October 26, 2023 · 6:56 am

Words, words, words–or Why I haven’t Unpacked My Books Yet….

Goodwin, Boston, Twisse (even in Latin), Edwards, Calvin, Luther, Zwingli, Witsius, Turretin—-These are all just guys.

They said things. Right at times. Wrong at times. God used them. They did stuff. They died. They didn’t write scripture. Where they interpreted correctly, they were right. Where they didn’t, they were wrong.

They were just guys saved by the blood of the lamb. Some were more right than others. Some were very wrong.

Even Calvin was corrected by his Consistory when he was wrong.
Just guys.

One way to turn me off of a debate faster than anything is to start quoting guys. Unless the debate is about what guys said. But I’m really not interested in that debate.

The debate about whether our works contribute to our final salvation is not a debate about what a bunch of dead guys said. On the judgment day, I won’t be given an exam on protestant scholastics, and it won’t matter who said it.

On the judgment day, only one thing matters. Will I be found in Christ? His righteousness alone is pure enough to stand before God.

If anyone – whether an angel from heaven, or an apostle, or a puritan, or a Westminster divine, says otherwise, they are wrong (Gal.1:8).

If it is conclusively proven that the Reformed Tradition teaches that works must be added to faith, then Reformed Tradition is wrong.

If I teach that works are necessary for our final salvation, I am teaching another gospel. If I quote a bunch of guys, it is still another gospel.

If I can’t say how someone can be righteous before God without a jillion modifiers, twists and turns and a thousand quotes from a bunch of dead guys, perhaps I shouldn’t be doing what I am doing.

How am I righteous before God? Only by true faith in Jesus Christ. His righteousness is put on my account, and my sins were nailed to his cross.
There is no “yes, but” to that.

A lot of implications. A new life born in me. Reconciliation begun. All of this is true.
But no “Yes, but…”

A new heart brings forth good fruit. That has never been the issue. I think that the problem is that any discussion about good works generally ends up into a discussion about why “We” are loved by God, and the “others” aren’t.
I think it is the same fear that the leaders of the Jews had with Jesus. He is letting THOSE PEOPLE think that they are as good as us!

Eventually Abel has to go. He’s a loser. Not like me.

In the world of Reformed scholastics, I have rarely heard any mention of justice, racial reconciliation, the horrors of sexual assault and objectification in church circles, the terrible treatment of women – in fact, if anyone does mention those things, they are usually attacked for being “woke”, “feminist” or “liberal”.

So when the seminarians and scholars talk about the necessity of “works”, they aren’t talking about the same thing that God is talking about when he speaks of good fruit. They are talking about why they are OK, and those other guys aren’t. They want to make sure that everyone knows that liberals, feminists and woke democrats aren’t going to make it into the kingdom of God, no matter what they say that they believe about Jesus.

And they cover their hatred with words, words, words, words, words….

At this point, I have 50 cases of theology books in my upstairs room. I haven’t unpacked them. I think about it from time to time.

But my heart says, “Words, words, words…I’m so tired of words.”
I’m tired of quotes from dead guys used as cloaks to cover up hatred.

I’m tired of the endless debates that solve nothing when a sister in Christ is being used as a punching bag; or children are being raped by “church leaders”, where wickedness is covered over by semantics.

I’m so tired of hearing “Yeah, she tried to cover up her bruises but everyone knew he used her as a punching bag…but she just wouldn’t forgive him so we had to excommunicate her…” (Yes, I actually heard that, and worse).

I’m tired of hearing the word “mutual” when speaking of adults raping children.

I’m tired of:
“Inappropriate relationship”
“Struggles with anger”
“Everyone sins”
“What was she wearing?”

Meanwhile, in Reformed circles they discuss the old dead guys, make fun of evidentialist apologetics, wonder about “2 Kingdom” or whether the law of Moses was a republication of the covenant of works or not, and pat themselves on the back for being the champions of truth.

And the weak, oppressed, bleeding church is crumpled on the doorstep wondering why they aren’t allowed safety and fellowship inside the house.

And speaking of Judges 19, do you ever wonder what the men in the house were talking about while the woman was being killed outside?

Maybe it was what the Westminster divines taught concerning the relationship between justification and works…

If I speak with the tongues of men or of angels, and have not love, I am a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal…

Maybe one day, I’ll start to unpack my books.
But not today. I’m tired.

 

 

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October 16, 2023 · 5:26 pm

Absolute Truth and Wisdom

I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard the phrase “Christian world and life view” – or “Christian life and world view”. I grew up with Rushdoony, Van Til, Schaeffer, Bahnsen, theonomy and reconstructionism. So we heard it a LOT.

I don’t know how it started. Maybe Abraham Kuyper. But the big proponents now are primarily the loony cults such as the one out of Moscow, Idaho (you know who you are.)

There have been so many books written on it, that it is hard to summarize, but the idea is this. If you are a Christian, you know the truth. If you know the truth, it colors everything you do. You now have a Christian world a life view. It affects your politics, your view of marriage and family, your view of schooling, history, math, science, art, music and liberal arts. It colors how you view health care and economics (my Dad used to travel to Christian economic conferences).

It was exhausting. Eventually I asked myself, “What is the difference, really, between a “Christian doctor” and a “non-Christian doctor”? In my experience, the Christian doctors were usually the ones who refused to take insurance, fill out government forms, or provide any help for depression or anxiety…but I digress.

Is there a difference, really, between “Christian math” and “non-Christian math”?

Of course, the biggest enemy was either Postmodernism or Secular Humanism, depending on which era you lived in.

The postmodernists, we were told, rejected absolute truth. We as Christians, of course, believe in absolute truth.

And, as luck would have it, absolute truth coupled with a Christian World and Life View means that I am right on everything, have God’s blessing, and anyone who disagrees is a fool at best, and most likely an unbeliever.

If you think I am exaggerating, try having a discussion with one of them. Try sending your kid to a public school.

And here is where the problem comes in.

First of all, let me be clear, I believe in absolute truth. I believe that there are things that are true without question, and cannot be otherwise.

And here is the first thing that is absolutely true. I am an idiot, and don’t understand even a fraction of what is true.

Proverbs 30 puts it nicely:

    2      Surely I am more stupid than any man,
     And do not have the understanding of a man.
     3      I neither learned wisdom
     Nor have knowledge of the Holy One.

    4      Who has ascended into heaven, or descended?
     Who has gathered the wind in His fists?
     Who has bound the waters in a garment?
     Who has established all the ends of the earth?
     What is His name, and what is His Son’s name,
     If you know?
The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Prov 30:2–4.

It the typical paradox of theological truth, we know that there is absolute truth. And we also know that the wisdom and understanding to have access to that truth only comes from God.

And we know that God gives wisdom and understanding only to those who diligently ask him for it.

And the only ones who diligently ask him for it are those who understand that they are foolish, weak, stupid, brutish, and sinful.

Those who believe that they have knowledge of the ways of the most high, and a special insight into God’s way remain blind, miserable and naked.

16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked—18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Re 3:16–18.

But that doesn’t sell books, does it?

Don’t we need the Christian view of home decoration, child rearing, education, politics, economics, medicine, math, science, history, and on and on and on?

Of the making of books there is no end.

And here is where I am.

I don’t know the ways of God, but I trust him.

I don’t know the heart of my transgender neighbor, but I don’t need to. I need to love him and treat him with dignity and respect.

I don’t know what “Christian decor” looks like, except I usually don’t like it.

I have a painting by a pre-Raphaelite painter in my living room (well, a print of it, anyway). It has nipples. That probably doesn’t count. I should probably run to Hobby Lobby and do penance.

I don’t know the difference between Christian music and non-Christian music, but I know what is good and beautiful.

I don’t know the solution to our foreign policy mess or what to do with immigration, or how to fix the economy, but a know a hateful, abusive, sexually violent predator when I see one.

I don’t know how vaccines work. I don’t know how God kept the animals alive on the ark.

I don’t know how an eagle flies for thousands of miles without landing.

I don’t know the ways of a man with a maiden, or why any maiden would want one of them, seeing how they generally lose their minds when a maiden walks by.

I don’t know why I need to make pronouncements about gay marriage, or what 1 Timothy means, or why a woman should wear a veil because of the angels, or what on earth Samson was thinking.

I don’t know why any lawyer would work for Donald Trump, or why anyone would put ketchup on their eggs, or who gives the squirrels enough food for the winter months.

I don’t know how the trees get painted such wonderful colors, or how I can make real choices and God decrees infallibly everything that comes to pass and how these two don’t contradict each other.

I am not infinite. I don’t even have the understanding of a brute.

When I was a kid, I thought that it would be a good idea to stick my finger in a blender to see if the blades would just spin around it.

Spoiler: They didn’t. But I didn’t lose my finger, as my father pointed out to me.

But I know that Jesus said that if I am foolish, weak, ignorant and sinful, I should come to him.

He didn’t promise that he would give me the secrets of the universe.

But he does give me himself. And he loves me and I am learning to love him.

And the more I learn about him, the less willing I am to pretend I am an expert on anything.

What I can do is point you to him.

And what this does is sets me free to love my neighbor, and maybe actually learn something from someone else.

None of us have the monopoly on wisdom, not even if we call it a “Christian world and life view”.

The problem with a “Christian world and life view” is that someone has to determine whose view is the right one.

And then someone has to decide what to do with everyone who disagrees.

And then we are back to crucifixions, racks, and burning stakes.

I’ll take ignorance any day.

I don’t know enough about anything to order a crucifixion. I don’t think anyone else does either.

We also don’t know enough about anything to have contempt for our neighbor.

Maybe, just maybe – I’m wrong about something.

It gives me something to think about, doesn’t it?

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September 2, 2023 · 3:36 pm

Why the hierarchy to begin with?

With my latest blog, the question is asked “Why was there a hierarchy in the temple worship to begin with?”

As best I can with stammering tongues, I will attempt to give an answer:

After mankind fell, a curse entered the world. Humans were separated from God. God is holy and cannot dwell in safety with sinful men without destroying them.

After God spoke to them from Mt Sinai, they begged Moses to plead with God to not speak to them again, but to speak through a mediator.

Which God did. Before sin and shame and guilt were taken away, no one could approach God and live. The glory would consume them.

The world was waiting for Jesus.

The temple was temporary. The patriarchy that came into the world in Genesis 3 was part of the curse. It would not be taken away until Jesus took away sin and healed both men and women so that they could love again.

The temple was a pointed pointing to how much was not right in the world yet, and what God was promising at the same time.

The thousands of animals sacrificed at the inauguration would have stunk . The noise and the smell and the sights would have been overpowering – and yet, God still was with his people – in promise and signs,

Already – but not yet. Sin was not yet taken away. The bodies of death not yet removed.

Now Christ has come. The veil is now taken away, because sin is taken away – not just in picture but in reality.

So why aren’t we in heaven yet?

Because these bodies are not fit for an incorruptible world and an incorruptible world is not fit for these bodies. We still long for God’s presence, even though he dwells with us in word and spirit – the day will come when it will be face to face.

The hierarchy and the priesthood and the patriarchy and all of the corruption of the ancient world – including polygamy and slavery – was tolerated by God. Maybe tolerated is not the right word. Maybe “not yet overcome” works better. Jesus had not yet redeemed his people from the slavery of sin and misery – they were still in the bondage to the law, as children are until they come of age. But even then, God was near to everyone who called upon him. He still never turned his mercy away. But the day of salvation had not yet arrived. The curse still held sway.

It still makes us uncomfortable, because a God who is that holy and that pure and that powerful makes us uncomfortable – which is why the temple was necessary in the first place.

But now Christ has come, and we have the Holy Spirit. All the old has been taken away so that the new could flourish. Now we know God in Christ, who descended to us that we might know him. No longer do we know him as people under the curse, or under the bondage of the law, but as heirs to the New Creation.

And the day will come when we will no longer see as through a mirror, but face to face.

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September 1, 2023 · 5:17 pm

Hierarchy, patriarchy and the veil

The centerpiece of worship in the Old Testament was the Temple in Jerusalem.

As you travel to Jerusalem, you are singing the Psalms of Ascents with the other pilgrims. No matter where you are coming from, you are going up. Anywhere towards Jerusalem was considered up.

You walk towards the place where David offered the sacrifice that stopped the God’s angel from destroying any more Israelites. It was in that place that Abraham’s arm was prevented from offering Isaac as a sacrifice.

He lifted up his eyes and saw a ram caught in a bush. “In the Mount of the Lord, It will be Provided”.

And now you are heading towards the Temple. When you arrive, you first enter the court of the Gentiles. This is where anyone could enter. Tourists, gentiles, all who wanted just a quick glance at the Great Temple.

But Gentiles, the unclean, the lepers, the emasculated, those who touched dead bodies – could enter no further. Barriers and signs were up. No Gentiles allowed. No admittance. Unclean.

If you were clean, you could proceed into the court of the women. Here the women and children would gather and pray.

But only the men could go any further. In the outer courts of the temple, the sacrifice was offered, the great basin for cleansing sat waiting for the cleansing of the priests, and the men could watch the priests come and go.

In the temple itself, the outer room was the Holy Place. Only the appointed priests could enter there, and then only if they had business there and were wearing the right garments and had cleansed themselves by water and blood.

And in the center of it all was the Holy of Holies, the most holy place of all. It was here that the pillar of fire and the pillar of cloud representing the presence of God settled, and God dwelt with his people. But only the High Priest could go in there.

And only one time a year. The rest of the time a thick veil separated the Ark of God’s Covenant from the world of sinful man. God’s face was hidden, only to be hinted at by the mediation of priests.

No one just walks into God’s throne room, where he “dwells between the cherubim”.

The whole form of worship was an enforced hierarchy. The way into God’s presence was hinted at by shadows and types, but not yet made clear.

We all long to be part of something great, something beyond ourselves. We naturally long for the exclusive clubs, the inner circles, the greetings in the marketplaces.

No one wants to be kicked out. No one desires to be excluded.

Many of us know the feeling of being on the outside. When large groups gather, like after worship on Sunday Morning, circles form. Friends laugh and joke. And some (like me) would try to join the circle. But it would tighten up. My brother or his friends would move to block my access.

Eventually I gave up and pretended it didn’t matter. But it still hurt and I still feel that hurt, because we all long to be a part of something, to be included.

Admit something to me. When you were reading the description of the temple, did you feel as if it wasn’t fair that the gentiles, the unclean, the women, the children were kept out?

This is the emotional response to your yearning to be in God’s presence, in the holiest place of all. No matter how close you could go, you couldn’t just walk past the veil. Imagine the longing to see, the longing to be where all of mankind longs to be.

When men and women were kicked out of Eden, they were removed from God’s presence. “No one looks upon my face and lives”.

THIS is the longing. And no amount of exclusive clubs, golf resorts, circles of friends, membership cards can ever solve it.

There is only one solution. The way to God’s presence must be revealed to us.

When Jesus died; when he cried out “It is finished”, that veil that separated the Holiest Place from sinful humans was torn in two.

The hierarchy was smashed. The gatekeepers were out of work. Eventually the temple of stones was destroyed because God now dwells in the hearts of his people. YOU are the temple of the living God.

And how do you enter into his presence? Just come. Everyone is invited. The blood of Christ has made that way clear.

Yes, God is still holy. Yes, we are still sinners. But Christ has covered you with his blood and washed you with his spirit, and calls you right into his very presence.

19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. (The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Heb 10:19–22.)

But here is the difficult part for so many people. If all of this is true (and it is) that means that anyone at all who wants to come in may enter. No one will be denied. Everyone has access to Christ, therefore everyone has access to the throne room of God through the way – the blood of Jesus.

Which means that it isn’t exclusive to men. It isn’t exclusive to the rich, the white, the Jew, the ruling class, the righteous, the religious.

It means ANYONE can come.

And so, so many people refuse to truly come to Christ because they see the riff-raff and say, “Nope.”

And they desperately try to build the hierarchy again. The try to sew that veil together so that – even though they can’t really get to God – at least they can get closer than those people who are outside.

So they step over the velvet barricades held up by the stanchions that they erected and say, “See you, suckers”.

Look at all the losers outside.

But if the temple they are entering is exclusive and shuts out the riff raff, then it isn’t the temple of God.

The temple of the living God dwells in the heart by faith, not by position, wealth, genders, status or selective morality. It is Christ’s righteousness or it is none at all.

This is what bothers me so much about the patriarchalism of modern America and the dominionism of “Christian” politics. It is absolutely dependent upon building the curtain to separate us from them.

The sinners, the women, the children (who are to be beaten until they become useful to me), the immigrant, the poor, the ignorant, the foolish, the sinners – no thanks. If that is what this is about, I’m out of here.

Matthew tells us that Judas made the deal with the Sanhedrin when Jesus told him to leave Mary alone. “She is anointing me for my burial”. If that public display of completely inappropriate behavior, that waste of good money, that lowering yourself to the level of a woman who is a sinner – is what this is about, count me out.

And for all who say, “If God’s grace is for the wrong kind of sinners, I’m out” – eventually the door will be shut.

You stayed away from the feast and couldn’t even sit down to eat because there were too many sinners there. So now you are outside, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Notice that the anger hasn’t diminished. Even outside the feast, the anger continues, the unfairness of it all.

I’ve worked and I’ve slaved for you and you never gave me anything.

But you are going to feast with THAT GUY???

Don’t you know that he doesn’t vote right? Don’t you know that she is a woman and is supposed to wait for her man? Don’t you know that children are vipers in diapers and not worthy of the feast?

If you are tired of the continual jockeying for position, Jesus says, “Come unto me and rest.”

And he also said, “Whoever comes to me, I will never, ever under any circumstances, cast them out.”

Instead of being angry that Jesus eats and drinks with sinners, it should cause us to rejoice greatly. For that means he eats and drinks with you and me.

That is exactly what the gospel is.

Quit trying to sew the veil back together.

The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come”.

Yes. Sinners. Yes. You. Yes, your children.

Yes, you who have been outcast and excluded, who know the pain of being cast out, who know what it is like outside the camp.

Go outside the camp. Inside the camp is where they are frantically trying to keep you out. They are sewing up veils everywhere to block access.

But outside the city there is a cross and an empty sepulcher. And even greater than that, outside the city is Jesus. He is gathering together all of the outcasts and building a new city. And all you need to do to enter that city is come.

And yes, when you get there there will be sinners and other riff-raff there. Just like you. But they have been washed, cleansed, justified, and made beautiful by the Lamb of God – Just like you.

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August 13, 2023 · 7:25 am

National Covenant Blessings?

While I was reading Dr. Valerie Hobbs’ latest excellent book (No Love in War), I was reminded of an aberrant theology that I had heard in my childhood.

(Of course, now might be a good time to plug this book. Please get it. It will help you understand some of what is happening in the Reformed world. So much of what she writes was an echo of my childhood church in the 60s and 70s, with the same damage, the same theological errors and the same teachers. I had left them behind years ago, but this theology was part of what drove me out of my denomination. Like bad milk, it has a way of coming up again and again. Back in the day, it was called postmillennial reconstruction, or theonomy, or both. Today, it is nationalism, or dominionism, or all of the above).

But- moving on. The theology that was impressed on us was that the covenant curses of Deuteronomy 27 have come upon this nation (the United States) because of sin (which they give the fancy name of “covenant disobedience”. The corollary is that if we as a nation want the covenant blessings of Deuteronomy 28, then we need to obey, which is given the fancy name of “Covenant faithfulness”.

I had forgotten this. I know that I had (and still do) frequently hear “We don’t deserve God’s blessing”. The anthem of my childhood is “God Bless America”, which has the connotations in Christian circles of covenant faithfulness.

Covenant faithfulness is generally defined as minorities and women know their place, liberals stay out of everything, white old men rule everything, the poor deserve it anyway, and empathy is sinful. I am not making this stuff up. Please read what the dominionists are writing.

What makes it so powerful is fear. We are afraid that if we are compassionate to the poor, give dignity to the LGBTQ community, listen to the black experience, acknowledge the brutality of slavery and own up to it, allow women to vote, of, God forbid, vote for the other party – then God will curse the nation because of covenant disobedience. The alternative to this is covenant faithfulness, which will be defined by me. Covenant disobedience is communist, feminist, woke, social justice, and socialist. It doesn’t matter what those words mean. We all know it when we see it.

It surprises me that the Reformed world has fallen so quickly for such basic theological errors. I think that there is a strange separation in the minds of those who follow these things. On the one hand, they talk about the gospel, free grace, the person and work of Christ. And on the other hand, they talk about national covenant blessings. But these two things cannot exist together.

This was the same error of the Pharisees. They believed that in order to have God’s covenant blessings, they must put a stop to sinners. The Sabbath breakers and the tax collectors and the prostitutes and everyone who isn’t us. “You were altogether born in sin, and you would teach us??” (John 9)

They knew he was born in sin, because he was born blind. Blind people are not blessed. Therefore, they broke the covenant, otherwise they would be enjoying the blessings of the covenant, and wouldn’t be born blind.

The formula is very simple. Those people, who are not like me – they are minorities, foreigners, women, children, disabled, woke, LGBTQ – they are the ones who are blocking God’s covenant blessings from coming on America like they used to.

In 2016, I was astounded that the whole seeming evangelical world welcomed Donald Trump. A foul mouthed, reviling, abusive, crooked, racist thug – as the savior of America.

But then I remembered that the crowds shouted for Barabbas while crying out for Jesus to be crucified. At least Barabbas tried to do something about all of those Romans getting in the way of God’s covenant blessings.

So let’s look at the very, very basic theological errors.

First, the blessings and cursings of Deuteronomy were given to the nation of Israel, which was the visible church in the world. The nation was where God chose to place his name and reveal himself. But God cannot dwell with sin. Any sin.

Second – the nation of Israel failed. Over and over and over. There was NEVER a time when they were faithful to the covenant. NEVER. Seriously, this is the point of the whole Old Testament. How can you read through Genesis to Malachi and come to the conclusion that America will do better?? Even if they had the option.

If you read the Old Testament and come to the conclusion that you will do better, if only a powerful leader would get rid of the libtards, then all you are doing is adding pride to your multitude of sins.

The Pharisees taught the exact same thing, and God did not tolerate it in them either.

The point of the whole Old Testament is this. God cannot be at peace with anyone who breaks his covenant, any more than a husband can live with an adulterous wife. And after centuries of playing the whore against God, God cast them off (Hosea – the whole book).

The New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34) is different. If God simply established another covenant like the first one, mankind would fail again – because that is what we inherited from Adam. Sin, misery and death.

We need a covenant mediator.

So Jesus, the True Seed of Abraham (Galatians 3:16) , took all of the covenant curses upon himself, as it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree” – Deuteronomy again…

He was crucified so that we might all know that these covenant curses are taken away in him. The old has passed away.

And now, for the new. His righteousness (His covenant faithfulness, his chesed) merited the promises of covenant blessings, for God cannot lie.

Not one nation, not one people, not one congregation, not one person, has ever, ever, ever earned God’s covenant blessings. There is none, no not one.

And the corollary – not one person, not one has escaped the judgment of God by their merit. It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed.

If Jesus had done what the Pharisees insisted, and brought fire and brimstone down on the sinners, not one person would be left.

Not one.

And so it is today. When we call for God’s judgment on the sinners, how far back will YOU have to stand. Remember that God sees the heart.

To put this practically – has there EVER been a time when the United States earned God’s blessing? Has there ever been a time when justice rolled down like water? Where the poor and the needy were relieved? Where justice was given to men AND women, white AND black, old AND young?

If God came in judgment, none of us would stand.

Except in Christ. By faith we flee to him and cling to him alone. HE is our covenant mediator.

In HIM was have all of the blessings that are possible. EVERY spiritual blessing, Paul tells the Ephesians.

And the curse is taken far from us. There is therefore now NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. None.

And no one merited it, except for Jesus. There has never been a covenantally faithful nation. Never. Not one.

There has never been a covenantally faithful person. Not one. No, not even you.

Only Jesus. Only Jesus.

We used to believe “Sola Christus” (Christ alone). I wonder what happened.

Keep proclaiming the gospel. The good news. If we still have to earn covenant blessings, that isn’t good news at all. That is bad, bad news.

The good news is that Jesus has already finished all of that. It is finished. Done.

Now go rest. The day will come when this world, with the remnants of sin and death and misery will be wiped clean, as will my heart, and we will walk with God forever in the New Heavens and the New Earth. No politician can give you that. Don’t aim too low.

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July 28, 2023 · 5:39 pm

Pressing towards the kingdom

I continue to be astounded at the damage done by “Biblical Manhood and Womanhood”.

It’s like Piper and Grudem created this ugly troll out of wholecloth and then it took a life of its own.

And the most hateful, sexist, cowardly, loud-mouthed, rude, reviling and abusive men have infiltrated every denomination.

The damage is severe, everyone.

Most of the time I feel that the job is way, way, way to big.

The damage is too great, the consequences are horrendous, the pain is real, and it is often a matter of life and death.

But then I remember that the battle isn’t mine. That it IS too big for me. And I am far too tired.

The Spirit of God reminds me that the Kingdom of God is built one person at a time.

That I can do. I can listen. I can sit with you in the darkness. And above all, I can point you to Jesus. As many times as it takes.

While all around my soul gives way, He then is all my hope and stay.

On Christ the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.

The ship is heading to the rocks, the house is falling down, the established church is for the most part pretending that there isn’t a problem and the ugly ones are getting more and more powerful.

I’m outside the camp. But the Scripture reminds me that is where Jesus is. Meet me at his feet.

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July 24, 2023 · 5:00 pm

Does the husband sanctify his wife?

As complementarians continue to make up reasons why they shouldn’t have to make their own sandwiches, it seems that every day something new comes along, each one more ridiculous than the last.

Kevin DeYoung, for example, writes that “I am responsible for my wife’s holiness.”

This isn’t new. I have heard it for years. It is based on Ephesians 5:26. The argument is this: Since the husband is called to imitate Christ’s love for his bride, and since Christ sanctifies his bride, the husband is called also to sanctify his wife. It has caused the infantilizing of women, countless abuses, violations of free volition, and tyranny, and has nothing to do with holiness.

To sanctify means to make holy. Or, as DeYoung writes, “I am responsible for my wife’s holiness.”

This is far more deadly than it first appears. There is much more at stake than simply dysfunctional marriages, as heinous as those are.

What is at stake is the gospel itself. It shows a complete misunderstanding of what sanctification actually is. For this reason, Christians really should study some of the basics of theology.

Israel was set apart by God as a holy nation. They were called to be holy, for Jehovah is holy. They failed, and served other gods.

In writing about the New Covenant, Jeremiah says,

31 “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” Jer. 31:31–34.

More will be revealed as time progresses. But the idea is that God himself will make his bride holy, by separating them from the world in writing the law on their hearts instead of on tables of stone. They will be clean and holy, for they will be forgiven and cleansed.

Similarly, Ezekiel writes,

23 And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD,” says the Lord GOD, “when I am hallowed in you before their eyes. 24 For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. 28 Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. 29 I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. (Ezek 36:23–29).

Read those passages carefully for an understanding of what sanctification is. The law was given so that Israel might dwell in God’s presence and God might dwell with them. Being holy is being in God’s presence. But the wicked shall not stand there.

So they must be cleansed from their evil ways and given a new heart – a heart that loves instead of a heart that hates; a heart that doesn’t dream of following idols or chasing after the neighbor’s wife, or stealing the neighbor’s cattle, because it is a changed heart, a new heart and a new spirit.

And how does it come? NOT by the law, for that can never make anyone holy. Not because it is defective, but because WE are defective.

For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. 22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. (Gal. 3:21–22).

Because the law could never save, Jesus became flesh and joined himself to his people. He kept the law for his people, and took their curse upon himself.

And when he ascended into heaven with the blood of his sacrifice, just like the ancient priests brought the blood into the holy of holies, he received the promise of his Father.

“Ask of me” he said, “And I will give you the heathen for your inheritance.”

In Peter’s sermon on Pentecost, he shows us how this promise was fulfilled in the pouring out of the Holy Spirit.

Just as God’s presence filled the temple in Solomon’s day, so also the Spirit fills his church because Jesus has conquered death and was obedient to the Father even in his crucifixion.

So Jesus pours out his spirit. He gives the new heart and the new flesh. He causes us to love by conforming us to his image. He sanctifies us as his Holy Temple by joining us to himself as the head, and we are the body.

And so we are sanctified, because we are in him.

“You are already clean,” he said, “Because of the word that I have spoken to you.”

Jesus has the words of eternal life. He speaks and accomplishes all of his good pleasure. He said, “Lazarus, come forth!” – and the dead were raised.

He sanctifies by his word and by his spirit.

All that a human being can do is lay down the law, and enforce outward conformity. And this is NEVER what the bible means by holiness. If the inside of the cup isn’t clean, what good does it to to polish the outside. But if the inside IS clean, the outside will take care of itself.

How can a husband clean the inside of anyone? He cannot even make himself holy!

So, Mr. DeYoung, tell me again how husbands can usurp this place of Jesus?

As soon as you can speak and draw the dead out of the graves…

As soon as you can take the curse of the law upon yourself…

As soon as you can breathe and fill your wife with the Holy Spirit…

As soon as you can call down tongues of fire on your wife’s head…(without setting her hair on fire)

As soon as you can make her a living stone in the temple of the living God…

Then I will concede that you are responsible for your wife’s holiness.

Until that day, though, I will love my wife, pray with and for her, talk with her, listen to her, praise our Savior together, and walk through this valley of tears together, holding her hand and making our journey together a little more bearable, just as she does with mine.

But I’ll never pretend to be the Holy Spirit, nor will I usurp the place of the Groom in my home. He is perfectly capable of sanctifying my wife and doesn’t need a neo-pope to do it. I’ll point her to Jesus just as she points me to Jesus. And we will do this together.

I’ll be her companion and her lover and her friend. But I will never be her Redeemer and Savior.

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July 1, 2023 · 5:31 pm

Blessing and Cursing

9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. (James 3:9–12.)

We have heard the word “bless” most of our lives. We bless God; God blesses us; we bless one another…

But what does it mean? Is it a ritual, or something more concrete and practical?

In James 3 above, there are a few things that we see.

1. Blessing is something done with the tongue, and it is the opposite of cursing. It is not fitting for the tongue to do both.

2. Blessing is something that brothers and sisters are accustomed to speak concerning God.

3. When one is truly blessing God, it would be consistent for them to also bless human beings made in God’s image. To bless God and to curse men is to live a contradiction.


So let’s put it together. First, what does it mean to bless God?

Read this entire Psalm – but I will copy just the first few verses:

     1      Bless the LORD, O my soul;
     And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
     2      Bless the LORD, O my soul,
     And forget not all His benefits:
     3      Who forgives all your iniquities,
     Who heals all your diseases,
     4      Who redeems your life from destruction,
     Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
     5      Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
     So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. Ps 103:1–5.

To bless the Lord is to use one’s tongue to speak of all of the goodness of the Lord. His attributes, his beauty, the beauty of his works and goodness and wisdom of his creation.

This is why it is a contradiction to bless the Lord and to curse something in his creation.

If you have been born again by the Spirit of God, you are becoming more and more like Christ. And James is calling us, his children, to think about what that means about our tongues.

To make is simple, bless your spouse, your children, your family, your neighbors, your co-workers, with your tongue, rather than curse them.

And this is difficult, because our natural speech is to curse with our tongues, as James says.

We tell people what is wrong with them. We tell them everything they have done wrong. We pour shame and contempt. We react with anger. We return curses for curses and a cycle of hatred builds.

But Christ has broken the curse of sin, so now we are to use our new breath and new life to use our words the way that God in Christ used words. He blesses, his words bring life. He speaks the truth in love.

So what does it mean to bless someone.

Speak of what you appreciate about them.

Speak about what you find beautiful and good in them.

Speak about the image of God that lies within and how easy they are to love.

Speak about ways to make burdens lighter.

Be open and accepting and welcoming with your words. Use words to make someone bigger.

Speak in such a way that the chest lifts up, that the face smiles, that they stand a little taller.

In other words, do your words make your neighbor’s burdens easier, or heavier?

Do your words tear down, or build up?

To curse is to speak words of death. To tear down, to deflate, to heap burdens.

To curse is to seek to elevate yourself by tearing another down. To make them feel stupid and useless and unheard.

To curse makes your neighbor lower her eyes, slow their step a little, take the wind out of the sails.

“Let not corrupt communication come from your mouths…”

That rotten, crushing, soul-destroying word that causes a spiritual stench to come out of the mouth – where the tongue is an instrument of death.

It is cursing that is so prevalent on Social media. God hates it.

If we are God’s people, we ought to use our tongues to speak words of peace and joy and beauty to everyone we come into contact with.

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June 25, 2023 · 4:22 pm

The Prayer of Cain

Lord, I’m disappointed.

You know how hard I’ve worked. That offering didn’t grow itself, you know.

I really wanted to try those apples when they first got ripe, but I gave them to you.

You should have been grateful.

That corn was so good. You know that was a new hybrid. I worked really hard on that. But I didn’t even get to taste it. I gave it to you.

And I didn’t give a little. I gave a lot.

Apples and grapes; olives and barley; wheat and rye.

The pomegranates were fabulous this year. Large and plump. But I didn’t taste them. And you didn’t even notice.

I keep trying to get your attention and you don’t even notice. You aren’t thankful at all.

Don’t you know that I am something? I’m a big deal around here. I lead the family worship. I give the best of my produce. I know my way around the times and seasons and sacrifices. I’m a strong leader. I know my way around winners and losers.

You should be more thankful, Lord.

I don’t like to complain, but sometimes I get the impression that you just don’t even notice me.

Don’t you know that I am something? The man from Jehovah?

Look at that guy. My idiot brother. Talk about a nobody. He’s so whiny.

He just chases those stupid sheep all day. He’s a nothing, a nobody, a loser.

He won’t take charge. He won’t stand up for himself. He won’t even look people in the eye. He just talks about promises and hope and waiting…

Not me, though. I know that if you want change you have to grab it. You have to take control, you have to be strong, manly, in charge – otherwise they’ll walk all over you.

But that Abel. What a loser. Always serving, always quiet, always waiting for something. He doesn’t even get his wife in line. He keeps talking about love. Doesn’t he know that women need a firm hand now and then?…

Really, Lord? You accepted the loser? Don’t you know that he’s nothing? Don’t you know that he has nothing to offer?

He can’t even use a weapon right. He won’t get his women in line. He won’t stand up for himself.

Everybody knows that he is a weirdo. A loser. An outcast. Vanity of vanities. He couldn’t win a fight if the other guy was already dead.

Weak. Stupid. Foolish. A nobody.

He’ll never make a name for himself. He always does the wrong things. He always says the stupidest things.

Lord, you know that I am better than that guy – but you accept HIS sacrifice and not mine?

It really isn’t fair. As hard as I have worked. It really isn’t fair.

I won’t be in heaven if his sort is there. I’ll build my own city. I’ll build my own kingdom.

No losers allowed. Only winners. Only people like me.

And, Lord, you better get on board. You don’t want people to think that you side with the losers..

You and me. We can do better than this, Lord. I’ll explain the plan to you. If you just follow along, we can take care of the losers and set this kingdom on the right path.

But first, you have to do something about Abel. He really can’t be part of the plan. He’ll mess everything up.

We can’t be successful with his kind of people around. You can ask anyone.

But that’s OK. You can fix this. I’ll be waiting for the answer.

Until then,

Amen.

 

For the uninitiated, this is a feeble attempt to expose the thinking of the religious one, without faith. It is the thinking of the Pharisee, the seed of the serpent, the idolatrous, the Tower of Babel, and the spirit of Babylon.

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June 19, 2023 · 8:42 am

9 things on my birthday

I am nearing that age when people will begin to describe me as “that eccentric elderly gentleman…” I don’t think I’m up for that yet.

I have no issue with the “eccentric” part. I’ve made peace with that years ago.

This past year has been a whirlwind. Loss, grief and unimaginable blessings, all at once. One year ago, I never heard of Faribault. Now it is my new home and God has opened so many doors.

What was meant for evil against me, God meant for good. Since I have been driven out of my former circles, I have been placed in a unique position to minister and serve those who also have been driven out. The stories of abuse that I am hearing break my heart. So many have had nowhere to turn. So we meet with Jesus outside the camp, where he is. I consider than an honor.

With my new work in kitchen management, I have become more active than I have been in years. My cholesterol and glucose are under control, I’ve lost 15 pounds, and I feel better than I have for years. The first few weeks were brutal, but I’m slowly catching up.

This has nothing to do with my birthday, but it is interesting in light of the national meetings of several huge southern-based churches: These churches have insisted that sexual assault and abuse are “tragic, but there really isn’t anything we can do about it.” But if there is any hint of a woman in a position of authority, they will move heaven and earth to put a stop to it. It seems to me that if they put just a fraction of the effort that they put into keeping women in place into fighting sexual assault and domestic abuse, they might actually accomplish something.

But Jesus did say that you will know them by their fruits. They have exposed themselves by refusing to protect the sheep. It is time for the sheep to meet Jesus outside the camp.

I’ve just discovered a singer from Norway named Aurora. Wow. Scandinavia is producing some wonderful music lately.

And a final note – Isaiah said in Chapter 28 that all the tables of the priests and prophets are covered with vomit and excrement. When you say that Bill Gothard says some pretty good things, even if he is wrong about other things – it is like offering God a great feast, only contaminated with just a LITTLE bit of shit and vomit. How much makes the table inedible? Surprisingly to some, not very much. The leaven of the Pharisees poisons everything.

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