases/products/the-failure-of-natural-theology

2. Book Review- https://johnsweatjrblog.wordpress.com/2021/11/03/the-failure-of-natural-theology-a-book-review/

Grace Bible Church- http://www.gbcconway.com

Grace Bible Theological Seminary- https://www.gbtseminary.org

Free Grace Press- https://freegracepress.com

There is this reality that at one time we were aliens and strangers and outsiders to the Kingdom of Christ. But now, we have been brought into that kingdom by the work of Christ, making us aliens and strangers in this world. Therefore, the Christian sojourner has to wrestle with the tension between being a citizen of the Kingdom of Christ and a citizen of a kingdom in this world. Scripture helps us understand authority, navigate this tension, and glorify King Jesus's authority above all other authorities.

Episode on Church and State that John did with the Covenant Conversation guys: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/covenant-conversations/id1412764902?i=1000500073709

Tyndale was born in 1494 and was executed as a heretic in 1536.  Tyndale’s mission caused him to be a fugitive from his own country and ultimately caused him to be executed as a heretic. Yet for Tyndale, bringing the knowledge of the Scriptures in English back to the common plowboy was well worth his own life. Tyndale’s experiential outworking of sola scriptura through his translation of the Bible into English released the sacred Scriptures from bondage and brought reformation to England.