God's Will, God's World: God's World, God's Will

"No corner of creation has been abandoned by God to sin and the devil. We pray, praise, and eat together in order to show the world that there is no corner of creation (even here!) where God's will is not being done, even in those areas where God is not acknowledged as God. The world, sinful as it often is, is still God's world where God's will is being done" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 68).

Hope Schooled by Patience

"We have just prayed, 'your kingdom come,' a petition full of hope. Now we are taught to say, 'your will be done,' a petition for patience. That the virtues of hope and patience should be so joined is not surprising for a people on a journey called kingdom. Indeed our hopes as Christians can make us dangerous if they are not schooled by patience" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 65).

LOL: Fashion Tip

I've read mounds by Peter Leithart; he is a genuine polymath writer. Theology, check. Literature, check. Sociology, check. Cultural critic, check. History, check . . . but this is the first time that I am aware of where he dabbles in fashion.

The Christian Future: Leaning Forward! Leaning Forward!

"The Christian faith is eschatological, always leaning into the future, standing on tiptoes, eager to see what God is bringing to birth among us. We are created for no better purpose than the praise of God. This is our true destiny. Yet any fool can see that the world is not like that, at least not yet. So Christians, in the Lord's Prayer, are busy leaning forward toward that day when all creation shall be fulfilled in one mighty prayer of praise" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 57).

I've often talked about "leaning together into the Christian future." Now I remember where I picked up that thought-and-phrase.

Also, note their optimism: "Yet any fool can see that the world is not like that, at least not yet. At least not yet, indeed.

Reading Notes: Disciplines of a Gody Man, Chapters 6-9, by R. Kent Hughes

Reading Notes for Introduction and Chapters 1-5.

 

Chapter 6 - Discipline of Mind

• Christians are called to the renewal of their minds, e.g., "But we have the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16 & Rom. 12:2).
• God uses "means" to accomplish this. We should not despise the "means" that God uses. Specifically, Phil. 4:8--Whatsoever is true/noble/right/pure/lovely/admirable/excellent/praise-worthy . . . think about such things.
• The author suggest focusing your mind on such things by leveraging 1) Scripture and 2) Christian Literature.
• The thing to beware of when applying Phil 4:8 is Legalism. Don't be a prude and don't stick your head in the sand like an ostrich. Phil. 4:8 is applied to your life by doing more than merely controlling what you focus on. You discipline yourself regarding what you focus on and how you focus.
• Christians need to know how to Discern and Decide. This is wisdom. Know how to interrogate and analyze current events, your local community, a movie, a novel, the facts of your own life, etc.
• What you focus on, and How you focus, exercising Discernment and Decision-making, etc., all of this requires Disciplining our Minds.

I am aware of the wise warnings against using words like "all," "every," and "always" in what I say. Absolutizing one's pronouncements is dangerous. But I'm going to do it anyway. Here it is: It is impossible for any Christian who spends the bulk of his evenings, month after month, week upon week, day in and day out watching the major TV networks or contemporary videos to have a Christian mind. This is always true of all Christians in every situation. A Biblical mental program cannot coexists with worldly programming. . . . Not watching TV will liberate so much time, it will become virtually impossible not to become a deeper person and a better Christian. . . . I am not suggesting a new legalism which forbids TV and the cinema. . . . But I am calling for believers to take control of their minds--what comes in and what goes out (p. 75).

 

You can never have a Christian mind without reading the Scriptures regularly because you cannot be profoundly influenced by that which you do not know (p. 77). 

 

Chapter 7 - Discipline of Devotion

• Devotion begins with listening. Devotion is meditation that listens to God's Word.
• Regarding Scripture: Like the righteous man that Psalm 1 describes -- "Murmor it. Memorize it. Pray it. Say it. Share it" (p. 86).
• Where the rubber meets the road: "How much time do you generally spend in conversation with God?" (p. 93)

Chapter 8 - Discipline of Prayer

• Praying "in the Spirit" occurs through the indwelling Holy Ghost, see Rom. 8:26-27.
• Convicting questions -- Have you learned the discipline of continual/persistent prayer? Do you have tenacity and persistence in praying for your family? For your church? Do you have a written prayer list for use during disciplined prayer?
• The following quote is a modest but excellent goal -- the author recommends:

Better to commit yourself to a total of fifteen minutes and maintain it--with perhaps five minutes of Bible reading, five minutes of meditation, and five minutes of disciplined prayer. A regular time of devotion and prayer will become a habit, and the habit of prayer will give wings to your spiritual life (p. 105).

Chapter 9 - Discipline of Worship

• The author highlights the meaning and importance of worship.
• See page 111 for a survey of worship in the Bible.
• Worship is to be God-centered.
• Worship is the priority of man's life, e.g., What is the chief end of man? To glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
• The author says that worship takes discipline. "Many Christians have never though through the meaning and importance of worship" (p. 100).
• The author provides practical direction for prayer/preparation on Saturday evening, as well as on Sunday morning, for Lord's Day Worship (see pages 118-119). God uses these spiritual disciplines to prepare us to worship God "in spirit and in truth."

There is no getting around it: worship requires discipline. We are to worship God "in spirit and in truth," and this is impossible without discipline. We must discipline ourselves to know God's truth so we can worship Him in truth. We must discipline our human spirit, so that authentic affections pour in spirit from our hearts to God. We must discipline ourselves in preparation for corporate worship, and that does not begin with the thirty seconds after we have breathlessly sat down (p. 118).

Baptism's Call

"Baptism is a call to come be citizens of Israel, to become part of God's weird way of saving the world" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 54).

"Blessed are those who . . . What kind of world is this?"

"Perhaps the elusiveness of the kingdom is why most of Jesus' teaching was teaching about the kingdom. Imagine a sermon that begins: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth (Matthew 5:3-5). Blessed are those who are unemployed, blessed are those suffering terminal illness, blessed are those who are going through marital distress. The congregation does a doubletake. Blessed? Fortunate? Lucky? What kind of world is this? . . . In this topsy-turvy place, our values are stood up on their head. Little in this kingdom comes naturally. It comes because God is in charge and because we are invited to be part of God's rule" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 55-56).

Christian Concern

"There may be some faiths that detach the individual believer from concern about earthly matters, who strive to rise above outward, visible concerns like swords and shields, wine and bread, politics and power. Christianity is not one of those religions. We want you, body and soul. Indeed, we believe that your body is your soul. So we've got opinions about the way you spend your money, invest your time, cast your ballot" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 52-53).

Official BLUE Trailer

 

Go here to order or learn more.

 

Politics and Bread: Spiritual Matters, Indeed

"Our goal is not to fill you with enough spiritual hot air to float you a foot above the earth. Our goal is to teach you to pray in such a way that material matters like politics and bread will be for you spiritual matters" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 50).

Divine Means: Christian Practices

"But the practices of Christianity are not to be despised because they are not saviors. Gold is not food, you cannot eat it, but you would not say it is useless and throw it away. Your soul's eternal well-being most certainly does not depend on the practices of Christianity, but it is certain that without them, as a general rule, your soul will not do well. . . . No one but a fool would think of building a house without ladders and scaffolding, and just so, no wise man will despise means" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 75-76).

Life-Prayer: Prayer-Life

"We live as we pray" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 49).

Special Rules for Young Men by J. C. Ryle

Special Rules for Young Men

• For one thing, resolve at once, by God's help, to break off every known sin, however small.
• Resolve, by God's help, to shun everything which may prove an occasion of sin.
• Resolve never to forget the eye of God.
• Be diligent in the practice of your Christianity.
• Resolve that wherever you are, you will pray.

*From J. C. Ryle's Thoughts for Young Men (pp. 65-84).

Prayer-Bomb

"The Lord's Prayer is like a bomb ticking in church, waiting to explode and demolish our temples to false gods" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 47).

Friendships

"There is no telling the harm that is done by associating with godless companions and friends. . . . You must remember, we are all creatures of imitation: precept may teach us, but it is example that draws us" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 60).

Extol - Sting of Death

Extol is my favorite metal band. This song is their newest release, an extra track from the Extol Deluxe Edition available now on iTunes. Enjoy!

Sting of Death Lyrics

Anxiety, fear

A life in chains

A clammy hand that grips the heart

Squeezing the joy out of everyday life

The perishable will clothe itself with the imperishable

The mortal clothed with immortality

O`death where is your victory?

O`death where is your sting?

Inadequacy, shame

A notion of being small, nobody, nothing

A pain from deep within

Knowing I`m not the one I should have been

Loneliness, emptiness

Withdrawing into myself

Confused about truth

Lost in the egocentric sphere of my pathetic life

O`death where is your victory?

O`death where is your sting?

The Shape of Prayer . . . The Shape of Liturgy

"Note that we began, not with moral problems and ethical dilemmas; we began with prayer. . . . We are a people whose moral lives are shaped liturgically. Our ethics is a by-product of our worship" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 47).

Read with Prayer

"Read [the Bible] with the prayer that the Holy Spirit's grace will help you understand it" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 57).

Read Your Bible

"The Bible is God's merciful provision for sinful man's soul, the map by which he must steer his course if he would attain eternal life. . . . Young men, I charge you to make a habit of reading the Bible, and not to let the habit be broken" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 56).

Learn How To Move Like A Christian

"We have no idea of how to live until we first know who God is. So when we say that God's name is holy, that tells us how we ought to live. Knowing the Creator tells us where the creation is meant to move" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 46).

Difficulties and Obstacles and Fears - Overcome by Believing in Promises of God

"Difficulties which seem like mountains shall melt away like snow in spring. Obstacles which seemed like giants in the distance, will dwindle into nothing when you actually face them. The lion that blocks the way that you are traveling and causes you great fear, will prove to be chained and unable to harm you. If men believed the promises more, they would never be afraid of their assigned duties [underline added, CCS]" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 55).

Tumultuous Way of Ahab

Ahab has just gone postal on his quadrant and declared a "curse" against "Science." The following is Starbuck's musing, addressed to Stubb, regarding Ahab's tumultuous way: "I have sat before the dense coal fire and watched it all aglow, full of its tormented flaming life; and I have seen it wane at last, down, down, to dumbest dust. Old man of oceans! of all this fiery life of thine, what will at length remain but one little heap of ashes!" (Herman Melville, Moby Dick, 493)

Worship

"Jesus' famous statement in John 4:23 that the Father seeks worshippers is unparalleled, for nowhere in the entire corpus of Holy Scripture do we read of God's seeking anything else from a child of God. God desires worship above all else. . . . A look at the massive emphasis in the Old Testament reveals God's mind on worship's priority. Exodus devotes twenty-five chapters to the construction of the Tabernacle, the locus of divine worship. Leviticus amounts to a twenty-seven chapter liturgical manual. And the Psalms are a spectacular 150-chapter worship hymnal. Divine worship has always been the occupation and sustenance, the priority, of the believing soul" (R. Kent Hughes, Disciplines of a Godly Man, 111).

"God is no hard master."

"God is no hard master. He will not, like Pharaoh, require you to make bricks without straw. He will make sure that the path He requires us to walk is never an impossible road. He never gave commands to man which He would not give man the power to perform" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 54).

Foolish World

"The world is only too ready to wink at youthful sins. The world appears to think it is a matter of course that young men must "sow their wild oats." The world seems to take it for granted that young people must be irreligious, and that it is not possible for them to follow Christ. Young men, I ask you this simple question--Where will you find anything of this in the Word of God? Where is the chapter or verse in the Bible which will support this talking and reasoning of the world? (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 52-53).

"The Glorious, Golden, Glad Sun"

"Look not too long in the face of the fire, O man! Never dream with thy hand on the helm! Turn not thy back to the compass; accept the first hint of the hitching tiller; believe not the artificial fire, when its redness makes all things look ghastly. To-morrow, in the natural sun, the skies will be bright; those who glared like devils in the forking flames, the morn will show in far other, at least gentler, relief; the glorious, golden, glad sun, the only true lamp--all others but liars! (Herman Melville, Moby Dick, 420).

Training

"Think for a moment why you were born into the world. . . . You were placed here to train for eternity" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 50-51).

"Go to Christ."

"Young men, I set before you Jesus Christ this day, as the treasury of your souls; and I invite you to begin by going to Him. Let this be your first step -- go to Christ" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 48).

Knowing Who You Are

"If you don't know who you are, becoming an entrepreneur is an expensive way to find out."
                                                                                                           --Sam Wyly

Life in Christ

"To live in Christ, to draw all from Christ, to do all in the strength of Christ, to be ever looking to Christ; this is the true secret of spiritual prosperity. "I can do all things," says Paul, "through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Philippians 4:13)" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 48).

Purpose of Scripture: Belief and Exhortation

"The purpose of Scripture is not merely to give us an authoritative list of things we must believe but also to exhort us, command us, inspire our imaginations, put songs in our hearts, question us, sanctify us, and so on" (John Frame, The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God, 78).

The purpose of Scripture is twofold: things to be believed and things to be done (the application of Scripture). The purpose of Scripture propels Christians to take their confession of faith and see what they can do (accomplish) with it; that is, "this", e.g., Thou shalt love thy neighbor!, goes "there", e.g., the homeless man at the soup kitchen.

As Luke says, "The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach . . . (Acts 1:1). The Gospel of Luke was about what Jesus Christ began to do and teach, and the Book of Acts is about what Jesus Christ continued to do and teach through the Apostles and through the Church. This is the context for a Christian approach to understanding the purpose of Scripture: Scripture teaches us what Jesus Christ continues to do and teach through us. 

The Bible is Infallible and Normative Language

"The Bible is language. It describes itself. Not only is it preinterpreted by God (as all facts are), but it also interprets and describes its own facts. And Scripture's self-interpretations and self-descriptions are infallible and normative; in the most important sense, they cannot be improved upon" (John Frame, The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God, 78).

 

Devotional Discernment

Rev. Lane Keister's recent musings on exercising discernment regarding one's devotional reading.

We do not want Faulkner ["stream of consciousness"] theology. . . . So read books that will make you stretch. Read books where you will not automatically understand everything that is said, but where you have to grow in order to understand. Read books where you might need a dictionary of theology terms handy. Read Calvin’s Institutes, Berkhof’s Systematic Theology, Shedd’s Dogmatic Theology, and get what you can out of it, which is a lot more than you might think. Then ask questions so that you will grow. If you are not growing, then your students won’t grow either. So work through that tough bit of theology with a pipe between your teeth and a pencil in your hand! You might find your heart singing the praises of God more often than you might think.

All that to say, I haven't read either Berkhof's ST or Shedd's DT. Yikes!

Reading Notes: The Shape of Sola Scriptura by Keith A. Mathison

Mathison, Keith A. The Shape of Sola Scriptura. Moscow: Canon Press, 2001.

KM’s The Shape of Sola Scriptura appears to be highly derivative of works by Heiko A. Oberman. KM regularly cites and footnotes Oberman works, listing five of Oberman’s works in the Bibliography: The Dawn of the Reformation (1986); Forerunners of the Reformation: The Shape of Late Medieval Thought (1967); The Harvest of Medieval Theology: Gabriel Biel and Late Medieval Nominalism (1963); Luther: Man Between God and the Devil (1989); The Reformation: Roots and Ramifications (1994). I've never read anything by Oberman.

KM’s “Tradition 0, I, II, & III” lingo propels much of KM’s argumentation. The bulk of the verbiage, Tradition I, II, III, are derived from Oberman (see pp. 32-33; 133-135), the remaining term, “Tradition 0”, is an expansion by Alister McGrath of Oberman’s terminology (p. 126).

KM’s chief aim is to correct and clear-up the contemporary equivocation of Tradition I and Tradition 0. For example, KM states:

The numerous ways in which sola scriptura has been misused have provided its critics with further evidence of the practical “unworkability” of the doctrine. . . . Roman Catholic and Orthodox apologists have been effective in their criticisms in large part because of the fact that most Protestants have adopted a subjective and individualistic version of sola scriptura that bears little resemblance to the doctrine of the Reformers. As long as Protestants attempt to maintain this defective version of sola scriptura, and as long as this version of the doctrine is allowed to be identified as the Protestant position, Roman Catholic and Orthodox apologists will continue to effectively demolish it and gain frustrated seekers (p. 14).

 It is important to realize that there were two very different versions of the sola scriptura principle which were advanced during the sixteenth-century Reformation. The first concept, advocated by magisterial Reformers such as Luther and Calvin, insisted that Scripture was the sole source of revelation, the sole infallible authority, but that it was interpreted in and by the communion of saints according to the regula fidei. Tradition in the sense of the traditional interpretation of Scripture was not discarded. This is the view for which we are using the term “Tradition I.” The second concept, advocated by many of the radical Reformers, insisted that Scripture was the sole authority altogether. Not only were medieval “traditions” disregarded, but tradition in the sense of the regula fidei, the testimony of the fathers, the traditional interpretation of Scripture, and the corporate judgment of the Church were discarded as well. The interpretation of Scripture, according to this concept, was a strictly individual matter. This is the concept for which we are using the term “Tradition 0.” Unless these two positions are carefully and consciously distinguished, the kind of confusion that has prevailed in the debates of the last five hundred years will continue (p. 128).

Sola scriptura, when understood within the classical Protestant context of Tradition I, is not affected by Rome’s self-defeating criticism because it does not assert that Scripture is the only authority. It asserts that Scripture is the only inherently infallible authority. But although the Church is a fallible authority, Tradition I does not assert that this fallible Church cannot make inerrant judgments and statements. In fact, in the case of the canon of the New Testament, adherents of Tradition I would confess that the fallible Church has made an inerrant judgment. But do we believe this because a particular Church tells us so? No, we believe this because of the witness of the Holy Spirit, which was given corporately to all of God’s people and has been made manifest by a virtually unanimous receiving of the same New Testament canon in all of the Christian Churches. This is not an appeal to subjectivism because it is an appeal to the corporate witness of the Spirit to the whole communion of saints. The Holy Spirit is the final authority, not the Church through which He bears witness and to which he bears witness (pp. 318-319).

KM believes that “Tradition I” is “regula fidei as Tradition.”

KM believes that “the Church must affirm that Scripture is to be interpreted in and by the communion of saints within the theological context of the rule of faith [Tradition]” (p. 347).

KM believes that Truth (Scripture) and Tradition (rule of faith) can never be separated. There is, however, a distinct order: Scripture is the “only inherently infallible authority.”

In summary, I believe KM is essentially arguing that you cannot divorce truth from tradition—you cannot divorce Scripture from Scripture-being-interpreted-by-Christians-within-the-theological-context-of-the-rule-of-faith, e.g., “The early Church was therefore able to view Scripture and tradition as coinherent concepts” (p. 275); “The traditional apostolic rule of faith is the foundational hermeneutical context of Scripture” (p. 277); “If we confess the perspicuity of Scripture, then a confession of the ecumenical creeds inevitably follows. The ecumenical creeds are simply the written form of the confession of the faith of the universal Church. They are a confession of what the Church as a whole has read in the Scriptures” (279).

Reading this made me think of what Robert W. Jenson said in Canon and Creed, i.e., “For the sake of its integrity through history, the church must always remember that canon needs creed and creed needs canon, and that it is permitted to govern its discourse and practice by their joint import” (pp. 117-118).

Acquainted with Jesus Christ

"Seek to become acquainted with our Lord Jesus Christ. This is, indeed, the principal thing in Christianity. This is the cornerstone of Christianity. Till you know this, my warnings and advice will be useless, and your endeavors, whatever they may be, will be in vain. A watch that does not keep time is as useless as religion without Christ" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 47).

Prayer: A Concert of Voices (Craving God's Help)

"When Satan afflicted the early church with fierce persecution, the New Testament church met corporately for prayer until the Lord heard their cries and filled them with boldness to continue preaching (Acts 4:24-31). Acts 4:24 says, "They lifted up their voice to God with one accord." The Greek word used here actually means 'a concert of voices'" (Joel R. Beeke, The Family at Church: Listening to Sermons and Attending Prayer Meetings, 44).

Tuesdays with Blaster at Tree & The Seed: TMWAJ - Tracks 16, 17, and 18

*I started this weekly review in 2012! I have been superlatively tardy. But, alas, it now comes to an end. BTW: This is one of my favorite punk rock records by the band Blaster the Rocket Man.* 

Today's installment is over Tracks 16, 17, and 18 of Blaster the Rocket Man's 1999 release, The Monster Who Ate Jesus.

Go here for initial comments on album and the linear notes.
Go here for comments on Tracks 1, 2, and 3.
Go here for comments on Tracks 4, 5, and 6.
Go here for comments on Tracks 7, 8, and 9.
Go here for comments on Tracks 10, 11, and 12.
Go here for comments on Tracks 13, 14, and 15.

Track 16 - Venus at St. Anne's

Surf-rock/rockabilly mashup with gang vocals, "Up! Up! Up! Up!" in concert with hand-claps. The underlined portion of the C. S. Lewis excerpt below are the only lyrics to speak of, both passionately and tersely delivered before a time change slowly paves the way to the song's conclusion.

Up!

"I deny the charge. Foam-born Venus...golden
Aphrodite . . . Our Lady of Cyprus . . . I never
breathed a word against you. If I object to boys
who steal my nectarines, must I be supposed to 
disapprove of nectarines in general? Or even of
boys in general? It might, you know, be stealing
that I disapprove of."
- C.S. Lewis

Track 16 - Beehive Behave

Punk rock. Punk rock. Punk rock. The snare drum sounds like a stop-watch on Jolt! Lyrically witty, e.g., "Queen Bee says King me, honey." Also, time change/bridge accents the allegorical observation: "Those worker bees buzz, buzz, buzz . . . No one knows why - it's just - because . . ."

This is a tune for punk rock purists. ;) In true punk rock convention, the song clocks-in at under a minute and fifteen seconds with the concluding imperative -- "Beehive Behave!!!"

Queen Bee!
Queen Bee!
Queen Bee says King me, baby (2x)

Her Royal Monstrosity
hovers above me
I suffer the sting
beware!

Beehive behave! (many times over)

Queen Bee!
Queen Bee!
Queen Bee says King me, honey

Hive Mind
is hope for mankind
Flesh begets flesh
begets . . .

Beehive behave! (again and again)

Those worker bees buzz, buzz, buzz...
No one knows why
it's just 
because . . .

Beehive behave! (to the end)

Track 16 - Baby Unvamp (is Making a Comeback)

This tune is the locus classicus of the Blaster the Rocket Man catalog. Musically: straight-forward punk rock, drum in the pocket. Feels (perhaps) somewhat Ramones-esque. Lyrically: just brilliant, just brilliant, man! The tune ends with repetitive chanting. Also, a couple John Milton quotes are thrown in for good measure. You don't see that everyday in punk rock.

She's comin' back
She's runnin' back
But somewhere along the way
she decided to play the whore
in the mud once more
Forgotten what He shed His blood for
For her

She was burnin' with a passion fire
that soon became a mire of sin
that locked her in
inside her self
"Thou are become (O worst imprisonment!)
The Dungeon of Thyself."*
The chains chaffed
She bled until she said
Oh God what have I become?

"Myself my sepulcher. A moving grave."*
I am a slave once more
A whore cryin' at your feet
So incomplete . . .

Baby unvamp is making a comeback
She's starting to run back
to the Father and the Son
The only One who loves her
unconditionally
with Grace and Mercy

She clings to the Cross of Death
The Cross of Life
Her only hope
The Cross of Christ

She remembers when she first met Him
She was kickin' in a pool of her own blood
Coughin' it up
When He picked her up
She gave self up
and He raised her up

Presented her to the Father
without blame
Made her His bride
Gave her His Name
Erased the shame
She's not the same!

All we little unvamps
once were sluts, were whores, were tramps
But now we are the Bride
of Jesus Christ

She's growing
She's teething
and one day she'll bite you till you're dead!
dead!
dead!
Alive!
in Christ!
Forgiven.

* Both quotes from "Samson Agonistes" by John Milton

Well, that's it. Sorta. Appended to Track 18 are some silly answering machine messages, candid "in the recording studio" dialogue, and a whimsical rendition of "March of the Macrobes."

Sin

"There are two ways of coming down from the top of a ladder; one is to jump down, and the other is to come down by the steps: but both will lead you to the bottom. So also there are two ways of going to hell; one is to walk into it with your eyes wide open--few people do that; the other is to go down by the steps of little sins--and that way, I fear, is only too common. Put up with a few little sins, and you will soon want a few more" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 68).

The Debate of Nye and Ham: Reading Notes

A week ago Bill Nye (you know, The Science Guy) and Ken Ham (of AIG = Answers in Genesis) held a public debate at the Creation Museum. Kudos to all involved. The cultural pot has been stirred, indeed. There were several hundred-thousand viewers who watched the debate live via YouTube--you can go here to view the entire debate, complements of AIG. Since last week there has been a lot of post-debate fallout: blog posts here, newspaper articles there, post-debate interviews online and TV. For example:

• Articles at Ars Technica
• Nate Anderson's long-feature survey of the debate.
• Ars' visual tour of the Creation Museum.
• Eric Bangeman's initial (short) opinion of the debate.
• At Mashable -- a 4 minute recap of the debate.
• At BaylyBlog -- Ben Burlingham sketches a Christian approach to witnessing to Scientists.
• At his blog: Dr. Ken Schenck sadly reflects on the debate.
• At his blog: Dr. Albert Mohler, who had a front-row seat at the debate, shares his thoughts.
• At reformation 21: Pastor Rick Phillips provides some excellent post-debate observations.

Happy reading!

Entry # 1 for "Tongue-in-Cheek Theology"

From the conclusion to this theological article at Monergism.com.

Perhaps a story from the life of Martin Luther would be instructive here: when some inquisitive theologian asked him what God was doing before he created the world, Luther quipped, “He was busy creating hell for foolish theologians who pry into such questions”. The response is a little tongue-in-cheek, of course, but perhaps there is some wisdom in it, particularly when we are addressing the lapsarian question.

Andrew Sandlin on "Aborticide"

Lengthy excerpt from Andrew Sandlin's website. If you have the time, follow the hyperlink and read the full article.

Every January many churches in the United States highlight God’s truth as it relates to preborn children, notably in memory of Roe v. Wade, the January 22, 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.

Actually the term abortion includes the definition of “the expulsion of a fetus from the uterus by natural causes before it is able to survive independently,” denoting what is today termed miscarriage. This is not what most people mean when they use the word abortion, however. They mean the intentional termination of human pregnancy, abortion’s primary — but not exclusive — definition.

A more suitable term for that intentional act is aborticide, which is a perfectly legitimate English word and enjoys the rhetorical benefit of similarity to homicide, infanticide, suicide, regicide, and other words that denote the willful deprivation of human life. It’s a word that supporters of the act likely deplore for precisely the same reason that opponents would prefer it. Supporters want attention deflected from the (im)moral implications of the act and redirected to the benefits to the pregnant woman (“a woman’s right to her own body,” etc.).

The Christian verdict on aborticide derives from the Bible, which clearly, if not explicitly, condemns it.  All intentional deprivation of judicially innocent human life is murder (Gen. 9:6). Human life begins at conception (Jud. 16:17; Ps. 139:13–18; Jer. 1:5; Lk. 1:15). Therefore, aborticide is murder.

More specifically, biblical law requires compensation for a miscarriage unintentionally precipitated by violent human action (Ex. 21:22). Even if the child is miscarried as a result of violent actions that did not intend that fatal loss, the violent are guilty of what we term these days manslaughter (not fetus-slaughter).

A human fetus is a human, created in God’s image, entitled to full legal protection.

Legalized aborticide, therefore, is nothing short of legalized murder, not materially different from Nazi leglislation legalizing the extermination of Jews or Marxist laws allowing the liquidation of capitalists.

Salvation: Soul Renewal

"By salvation I mean, not barely, according to the vulgar notion, deliverance from hell, or going to heaven; but a present deliverance from sin, a restoration of the soul to its primitive health, its original purity; a recovery of the divine nature; the renewal of our souls after the image of God, in righteousness and true holiness, in justice, mercy and truth" (The Works of John Wesley, Vol. 8, p. 4, as quoted in George G. Hunter III, To Spread the Power: Church Growth in the Wesleyan Spirit, 40-41).

Evangelicalism

Evangelicalism: against additions, against subtractions, against dilutions.

"I repeatedly urge in varied company that evangelicalism is Christianity without additions, subtractions, or dilutions -- Christianity, that is, in its purest and most authentic form" (J. I. Packer in John Piper & Justin Taylor, eds., A God Entranced Vision of All Things: The Legacy of Jonathan Edwards, 81-82).

Evangelicalism: for always reforming.

"A Careful Disorderliness"

"There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness is the true method" (Herman Melville, Moby Dick, 358).

The Prayer that Teaches

"The [Lord's Prayer] teaches us, in all that we do, to hallow the name of God and, in so doing, we discover our true being" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 44).

Grace, Knowledge, and Obedience

"Thus the origin of knowledge is trinitarian: The Father knows all and reveals truth to us by the grace of His Son through the work of the Spirit in our hearts. Note how each person of the Trinity is involved in the knowing process (cf. 1 Sam. 2:3; Ps. 73:11; Isa. 11:2; 28:9; 53:11; Matt. 11:25f.; Eph. 1:17; Col. 2:3). Thus it is all of God, all of grace. . . . There is a "circular" relation between knowledge and obedience in Scripture. . . . It is certainly true that if you want to obey God more completely, you must get to know Him; but it is also true if you want to know God better, you must seek to obey Him more perfectly" (John Frame, The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God, 42-43).

Created for Praise

"Not to know the name of God, not to know how God's name is hallowed, in other words, not to know how to worship, is to live in fundamental conflict with our true selves. We are created for no better purpose than praise. As Saint Augustine said, 'because you made us for yourself, our hearts find no peace until they rest in you'" (William H. Willimon & Stanley Hauerwas, Lord, Teach Us: The Lord's Prayer and the Christian Life, 43).

The Bible - "The things needed for salvation are as clear as daylight."

"Men may tell you that there are difficulties in the Bible, things hard to understand. It would not be God's book if there were not. And what if there are? You don't despise medicines because you cannot explain all that your doctor does with them. But whatever men may say, the things needed for salvation are as clear as daylight. Be very sure of this -- people never reject the Bible because they cannot understand it. They understand it too well; they understand that it condemns their own behavior; they understand that it witnesses against their own sins, and summons them to judgment. They try to believe it is false and useless, because they don't like to believe it is true. An evil lifestyle must always raise an objection to this book. Men question the truth of Christianity because they hate the practice of it" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 37).