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Thread: R. C. Sproul

  1. #1
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    R. C. Sproul

    R. C. Sproul, who hosted the program, "Renewing Your Mind" on many Christian and allegedly Christian radio stations has died. He was a proponent of "reformed" Christianity which means going along with the Reformation movement and its proponents. He died in mid December in a suburb of Orlando, Florida, where his Ligonier Ministries was located. Sproul died of COPD. Having heard him speak a number of times, I always thought he was a smoker.

    I have mixed emotions about him. Although much of his preaching was certainly Bible based, his programs were often boring and filled with long dissertations about philosophy and the teachings of various philosophers. This was often way above the heads of the average listener and quite frankly, had nothing to do with preaching about a particular Biblical passage as one would do in expository preaching or topical preaching.

    His son, R. C. Sproul, Junior was, and I stress the word "was" an up and coming figure in his father's ministry and often did the radio program. He was arrested for DUI related charges in the midwest in recent times and was dismissed from the operation, as I heard it. This is not a reflection on RC, as no matter how good a parent is or how much of a great example parents can be, a child is still a free moral agent and can do whatever they want.

  2. #2
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    By point of clarification, let me expound on my phrase "allegedly Christian radio stations". Any commercial, for-profit radio station can pick and choose whatever format they want to make a profit. There are actual Christian radio stations which are owned and operated by Christian organizations such as ministries and churches and they are often operated as non-profits. However, there are some chains which have chosen Christianity as their format as a way to make money. Their on air presentation makes it sound like everyone is a devout Christian and their radio station is a little slice of heaven. Reality is its all a great big act with them. Internally, you'll find petty jealousies, office political games, management lying to employees along with office parties where the booze freely flows. They are "Christian" only enough to make the sale. If someone found out worshiping used popsickle sticks could turn a profit, they would switch to that format.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by DC8PIC View Post
    Although much of his preaching was certainly Bible based, his programs were often boring and filled with long dissertations about philosophy and the teachings of various philosophers. This was often way above the heads of the average listener and quite frankly, had nothing to do with preaching about a particular Biblical passage as one would do in expository preaching or topical preaching.
    Philosophy is over their heads but the Supernatural isn't?
    "I just can't get my head around that Hume guy; why can't he make more practical sense like the Almighty?"

    RIP, R.C.

    I have a general distrust of TV\Media preachers and evangelists, that's surely not appropriate or justified in all cases.
    A faulty hypothesis forming:
    A German scientist using Iranian physics and French mathematics.



  4. #4
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    I don't know who you mean by "Hume". Can you explain? On the point of distrust, the most important point is the message and not the human delivering it. There is not one human preacher who is the perfect Christian in their own life.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by DC8PIC View Post
    I don't know who you mean by "Hume". Can you explain? On the point of distrust, the most important point is the message and not the human delivering it. There is not one human preacher who is the perfect Christian in their own life.
    David Hume was a Scottish philosopher in the 1700's.
    He considered philosophy to be the "science" of our nature as humans, and tried to apply the scientific method to matters of philosophy.
    That's a bit of a stretch, just IMO.

    Here's a link to an article about him: https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Hume

    It's interesting stuff - as is philosophy in general is to me.
    The practical limitations of many tenets of philosophy are many, however.

    Here's a snippet of an actual conversation with a professor of philosophy that I once had:

    He: "If a tree falls in the woods and there is no one there to hear it, does it make a sound?"
    Me: "Well, duh; yeah."
    He: "But how can you know if no one is there to hear it?"

    Obviously, that line of questioning could go on forever with me invoking the laws of physics and the professor questioning if those laws can be said to actually apply when people aren't there to witness them.
    A faulty hypothesis forming:
    A German scientist using Iranian physics and French mathematics.



  6. #6
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    Absolutely, philosophy can indeed be a very interesting discussion and the basis of quite an interesting debate such as if you have multiple people involved in the debate/discussion. My point with RC is if you're going to explain something stated in the Bible, going into long dissertations about philosophy is a complete turn off and not relatable. I have heard RC do both. His exposition of scripture was very interesting and eye opening. The straying off course to make a meal out of philosophy, which he was very prone to do was a turn off in that arena. However, as a participant in a discussion regarding philosophy with RC as one of the participants would have been a joy and very enlightening!

  7. #7
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    My husband listened to RC Sproul quite a bit and sometimes when I would get into my car, the radio would be set to the station and RC Sproul's show would be on. My husband loved him, but I can honestly say that I was an "average listener" and didn't usually get very much out of it. On the other hand, my husband studied Philosophy in college, became a successful businessman but always read up on religion and philosophical matters that went way over my head, and loved RC Sproul. RC had a stroke in 2015, and I do remember seeing a video of him smoking a cigarette, his voice did sound kind of raspy so I too think he was a long-time smoker. RIP Mr. Sproul.
    Any day above ground is a good day.

  8. #8
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    He sounds like a guy I would have enjoyed listening to.
    Heck - I'd have probably really enjoyed sitting down with him for a chat over coffee and cigars.
    A faulty hypothesis forming:
    A German scientist using Iranian physics and French mathematics.



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