I started thinking about this post last Sunday while flying back from New Hampshire. That day was momentous for several reasons; perhaps most insignificantly, it marked four years since I graduated from Dartmouth (and thus the fourth birthday of this blog). More exciting was getting to watch Ellen receive her doctoral diploma at Dartmouth's Commencement earlier in the day. Even though she completed her degree last summer, Dartmouth only holds one ceremony a year and so Ellen had to wait until this June to receive her cap, hood, and diploma itself. It was quite a thrill to watch! Ellen got to spend the following week in New Hampshire, too, culminating in her
five-year reunion this weekend. Unfortunately, I had to return on account of work after only two days (for some reason they don't let paramedics telecommute).
Every year it seems like I know fewer and fewer people going through the (somewhat pompously named) "Commencement Exercises." This year, though, while I knew only a handful of undergrads receiving their diplomas, I did have a couple grad student friends who were completing their studies. It was exciting to cheer for them a second time for a second degree. Some are off to use their degrees right away; others have more schooling looming through the windshield. In both cases I am delighted and proud to see what they have accomplished so far.
It was wonderful being back in New Hampshire, however briefly. We had the chance to catch up with a number of friends, visit our old stomping grounds in Enfield, and get pretty close to a pair of loons. Perhaps the most striking thing, though, was how similar it was to the way we remembered it. People were a little bit older--and children seemed to have grown like weeds--but it was pretty much the same place we left. It felt like home.
About Me
- Robert
- I'm a 2009 graduate of Dartmouth College who loves Jesus, my wife and all things Northeast.
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Whence wisdom?
This is my final post from my second week on the Valley Church Bible blog. I'll be pinch-hitting on the blog next Sunday-Wednesday, and I'll be back at it again the week of June 30. Enjoy, and make sure to check out the blog between now and then too!
Job 31-32
Elihu, alone of Job's four friends, is not condemned by God for his bad advice. We will have to read on to see the full measure of what he has to say, but he certainly gets off to a good start in Chapter 32. He decries the prevailing notion--to which he himself had subscribed--that age and wisdom go hand in hand. This is not to say that they cannot do so, but there is no automatic, direct correlation thus. Rather, "It is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding" (Job 32:8).
Elihu is upset with Job for what he sees as Job's self-justifying, and not God-justifying, ways. But he is also angry that Job's friends have not been able to show him the error of his ways. Elihu's premise is flawed--Job has not sinned against God and does not need to be rebuked--but he nevertheless raises some worthwhile points throughout his soliloquy. That you do not necessarily have to be aged in order to be wise, merely in relationship with God ... this is an encouraging thought!
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom" (Psalm 111:10).
Job 31-32
Elihu, alone of Job's four friends, is not condemned by God for his bad advice. We will have to read on to see the full measure of what he has to say, but he certainly gets off to a good start in Chapter 32. He decries the prevailing notion--to which he himself had subscribed--that age and wisdom go hand in hand. This is not to say that they cannot do so, but there is no automatic, direct correlation thus. Rather, "It is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding" (Job 32:8).
Elihu is upset with Job for what he sees as Job's self-justifying, and not God-justifying, ways. But he is also angry that Job's friends have not been able to show him the error of his ways. Elihu's premise is flawed--Job has not sinned against God and does not need to be rebuked--but he nevertheless raises some worthwhile points throughout his soliloquy. That you do not necessarily have to be aged in order to be wise, merely in relationship with God ... this is an encouraging thought!
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom" (Psalm 111:10).
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
An anonymous wedding song
Psalm 45-47
As far as I am aware, no one is sure exactly which king is getting married in Psalm 45. Rather than detract from the song, though, this anonymity amplifies the emotion that drips from every word. If we knew whose nuptials were being celebrated, we'd be irresistibly tempted to read biographical and historical context into this expression of unadulterated joy. As it is, we can allow ourselves to be swept up and carried away by the exuberance.
What more joyful refrain could there be than "Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever" (Psalm 45:6)? God, who is Alpha and Omega, is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). And weddings are celebrations of earthly unions that resonate into eternity, and as we learn later in the Bible, they have specific, supernatural significance (Ephesians 5) too. Here that significance is prefigured; though the king was a historical person, he anticipates Jesus the King as well. "The nations will praise you for ever and ever" (Psalm 45:17). May it always be so!
As far as I am aware, no one is sure exactly which king is getting married in Psalm 45. Rather than detract from the song, though, this anonymity amplifies the emotion that drips from every word. If we knew whose nuptials were being celebrated, we'd be irresistibly tempted to read biographical and historical context into this expression of unadulterated joy. As it is, we can allow ourselves to be swept up and carried away by the exuberance.
What more joyful refrain could there be than "Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever" (Psalm 45:6)? God, who is Alpha and Omega, is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). And weddings are celebrations of earthly unions that resonate into eternity, and as we learn later in the Bible, they have specific, supernatural significance (Ephesians 5) too. Here that significance is prefigured; though the king was a historical person, he anticipates Jesus the King as well. "The nations will praise you for ever and ever" (Psalm 45:17). May it always be so!
Saul and the medium at Endor
1 Samuel 26-31
Saul's encounter with the medium at Endor is unsettling in many ways. The most obvious problem with Saul's visit is that God has forbidden His people to consult mediums (Leviticus 19:31). Indeed, it was for this reason that Saul himself had "expelled the mediums and spiritists from the land" (1 Sam 28:3). The more discomfiting element of this scene, at least for me, is the isolation and abject despair Saul felt that drove him to this radical step.
At the start of the chapter, Saul surveys the Philistine army arrayed against him and he fears a crushing defeat. So he does what anyone would do in a similar situation ... he turns to God for guidance. "But the LORD did not answer him by dreams or Urim or prophets" (1 Sam 28:6). How terrifying, how utterly alone you must feel when you seek God and are ignored.
When we read this story, though, we need to remember that unlike, say, David, Saul was not a man after God's own heart. In fact, Saul directly opposed David; "He remained [David's] enemy the rest of his days" (1 Sam 18:29). And yet even after devoting so much time and energy to opposing God, Saul could still have been reconciled to Him if true repentance and reconciliation were what he desired. But even in the end, Saul sought only his own glory and success, not God's. Is it any surprise, then, that his entreaties were viewed so unfavorably?
Saul's encounter with the medium at Endor is unsettling in many ways. The most obvious problem with Saul's visit is that God has forbidden His people to consult mediums (Leviticus 19:31). Indeed, it was for this reason that Saul himself had "expelled the mediums and spiritists from the land" (1 Sam 28:3). The more discomfiting element of this scene, at least for me, is the isolation and abject despair Saul felt that drove him to this radical step.
At the start of the chapter, Saul surveys the Philistine army arrayed against him and he fears a crushing defeat. So he does what anyone would do in a similar situation ... he turns to God for guidance. "But the LORD did not answer him by dreams or Urim or prophets" (1 Sam 28:6). How terrifying, how utterly alone you must feel when you seek God and are ignored.
When we read this story, though, we need to remember that unlike, say, David, Saul was not a man after God's own heart. In fact, Saul directly opposed David; "He remained [David's] enemy the rest of his days" (1 Sam 18:29). And yet even after devoting so much time and energy to opposing God, Saul could still have been reconciled to Him if true repentance and reconciliation were what he desired. But even in the end, Saul sought only his own glory and success, not God's. Is it any surprise, then, that his entreaties were viewed so unfavorably?
Monday, May 20, 2013
The hardening of Pharaoh's heart
Exodus 9-12
Before the next plague strikes, however, God tells Moses, "'Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them, and that
you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have
dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them,
that you may know that I am the Lord'”
(Exodus 10: 1-2). Here the situation is somewhat different. It seems
that God has stacked the deck against Pharaoh; He has predetermined that
Pharaoh will not grant Moses's request.
This seems somehow unfair. One could object that
God is supernaturally preventing Pharaoh from being able to repent so
that He has an excuse to hurt the people of Egypt (indeed, God says this
is exactly what He is doing [Exodus 10: 1-2]). But to stop here would
be to miss the point entirely. God is not punishing the Egyptians for
the sake of inflicting pain. He is doing this because performing these
signs brings Him glory. God's faithfulness is so great that not even the
mighty Pharaoh, not even a multi-century enslavement, can prevent Him
from redeeming His people. For the rest of time, people will be telling
of God's magnificent power and His enduring mercy.
What about the abrogation of Pharaoh's free will?
God establishes in the book of Job that human beings possess free will
(for further consideration, I encourage you to read my piece on that
subject here), but here He seems to suspend that will. I can think of
two possible explanations for this phenomenon. One is the classic C.S.
Lewis explanation, "There are two kinds of people in the end: Those who
say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, in the end,
'Thy will be done'" (THE GREAT DIVORCE). Lewis was speaking about the
mechanism by which people ended up in Hell, but the illustration applies
equally well here; God foresees the future in which Pharaoh exercises
his free will to continue ignoring Moses's entreaties, and He simply
accelerates the process in the present. In this case, there really has
been no infringement of will.
The other explanation is that God does indeed temporarily revoke Pharaoh's free will. But what of it? God has created the natural world and all the laws that govern it. It is certainly His right to suspend or alter those laws any time He chooses. Furthermore, we have already seen that God's purpose here is to glorify Himself. Supernatural intervention in the natural world for the purpose of bringing glory to God is common throughout the Old and New Testaments. If God wishes to glorify Himself, who are we to request that He refrain from doing so?
Exodus 9-12 is one of the foundational passages of the
history of the tribe of Israel. The conclusion of their Egyptian
captivity and the institution of the Passover are watershed moments. But
there is something deeply unsettling about the way Pharaoh figures into
the story. At the conclusion of the seventh plague, Pharaoh sends for
Moses and admits his wrongdoing and begs him to ask God to call off the
hail. Yet "When Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder
had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart" (Exodus 9:27,
34). In this instance it appears that Pharaoh sinned under his own
power, as it were; that is, by his own choosing.
The other explanation is that God does indeed temporarily revoke Pharaoh's free will. But what of it? God has created the natural world and all the laws that govern it. It is certainly His right to suspend or alter those laws any time He chooses. Furthermore, we have already seen that God's purpose here is to glorify Himself. Supernatural intervention in the natural world for the purpose of bringing glory to God is common throughout the Old and New Testaments. If God wishes to glorify Himself, who are we to request that He refrain from doing so?
Why did Jesus appear after rising from the dead?
1 Corinthians 15-16
Why is it important that Jesus was seen in public after his resurrection? Paul writes, "He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born" (1 Cor 15: 4-8). Put simply, Jesus' public appearances validate the reality of his resurrection.
Later in the letter, Paul describes the importance of the resurrection to Christianity as a whole (1 Cor 15: 12-34). Or as Yale theologian Jaroslav Pelikan more succinctly stated, "If Christ is risen, then nothing else matters. If Christ is not risen, then nothing else matters." If the resurrection is of such great importance--and it is arguably the single most important tenet of Christianity--then we begin to see why Paul highlights the number of Jesus' post-resurrection appearances (something other New Testament writers do also).
It is easy to dismiss Jesus' resurrection as a hoax cooked up by his disappointed followers if they are the only ones to see him after he allegedly rose from the dead. But appearing to more than five hundred people at once? That is much harder to explain away as a fabrication. What's more, many of these people were still alive at the time of Paul's writing. If anyone in Corinth disputed the veracity of Paul's claims, they could simply track down the witnesses and interview them for themselves. No one brags about having witnesses to something that didn't happen; Paul's emphasis on how many people saw Jesus after his resurrection, and how many times Jesus was seen, is compelling evidence that the resurrection is real.
(For further consideration of this topic, I highly recommend Charles Dunn's phenomenal article "The Reality of the Resurrection," available here.)
Why is it important that Jesus was seen in public after his resurrection? Paul writes, "He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born" (1 Cor 15: 4-8). Put simply, Jesus' public appearances validate the reality of his resurrection.
Later in the letter, Paul describes the importance of the resurrection to Christianity as a whole (1 Cor 15: 12-34). Or as Yale theologian Jaroslav Pelikan more succinctly stated, "If Christ is risen, then nothing else matters. If Christ is not risen, then nothing else matters." If the resurrection is of such great importance--and it is arguably the single most important tenet of Christianity--then we begin to see why Paul highlights the number of Jesus' post-resurrection appearances (something other New Testament writers do also).
It is easy to dismiss Jesus' resurrection as a hoax cooked up by his disappointed followers if they are the only ones to see him after he allegedly rose from the dead. But appearing to more than five hundred people at once? That is much harder to explain away as a fabrication. What's more, many of these people were still alive at the time of Paul's writing. If anyone in Corinth disputed the veracity of Paul's claims, they could simply track down the witnesses and interview them for themselves. No one brags about having witnesses to something that didn't happen; Paul's emphasis on how many people saw Jesus after his resurrection, and how many times Jesus was seen, is compelling evidence that the resurrection is real.
(For further consideration of this topic, I highly recommend Charles Dunn's phenomenal article "The Reality of the Resurrection," available here.)
Sunday, May 19, 2013
What does it mean to do something in Jesus' name?
This is the second post I wrote on my week on the Valley Community Church Bible blog last month. It is reprinted in its entirety below. Please feel free to check out the other posts on that blog; a different church member writes about a different passage of Scripture every day!
Mark 9-10
Jesus tells his disciples, "For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us" (Mark 9:39). But consider the hypothetical false disciples Jesus rebukes in the Sermon on the Mount. "'Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?" Then I will tell them plainly, "I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers"'" (Matthew 7: 21-23). What a disconcerting image! The central question, then, seems to be what does it mean to do something in Jesus' name?
First, let's consider what doing something in Jesus' name is not. For instance, it is possible to claim to be doing something on God's behalf when you are really seeking your own glory. The sons of Sceva, a Jewish priest, were caught doing this in Acts 19. They "tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed" (Acts 19:13) but were beaten badly by the demon-possessed man for their trouble. You see, when it comes to our heart and our motives, there is no fooling God. "I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve" (Jeremiah 17:10).
Contrast their example with the woman who touched Jesus' clothes and was healed. Matthew tells us she touched the "edge" of the garment (Matthew 9:20). Remember that God long ago commanded the Israelites "To make tassels on the corners of your garments" (Numbers 15:38), and it was this part of Jesus' cloak that the sick woman touched. Why is that important? Because the woman knew Malachi 4:2, "The sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays." The word "rays," sometimes also translated "wings," is the same word rendered as "tassels" in Numbers 15:38. The woman believed that Jesus was who he said he was and this led her to claim God's promise of healing from Malachi 4:2 by touching Jesus' cloak. And healed she was; Jesus turned, sought her out from the crowd, and told her, "Take heart, daughter ... your faith has healed you" (Matthew 9:22). In this way God was glorified, that His Son was recognized and worshiped for who he really was.
When we do things in Jesus' name, therefore, we are claiming God's promises that He might be glorified. God makes promises as a way of showing His faithfulness and as a way of bringing glory to Himself. When we claim these promises, we are acknowledging and even praising Him as a faithful, trustworthy, and sovereign God.
Mark 9-10
Jesus tells his disciples, "For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us" (Mark 9:39). But consider the hypothetical false disciples Jesus rebukes in the Sermon on the Mount. "'Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?" Then I will tell them plainly, "I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers"'" (Matthew 7: 21-23). What a disconcerting image! The central question, then, seems to be what does it mean to do something in Jesus' name?
First, let's consider what doing something in Jesus' name is not. For instance, it is possible to claim to be doing something on God's behalf when you are really seeking your own glory. The sons of Sceva, a Jewish priest, were caught doing this in Acts 19. They "tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed" (Acts 19:13) but were beaten badly by the demon-possessed man for their trouble. You see, when it comes to our heart and our motives, there is no fooling God. "I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve" (Jeremiah 17:10).
Contrast their example with the woman who touched Jesus' clothes and was healed. Matthew tells us she touched the "edge" of the garment (Matthew 9:20). Remember that God long ago commanded the Israelites "To make tassels on the corners of your garments" (Numbers 15:38), and it was this part of Jesus' cloak that the sick woman touched. Why is that important? Because the woman knew Malachi 4:2, "The sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays." The word "rays," sometimes also translated "wings," is the same word rendered as "tassels" in Numbers 15:38. The woman believed that Jesus was who he said he was and this led her to claim God's promise of healing from Malachi 4:2 by touching Jesus' cloak. And healed she was; Jesus turned, sought her out from the crowd, and told her, "Take heart, daughter ... your faith has healed you" (Matthew 9:22). In this way God was glorified, that His Son was recognized and worshiped for who he really was.
When we do things in Jesus' name, therefore, we are claiming God's promises that He might be glorified. God makes promises as a way of showing His faithfulness and as a way of bringing glory to Himself. When we claim these promises, we are acknowledging and even praising Him as a faithful, trustworthy, and sovereign God.
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