Interview with CHRIS ARNZEN of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio at Fight Laugh Feast 2022

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Interview with CHRIS ARNZEN of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio at Fight Laugh Feast 2022

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00:00
And now back to your regularly scheduled program. Iron sharpens iron radio super excited, sir.
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I am again. I'm a little bit off strut, but Just bear with me
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So, how are you today, sir? I am great. I'm very glad to be alive Enjoying this conference very much even more in fact a lot more than I expected.
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I would Is this that your first spot last piece yes, it is mine too, so we're we're in this together,
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I guess But you of course are used used to doing a lot of conferences You do a lot of promoting you've been on the radio for years by the way
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I wanted to read your bio so our audience will have just a bit greater knowledge of who you are just in case they don't know
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You've been involved in radio. It says here for over 30 years Yes, not in hosting a radio program of my own that began in 2005 but I've been in the radio industry since the mid to late 80s as an account executive and airtime salesman and I worked for 15 years for WMCA radio 570 a .m.
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In New York. It's a very legendary station It used to be in the 50s and 60s
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New York's number one rock and roll station. They were known as the good guys and It became a
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Christian station in 1990 and I was Applied for a job there and was hired and for 15 years was there but while there
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The The talk show that they had an in -house talk show Started out being called talk,
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New York, and then it became Andy Anderson live. Andy Anderson was the host
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And Andy was not Reformed as I was and in fact,
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I was the only reformed person theologically reformed person at the station and So when
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I would hear the interviews on Andy's program I loved Andy was a great guy, but I was very often very disappointed in the guests and the
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The agenda that was being promoted So I began to approach
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Andy with a reformed book By reformed author and I would say hey
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Andy, why don't you introduce this guy? And Andy would say I don't know anything about that subject and I said, well, why don't
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I write the questions for you? And all sudden he lit up like a Christmas tree. It was like an epiphany
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And he said to himself this is gonna make my life a lot easier So he began approaching me every week after that.
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Hey Chris, you got any guests lined up for me and then When he was going on vacation
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He would ask management. Hey, can you have Chris Arnson fill in for me? And that's where I got the bug And then in 2005 when
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I left WMCA, which is a which is an affiliate of Salem media the largest
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Christian radio network in the world. I Started my own show in 2005 and that was kind of a funny thing that happened.
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I started out with the intention of running my own ad agency and I approached this
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General manager of little tiny Christian music station with predominantly music in Babylon, New York WNYG and I Asked the woman who was the general manager
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Phyllis. I'd like to have your media kit because I want to include you in a packet that I approach
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Advertising prospects with and This way that I can include you in my sales pitch
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So that I could sell advertising for your station as well as other stations and within the first five minutes of the conversation
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Phyllis said you have a really nice voice to give her host a talk show before and I said well I used to fill in for Andy Anderson live and She said well, the two o 'clock slot is open.
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You want it? That's how iron sharpens iron started Wow So what what was it any particular reform book that you promoted to your to the folks at the radio station
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I would typically Especially starting out It would typically
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Be a reformed author writing on something that was universally interesting.
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It might be a book Against abortion. It might be a book against homosexuality, you know
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Any anything that even a Narminian would say wow that subject is meaningful to me I want to find out more about that and then as time progressed when
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Andy was just convinced that The authors I recommended to him were excellent
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Guests I began to give him things that were more deeply and specifically involved in Reform soteriology and because Andy had the questions in front of him didn't matter that he didn't really understand that theology because he was asking my question sometimes that would backfire though because Sometimes people because the guest didn't necessarily know in fact
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The vast majority of time they wouldn't have known that he had a list of questions So sometimes a person you ask them one question
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Answering five questions and then but Andy would still go to number two Even though it had already been answered five minutes ago
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And then you know you'd so sometimes you'd hear well as I said three minutes ago
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He's with the Lord now and he was a dear man, I loved him a lot and he became very close friends, but he sadly had
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Bladder cancer and went home to the Lord in the I guess it was the early tooth about 2 ,000 or so somewhere in that neighborhood
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Mr. Arntz and if you always have you always had were you raised
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Raised Roman Catholic Yeah went to eight years of parochial school st.
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Martin of Tours in Amityville Long Island, New York and My father was
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Initially Episcopalian and my mother was Roman Catholic and they raised me Roman Catholic and my father converted to Catholicism sadly when
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I was about 17 thinking that that would be something to draw the family closer together was his excuse for that and I had already long abandoned church attendance or affiliation that was a season of rebellion quickly after graduating grammar school
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Catholic grammar school became a serious drunkard and Pothead I don't even know if kids use that term this these days
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But I was definitely smoking pot every day and Thank God the
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Lord Rescued me eventually when I was in my mid -twenties and and also thankfully the very first church
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I began Attending very seriously and weekly
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Where I was saved and baptized was a reformed Baptist Church. I had been visiting other churches
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Bouncing around for several years Including mainly Pentecostal and charismatic churches, but I never believed what
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I was witnessing. I never believed it was genuine I kept thinking to myself these people
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Allegedly are speaking an angelic language But if indeed it is any kind of a real language, it's only
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At best two or three words because they're repeating the same Sounds yes over and wherever I go.
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It seems they're saying the same thing and People I remember even asking one of the pastors of a
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Pentecostal Church where I was attending I Said to him why is it that people every week?
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Go up for salvation And go up for healing and I mean is it not sticking you know what's happening here?
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so Thank God I was Saved and baptized in a good solid reformed
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Baptist Church my my dear friend Mike Gaydosh was my very first pastor who immersed me in the waters of baptism and by the way you and I got to stick together being a
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Fight or a feast being a minority It's a tiny minority here
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And I'm even more of a tiny tiny minority more of a minority than you because I'm clean -shaven
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I have a five o 'clock shadow Didn't want to mention this but but the guests have to at least have some whiskers to be in the booth, so you're you're okay, mr.
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Arnson But Yes, it's kind of funny how
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Today the the full beard and the long beard is a sign of Christian manhood
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When back in the 60s and 70s according to George Carlin it was a sign of being a communist
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Another Rabbit trail here that might be interesting to the listeners And I keep in mind.
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I'm not saying That I believe Robin Williams with great confidence was saved but this goes to show you that You probably don't know a lot about the private lives of people and even famous people perhaps especially famous people
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Because Robin Williams during his Stand -up routines and during his interviews would never give any hint that he was seeking for God or at least
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Trying to fulfill some kind of religious curiosity because he was for a number of years visiting reformed churches all over the world when he was on movie sets and so forth were specifically reformed because He was at a funeral and a man that was there who was a mutual friend of the deceased
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Struck up a conversation with Robin Robin immediately began to like him and the man was a
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Christian And I found this out Mike Gaydosh my first pastor that I just mentioned the
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Founder and director of solid ground Christian books, and if you don't know solid ground Christian books
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You've got to solid -ground -books .com They are a big sponsor of my program, but He noticed that this couple in California kept ordering two copies of everything they ordered
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And one day he just said to the woman ordering the books can I ask you a question? Why do you always order two copies?
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And she said well, I guess I might as well tell you my husband and I are close friends with Robin Williams the comedian and she told the whole story about how
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Her husband had met Robin at a funeral they struck up a conversation Robin liked this man so much that when
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Robin entered into Drug and alcohol rehab he put the man up in a hotel nearby the
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Rehab facility so that they could have close regular contact and pray together and all that and then when
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Robin got out of the rehab he had visited Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California where John MacArthur's pastor he visited a very well -known
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Reformed Baptist Church In the Toronto Canada area he visited
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Reformed churches in New York So there was something happening, I don't know if it was genuinely the drawing of God But He was definitely
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Deeply interested in finding out more about what Specifically Reformed Christians had to say and sadly that couple that was ordering the books.
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Oh Before I even say that When Mike Adosh found out that Robin was ordering these was that was receiving these books he
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Said to the couple. I'm gonna give a book as a gift to Robin for myself
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And I'm gonna put a note in it, and I hope that you give it to One day Mike Adosh is at his daughter's birthday party his cell phone rings.
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It's Robin Williams thanking him for the book And Mike said that Robin was very enthusiastically and gratefully and profusely thankful Talking a mile a minute to him and It was
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Mike Adosh that had to eventually say Robin. I would love to continue talking with you. It's been great
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But I have to go back to my daughter's birthday party And so Mike Adosh had to end that conversation, but but as I was saying before tragically
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I don't know was probably a couple of years later that they a couple that was buying
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Robin a book every time they ordered a book they
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Started only ordering one copy of everything and Mike said just out of curiosity Why are you back to ordering one copy of everything and the wife said well tragically
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Robin's wife Said that if He continued
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Remaining in close contact with us and maintaining a friendship with us that she was going to leave him so he
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Reluctantly ended the friendship and so Where he is now,
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I mean people might automatically think oh he committed suicide. He must be in hell but he had
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Serious mental issues he was facing a very Crippling disease,
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I can't remember exactly what it is called right now, but and Obviously nothing is ever an excuse for suicide, but I'm just saying that there are circumstances involving his life
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That may have driven him to that That does do not necessarily
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Positively negate him being regenerate I'm not saying that he was but I'm just saying that it
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I hold out a hope for that So I just thought that that would
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Interest people especially if they were fans of his humor at all because it's virtually an unknown story
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Yeah Thank you for sharing that but and that does really go to and that's a that's a very good subject for for Christians to have discussions about because I think
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More along the Catholic side Catholics look at suicide as an unforgivable sin
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But well they used to who knows what they right now the Pope. I'm sure would not
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Use that as a prohibition to enter heaven exactly I mean atheists are going to heaven according to him now, but of course that's not
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Catholic dogma Dogma could never be changed what was set down in stone
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And I obviously don't mean that literally But the dogma that was declared at the Council of Trent no matter how leftist a
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Pope may be That has not changed Doesn't matter if he is saying that atheists are going to heaven and even we who are
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Protestants are going to heaven and Jews and Muslims and Hindus and Buddhists and Homosexuals and Doesn't matter what he says if he's not declaring it an ex cathedra and declaring it as dogma
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It's really his personal opinion. Yep that according to the most conservative
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Catholics. I know They still have to treat him with the utmost respect He's still in the chair of Peter But what he says does not define the
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Catholic faith unless he is speaking ex cathedra Right, right
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Which makes me thankful as Protestants that we have the Word of God as our standard the the
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Latin phrase Ecclesia reformata Ecclesia reformata
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Ecclesia reformata. Oh My goodness
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Ecclesia reformata Semper reformanda Secundum verba once reformed always reforming according to the
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Word of God that Yeah, that's actually where we draw our church name from from that phrase.
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I just went blank because again. I'm still nervous so But uh well you know
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Latin better than I do But I'd do it with a hillbilly accent So but you've you've uh by the way.
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I have I have learned as a native New Yorker Not to ever judge the intelligence of someone because of their accent because I've discovered especially through my friend
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David T King Who was raised in the Florida panhandle and was a pastor for most of his?
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Pastoral life in Georgia now pastoring in Texas David T King is one of the most brilliant men
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I know but a Southern accent so deep he makes you sound like you're from Oxford, England Oh One country preacher once let's told the story about how he talked and how people made fun of his language
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And he told them he said everybody thinks because the way that I sound that I'm not Educated that I've never been to school the problem is not my schooling the problem was that I learned how to talk before I went to school
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And by the way people say the same things about New Yorkers with the thick New York accent Automatically very often think that we're ignorant and that may be true about me
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Well, I'll be honest northerners sound way more intelligent than So you've had opportunities over the years, and I won't keep it a lot longer
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I appreciate the time that you've given us so far But you've had the opportunity over the years to to interview to talk with and really to be good friends with a lot of prominent
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Theologians of our day R .C. Sproul John MacArthur James White So can you tell me some of maybe maybe a memorable a memorable encounter that you had with R .C.
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Sproul? Yes And and by the way,
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I don't want to exaggerate The facts I I don't know if I could ever in fact.
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I know I could not ever Truthfully claim that R .C. Sproul was a friend, but To start with R .C.
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Sproul was somebody that As soon as I saw him
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Preach and heard him preach at the Philadelphia Conference on Reform Theology At 10th
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Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia when dr. James Montgomery Boyce was still alive I cut my teeth on Reform Theology Going to those conferences as a new
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Christian as soon as I heard Sproul preach there. I was like wow I've got to find out more about this guy and follow him more carefully and listen to him more often and read him more often and I began
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First of all before I even had my own radio show I was working part -time for Calvary Press Publishing Which was also founded by Mike Gaydosh.
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It's owned by another friend of mine now Joe Bianchi the Calvary Press brought back into print a
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Booklet that is an excerpt from a larger work by Jonathan Edwards, and it's called heaven a world of love
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In fact other publishers since it's public domain Where it was so impressed with this excerpt that they published their own versions
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But Mike was the first one to take this as an isolated portion of a larger book and print it on its own and one of the things that I did for Calvary Press is
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Since I worked in Christian radio full -time And knew that I had perhaps better access to some of the more well -known
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Christians than they did they asked me to approach people for endorsements and Ligonier Ministries at the time they had a
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Very thick Brick wall that You could not
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Surpass when trying to get in contact with somebody like dr. Sproul and obviously that's understandable a person of that fame
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The the millions of people that no doubt want to get a hold of him or at that time anyway
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When he was still with us So I was beginning to be very frustrated by that, but they would say no we're not going to give dr.
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Sproul the manuscript of the the booklet because he has a rule now that he only gives endorsements to people he knows personally and You know it will and I my response would be here, but he loves
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Jonathan Edwards But still we can he is so busy. We're not even gonna Approach him with that so I am in Manhattan when dr.
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Sproul was speaking at a conference at Calvary Baptist Church in New York City and when he finishes speaking
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And everybody gets up to sing a hymn. I noticed him going out a back door behind and I said he's going to the bathroom
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To myself I said that so I ducked out another door And he's walking to the bathroom, and I call out, and I have a copy of Jonathan Edwards having a world of love with me and I'm calling out dr.
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Sproul dr. Sproul. Can I ask you something, please sir well if you want to ask me something? You've got to come in here with me
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Go into the men's room and R .C. Sproul at the urinal with his back towards me, but his head turned around Say what do you got?
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What do you want to tell me? I said? This is a booklet by Jonathan Edwards my my pastor
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Runs Calvary Press he would go through the roof with joy if you were to write an endorsement for this booklet knowing of your love for Jonathan Edwards and He said well give it to me, and I gave it to him
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Didn't really have high hopes that I would hear from him and two weeks later, or so he wrote an endorsement and then
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Years later when I was hosting my show I Was trying to get
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R .C. Sproul as a guest and all dr. Sproul doesn't do interviews with anybody unless he knows them personally you know on and on and on Then one day after I Think maybe four or five years of trying and giving up I'm sitting there
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In the studio WNYG and Babylon, New York. I got a phone call on my cell phone
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Hello, this is dr. R .C. Sproul secretary and Dr. Sproul has learned that there are a growing number of people here at Ligonier who love your show
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And he would like to be a guest and I couldn't believe it Really, I said yeah, we'll set him up and And originally she said
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Dr. Sproul has some restrictions. He never does live shows
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He never does call -in shows, which is And at that time my show was only an hour
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That's two hours now, and she said he will never do two hours, but will likely do 15 minutes
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I said well, whatever he can do I will pre -record a show if he doesn't want to do it live So I will accommodate him on his wishes
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Then I don't remember how long after that after we scheduled the date she called back She said by the way,
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I've good good news. Dr. Sproul will do the live call -in show with you
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He won't do a full hour. He'll do a half hour, but it's better than 15 minutes It just keeps getting better and I was like phenomenal and he did the show and it was obvious He was having a great time.
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I was getting him to laugh a lot and he was just profoundly deep as always
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But not so deep that my ignorant brain could not understand after his explanations what he was talking about But he was a master at he would take very deep themes and start off perhaps using very
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High theological language, but he would break it down or His listeners viewers readers, whatever the format might have been so I had a great time interviewing him
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Then I said to the secretary Well, if dr. Sproul enjoyed himself
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Would you ask him if he could write a little blurb for my my radio program that my webmaster could put on the website?
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She said I'll pass that on to him. Thank you. And I again even though he wrote that endorsement for Calvary press
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I was just not overly optimistic. He would do it for the show. And then one day I got a call from the secretary
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Dr. Sproul has written an endorsement for your show and since he doesn't use the computer
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I was wondering if you prefer that I mail you The hard copy of his endorsement or if you want me to scan it and email it myself
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And I said get an email yourself because I wanted to see it immediately And I wish now that I had gotten a hard copy on a piece of paper to frame but I do have the scan has the letterhead and all that and his signature and The thing that's even cooler
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It is that He used to play on words with my the name of my show iron sharpens iron
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He He used the word sharp and he
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Obviously in looking what he had typed because it was a typewritten commendation. He wrote with ballpoint pen quotation marks before and after the word sharp
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So it was something that he put deep thought into and then corrected himself or yeah
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Made it more to what he was trying to emphasize by writing in with his hand So that is something that I treasure.
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It is one of the best Commendations that I've ever received.
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Oh, I would have to say the best the bad side of it is that it's so glowing
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That there are some people I think view it with skepticism And my own my own former pastor that I mentioned
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Mike Adosh well to this day joke about it because R .C. Sproul says
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I Am an interviewer without peer in the commendation
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So my former pastor will say sometimes out of nowhere. So how's the interviewer without peer with the sharp intellect?
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doing today and He'll say things. I'm convinced that dr.
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Sproul was on meds at that point when he wrote that about you You know
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So that's the only downside. It's is that it's so Beyond what anything
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I would ever expect him to write that I get jokes like that What a privilege and what a blessing and we'll close with that because I would have to say that sir you
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I? Recently your most recent interview that I listened to because I would say
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I have to agree with what he said The most recent interview that I've watched that you have done with someone was with mark.
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Dr. Mark Ward. Do you remember? Yes, I do and it was it was phenomenal or phenomenal
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But I won't keep you any longer sir. I so appreciate I hope that I didn't speak too much
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Yes, I also when I'm interviewing somebody hate pulling teeth I hate short answers
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Yeah, and that's I appreciate that because I'm I'll be quite honest with you. I am
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NOT a good talker I am NOT a good communicator many times Particularly when
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I'm as nervous as I am talking with you right now but the joy that you exude makes must make all of your guests very comfortable because you have a
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Wonderful demeanor and spirit about you that really exudes Christ, and I thank you for even inviting me to be on your show
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Thank you, sir. Thank you so that being said I can't let you go without number one
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Giving you this you want to put that on your laptop or something That's kind of my catchphrase, that's who
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I am I'm gonna. I'm the happy Calvin There you go that makes sense makes perfect folks will argue and say Calvinist can't be happy I will fight them to prove that different Now were you not recently on my friend
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Keith Foskey's podcast coffee with the Calvinist actually not yet We have we have got that in the works
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But he just agreed to be on the truth and love network with a gentleman from Robert cannot name
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Robert can I in North Carolina? Who actually on Thursday nights if you get a chance on Facebook Facebook live every
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Thursday night? it's a group of Young preachers and pastors that we just get together.
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It's kind of a roundtable episode where we talk about doctrine Thursday night they started on the doctrine of pneumatology and luckily next week
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I'll get to be on it because I won't be here so but it's a fantastic. It's a fantastic podcast
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It's called the laborers podcast, but Keith Foskey's was on there the first time last week brother. I love him dearly He really seems like a good man
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Well, we will sign off with that again. Thank you, sir. We'll be praying for you Anyway, we can ever help or encourage you you let us know well
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You can help and encourage me by being my guest whenever you're available today Over at my booth.
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Thank you. We'll be glad to do that You just tell me when and I will make that happen. Well, we could do it now if you want.