Trust and Effort...but mostly Hosea

Hosea is a beautiful book. In it, God’s love is shown to be quite different from ours in at least two ways. First, our love is not steadfast like the Lord's love; second our love is not as patient or as merciful as His love. There is much that can be said about the image of marriage and whoredom in the writing of this prophet. One of the major themes of the whole book is God’s faithful love for and pursuit of His covenant people Israel despite their sins, and God’s desire to bring his people back to Himself after they have wandered away. One of my favorite verses in the whole book is, “Come, let us return to the LORD; for He has torn us, that He may heal us; He has struck us down, and He will bind us up”(6:1). Their afflictions are brought about that His people may be brought back to Yahweh and again prosper in covenant relationship with Him.

But what I want to look at in Hosea right now is from the end, chapter 14, which begins with a final call to repent and return to the LORD,

“Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity” (Hosea 14:1).

Hosea proceeds to tell the Israelites how to repent:

“Take with you words and return to the LORD; say to Him, ‘take away all iniquity; accept what is good, and we will pay with bulls the vows of our lips. Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will say no more, “our God,” to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy’” (Hosea 14:2-3).

God follows Hosea's instruction with a strong voice affirming that He will bless them, should they repent in this way. This is a formal agreement; God commits Himself to restore and bless them. How shall He bless Israel? He says that He...

“will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them. I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall blossom like the lily; he shall take root like the trees of Lebanon; his shoots shall spread out; his beauty shall be like the olive, and his fragrance like Lebanon” (14:4-6).

In Summary, God promises that,

“They shall return and dwell beneath my shadow; they shall flourish like the grain; they shall blossom like the vine; their fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon” (Hosea 14:7).

The image of the “shadow” is used often in Scripture; one of the most memorable uses is in Psalm 91 (“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty”). God then turns His attention to the idols that Ephraim has been trusting in and proclaims His jealous love for the people of Israel once more. The idol has no place besides Yahweh.“I am like an evergreen cypress;” says the Lord “from Me comes your fruit” (18:8). Here the sin of idolatry is understood as a trust in something other than the most trustworthy God for "fruit". We are not supposed to trust in any other source for our good, our "fruit," because our good comes from the good Father who is the source of all good. To give anything else that role is to call it God.

Now, I want to go back to verse three and focus on it. Once again, it is Hosea's instruction on how to repent for their sins.

“Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will say no more, 'Our God,' to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy.”

In Scripture Israel was often tempted to trust in foreign nations for deliverance from enemies rather than trusting in the one true God (“The LORD, mighty in battle!” Psalm 24:8). In Isaiah the people of Judah were tempted to trust in Egypt for support against the invading Assyrian army. [I will come back to the image of a foreign nation in a bit.]

The notion of calling the work of our hands “Our God” stuck out to me here (a lot of what Hosea says sticks out to me, it’s not as though it is “new,” but it is blunt). Hosea is possibly referring to the idols mentioned at the end ("work of our hands" is a common way of referring to the process of making idols), but I think that this repentance is also directly connected to seeking aid from Assyria. Therefore, I would interpret "work of our hands" as their attempt at self-sufficiency, or any disposition of the will that intends to be independent of God.

Either way, Assyria, I believe, was an idol. Our idols are things (constructed according to our own terms) which we decide to trust for that which we ought to trust God. In this way we are trusting in the work of our hands, whether it is a false god made out of wood or the Assyrian military forces.

Here is my point: This trust in another nation for military strength is an effort of the Israelites to gain self-sufficiency rather than to trust in the self-sufficient God; we are supposed to strive and take precautions, but not so that we don't have to trust in God. Here, God is not opposed to effort or responsible precaution, rather He is prerequisite to good effort. We do not strive to be self-sufficient. We are supposed to strive. We are not supposed to strive so that we do not have to trust God. We cannot trust our own hands, else we are making the work of our own hands "Our God." All our efforts and plans must be done in trust, it all must be a "trusting effort."

To bring this point into another context, think about taking notes in class. It is probably very responsible to take notes (and absolutely necessary for your grades). They help with review for both tests and provide long term aid in remembering what you have studied. Yet, I should never have to take notes so that I do not have to trust God. I am not saying, "do not prepare," rather I am saying "prepare in trust." I think this distinction is possibly helpful in understanding what the writer of Hebrews means when he says, "without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." (6:11).

So, was Israel's sin that they sought military strength from Assyria or that they didn't trust God? Here I come back to the image of the foreign kingdom. I believe that this image indicates something done apart from God. You are conducting yourself outside of the covenant you have with God and looking to something "foreign" to your relationship with God. I think that taking aid from Assyria means that they are not trusting God. Another question: What if seeking aid from these other nations is the "wisest," or the "most responsible" thing to do as a king? Again, all our efforts are supposed to be done in trust and at this stage of God's redemptive plan you could not take military aid as a nation from a foreign nation. I believe Israel's interaction with God and the world informs our own personal, covenant relationships with God.

A common way I have heard about focus on God is a focus on God as the ultimate end of our life. I agree that this helps with part of our proper perspective on life but I think it does not address an important question, namely, that of our disposition towards the means. The logical implications of God as our end would probably work towards a right understanding of the means by which we reach to this end. But to be safe it is best to be explicit. To say "I am doing this all for God's glory," can be perverted to the point that we say "I AM doing this all for god's glory." We ought to focus on Him for our end, but we ought also to trust in His grace for the means to that end so that it does not become a finite attempt to mount up to the infinite by the strength of our own wings. (Again, what is ours is not first and foremost ours.) So, By God's grace I strive to do all things for the glory of God. God is my end and my guide, sustainer, and provider to that end.

This last semester of Torrey, at one point I thought to myself, "I just need to get it done," and strove by my own strength (strength afforded by God's grace), and in this I believe I was wrong. Anxiety was my cue to step up and take control of academics and do it, "by the work of my hands." I did this in a time where effort was needed, entirely proper, but my approach was wrong. Forgive me when my effort does not trust you, O Lord, teach me to believe the truth that all good comes from you and that even the grace by which I strive I must trust in you for, lest I attempt to rob you of your glory. This strength is yours, to use it properly I must believe in you with it, serve you with it, honor you with it, and love you with it. God, help me to bow the knee in proper humility. Glory to God in the highest--for He is enthroned on high, He is the Most High, far above the heavens and the earth, over all rulers, powers, authorities, and dominions both now and forever; His glory is without end. Glory to God. Amen.

A different thought:
Following up these two sins the Israelites are supposed to repent of, we find a proclamation of God’s mercy to the orphan. If you ever want to find out the spiritual/moral state of a nation in the OT, look at what they are doing with orphans and widows. This is because widows and orphans are two groups of people that could not secure justice for themselves (this is still the case in many places). They often were abandoned and abused. But God cares for and establishes justice for the oppressed, caring for the lowly and bringing low the high hearted who do not care enough to stoop down from their self-righteousness or moral code to aid an oppressed neighbor. (He who is truly High bends low while the proud [self-exalted] will not bend low...I say this twice because I think it is an important point about what it means to be "high," and how the actual is willing to bend low where the pseudo is only content to strive higher.) The lowly orphan who can find no one to plead his case finds favor with God. This heart that God has for the orphans and widows, this deep benevolence, is taught again in the NT by James when he states "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world" (James 1:27). James also deals with the judgmental and proud in his catholic Epistle; a connection that should be explored more.

God, whose mercy knows no end, be merciful to us, for having wandered away from you--for having run away from our Father, our King, and our Love. We may be confident, according to your word, that if we seek forgiveness from you, you will not withhold it--as surely as the orphan and widow find mercy in you so too may we, the poor rebels, be blessed in you. Forgive us our weakness and sin. Help us to trust you, that your name may be treated as holy in us. The one who cannot secure the good for himself is heard by you, may you hear us and grant your mercy, restore our hearts to worship you.

Wanderlust

I am back from Bishop.

Our pictures will be up on Flickr soon...hopefully. The link is http://www.flickr.com/photos/digifoto1067. We still have not posted pictures from our last trip to Bishop or from our road trip up North, but I am optimistic about this one.

Gone Camping...

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. (Psalms 19:1-6)

Well, I'm gone for a few days with my two brothers, Stephen and John. We intended to camp IN the snow, but due to this heatwave there is not much snow in Bishop. Bitterbrush (the only campsite open at Bishiop) does not have snow this year. Last year I went and it was pleasantly covered.

See, Bitterbrush.

We hope to get back by either Friday or Saturday.

This is my Father’s world, and to my listening ears
All nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres.
This is my Father’s world: I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas;
His hand the wonders wrought.

This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise,
The morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker’s praise.
This is my Father’s world: He shines in all that’s fair;
In the rustling grass I hear Him pass;
He speaks to me everywhere.

This is my Father’s world. O let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world: the battle is not done:
Jesus Who died shall be satisfied,
And earth and Heav’n be one.

This is my Father’s world, dreaming, I see His face.
I ope my eyes, and in glad surprise cry, “The Lord is in this place.”
This is my Father’s world, from the shining courts above,
The Beloved One, His Only Son,
Came—a pledge of deathless love.

This is my Father’s world, should my heart be ever sad?
The lord is King—let the heavens ring. God reigns—let the earth be glad.
This is my Father’s world. Now closer to Heaven bound,
For dear to God is the earth Christ trod.
No place but is holy ground.

This is my Father’s world. I walk a desert lone.
In a bush ablaze to my wondering gaze God makes His glory known.
This is my Father’s world, a wanderer I may roam
Whate’er my lot, it matters not,
My heart is still at home.

For your pleasure and edification, here are some of my favorite verses and passages in the Psalms that use the image of mountains: Psalms 65:5-8; 90:2; 97; 125:2.

The Lord bless you all in the remainder of this break that He has given to you. May He bless you as you seek His face. God Bless.

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!

And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing;
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin.

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!

When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart.
Then I shall bow, in humble adoration,
And then proclaim: "My God, how great Thou art!"

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!

Communal Growth into Christ

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places" Ephesians 1:3

In my life I have repeatedly witnessed that I cannot do it on my own. I mean this in two ways. First that I cannot live, breath, move, succeed, or even be without the grace of God, and Second that I cannot stand strong in joy, faith, hope, and love without the grace of God in His church--in the community of His saints. In last Sunday's sermon (on 1John 1:1-4) a theme came up that I witnessed with regularity in Paul's writing: the joy and strength given to us in the church especially through the sharing of our faith. God's gifts come to individuals, but it is spread out on the church as a whole. We are supposed to function as a whole, blessing one another with the blessings with which we have been blessed.

Spiritual growth is very personal and concerned with the individual, but it is also communal. In Ephesians we are told that we are given (by GOD the Father in Christ Jesus) gifts for our spiritual development. Slight tangent: lately I have been thinking about Ephesians 1:3-14, namely on "every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places," and I have been asking "How is this true? Where am I seeing this blessing? Where do I find it? What is this?" The following verses expound upon this grace with which we have been lavished. The rest of chapter one is Paul's prayer on their behalf, praying that God would pour out His grace upon them, "that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him." Chapter 2 takes the task of explaining God's grace again. But in addition to these passages, I think some of these questions are answered, at least partially, in Ephesians 4.

In Chapter 4, half way through the Epistle, Paul shifts his attention to unity, purity, righteousness, love, and right order in the body/bride of Christ. With classic Pauline structure, he goes from exposition of doctrine to its application and our response to the exposited truth. Chapter 4 begins with Paul urging the Ephesians to be united in view of their complete unity in Christ, having been reconciled to God and one another by the cross and blessed in Him by the Spirit. After listing the various levels of their unity, Paul explains that there are diverse gifts allocated to each person "according to the measure of Christ's gift." There is a diversity of grace in our unity, though we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.

Christ's distribution of these gifts is done to accomplish His will, "that He might fill all things," (4:10) that we might be "filled with the fullness of God" (3:19). He has given us "the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers" (4:11) among other gifts for our maturity in Christ, that we may grow up into Him who is the Head, Christ (4:15). The church, the fullness of Him who fills all in all (1:22-23), is supposed to be transformed into the likeness of the Image of the Invisible God--"the one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all" (Ephesians 4:6).

An image that the Heidelberg Catechism uses to explain maturity in Christ (growth into Christ who is the Head) is from Genesis 2. In explaining what communion means, the Catechism states:

"Through the Holy Spirit, who lives both in Christ and in us, we are united more and more to Christ's blessed body. And so, although He is in heaven and we on earth, we are flesh of His flesh and bone of His bone."

I love this image! What a great allusion to the creation of woman emphasizing us being new creations "according to our kind" in Christ. We are given grace in the church that we may be built up "until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." 4:13

Later in the epistle to the Ephesians, the image of headship (growing up into Christ who is the head) is used again in the context of instructions to husbands and wife. Wives are told to submit to their husbands as the church submits to Christ, for the head of the wife is her husband and the head of the church is Christ. Husbands are then instructed to love their wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her purification. The bride of Christ has blemishes, spots, and wrinkles and Christ gave Himself to purify the church as a whole.

Here I find that spiritual growth is spoken of in communal terms again. Our strengths and our weaknesses are not just our own, they are shared in Christ, till the church/bride is purified--till she is without wrinkle or blemish and in the words of 4:2, we ought to bear "with one another in love" (4:2), having been united in Christ, and being "eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (4:3). Our own blemishes are being worked out as a congregation and the bride is not perfect until everyone is perfect. God's will through Christ is to present His bride as holy and blameless to Himself (Ephesians 1:4). We are supposed to offer our strength to one another and together be built up into Christ who is our head.

During my first semester at Biola I found out how vital it is to be personally invested with those in Christ, before then it was an unacknowledged reality. When Christ laid hold of me, I took to sharing my faith with other people, listening to their problems and giving council, prayer, and love. I had a small group of friends and they, along with my mother and leaders at Grace, would continually put zeal, joy, faith, and love before me if ever I were to loose perspective--as I often did. I was continually brought to the cross and empty tomb of Christ (who is seated at the right hand of the Majesty on High, who reigns enthroned high above the heavens and the earth, and is above all rulers, powers, and authorities both now and forever, Amen.) by their Christocentric lives and teaching. I was always encouraged by the sharing of their faith. Here I think I can understand a bit of Paul's enthusiasm in Romans 1:15, when he is "eager to preach the Gospel" to those who are in Rome. He wanted to share his faith with them that they might be mutually benefited and rejoice in Christ, giving God all the glory in their lives. He wanted to preach the gospel, and no doubt he wanted to hear the gospel they preached as well, having heard of their faith. This makes me think of Philemon 6, where Paul prays "that the sharing of your [Philemon's] faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ."

My first semester at Biola, I did not invest myself personally with the great witnesses to God's goodness around me. When I went to church I was "too tired" to listen and gain much from the sermon. I began to feel a separation. I also did not "have time" to write e-mails to people that I had previously conversed with frequently and would share my faith with. I used to show them who I was, where I had been and where I was going, but now I was being tempted to turn inward (in terms of solitude). I got a lot of new "friends," many were just acquaintances and after the first semester I did not know more than half of them anymore. Due to such a frequent and admittedly excessive interaction with people that I did not have the time necessary to develop relationships with I became comfortable with relationships that were not as serious and compromised a bit in the content of my strong friendships. Consequently, not much was coming into me and not much was going out. I grew tired. I ought to have sought to be more deeply involved with the people that I was getting to know.

Joy, what we find as the benefit of our proclamation of the gospel to others, is very personal. I am tempted to be impersonal (watch, my comments and questions will turn to books and papers). I am tempted to go into myself. I am tempted to be solitary in my relationship with God. I am tempted to think that if all I had to do was seek strength from God directly, or love Him, or be humble before Him I would be fine. But in truth, if I cannot love the brother who is right in front of me--my brother whom I have seen, how can I love God, whom I have not seen? Part of the problem of this self-sufficiency is that I do not want to be dependent on others, and this necessity of community to live is abhorrent to my pride. But if I cannot be humble toward my brother, whom I have seen, how can I be humble toward my God, whom I have not seen? In other words: if I cannot love my brother and if I cannot be humble towards him, I cannot call my disposition towards God love or humility. There is a holistic reality to my relationships--all my relations speak of my relationship with God.

O Lord, in Thy mercy redeem my relationships from my low expectations of what you want to do through them. God redeem my conception of what my brothers and sisters in Christ are to me. Make my relationships tools for the building up of your Church in Christ, relationships that are edifying for both myself and my brothers and sisters in Christ. God, help me to be personal and joyful, zealously sharing my faith that we may know all the good things that you have given us in Christ Jesus.

This post is connected to the last one, having been united in Erik Thoennes' sermon last Sunday. There were about four points that he addressed that have been repeatedly brought to me over the past month. Teach me, O Lord, what am I to learn?

(These last few posts, and probably, most posts to come are merely open reflections and rather personal. So they will not always be clear, concise, or on one topic. Sorry if it is hard to follow.)

This is true.

(I had posted this once accidentally, thinking that I said "save now," sorry all who read the first. )

Do not skip over the Scripture or you skip over my point.

"To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat. The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer." Psalm 19.

This is true.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." John 1:1-5

This is true.

"Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs." Hebrews 1:1-4

This is true.

"Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and His Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: 'I am the first and the last; besides me there is no god'...Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: 'I am the Lord who made all things, who alone stretched our the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself.'" Isaiah 44:6, 24

This is true. "Every word of God proves true" (Proverbs 30:5a)--this is true! It's true! We have been shown truth, and often it is not what we expected and even more often it's not what we wanted, but it is (Praise be to God) true and God (Praise be to God!) does not exist to fit reality into the expectations of our various warped fancies.

Another point, truth is also something we cannot comprehensively scrutinize or fully grasp and confine to our systems, thoughts, or words. A point that has been reiterated so often this last semester that I am almost tired of it, which brings me to my point.

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth... For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 1:4; 3:16

This is true! May we remember that it is true so that we are not bored or apathetic towards God's word--that we neither conceive his word to be mere opinion (no eternal, universal substance) or exhausted material (shallow substance).

I am tempted to be underwhelmed by the truth of God. Are you? Do you feel like you have said certain truths so many times that it does not mean anything anymore? Or if not this, do you feel like you are no longer enthusiastic about the truth? Or do you refrain from saying the truth all together because it is so elementary or known that it is grueling to say it again? Is speaking God's word a labor? is it boring? lifeless? I think this temptation hits me often when I start studying God's word or just read the same passage a few times.

Even now as I am writing this blog post and editing it, I am tempted to think that concerning myself with whether or not we are enthusiastic about God and His truth is trivial or something not worth saying since it is too simple. Whenever I start writing devotions I am tempted to spot and say "it's all redundant," or "it's too simple." Henderson pinned me when he described me as someone who wants to always be saying something new or come at something common from a new insightful perspective. I do not want to say what has been said before. With this propensity comes a strong danger of not being excited or enthused by the simple or by anything I have learned. Once the idea was been in my head for long enough it becomes something dull to me. Some times in session I will not speak because I have heard it too often. Sounds terrible, but, looking at my thought process, that is the ground on which I justify my silence at times. I am all the more inclined to say something new, which is often never a good idea, since new ideas are some of the most shoddy things around.

This point of enthusiasm has been coming up in my life, and I was finally confronted by it in a sermon Erik Thoennes gave last Sunday. He was speaking on 1 John 1:1-4 and one of his points was John's enthusiasm. The Beloved apostle repeats himself over and over when testifying of his fellowship with Christ on earth ("heard", "seen with our eyes", "looked upon", "touched with our hands", "seen", "seen", "heard"). You can just hear his loving excitement and the affect that his encounter with Christ has had on him--this (the testimony of "the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us") really happened! It is true!

Thoennes then made a point about maintaining an enthusiasm in what you know and guarding against the sentiment of "been there, done that." He then brought up the Incarnation as an example of how we blunt proper enthusiasm for the truth of God by losing the proper sense of incomprehensibility and ineffable mystery that is in God's word.

This resonated with me. One reason why it affected me is that I was instantly aware of a fault in myself. I realized that I have stopped marveling at the incarnation. It became "clear," or to put it in a better way, it became "common." But since it is true it should always be thrilling and given the mystery of the God-man I should always be humbly marveling at the Lord's wisdom. This is a reality and because I love God I should love His truth.

"This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." 1 John 1:5-10

This is true.

"You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." Psalm 16:11

This is true.

The reluctance to repeat something "known" is counterintuitive to the whole notion and reality of our relationship with God. Relationships require us to bear and rejoice in the repetition of truth. "I love you." If life were a simple test, a single answer once to the question, "Do you love me?" would suffice; but given that we live in fellowship with the divine, tri-personal God, it is utterly foolish to think of worship, prayer, etc. as filling a quota. God, I love you.

"Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable." Psalm 145:3

This is true. I am tempted to not say it again--in fact my pride would keep me from saying simply, "God loves you, God loves me, God is love! God has loved us in Christ Jesus, who gave Himself up for us, being given to us by the Father. He gave His life for the dead. He gave His righteous body as an offering for us, the lawless, unrighteous, sinful humanity." May we never grow tired of truth, but be joyful in the truth. Really, this is real, remember that and, by the grace of God, you will never grow tired of it, though you may grow tired. It is alright to grow tired in the Christian life but not to grow tired of the Christian life. When we study and live sacramentally, and study and life become grueling, and fatigue sets in, our fatigue is easily identified with the goal of the task at hand.

All this to lead into my point: enthusiasm is not opposed to fatigue--we can be broken, beaten, hungry, etc. and still enthusiastic about God's word. The problem comes when we give into the temptation of being tired of the word of God, then we have erred and our hearts have not honored the name of the Lord.

O Lord, deepen my appreciation for the reality framed in Thy word. You are beautiful, O LORD, you are true and good, holy and just, awesome and almighty, glorious and eternal, sovereign and loving. May I not tire of proclaiming your glory and goodness toward me in Christ Jesus. Thank you O Lord for Thank you Lord that you have not made us to live by bread alone but by every word that comes from your mouth and that you have given us a Helper to illuminate Thy truth.

God give us joy in your word, for, after all...it is true.

"For Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory forever and ever."

Now it is your turn.

Brick

I just watched Brick and to be honest I was not impressed. Within the first few scenes the movie lost my interest and the characters didn't have my sympathy. In the first scene, Emily (Em) is dead and Brendan is looking at "the only one he loves" as she is laying on the riverbank with her hair and right hand in the water. The way he looked at her was so blank. He did not cry or tear up; he had no expression at all; he only stared at her. Then Brendan hides her in the tunnel. From the start I feel detached from her death, which acts as the central event of the movie.

There are only three virtues that I saw in Brick: some witty lines, some nice shots, and some pretty good acting. However, the first virtue is actually, I think, part of its weakness. The characters are not significantly developed through any dialogue. Their conversations consist of intellectual jousts that make the audience say "well said!" but they're not telling you much about the characters. They are flat. They play with words well, but those words seem to hold more meaning and depth than the characters themselves. Also, the rapid succession of scene after scene did not allow the substance of each shot to set in, which is another contributor of my overall detachment.

Moreover, these shallow characters are found in situations that are actually important (life and death), but given who they are, the situation seems stripped of its value, or at least its poignancy. When looking at what is happening I feel like it is in itself trivial and that it only finds value in occupying the character's time. What is the consequence? How should I think about this situation speaking in absolute terms? Again, it only means something to the individual that invests himself, it does not mean anything absolutely.

All the same, this movie did show me something about the way some people look at life. I think it would be fair to summarize this view like this: Life is not that grand in itself, but we are the ones that impart grandeur. They over glorify themselves in their speech and maintain a relatively low view of life. In this system we are the grandest things happening and life seems relatively dull, absolute purpose does not come into the picture. We are the focus. We are the gods. That kind of self-absorption is hard to watch, it feels so draining. (Thank You Lord that You save us from being shut up in ourselves!) To say it again: they have an over glorified view of themselves and a belittled view of life, which is tragic...maybe they should read more fairy tales?

This is partly seen in the way that the movie portrays the life of the "common people." It is peculiar and I'm not sure how to explain it. In the final scene, there is almost a contrast between the random cars driving by and Brendan confronting Laura. There is a disconnect. We are not united as human beings. There is limited interaction with "common people" (even just seeing their faces is rare). This produces a strong sense of isolation, which probably best reflects Brendan's state of mind.

Brendan does does not want Emily to hang around a certain group of people, but what the movie fails to answer is why. Is it because he does not want her to get hurt? Yet there is still this idolatrous attachment to her; he wants her. Why shouldn't she be around these people? Is his reason selfish or self-less? Is he just trying to bring her into his own little world so that they can be isolated together? Emily accuses him of this twice in the movie (once when she is telling him to not protect her anymore and once the last time they talk with each other). Is Emily right? Should we agree with Brendan or Emily? What are we supposed to learn? Or is this just a futile attempt at reducing the story to a moral?

...Maybe the movie is so detached from everyone because Brendan is. We are seeing the movie through Brendan's eyes. Maybe my complaint is just against the way Brendan looks at life. The only time I can think of where we start to see through another character's eyes is when the Pin is staring at the sun set and makes a comment about Tolkien and his ability to describe things well, which makes him want to be there. In that scene you are the furthest away from the problems at the school and the drug house. Also, the sun set is the only beautiful shot of nature that I can remember in the film. That scene ends with a shot of Tug standing in front of a train passing by rapidly--pretty jarring after the sun set...maybe there is more meaning after all.

Then again, I am not a movie person. I don't know them, I don't watch many of them, and I don't understand them often. Its hard for me to benefit from this form of media.

All the same, death seems so near in the self-absorbed life, it seems to always overshadow the very existence of the self-absorbed man. Probably because it is a death--a thorough and swift descent into hell. Anyways. That's my rant.

"Deliverance from Self-Absorbtion in Prayer"

"Deliverance from Self-Absorbtion in Prayer" is one of the best lectures I have ever heard. In it John Coe looks at Luke 18:9-14 and asks how it can inform our prayer life. I cannot summurize it now, but if I should be given the time to summurize it another time I will do so. For now, here is the passage:

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.' But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted."

I also listened to another great lecture, "What is the Goal of Spiritual Growth?" by Bingham Hunter. I also desire to summarize it. God willing I shall, God willing. Good night.

The "Orthodox" Trend...

This last semester I had the pleasure of being mentored by Dr. Sanders while Henderson (hopefully Dr. Henderson) was on sabbatical. Office hours were always helpful and I appreciated his feed back on my paper.
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In Don Rags Dr. Sanders brought up my paper in the context of modern theology. Turns out that my thesis is a relatively new position that is presently being adopted and developed in the scholarly world. Sanders stated, "I don't know how you are tuned into this movement, since you are reading the classics, but this is the modern orthodox trend." Scholars are finding narrow views of the cross to be unsatisfying and unfaithful to the biblical witness.
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This brings me to the point of this post. During office hours, Dr. Sanders asked me, after we talked about my paper, "What now? So you made your argument and strongly supported your claims with Scripture. But what now?" To be honest, I was not sure how to answer him, so I didn't say much.

At Don Rags he brought the question up again and voiced his concern in regards to this new approach to the cross in studying the atonement. He said that he was worried that Christians might loose specificity when thinking about the cross. Before, Christians would think about the cross in singular terms i.e. "Jesus paid my debt," and so the cross was clear to them and this singular clarity served to focus their thoughts on the topic.

But the adoption of a multi-faceted conception of the cross has the potential of encouraging a "its just a mystery" mentality that leaves the cross as a vague, undefined event. This broad perspective can lead to imprecise thinking about the cross, till the atonement becomes something that God did that one time that did something for me in some way that some how accomplished God's redemptive purpose. Quickly it becomes something (whatever it is) that we just can't explain in any way, since it is too great, too "multi-faceted." This is often the result of intellectual laziness--it’s like taking a book, removing all the paragraphs, and keeping the chapter headings because who is going to understand the paragraphs anyways? This redaction forebodes significant loss.

When we lose all the details we fail to see what Christ has done on the cross. By acknowledging more details of the atonement revealed in Scripture we are, in a strange way, in danger of loosing it as we find it--we are in danger of not knowing it by way of understanding it.

I find this warning pretty apt after this last semester of Torrey. So much theology and mysticism was thrown at me that it all became unspecific ramblings about something that is supposedly true. This is a terrible trap to fall into, but worse to fall into it and not realize it. (Lord, in Thy light do we see light, I thank Thee that Thou dost reveal our faults unto us and continue to reveal our vices that sow death, and would lead to death if not for Thy protection, sovereign guidance, and redemption in Christ Jesus. Glory to God in the Highest, Glory to God!)

I thought that this was helpful advice and an interesting report on the state of modern atonement studies.
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In closing:
The only opposition I have gotten to my paper thus far has been from a friend who, after hearing the very long summary of my paper (that has gotten shorter...but still long) he asked, "But isn't that confusing? Won't it confuse the lay people?" His appeal was that the simple adoption of vicarious atonement, Christus Victor, Ransom theory, etc. was simple, and the cross is simple. "Christ crucified" is what we must continue to teach. His warning was, "Do not confuse people with the cross." I do not agree with him on his main point, but all the same I agree with his concern about confusing people. I do not want to put up any obstacles between anyone and the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave Himself up as a propitiation for our sins and has, in His flesh and by His blood, reconciled man to God, that He might be both the Just and Justifier of man. Yet, I do not want to neglect the deep (meaty) teachings of Scripture; I want to actually bring the truth to them and lead them further, not just ignore the depth, but bring the depth to them (which requires preparation, proper presentation, contextual sensitivity, etc.). My simple point is that we should neither ignore nor confound the Scriptural teaching of the cross.

Oh, two more things:
1. I am then led to the question: does this teaching affect how I take communion? How should I think about this sacrament? While partaking of the bread and blood last night this question came to me. I found that the songs and prayers sung and spoken by the leaders and congregation at Grace included all the facets I mentioned in my paper...and probably more than I have seen.
2. Ephesians 2:13-17 and Colossians 2:13-15 offer an additional facet that has not yet been explicitly addressed. Think about it.

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?" "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?" For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. (Rom 11:33-36)

(I am less concerned about editing and hopefully this casualness will lead to more posts... God Bless)