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John Piper tweets about teenage couples making out down at the river
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Ever since retweeting this tweet, my phone has been going off like crazy with notifications. I’ve got to fill you in on this one because you just can’t make this stuff up (and because I need a mood lifter):
Down by the river the teenagers would go to make out. I watched them drive back. They never looked happy. Especially she.
— John Piper (@JohnPiper) August 7, 2014
To see the responses on Twitter, click on the date link in the tweet.
Here is my favorite response so far:
Spiritual Sounding Board 
What is wrong with this man?
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Remember, this is the same guy that said that if an intruder broke in, he would not use self defense to defend his family’s lives because he knows his family members are saved and would go to heaven if they were killed, but the intruder is probably not saved and would likely go to hell.
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Dementia, perhaps?
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I just tweeted that I wonder if he is using psychological projection. He is projecting what he wants them to feel (guilt/ashamed/sin) because it’s all about the purity culture for him.
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Remember JAS…one never questions John Piper! he is the 67th Book of the Bible! He’s the Reformed Pat Robertson!!
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I don’t think his theology aligns with Robertson, but his “out there” comments are sure in alignment.
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@Lisa…here’s the problem. How does John Piper know his family is saved? Especially as a Hyper-Calvinist? I mean his wife could be predestined to hell. He has no confirmation that his family is saved. None, zip, nada!
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JAS, his theology is different from Robinson..but he does the same things. One about hurricanes the other about tornadoes.
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Yes, you’re right about that, Eagle.
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Eagle, I don’t know about that.
Covenant Theology is really big on that covenant community stuff, and if you have confessed and embraced the community, you are elect. Folks like Doug Wilson are much stronger on that point, but Piper has expressed strong support for Wilson and his ideas about Federal Vision. Combine that with the tendency of some of these New Calvinists to act as if they know the fate of every human soul and how they prefer those who are born into covenant families over new converts who didn’t grow up in Christian (or Calvinist) homes. I think that this makes for strong hubris on the part of the elite in particular to claim to know the heart and fate of others.
In contrast, I’ve heard RC Sproul, Sr. teach that though he is sure of his salvation, we trust in faith that we are elect, but it is faith – and faith is unseen and unproven. He speaks of this in humility that even he feels humble before almighty God and knows well of his own unholiness. But he’s the only one in his circles that I hear say such things.
(Federal Vision argues that being a part of the covenant community is a stronger force than even just personal belief which is why so many Presby denominations took such a hard stance against it. It sounds more Roman Catholic than Protestant.)
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What difference does it make if the intruder isn’t saved? Doesn’t Piper believe that we are either part of the Elect or not? More time for the miscreant to hear the Gospel message and repent wouldn’t mean a thing, would it?
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Eagle,
That said, I agree with you on what is obvious to me. Man looks to the outward things, but God looks to the intent of the heart. Jeremiah said that our own hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked — that we don’t even know our own hearts. How in blue blazes are we supposed to know the state of someone else’s? We are taught to look at fruit, but we can be deceived and deceptive ourselves.
We don’t sit in the seat of Moses.
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Really, you just have to feel for the man’s wife.
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Cindy K
AUGUST 6, 2014 @ 7:19 PM
“What is wrong with this man?”
Amen Cindy!
And may I add, what is wrong with all his followers who hang on his every word?
Makes me tired, sad, and overwhelmed that he has a voice that so many creme their britches over.
Brains people?
Use your God given brain, stop following gurus, we have the Holy Spirit, we don’t need the likes of John Piper.
creepy beyond belief…
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In some other online discussion of Ken Ham’s statement about Klingons going to hell, again, I am struck by the idea that so many of these fellows wish to restrict God’s goodness from others rather than share it.
Let’s presume that there are Klingons on another planet, and they are sentient beings with moral conscience and agency. If they came to earth, why would any Christian have any desire to see these beings suffer death or hell or whatever? Wouldn’t you be inclined to see the Atonement as adequate for them, too? Why did Ham say that salvation would be denied to them?
I think that their God is too small. It is almost as if they see God’s grace and goodness — and His Redeeming Blood — as finite and inadequate. (In some sense, they do via limited atonement.) I am comfortable with the idea that God is beyond my ability to comprehend on many levels, and with that, nothing with Him is finite or inadequate. Wouldn’t the God of all comfort have compassion? He had compassion for Nineveh when he told Jonah that He chose not to punish the ignorant who didn’t know their right hand from their left.
I’m not arguing that repentance and belief and confession in Christ as Lord as unnecessary. But I am questioning how this group of people understands exactly what Jesus did on the Cross and God’s disposition towards people. If God redeemed only the elect, does He hate and take pleasure in their demise? (That is different from God’s glorification when justice is done. I’m not sure that many New Calvinists see God’s glory through justice and how He feels about sinners/those who are lost see them as mutually exclusive states. I think that they project their flesh and their desire for superiority into the mix and equate glory with taking delight in the demise of the wicked. I think that it breaks God’s heart. I know that it does my own.)
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I think it is great. You see with a twitter account we are getting to see the non scripted Piper. It is not an edited book nor a planned presentation on a stage where he has spent most of his life. All this blogging, tweeting stuff has been great to really see how these guys really think.
No one in the movement ever questions Piper. They think he is brilliant. So I will question.
He makes a blanket statement which implies there were tons of these occurances. Now, how does he know? Did he position himself to watch for these “drive backs”? Creepy. Now I doubt very seriously they looked unhappy. But that is sort of subjective to a purity culture guy who thinks women are second class and should take abuse for a season. In fact, I doubt this happened at all. Like many pastor illustrations it is meant for another use.But the illustration does not make him look good at all. He is so full of himself he cannot see that.
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@CindyK:
The smaller the pond, the bigger each fish.
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I’m thinking back to my high school days. I don’t ever recall anyone having a sour face after having a make-out session. LOL This is so laughable. Really.
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How are any of us surprised about that nonsensical tweet after that ridiculous “deep calls unto deep” tweet he did awhile back?
Hubby and I used to be big into Piper back in our reformed/patriarchy days. Bit by bit, however, his quotes on twitter and Facebook got so strange and weird that hubby and I got tired of texting each other with “um, wth does Piper mean by THAT?!”
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“Really, you just have to feel for the man’s wife”
Gary, He took a paid year off to “work on the garden of his marriage” a few years back right before retiring. (Of course no one else can afford to do that) and then he forgot about his flowery announcment and kept mentioning during that time he was working on a book. I think he was in England. Nice gig.
But he announces this after touring around teaching how to have the right comp marriage on stages everywhere. Why can’t people connect dots?
Noel is dutiful wife. My family who worked and studied with him about 13 years ago said she painted a lot and wore berets. She is the epitome of the submissive wife.
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@CindyK:
At which point, the Zero-Sum Game kicks in:
If there’s only so much to go around, the only way to get more for ME is to take it away from someone else — like YOU.
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@JulieAnne:
That just means they weren’t Calvinists or Puritans.
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I had a fleeting thought about making a spoof blog preaching salvation to Klingons, just as a commentary on this idea of God’s finite love and power and compassion — and a lack thereof on the part of others.
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“Covenant Theology is really big on that covenant community stuff, and if you have confessed and embraced the community, you are elect.”
He did excommunicate his son, Abraham.
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Lydia,
Okay, so you are elect until one of these guys who peers into your soul, the new high priests of the New Calvinist Sacerdotalism excommunicates you.
(How I hope that John Piper prays for him every day and weeps for his restoration and reconciliation. Or if because of grief, he only prays and weeps when he thinks about his son. And I don’t want to know whether he does or not.)
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Headless Unicorn Guy is on a roll tonight!
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“He did excommunicate his son, Abraham.”
So, did he also disown his own son in the process? Or am I drawing a distinction where there is no difference?
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“If you’re happy and you know it, then you’re damned!” Post makeout session.
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Was he spotting deer and had a flood light with him that he shined into car windows at night? How do you see people driving a car at night? Especially the passenger, or were the women in the driver’s seat.
This is just too much good fodder for jokes, I can’t believe it. I should stop.
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Maybe somebody stole his phone and hacked his twitter account – that’s my 6th grade student’s kind of excuse.
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Gary, Here is an account: http://www.firstboynton.com/2012/04/04/let-them-come-home-john-and-abraham-piper/
Frankly, Abraham sounded normal to me as a kid raised in a fundy home and I cannot figure out what he did that was so horrible. If it were my 19 year old, I would go hear him play guitar in a bar and cheer him on. But that is me.
Barnabas is the one who does not sound normal to me. He seems more wacked out but he is now making a six figure with Lifeway in Nashville (where Piper retired to) as some sort of “content” guy. He left Baptist for Presbyterian before this because he started elieving in infant baptism and wrote a big piece on it. The EUREKA! He is working for Baptists who disdain infant baptism. Beleive me this was a topic of conversation on some pastor blogs.
Guess he changed his mind again now that he is working for Baptists. Actually I think it is all Nepotisic and these guys are empire builders passing on the connections, sharing the wealth of the pew sitters among them.
By the way, both are grown men. Barnabas makes a living in “ministry” and proceeds to teach others, so he is fair game. He is also making a nice fat living at Lifeway.
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“Was he spotting deer and had a flood light with him that he shined into car windows at night? How do you see people driving a car at night? Especially the passenger, or were the women in the driver’s seat.”
BWAHAHA. I am getting mental pic of little Johnny Piper in a deer hunting cap. Frankly if you have heard him talk about his upbringing, that is unlikely. I think he was very sheltered as an only child. And his dad was gone a lot as an evangelist.
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“If you’re happy and you know it, then you’re damned!”
Girl, you are on a roll. Now that song in my head. DRATS!
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Piper’s dad. He was with Bob Jones but they had some sort of alling out
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This could be extremely wrong to some, but I’d suggest it depends on what self-imposed limit have they crossed, and also the church environment they are in. I mean, I have friends who didn’t kiss before their wedding day.
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Oh wait – is he referring to Christians or non?
If the latter – maybe because it’s because the guy accidentally dropped his prophylactic in the river…(sorry)
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Welcome, squidaloopa! Too funny!
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Best response ever.
There was a particular spot in my hometown where couples would park their cars and…you get the picture. Nothing gave me and my brothers more pleasure than to drive up there and frighten them away. We were too busy laughing to see whether they looked happy or not.
It seems this man lacks a sense of humour.
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TMIANB, This man seems to lack a lot of other things, too.
Eric is my hero!
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Goodness this guy has a stupid wish. Dr. Piper oh never mind. Dr. Piper if you cant see wants wrong with this step down and retire, if you do shame on you. I am sick of it, I gave pretty much all of my adult life to this nonsense, and it is nonsense. Grow up join the 21 century.
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John Piper / Eric Pazdziora – Down By The River
Shared from ericpaz using Embeddlr
download/iPhone
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I got a simple answer Dr. Caner “repent” we get it you were trying to do what you thought was right and got caught up in the apologetic. You lost a son, I saw what that did to my mother and father, the difference, you had a church community, I had the you let your brother go to hell because you did not preach the gospel to him. This is your chance for real change and healing move on past it. And to all you parasites that think this is a time to climb on the train, grow up. God to think I use to be enchanted with your clap trap, no more. Let this family alone and Dr. Piper do you think God will drop a tornado on Dr. Caner’s school? You do realize how tornado’s are formed? We are learning to predict them, and once we crawl out of the magical thinking of your ilk, even control them. I was wondering Dr. Piper do you think Ebola gives glory to God when some poor soul is bleeding from every orphus? If it is God He is a real bad aim. This disease is a species killer, should we rely on prayer, alone? God I hope not, God gave us a brain. Did God get glory out of the tsunami 2004. Lots of folks died there. God did get glory out of the massive Christian response to the tragedy from many faith groups.
I have a suggestion, Grow up.
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Creeping around in the woods is one thing, but Peeper Piper better not take this to the next level and start looking through people’s windows. I have heard of old Married gay men going out into the woods to look for secret sex. I wonder what this weirdo was doing in the woods ? Protecting morality of teenage America or looking for something else ? Forgive me but Piper has always looked like the neighborhood pervert to me.
Really strange for him to tweet about this. Reminds me of this fancy pants that was always preaching on the evils of masturbation and homosexuality. We were in the 7-8 grade chapel at a christian school / concentration camp and this guy was obsessed with the sexual sins of others. Then he was caught at a YOUTH camp in bed dressed in his wife’s lingerie with some other counselor sodomizing him.
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Scott, can I screenshot and tweet your comment above?
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You know Scott I was up by the reservoir with a friend, when we were accosted, I dont remember why he did not make a move, maybe because there was two of us. I really dont remember it incident that well, but it turned out he was an abuser. He was so smooth with the smile. I think adults should protect kids, young teens, I E if they are going to run in the street protect them. If we fear for them, pray and hope.
I remember being 15, it was a weird time and I was a nutcase, I wish I could teleport back a few weeks and say to Baxton, it will get better and you are worth it, live the life given you, you are loved. I wish I could have done that, I dont even know the kid but he reminds me of so many I did know. Braxton I am sorry, I wish I could have been there for you, for your family, you had such a high hope. I know I will see you on the other side, another, no the main reason I am a universalist.
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JA,
Me neither. Perhaps Piper cannot read the expressions of others. It was probably satisfied, quiet, and content, not sad.
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Just one more reason to collect as many Piper books as I can and destroy them. He is just creepy.
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Sure cindy, tweet, tweet away….
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Looks like Piper thinks of himself as some sort of morals police. Kind of like in John Calvin’s Geneva, if I am correctly recalling what I have read. Kind of like they have even today in places in the world where the dominant religion embraces a deterministic god that looks very much like Piper’s deterministic (and angry, glory seeking) god.
Still, Piper’s strange conduct is a reminder that we can be grateful. It is difficult to imagine what life would be like had Piper’s beloved Puritans managed to retain a firm grasp on the levers of civil authority. Only the likes of John Piper and his fundamentalist sycophants could then be happy.
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What is there about Puritan theology that makes a sixty-something year old man obsess, or even think, about teenage goings-on down by the river? Maybe it’s that, if you embrace a doctrine, like total depravity, your theology begins to be reflected in your actions. Maybe it’s that, if one refuses to embrace Paul’s admonition to reckon oneself dead to sin, they won’t become dead to sin.
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@Lisa or anyone
<<>>
Can anyone tell me the source? I want to be sure Piper really said that. It is rumored that a prominent BJU guy did, saying that he didn’t want to deprive his wife the honor of suffering for Christ. Ridiculous.
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Randy, are you trying to get verification of the story Lisa said? Or the tweet I posted about in the article. If the latter, you will see if you click on any of the hyperlinks in the tweet embedded in the post, that is indeed a real tweet and live. If he took it down, we wouldn’t see it here anymore. (However, JA has the screenshot.)
Edited to add: I did a quick search. Lisa’s story is legit. It’s in this podcast. http://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/god-guns-and-biblical-manhood
http://5ptsalt.com/2013/02/12/john-piper-christians-dont-need-guns-in-their-homes/
http://mysoulsings.net/god-guns-and-biblical-manhood-a-response-to-pastor-john/
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“I remember being 15, it was a weird time and I was a nutcase, I wish I could teleport back a few weeks and say to Baxton, it will get better and you are worth it, live the life given you, you are loved. I wish I could have done that, I dont even know the kid but he reminds me of so many I did know. Braxton I am sorry, I wish I could have been there for you, for your family, you had such a high hope. I know I will see you on the other side, another, no the main reason I am a universalistI.”
Brian, I am astonished at the lack of compassion for a 15 year old boy from ‘Christians”. All around me I see teens experimenting, lost, confused, angry, looking for the next thrill in our entertainment saturated society, etc. And they suffer because of their parents sin or mistakes. Pipers tweet is in some ways a benign variation of JD Hall and co. Teens growing in evangelicalism have it tougher in many ways.
I have even seen some bloggers now trying to converse about the gory details of his suicide to paint it as his dad’s fault?
I was reminded of something last night that I had totally forgotten. Where did all this start with Caner? Go back to founders blog in 2006. That was back when Peter Lumpkins was a benign Calvinist if you can believe it.I was just starting to blog myself and had no idea what I had stumbled upon. The blog posts concerning the Caner’s debate with James White and the founders involvement are instructive. The mindset in that movement is instructive. The constant “God hath said” is cheesy. That was back when that movement was really making inroads into the SBC.
You will get a real picture of what this has been about since day one. Both sides are guilty. But it also gives you an idea of the relentlessness of the Calvinist movement that was the standard and how they can never let anything go until that person is ruined and in the ground. A good friend of mine looking into Calvinism at the time had a bit of a bizarre interaction with Founders sycophant, Timmy Brister. he was at SBTS at the time. Just so happened she posted a pic he had used on his blog. He went ballistic. He only found it because she commented on Founders blog and he checked out her blog. He sent her hateful emails, put hateful comments on founders, accused her of stealing, etc. He never once asked her how she came about it or even tried to engage. He went for the jugular.
She had never heard of Timmy. Never visited his blog but found the pic all by herself. She was astonished at his outburst, his hate and dragging her blog through the mud. She deleted the pic and never went back to founders and decided if that was Calvinism, no thanks. BTW: She new a big wig at the place Timmy was working while at SBTS and the result was that some get sick of seminary boys who think they are superior and let everyone know this is not what God called them to do. They hated working in the real world. Timmy was hired to be a pastor at Tom Ascol’s church in Fla. That is who these guys are. That is the backbone of that movement. The Caner brothers should have never wanted to debate these guys on Calvinism. But both brothers were outspoken non Calvinists.
At the time of all this, Braxton was 7.
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@Scott
“Peeper Piper” Bwahahahaha!
Somebody more creative than me needs to do a riff on that along the “Peter Piper” theme.
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Maybe the guy had too many raw onions on his hamburger during their picnic…
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Julie Anne:
I had put Lisa’s comment in between my <<>> but it disappeared when I submitted.
This is what I’m inquiring about:
“Remember, this is the same guy that said that if an intruder broke in, he would not use self defense to defend his family’s lives because he knows his family members are saved and would go to heaven if they were killed, but the intruder is probably not saved and would likely go to hell.”
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and now I see your other reply. Thank you.
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Maybe it’s something that some old fogey at BJU taught, and Piper and Jim Berg just heard it preached to them at some point. Or, maybe it’s one of those items like the strange woman doctrine that you only hear if you’re a part of the inner circle — the stuff that the IFB used to refrain from preaching very broadly.
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Thanks to Scott for the idea. (I’m turning my attention back to the laundry now.)
Peeper Piper peeked a park of pecking puppies.
A park of pecking puppies Peeper Piper peeked.
If Peeper Piper peeked a park of pecking puppies,
Should pecking puppies pepper spray Peeper Piper’s peeks?
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Lydia,
Before reading your 6:59 a.m. post, I was thinking about how difficult it is for the children of Preachers. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be the child of a Preacher that embraces or seeks attention through cyber-bullying.
When a Preacher emphasizes to his own Congregation of how “unworthy” they are I have to ask myself :what must he be putting his wife and kids through?” and “how will this affect their self-esteem and development into adulthood?”
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Peeper Piper peeked a park of pecking puppies.
A park of pecking puppies Peeper Piper peeked.
If Peeper Piper peeked a park of pecking puppies,
Should pecking puppies pepper spray Peeper Piper’s peeks?
Now can you say that 3 times fast????
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That is tweet worthy, BTDT.
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I tweeted it, too. There are just so many good comments to pick from.
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This is my all-time favorite SSB post to date.
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Here’s another article on a weird Piper tweet: https://spiritualsoundingboard.com/2013/01/08/weird-john-piper-tweet-who-can-figure-this-out/
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Here’s the actual tweet:
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JA,
I think “gobbledygook” explains this tweet quite nicely. How the guy who thought it was great because it would get folks thinking about scripture–is all wet. I don’t see one thing resembling scripture in this. I see a reckless person supposedly leading the flock.
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Why do men like Piper feel the need to lie, exaggerate or project their own narrow views on issues that are not black and white? It is like they are exposing their so-called “mental masturbation” for the world to see. (Or maybe “mutual” mental masturbation when two or more of them share each other’s delusions). I l know this sounds crude, but this term describes exactly what they do! They stroke their own and each other’s egos with no regard to the hurting world around them. They are deaf to the painful cries from the victims of their careless words. I wish each one of them could be dropped into a third world country with no $ or first world privilege for one year and see how their narrow world views “comfort” them. Actually, some would hopefully wake up and experience the miracle of God’s creation and love through the hearts and communities (both good and bad) they would encounter in such a journey!
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Ann, you said:
I wish each one of them could be dropped into a third world country with no $ or first world privilege for one year and see how their narrow world views “comfort” them.
Excellent idea. I would contribute to the airfare fund. We could put as many gurus on the plane as possible and maybe even give them a parachute to land with.
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@Lydia:
Considering the subject matte (and Piper’s apparent Peeping)r, my grade-school filk lyrics of it seems more appropriate:
“If you’re horny and you know it
Then your shmuck will surely show it…”
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OH MY WORD!!!! Deep calls to Deep? Necklines? Jesus not a fertility god. What on earth is he talking about?
People revere this man. Think he is brilliant. I have always said of him, strip away the flowery verbosity and see what sticks as substance. If you do that with his sermons and books, there is NOTHING THERE. It makes no sense. He is like one of those gurus who makes senseless platitudes and people swoon. I am trying to think of an illustration—-what was the name of that movie Peter Sellers was in….oh yeah….”Being There”. Piper reminds me of that character.
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“When a Preacher emphasizes to his own Congregation of how “unworthy” they are I have to ask myself :what must he be putting his wife and kids through?” and “how will this affect their self-esteem and development into adulthood?”
I do worry for his daughter for many reasons I won’t go into online.
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“Considering the subject matte (and Piper’s apparent Peeping)r, my grade-school filk lyrics of it seems more appropriate:
“If you’re horny and you know it
Then your shmuck will surely show it…”
You naughty boy!
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“l know this sounds crude, but this term describes exactly what they do! They stroke their own and each other’s egos with no regard to the hurting world around them. They are deaf to the painful cries from the victims of their careless words. I wish each one of them could be dropped into a third world country with no $ or first world privilege for one year and see how their narrow world views “comfort” them. Actually, some would hopefully wake up and experience the miracle of God’s creation and love through the hearts and communities (both good and bad) they would encounter in such a journey!”
You know, Ann, when Piper announced his retirement and said he wanted to do “missions”, some Reformed young guys were speculating he would go off to darkest Africa or be some sort of David Livingstone character. They really believed his rhetoric for all those years.
Instead, he flew to Geneva with his expensive film crew paid for with DG donor dollars and brought us this:
Even some Reformed guys were sorely disappointed.
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Lydia,
What he did in this video was not missions. It was a vacation where he got to worship Calvin and put himself on film. Gag!!!!
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Brenda,
He’s basically declaring that he’s the new Calvin. From about the five minute mark to the end, he’s basically saying that God needs him to come in and deliver the world’s untold millions through the secret knowledge on which he seems to corner the market – or for which he is the only reliable and effective mouthpiece. Well, I’m sure that a few of his associates are also on that list, too… I guess that people buy it because he sits there and does all of that breathy speech and pauses to sound reflective or something. And he does the poor pathetic puppy expression at the end of it all. So I guess that works.
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I wonder if Peeper saw any unregenerate Klingons making out by the river Weser?
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It was absolutely a Calvin worship fest.
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Cindy K,
I didn’t make it past the half way point of the video. I’m not sure it he wants to be the new Calvin or the new Messiah, but he sure wants to be remembered in history. I don’t believe he gives 2 hoots and a holler about Jesus, all he can talk about is Calvin. That is his master, not Christ. It makes me ill to watch him.
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If John Piper is upset by two teenagers making out by a river, he’d be totally shocked at what my awesome wife (a Christian feminist black woman) and I (a conservative Christian white man) do in private.
John Piper needs to get his Calvinist head out of his buttocks.
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Ryan,
We need to keep it below an R rating here. K?
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Did Piper mention Jesus in that video? If he did, I missed it. Heard a lot about Calvin, though.
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John Piper tweet:
“Down by the river the teenagers would go to make out. I watched them drive back. They never looked happy. Especially she.”
Why is he watching teens making out?
The Down By The River remark reminds me of,
Chris Farley SNL motivational speaker skit: “I live in a van, down by the river!!” (video on You Tube)
I wonder, when Chris Farley was living in a van down by the river, was John Piper sitting in the bushes somewhere on the bank, with a pair of binoculars spying on him?
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BIT, He said Jesus twice towards the end. When you asked it was an inquiring minds have to know moment. He said God or God’s Word and Gospel far more. The first time he said Jesus it was slurred.
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Daisy,
I wonder, when Chris Farley was living in a van down by the river, was John Piper sitting in the bushes somewhere on the bank, with a pair of binoculars spying on him?
I would have to say yes, yes he was.
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Hmm. I might have to go through it again and see how many times he said “God,” “God’s word,” “Gospel,” and “Calvin.”
Perhaps I could make a drinking game out of it. I think I have some vodka….
Aha! The Gospel drinking game! 😀
I mean, there’s Gospel everything else, so….
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It’s possible my last comment might have been a smidge unkind.
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I had a sour face once, but in my defense the woman was a smoker……very gross.
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BIT, I’ll stick to ice tea shots. I gave up those drinking games 40 years ago. All they ever got me was sick.
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Ann said,
John Piper would probably saying “mental masturbation” is only something a married person can do.
I’d be excluded once more for being a single.
Also, (and ATTN Julie Anne),
from John Piper’s blog,
Is Oral Sex Okay
I read that page. He doesn’t mention if oral sex down by the river is okay or not. Someone should write and ask him if it’s okay down by the river. 😆
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Lydia said,
Oh geeze. One reason of several Mark Driscoll gave in his “reasons why unmarried men should not be permitted to be preachers” is that, he feels if a man is still single/celibate past a certain age that God has called that person to die a martyr handing out Gospel tracts in some hostile third world nation.
Just because some unmarried dudes in the Bible died violent deaths does not mean that is a rule or requirement or expectation of God for all adult single celibates everywhere, for all time.
There were also married dudes in the Bible who experienced hardship – David’s son raped a daughter, David had an affair, his child died, one of his other sons was killed, etc. That old dude had sex with his handmaiden at his wife’s insistence, which created all sorts of problems. Moses was married but had strife in his life, and on and on.
Where does the Bible teach that being married and/or having sex excuses a person from dying for the faith, having problems in life, etc?
Where does the Bible say that married men who have children are not expected of God to go fly to some deep dark jungle nation and risk their life spreading the Gospel?
Not that I am arguing for Christians to be expected to do any, or all, of this extreme service (I don’t like the preachers who shame you by saying, “If you are not living a radical, sold out life for Jesus, if you are not facing malaria and being eaten by lions to witness to pagans in a dark continent, you are a failure or loser Christian”), but what I’m getting at is the double standard…
Driscoll teaches that dying for Christ or living in a hut with a mud floor in Timbuktu is a requirement for an adult single/celibate, or that this fate is inevitable, that if you are single past the age of 35, it’s because God is planning on whacking you (killing you off) in his service in Foreign Lands.
The Bible teaches none of this, but guys like Driscoll create all manner of strange doctrines around marital status and/or sexual activity.
Teachings created out of thin air such as Driscoll’s also feeds into this nasty idea that the life of a married mother or father is more valuable in some way to that of a never married, widowed, or divorced or childless adult. I don’t see where being single or childless makes a person less valuable or makes them expendable.
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Godith said,
I wonder what Pastor Piper thinks about how Mr. Calvin and his “ecumenism” towards the baptists of his day?
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Ryan said,
You two play tiddly winks, drink apple cider, and read American literature.
On a more serious note, this reminds me of the insanity over J D Hall and the Caner story. Hall and his ilk think a teen kid kissing his girlfriend and posting a photo of it on Twitter is “gross immorality.”
If these people think teen make out sessions or kissy face photos are the height of impropriety, they are living very sheltered lives, and must never venture outside their blogs or Twitter accounts. I sometimes see racy material just perusing regular news sites and blogs, and it’s far beyond photos of teen boys kissing their GFs.
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“Perhaps I could make a drinking game out of it. I think I have some vodka….”
If we made a drinking game out of every time these guys say “Gospel” we would need rehab within a week!
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” It was a vacation where he got to worship Calvin and put himself on film. Gag!!!!”
Oh, I was especially moved when he went to the big stone statues of the Reformed big cheeses.
First time I saw this, I kept thinking about reading something a while back on the Genevan debate on erecting a monument to Servetus. There was some little plaque somewhere hidden by bushes, I think. Not something they are proud to remember.
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“I wonder what Pastor Piper thinks about how Mr. Calvin and his “ecumenism” towards the baptists of his day?”
And the Jews, too. for the Ana Baptists, Calvin had visions of torture, imprisonment and a 3rd Baptism by drowning. But hey, he had ‘correct doctrine’. Sigh
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Ryan, I am getting the vapors over here. :o)
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@Daisy:
They have to stay home and Focus on their Families(TM) in safety.
(And Outbreed those Heathens, of course.)
Which has still more effect on that Trust in God you’re supposed to have. How can you trust Someone who’s plotting to have you whacked “just because”?
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“He’s basically declaring that he’s the new Calvin.”
yes. Delusional. I basically dubbed it him the ” Global 21st Century Calvin” taking Calvin to the masses.
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