Faculty Wise Words
-
I wrote the following last month for Biola University’s weekly newspaper The
Chimes. Perhaps it has something to say to readers of Scriptorium as well:
Any...
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Another Sudan Team from RdR
For any of you who want to keep up on what the latest team from Rancho del Rey is doing in Sudan, just click here: http://www.indeedandtruth.org/blog . Please remember to keep them in your prayers.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Calling All Readers
The picture on the side is of John Quincy Adam's library. I struggle to even gaze upon it without severely coveting. Books have always been very important in my life. I believe that reading is an important part of a Christian leader's responsibilities. Not just reading to keep up with the latest and the greatest, but reading for enlighenment and insight. For conversation with authors who have been dead for hundreds of years. Reading for reflection. I try to read both inside and outside my professional calling. But mostly my reading comes down to about four categories: history, biblical/theological works, spiritual works, and leadership issues. Here are thirty one books that have been very influential to me in my growth in the area of biblical/theological issues.
Evolution and Intelligent Design
1. Icons of Evolution By Jonathan Wells
2. He Who Thinks Has to Believe by A.E. Wilder Smith
3. Reason in the Balance by Phillip Johnson
4. Not a Chance by R.C. Sproul
Belief in God and Natural Law
5. Can Man Live Without God by Ravi Zacharias
6. Relativism by Francis Beckwith and Greg Koukl
7. The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis
8. Written on the Heart by J. Budziszewski
Reliability of the Scriptures
9. History and Christianity by John Montgomery
10. The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? By F.F. Bruce
11. Is the New Testament Reliable? By Paul Barnett
12. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels by Craig Blomberg
Biblical Interpretation
13. Reading the Bible with Heart and Mind by Tremper Longman
14. The Hermeneutical Spiral by Grant Osborne
The Life and Suffering of Jesus
15. The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel
16. The Historical Jesus by Gary Habermas
17. Jesus Under Fire edited by J.P. Moreland & Michael Wilkins
A Complete Apologetics Argument
18. The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel
19. Scaling the Secular City by J.P. Moreland
20. Reasonable Faith by William Lane Craig
Christian classics that must be read
21. Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton
21. Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton
22. The Confessions by St. Augustine
23. The Pensees by Blaise Pascal
24. The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis
Church History
25. Church History in Plain Language by Bruce Shelley
26. Turning Points by Mark Noll
27. Christianity’s Dangerous Idea by Alister McGrath
28. Heresies by Harold O.J. Brown
Spiritual Leadership
29. The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard
30. Jesus Driven Ministry by Ajith Fernando
31. Spiritual Leadership by Oswald Sanders
Monday, September 21, 2009
Does God Speak Today?
One of the questions I get asked from time to time is "Does God speak to us today?" There are two camps of people within evangelical circles in this debate. One group says yes and one group says no. There are very mature Christians who find themselves on opposite sides of this question. My own answer is an unhesitating YES.
We can all think of a preacher on TV or a wierdo that we know who claims God is speaking through them when it is obviously not the case. For the sake of the argument among sincere Christians, let's just throw that extreme example out for a moment and deal with the more subtle and delicate question of "Does God really speak to his people today apart from the Bible?"
The people that answer "no" to this question usually cite examples of people claiming that God spoke through them and it was wrong or it harmed someone's faith. That is a powerful experiential argument. If someone claims to speak for God and they are wrong, it gives God a black eye in the minds of the people around that person. But that is no reason to believe that God doesn’t speak at all anymore.
Think about this: God has always used two instruments in the life of his church: 1) The person of the Holy Spirit and 2) The Bible. Some people interpret the Bible wrong but does that mean we throw it out? No way. In the same way, some people interpret the Holy Spirit wrongly in what He is doing or saying, but that doesn’t mean that the Holy Spirit is not with us or speaking to us.
The person of the Holy Spirit and the living Word of the Bible work similarly in our lives as Christians. Neither of them have a 100%, always right interpeter for us to look to in order to solve every moral, ethical or doctrinal question. We can and do disagree about what the Bible says at times. We also can and do disagree about what the Holy Spirit can say to God's people. But the fact that there are abuses of these two instruments does not mean that we should close our ears to them and believe that they don't speak.
A scripture regarding this is John 14:6 “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.” If the Holy Spirit is inside of us, then he still speaks to us. If the Holy Spirit speaks to us, then God still speaks to us. It's not a good argument to claim that God has given us his Holy Spirit, but that God doesn't speak to us. The Holy Spirit is our comforter, advocate, helper, convictor, etc... Does it make sense that he does all this without saying anything to us?
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Adoption
The word "adopt" means: To take as one's own." Or, "to legally take as one's child."
In theological terms, there are many aspects to the great salvation God has given us. We have been (in no particular order) called, redeemed, regenerated, justified, sanctified, etc...Each of those terms carries a specific theological function that really is important in and of itself. the Scriptures speak with remarkable clarity regarding each of these processes. But the one I think of most is clearly adoption. We have been adopted into God's own family. Imagine that! We have been given a place at God's table when before, we were outcasts. And not just a place at the table, a certain and clear guarantee from the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13-14) that we are God's children and will be given the inheritance God has promised to lavish on his son Jesus Christ.
That's right, we are now considered God's own children. Of course, in many aspects, Jesus is unique and occupies an exalted and rightful position as the heir to the Father's glory by nature of the fact that he is the only begotten Son, the Word of God, uncreated and all powerful, second member of the Trinity. Yet, if you read Jesus' prayer for his followers in John 17 you begin to catch a glimpse of what a wonderful thing it is to be called a child of God. It literally blows my mind.
So, remember, if you have come to Jesus, you have become God's child. You have received a place at God's dinner table. You have entered into the family. You have come home. You have a new name. You have a new family. You have a new identity. You have become a new creation. The old things have passed away and all things have become new.
In theological terms, there are many aspects to the great salvation God has given us. We have been (in no particular order) called, redeemed, regenerated, justified, sanctified, etc...Each of those terms carries a specific theological function that really is important in and of itself. the Scriptures speak with remarkable clarity regarding each of these processes. But the one I think of most is clearly adoption. We have been adopted into God's own family. Imagine that! We have been given a place at God's table when before, we were outcasts. And not just a place at the table, a certain and clear guarantee from the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13-14) that we are God's children and will be given the inheritance God has promised to lavish on his son Jesus Christ.
That's right, we are now considered God's own children. Of course, in many aspects, Jesus is unique and occupies an exalted and rightful position as the heir to the Father's glory by nature of the fact that he is the only begotten Son, the Word of God, uncreated and all powerful, second member of the Trinity. Yet, if you read Jesus' prayer for his followers in John 17 you begin to catch a glimpse of what a wonderful thing it is to be called a child of God. It literally blows my mind.
So, remember, if you have come to Jesus, you have become God's child. You have received a place at God's dinner table. You have entered into the family. You have come home. You have a new name. You have a new family. You have a new identity. You have become a new creation. The old things have passed away and all things have become new.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Christian History - J.R.R. Tolkien
Professor and writer J.R.R. Tolkien (1892-1973) was part of a literary group called the Inklings that began meeting in 1933, which included other 20th century literary giants such as Charles Williams, C.S. Lewis, and at times, Dorothy Sayers. This group has arguably had a greater effect on modern literature than any other. Lewis authored the children’s books The Chronicles of Narnia, which have sold millions of copies worldwide and has been made into a series of movies. He is also the father of modern apologetics. People did apologetics before and after him, but with his Mere Christianity and other books, he put Christian apologetics on the map in the l
ast century.
Tolkien, who was a lecturer and professor of Old English and Literature at Oxford, is of course best remembered for his Lord of the Rings series, which came after his well received fairy tale, The Hobbit. The debt we owe to Tolkien can be seen in any local bookstore which has a section on fantasy literature. This is simply because of J.R.R. Tolkein. There would not be any such section of literature today if not for him. Unfortunately, many of the books in this genre are not nearly as imaginative, creative or thoughtful as was his Lord of the Rings (LOTR) series. But the thirst for fantasy literature that he created is alive and well today. In fact, Amazon readers voted his Lord of the Rings series the best books of the last century. This is a just distinction, because the LOTR series is not just a fantasy series. It is an epic tale. Some literary critics have suggested that it is the last epic story written. He weaves together a sense of history, poetry, fantasy, and human emotion to create one of the most dazzling stories ever told. And that, at the end of the day is what most people like best about Tolkien, he was telling a story and he never forgot that. In all his literary greatness, which some have compared to a modern Shakespeare, he never forgot to tell the story that he wanted to tell. Tolkien was a erudite scholar, who knew more about Norse mythology than almost anyone on the planet. He also helped translate the Catholic New Jerusalem Bible. But everyone remembers him for the Lord of the Rings. That is probably fitting, since it is this that he was most fond of.
If we want to discover what we could learn about Tolkien’s worldview by reading LOTR, we must first frankly admit that the LOTR was not an allegory for Christianity. Tolkien himself did not like allegory and his story was not a veiled reference to Christianity. Nonetheless, there are powerful themes that are brought to bear through LOTR that humanity itself struggles with and finds answers to in the gospel story.
Tolkien was a committed Roman Catholic and instrumental in bringing CS Lewis to the Christian faith. One of the things that impacted Lewis most was Tolkien’s belief that Christianity was “the true myth.” This does not mean that Christianity is not true, but that Christianity is the true fulfillment of all the myths that strike deeply in the human heart. Tolkien believed that the great myths of the world preserve something of God’s truth, although in a distorted form.”[1] This was an intriguing concept to Lewis, who also studied a great deal of ancient literature.
(We must remember that these men read more ancient and medieval literature than all the books we will read in our lives. They were simply very, very educated men who had LOTS of time to read and research.)
Tolkien’s concept of a “true myth” can be thought of in his own words “It is not difficult to imagine the peculiar excitement and joy that one would feel if any specially beautiful fairy-story were found to be ‘primarily’ true, its narrative to be history.”[2]
He wrote about this in a volume later suggested by Lewis, in which his chapter was entitled “On Fairy Stories” which has roots in the concept by G.K. Chesterton that all fairy tales are in some sense true stories, that everything we long for in them are what we long for in reality and will someday have through God.
As a professor of old English and literature, Tolkien was a master of ancient stories. His understanding of ancient English, Celtic, and Norse mythology was practically without peer. Tolkien was profoundly aware of the virtues of war and the ethics of honor that were highly regarded in Norse mythology
In the LOTR, Tolkien created another world. It was his desire to create a whole other realm. In doing this we find ourselves drawn in by things that are totally foreign to us and other things that are strikingly familiar. Some of the themes in LOTR that have parallels in Christianity are mentioned below. These are simply my suggestions, not statements of hard facts:
Evil without and Evil within - One of the more insightful aspects of the LOTR is the conflict between the forces of good and evil. This happens as Sauron tries to conquer middle earth but also as the ring draws each person associated with it to use it for themselves. This is the true human struggle. There is evil that lies not only on a massive human scale but also on a very real individual scale as each of us sincerely fights within ourselves regarding the choices we make.
Friendship - True friendship is sometimes despised these days when we meet and separate with the least care. Friendship is to be taken seriously and defended. We do not defend our friends because we don’t know them as well as we should because we don’t talk with them about things that matter or experience situations that matter, therefore our very friendships don’t matter. We spend time with short updates on twitter, facebook and all kinds of social media sites, but do we sit down for a few hours and talk about meaningful things together?
Character Traits
Saruman – Turns from a majestic figure with power into a powerless evil, subject to other evils because of his own lust for power.
Gollum – A simple being who could not resist the lure of evil. He turns from an innocent humble character into a hideous, despicable creature. Gollum is a picture of someone in a life dominating sin, who cannot get out.
Arag
orn - There are things that God prepares us for that we have no clue about. Remember that your life is to be viewed from a long-range perspective and that if you don’t get into the right college your life is not over. Aragorn, the future king, is a picture of a man being prepared for the most important work imaginable, yet living in obscurity. This is a picture of Jesus, who worked in a carpenters shop.
Sam – Frodo was the one chosen to bear the ring, Sam, the simple gardener, was the one chosen to bear his friend. His own sense of unimportance led him to be one of the greatest heroes of all time, because he never forgot his first duties, his duty to his master and his duty as a simple gardener.
ast century.Tolkien, who was a lecturer and professor of Old English and Literature at Oxford, is of course best remembered for his Lord of the Rings series, which came after his well received fairy tale, The Hobbit. The debt we owe to Tolkien can be seen in any local bookstore which has a section on fantasy literature. This is simply because of J.R.R. Tolkein. There would not be any such section of literature today if not for him. Unfortunately, many of the books in this genre are not nearly as imaginative, creative or thoughtful as was his Lord of the Rings (LOTR) series. But the thirst for fantasy literature that he created is alive and well today. In fact, Amazon readers voted his Lord of the Rings series the best books of the last century. This is a just distinction, because the LOTR series is not just a fantasy series. It is an epic tale. Some literary critics have suggested that it is the last epic story written. He weaves together a sense of history, poetry, fantasy, and human emotion to create one of the most dazzling stories ever told. And that, at the end of the day is what most people like best about Tolkien, he was telling a story and he never forgot that. In all his literary greatness, which some have compared to a modern Shakespeare, he never forgot to tell the story that he wanted to tell. Tolkien was a erudite scholar, who knew more about Norse mythology than almost anyone on the planet. He also helped translate the Catholic New Jerusalem Bible. But everyone remembers him for the Lord of the Rings. That is probably fitting, since it is this that he was most fond of.
If we want to discover what we could learn about Tolkien’s worldview by reading LOTR, we must first frankly admit that the LOTR was not an allegory for Christianity. Tolkien himself did not like allegory and his story was not a veiled reference to Christianity. Nonetheless, there are powerful themes that are brought to bear through LOTR that humanity itself struggles with and finds answers to in the gospel story.
Tolkien was a committed Roman Catholic and instrumental in bringing CS Lewis to the Christian faith. One of the things that impacted Lewis most was Tolkien’s belief that Christianity was “the true myth.” This does not mean that Christianity is not true, but that Christianity is the true fulfillment of all the myths that strike deeply in the human heart. Tolkien believed that the great myths of the world preserve something of God’s truth, although in a distorted form.”[1] This was an intriguing concept to Lewis, who also studied a great deal of ancient literature.
(We must remember that these men read more ancient and medieval literature than all the books we will read in our lives. They were simply very, very educated men who had LOTS of time to read and research.)
Tolkien’s concept of a “true myth” can be thought of in his own words “It is not difficult to imagine the peculiar excitement and joy that one would feel if any specially beautiful fairy-story were found to be ‘primarily’ true, its narrative to be history.”[2]
He wrote about this in a volume later suggested by Lewis, in which his chapter was entitled “On Fairy Stories” which has roots in the concept by G.K. Chesterton that all fairy tales are in some sense true stories, that everything we long for in them are what we long for in reality and will someday have through God.
As a professor of old English and literature, Tolkien was a master of ancient stories. His understanding of ancient English, Celtic, and Norse mythology was practically without peer. Tolkien was profoundly aware of the virtues of war and the ethics of honor that were highly regarded in Norse mythology
In the LOTR, Tolkien created another world. It was his desire to create a whole other realm. In doing this we find ourselves drawn in by things that are totally foreign to us and other things that are strikingly familiar. Some of the themes in LOTR that have parallels in Christianity are mentioned below. These are simply my suggestions, not statements of hard facts:
Evil without and Evil within - One of the more insightful aspects of the LOTR is the conflict between the forces of good and evil. This happens as Sauron tries to conquer middle earth but also as the ring draws each person associated with it to use it for themselves. This is the true human struggle. There is evil that lies not only on a massive human scale but also on a very real individual scale as each of us sincerely fights within ourselves regarding the choices we make.
Friendship - True friendship is sometimes despised these days when we meet and separate with the least care. Friendship is to be taken seriously and defended. We do not defend our friends because we don’t know them as well as we should because we don’t talk with them about things that matter or experience situations that matter, therefore our very friendships don’t matter. We spend time with short updates on twitter, facebook and all kinds of social media sites, but do we sit down for a few hours and talk about meaningful things together?
Character Traits
Saruman – Turns from a majestic figure with power into a powerless evil, subject to other evils because of his own lust for power.
Gollum – A simple being who could not resist the lure of evil. He turns from an innocent humble character into a hideous, despicable creature. Gollum is a picture of someone in a life dominating sin, who cannot get out.
Arag
orn - There are things that God prepares us for that we have no clue about. Remember that your life is to be viewed from a long-range perspective and that if you don’t get into the right college your life is not over. Aragorn, the future king, is a picture of a man being prepared for the most important work imaginable, yet living in obscurity. This is a picture of Jesus, who worked in a carpenters shop.Sam – Frodo was the one chosen to bear the ring, Sam, the simple gardener, was the one chosen to bear his friend. His own sense of unimportance led him to be one of the greatest heroes of all time, because he never forgot his first duties, his duty to his master and his duty as a simple gardener.
J.R.R. Tolkien was a Christian who pursued writing with passion. He poured his heart and soul into it. What he gave the world is a classic story of good verses evil that children and adults can read with pleasure, reflection and heartfelt emotion.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Great Ministry - Desiring God
One of the truly great modern preachers and teachers of our day is John Piper. He is on my mind right now because Rory used to come in the office and tell me, "Hey Matt, I was reading Pipe last night and this is what he said...." Pipe was Rory's short hand for John Piper.
In addition to leading Bethlehem Baptist Church, John Piper also has a ministry called "Desiring God." Dr. Piper is a committed Calvinist, and while I am not, I really do appreciate his heart for the Lord, his love of the scriptures, and his desire to help people be faithful in their walk with the Lord. His site has a number of free resources, which I have linked here. He is also the author of a great introductory series of books on Christian history called "The Swans are not Silent" which I recommend to all beginning church history students. Have fun looking around and listening to this great teacher!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Details for Rory Graham's Memorial Service
For anyone who is interested, Rory Graham's memorial service will take place at North Coast Calvary Chapel in Carlsbad at 11:00 am on Saturday, August 15th. There will be a viewing of the body from 9:00 - 10:30 am at North Coast as well. Then, after the memorial service, the family will adjourn to Eternal Hills Cemetery for a private service. North Coast Calvary has invited everyone else to stay and have a time of encouragement and a meal together at their facility after the service at their church.
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