Paul's boasting before the judgment seat of Christ

Paul tells asks the Thessalonians "what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you?" (1 Thessalonians 2:19).

Similarly he finds the Philippians his "joy and crown" too (Philippians 4:1). But on Judgement Day Paul will even boast about the Corinthian church (2 Corinthians 1:14), for all their problems.

When he says that "we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil" (2 Corinthians 5:10), I think the context demands we see "what he has done" as primarily the results of his missionary work. If that is the case it is striking how 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 parallels Philippians 3:20-4:1. In both Paul looks forward to Christ's second coming, bemoans his current mortal body, but anticipates receiving a new resurrection body, and finally looks forward to boasting in the churches he has planted.

The Great Commission of Cyrus

The last verse of the Hebrew Bible is remarkably similar to the end of the Gospel of Matthew:

"Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, 'The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may the LORD his God be with him. Let him go up'" (2 Chronicles 36:23)

"Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'" (Matthew 28-18-20)

Both explain that they have been given kingly authority (by God) over the whole earth. Both commission a group of people to leave their homes to build a temple; in one case the Second Jerusalem Temple, in the other the temple of the church. Both promise that God will go with them; the Jews by "the LORD", the Apostles by Jesus.

(Once again, credit to Greg Beale.)

Jesus as the Second Adam in Colossians 1

In Colossians 1 Jesus is "the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation...the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead" (vv.15-18).

He images God, just as Adam did. He is the firstborn of creation, like Adam was. He is the head of a family, just as Adam was. His family will multiply and increase to cover the whole earth too, and according to verses 4-5 this happens as the gospel spreads over the whole earth and the church grows in numbers, good works and knowledge ( "the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing", cf. v.10).

Lines could be drawn to Acts 6:7; 12:23; 19:20 where the word of God increases, Romans 6, the Great Commission, and all the 'new Adam' figures in the OT who also receive their own mandate/promise of increase (i.e. Noah, Abraham, etc - Gen 9:1, 6-7; 12:2; 17:2,6,8; 22:17-18; 26:34,24; 28:3-4; 35:11-12; 47:27; Ex 1:7; Lev 26:9; Ps 107:38; Is 51:2; Jer 3:16; 23:3; Ezek 36:10-11, 29-30)... anything else?

All credit to Greg Beale.

Happy Easter!

It's Sunday today!

The first Christians neither lived nor thought in terms of a [church] year; they lived in terms of a week and they thought of the work of redemption in terms of a week. In this way concentration on the cross and the resurrection was even more marked than it has ever since succeeded in being. Where the Early Church made a new beginning from the point of view of the calendar was the keeping of Sunday, the first day of the week, the day following the Sabbath. Sunday was a day of gladness, because Christ rose at dawn on that day, the first working day of the Jewish week (Mark 16.1 f.). Every week the earliest Christian congregations met for an Easter festival. Continually, with the interval of only a few days, Easter returned anew

[...but,] in the faith of the Early Church the resurrection is linked with the cross and with death. Therefore the suffering of Christ was given a place in the weekday and the Christian community early in its history came to regard Wednesday and Friday as two 'station days' in his suffering. Wednesday was the day of the betrayal, Friday the day of the death. Accordingly, the Didache and Hermas (beginning of the second century) speak of the keeping of these two days. In this way the whole week is devoted to Christ's death and resurrection. Station days are the feast of the cross, Sunday is the feast of the resurrection. On station days the rule was to bow down and bend the knee, on Sunday to stand up and look towards heaven, in free and erect position, singing praise.

pp. 192-193, The Living Word, Gustaf Wingren)

If weekdays are work in the world for most Christians, and Sunday is when we gather together and rest, then that I think that says something about the posture we ought to have as we engage with the world and do our work - i.e. it should be self-sacrificial.

Some theological stuff I've recently found on the net

Audio/video

• A series of short youtube videos by St John's Nottingham. Little introductions to theologians, subjects in Biblical Studies etc. I enjoyed those on Pannenberg and von Balthasar as I didn't know anything about them. (HT Glen.)
• Also involving Tom Wright was the 19th Annual Wheaton Theology Conference devoted to discussing his work. Some excellent lectures (MP3/video). I thought Richard Hays was the highlight. It was my first big engagement with Wright for a while. Frankly I had forgotten how sharp and articulate he is. He is always encouraging you to rethink everything. I came away with respect renewed.
• Lectures and sermons delivered at Moore College, Sydney. Includes Wright again. Also Helmut Thielicke, Henri Blocher, FF Bruce, PT O'Brien and Barry Webb. (HT Chris.)
• Edmund Clowney lectures and sermons.
• Francis Schaeffer lectures and sermons.

Articles

• Archives of the mainline Lutheran journal Word & World. Includes articles by Walter Brueggemann, Gerhard Forde, Terence Fretheim, David Lose, Wolfhart Pannenberg, Gordon Wenham and others. I've only read the ones by David Lotz and Gustaf Wingren.
• Archives from Bulletin for Biblical Research.
• Archives of the Tyndale Bulletin.

I increasingly love books. Articles and MP3s are great - but they are only ever tasters. But as I only stumbled across these recently I thought other's may be interested.

True sovereignty

God is man's rightful Lord, Satan a false lord, a usurper, a thief, a robber. This distinction between God and the Devil, their contrasted claim on man, is not something which should be added to the contrast between life and death to complete that contrast, for Satan's subordination to God and his helplessness before God are implied in that very contrast itself. When it is said that God is life, it is implied that man becomes man by receiving from God; and when Satan is said to be death, it is implied that man loses his humanity when under the legitimacy of God's claim, and of Satan's, on man is a question that provides its own answer, as is always the case when true sovereignty emerges: the dispute is not settled in favour of the rightful claimant, instead it is clear that the rightful claimant never disputes with the underling but allows him to be just who he is, and thus proceeds with his work using the subordinate usurper as his tool without taking away his evil. So shall it be at the last day when the faithful of the Lord shall attain to fulness of vision and shall see that the death, discipline and evil under which they suffered on earth, ad in which Satan always works, but brought them nearer to life and destroyed the hold that sin, their enemy, had on their inmost being. The enemy executes that which God has determined shall be.

(pp. 93-94, The Living Word, Gustaf Wingren)

Christianity Explored Week 4 Bible Study

I've rather foolishly re-written the week 4 bible study for Christianity Explored. As I was studying the passage I became convinced that it, and the whole of Mark was more eschatological than the questions were giving credit for. I also had a nagging doubt about the significance of the healing of a blind man at Bethsaida.

I also felt that I needed to re-jig certain things for this particular group. I'm not sure I've fully succeeded but here are my questions.

Link to PDF file

Multiplying grain

"the Gospel miracles are ... acted parables of the kingdom." (FF Bruce)

The Parable of the Sower (Mark 4) describes grain multiplying many times over. It is followed by Jesus asking the disciples "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?"

The Feeding of the Five Thousand (Mark 6) describes grain multiplying many times over. It is followed by an explanation that the disciple "did not understand [the acted parable] about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened".

The Feeding of the Four Thousand (Mark 8) describes grain multiplying many times over. It is followed by Jesus asking the disciples "Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?".

Any thoughts?

Directions how to hear sermons (by Charles Simeon)

'Take heed therefore how ye hear' (Luke 8:18)

The office of a Christian minister is arduous. He is to explain and enforce every part of man's duty: he is to search out and censure every sin. After all his labours he will see but little fruit. However faithfully he preach, there are but few who will hear aright. This our Lord had just declared in the parable of the sower. He then enforced His declaration with this most important caution.

1. THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR LORD'S CAUTION

Our Lord elsewhere cautions His people to take heed what they hear; nor can any thing be more necessary than to be on our guard against error. But the caution how we hear was also necessary for the following reasons.

1. Because many hear in an unbecoming manner.

a. The generality are careless hearers. They attend God's house merely in conformity with the customs of the country. They suffer their thoughts to rove after earthly and carnal things. They discern very little difference in the doctrines which they hear. They, like Gallio, seem to 'care for none of these things'.

b. Many are critical hearers. They can attend to nothing which is not composed with elegance; or they affect only what accords with their own views of religion. They judge of all they hear by a standard of their own. Hence they form parties, and set up one minister against another (cf. 1 Cor 3:3,4)

c. Many also are captious hearers. They will not hear any thing which militates against their prejudices . They cannot bear to have their favourite habits condemned. They are offended if their bosom lusts be faithfully reproved. They too much resemble the scribes and Pharisees of old. (See Luke 11:45; Mark 6:17,18; Luke 11:54.) While there continue such hearers, the caution will be necessary.

2. Because God Himself speaks to us by the preacher.

Ministers are ambassadors for God, and speak in Christ's stead. If they preach what is founded on the Scriptures, their word, as far as it is agreeable to the mind of God, is to be considered as God's. This is asserted by our Lord and His apostles. We ought therefore to receive the preacher's word as the word of God Himself. With what humility then ought we to attend to it! What judgments may we not expect, if we slight it. Surely therefore on this account also we need the caution in the text. (See 2 Cor 5:20; John 13:20; 1 Thes 4:8, 2:13.)

3. Because every discourse increases either our salvation or condemnation.

The word delivered is either a savour of life or of death. Our Lord Himself intimates this reason for the caution in the verse from which our text is taken. Hence our Lord's preaching eventually enhanced the guilt of the Jews. The same awful effects will be felt by those who slight His ministers. What stronger reasons for such a caution can possibly be imagined? (See 2 Cor 2:15,16; John 15:22.)

II. OBEYING OUR LORD'S CAUTION

An humble mind will naturally receive instruction in a proper manner.

1. We should hear with candour.

We cannot too carefully divest ourselves of prejudices. We should not call any man 'master' upon earth. We should rather weigh what we hear, in the balance of the sanctuary; but we ought to have our minds open to conviction. We should receive the seed in 'an honest and good heart': we should 'receive with meekness the engrafted word': nor can we hope to profit, if we do not cultivate this disposition. (See Matt 23:10; 1 Thes 5:21; Luke 8:15; James 1:21.)

2. We should hear with a desire to profit.

The Word of God is profitable for many blessed purposes; yet it cannot be serviceable to us if it be not received in faith. But, when applied to the soul, its operation is very powerful. We should therefore at all times apply it to ourselves. We should go to the ordinances, as the sick to Bethesda's pool. Nor do we ever hear aright except when we attend in this spirit. It is the practical hearer only that derives benefit to his soul. (See 2 Tim 3:16,17; Heb 4:2,12; 1 Pet 2:2; James 1:22-25.)

3. We should hear with humble dependence on God's Spirit.

It is God alone who 'teacheth us to profit'. Human labours, without His blessing will be in vain. It is His work to open the understanding and the heart. To Him therefore should we look for the teaching of His Spirit. We should plead the promise which God has given us. In this way we shall experience much benefit from the Word. No obstacles whatever shall be able to withstand its power:L it shall be a rich source of grace and wisdom to us. (See Luke 24:45; Acts 16:14; Is 55:10,11; 2 Cor 10:4; Col 3:16.)

Let us then offer in sincerity that petition in the Litany. 'That it may please thee to give to all thy people increase of grace, to hear meekly thy Word, and to receive it with pure affection, and to bring forth the fruits of the Spirit.'

[From Let Wisdom Judge: University Addresses and Sermon Outlines by Charles Simeon (Inter-Varsity Fellowship, 1959, pp. 188-190).

My feelings about this sermon outline are quite mixed. I was prompted to read it today after I found it referenced in Christopher Ash's little booklet Listen Up! A practical guide to listening to sermons. I think Ash has drawn a lot from Simeon, and I respect them both a great deal. I hope to explain later why I'm quite torn about the advice of Ash and Simeon... perhaps you can guess why... It may be another 2 weeks though. I'm revising at the moment.]

Reading too much?

It is far from my intention to depreciate the value or deny the usefulness of books, without exception: a few well-chosen treatises, carefully perused and thoroughly digested, will deserve and reward our pains; but a multiplicity of reading is seldom attended with a good effect.

Besides the confusion it often brings upon the judgment and memory, it occasions a vast expense of time, indisposes for close thinking, and keeps us poor, in the midst of seeming plenty, by reducing us to live upon a foreign supply, instead of labouring to improve and increase the stock of our own reflections.

- John Newton in his letter "A Plan of a Compendious Christian Library" (Works of John Newton, Volume 1, 236). Paragraphing added, HT DG.

I'm not sure if that is entirely true. But its worth reflecting on.

Bible study on Colossians 4:2-6

Sorry for the lack of posting recently.

For what it's worth here is a bible study I've written on the 5 verses of Colossians 4:2-6. I've tried to make a meal out of 82 words by bringing in the whole of chapter 1, and then through that bringing to mind all or Paul's ministry!

We'll see whether it works.

It took ages to write, mainly because it took me a while to figure out how to do the formatting in MS Word 2007.