my burg

Works done by unregenerate men, although for the matter of them they may be things which God commands; and of good use both to themselves and others: yet, because they proceed not from an heart purified by faith; nor are done in a right manner, according to the Word; nor to a right end, the glory of God, they are therefore sinful, and cannot please God, or make a man meet to receive grace from God: and yet, their neglect of them is more sinful and displeasing unto God.  ( Westminster Confession of Faith , 16.7) Dr. John Frame, in his excellent volume, The Doctrine of the Christian Life (Theology of Lordship series), explains below what goes into to making a "good work" before God.  (Relatively and humanly speaking, people may do good works toward one another, but the question here is, what is a good work before God, what kind of work is he is pleased with?)  He answers... "Note the three necessary ingredients: (1) a heart purified by faith, (2) obedience to God’s Wo...

Here are some of my highlights from John Frame's Systematic Theology on the topic of creation... "Christians would do well to meditate on creation. To trust God’s salvation is like believing in creation: By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. (Heb. 11:3)" "The point of comparison seems to be that in both cases, faith is directed to the invisible. Faith trusts God in the absence of sight (cf. 2 Cor. 5:7)." "We can trust his Word, his promise, therefore, even when we do not see any visible evidence of the fulfillment." "What scientists may learn from Genesis is that these methods do not work for objects specially created." "My point is simply that any view of origins at all implies apparent age. If there is an origin, the things at that origin will appear to be older than the origin." "...according to Scripture, al...

"God does not control the world merely by setting limits for the world’s free activity, as a teacher 'controlling' his classroom. Rather, like the author of a well-wrought novel, he conceives and brings about every event that happens, without compromising the integrity of his creaturely others."  - John Frame, Systematic Theology