Tommy

Turn Any Printable Document into a PDF

Aug 012008

If you use Openoffice.org or run a Linux operating system, saving any document as a PDF is easy. There is also a plugin for recent versions of Microsoft Office that can do this. But what about exporting web pages, or documents created by other software? For this you will need a “Print to PDF” driver. A “Print to PDF” Driver works exactly like any other printer, only instead of actually printing your document it generates a PDF in a folder of your choosing. This is very easy to set up: here are the details.

Linux provides the same functionality. Most distributions include a driver that does this: just go to your printer settings dialog, “Add” a printer, and look for an entry like “Print to PDF.” I’m sure MAC users have something similar, so perhaps one of our MAC readers could post a comment regarding how to set that up.

New Testament Theology, by Thomas Schreiner

What I'm Reading No Responses »

Aug 012008

The Centrality of the Gospel

Bible and Hermeneutics No Responses »

Jul 312008

Lee Irons has a nice post about 1 Cor. 15. Here are a couple of highlights.

What is the gospel?” Paul answers the question by pointing to the central reality of substitutionary atonement (”that Christ died for our sins”), as well as his burial and resurrection on the third day, confirming that his sacrifice of atonement had been accepted. The prepositional phrase in the death-formula, ”for our sins” (ὑπὲρ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν), is critical, because it identifies the death of Christ as a penal substitution. That is, he died the death that we deserved for our sins.

This is also relevant for us in helping us to decide what our relationship ought to be with broader evangelicalism, and indeed with all professing Christians. They may be confused about many matters. They may have a low view of the church and the sacraments. They may be too quick to reject the traditions and creeds of the church. They may hold to something less than a purely monergistic soteriology. They may think baptism must be preceded by a profession of faith. But if they have received, stand firm in, and preach this gospel, then they are to be received as brothers in Christ and to be encouraged to continue in the gospel, even as we also discuss other matters with them (just as Paul does in his letters to the Corinthians).

Read the whole post.

Sharing Large Files

Software 4 Responses »

Jul 312008

A friend and I recently ran into a little problem: we wanted to share files with each other, but the files in question were larger than could be sent via email. Sure you can mail a CD, or meet up for coffee with a USB drive, but those options require both time and trouble.

Enter Drop.io. It’s a simple, private, password-protected file-sharing service that allows individuals or groups to exchange data quickly and safely over the internet. You “drop” your data in a folder with either a randomized name, or a name of your choosing, then send the link to whoever you want to access the data. You can set password protection, automatic deletion dates, and a variety of different permissions (view, view/add, or view/add/delete). Furthermore, drop.io provides a variety of different interfaces by which you can interact with its services: Web, email, phone, fax, and even a desktop widget. Even Twitter-integration is provided for those seasoned in the Web 2.0 world.

You can create as many drops as you like, though individual drops are limited to 100mb at the moment. All drops are anonymous (that’s right, you don’t even have to create an account!). Upgrades are available at $10 per gigabyter per year.

The Little Mysteries

Christian Theology and History 1 Response »

Jul 292008

Van Til reminds us that our life as creatures is full of mystery, both regarding God and the world he has created. I found this article a small reminder that it’s OK to say “I don’t know.”

Here is an excerpt. I’m not sure whether the scientist quoted is being intentionally ironic or is blinded by his own arrogance.

Peter G. Wolynes, a professor of chemistry at the University of California, San Diego, thinks he essentially solved the glass problem two decades ago based on ideas of what glass would look like if cooled infinitely slowly. “I think we have a very good constructive theory of that these days,” Dr. Wolynes said. “Many people tell me this is very contentious. I disagree violently with them.”

Little mysteries, like our fundamental ignorance concerning the nature of glass, are a reminder that our world is designed by an incomprehensible God. We can confidently proclaim “I don’t know” because he alone understands all things perfectly, and that perfect knowledge grounds and secures our imperfect knowledge. So here is a quote from Van Til:

It is exceedingly dangerous to confuse the orthodox concept of the incomprehensibility of God with the ultimate mysteriousness of the universe as held by modern thought. Modern thought in general, and modern logic in particular, holds . . . that God is, at most, an aspect of Reality as a whole. Hence, God is himself surrounded by darkness or mystery, just as man is surrounded by darkness or mystery. In other words, modern thought believes in an ultimate irrationalism, while Christianity believes in an ultimate rationality. It is difficult to think of two types of thought that are more radically opposed to one another. It is the most fundamental antithesis conceivable in the field of knowledge. . . . The very foundation of all Christian theology is removed if the concept of the ultimate rationality of God be given up.(Introduction to Systematic Theology: Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, 1995, p. 13).

Heed the Warning

Bible and Hermeneutics 2 Responses »

Jul 282008

My work in Hebrews (and the General epistles) has lead to frequent side-tracks into the nature and necessity of perseverance in the Christian life. Here are a couple of quotes from an excellent article by Thomas Schreiner.

No genuine believer will ever apostatize. Nonetheless, the warning passages in the Scriptures are addressed to believers, and they are threatened with eternal destruction (not loss of rewards) if they commit apostasy.

We must pay heed to the warnings in order to be saved on the day of the Lord.

The label “Poison!” on a bottle seizes our attention and awakens us to the peril which awaits us if we swallow its contents. Thereby we take special care when handling such a container and do not put it in the same cupboard with soft drinks. The warnings in the scriptures are also intended to arouse us from lethargy and propel us onward in the pathway of faith. They provoke a healthy fear (Heb 4:1!), so that we are not casual and relaxed about entering the heavenly rest. Of course, this fear is not the same thing as the paralyzing fear which suppresses all activity (1 Jn 4:18). It is the same kind of fear which causes us to put on our seat belts when we drive and which causes us to place railings where a fall would be deadly. Fear in these instances does not paralyze us but actually contributes to our confidence when driving or climbing. Similarly, hearing and obeying the warnings in scriptures does not sap us of confidence and assurance. It is the pathway for full assurance in the faith.

Some protest that this is works righteousness, but such an objection fails to see that such perseverance is the fruit of faith and grounded in God’s sustaining and electing grace. Yes, works are necessary to be saved. No, this is not works righteousness, for the works are hardly meritorious. The grace of God is so powerful that it not only grants us salvation apart from our merits, but also transforms us. Christians are not only declared righteous but also experience observable and significant change in their lives.

Read the whole article here..

Several of Schreiner’s books are currently on sale at the Westminster Book Store.

The Times, They are a-changin

Software 1 Response »

Jul 272008

Several factors have contributed to a recent surge among big-name companies in supporting open-source software. Chief among these is the increasing importance of interoperability in a Web 2.0 world. This is true across the board, from big-business capitalism, to the little-guy blogger, to governments around the globe–the world needs its data in transparent patent-free formats.

Microsoft is slowly responding. From Windows Live
to OOXML, to a partnership with Novell, and now a recent announcement that they will financially fund Apache, its biggest open-source competitor in the server market (this blog runs on an Apache server). Read more here.

This is all welcome news, but it is going to require a corresponding change in business model, one which open-source friendly companies like Novell, Red Hat, Sun, and IBM have been pioneering and perfecting for years. It is the move from a product-based model, where one tries to differentiate their product from its competition in order to sell the most items, to a service-based model, where you are selling your ability to help others.

In any case, the future will be interesting. In my opinion, Microsoft is on the right track. The sooner it moves to a service-based business model the better, for us and them.

Every iPhone Captive: Poythress on Technology and Christianity

Tech/Gadgets 1 Response »

Jul 192008

The most recent iPhone iteration (yes, there are still lines at Apple stores nationwide) has apparently inspired Vern Poythress to offer up some reflections about science and technology within a Christian worldview. Really interesting stuff, particularly the positive connection between technology and dominion, and the negative warning against technological messianism.

Summer Greek Reading III: Learning Vocabulary Effectively

Biblical Greek 1 Response »

Jul 162008

$The Lord\'s Prayer$ Reading Greek will never be fun or effective without a basic knowledge of the vocabulary in the NT. Many specialists in linguistics have reflected extensively on the best model for selective vocabulary learning (also see here and here.

My own opinion, not based on any scientific evidence, is that once you have memorized all the words that occur 20 times or more, it’s time to be more selective. Remember: reading Greek is the best way to learn Greek, so the sooner you get into the NT the better. This is not to say that memorizing words that occur 10-19 times is unimportant, only that it is lower on the priority list.

So how can you be more selective? First, get the UBS’s Reader’s Greek NT and start reading. Read fast, read broad, read out loud, and don’t look up every word. Just read.

Second, pick a book you are interested in and read with focus. Check out Zhubert.com. In addition to providing an easy-to-use Greek NT system, that have some tools for memorizing specific words in specific books. Let’s say you’ve memorized everything in the NT that occurs 20 times or more and that you want to spend some time in the Epistle of James (hypothetically). Select James in Zhubert.com, select words occurring 20 times or less, and start a more focused vocabulary study. Such a focus will let you take those all important detours in syntax analysis and exegesis.

The point: you need a balance of both the broad and the narrow. Effective Greek reading requires both a range of reading, but also more focused attention on particular authors. The former helps you pick up the general features of a language, while the latter allows you to experience its depth and richness, not to mention the particular stylistic tendencies of different authors in the NT.