Gift of Speech

"The biblical narrative quickly makes it clear that divine speech is to be a fundamental aspect of the special relationship that exists between God and those made in his image. Genesis 1:28-30 establishes the basic status and duties of humanity in relation to the created world, with God speaking to the man and the woman and telling them what they are to do, what authority they have, what they may eat, and what they must not eat. The arrangement is articulated using words; it is linguistic in its basic form" (Carl R. Trueman, The Creedal Imperative, 53).

Christian Farming for the 21st Century

And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

- Genesis 1:28 -

My grandfather sent me this photo. God calls man to subdue the earth and get dominion for God's Glory. Now Christian farmers can do that planting 48 rows at a time.

Easter Sunday

Adam bore the image of God and was man's federal representative. Adam rebelled against God, however, the rebellion-sin did not destroy but only defaced the imago Dei. So now man's nature has been corrupted by the imputation of the ethical disease of sin (Romans 5:12).

God, however, promised that from the seed of the woman a new federal representative and image bearer of God would be sent to restore the defaced imago Dei of the progeny of the First Adam. This "seed" who brings the grace-gift of Salvation-Eternal Life is the Second Adam the God-Man Jesus Christ (Romans 5:8, 17; 1 Corinthians 15:22, 45). God has demonstrated in the Second Adam his love in full (John 3:16; Romans 5:8). Easter Sunday is a celebration of God's love in full--we celebrate because we know that if having been united to Jesus by the gift of saving faith through the work of the Holy Ghost, and that having gone down with Jesus in his death, so too we shall rise with Jesus in that decisive victory of Resurrection, when the Father proclaimed that Jesus Christ the Son of God was the Salvation-King of fellow-man (Psalm 2; Psalm 110). At the Table of Fellowship Christians gather to partake of Christ's body and blood which are a Testament of a greater covenant, the Covenant of Grace declared in Genesis 3:15; it is the New Covenant by which God is restoring the World to goodness through His Resurrection.

Re-Thinking Family, Church, and Society: Peter J. Leithart on "Natural Society"

You can read Peter Leithart's recent thoughts on family, church, and society here, or below:

Christian political thought has historically gotten off on the wrong foot through misinterpretation of Genesis 1-2. Adam and Eve are taken as “family,” and hence the family becomes a “natural” institution. Families band together and soon there are cities and kingdoms, also natural institutions.

Augustine says this, and so, following him, does Isidore. And everyone of course follows Augustine and Isidore.

The church comes later, a top layer on nature, the supernatural society.

But the garden is not “home” but sanctuary; Adam and Eve are not “family” but worshiping community, created and placed in the place of God’s presence and offered the fruit of the tree of life.

There is no more natural society than the church.

Genesis 2:18

"When the Bible uses the word helper, there is a divine context for it. When the word is first introduced in Genesis 2:18 -- "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him" -- it is the same Hebrew word ('ezer) that is used most often to refer to God throughout the Old Testament. If God, who is obviously and infinitely superior to us, unblushingly refers to Himself as our helper, we should be proud to use the same term" (Carolyn McCulley, Radical Womanhood: Feminine Faith in a Feminist World, 80).

Snapshot of the Torah

Genesis - Creation

• Genesis 1 - Creation
• 1:28 - Dominion/Cultural Mandate
• Genesis 3 - Fall
• 3:15 - Inception of the Covenant of Grace
• Genesis 6-9 - Flood
• Genesis 10-11 - Nations/Tower of Babel
• Genesis 12-50 - Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph
• 15:6 - Abraham believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

Exodus - Redemption/Deliverance

• Exodus 3-4 - Moses Called
• 3:13-15 - I AM WHO I AM
• Exodus 7-11 - Ten Plagues
• Exodus 14 - Red Sea
• Exodus 19-40 - Sinai
• 19-24 - Marriage Ceremony (Israel wed to God)
• 20:1-17 - Ten Commandments (Marriage means new rules)
• 25-31 - House (God gives instructions for Tabernacle)
• Exodus 32 - Idolatry - Golden Calf
• 32-34 - Marriage Ceremony #2 (Covenant renewal after idolatry)
• 35-40 - Build House (Israel builds the Tabernacle)

Leviticus - Holiness

• Leviticus 1-10 - Sacrifices
• Leviticus 11-18 - Purity Regulations
• 17:11 - "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."
• Leviticus 19-27 - Holiness Laws
• 19:2 - "Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am holy."

Numbers - Unfaithful Israel

• Numbers 1-10 - Promise Land/Preparations
• Numbers 11-25 - Promise Land/Rebel - Thus, Wander in Wilderness
• 11 - Israel wants to eat meat - given meat and judgment
• 13 - Twelve spies scout out the land but ten spies provide evil report
• 21 - Rebellion - judgment by fiery serpents/deliverance by bronze snake lifted up
• Numbers 26-36 - Second Generation: Promise Land/Preparations

Deuteronomy - Covenant Renewal/Second Law

• Deuteronomy 1-30 - Moses Speaks to Second Generation
• 4:2 - "Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you."
• 5 - Ten Commandments reviewed
• 6:4-9 - The Shema: "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord..."
• 29:29 - "The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law."
• Deuteronomy 31-34 - Epilogue
• 32 - Song of Moses
• 34 - Death of Moses

Women

Discussing her personal departure from feminism, Carolyn McCulley, in her book, Radical Womanhood, says:

The light of God's Word showed me truth. What I thought as right and true didn't hold up to Scripture. Human observation and psychology could only point out a problem - proud women spar with men they deem to be weaker and not worthy of respect - but offered no credible solution to the tension between the sexes.

I didn't need to reconcile my pantheon of inner goddesses. I needed to repent of my sin.

As do men.

The kicker is that feminism is partially right. Men do sin. They can diminish women's accomplishments and limit women's freedoms for self-centered reasons. Some men sexually assault women. Some men abuse their wives and children. many men degrade women through pornography. Feminism didn't rise up because of fabricated offenses (25-26).

 So true. Feminism (and her best friend Egalitarianism)  did not rise up due to "fabricated offenses". Sinful men who lord over women are meatheads and blockheads. To rip off the song from The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, "Your brain is full of spiders, you've got garlic in your soul, Mister [Blockhead]. / I wouldn't touch you with a thirty-nine-and-a-half-foot pole."

If you want a high-view of women, then you need look no further than Genesis. Adam is a type of Christ, he is the federal-head that represents all of mankind, and he is placed in a garden-sanctuary. In this garden-sanctuary Adam has prophet-priest-king duties to fulfill. However, it is not good that Adam be alone, so God blesses Adam and gives him Eve. In Genesis 2:18 we learn that Eve was created to sustain Adam by a covenant-of-companionship that would eliminate Adam's loneliness. Eve is Adam's "helpmeet" - although "help" isn't the best translation, since the Hebrew 'ezer kenegdo connotes coming alongside another in order to actively sustain and assist, i.e., "helpmeet" = "sustainer beside him" (see Robert Alter, Genesis, 9). Also, Proverbs 31 describes a woman as a heroic, domestic warrior (see conclusion from sermon notes by Peter Leithart). A woman does much more than "help" - according to the Bible she is much, much more than an auxiliary to man. If you don't have a Biblical view of women, then, as McCulley reminds herself and her readers, you need to repent of your sin.

Dominion Religion

"With this expression of spirituality [what the author calls "dominion religion" - a form of spirituality that is derived from application of Genesis 1:28] there is a desire to develop the world for the benefit of others and the glory of God. This development occurs as God's people are serious about applying His Word to very area of life. It also involves a willingness to make sacrifices to further His kingdom. Although Christians have held this view during much of history, only a minority of Christians seem to be aware of it today. most Christians, at least in America, are of the escapist variety. They see the value of their faith as it applies to their own personal piety, but don't seem to expect it to have much influence in the world. The kind of change our world needs will only come about with a change in worldview where men do not seek power over one another, but seek power of God to build His kingdom together [CCS: This kingdom building is a liturgical endeavor at its root--involving both worldview and worship.]. There's only one spiritual option out there today that can bring this about, and it's the practice of dominion spirituality" (David Bostrom, Get Dominion: You've Been Called to Fulfill a Mission, 73).

Bible Q/A: OT - Genesis

Q/A: OT - Genesis

What is (are) the theme(s) of Genesis? Beginnings, Creation, New Beginnings. The creation of God’s people in Abraham.

In what sense are the respective creation narratives in Genesis 1 and 2 different? Each chapter has its own perspective and focus, the former focus being God’s perspective and the latter focus being man’s perspective.

Where is the Cultural Mandate (aka Dominion Mandate) found? Genesis 1:28.

What do we learn in Genesis 2:24? We learn that a man is to leave his mother and father and cleave to his wife.

What does Genesis 3 cover? It narrates the Fall of man.

What is so important about Genesis 3:15? It is the proto (first, earliest) - gospel (fancy, technical word is protevangelium), it is the first announcement of the redemption to be effected in and through Christ. (This promise called the “mother promise” by Cornelius Van Til.)

What is important about Genesis 3:16? Contains the curse of the woman.

What is important about Genesis 3:17? Contains the curse of Adam.

What is significant about Adam and Eve’s clothing? They were made from animal skins, a shadow affirming the need for blood to be shed to cover/atone for sin (see Leviticus 17:11).

What happens to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3:22-24? They are sent out of the Garden of Eden.

What was Cain’s sin? Cain offered a sacrifice by the sweat of his brow and not by faith (see 1 John 3:12), subsequently he murdered his brother Abel (Genesis 4:8).

Who was the son of Cain? Cain’s son was Enoch, the first man to build a city (Genesis 4:17).

Who is the other Enoch? The other Enoch was a descendant of Seth; he walked with God and God took him (Genesis 5:24).

What does Lamech boast about? He boasts about killing a man (Genesis 4:23-24).

Who was the father of Methuselah? Enoch (Genesis 5:21).

Why did God send a flood? Because man had become thoroughly corrupt and violent (Genesis 6:13, 17).

What does Genesis 6:9 teach about Noah? That Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations, and that he walked with God.

What does Genesis 7:13 denote? It lists the sons of Noah that entered the Ark with him.

Who was Shem? Son of Noah and ancestor of Abraham.

How many days did the flood waters cover the earth? Genesis 7:24 – “The waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty (150) days.”

With whom does God make a covenant in Genesis 9? God makes a covenant with Abram.

What happens in Genesis 11? Scattering of the nations at the Tower of Babel.

What does Genesis 15:6 teach us about Abram? Abram believed God, counted to him for righteousness

Who is Eliazar? Abram’s heir (before he had sons).

Which acts of God's judgement are narrated in Genesis 18-19? Judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah

Who are Moab and Benammi? Sons of Lot by his daughters (the fathers of the Moabites and children of Ammon).

What key event occurred in Genesis 22? In obedience, Abraham was going to offer Isaac as a sacrifice -- angel of the Lord intercedes and instructs Abraham, "Lay not thine hand upon the lad."

Who was Rebekah? The wife of Isaac, the mother of the twins Esau and Jacob (Israel).

What does the Lord tell Rebekah in Genesis 25? She is pregnant with Esau and Jacob, and the Lord tells her, "Two nations are in thy womb...the elder [Esau] shall serve the younger [Jacob (Israel)]."

In Genesis 32, why did Jacob give the new name "Peniel" to a place/location? Because at that place Jacob wrestled with God; Jacob named the place Peniel ("facing God") because he's saw the appearance of the God and received the Lord's favor.

Name the wives/concubines of Jacob: Leah, Rachel, Bilhah, and Zilpah.

Who were the sons of Rachel? Joseph and Benjamin.

Who is sold in to slavery in Chapter 37? Joseph is sold by brothers in to slavery.

What is important about the blessing given in Chapter 48? Jacob (Israel) blesses the sons of Joesph, however, Jacob blesses Ephraim (the second born of Joseph) and sets him before his brother Manasseh (the firstborn of Joseph).

Who does Jacob call unto in Chapter 49? Jacob (Israel) called unto his sons; he instructs them and blesses them.

OT: Genesis 1 - Calvin's Insight

“And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day” (Gen 1:5).

In his commentary on this verse Calvin notes: “It did not, however, happen from inconsideration or by accident, that the light preceded the sun and the moon. To nothing are we more prone than to tie down the power of God to those instruments the agency of which he employs. The sun and moon supply us with light: And, according to our notions we so include this power to give light in them, that if they were taken away from the world, it would seem impossible for any light to remain. Therefore the Lord, by the very order of the creation, bears witness that he holds in his hand the light, which he is able to impart to us without the sun and moon.”

What tremendous insight, especially the recognition that the very order of creation bears witness of the truth that the power of God is not tied down.

The Lord of Patterns

Quote taken from the fifth chapter of The Answers Book : “The fourth commandment in Ex 20:9 tells us that we are to work six days and rest for one. The justification for this is given in Ex 20:11, "For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it". This is a direct reference to God's creation week in Ge 1:1-31. To be consistent (and we must be), whatever is used as the meaning of the word day in Ge 1:1-31 must also be used here. If you are going to say the word day means a long period of time in Genesis, then it has been already shown that the only way this can be is in the sense that the day is an indefinite or indeterminate period of time--not a definite period of time. Thus, the sense of Ex 20:9-11 would have to be "six indefinite periods shall thou labour, and rest a seventh indefinite period"! This, however, makes no sense at all. By accepting the days as ordinary days, we understand that God is telling us that He worked for six ordinary days and rested for one ordinary day to set a pattern for man--the pattern of our seven-day week, which we still have today! In other words, here in Ex 20:1-26 we learn the reason why God took as long as six days to make everything--He was setting a pattern for us to follow, a pattern we still follow today.”

The Lord created the world in six literal days. He created real, physical things. When He was finished, He rested. In the Book of Exodus the Lord commands Israel to model their week after the original creation week – resting one day and performing dominion work for six days. As noted above, we still follow this pattern today!

Dominion Work: We are caretakers of the real, physical world the Lord created. We work for six days. We sweat and we bleed to make this world beautiful and protect it from satanic powers. The Lord expects us to transform this world from glory to glory, in the same manner that a father expects his son-in-law to protect and increase the beauty of his daughter, which he graciously gave to the young man at the altar of marriage. A bride-to-be is beautiful and full of glory, but a wife who has been protected and cared for by her husband, she is even more beautiful, even more glorious. When a wife is made beautiful by her husband and has brought forth children who call her blessed, she is transformed from glory to glory. So too creation, which the Lord instructed Adam to tend and protect, will be transformed from glory to glory by her husbandman.

Day of Rest: Churches need to be encouraged in both dominion work and rest. Lord’s Day worship ought to provide rest from and prepare Churches for dominion work. It is good for man to rest and feast; it is good for man to work and execute dominion. When men harvest diamonds from the earth and carve them, setting them in rings so they might woo and adorn women (one way to transform women from glory to glory), that is godly, dominion work. When men build rockets, cram inside of them like canned sardines and start to count down, in order that they may explore the outreaches of space, they are performing godly, dominion work. When man gathers every Lord’s Day to sing holy songs and partake of Christ’s flesh and blood, they rest and feast in a manner that is godly.
Sing praise to the Lord of patterns, who has graciously provided a pattern for dominion and rest!