Good Friday

When talking theology with a friend Thursday night the conversation at some point turned to the unfathomablility of God’s ways. He is truly far above us and our finite minds. God’s plan on redemption was the epitome of “not our ways”. The Jews thought that they knew how God was going to save his people. As it happened, they where dead wrong.

The Suffering Servant and the Victorious King are one. The Lion of Judah is also the Lamb that was Slain.

It is finished! The price is paid.

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea:
A great High Priest who’s name is Love
Who ever lives and pleads for me...
Because a sinless Savior died my sinful soul is counted free
For God the Just is satisfied to look on him and pardon me.

Blessed is He Who Comes in the Name of the Lord!

When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, they came, not only on account of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead.
So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well,
because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.
The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.

Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord needs them,' and he will send them at once."

They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them.
Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"

And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, "Who is this?"

And the crowds said, "This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee."

And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.
He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you make it a den of robbers."
And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them.

But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant, and they said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?"

And Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, "'Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise'?"

His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.
The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. So the Pharisees said to one another, "You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him."

John 12:9-12, 16-19, Matthew 21:2 7-16

How Beautiful...

The pure, spotless bride of Christ is an awesome image. The concept of the Church Universal, of those form every tongue, tribe and nation being one body is something so vastly glorious that I cannot really get my mind around it.

How Beautiful the hands that served
The Wine and the Bread and the sons of the earth
How beautiful the feet that walked
The long dusty road and the hill to the cross
How beautiful is the body of Christ

How Beautiful the heart that bled
That took all my sins and bore it instead
How beautiful the tender eyes
That choose to forgive and never despise
How beautiful, how beautiful, how beautiful is the body of Christ

And as He lay down His life
We offer this sacrifice
That we will live just as He died
Willing to pay the price

How Beautiful the radiant bride
Who waits for her Groom with His light in her eyes
How Beautiful when humble hearts give
The fruit of pure love so that others may live
How beautiful is the body of Christ

How beautiful the feet that bring
The sound of good news and the love of the King
How Beautiful the hands that serve
The wine and the bread and the sons of the Earth
How beautiful is the body of Christ

-Twila Paris

In meditating on this I am reminded of the admonition that we are giver over and over again to love one another as Christ loved us. In the message this morning the minister read several passages where Paul tells us what he prays for the church in various places and I thought "What better example of how to love and pray for the church than those given to us in Scripture?"

I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto all the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of your Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit if wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. the eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what is the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believed, according to the working of His mighty power, which He worked in Christ in raising Him from the dead, and He seated Him at His right hand in the heavens, far above all principality and authority and power and dominion, and every name being named, not only in this age, but also in the age to come. And He has put all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Ephesians 3:15-23

For this cause I bow my knees unto the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and on earth is named, that he would grant you according the the riches of his glory to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts my faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breath, and length , and depth , and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge and that you might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him that is able to do exceeding abundantly about all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world with out end. Amen.
Ephesians 3:14-21

For this cause we also, since the day we heard of it do not cease to pray for you and to desire that you might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened what all might, according to his glorious power unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; giving thanks unto the Father which hath make us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath make us meet ti be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: who has delivered us from the power of darkness and had translated us to the kingdom of his dear Son; in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 1:9-14

This, my dear brothers and sisters, is my prayer for you.

Psalm 121

I will lift up my eyes to the hills form which cometh my help.
My help cometh form the Lord which made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved,
He that keepeth thee shall not slumber,
behold He that keepeth Israel shall not slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is thy keeper, the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by day or the moon by night,
The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil,
He shall preserve thy soul,
The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in
from this time forth and even forever more.

Friendship.

This is a tribute to all those that God has given to me as friends, but it is especially in honor of my friend Tiffany, whose birthday it was when I started typing this tonight...

This year has been a crash course in friendships, how very precious, very rare and very fragile they are. A few mouths ago I was reading the Four Loves by CS Lewis and I was struck by his description of friendship... read it, it's really good. The value that he placed on friendship coincided with what I have come to recently. He said that "Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, 'What! You too? I thought I was the only one!' " and that they will continue only as long as they have something in common, be it as trivial as stamp collecting or as serious as faith or as simple as shared memories "True friends... face in the same direction, toward common projects, interests, goals.” Another interesting quote is this: "Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival". I feel that I am not doing justice to it... like I said, read it.

I regularly come up with a new best description of what differentiates a friend of the sort that you enjoy being with and the sort that is like family, the ones that you would die for. I can however, only remember three of them. They must have been really profound... Here are the first two:

A true friend is someone that you have spent untold hours laughing with and at least a few hours crying with (and over)
A true friend is someone that you have spent more time that you can count praying for.

I came across these quotes on friendship and thought that they where just too good to be left out
“Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget.”

A good friend is cheaper than therapy.

A friend accepts us as we are yet helps us to be what we should.

I thank God often (but not often enough) for those that he has placed in my life as my friends. God has used my friends challenge me and cause me to think, to work with me, to laugh with me, and sometimes just to have someone to cry with. Overall, I think that a real, true, friend is one who either because of what they say or just who they are cause you to look up and seek the face of your Father. A real friend is someone who helps to make you more holy.

Robin's Birthday

My sister has always been one of the dearest people in the world to me, but this year I have realized just how indispensable a sister can be. I made a discovery: I find that when I am separated from her my max for staying off the phone "just to check in" is about two hours (okay so maybe that is a little of an extradition, but not much) I have further more concluded that Solomon was on to something when he said that two was better than one.

This year I have come to value her as more than a sister, I have really, truly come to appreciate her as my best friend. True friendship is a rare and precious gift, a gift that sold never be taken for granted or lightly esteemed, and God has been so gracious as to give the best and most precious of friends to be the best and most precious of sisters.

Each year I look at my sister and think what a beautiful young women she is becoming, this year is no different. As each year brings it's trial and tribulations, I see sanctification at work in her life and I think that God is truly making a breathtaking work of art in her. There are many things that I love and admire about my sister, but I asked myself what the thing that I most admired about her was, and my answer was this: Her passion for God. I look into her eyes and see a overwhelming desire to be holy. That is the sum of everything that I love and admire about her. She is a picture of a life that is sold out to being what God has called her to be, whatever that means. Her passion for godliness is always a challenge and an inspiration to me and she is one that always spurs me on toward godliness. Through thick and thin, she is my better half.

Robin, what would I do without you? You are my hero. I love you sooo much. Happy birthday, my dear.

Happy 200th birthday to Robert E Lee

Just in case you where not aware, today is indeed the 200th birthday of the late great General Lee, who was one of the most noble and Godly soldiers that this country has produced.
Being far to fond of quotes, I have collected a few in remembrance of a truly great American:

“My chief concern is to try to be an humble, earnest Christian.”

“Duty is the most sublime word in our language. Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more. You should never wish to do less.”

“I think it better to do right, even if we suffer in so doing, than to incur the reproach of our consciences and posterity.”

“I have fought against the people of the North because I believed they were seeking to wrest from the South its dearest rights. But I have never cherished toward them bitter or vindictive feelings, and have never seen the day when I did not pray for them.”

“The war... was an unnecessary condition of affairs, and might have been avoided if forebearance and wisdom had been practiced on both sides.”

“We made a great mistake in the beginning of our struggle, and I fear, in spite of all we can do, it will prove to be a fatal mistake. We appointed all our worst generals to command our armies, and all our best generals to edit the newspapers”

“They do not know what they say. If it came to a conflict of arms, the war will last at least four years. Northern politicians will not appreciate the determination and pluck of the South, and Southern politicians do not appreciate the numbers, resources, and patient perseverance of the North. Both sides forget that we are all Americans. I foresee that our country will pass through a terrible ordeal, a necessary expiation, perhaps, for our national sins.”

“We failed, but in the good providence of God apparent failure often proves a blessing.”

“So far from engaging in a war to perpetuate slavery, I am rejoiced that Slavery is abolished. I believe it will be greatly for the interest of the South. So fully am I satisfied of this that I would have cheerfully lost all that I have lost by the war, and have suffered all that I have suffered to have this object attained.”

“Get correct views of life, and learn to see the world in its true light. It will enable you to live pleasantly, to do good, and, when summoned away, to leave without regret.”

-Robert E. Lee

Happy New Years.

Well, we brought our new year with a bang. Literally. I have never heard so many bangs in all my life as we heard last night. We are all burned, bruised and swollen, but we had lots of fun. For all of you who think that I am preppy, you are in for a shock.

Last night a friend from church invited us over for their simi-annual firework war. Now, I come form a family that is very cautious when it comes to anything involving fire. When you light the fireworks you instantly get at least ten feet away. And ABOVE ALL, if something lands in the dry leaves you must track it down and stomp it out. Well, I now know that you can shoot off 2000 bottle rockets in a three hour time frame and that nothing worse than catching one or two people on fire is likely to result.

When we where changing before heading out to the White’s I asked Mom if she thought if was okay if a certain pair of jeans got damaged. “Damaged? What are we going to do?”

“Um, shoot fireworks... at each other”

“Ooohkay” was the tentative reply.

I think that about the time the first bottle rocket headed in her general direction Mom headed inside, not to emerge again until the war was over.

I can claim the first, if not the worst injury of the night, which involved a Roman Candle that was a little too close and resulted in a swollen lip. I retreated to the house for a few minuets just to make sure that I was not really hurt. I wasn’t, so the first thing I did when I came out of the house was go after Mr. Randy with a bottle rocket. As he headed back to the other side of the house I heard him say “Well, I guess she wasn’t hurt too badly.” At which point I told Brooke that I might be a wimp, but I didn’t intend to announce it to the whole world. I wondered aloud last night what I’m going to tell all the little old ladies at the dress shop tomorrow... I think that I’ll leave it at “I got hit with a firework.”

We ended with the rather unfair division of guys vs. girls, their being six guys and five girls, one of which retired to the safety of the basement after about fifteen minuets. But I have to say that in spite of the unfair odds we almost held our own. I hit more people than I was hit by, so I felt that I had accomplished something.

At one point we where in the basement loading our rocket launchers and when we opened the door that lead up the stairs and out of the basement we discovered that the boys had put down the awning over the exit leaving us in something of a predicament. If we opened the trapdoor the boys would be waiting outside for us, no doubt with ammo ready, but there was no other way out. So Brooke resorted to “You guys, it’s not FAIR!” Cole took pity on us and let us out without a barrage of Roman Candles aimed at us. (If you want to talk about not fair, I’m not sure that claiming girl privileges is precisely fair, but hey, whatever works...)

And be on the lookout for Robin’s adventures in the firework war... it will be worth reading.

And to assure those that are worried about the safety of all this, we where wearing goggles. Just in case you where worried. ;-)

We spent the afternoon at the Walkers eating the New Year’s musts: black-eyed peas and cabbage, and after Lunch we broke out Taboo, which proved great fun. At first the guys did very badly, but the ended up beating us by about five points. Did I mention that none of the guys had ever played before? Yep, they really enjoyed that one.

So, I hope that your New Years was a happy as mine was.

I always wonder what people think of me. What do people say about me when they are talking about me? How do I come across to those that know me well and those that don’t? I know how I see me, but experience leads me to believe that how someone sees themselves is not necessarily the way that they are seen by others.

I’m not sure how I am perceived by those around me, but I feel that I likely have a reputation for being rather strange, which does not bother me. I think that some people dislike the idea of being strange. I don’t. So in keeping with that supposed reputation, I’m posting on the perception that we have of ourselves. Hey, I never claimed to be normal.

I think that how you perceive your personality and character must be similar to the way that you perceive your voice. I am perfectly accustomed to the way I speak, but when I hear a recording of my voice I, (not being pleased with what I’m hearing) ask “is that really what I sound like?”

And everyone looks at me like “Well duh. Of course that’s what you sound like.”

So what is the “real you”, the one that you see, of the one that others perceive? Whose view is the legitimate one? Or perhaps it is neither is. Perhaps the real you is the one that neither you of others see, but the one that God sees. To see what we all look like to Him would be a real eye-opener, I think.

Merry Christmas!

Well, our Christmas was lovely. We stayed home this year, which was kind of strange, but we spent the afternoon and evening with some friends that are becoming very dear. The walkers have been such a blessing since we moved here in May, and it was a pleasure to spend the Holiday with them.

This morning we read the account of the birth of Christ by the glow of all five candles in our Advent wealth (the last of which is supposed to be lit on Christmas eve, but whatever) had chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast and opened our Christmas gifts form each other. I received the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe extended version DVD set from my dear sister and a Piper book and Beyond the Gates of Splendor along with a promise to pay the difference for the i-pod I'm planing to buy from my mom.

Among the more memorable events of Christmas 2006 were the possum that was served for Christmas dinner. One of Pastor Bart's parishioners had given them possum and he insisted that everyone who came in today at least try it. And I think that with the exception of his wife and perhaps a few others everyone did. For the record, it is not bad, but it is rather fatty. I would not sign up to eat it again, but I could eat it if I ever needed to.

I don't know if all their holidays are like this, but that house was practically a revolving door. And since we had brought our instruments we got to Christmas carols for everyone who came. The other notable event of the evening was this: One of our friends got a kilt for Christmas, and after much coercing the was persuaded to put it on for us, and Robin and I happened to be wearing our Scottish tartans... so we had fun with that. I would post pictures, but the condition for taking them was that we where not to post them on myspace, so I won't. We got some great video footage form the diverse group of people that included, but was not limited too: us, the Walkers, Cole (the kilt wearing friend) and Dr. Ackenwalllie, the Nigerian family friend (you should hear him try to say "y'ont too?", as in the Mississippi version of "Do you want too").


Well, we had a good time, but that did not keep me form doing a bit of pondering this morning, and here are some of the things I was thinking about:

The Incarnation has to be the most mind boggling event in human history. God in the form of man. How awesome is that? How impossible for our finite minds to really grasp.

The child in the manger was at one time much more and much less than they where looking for. The Jews where waiting for a Messiah to deliver Israel, someone like Judas Maccabees, only successful. They wanted another David or Moses, someone to reestablish their beloved nation. They wanted a warrior, and they got a baby who grew to be a man that we have no record of ever even holding a sword, much less wielding one. They wanted a king, and they got a man how would not take the kingship when it was offered. But what they could not see was that that man of Peace would some day come with a sword coming form his mouth and judge the whole world. They had in mind the Kingship of Israel, and they got the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. I do wonder if those that stood beside the manger that night had any inkling of what was happening. Here was God, and he was with us.

I would not be me if I posted a holiday post without quoting someone else, so that is the next order of business. Though I have to say that implications of the words that Charles Wesley wrote are really staggering when you think about it. What truly awesome God we have!

Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Christ by highest heav'n adored
Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him come
Offspring of a Virgin's womb
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
Hail incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with man to dwell
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"


Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings
Ris'n with healing in His wings
Mild He lays His glory by
Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth
Born to give them second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Well, merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

Christmas Eve

1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots. 2 The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. 3 His delight is in the fear of the Lord, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears; 4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, And decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, And faithfulness the belt of His waist. 6 "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den. 9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord As the waters cover the sea.
10 "And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious."

Isaiah 11

Even so, come Lord Jesus!

Rev 22:20

Baking woes

I just make a batch of divinity, and it is not divine. Think of a strong antonym for divine an you will have the idea. Perhaps if leave it out overnight it will be more agreeable in the morning...

Advent

Today is the first day of Advent, the season preceding Christmas. Traditionally Advent has been a time to reflect on the working of God in the years preceding the birth of Christ and to try to grasp the anticipation of the ancient Israelites awaiting their Messiah. It is also a time to remember that we are awaiting the return of our Lord.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel is an old Latin hymn of praise and expectation. One can almost hear the cry of the oppressed people of God, beseeching God by many of his glorious names to send their Messiah.

O come, O come, great Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai's height
In ancient times did gave thy law
In cloud and majesty and awe.

Every few days during Advent I plan to post some of the Prophecies concerning Christ, so here is one for today:

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light. For those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned... For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and this government shall be on his shoulder. And his name shall be called: Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Isaiah 9:2,6,7.

And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuell.
Isaiah 7:13,14

Thanksgiving

Okay, okay! So I'm way behind times, but though I've been busy, I just couldn't let Thanksgiving go by unobserved by my blog.

So here it is: the classic American Thanksgiving. I tried to get a picture of the First Thanksgivng, but alas! I couldn't, so I hope ya'll like this one.

During the Thanksgiving season I was thinking about this passage:

Rejoice evermore.
Pray without ceasing.
In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1Th 5:16-18

Rather striking, isn't it, that thanksgiving is one of the few things that is stated as God's will for us?

So I was thinking of the things that I am most thankful for. At the top of the list is God's amazing grace choosing a me to be his own. If nothing good ever happened to me again, I would still be in everlasting wonder at His mercy. I'm so grateful for his Sovereignty in the valleys and mountains of my life and for his being my Rock through them all.

I have been blessed beyond all telling in my family. What more can I say? My sister is my best friend (see below), my mom is my hero, and my dad has given me so much. My extended family is always there for me and they add a little spice to life.

I have found some wonderful friends along the road of life. When we moved a dear friend gave us a print with these words: Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while and leave footprints in our hearts and we are never the same.
I'm thankful for the friends that have laughed and cried with me, for those that have challenged me, for those that have agreed with me and those that have debated with me (you know who you are). You have insured that I would never be the same.

I'm thankful for my life, my liberty and my happiness, and I am thankful for my homeland where I truly do have a freedom form want.

And to end on, here are some of the most apt thanksgivings ever penned:


1Ch 16:8 Give thanks unto the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people.

Psa 30:4 Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.

Psa 75:1Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.

Psa 79:13 So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations.

Psa 118:1 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever.

Psa 119:62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments.

Rev 11:17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.

Amen!

Robin and the minor prophets

I thought you would be amused by this exchange between Robin and myself this morning (which Robin allowed me to post, since I thought it was humorous).

Robin had just received a text message, and when I asked what it was about, the following dialog took place: “Cole just had a test on the prophets in Old Testament class.”

“Oh really? How did he do?”

“He said he did fine until he got to the minor prophets. I told him that they all get mixed up in my head too, which isn’t true but I was trying to make him feel better. Of course, I thought it was true when I said it, but after I sent it I thought ‘that’s not true, I know my minor prophets.’ ”
“Really,” I replied “so what is the major theme of Joel?” “Ummmm... Hum. I dunno. Why did you ask about Joel? Couldn’t you have asked about Lamentations or something?”

“Lamentations is a major prophet, it’s written by Jeremiah.”

“Oh yeah, but it’s so short, I get it confused with the minor prophets! But anyway, I remember the one who married the harlot. What’s his name again?”

“Somehow I don’t think that that would help on a test.”

“Sure it would, if it where multiple choice. Hmm, I do know about Jonah though.”

“Um, Robin, I think he probably answered all of the answers about Jonah correctly.”

Oh, probably so...” At this point she started to leaf through her Bible, than said with a rather bewildered look that is all her own: “I’m really convicted. I don’t know my minor prophets.”

Happy Reformation Day!

On this day in 1517 Martin Luther Nailed these 95 points of debate to the door of the Wittenberg church. This act utterly commonplace and no one had any way of knowing that this perfectly orthodox Catholic dissertation would be the spark that lit the flame that we know as the Protestant Reformation.

Instead of posting the whole 95 thesis I decided to post the 20 most relevant to the point of the whole. The whole thing is available here if you are interested

Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg, under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us, may do so by letter.
In the Name our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

1. Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, when He said Poenitentiam agite, willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance

5. The pope does not intend to remit, and cannot remit any penalties other than those which he has imposed either by his own authority or by that of the Canons.

8. The penitential canons are imposed only on the living, and, according to them, nothing should be imposed on the dying.

11. This changing of the canonical penalty to the penalty of purgatory is quite evidently one of the tares that were sown while the bishops slept.

32. They will be condemned eternally, together with their teachers, who believe themselves sure of their salvation because they have letters of pardon.

45. Christians are to be taught that he who sees a man in need, and passes him by, and gives [his money] for pardons, purchases not the indulgences of the pope, but the indignation of God.

50. Christians are to be taught that if the pope knew the exactions of the pardon-preachers, he would rather that St. Peter's church should go to ashes, than that it should be built up with the skin, flesh and bones of his sheep.

51. Christians are to be taught that it would be the pope's wish, as it is his duty, to give of his own money to very many of those from whom certain hawkers of pardons cajole money, even though the church of St. Peter might have to be sold.

52. The assurance of salvation by letters of pardon is vain, even though the commissary, nay, even though the pope himself, were to stake his soul upon it.

62. The true treasure of the Church is the Most Holy Gospel of the glory and the grace of God.

73. The pope justly thunders against those who, by any art, contrive the injury of the traffic in pardons.

74. But much more does he intend to thunder against those who use the pretext of pardons to contrive the injury of holy love and truth.

80. The bishops, curates and theologians who allow such talk to be spread among the people, will have an account to render.

81. This unbridled preaching of pardons makes it no easy matter, even for learned men, to rescue the reverence due to the pope from slander, or even from the shrewd questionings of the laity.

82. To wit: -- "Why does not the pope empty purgatory, for the sake of holy love and of the dire need of the souls that are there, if he redeems an infinite number of souls for the sake of miserable money with which to build a Church? The former reasons would be most just; the latter is most trivial."

86. Again: -- "Why does not the pope, whose wealth is to-day greater than the riches of the richest, build just this one church of St. Peter with his own money, rather than with the money of poor believers?"

90. To repress these arguments and scruples of the laity by force alone, and not to resolve them by giving reasons, is to expose the Church and the pope to the ridicule of their enemies, and to make Christians unhappy.

91. If, therefore, pardons were preached according to the spirit and mind of the pope, all these doubts would be readily resolved; nay, they would not exist.

92. Away, then, with all those prophets who say to the people of Christ, "Peace, peace," and there is no peace!

94. Christians are to be exhorted that they be diligent in following Christ, their Head, through penalties, deaths, and hell;

95. And thus be confident of entering into heaven rather through many tribulations, than through the assurance of peace

Various things, mostly music

(Note: I wrote this during the summer after a week in New Orleans for Suzuki training. I never posted it, and I'm not sure why. I came across it and decided that it was not to time-sensitive to post now. So I did)

Well, I have spent a week learning how to teach the piano. I think I learned as much about how to play the piano as how to teach it. I have been inspired to practice 3 hours a day. Let's see how long it lasts.

Awhile back I was listening to some really good music. I guess we have gotten rather out of the habit of listening to music as much as we used to. As I was swept away by the beauty of what I was hearing, I remembered "oh yes, this is why I am a musician. Because I love it." funny, isn't it, how sometimes we lose sight of the forest for the trees? I have spent so much time recently practicing because it's what I have to do that I had lost sight of why I was doing it in the first place. Music is a gift, and I'm in the business of sharing it. You know, I think that perhaps that could be said of many of the things I do. Sometimes I get so caught up in 'doing the right thing' that I forget the big picture. I'm a child of the King, chosen and blood bought. God's love and his grace are gifts, and I'm in the business of sharing them. What would my life look like if that where always first and foremost on my mind? By God's grace, we'll see.

You know, music is many thing to many people. To some it is a waste of time and energy. To some it is a nice venue of entertainment that they could live with or without. To some, however, it is a positive obsession. Robin's horn teacher went off on a tangent at one of her lessons about people who are so "into" music that it is almost a religion. "It's like music is the god and we are all priests of something. I think that some of them would like us to shave our heads and bow worship it" I didn't quite know how to take that statement when it was made, but then, I had never met someone who fit that category. Well, I have now. My instructor this past week is passionately and obsessively devoted to music.

Beethoven is universally acknowledged as one of the great masters of Classical music, yet he was an altogether disagreeable person, not to mention being quite miserable. Music did not even make him happy. It is all rather disturbing, if you ask me. Schumann went positively insane, Wagner was a vehement anti-Semitist and form all accounts insufferably arrogant, and they and many like them lived and died very unhappy. Music, which was given as a gift from the giver of all good things, when in becomes the gift, and from there proceeds to be venerated as the great good and the highest that man can attain, becomes a terrible master. Beethoven, when he lost his hearing lost the only thing that made the world worth living in to him. What a tragedy! What will it profit a man if he gain the world and lose his soul?

What is music? not a end in and of itself. Bach said that all music should be none other that to the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul. Bach's life was not wound up with his music. He was a full time church organist and a father of 20 (several of whom chose music as their profession). And he seems to have died happy and contented.

"Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent"

I don't know who said it, but I like it.

Reflection

Robin and I decided to take a different route than we usually do for out morning walk today. We typically walk along the river and down below the bluff, but today we decided to head in the direction of the city cemetery. Perhaps a little strange, but we never claimed to be normal. We discovered that it is not the place for a brisk morning walk.

Parts of the cemetery are very old, dating back to the mid nineteenth century. The oldest tomb stone we saw was dated 1835. Looking over the acres of hills covered with markers of all shapes and sizes I was struck with the brevity of life. Each of these short epitaphs was the simulation of a life. “Thy will be done” was a rather common phrase, as was the eloquent “for of such is the kingdom of Heaven”, carved in stone as a memorial of a lost child. For many of these people, this is the only mark that they leave on the world. They are forgotten, and the vases that loving family had graven into the headstones are empty. Than there where the ones that where so weather beaten that their inscription is no longer even legible. How sad, to be forgotten by all that walk the earth.

Yet each one of these where once just as alive are I am right now. They had their petty cares and worries, their triumphs and defeats, and their joys and their sorrows. Was life was sweet to them, as it is to me, and did death seem almost unreal and avoidable to the last? Often, in our heart of hearts I think that we who live think that we shall cheat death, but in the end she will not be thwarted. Each lives the days allotted to him, than when his Maker sees fit, he takes away their breath and they die. Reflecting on the brevity of live I think with the Psalmist “what is man that Thou art mindful of him?”

This is what I see from the vantage point of this earth, and if that where all I had, I would despair. I would say with the Teacher “Vanity, all is vanity!” for indeed, all seems vain. Pleasure, pain, joy and wisdom, what does it profit? All die. We are dust and we shall return to dust. None that come after shall even remember that we ever even existed, except perhaps to comment on the merit of our epitaph. As the Romans commonly had it, “non fui, fui, non sum, non caro” “I was not, I was, I am not, I care not.” Who cares? Life is pointless, death is pointless.

But I know better. I know that when we sleep the sleep of death we shall wake to life eternal. That is beyond comprehension. In Hans Christian Anderson’s fairy tale the Little Mermaid longs for an immortal soul. The first time I read that I was struck- the soul that lives forever is a gift. And what a gift! Yet it is also a great responcability.

We walked through that Jewish section and I wondered, what happened to these people who rejected their Messiah in life? It is sobering. For all these, Christian, Jew and Atheist, it is to late. Their die is cast and they have chosen their path. They have met their Maker, the Just and the Merciful. What urgency this should give us! Life is passing by! It is precious and it is short. There are lost souls that will spend eternity, not beneath the earth is oblivion, but in a place where the fire is never quenched. May God have mercy on them and may he use me as a tool to bring them in to His kingdom.

I did not intend to get quite that somber. But I suppose that the subject of death lends itself to solemnity by its very nature. But our conversation this morning was melancholy, but not really somber. We spoke of the sadness of dieing with neither children nor deeds to carry on your name. We spoke of those who came before us, whose flesh blood we are. We spoke of the colossal tragedy of abortion, which claims the lives of so many. We where struck by the frailty of man, and his smallness. We each think that the universe revolves around us, and it doesn’t. We think that we are really something, don’t we? But we’re not. But yet, for all man’s seeming insignificance, the Creator and Master of all that is and ever shall be became one of us and saved us from ourselves. What grace!

In conclusion, I leave you with the self-written epitaph of Ben Franklin and a quote from Poor Richards Almanac:

The Body
of
Benjamin Franklin
Printer
(Like the cover of an old book
Its contents torn out
And stript of its lettering and gilding)
Lies here, food for worms.
But the work shall not be lost
For it will (as he believed) appear once more
In a new and more elegant edition
Revised and corrected
by
The Author.

If you would not be forgotten
As soon as you are dead and rotten,
Either write things worth reading,
Or do things worth the writing.

"I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy..."

Well, as you probably know if you've read Robin's blog, we spent a good part of yesterday debating theology in Folsom. TULIP was the hot topic of the day, as it often is around there (at least when we are there to defend it). In the end, I was debating with one knowledgeable former hyper-Calvinist, arguing with one young self-proclaimed Armenian and conversing with one who didn't know what Calvinism or Arminianism were. Added into the mix were a few casual commenters/translators and my dear sister Robin, the only one consistantly on my side. It made for an interesting conversation.
The afore-mentioned former hyper-Calvinist (also known as Elijah) had a response to Romans 9, which as you know, is the Calvinist's best friend. I had not the presence of mind to read the context, weigh the merits and demerits of his argument, and come up with a response. So, I found a different passage that made my point just as well and avoided Romans 9 for the rest of the conversation. Now this, I know, is not the proper way to debate theology. Accordingly, this morning I read Romans 8 and 9 (having read the first few chapters of Romans last night on the way home) and shall try to remedy my lack of astuteness yesterday by a belated defense of the right way to read Romans 9.

First I'll post Romans 9, then I'll give an overview of the opposing argument, then all the reasons that I'm right and he's wrong :-D

1 I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen
according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; 5 of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.
6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, 7 nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called." 8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. 9 For this is the word of promise: "At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son." 10 And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac 11 (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), 12 it was said to her, "The older shall serve the younger." 13 As it is written, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated."
14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion." 16 So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth." 18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens. 19 You will say to me then, "Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?" 20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, "Why have you made me like this?" 21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? 22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
25 As He says also in Hosea: "I will call them My people, who were not My people, And her beloved, who was not beloved." 26 "And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, 'You are not My people,' There they shall be called sons of the living God." 27 Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel:"Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, The remnant will be saved. 28 For He will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness, Because the Lord will make a short work upon the earth." 29 And as Isaiah said before: "Unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, We would have become like Sodom, And we would have been made like Gomorrah."
30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; 31 but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. 32 Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. 33 As it is written: "Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."

Now for the opposing view:
Basically, the overall theme of Romans is an argument for the status of Gentile Christians, and that chapter 9 is speaking of the physical election of the line of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to be the forefathers of Christ. I think that the basis for this conclusion is vv. 1-4 where Paul is declaring that he wishes that he could exchange his salvation for that of his fellow Israelites and v. 5 "of whom, are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came..." and the assumption is that the rest of the chapter follows the same physical/national concept. Also vv. 7 and 8 "they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, 'In Isaac your seed shall be called.'
That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed."is refering to the exclusion of the other lines of Abraham (Ishmal, Esau, Midiam etc.) in the ancestry of Christ.
In accord with this theme, the famous "Jacob have I love and Esau have I hated" passage should be equitated with when Jesus told his disciples that if they did not hate their fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters they where not worthy to be his disciples he did meant that given a choice between them and him they must choose him, thus "hating" them. In the same way, God did not "hate" Esau except that he did not choose him to be the ancestor of Jesus. Thus the choosing was purely physical and had no spiritual significance.

My view:
I think that, in contrast to the chapter being about the physical line of Christ, it is carrying on the common theme of the physical line of Abraham vs. the spiritual line. I see the first five verses to mean basically this: "I with that I could trade my salvation for the salvation of Israel," and than he goes off to tell us some of the wonderful things about them: They where given the law, the covenant, and are the physical family of Christ. In v. 6, however, Paul hastens to assure us that the covenant with Israel was not broken, because the Church is really Israel. vv. 6-8 say : "But it is not that the word of God has taken not effect, for they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, 'In Isaac your seed shall be called.'
That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed." This seems to me to be much the same language that Paul used in chapter 4:13, 16. " For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. ... not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all" and Gal 1:7 "Therefore know that only those that are of faith are sons of Abraham."

v.11-15 (...the children not having yet been born, nor having done anything good or evil, that the purpose of God might stand, not of works, but of him who calls), it was said to [Rebecca], "the elder shall serve the younger" as it is written: " Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated." What shall we say than, is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For he says to Moses: I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion" (v. 12-15) I don't see what God choosing Jacob over Esau merely to be the line of Christ has to do with having mercy or compassion, nor do I see that it would leave God open to the charge of unrightiouness. In Romans Paul often makes a controversial statement, poses the natural objection, than ends by declaring the objection invalid. For example, he does it three times in chapter 3:1-5: "What advantage than has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision? Much in every way! Chiefly because to them where commited the oracles of God.
For what if some did not believe? Will their unbeleaf make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not! Let God be true and every man a liar...But if our unrightiousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath?... Certainly not!"
I think the logical, autonomous, conclusion to all of these statements is just what Paul anticipates it will be: "God isn't fair!" But I still say we should define our idea of justice by the character of God, not the other way around. And I think that if one's view of these scriptures makes these rhetorical questions and answers pointless it would make me seriously question the view.
I'll not quote vv. 16-20 again, because they fall under what I just said.

For the benefit of my self-proclaimed Arminian friend (otherwise known as Christian) Please refer to vv. 21-24; "Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?"

The question raised was this: How God could "force" someone to become a Christian, or not "not let them" become one if they want to?
Here is the answer: Everyone gets what they want. The Bible is replete with evidence that fallen man wants to sin. God has issued a call to all men which he hears (see Romans 1) but since he is seperated from God, he doesn't want it. And without God interviening and giving him the gift of regeneration, he will die in his sin and pay it's penelty. The wadges of sin is death.

On the other hand, we, being Christians, love God because he first loved us, (1John 4:19). When we were dead in our trespasses and sin, God regenerated us and made us alive in Christ. It is God who works in us both to will and to do for his good pleasure (Philipians 2:13). God gives us the desire and the ability to choose him. "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snath them out of My hand" John 10:27-28.
In a similar way, once we are saved, we don't complain that God gives us the ability and desire to be holy as He is holy. We want to be holy because we are His children.

The doctrine of election is not about justice, "Is God just for choosing this one and not that one?" but about mercy. What is justice? Not an equal chance for all, but hell for all. God would be perfectly just in sending every single person to hell, in saving everyone, or in saving some and not others that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessles of mercy (Rom. 9:23). In short, whatever He does is just, reguardless of how it lines up with our ideas of justice.

Chosen is used 21 times in the New Testament, elect or election is used 23 times, predestined 4 times, and foreknew twice. However you cut it, the doctrine is there. We might see it differently, but it is undeniable that there has to be something to it.
I am at something of a disadvantage today in that all my short cut all-the-verses-on-predestination-in-one-place books are at home and I'm in McComb. So I'll defer the rest of my explaination until I have them once more about me and I can give a better apology for faith being a gift.
Much of scripture is a paradox, and I'll be the first to admit it. And many things come down to my rather over-used metaphor about the elephant and the blind men. God is infinitely and unspeakably above our comprehension. Proverbs 25:2 says: "It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter." Kings and all the rest of us.
Perhaps in the endeavor to search out the nature of God we will all end up with a little bit more of an idea of how great he really is.

Yard Work

Okay so it's like this: my grandpa wants to spend the rest of his life mowing grass. My grandparents had a couple of wooded acres in the back of their house. and about 2 mouths ago my grandpa decided that he wanted it all cleared out and to have a huge, sparsely wooded back yard. All well and good. However when the guys they hired to clear it out where done there was still no way they where going to get a lawn mower back there, there where way too many sticks and rocks and stuff, not to mention many unsightly vines in the trees. So the long and the short of it is that we have spent several days this past week in McComb helping to remedy that problem. Which brings us to the latest Brillant Merisha story.

In the afore mentioned yard there is a rather scrawny tree. Apparently when a neighboring tree was cut down one of it's branches was caught in it, so now there is a sad looking tree with a dead branch dangling just above reach and it has been driving us nuts all week. This morning my grandparents where out and Mom, Robin and I started bright and early. Mom had spent a while trying to coax this branch down with a limb cutter, you know, the kind that extends about 15 feet or so. The problem was that she could not get quite high enough to get a grip on the branch. So, Robin and I, being the helpful daughters we are, decided to, um, "help" her. The place that see really needed to latch onto was about 12 feet out of reach. Being the most apt tree climber in the family, I (with Robin's help) proceeded up the tree and they handed the limb cutter up to me. I decided to cut the limb that was holding that annoying branch up.

I'm standing in the tree trying to operate the limb cutter, I get it in position, and pull the rope that is supposed to move the blade to cut the limb.

As you may know, I'm not the strongest person the the world, and add to that that I was trying to balance in a tree, I could not get that branch to cut for love for money. Not only that, but it had cut just enough that it would not come down. It was stuck. Well, than I have bright idea number two, namely, tie a cord to the cord that I was pulling and give it to those on the ground who will not have to worry about breaking their necks if they get a little off balence. The cord broke.

By this time we are on a time limit. My grandparents are on the way home, and we don't want to give them a heart attack at our rather dangerous antics in the tree, nor do we wish to actually admit that we got their brand new limb cutter stuck in the tree, 12 feet off the ground, and can't get it down. When they drove up I jumped out of the tree and we all pretended that there was not a red limb cutter hanging over our heads and came of to the house for lunch.

After lunch Robin and I decided to use a mallet to try to loosen it and get it down. The first attempt was unsuccessful. The sledge hammer we brought had a handle about 3 feet limb and weighed a ton. So now I'm in the tree, swinging a ten pound sledge hammer, trying to knock loose the tree cutter. I succeeded in hitting myself in the eye with the cumbersome handle. At this point I became mad, and was trying to figure out what I was going to tell the people at the emergency room if my eye was really injured. It was not however, so Robin went in search of something smaller and came back with a rubber mallet that did the job in about three seconds. I am happy to report that limb cutter is in the shed where it belongs, and I am still in one piece.

The limb that caused all the commotion in the first place, however, is still there. I guess you can't win them all.