James' Newest Baby Sitter

Look what my friend Matt gave me today. I think it is from the 1970s. It has programmed drum loops [i.e. waltz, tango, rumba, and dozens more]. James loves to shake what his mama gave him. Of course, I'll enjoy making music with it and Sara has already loved toying around with it too.

ST AUGUSTiNE LiKES MY BEARD [this life is but a fragmentary solace]

In one of his discourses about beauty [bk 22, ch 24 of "The City of God"], he says:

Of course, some parts of the human body appear to have no other purpose than to add beauty, as the mamillae on a man's chest or the beard on his face. Certainly if the beard were meant for protection rather than for beauty, it would have served a better purpose for the weaker sex, whose face remains uncovered... I think, that in the creation of the human body, God put form before function.

All of this is Augustine articulating the intricate beauties that we get to partake in. He also talks about architecture, agriculture, navigation, language, rhythm, poise, symmetry, etc, etc. He closes this chapter by saying:

Remember, all these favors taken together are but the fragmentary solace allowed us in a life condemned to misery. What, then, must be the consolations of the blessed, seeing that men on earth enjoy so much of so many and of such marvelous blessings? What good will God not give to those predestined to eternal life, if He gives so much to those who are doomed to death?

James, soaking up some Florida sun

CA 10 [part 1]

We left Christmas night about 8:00 pm and drove 17 hours straight to Austin, TX.

After Austin, we drove through west Texas. I guess "everything is bigger in Texas" also means that everything is faster in Texas.

The barrenness of west Texas provided a nice salt flat to drive on. The back roads of New Mexico and Arizona were not that much more lively.

Our two consecutive nights on the road took us to Las Vegas. This was our hotel. The light that comes out of the top of it can be seen with the naked eye from space. Impressive.

We then tracked through the lowest point of elevation in North America - Death Valley, CA.

This brings us to the west coast. We shall see what awaits.

GO READ THiS BOOK.

Aside from being overwhelmingly needed, Chan's book is a great combination of devotional and theological. It's almost Puritanical in that you can't divorce the two in nearly every chapter.

He writes with relevance, awareness, and pastoral sensitivity. He also includes examples from the lives of other believers that are encouraging and hope-giving.

Chapter 1 begins by citing Tozer:

We may as well face it: the whole level of spirituality among us is low. We have measured ourselves by ourselves until the incentive to seek higher plateaus in the things of the Spirit is all but gone. We have imitated the world, sought popular favor, manufactured delights to substitute for the joy of the Lord, and produced a cheap and synthetic power to substitute for the power of the Holy Ghost.

By grace, Chan remedies this challenge in his book. It is even seen in the book's summary subtitle: "Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit."

for sara. i miss her.

i love my son [ontological goodness]

I listen to my own music way more than I should. In a totally unarrogant way, I might be one of my favorite musicians. It's kind of like your opinions. Your opinions are always right, because that's the definition of opinion. Better yet, the composer or creator of a thing always enjoys that which he creates or else the created entity would never come to be.

The past six months of my life have been beautiful for this precise reason. I love my son because he is our son. That is why I have a strange, yet persistent delight in him even if I can't explain it and even if I should be frustrated because he didn't sleep the night before.

Why does this happen? What is the source of this creator/created relationship? How can this relationship be explained?

I'm helped here by our friend Augustine. In Book 11 of City of God, he writes:

The only meaning we can give to the constant refrain "God saw that it was good" is God's approval of a work as having been fashioned in accordance with that art which is His own wisdom.

There is no Creator higher than God, no art more efficacious than the Word of God, no better reason why something should be created than that the God who creates is good.

The explanation, then, of the goodness of creation is the goodness of God. It is a reasonable and sufficient explanation whether considered in the light of philosophy or of faith.

For, God is the kind of artist whose greatness in His masterpieces is not lessened in His minor works - which, of course, are not significant by reason of any sublimity in themselves, since they have none, but only by reason of the wisdom of their Designer.

JESUS' EMPiRE

Napoleon:

I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between Him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creation of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded His empire upon love; and at this hour millions of men would die for Him.

Augustine:

I have read in Plato and Cicero sayings that are very wise and very beautiful; but I never read in either of them: "Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden."

beware

Does the gospel you believe include "a God without wrath bringing men and women without sin into a kingdom without judgment through a Christ without a cross"? [H. Richard Niebuhr]

It's happening.

what i thought about while falling asleep last night:

That every Christian is a catholic and a baptist... technically speaking, of course. Every believer is a catholic without a capital C and a baptist without a capital B. "Catholic" simply means "universal." And a baptist is someone who maintains that baptism should be practiced.

stolen from Abraham Piper

Here.

A LOVELY CHRiSTMAS TUNE THAT NEEDS TO BE SUNG MORE OFTEN

Here. And here.

Galatians 6 - St Paul and the Three Bears

Wow. That is immensely cheesy. It was even kind of embarrassing to type. But I can't lie. That's how I remember Paul's train of thought in Galatians 6.

Paul says that if there is a brother in Christ caught in a deliberate sin, those who are living according to the Spirit should restore him [6.1].

BEAR one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ [6.2].

But there is also a warning attached to this restoration process. If those doing the restoring aren't careful, they might slip in temptation [6.2]. Paul says that if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing he deceives himself [6.3]. He says that everyone must test their own work [6.4] because

Each must BEAR his own load [6.5].

Then Paul humbly says that he will not even boast, except in Jesus [6.14]. Bad boasting and deception and pride are not part of the new creation that we are now apart of [6.13-16]. The false teachers in Galatia have caused him trouble. He could be boasting because he is preaching the true gospel [1.6-10]. Instead, he accepts the persecution of the gospel to attest to its glorious veracity.

I BEAR on my body the marks of Jesus [6.17].

These Three Bears are all the same in Greek [βαστάζω]. In this, he leaves the Galatians with something tangible. It was in bearing that they boasted in Jesus [6.14] and experienced peace and mercy [6.16]. May it be the same for us.

he is growing up so fast [true, but with a sarcastic tone for the below photographs]

This past week at work felt like an eternity. So James and I decided to hit the links. I got him a new hat :)

After a grueling round of golf, we thought it would be nice to have a pipe together. It was priceless father-son bonding time.

Galatians 5 - Am I as spiritual as the Galatians were told to be?

Paul is really ticked off in his letter to his friends in Galatia. They are starting to give in to another gospel that's really not the gospel [1.6-10]. After personal testimony, calling out the false teachers, and some poignant questions, Paul goes on to describe what faithful Christian living looks like.

Paul lists characteristics of what this life is like. For example, it is about freedom [5.1, 5.13]. It is about hope [5.5]. It is about faith working through love [5.6]. It is about serving one another [5.13-15]. It is NOT about a huge list of things in 5.19-21.

But what makes all of the above things make sense?

The source of all of these things for Paul is living by the Spirit. The way that the real gospel is really lived out is by the individual believer and the corporate community of faith living according to the Spirit's lead.

Paul even uses four different and powerful Greek verbs to depict how the Spirit should be our Guide and we should be His dependents.

In 5.16, Paul says we must WALK by/in/with the Spirit. This verb is περιπατέω.

In 5.18, Paul says that we must be LED by the Spirit. This verb is ἄγω.

In 5.25, Paul says that we LIVE by the Spirit. This verb is ζάω.

In 5.25, Paul says that we must KEEP IN STEP with the Spirit. This verb is στοιχέω.

Paul desires his friends in Galatia to have such a relationship with the Spirit of God that the Spirit's power and presence are lucid to all. He hints at this further in 3.2-5 and in 5.22-23.

So, is my life being lived by/in/with the Spirit in such a manner that it can be described as such? Am I merely giving the Holy Spirit a theoretical and theological head nod? How is this kind of living done? Does anyone live this way? Can I get their number?

children in a Richard Dawkins ad are evangelicals. classic.

Here.

Word of the Day

The Hebrew word hesed is one of the most pregnant and potent words in the Old Testament. Psalm 136 repeats it in a refrain in each of its 26 verses: "His hesed endures forever." Notice how different translations often render this term:

"unfailing love" [NIV]

"lovingkindness" [NASB]

"steadfast love" [ESV and NRSV]

"mercy" [KJV, NKJV]

"faithful love" [NLT]

One my favorite theological books of all time, The Jesus Storybook Bible, hints at the idea of hesed when it frequently refers to "God's Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love."

This idea of hesed is the ultimate sentiment between YHWH and His covenant people. The meaning of hesed is bound to YHWH's covenant promises to Abraham. It is not mere love or emotive adoration. Hesed includes and implies covenantal favor, love, mercy, fidelity, and kindness. The word almost tells a story in itself.

We can rejoice with the prophet Micah when he says, "Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression? You do not retain Your anger forever, because You delight to show hesed."

[for more word studies on hesed, read here, here, here, and here]

Jude 1-2

There are layers of thick theology in Jude's brief, two-verse salutation. He wants to be known as a slave. This is a beautiful enough picture to discuss and delve into. Yet, he wants to be known as a slave of his brother, the Messiah! Even the Greek structure of "Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ" [ESV] is only shared by James, another earthly brother of our Lord. No other NT writers depict their servanthood in the the same way as Jude and James.

Furthermore, in his introductory benediction, he extends mercy, peace, and love to whom he his writing. This blessing is also unique to Jude. Perhaps there is something about each of these that he desires people to cling to as they "earnestly contend for the faith" [Jd 3].

Lastly, his addressees are merely "the called ones." These are the first and last words in the following Greek phrase:

τοῖς ἐν θεῷ πατρὶ ἠγαπημένοις καὶ ἸησοῦΧριστῷ τετηρημένοις κλητοῖς

Now, notice how the middle of this phrase is structured:

ἐν θεῷ πατρὶ ἠγαπημένοις

ἸησοῦΧριστῷ τετηρημένοις

Their calling is not vague, detached, or meaningless. Their calling is bound up in the fact that they are loved by God and kept by Jesus Christ. This may not land on you they way it should. Maybe it didn't land on them as Jude intended. But after he warns them of false teachers in their midst who are destructively leading people astray, his closing doxology ends by saying, "To Him who is able to KEEP you... be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all ages and now and unto all ages" [Jd 24-25]. They definitely get it now.

spiritual warfare and demonic activity

In my classes, we are discussing these issues right now. Some of my students get a little freaked out about it. James' command [echoed by Peter in 1 Pe 5.7-9] to "resist the devil" in Js 4.7 is not a theoretical, spiritual antidote for tough times. James wants believers to actually do it.

So, how does that work? What does it look like to "resist the devil"?

I'm showing them this lecture/talk that I think helps to biblically answer the how-to question when dealing with demonic activity. Some of the stories are intense and downright crazy, but Driscoll's thoroughly biblical approach is what must be noted.

2 Cor 4

IN ALL THINGS

afflicted

... but not crushed

perplexed

... but not despairing

persecuted

... but not abandoned

knocked down

... but not destroyed

ALWAYS carrying the death of Jesus in the body so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our body.

Paul's theology betrays his grammar ["our body"]. I love it when he does that. Then, with the odd couple of contrition and confidence, he tell the Corinthians,

So, death is at work in us, but life in you.

How and why are modern gospel-ministries often not described as such?