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Weekend Reading: January 9, 2015

~ pjwenzel ~ 2 Comments

Welcome to your weekend! Below are the few articles and videos I’ve enjoyed over the course of what has turned out to be a super busy week. Not much here this week, but I hope you enjoy nonetheless!

PJW

Obviously the big headlines are studded with news out of Parris. The terrorist attacks and subsequent kidnapping showdown has reignited the discussion about the relative good and evil of both Islam and religion as a whole.

On the political front, with Jeb Bush all but certain to jump in the race for the GOP nomination, Mitt Romney sent a strong (and surprising) buzz throughout the political world today when he told a group of about 30 donors that he’s considering a run in ’16 as well.  

And on further geo-political news, my friends at AIPAC reminded me this week that Iranian nuclear negotiations are in high gear and reaching an important stage. Their email to me included this important line: Iran with a nuclear weapon would mean a major threat to US National security, an existential threat to Israel, and would even further destabilize the Middle East with a race toward nuclear weapons by other countries. If you’d like to do some political activism – important in a free society! – then I’d encourage you to call or email smarmy Senator Sherrod Brown’s office, as he’ll be a key vote in the future when legislation regarding possible Iranian sanctions is brought to the fore. Learn more about this here and get info on Sherrod Brown’s Office here. 

And on a rather sad note, longtime ESPN anchor Stuart Scott died of cancer this past week. ESPN has an interesting video about his life and career. 

Jon Bloom has a nice article over at DG this week called, ‘God is at Work in Your Unremarkable Days’ that is worth checking out.

And R.C. Sproul, Jr. has a sobering assessment on the ‘7 Truths We have Forgotten’ which I found challenging and accurate.

The NBA released a pretty amusing video of December’s best bloopers...

…and lastly, some funny stuff. Quartz has a funny piece called ‘What Back to the Future II got right about tech in 2015’!

Enjoy – and have a wonderful weekend!

PJW

Revelation: An Introduction Part 2

~ pjwenzel ~ Leave a comment

This morning I taught the second part of our intro to Revelation.  This is part two, of what will likely be a 4-6 part introduction.  I hope you enjoy!

 The Importance of Hermeneutics (continued from last week)

It is so important that before we begin our study in this book that we have an understanding of how to interpret what we’re reading. The book of Revelation is classified as what theologians call “apocalyptic literature”, which means that the genre of this writing is not poetry, historical narrative, or epistolary – though it has some elements of the latter form.

R.C. Sproul explains this very well, and its worth quoting him at length here:

The basic principle of biblical interpretation established by the Reformers was literal interpretation, sensus literalis, which means that responsible interpreters of Scripture always interpret the Bible in the sense in which it was written. Poetic literature should be interpreted as poetry, didactic literature should be interpreted as didactic, and so on. A verb remains a verb, a noun remains a noun, a simile is a simile, and a metaphor is a metaphor.

Conversely, the style of interpretation called “literalism” involves applying a wooden interpretation, which does not work well for poetic literature. For example, when the psalmist says that the rivers clap their hands (98:8), we do not take that to mean that rivers somehow grow hands and begin clapping. We do not interpret such poetic images in an overly literalistic way.

When it comes to interpreting prophetic literature, the question is whether the language is figurative or ordinary prose, and there is widespread disagreement about that. Some believe that we must interpret the prophecies of the future literally in order to be faithful to the Bible, but that can lead us in circles.[i]

Revelation is a book will need to be interpreted differently than, say, the book of Genesis. We will encounter all manner of symbols, numbers, and visual descriptions that will leave us in awe – and perhaps a little confused, especially if we take the wrong approach to the book. Dennis Johnson rightly says, “The strength of symbolism is vividness, for often a picture is worth a thousand words. The challenge of symbolism, however, is its ambiguity.”[ii]

Johnson says there are 7 “strategies for seeing”[iii] the book of Revelation correctly. From those 7 I have listed my favorite quotes and points below because I have found his outline very helpful:

  1. Revelation is given to reveal. It makes its central message so clear that even those who hear it can take it to heart and receive the blessings it promises.

Johnson also says, “Our starting point should be confidence that God has given this book not to confuse, terrify, or divide his people but to give us light, to reveal to us the invisible forces and the secrets of his invincible plan that make sense of the visible events and movements experienced by his church in the world.”[iv]

  1. Revelation is a book to be seen, a book of symbols in motion. Because the appearance of individuals and institutions in every day experience often masks their true identity. Revelation is given in visions full of symbols that paradoxically picture the true identify of the church, its enemies, and its Champion.

Johnson mentions earlier that, “One of the key themes of the book is that things are not what they seem…Paradox is central to the symbolism. Not only are the things not what they appear to be in history, but also typically their true identities as portrayed in the visions are the opposite of their appearance in the world.”[v]

Hendriksen says, “The theme (of the book) is the victory of Christ and of His Church over the dragon (Satan) and his helpers. The Apocalypse is meant to show us that things are not what they seem. The beast that comes up out of the abyss seems to be victorious…But his rejoicing is premature. In reality it is the believer who triumphs.”[vi]

“If we are to follow an interpretive rule of thumb in reading Revelation, it should be that we take what John sees as symbolic where possible”, says Johnson. This reality is one that is the opposite of many in popular theology who says that we should take a “literal approach whenever possible.” Our hermeneutic shouldn’t be determined by our presuppositions, but rather by the kind of literature, the context etc. that we are reading.

This is a very important point – probably one of the most important things to keep in mind as we go through the book. Dispensationalists disagree with this viewpoint. John MacArthur represents that viewpoint and makes the case that we should take a literal view because that’s the most obvious one to take – he does not even address the different kinds of literature and how a genre affects our reading of it.[vii]

  1. Revelation makes sense only in light of the Old Testament. Not only the visions of such prophets as Ezekiel, Daniel, and Zechariah but also historical events such as creation, the fall, and the exodus provide the symbolic vocabulary for John’s visions.

Kelly agrees with this, “These images must be understood in terms of how they were originally used in the Old Testament prophecies, such as Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. There, they do not mean the literal falling of the stars to earth, but rather the down-falling of governmental powers (such as Joseph’s dream of the sun and the moon, and the twelve stars bowing before him, meaning his parents and brothers). Not to take this into account makes it hard properly to interpret Revelation.”[viii]

  1. Numbers count in Revelation. Since numbers are used symbolically in Revelation, we must discern the meaning they convey rather than trying to pull them as numbers directly into our experience, measured by calendars and odometers.

When speaking about the number “666” Beale says, “The other numbers in Revelation are probably used figuratively without specific reference to one historical reality at one particularly point in history.”[ix]

Johnson explains that the numbers mean different things. Seven is the number of completeness/fullness, ten is significant and frequently is used in multiples to symbolize vast numbers of years or people (1,000 year, 144,000 people, 12,000 stadia etc.), twelve is the number of the people of God and so forth.

Johnson concludes, “The symbolic use of numbers in Revelation is flexible. Readers un-accustomed to this flexibility are perplexed…When we recognize the symbolic significance of numbers and the flexibility of numerical symbolism in Revelation, we will get the message that the numbers are intended to convey without pressing for a literal connection between the numerical measurements in the visions and the temporal, spatial, or demographic dimensions of their referents.”[x]

  1. Revelation is for a church under attack. Its purpose is to awaken us to the dimensions of the battle and the strategies of the enemy, so that we will respond to the attacks with faithful perseverance and purity, overcoming by the blood of the Lamb.

Johnson says of Revelation that, “It’s purpose, to reveal ‘things which must soon take place,’ is not to satisfy idle eschatological curiosity or feed a hunger for revenge but to fortify Jesus’ followers in steadfast hope and holy living.” [xi]

Therefore, “our interpretation of Revelation must be driven by the difference God intends it to make in the life of his people.”[xii]

  1. Revelation concerns “what must soon take place.” We must seek an understanding that touches the experience of our brothers and sisters in seven first-century congregations scattered in the cities of western Asia Minor. Revelation is not about events and hostile forces remote from their struggle.

“Revelation gave first-century Christians insight into the purposes of God in their time. We can at least conclude, therefore, that interpretations of the visions that lie completely beyond the original reader’s frame of reference are suspect. If we begin our inquiry with the assumption that God intended first-century believers to get the message of Revelation, we read its visions against the backdrop of Old Testament imagery rather than forcing them into the template of twenty-first century technologies or politics.”[xiii]

Hendriksen agrees, saying, “A sound interpretration of the Apocolypse must take as its starting point the position that the book was intended for believers living in John’s day and age. The book owes its origin, at least in part, to contemporary conditions. It is God’s answer to the prayer and tears of severely persecuted Christians scattered about in the cities of Asia Minor.”[xiv]

But Hendriksen doesn’t stop there. He also sees that the book was written for us as well, and gives four reasons for supporting this position – reasons I believe are not only sound, but helpful as we frame our thoughts for the study. I will quote him at length for your benefit here:

First, the affliction to which the Church was subjected in the days of the Apostle John is typical of the persecution which true believers must endure throughout this entire dispensation (2 Timothy 3:12) and especially just before Christ’s second coming (Matthew 24:29-30).

Secondly, many of the predictions in which the book abounds (example, the seals, trumpets, and bowls) concerns principles and happenings which are so broad in their scope that they cannot be confined to one definite year or period of years but span the centuries reaching out to the great consummation.

Thirdly, the letters in chapters 2 and 3 are addressed to the 7 churches. Seven is the number which symbolizes completeness, its use here indicates that the church as a whole is mind and that the admonitions and consolations of this book were meant for Christian believers throughout the centuries.

Finally, all those who read and study this book in any age are called blessed (1:3) as at the beginning, so also at the close of the book, the author addressed himself not merely to one group of men living in one decade but to every man who hears the prophecy of this book (22:18).[xv]

  1. The victory belongs to God and to his Christ. Revelation is pervaded with worship songs and scenes because its pervasive theme – despite its gruesome portrait of evil’s powers – is the triumph of God through the Lamb. We read this book to hear the King’s call to courage and to fall down in adoring worship before him.

FOOTNOTES 

A note about “footnotes”: I have footnotes here not because this is an academic exercise (you’ll see this in the loose way in which I write those footnotes!), but so that I will remember where I got these quotes for future reference, and so you can look them up yourself if you’d like.  It will also show you extended thoughts on a matter that may be a little bit of a rabbit trail I didn’t want to address in class or in the main body of my text.

[i] R.C. Sproul, ‘Everyone’s A Theologian;, Pg.’s 310-311

[ii] Johnson’s commentary on Revelation is called, ‘Triumph of the Lamb’ and this quote is found on page 10.

[iii] Johnson, Pg.’s 22-23

[iv] Johnson, Pg. 6.

[v] Johnson, Pg. 9.

[vi] Hendriksen, Pg. 8

[vii] John MacArthur says this, “If you just take all of that literally you come up with a premillennial view. And one of the compelling reasons to take it all literally is because there’s no other way to interpret the Bible because as soon as you say you don’t have to interpret the Bible literally, then what in the Bible don’t you have to interpret literally? I mean, how do you…how can you just say, ‘Well we don’t interpret prophecy literally, but we interpret everything else literally,’ on the basis of what? We maintain a literal, historical, grammatical contextual hermeneutic of interpretation because that’s the only way that we can understand the Bible, to take it at its historical, contextual, linguistic face value. And when you do that, you find you’re drawn to be a premillennialist because that’s the literal aspect.” But in his ardency to read the Bible “literally”, he discards simple logic and other standard interpretive rules. Sensus Literalis is thrown out the door. The approach to how we’d read any kind of literature, be that poetic, prophetic, didactic etc., are not considered.  Additionally, and much to my consternation, I’ve found that dispensationalists generally make arguments about their hermeneutic that are disingenuous. 1. They use language about “literal” and “face value” interpretations to smack down discerning theologians who see spiritual or symbolic interpretations. Then, they interpret passages which they view as symbolic as such because it suits them in the situation. They do this because they are convinced that one must approach any literature with a literal interpretation first, and then only symbolically if the literal doesn’t work – often they refuse to interpret the literature symbolically at all therefore forcing the passage at hand into a future occurrence (since nothing like a talking “beast” lives among us today!) This is a wrong-headed way to approach Scripture.  2. They regularly write about other views in a condescending manner, while continually stressing how theirs must be correct (far from the humble approach of those who hold other views, and this is found throughout Walvoord, MacArthur, and Ryrie). 3. They use terms like “replacement theology” for the views of other’s which is inaccurate. 4. They seem to completely ignore historic premillenialism – often not even mentioning it as an option. In a sermon on the millennial views MacArthur says there are only “three” major views, then goes on to describe his form of premil as one of the three. Certainly it is one of the four major views, but there is another form of premil! All of these reasons and more (not the least of which is their undervaluing of the new covenant and Christ’s current reign) give me great pause when quoting or reading from dispensational authors. Every time I read their work my stomach turns from their arrogance, condescension, and very often their lack of academic accuracy or integrity in the representation of opposing views (see J. Vernon McGee!).

[viii] Kelly, Pg. 11

[ix] Beale, Pg. 24

[x] Johnson, Pg. 16

[xi] Johnson, Pg. 16

[xii] Johnson, Pg. 18

[xiii] Johnson, Pg. 20-21

[xiv] Hendriksen, Pg. 10

[xv] Hendriksen, Pg. 10

Weekend Reading: November 1, 2014

~ pjwenzel ~ Leave a comment

Happy weekend, and happy (belated) Reformation Day to you! A few hundred years ago an augustinian monk by the name of Martin Luther nailed a piece of parchment to the door of a church in Wittenberg Germany. That piece of paper contained 95 “theses” having to do with with abuses of church (Catholic Church) leaders had made in order to raise money for the church by selling indulgences. The church had gotten away from the Gospel, which says plainly that men are saved by grace through faith and through no work of their own, but by God’s power alone (Eph. 2:8-10 – as opposed to a coin in the coffer). Luther’s stand was meant to start an academic discussion, instead it sparked a reformation. Enjoy your weekend, and the many great story and links!

Let’s begin with Reformation Day because it seems like everything else is a tad depressing in the news world…The history channel did a little video on Luther. The Kuyperian blog has an 8 minute long ballad that gives the history of Luther. All week long the Ligonier folks were posting short biographies of leading reformers. This week they had Calvin, Luther, and an overall piece on Reformation Day which was really nice. Finally, check the bottom of this email for Erik Eriksen’s great Martin Meme…

Next up (ironically) the Pope this weekend reminded Protestants why they left the church. I was thinking of calling it “another gaffe” but it seems he actually means what he’s saying – normally a good thing. But in all the outcry about the Pope’s comments on evolution (which were nothing earth shattering), what stood out to me was how he degraded the ability and power of God. This coming from the man charged with being the most important pro-God cheerleader on earth.

Meanwhile, the gay rights movement scored a pop-culture victory. Front and center this week was Apple CEO Tim Cook’s declaration that not only is he a homosexual, but he’s proud to be, and says, “I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me.”  For men like Cook, theology does not extend past what suits them – it is simply a waxed nose which can be shaped to fit their desires. 

Besides all of this, there are elections coming up on Tuesday (the reason my email is late). New reports say that North Carolina and Iowa have Senate races that are “too close to call.” But Kentucky seems to be leaning toward Republicans, and South Dakota (once a Dem dream, now a pipe dream) is fading from competitiveness, as is New Hampshire as Scott Brown’s chances at getting back to the Senate seem dim. Kansas seems still very up in the air, however, and Louisiana and Georgia will likely both go to runoffs. On the lighter side, the RNC released a funny commercial this week.

What’s at stake in this election? Apparently its condoms.

A bit of a set back for those hoping to hop a jet for an intergalactic vacation in the near future. A crash in the Mojave desert of a test flight from Virgin Galactic (seriously, that’s the name) has left one dead and one injured. A very sad story. Horribly, this occurred not long after NASA’s first commercial space jet exploded after just leaving the platform. Thankfully it was an unmanned craft.

In the spirit of controversy, you’ve maybe heard about the New York woman who recorded herself walking through NYC for 10 hours and receiving all manner of comments – cat calls and compliments among a host of other odd occurrences. Now this lady is receiving “rape threats.” It’s hard to know what the make of this. Many of the comments seem overblown as you watch the video – we can’t completely close down society here or no man would ever approach a woman for fear of getting sued. That being said, that this lady is receiving such hostile responses indicates the depth of depravity our society has fallen into. Ironically, the same people who are pumping sex and smut into our culture are the ones complaining about its affects…what did they think would happen?

On the lighter side – at least mankind is working on the critical steps forward in term from a mechanical/scientific standpoint.  Unfortunately it doesn’t seem like we’re investing enough money in Ebola yet…But we have figured out how to make the world a better place through bird poop.

Speaking of popular science, researchers are finding out what happens to a body when it does to “sleep with the fishes.”

And in case you missed it, the big to-do this week internationally was the increased tension in the already rocky relationship between the US and Israel. Hard to work together when you’re getting anonymously trash talked by your friends.

Staying on the international theme, FP.com did a write up on the influence of ISIS on children and how youngsters are being used in the terror war.

Meanwhile, our military is getting smarter and using some really cool new technology for mapping purposes. 

Everyone seems to have a different take on Halloween. Personally I think its a rather creepy holiday. I mean, what are we celebrating here? But one pastor is more pragmatic about the day and has some good thoughts. 

Ligonier Ministries released a ginormous study this week having to do with the state of American theology. About 3000 people were polled. R.C. Sproul discusses it here. Info breakdown here, along with a cool (and depressing) info-graphic.  

American’s are not only getting dumber theologically, the New York variety would like to stop learning history as well.  

Here’s a great success story involving receiving blankets that you might enjoy as you sip coffee this morning.

Back to politics…if you haven’t seen this little blooper, it won’t be the last time you hear about it. If Hillary Clinton runs for President, she’ll have to explain why businesses and corporations “aren’t the ones creating jobs.”  Seriously. That’s like saying soldiers don’t kill people, birds don’t fly, and Clinton’s don’t lie.

Lastly, Jon Bloom asks the question “what is it about C.S. Lewis?”

martin luther nailed it

 

Changes To Our Reading Group!

~ parrispayden ~ Leave a comment

Several years ago PJ, Derek and I set out to start a reading group where we were challenging each other to read Gods Word on a consistent basis.  Along with reading together, we also wanted the ability to share thoughts with each other on each section. Initially we would text each other once we were done with the reading. However, as we started to add more people to the group, texting became to difficult to follow.

Thankfully we found the GroupMe application which allowed us to send a group message to a large number of people in a simple way that was very easy to follow. We have been using the application for a few years now and it has been great! But there is one problem. We didn’t realize there was a maximum of 50 people per group within the application.  Soon our reading group will exceed that maximum number.  So we have decided to move the group to Google Hangouts!  Google Hangouts is an excellent communications tool.  You can use it for messaging just like the GroupMe application. You can also use it for video calls within the group. Hangouts allows for a larger number of participants and is still very simple to use and easy to follow.

I have provided instructions below on how to download and setup the application.  You can also find out more information about the application by visiting this website, https://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts/

 

Step 1) You need to have a google (gmail) account. You can do that by going here. If you already have a gmail account you can skip this step.

Create_your_Google_Account

 

Step 2) Download the application.  You can click one of the links below or just search for google hangouts within the iOS App store or the Google Play Store.

 

iOS   Android


Hangouts_-_Android_Apps_on_Google_Play

If you use Google Chrome as your web browser you can download the Google Hangouts web application. Chrome Web App – http://goo.gl/cr3XE

 

Step 3) Send your gmail email address to PJ or me and we will add you to the Hangout!

 

That’s it!

If you have any questions please feel free to email one of us.

 

You Follow Me – The Conclusion of John’s Gospel

~ pjwenzel ~ Leave a comment

Tomorrow morning it is my aim to conclude a three year long study of the book of John. I leave the study with over 500 pages of notes, a few piles of books and commentaries on the gospel of John, and a mind and heart that have been changed for the better by studying these passages.

It is a very humbling thing to get to the end of such a large book and feel you’ve still got a lot to learn. The depth of John’s gospel is just astounding – it is made all the more astounding when you read how he ends it!

I hope you enjoy these final notes on the 4th Gospel.

PJW

You Follow Me

 Introduction to the End of John’s Gospel

In the final scenes of John’s gospel we find that the author does not follow a strict chronological timeline. John isn’t concerned to give an exact timeline of events in proper sequence, but to give a theological and spiritual conclusion to his book.

This makes sense when we remember that his aim was spelled out like this:

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; [31] but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:30-31)

The pleasure of reading this gospel has been that Jesus is front in center in John’s writing. John displays Jesus in such a way that His teachings speak for themselves. Yet John also adds editorial comments in here and there, guiding the reader toward a fuller understanding of both the circumstances and Jesus’ teaching.

This same modus operandi holds true for the final few verses of John’s gospel.

21:18-19 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” [19] (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”

It seems that Jesus is speaking here to Peter about the fact that he will one day be crucified. It took quite a long time (3 decades) for this to materialize, but eventually Peter did die a martyr’s death just as Jesus had predicted (and ordained!).

Carson probably has the best explanation on this and says Bauer had it right long ago:

Bauer proposed long ago that this ‘stretching’ took place when a condemned prisoner was tied to his cross-member (the patibulum: cf. notes on 19:17) and forced to carry his ‘cross’ to the place of execution. The cross-member would be placed on the prisoner’s neck and shoulders, his arms tied to it, and then he would be led away to death. Despite the fact that many reject this explanation (Carson note on Schnackenburg), the most detailed study of crucifixion in the ancient world describes just such horrible variations on this grisly form of execution (Carson footnote on M. Hengel, Crucifixion).

21:20-22 Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them, the one who also had leaned back against him during the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?” [21] When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” [22] Jesus said to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!”

Here Peter wants to know his end, and why it is that He should suffer a death that is horrific – why not someone else? What about the other guy?

The first thing of importance in this passage is that Jesus’ power and authority is made manifest when He says, “if it is my will.” Remember Christian that it is the will of this Man that rules the universe. The word of Jesus upholds the universe (Hebrews 1:1-3) and, like the Father, all that He wills to do comes to pass.

Job acknowledged this, “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted” (Job 42:2).

And certainly this puts the words of Isaiah in mind (these are what I first thought of when I read this):

“Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ (Isaiah 46:8-10)

Therefore Jesus begins His response to Peter with a reminder of his own authority.

Secondly, He is blunt with Peter, in affect telling him to “butt out!”

I think that John Piper’s blog post on this is just terrific. Below is extended excerpt of his words:

Jesus’ blunt words—“None of your business, follow me”—are sweet to my ears. They are liberating from the depressing bondage of fatal comparing. Sometimes when I scan the ads in Christianity Today (all ten thousand of them), I get discouraged. Not as much as I used to twenty-five years ago. But still I find this avalanche of ministry suggestions oppressing.

Book after book, conference after conference, DVD after DVD—telling me how to succeed in ministry. And all of them quietly delivering the message that I am not making it. Worship could be better. Preaching could be better. Evangelism could be better. Pastoral care could be better. Youth ministry could be better. Missions could be better. And here is what works. Buy this. Go here. Go there. Do it this way. And adding to the burden—some of these books and conferences are mine!

So I was refreshed by Jesus’ blunt word to me (and you): “What is that to you? You follow me!” Peter had just heard a very hard word. You will die—painfully. His first thought was comparison. What about John? If I have to suffer, will he have to suffer? If my ministry ends like that, will his end like that? If I don’t get to live a long life of fruitful ministry, will he get to?

That’s the way we sinners are wired. Compare. Compare. Compare. We crave to know how we stack up in comparison to others. There is some kind of high if we can just find someone less effective than we are. Ouch. To this day, I recall the little note posted by my Resident Assistant in Elliot Hall my senior year at Wheaton: “To love is to stop comparing.” What is that to you, Piper? Follow me.

  • What is it to you that David Wells has such a comprehensive grasp of the pervasive effects of postmodernism? You follow me.
  • What is it to you that Voddie Baucham speaks the gospel so powerfully without notes? You follow me.
  • What is it to you that Tim Keller sees gospel connections with professional life so clearly? You follow me.
  • What is it to you that Mark Driscoll has the language and the folly of pop culture at his fingertips? You follow me.
  • What is it to you that Don Carson reads five hundred books a year and combines pastoral insight with the scholar’s depth and comprehensiveness? You follow me.

That word landed on me with great joy. Jesus will not judge me according to my superiority or inferiority over anybody. No preacher. No church. No ministry. These are not the standard. Jesus has a work for me to do (and a different one for you). It is not what he has given anyone else to do. There is a grace to do it. Will I trust him for that grace and do what he has given me to do? That is the question. O the liberty that comes when Jesus gets tough!

I hope you find encouragement and freedom today when you hear Jesus say to all your fretting comparisons: “What is that to you? You follow me!”

I find Piper’s analogy or paraphrase or what-have-you, to be perfect – especially in light of the fact that Driscoll just this week resigned in shame from his own church. We often put people on pedestals and puff them up in our minds, but they are just men. They are just as human as we are.

We could all no doubt substitute the names “driscoll or wells” for our own friends and contemporaries. For we often look at our Christian friends and see the grace God has bestowed on them and perhaps feel somewhat inadequate comparatively. Yet this is the very thing Jesus is correcting in Peter.

Carson says that Jesus’ reply to Peter is basically to say, “mind your own business.” Calvin says, “Christ intended to put his hand on his disciple, in order to keep him within the limits of his calling. ‘It is no concern of yours,’ says he, ‘and you leave that to my disposal’ think only about yourself, and prepare to follow where you are called.’”

Herman Ridderbos says, “What applies to both disciples is the call to follow Jesus, each with his own destiny. For Peter it means he will complete his life like the “good Shepherd” in self-offering for Jesus’ flock. For the beloved disciple this means his continuing witness until the coming of his Lord in glory.”

We who are God’s children are dealt with individually. In fact, this says something of the individuality of the Christian walk. We often rightly emphasize the need for corporate worship, corporate sermons, and fellowship. But there is also a part to Christianity that is very individual, very personal. That is what we are seeing between Peter and Jesus here.

Personal Reflection

It is not easy to leave this section without reflecting on God’s call on our own lives, and how often we find ourselves in comparative moments where perhaps we would rather be someone else. Yet God calls us each to walk our own individual walks, and endure our own trial, not coveting those without similar ordeals or circumstances.

But more than this is the great comfort that in our trials, and indeed in every circumstance, it is Jesus who wills these things. It is not left to us to guess whether or not Jesus is allowing this or that, or whether He knows of our trials. There is no room for that loose of an interpretation. Jesus is presented here (indeed He presents Himself by His own words) as the One who “wills” all that comes to pass.

Indeed as Paul has said:

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:16-17)

21:23-24 So the saying spread abroad among the brothers that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?” [24] This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true.

Who is this “We”?

A quick textual note is necessary before beginning the final look at these verses. In verse 23 the author seems to be taking some corrective action in order to mitigate the misnomer that Jesus had meant the beloved disciple would not die. Rather, Jesus just said he would “remain” (meno), and in this context it didn’t mean he wouldn’t die, but that he would continue in his work on earth until he died in the way God had thought best.

Many scholars dispute the identity of who the “we” refers to in verse 24. Ridderbos thinks its people who made up those around John, but not John himself (or at least to include John and the apostles with him). But Carson goes through every option and notes that it must refer to John himself, the author and also the “beloved disciple” as included in this and as the one writing it.

Even though this seems awkward, it’s no more awkward than John referring to himself in the third person the entire time! I am convinced that this is the most likely reading of the passage, most especially because in 1:14 John is says, “We have seen his glory.” That seems to fit the same writing style/motif.

More can be read of the comparative views in Carson (pages 681-685).

The Purpose of This Gospel

All of this gets back to the reason John wrote this – to show the greatness of Jesus, and give those who read this book an opportunity to believe and find life – eternal life – with Him.

This is why the author has taken such pains to explain, comment, rebut, and go in-depth in many areas where the other gospel writers did not. John’s mission dominates his narrative and the choice of his excerpts from Jesus’ life and ministry.

21:25 Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. 

The Greatness of Jesus

To end his commentary on the gospel of John, D.A. Carson frames the last verse as containing matter related to “The Greatness of Jesus” – a very apt header. Carson says:

The Jesus to whom he (John) bears witness is not only the obedient Son and the risen Lord, he is the incarnate Word, the one through whom the universe was created. If all his deeds were described, the world would be a very small and inadequate library indeed.

It is as if John has identified himself (vs. 24), but is not content to focus on himself, not even on his veracity. He must close by saying his own work is only a minute part of all the honours (sic) due the Son.

John’s gospel is truly unique. It is a theological gospel – and perhaps no one captures that theological (and even philosophical) thrust better than Ridderbos in his own summary of the book:

What we are confronted with in this Gospel, as a matter of faith, is the salvific breaking down from above of the boundaries by which our thinking and acting are circumscribed (cf. 3:5). The confrontation, however, is not with a “higher reality” as such, one that would merely relativize our reality. The confrontation is with the entry into our reality of the glory (“the name,” 17:6, 26 etc.) of God and with the “signs” of the “life” for which God once created and still continues to destine the world (1:4) – just as he who was “in the bosom of the Father” revealed that name and that life to us by his words and deeds (1:18) so that “by believing in that name” we may have life (20:31).

Surely this is the case. The breakthrough, indeed the “invasion”, if you will, of the kingdom of God in the lives of mankind is significant in John’s gospel. It is the telling of the sovereign God breaking into our reality/our consciousness in a way He had not done to fore. He physically walked and dwelt among us. Not as a pillar of fire, a burning bush, an angelic vision, but as a man born of a virgin, growing up as a boy under the law, and coming to maturity as a human being.

The wonder of this increases ten-fold when we realize the goal of God was to save men. The lengths He went to do this, and the wonder we feel when these truths come into focus is the permeating reality that soaks every sentence, every graph, and every chapter of John’s gospel.

He began by ushering us into the presence and purpose of God:

The Word Became Flesh In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:1-5)

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. (John 1:14-18)

And left us to worship:

Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. (John 21:25)

William Hendricksen ends his own commentary by quoting the familiar words written by a Jewish poet named Meir Ben Isaac Nehorai in 1050 A.D. and later put to music by F. M. Lehman:

Could we with ink the ocean fill, and were the skies of parchment made; Were every stalk on earth a quill, And every man a scribe by trade: To write the love of God above Would drain the ocean dry, Nor could the scroll contain the whole Though stretched from sky to sky.

Calvin says God used men to make a careful selection of the material from Jesus’ life in order that (He) “might make known to us all that God knew to be necessary for us, who alone is wise, and the only fountain of wisdom; to whom be praise and glory for ever. Amen.”

I hope your study of this gospel has been as profitable as mine. It has left me humbled, and appreciative of all God has given us in His word.

 

Weekend Reading: October 18, 2014

~ pjwenzel ~ Leave a comment

Only three weeks away from the midterm elections here in the United States and life is pretty hectic for those of us involved in politics, so I don’t have as many articles as I will when things die down. That being said, there were a few good articles this week that need to be shared.

Let’s begin in Houston where Pastors who protested the a local ordinance on homosexuality had their sermons subpoenaed.  After a lot of protest, the city revised their subpoenas and backed off. This is only the latest in the continuing battle over freedom of speech and the radical homosexual agenda.  (h/t Tracy Lear for the updates)

On a similar (and unfortunate) note, one couple is being fined for refusing to allow their land to be used for a gay marriage. Denny Burk explains…

Of course Ebola continued to dominate the news – interestingly, many Americans believe the government is hiding information from them about the deadly disease. 

Mark Driscoll resigned from Mars Hill church in Seattle under growing concerns that he ran the church (and other campuses) with a domineering and arrogant spirit. Sounds like his resignation was unexpected. (h/t Dennis Lankford)

The government is learning that when you spy regularly on Americans they tend to build ways to stop you (I say “they” to include the corporations who ARE made up of people and adapt to the demands of the market).

Fascinating story this week at HuffPo about an American man who voluntarily signed up to fight with the Kurds against ISIS.

Did you know there’s an app you can download where you ask “Ethan” any question you’d like and he gives an opinion back…he’s a real person acting like an old fashioned 8-ball!  Can you believe someone is making tons of money selling an app and giving out silly advice?  Well, stupid question I guess…

Some economists and foodies have banded together to ask if ‘it tastes better when it costs more?’

From the silly side…A super-centenarian woman lies about her age to get onto Facebook…

In the MUST READ ARTICLE of the week, Jon Bloom says, ‘Be Ready to Answer Your Kid’s Questions about the Bible’….and then proceeds to help us do just that!

Pastor Saeed, imprisoned for his faith, has written his 8 year old daughter a note for her birthday that the family decided to publish.

R.C. Sproul argues that the secret to happiness in life is cultivating humility. And Jon Bloom takes it a step further and says that God actually entices us to great happiness...

David Mathis has been reading ‘The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe‘ to his kids and he chronicles (no pun intended) their response the book and to C.S. Lewis’ writing. I’ve always enjoyed Lewis’ works – especially the Chronicles of Narnia.  Just this past week our family listened to The Magician’s Nephew and really enjoyed it.

That’s it!  Now go enjoy your weekend!

PJW

The Joy of Decreasing for the Fame of His Name

~ pjwenzel ~ 1 Comment

Here are some rough notes from a sermon I preached yesterday on John 3:25-36.  I hope you find them edifying!

John 3:25-36

The Joy of Decreasing for the Fame of His Name

 

Outline

  • Introduction
  • The context
  • The Joy of Decreasing
  • The Preeminence of Christ in All things
  • Conclusion

Introduction

I want us all to come away with the realization that as Christians we ought to be continually “decreasing” in order that the fame of Jesus might “increase.” There are by-products of this, and one of them is that we will realize great joy.

The imperative to decrease is fueled by the fact that we, as the bride of Christ, have a bridegroom who is worthy of our devotion, obedience and love.

Read with me the words of John as inspired by the Holy Spirit

The Context

3:25-26 Now a discussion arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification. [26] And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.”

So John had this great ministry going here across the Jordan. He was attracting a lot of followers and many of these men began to get concerned when the crowds died down. Soon they learn that they’re not showing up in more because they’re more interested in what Jesus has to say, so they’re following Jesus instead of John.

So John’s disciples are saying, in affect, “Houston we have a problem!”

Oddly enough, we’re presented with the issue in an odd context. The Apostle says that the disciples of John were arguing about purification, and then in verse 26 they seem to move on to a discussion on the ministry of Christ and how people seem to be leaving John’s ministry and going to Jesus’ ministry. So this sort of leaves you scratching your head because you might wonder, “What in the world does purification have to do with anything? And why didn’t they finish talking about the discussion over purification?” It just seems like an odd piece of information to stick in there all by itself.

In order to understand the context, we need to understand what these men were talking about. What is the connection between their discussion of purification and their anxiety over the flourishing of Jesus’ ministry?

I think John Piper is on the right track when he says that perhaps there was a confusion over whether or not John’s baptism was “working” since all these people were getting baptized and then going over to Jesus’ ministry. You have a purification issue John! Or so they seemed to be saying…[i]

You see what was going on here is that people were finding in Jesus the words of life. They were finding peace. The man who would be washing souls for all eternity was attracting a bigger crowd than John.

This man would later say, “I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see” (Rev. 3:18).

John doesn’t answer the purification issue directly but rather indirectly, by saying that the bride of Christ will be purified by the bridegroom who is the perfect and spotless sacrificial lamb. The marriage picture is the same – we die for our wives, we love them, we sanctify them by washing them in the Word.

John is going to point them to the fact that it is the bridegroom who purifies the bride – and there is cleansing found in no other avenue.

This is the context for John’s answer…

The Joy of Decreasing

3:27-29 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. [28] You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ [29] The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete.

John begins answering them in verse 27 with a rebuke – he’s basically saying, “nothing that is happening now would be happening if it were not in God’s will and if He had not ordained it to be happening.”

It sounds similar to what James says, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17).

Note “who stands and hears him” is significant. This is the voice of the Lord. This is the life-giving power of God in audible form. This is the voice that called out “Lazarus!” from the tomb. This is the voice that John had been waiting for!

“No body would be going to Jesus if heaven weren’t giving them to Jesus” Piper says.

Look at how incredibly happy John is that Christ is the one who is getting the glory; it causes him to “rejoice greatly.” Let’s not miss this. He is so happy because his ministry is coming to a close, and that means that Christ’s ministry is about to bloom. Not only is he rejoicing but also his joy is “complete.” John finds his ultimate purpose in his exaltation of Christ. This is what makes him ultimately happy, ultimately joyful.

So this is the key point here: John’s purpose and joy in life now and in the hereafter is inextricably tethered to the fame of Christ’s name.

3:30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”

What an amazing statement. Can you say and can I say truly, “He must increase, while I, PJ, must decrease.” It is this decreasing that which is the mechanism that brings him joy.

But what does it mean to “decrease”? I believe it means to value and treasure Jesus’ reputation (fame) and glory over and above our own fame and glory.

John Piper paraphrases John’s statement this way, “When Jesus becomes more in the world and I become less in the world, my joy goes up.” Piper continues by saying that John’s response is “a joyful response to God’s sovereign self-exaltation.”

You see, for John the Baptist, his joy increased as Jesus’ ministry increased. His spiritual joy increased as his own worldly fame and ministry decreased. The more his ministry magnified Jesus, the more joy he was going to have. This is because his identity and happiness was not determined by his own fame and success, but was indivisibly indissolubly bound to Jesus.

In order to give this truth life, John uses the picture of the bride and his bridegroom. The bridegroom was coming – and what could be better for the bride!

I am reminded of Charles Wesley’s famous hymn ‘Come Thou Long Expected Jesus’ because it echoes John’s heart. There is a line in that hymn which calls Jesus the “Dear Desire of every nation” and the “Joy of every longing heart.” That’s what He was for John.

Christian, it is God who who kindles these desires and thoughts of the heart within us. It is a desire inhering within all who have been born of the Spirit and joined to the body of Christ.

Paul expresses it this way:

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:1-4)

Therefore our joy is realized now by nature of the hope we have for the future.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. (Romans 8:14-18)

Therefore it is the Spirit living in us who testifies to us that we are 1. United to Christ and 2. Have a great hope for the future as heirs of the kingdom of God. And this is what brings us great joy!

Christ Himself understood this joy – that is why He was able to endure the cross and the shame. As Hebrews 12:2 says, “…who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame…”

Making Christ Central – He is Supremely Valuable

So how do we find real joy – and I mean real happy, thrilled, hair-raising all-satisfying joy – in Christ the way that John is describing here? I would argue that in order for us to find real joy, life-transforming joy in Christ, we must learn to value Christ above all other things. John understood the real value of Christ, and so he eagerly looked for Him and was thrilled that he could “decrease.”

The thinking goes something like this according to Christ, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” (Matthew 13:44).

For John, everything he had, his entire life was wrapped up in this ministry and now it was leaving him, and what was his response? He was thrilled! Why? Because he had already sold everything, he didn’t want or need followers, he wanted and needed Christ. Christ was the object of supreme value to him. He had found his treasure.[ii]

The Preeminence of Jesus

In light of the Baptist’s statement, we are right to examine what the apostle says about this man he wants to see “increase.” There’s a reason these verses immediately follow the Baptist’s statement.

The Apostle wants us to know that what flowed from John’s mouth was a result of his evaluation of Jesus – his soul comprehended that this teacher was no mere man – He was the supreme ruler of the universe.

John’s words were regulated by his soul’s comprehension of the majesty and authority of Jesus.

We must not miss this. Jesus is the one and only absolute authority in heaven and on earth. His ministry is one of singular supremacy – He reigns over all.

If you are a sinner, lost without Christ, this is a terrifying truth. If you are a Christian, held closely to the bosom of Christ, this is a magnificent truth, it is a beautiful truth – for He is your sovereign. Indeed He is sovereign over all even if those who don’t recognize His reign.

As Abraham Kuyper once famously said, “Oh, no single piece of our mental world is to be hermetically sealed off from the rest, and there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’”

Here are 5 ways in which John comprehended the supremacy of Christ…

3:31 He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all.

First: Christ had a Heavenly Origin[iii]

His claim to be divine is at the core of His supremacy. Jesus’ words have a force behind them that ordinary men’s words do not have.

Saying Jesus is “from heaven” and contrasting his origin with those who are from the earth is simply another way of proclaiming His deity. This man is – by His nature – is above all.

This really gets at the nucleus of our religion and why we worship, praise, and trust Jesus. We believe that Jesus was not a normal man.[iv] John’s disciples had not yet come to this realization. John is not simply commending them to a better teacher, he’s not just being humble, he’s saying that he MUST decrease – what else can one do before the King of kings?

3:32 He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony.

Second: Christ Knew the Truth First Hand

Being divine, and having come from heaven, He would have heard the Father’s words first hand. Being both God and man, He understood the will of God for mankind perfectly. He was able to testify to God’s words with perfect accuracy because He was in the presence of God, but also because He was/is God!

Imaging Christ “hearing” testimony of the Father in the midst of a holy Trinitarian conversation in heaven is hard to picture mentally. Our finite minds cannot exactly know how they communicate with one another. These are the kinds of things that men cannot know; they are mysteries far too deep for us to plum.

But being the great Teacher/Rabbi, Jesus spoke in ways that we can comprehend the major concept up to a point where our mental acuity runs out of road.

It was not because of the depth of the truths that men did not receive His testimony, however. Despite His gracious condescension and amazing communication ability, many still did not accept what He had to say and this was because of their sin:

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. (John 3:19)

3:33 Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true.

Third: Christ’s Testimony Always Agreed with God

What John is saying here is that once we agree (“set our seal to” the fact) that God is the very essence of truth, we necessarily have a basis for putting our trust in the testimony of His Son.

If we agree that God is the very embodiment and essence of truth, and we believe that Jesus is His Son, then we should believe everything Jesus says.

In His High Priestly Prayer, Jesus says…

And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. (John 17:3)

The inverse reality is that if you do not receive the testimony of Jesus, you are by implication calling God a liar:

Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. (1 John 5:10)

Therefore you either believe His message, or you believe He is a liar. There is no middle ground.

3:34 For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure.

Fourth: Christ Experienced the Power of the Holy Spirit Without Limit

As James Boice points out, some have erroneously thought this passage means that God gives the Spirit to believers without measure, but that is obviously not the case as our own experience bears witness. A few quick reasons of explanation should suffice:

  • It is also preposterous to think that mere humans without the nature of divinity (as Christ had) could possible contain the fullness of the Spirit.
  • If we did have the Spirit without limit, we would see miracle after miracle.
  • Lastly, it’s our experience that in our sinfulness we often live lives not characterized as Spirit-filled. We do not tap into the power of the Spirit nearly as much as one would expect who had the full and unlimited power of the Spirit “without measure.”

This is therefore referring to our Lord, who was divine and given an unlimited power of the Spirit during His time on earth.

John is specifically relating the “words” of Jesus to His having the Spirit without measure. Not only is this the divine God-man, He is full of the Holy Spirit – to such a degree that every word He spoke was not only verifiable in their veracity, but because they passed over His lips were actually the very definition of truth. His words were true, had the power to heal bodies, cast out demons, calm storms, create food ex-nihilo, and forgive the sins of man.

In the greatly “increasing” ministry of Christ, every word spoken was drenched in the righteous truth of the Spirit.

3:35-36 The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. [36] Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

Fifth: Christ received all Authority from the Father

If Jesus is divine, as we have reasoned from above, then it means that everything He has to say is something we need to be paying attention to. He has all authority.

By way of analogy, when I was a child I think its safe to say that I tested the bounds of authority! One way in which I did this was that from time to time I would ask my one parent for permission to do something, and if they said “no”, I would promptly go and ask the other parent for permission in the hopes of winning the old “divide and conquer” game!

Now, unfortunately what normally happened was that when the parents conferenced with each other my plot would be discovered, and I would be punished. My parents formed a united front. Anything my mom said my dad agreed upon and vise versa. They had the same mind, and there was no disunity between them. I came to learn this quickly!

So it is with the authority of Christ – and so it ought to be with us by way of extension. That is to say that because we are co-regents with Christ, have the mind of Christ, and have the Spirit of Christ, we act on authority not intrinsically inhering within our natural state. Rather our authority is from Jesus. We preach, teach, serve, and love others by the authority and power of Jesus.

John Piper says, “These are breathtaking words. God sent Jesus. Jesus speaks the very words of God. God gives him the Spirit immeasurably—and always has. The Father loves him. The Father has given all things into his hand. So Jesus is the God-sent, God-loved, God-speaking, Spirit-permeated, all-authoritative ruler of all things.”

Finally, in verse 36 we’re informed of the stakes – and they are high…John tells us that whoever believes these things about Christ will reap eternal life.

The word “remains” indicates that the de-facto state of affairs for humanity is to be under the sentence of God’s wrath. Only until that wrath is mediated are we safe.

Do not make the mistake of elevating any other man or ministry above the supreme Son of God. You have no other means by which you can pacify God’s wrath. John is saying that the Son has such authority that only belief in Him and His word will save you from everlasting condemnation.

In Conclusion

You may have heard military leaders talk about “proportional response” – it is a phrase that carries a somewhat subjective sense of justice, but the idea is that when attacked or provoked by an enemy, the response ought to be “proportional” to that attack. That is the moral guidance Generals in the Army or Air Force use with political leader to make judgments about the appropriateness of their counterattacks during a war.

However, human relationships with God are marked by disproportionality. God has lavished upon us what we cannot – even if we wished – repay with good behavior.

The most appropriate response in light of His work in our lives is to decrease. For John, the greater the fame of Jesus, the greater his own joy. John’s example is that of a man whose identity in life is intrinsically tied to the greatness of Jesus.

What is Jesus’ by right is John’s (and ours) by association.

John shows us how foolish it is to compare oneself or hold one’s self up in competition to Jesus. This man is above all! And to drive home the point, he gives us little glimpses into who this Bridegroom is.

  1. If you object, then understand this – this Jesus is the One who holds all things in his hand. This isn’t another teacher. This is the one who holds eternal a life in his hands (vs 36). Bristling under the weighty thought of surrender to His Lordship invites a realization of wrath. Rejecting Jesus is rejecting life; embracing Jesus is to invite eternal life and joy. There are no other scenarios in which joy can be truly realized.
  2. If you are a Christian, that means you are part of “the bride of Christ.” The bride’s joy is unalterably connected with the bridegroom, who is Christ. The more we diminish as we magnify His name, the more joy and satisfaction we will have.

I believe we can find true joy in life now and in the hereafter as we decrease, and He increases. We have a supreme Lord who is worthy of our obedient devotion. He is preeminent in ALL things. He is the creator of all things. He is the sustainer of all things, and He chooses whom He will save by His own power, for His own pleasure, and unto His own glory.

Praise God that we are united to such a benevolent Bridegroom!

Let us close in a prayer of adoration for who He is…

Endnotes

[i] Piper says that there are parallels between this and what John writes in Rev. 21:9 which says in the latter part of the verse (an angel speaking to John), “‘Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.’” The church will experience the purification work of the perfect Lamb. Piper also cites Ephesians 5:25-27 which says, “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.”

[ii] There are some really practical applications here. You may have found Jesus but may not be recognizing the fact that He is the only thing that truly valuable to you. Oh sure, intellectually you understand that because it’s in the Bible that Jesus is good, and because He saved you and you’re a Christian and so on. But is your life designed and structured around the fact that Jesus is THE most valuable thing in your life. Have you sold off everything that gets between you and Christ? Have do done everything to grasp that pearl of great price? Or are you still reaching for the world’s brass ring? When we internalize this truth and apply His supreme value to every aspect of our lives, we realize very quickly that we are idolatrous people. We have lost our first love (Rev. 2:4).

Christ’s value in our lives is brought home to us by the remembrance of His suffering and of His victory over the grave. I hope that we let these truths change us so that when we encounter people fleeing us, and life’s pleasantries falling away, we can still say with John, “this joy of mine is now complete!”

[iii] It was John MacArthur’s own notes that convinced me that these final verses in chapter three scream loudly of the preeminence of Christ. Therefore I used Dr. MacArthur’s subheadings with my own exposition under each one.

[iv] Only an “ego-maniac” would make the claims Jesus did. And surely He would be, if He did not have the right to claim the things He did about Himself. This is something that every non-believer must be confronted with, and it’s the same question that Jesus put to Peter “who do you say I am?” Your response to that question will reveal whether or not you will spend eternal life with Christ or not. Similar claims led C.S. Lewis to famously say:

A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic–on the level with a man who says he is a poached egg–or he would be the devil of hell. You must take your choice. Either this was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us.”[iv]

Weekend Reading: September 26, 2014

~ pjwenzel ~ Leave a comment

What a week!  Lot’s going on in our world and nation. Maybe you’ve been so busy with family and/or work that the last thing on your mind has been to read an encouraging blog or Scripture or check in with the news. Never fear! We’ve got it all compiled for you! Now that your weekend is only hours away, take a few minutes, get updated and encouraged! My favorite stories, videos, blog posts and more from this week are listed below…enjoy!

Before you read anything, check out Steve Lawson’s blog this week titled ‘The Power to Persevere.’  Flag it, read it, share it with someone else, and carry on!

The top news stories this week involved the air strikes carried out by our military in Syria against ISIS. They used Tomahawk missiles and other powerful weaponry – you can see actual footage (very cool stuff) HERE.  They hit oil installations and targeted key oil production sites. In response ISIS leaders retorted that ‘You are not safe in your bedrooms’…big talk for people getting bombed into oblivion. I find that in such a situation its fun to ask: what would John Wayne say? 

And over at the “Justice” Department Eric Holder is out.  Good Riddance!  Holder is still being held in Contempt of Congress, and that’s not going away as quickly as he is...

Speaking of going away, where in the world is Kim Jong Un (not that you care)??

An eerie piece from Roger Cohen – is he describing the years pre-WWII or our current state of play? You decide…(h/t Lisa Wenzel)

Now, for some less serious stuff…

Speaking of cool videos, check out this amazing shredding machine…it devours household appliances like they were shelled peanuts at Five Guys! (h/t Marc Wilson for posting this to Facebook!)

Have you seen this website that is dedicated to democratically defining (via reader votes) “irony”?  Pretty funny stuff here. (h/t Ben Frank)

Are you a golf fanatic? Then go here to stream the Ryder Cup! 

Also, do you ever get that “Phantom Vibration” from your cell phone?  Don’t lie – you know you do!  Well Wired Mag had a neat little piece on it this week. 

And – this is almost as random – BJ Novak has a new children’s book out. Yes, BJ Novak from The Office!  I’m not endorsing this, but it is rather amusing. (h/t my Katie)

What else is going on? 

Well…How are you enjoying your iPhone 6?  What? You don’t have one yet? Why not get the new Blackberry (pause for momentary snickering). Done laughing? Okay – now watch this little video about the decline of Blackberry.

Now, to snap you out of your Blackberry depression, check out this youtube video of the Apollo 13 Soundtrack titled ‘Lift Off’.  I was led to this old score during the week because a large church in Houston used it during their 9/11 service as the opening music (Thanks Tracy Lear for sending!).

More on technology – a week or two ago Tim Challies linked to this awesome blog by an expert in the watchmaking field. He details the good and the bad about the new Apple Watch. Just hearing what he’s looking at and how he approaches the topic is fascinating.

Oh – also – good news!  Gas prices are going down…

I’m sure you’ve heard this already, but the President sustained some criticism regarding his namby-pamby salute to the marine guiding Marine One. In fact, the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) even created a landing page chronicling the disaster called “Semper Latte”. 

ALSO – There were a handful of really encouraging posts in the Christian blogosphere this week, and one of the most encouraging to me was on ‘Irritability’ by Jon Bloom.  Bloom is quickly becoming one of my favorite bloggers.

Also over on Desiring God’s site is a post from Ryan Shelton which asks if we’re spiritual “leeches”…good gut check here. 

This week John Piper launched ‘Look at the Book’ which is a really cool new endeavor to give Christians a fishing pole rather than just a fish…see what I mean HERE. 

Also, I posted some notes on Luke 6, and the Beatitudes titled ‘Reorient Your Perspective’

Separately, there’s a fascinating look at how American book publishers gave away millions of books during WWII and in doing so created a nation of readers…

Speaking of reading, ChristianAudio.com has a free download – and its a good one! 

And as the culture continues to embrace homosexuality, churches are finding there is no neutral ground.  Al Mohler keeps us up to date on recent developments, and reminds us that there’s no ‘Third Way’…

Tim Keller, so helpful on writing on issues of work and faith, has a new book out on the subject and has published an article excerpt that’s worth checking out. 

For you dorks out there (like me), check out this 3/4 scale model of an X-Wing Starfighter…this thing actually exists – in Colorado, where aiming high has many connotations (h/t Alex Wenzel who visited the blessed model in person last night).

Lastly, for you baseball fans, I thought USA Today did a nice job covering Derek Jeter’s final game. Sounds like it was one for the ages!

So that’s what’s going on – hope you picked up a few interesting stories and enjoyed the links. Now go out there and conquer the yard work!  Have a great weekend!

Reorient Your Perspective

~ pjwenzel ~ 2 Comments

Last night I had the opportunity to teach through a small section of Luke 6, and several themes were covered.  One of the most challenging things we read was how Jesus prayed all night long before picking his apostles.

How much prayer time do we devote before a big decision?

The second major theme we encountered came in Jesus’ teaching of what is commonly referred to as ‘The Beatitudes’. What seemed to come out of the text more than anything else in our discussion last night was how Jesus wants us to reorient our desires around those things which are not seen – heavenly things.

I hope you enjoy the notes!

6:12-16 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. [13] And when day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles: [14] Simon, whom he named Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew, [15] and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot, [16] and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

Here we have an account of how Jesus selected His disciples. The one shining principle that we ought to note, and to adopt with great zeal is the manner in which Jesus made decisions.

What was the first thing Jesus did before choosing His disciples? He prayed. And not just a little, but all night long He prayed. He did this in three parts:

  1. He selected the place – a mountain where He would feel comfortable and His thoughts would be undisturbed. It might be reading too much in to this to say that He wanted to be in a place of height, near to God, or that He wanted to be in a place where great imaginative scope would be available to Him. While this might be going too far in terms of reading into His motives, I do not think its going too far in suggesting we ought to think about where we go away to pray (strategically).
  2. He prayed alone – this flows from the first point, because it is likely that He picked this place for its solitude. He didn’t want to be distracted, or interrupted. His goal was to be alone with God, not to show off His holiness before other men, as the Pharisees often did.
  3. He prayed all night – this was no mere 10-minute prayer. We have difficulties even praying for 1 hour, much less all night long!

There is much to learn from this example. If we are to do real battle, and make real big decisions, we ought to spend great amounts of time in prayer. Our forefathers followed this example. Before coming ashore to the New World, the pilgrims spent a day in prayer aboard the Mayflower. Shore was within reach, and they had been at sea for weeks and weeks, yet they were intent on stopping, and spending a whole day in prayer in preparation for the great work in front of them.

Lastly, often we think of time set aside to pray as time we cannot afford. For example, we would never take a vacation day from work simply to pray, would we? Perhaps we ought to value prayer more highly than we do today, and stop wondering why we fail to gain guidance from the Lord on important matters.

6:17-19 And he came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, [18] who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. And those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. [19] And all the crowd sought to touch him, for power came out from him and healed them all.

So Luke sets the scene here. There’s a “great crowd” a “great multitude” and people from all over the place – Judea, Jerusalem, Tyre, and Sidon to name a few. In other words, there’s a TON of people around. Jesus is being thronged by people from all over the place.

He’s selected His disciples, and right away its mission critical.

More than simply an oddity, or a curiosity, many people were coming to him in hopes of finding any way possible they could be healed of their diseases.

When you consider this, and put yourself in their place, I think you begin to realize the desperation they might feel. Think of how enraged 75% of Americans were when they learned that President Obama had (essentially) lied about whether Americans could keep their healthcare plan or their doctor if they preferred that option under Obamacare. What was it that was fueling such rage? Of course liberals claim its racial, but I don’t buy that for a moment – I don’t even buy that it’s a partisan issue.

No, what was at stake in this situation was deeply personal, and touched on the most sensitive of emotions – the ability to be treated for a health problem. This (rightfully) spawns desperation in a remarkably quick fashion.

Put yourself in their shoes. You have a child with an incurable disease. Your wife is sick. You are a leper and are made to sit outside the city walls, left longing to see your family and in complete agony. You hear a whiff of a rumor, something spoken of by passing men at the city gates, that a man named Jesus is healing many, many people.

The only question left to ask is this: What do you have to lose? The question answers itself, does it not? If I were there, at that time, and I heard of what Jesus was doing, I would walk anywhere, do anything, and go to great lengths to meet this man Jesus. Nothing is stopping me. Nothing.

Now imagine you finally arrive at this location. You get to where Jesus is, and this is the scene: Hundreds upon hundreds are thronging at his feet…there’s no way to even see this man! You hear the moans and all the cries “Jesus! Over here!” This isn’t a doctor’s waiting room, after all. There’s no line. It’s just a stadium full of people wanting to see Him, lifting up their voices to try desperately to get His attention.

You begin to wonder how this is going to work. What will He do? You notice there are some really unsavory people up near Him. They look like their out of their minds – they must be demon possessed! There’s no way anyone would act like this if they weren’t deeply troubled.

And the most astounding thing begins to happen…the moaning turns to another sound. It’s similar to the sound you’ve heard at the gates of the great city of Jerusalem when a foreign king enters in his splendor. A sort of exclamatory “awe” is beginning to ripple back to your vantage point. It’s just then that you begin to get a glimpse of those same people who were writhing in pain and acting in very disturbing ways, are now jumping up in down with tears of joy in their eyes.

There’s a noticeable change in the mood of the entire crowd, as if working its way out from Jesus joy is spreading like a great tidal wave whose momentum shows no signs of stopping.

This is likely the scene. And it is upon the waves of this healing work that Jesus signals to the crowd listen to what He’s about to say…

6:20-23 And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said:

“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. [21]“Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied. “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. [22] “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! [23] Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.

Jesus speaks some of the beatitudes that we find in Matthew 5.

He says it is blessed to be poor, to be hungry, to weep, and to be hated on account of Him. In fact, He says that because of these things our reward will be great in heaven.

But He doesn’t stop there. He continues, and gives the inverse. We must take these verses together before we unpack them.

6:24-26 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. [25] “Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry. “Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. [26] “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.

Jesus says it is woeful to be rich, full, to laugh, and to be spoken well of by others – all the inverse of what He said was a blessing.

How do we read these things? Even a cursory reading of the NT would rule out taking them strictly literally. For instance, Paul tells us in Philippians 4 that he knows “how to abound and how to be brought low” – basically saying there’s spiritual difference between the two. Each has its own challenges; neither is intrinsically evil or good.

But we also dare not be overly flowery in our interpretation. We can’t miss what Jesus is saying. In a very real way humans are tempted to be content in their riches, their fullness, their mirth, and the shallow praise of men.

The reality is that 99% of all human beings experience being poor, hungry, and having little joy or comfort in the praise of other men. And for those people, and for all people in every century, there is a cost associated to following Christ.

Putting it All Together…

Taken together, we must remember the context. Jesus has just healed hundreds (more?) of these people. Now he is pointing to their condition in life and instead of saying, “I’m going to give you riches, and food, and everything you ever wanted”, He’s saying, in effect, “True joy doesn’t come from riches, food, or the praises of other men.”

Let us conclude with two points:

  1. Note that He isn’t telling us not to have desires for great things, but rather to reorient our desires to even greater things! This is about reaching for what will really satisfy us as opposed to what is not nearly as good.

Listen to what C.S. Lewis said in his famous sermon ‘The Weight of Glory’:

The New Testament has lots to say about self-denial, but not about self-denial as an end in itself. We are told to deny ourselves and to take up our crosses in order that we may follow Christ; and nearly every description of what we shall ultimately find if we do so contains an appeal to desire. If there lurks in most modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it is a bad thing, I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.

Therefore – THEREFORE – let us rejoice in God who is our provision and to join our hearts to that instruction of our Lord to “leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven.”

  1. Let us look to what is unseen, though just as tangible. This is what Paul articulated to the Corinthians when he said the following:

Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, [14] knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. [15] For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. [16] So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. [17] For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, [18] as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:13-18)

Dear Christian – tonight we have afflictions that have weighed us down, but let us join with Paul and agree in the Spirit: “Do not lose heart”! Look to what is unseen, and prepare your mind and your heart for the riches that are eternal – that are yours now, in fact!

So let us reorient our minds around these truths. Let those realities govern your mind. Let those realities saturate your heart. Let those truths spill out onto your tongue and bless the lives of those around you.

Renewing the Old Toyota

~ pjwenzel ~ 1 Comment
1986-toyota-mr2
1986 Toyota MR2 from Motortrend Magazine

As I drove my brother and his wife and daughter to the airport yesterday it was hard to say goodbye.  My daughter Chloe came with me, and there was definitely a sense of loss as all the family we had in town for the weekend left around 4:30pm yesterday for their own homes and the routines of their lives.

As we drove back home from the airport I found myself very thoughtful, and grateful for a wonderful weekend. But I realized that it’s a cruel fate of this life that family should live so far away. We move away for work, or seeking a dream, or any number of reasons – many are highly necessary in order to live productively in this world.

When I think in my mind about scenarios that would allow me to live in the same 60-100 mile radius as my family (my brother is in Denver, my sister in Cleveland, my parents in Toledo, my grandparents in Portland) I can find none.

My family loves where they live – and I love where I live.  We all have lives that are built geographically around our homes.  We have different churches, different grocery stores, our friends are here, and those little dives that we dine at on Friday nights.

So there’s really no solution…in this life.

Driving home last night my eyes wandered onto an old Toyota – an MR2 – which was running parallel with us on 270 West. Admiringly I stared at the perfectly refurbished 1980’s classic, and I thought about how much time and effort it would have taken to have that car in such immaculate shape.

My mind then wandered to our Creator, and how He’s working in each one of His children to remake them after His own image (2 Cor. 3:18 was a topic of discussion at a family dinner on Saturday night).

The Bible promises that when Christ comes back He will renew the earth and the heavens (Rev. 21:1) – just like this man renewed this old Toyota.

That’s when it hit me – in the next life, when all is renewed and set right I will have family and fellow believers to fellowship with for eternity. I have no idea how distance will be traversed in the next life, and that’s not what I’m speculating about.  Rather, one of the feelings within my soul yesterday was that it isn’t a necessary eternal de facto state of being for family to be separated by vast distances for reasons that are so intrinsically tied to this earthly – temporary – life.

In other words, that Toyota minded me that the current state of play on the earth won’t always stand. I will have an eternity to fellowship with family and friends separated now by distance, or death, or other forces of this life which will not be associated with the next. And this is a comforting thought to dwell on the day after such a great time of fellowship ended.

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. (Philippians 3:20-21 ESV)