Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Redefine Christmas
In this Sunday's sermon I'm going to make reference to a newspaper ad to "redefine Christmas." Here is a link to an article (from 2007) about the "Redefine Christmas" ads, web site, etc. Here is a link to comments about it. Both are interesting reading. What do you think? And find out Sunday what it has to do with the visit of the Magi to see Jesus...
Friday, December 5, 2008
Jesus Made in America Redux
A few months ago I blogged enthusiatically about Stephen Nichols' book, Jesus: Made in America. Here is a video interview of Steve about that book, with Derek Thomas. Steve will be our speaker at our 2009 "Greater Reading Gathering of Reformed Evangelicals" (a meeting which, incidentally, needs a new name; I am open to suggestions!).
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Joining in Prayer, Some More
Those of us who are naturally inclined loners may need to grab ourselves by the shirt collar and give ourselves a stern scolding, something along the line of: My true identity before God is marred if I indulge this attitude of emotional withdrawal and keeping my relational distance. It does not allow me to be fulfilled; I am not growing in grace as long as I indulge myself in inner detachment in this way; my children and my friends are not benefitting as they should from my example of shared faith. My call from God as one of his people is to be transparently close to others in fellowship, ready to open my heart to share my own testimony, just as I need to receive the testimony of others, and I should be as ready to pray with them as they are to pray with me. (J.I. Packer, Praying, p. 254)
Monday, December 1, 2008
Joining In Prayer
In preparing for this week's Sunday School class (on prayer in fellowship with others) I came across this excellent descriptiong by J.I. Packer of some of what ails the church (as a whole) nowadays. Packer writes about what he calls an overly individualistic "piety":
'The popular form of pietism that we no face... is this priority of "personal relationship with God" pulled out of shape by this modern, secular, Enlightenment-bred type of individualism that teaches us to see ourselves as distinct from, if not actually against, all existing forms of society (family, school, political consensus, cultural consensus, church, whatever). In secular contexts this individualism glorifies the rebel; in Christian contexts it makes recognition of churchly identity as part of our Christian identity difficult.... The popular pietist way is to value church services... as we value gas stations and maybe college lectures too: we show up in order (in one sense or another) to fill up and then go on our way without any sense of continuing commitment to the source of our filling.'
The antidote is found in 1 Corinthians 12, where Paul speaks of the church as a body; or Ephesians 4, especially vv. 11-16, where, growing up into Christ, the whole body makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. So close are we in Christ, and so dependent on one another. Come and reflect on this together Sunday in Sunday School.
'The popular form of pietism that we no face... is this priority of "personal relationship with God" pulled out of shape by this modern, secular, Enlightenment-bred type of individualism that teaches us to see ourselves as distinct from, if not actually against, all existing forms of society (family, school, political consensus, cultural consensus, church, whatever). In secular contexts this individualism glorifies the rebel; in Christian contexts it makes recognition of churchly identity as part of our Christian identity difficult.... The popular pietist way is to value church services... as we value gas stations and maybe college lectures too: we show up in order (in one sense or another) to fill up and then go on our way without any sense of continuing commitment to the source of our filling.'
The antidote is found in 1 Corinthians 12, where Paul speaks of the church as a body; or Ephesians 4, especially vv. 11-16, where, growing up into Christ, the whole body makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. So close are we in Christ, and so dependent on one another. Come and reflect on this together Sunday in Sunday School.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Fixing, Forcing, and Ordering
In connection with the Daily Office, here are some of the Puritan John Owen's words about meditating on God's Word:
"To be spiritually minded... is to have our minds really exercised with delight about heavenly things..., especially Christ himself as at the right hand of God.
"Spiritual-mindedness is developed, exercised, and reinforced by meditation.
"By meditation I intend the thought of some subject spiritual and divine, with the fixing, forcing, and ordering of our thoughts about it, with a design to affect our own hearts and souls with the matter of it.... In meditation our principal aim is the affecting of our own hearts and minds with love, delight, and humiliation." (from Praying, by J.I. Packer)
"To be spiritually minded... is to have our minds really exercised with delight about heavenly things..., especially Christ himself as at the right hand of God.
"Spiritual-mindedness is developed, exercised, and reinforced by meditation.
"By meditation I intend the thought of some subject spiritual and divine, with the fixing, forcing, and ordering of our thoughts about it, with a design to affect our own hearts and souls with the matter of it.... In meditation our principal aim is the affecting of our own hearts and minds with love, delight, and humiliation." (from Praying, by J.I. Packer)
"Daily Office" Resources
Here are a number of resources to use for the "daily office," that is, times to be with God throughout the day in meditation on his Word and prayer (in the case of books, links will take you to where to buy them):
Heart Aflame: Daily reflections on several verses from the Psalms, from John Calvin's commentary on the Psalms (I have used this for my noontime office).
Valley of Vision is a collection of about 180 prayers, from the published prayers of Puritan preachers. I use these prayers to start my own prayers when I first arrive at the church office. (It is also available in an audio format, and in a sturdy leatherbound volume.)
Another similar collection of prayers is by John Baillie, A Diary of Daily Prayers. It has morning and evening prayers for each day of the month.
Phyllis Tickle, The Divine Hours (comes in several volumes; one is Autumn and Winter, then there are Spring and Summer volumes as well). Tickle has brought together prayers from Scripture (mostly) with prayers from the Book of Common Prayer and church history. The downside is that it has a Roman Catholic "bent," but I would say it is not fatal. I have used her volume for Christmastide. You can find these volumes on Amazon, if nowhere else.
You can get the offices from the Book of Common Prayer online, and organized by day here (this is the internet; it's not perfect. But try "Rite II" for the time you want--the day's date, morning, noon, or evening). Or you can find just the Bible passages for the day in the ESV version here.
Somewhat more distinctly Roman Catholic, so somewhat more problematic perhaps, because less grace-centered (no one Reformed has done much of this, alas), is the daily office of the Northumbria Community, found here.
Perhaps the best way to start is to begin with Psalm 1, and take a few verses from the psalms consecutively until you work your way through all of the psalms. It will take quite a while, and you will become more familiar with the psalms (the church's inspired "prayer book," as it is sometimes called). Of course, you will want to intersperse your reading of the psalms with your own prayers, but the psalms should get you going.
Don't forget the "daily office" is God's work in you through his Word--not your work. Beware of both legalism and self-righteousness as you receive his Word in this way. It is he who works in us both to will and to do what he purposes for us (Philippians 2:13)
Heart Aflame: Daily reflections on several verses from the Psalms, from John Calvin's commentary on the Psalms (I have used this for my noontime office).
Valley of Vision is a collection of about 180 prayers, from the published prayers of Puritan preachers. I use these prayers to start my own prayers when I first arrive at the church office. (It is also available in an audio format, and in a sturdy leatherbound volume.)
Another similar collection of prayers is by John Baillie, A Diary of Daily Prayers. It has morning and evening prayers for each day of the month.
Phyllis Tickle, The Divine Hours (comes in several volumes; one is Autumn and Winter, then there are Spring and Summer volumes as well). Tickle has brought together prayers from Scripture (mostly) with prayers from the Book of Common Prayer and church history. The downside is that it has a Roman Catholic "bent," but I would say it is not fatal. I have used her volume for Christmastide. You can find these volumes on Amazon, if nowhere else.
You can get the offices from the Book of Common Prayer online, and organized by day here (this is the internet; it's not perfect. But try "Rite II" for the time you want--the day's date, morning, noon, or evening). Or you can find just the Bible passages for the day in the ESV version here.
Somewhat more distinctly Roman Catholic, so somewhat more problematic perhaps, because less grace-centered (no one Reformed has done much of this, alas), is the daily office of the Northumbria Community, found here.
Perhaps the best way to start is to begin with Psalm 1, and take a few verses from the psalms consecutively until you work your way through all of the psalms. It will take quite a while, and you will become more familiar with the psalms (the church's inspired "prayer book," as it is sometimes called). Of course, you will want to intersperse your reading of the psalms with your own prayers, but the psalms should get you going.
Don't forget the "daily office" is God's work in you through his Word--not your work. Beware of both legalism and self-righteousness as you receive his Word in this way. It is he who works in us both to will and to do what he purposes for us (Philippians 2:13)
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Brokenness
It has been a while since I got around to adding anything to the blog. That is not a function of laziness, but of busy-ness, I promise. It is also a function of brokenness.
Brokenness. Not a popular idea. Something we try very, very hard to hide. But it is unavoidable, and the sooner we make peace with our brokenness--by recognizing it, not being surprised by it, and applying the gospel to it--the sooner we will grow in grace, and in graciousness.
I have been extremely busy lately because of the brokenness of others, which in turn feeds my own brokenness. But let me add, because of the gospel that is a good thing. It is good for us to face our own sinful limitations, to find out anew that we are not "together" apart from the gospel. "Apart from me you can do nothing," Jesus said (John 15:5)--but we sure do try. And we sure do fail. And we sure do hide our failure. And it makes no sense for us to do so, but we do anyway.
For his part, Christ loved broken people. The tax collectors and sinners (Luke 5:29-31). The serial adulterers (John 4). The people who sinned, and who owned up to it, and sought his redress for it. When you think about it, that is what all Christians are--people who sin, own up to it, and seek Christ's redress for their sin.
So let's not hide our brokenness unnecessarily. We have nothing to prove before Christ except his gracious redemption (1 Corinthians 1:31). We have nothing to prove before one another except Christ and his gracious redemption.
Brokenness. Not a popular idea. Something we try very, very hard to hide. But it is unavoidable, and the sooner we make peace with our brokenness--by recognizing it, not being surprised by it, and applying the gospel to it--the sooner we will grow in grace, and in graciousness.
I have been extremely busy lately because of the brokenness of others, which in turn feeds my own brokenness. But let me add, because of the gospel that is a good thing. It is good for us to face our own sinful limitations, to find out anew that we are not "together" apart from the gospel. "Apart from me you can do nothing," Jesus said (John 15:5)--but we sure do try. And we sure do fail. And we sure do hide our failure. And it makes no sense for us to do so, but we do anyway.
For his part, Christ loved broken people. The tax collectors and sinners (Luke 5:29-31). The serial adulterers (John 4). The people who sinned, and who owned up to it, and sought his redress for it. When you think about it, that is what all Christians are--people who sin, own up to it, and seek Christ's redress for their sin.
So let's not hide our brokenness unnecessarily. We have nothing to prove before Christ except his gracious redemption (1 Corinthians 1:31). We have nothing to prove before one another except Christ and his gracious redemption.
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