i read these two blog posts (one and two) today about godly friends and tough questions we need to be asking each other.. here's some excerpts:
"Hebrews 3:13 says, ” But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” Godly friends exhort one another to pursue godliness. They ask tough, awkward, probing questions that dig deep into the heart and expose sinful desires. Truly godly friends aren’t afraid to get down and dirty.
Why do godly friends exhort each other? Why do my godly friends ask me tough questions about my struggles with sin? Because they care for me, and they don’t want me to be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
Sin is deceitful, and many times we fail to see our sin accurately. For example, I recently confessed to the guys in my small group that I had been struggling with worry. Thanks to their insightful, and awkward questions, they were able to help me see that my sin went deeper than just worry. I was failing to trust God, and I was being self-sufficient. Their exhortation helped me to see my sin as it truly was. Godly friends help each other see their sin accurately by asking tough questions."
my prayer lately has been to have the courage to be vulnerable, and to expose my sins, because ultimately i know this is the best thing for me--and one of the ways the Lord's goodness blesses me over and over again. i see myself so easily hardened by my sin, and i want to fight that. i want to be faithfully pursuing the Lord, and i want to be pointing my friends towards the Lord. check out the original posts for some good starter questions.
[p.s. the next men and women post is coming soon, i promise! still in draft stages.]
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
God's Design for Men and Women (1)
Earlier this afternoon, I finished reading a book that was filled with lots of great, biblical wisdom—all about God’s original design for men and women, what happened to that design because of the Fall, and how relationships between the two can be redeemed because of Christ. And all of this was eventually tied to implications for the big ‘D’ word that no one likes to actually read about – dating.
So that’s what this upcoming blog series will be about. Let’s start with God’s design in Creation….
Basically, God created everything—and He said it was good… until you keep reading to Genesis 2:18, when God suddenly says that everything was not good. God is talking about a man without a woman, so He provides a woman for the well-being of the man. A woman is formed out of Adam’s rib (Gen. 2:21-23)… and the first relationship between a man and a woman began. God’s purpose in creation envisioned a relationship (practically: marriage). Without this, life is not good for the man.
The woman was not merely the same flesh and bone for Adam, and she was not merely different from Adam in the sense that we realize daily, but she was “suitable” for him, a “helper fit for him.” They fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, evidenced in Genesis 2’s comparison between the animals and birds (created from nothing) and the woman whom God made from Adam’s own flesh.
If we focus on that word helper, it’s easy to see how in our fallen world it can have connotations of something weak and devalued. But if we see what the word looks like biblically, even God was called a helper. He was the helper of Israel; he is called a helper when he feeds a prophet, a widow, and her son; and look at Psalm 121: “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” A woman is not superfluous, but “essential to Adam’s condition and to God’s purpose in the world. Helper is a position of dignity given to the woman by God himself.”
Matthew Henry puts it this way: “The woman was made of a rib out of the side of Adam; not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be beloved. Adam lost a rib…but in lieu thereof he had a helpmeet for him, which abundantly made up his loss.”
“A woman was given to man not for his whims but for his character. She elevates a man in true masculinity. In a perfect paradise not touched by sin, God’s people delighted in his design. Helper was not a position for Eve to fight, but a function for her to fulfill. It is God’s design, bearing his fingerprints for his glory and our good, a design we tamper with at our own peril. As the man delighted in the woman, so also she delighted in her calling and fully embraced it. That is why she is called his “glory” (1 Cor. 11:7). She brings beauty into the world for him. She ministers to him in light of the struggles and trials of his life. She stands beside him. She makes demands on him that God intends for him to fulfill.” And only after she was made from the man and given to Adam could the Bible finally say, "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good" (Gen. 1:31).
And what about the guy? What was he created for? Adam was granted lordship in the Garden, under God’s ultimate sovereignty. This wasn’t emphasizing a privilege, though; it was a lordship of obligation. Male leadership in the home and in the church is also talked about in the New Testament, looking back on the events in the Garden (see 1 Cor. 11:3 and 1 Tim. 2:12-14).
Genesis 2:15 says that “the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” These two key verbs in the Hebrew refer to Adam’s lordship to take the form of nurture and protection—not stoic and unfeeling. He was called to a servant-lordship, while Eve was the servant-helper—complementary ministry according to God’s design. The result of God’s design was perfect companionship.
But we have to remember that this is not a man and woman’s only relationship and often not their only ministry. Most significant is their own relationship to God and the calling to serve him with their gifts and talents. Without this right relationship to God, there is no hope for a right relationship between a man and a woman in God’s design.
Next post: the Fall and its effects on our relationships.
So that’s what this upcoming blog series will be about. Let’s start with God’s design in Creation….
Basically, God created everything—and He said it was good… until you keep reading to Genesis 2:18, when God suddenly says that everything was not good. God is talking about a man without a woman, so He provides a woman for the well-being of the man. A woman is formed out of Adam’s rib (Gen. 2:21-23)… and the first relationship between a man and a woman began. God’s purpose in creation envisioned a relationship (practically: marriage). Without this, life is not good for the man.
The woman was not merely the same flesh and bone for Adam, and she was not merely different from Adam in the sense that we realize daily, but she was “suitable” for him, a “helper fit for him.” They fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, evidenced in Genesis 2’s comparison between the animals and birds (created from nothing) and the woman whom God made from Adam’s own flesh.
If we focus on that word helper, it’s easy to see how in our fallen world it can have connotations of something weak and devalued. But if we see what the word looks like biblically, even God was called a helper. He was the helper of Israel; he is called a helper when he feeds a prophet, a widow, and her son; and look at Psalm 121: “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” A woman is not superfluous, but “essential to Adam’s condition and to God’s purpose in the world. Helper is a position of dignity given to the woman by God himself.”
Matthew Henry puts it this way: “The woman was made of a rib out of the side of Adam; not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be beloved. Adam lost a rib…but in lieu thereof he had a helpmeet for him, which abundantly made up his loss.”
“A woman was given to man not for his whims but for his character. She elevates a man in true masculinity. In a perfect paradise not touched by sin, God’s people delighted in his design. Helper was not a position for Eve to fight, but a function for her to fulfill. It is God’s design, bearing his fingerprints for his glory and our good, a design we tamper with at our own peril. As the man delighted in the woman, so also she delighted in her calling and fully embraced it. That is why she is called his “glory” (1 Cor. 11:7). She brings beauty into the world for him. She ministers to him in light of the struggles and trials of his life. She stands beside him. She makes demands on him that God intends for him to fulfill.” And only after she was made from the man and given to Adam could the Bible finally say, "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good" (Gen. 1:31).
And what about the guy? What was he created for? Adam was granted lordship in the Garden, under God’s ultimate sovereignty. This wasn’t emphasizing a privilege, though; it was a lordship of obligation. Male leadership in the home and in the church is also talked about in the New Testament, looking back on the events in the Garden (see 1 Cor. 11:3 and 1 Tim. 2:12-14).
Genesis 2:15 says that “the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” These two key verbs in the Hebrew refer to Adam’s lordship to take the form of nurture and protection—not stoic and unfeeling. He was called to a servant-lordship, while Eve was the servant-helper—complementary ministry according to God’s design. The result of God’s design was perfect companionship.
But we have to remember that this is not a man and woman’s only relationship and often not their only ministry. Most significant is their own relationship to God and the calling to serve him with their gifts and talents. Without this right relationship to God, there is no hope for a right relationship between a man and a woman in God’s design.
Next post: the Fall and its effects on our relationships.
i love the olympics!
the US men dominated in the swimming relay yesterday; this is easily my favorite moment of the olympics thus far.
here's the story:
BEIJING -- The U.S. men's 4x100m free relay team won gold Monday in the most exciting, most record-breaking, most amazing, thrilling, unbelievable relay anyone could ever imagine, evidence of exactly what Jason Lezak, who swam the greatest anchor leg in relay history, had to say when it was all over:
"People always step up and do things out of the ordinary at the Olympics."
This was even so much more. Extraordinary in every regard.
check out the complete story here.
if you missed it, watch the video!
here's the story:
BEIJING -- The U.S. men's 4x100m free relay team won gold Monday in the most exciting, most record-breaking, most amazing, thrilling, unbelievable relay anyone could ever imagine, evidence of exactly what Jason Lezak, who swam the greatest anchor leg in relay history, had to say when it was all over:
"People always step up and do things out of the ordinary at the Olympics."
This was even so much more. Extraordinary in every regard.
check out the complete story here.
if you missed it, watch the video!
Monday, August 11, 2008
The Journey of Life
This was posted on Pastor John Currid's blog a while ago, and I thought it was interesting:
Today one hears a lot of talk about how each one of us is on a "journey", that is, a journey of life, an adventurous journey, or even a spiritual journey. Indeed, Buddhists talk about the journey of life, and so do astrologers, witches, numerologists, Muslims, and all sorts of religions, pseudo-religions, and even atheists. The language of "journey" has taken over the business world; one can rarely open the newspaper and not hear a bank spouting "we will help you on your journey". But I think, as Christians, we need to be very careful in using such language as "our journey" and "our story" -- for most people today, such language simply reflects a meandering, rambling path that has no purpose, end, or goal. For a post-modern generation there is no telos, that is, no end or purpose. There is no specific destination, but many are simply on the waves of time and chance, and they are being taken wherever circumstances take them. This type of journey has no climax; these people simply do not know where they are going.
The Christian is not on that type of journey. As Thomas Carlyle said, "The man without purpose is like a ship without a rudder." Christians do have an end, a purpose, and a telos: we are on a pilgrimage. We have a definite end and destination. We are heading for the celestial city, the city with foundations, that is, the land that will never perish or fade away (1 Peter 1:4). And even more than that, our pilgrimage is not meandering or wandering or out of control because the steps of our pilgrimage have been set by the very sovereignty of God. We are on a pilgrimage and not an unknown journey. We "follow in his steps" (1 Peter 2:21).
HT: John Currid
Today one hears a lot of talk about how each one of us is on a "journey", that is, a journey of life, an adventurous journey, or even a spiritual journey. Indeed, Buddhists talk about the journey of life, and so do astrologers, witches, numerologists, Muslims, and all sorts of religions, pseudo-religions, and even atheists. The language of "journey" has taken over the business world; one can rarely open the newspaper and not hear a bank spouting "we will help you on your journey". But I think, as Christians, we need to be very careful in using such language as "our journey" and "our story" -- for most people today, such language simply reflects a meandering, rambling path that has no purpose, end, or goal. For a post-modern generation there is no telos, that is, no end or purpose. There is no specific destination, but many are simply on the waves of time and chance, and they are being taken wherever circumstances take them. This type of journey has no climax; these people simply do not know where they are going.
The Christian is not on that type of journey. As Thomas Carlyle said, "The man without purpose is like a ship without a rudder." Christians do have an end, a purpose, and a telos: we are on a pilgrimage. We have a definite end and destination. We are heading for the celestial city, the city with foundations, that is, the land that will never perish or fade away (1 Peter 1:4). And even more than that, our pilgrimage is not meandering or wandering or out of control because the steps of our pilgrimage have been set by the very sovereignty of God. We are on a pilgrimage and not an unknown journey. We "follow in his steps" (1 Peter 2:21).
HT: John Currid
Friday, August 8, 2008
time remains, it does not pass.
there's a great chapter in the knowledge of the holy by a.w. tozer called 'God's infinitude.' to not at all do it justice, infinitude means limitless, and it is obviously impossible for a limited mind to grasp the Unlimited. the depths of the riches both of the knowledge and wisdom of God is incredible, yet this chapter reveals to me just how "unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out." it reminds me of my own limits, or, rather, what i think are limits. this really strikes a nerve along the subject of what i've been learning lately, about time and busyness and rest. tozer says:
"because God's nature is infinite, everything that flows out of it is infinite also. we poor human creatures are constantly being frustrated by limitations imposed upon us from without and within. the days of the years of our lives are few, and swifter than a weaver's shuttle. life is a short and fevered rehearsal for a concert we cannot stay to give. just when we appear to have attained some proficiency we are forced to lay our instruments down. there is simply not time enough to think, to become, to perform what the constitution of our natures indicates we are capable of.
how completely satisfying to turn from our limitations to a God who has none. eternal years lie in His heart. for Him time does not pass, it remains; and those who are in Christ share with Him all the riches of limitless time and endless years. God never hurries. there are no deadlines against which He must work. only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves. for those out of Christ, time is a devouring beast; before the sons of the new creation time crouches and purrs and licks their hands. the foe of the old human race becomes the friend of the new, and the stars in their courses fight for the man God delights to honor. this we may learn from the divine infinitude."
this is such a good reminder of my riches in Christ. i should never treat time as a "devouring beast," for i have been given eternity. i want the satisfaction that lies in turning to a limitless God. as fallen creatures, we have limits. we live in a world where time passes and moves on, yet we're still not of this world. for us, time is eternal and therefore it doesn't end. tozer goes on to say, "in God there is life enough for all and time enough to enjoy it. whatever is possessed of natural life runs through its cycle from birth to death and ceases to be, but the life of God returns upon itself and ceases never." we are given life by God, and it doesn't cease. how thankful we should be, for we don't have to look at time the way that the world does. we are given a gift of time from God, but it's a gift that is eternal, and we should treat it as such.
it's ok if we don't get everything done we have planned for a day, a week, or a year. if time is really eternal, if time really "remains," then we will have time enough for all, and time enough to enjoy God as we should.
"because God's nature is infinite, everything that flows out of it is infinite also. we poor human creatures are constantly being frustrated by limitations imposed upon us from without and within. the days of the years of our lives are few, and swifter than a weaver's shuttle. life is a short and fevered rehearsal for a concert we cannot stay to give. just when we appear to have attained some proficiency we are forced to lay our instruments down. there is simply not time enough to think, to become, to perform what the constitution of our natures indicates we are capable of.
how completely satisfying to turn from our limitations to a God who has none. eternal years lie in His heart. for Him time does not pass, it remains; and those who are in Christ share with Him all the riches of limitless time and endless years. God never hurries. there are no deadlines against which He must work. only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves. for those out of Christ, time is a devouring beast; before the sons of the new creation time crouches and purrs and licks their hands. the foe of the old human race becomes the friend of the new, and the stars in their courses fight for the man God delights to honor. this we may learn from the divine infinitude."
this is such a good reminder of my riches in Christ. i should never treat time as a "devouring beast," for i have been given eternity. i want the satisfaction that lies in turning to a limitless God. as fallen creatures, we have limits. we live in a world where time passes and moves on, yet we're still not of this world. for us, time is eternal and therefore it doesn't end. tozer goes on to say, "in God there is life enough for all and time enough to enjoy it. whatever is possessed of natural life runs through its cycle from birth to death and ceases to be, but the life of God returns upon itself and ceases never." we are given life by God, and it doesn't cease. how thankful we should be, for we don't have to look at time the way that the world does. we are given a gift of time from God, but it's a gift that is eternal, and we should treat it as such.
it's ok if we don't get everything done we have planned for a day, a week, or a year. if time is really eternal, if time really "remains," then we will have time enough for all, and time enough to enjoy God as we should.
Friday, August 1, 2008
what a sabbatical.
you may have noticed i took a short sabbatical from the blogging world from june 3rd up until right now. my mind was overloaded and rest was needed and had. i didn't feel like there was anything i was learning that was really worthwhile to post. but i'm back in action! refreshed and ready to go for a new season of life.
here's a little snippet of what i've been learning this summer. i presented it as my independent study for project: columbia, so when you read this, know that there are many things in it that i wish i had time to develop more.
"I did my study on busyness and the Sabbath because it’s something that I continually struggle with, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly—it never ends, and it’s something that I continually wrestle with. So why am I a slave to busyness, and a slave to something that I have been freed from in Christ? Knowing that I am a slave to it, it’s still something that I like, something that I don’t necessarily want to be freed from. It gives me pleasure, it gives me worth, and ultimately busyness is something in which I find a part of my identity—my identity apart from Christ. That’s not what I was made for and I want to desire to live differently and live obediently to the holy calling of Sabbath and to rest and refreshment in the Lord. Because it is a direct disobedience to God.
I did a lot of study on the Sabbath and learned a lot from looking at this area that I purposely don’t ever think about (even though I want and need my soul to be continually rejuvenated). God gives us the gift of rest in the fourth commandment in Exodus. It is a privilege that I keep it, and I want to think of this as more of a gift, something that benefits me, rather than another religious duty or something that I should do legalistically. Because of the fall, work has been polluted and is described as a painful toil, but God, in his love, wants us to be able to work hard without being worn down by worry—thus the Sabbath. God knew when he was writing these commands that we need rest, and it shows how devoted our God is to loving us despite how foolish we are that we even need a command. The commandment requires rest both physically and spiritually. There is a gladness that comes from relief of the body and according to Genesis 2:3 (“So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.”), there was an inactivity—a simple enjoyment of the world that God made, a delight and thanksgiving in his Creation.
One article I read talked about rest and work as a rhythm that God built into the world when He made it.
I wanted to look at my life and see what this means for me and my busyness that I hold onto. If I know the way God made it, that I am supposed to rest, to seek that out and to make that a holy priority in my life, then why don’t I do it? Ultimately it stems from my own unbelief in the gospel—an unbelief in the Lord’s promise to control my life despite my actions, and an unbelief in the Lord’s sovereignty. It also shows my lack of love for the Lord, because I am not obeying Him in this area, and shows my lack of trust that he will take care of me. God is sovereign over time. One article I read stated, “God sets boundaries of time for our activities, and our submission to those limits represents our trust in him to take care of us. One entailment of God as Lord of time is that we are to recognize time as a gift. We do not control the time we have—God has given it to us and can do with it as he pleases.” We can only humbly receive time from him, and we must be good stewards of it. So there is a tension between using that time wisely for good, and using it to rest. The practice of this in my life is hard. Wisdom is taking every opportunity and fully using the time granted us. It’s in Scripture to both make the most of evangelistic opportunities and also to seek God’s will and cultivate holiness. “To redeem the time means to fill it with divine purpose, not just with any and every activity.”
Another article talked about something called “holy busyness.” It is okay to be busy if it is a balance of working hard as a manifestation of trusting God and cultivating times of rest, but not if we are busy to justify ourselves. It must be grounded in the gospel: Who we are comes before what we do, and we must remember that our relationship with God precedes the activity we do for him. God has provided the gifts of time and work, and we can trust that each is sufficient for the other. Therefore, holy busyness foes not complain about not having enough time, for ultimately such grumbling is directed against God—He has given us our time. But when it comes to rest, we have to remember that God made us creatures before he made us Christians.
Our priority has to be relationship with God, and out of that should flow our activity. “Too much busyness today is not rightly oriented, even if it has good motives, because it has lost sight of the primacy of knowing God.” One question my mind continually comes back to is ‘Do I love my works/ministry/job/people (and even doing these things in the name of the Lord) more than I love Christ Himself?’ I think that hits the heart of the issue. I love what I am doing more than I love Christ, and that is why it is a struggle for me to rest."
here's a little snippet of what i've been learning this summer. i presented it as my independent study for project: columbia, so when you read this, know that there are many things in it that i wish i had time to develop more.
"I did my study on busyness and the Sabbath because it’s something that I continually struggle with, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly—it never ends, and it’s something that I continually wrestle with. So why am I a slave to busyness, and a slave to something that I have been freed from in Christ? Knowing that I am a slave to it, it’s still something that I like, something that I don’t necessarily want to be freed from. It gives me pleasure, it gives me worth, and ultimately busyness is something in which I find a part of my identity—my identity apart from Christ. That’s not what I was made for and I want to desire to live differently and live obediently to the holy calling of Sabbath and to rest and refreshment in the Lord. Because it is a direct disobedience to God.
I did a lot of study on the Sabbath and learned a lot from looking at this area that I purposely don’t ever think about (even though I want and need my soul to be continually rejuvenated). God gives us the gift of rest in the fourth commandment in Exodus. It is a privilege that I keep it, and I want to think of this as more of a gift, something that benefits me, rather than another religious duty or something that I should do legalistically. Because of the fall, work has been polluted and is described as a painful toil, but God, in his love, wants us to be able to work hard without being worn down by worry—thus the Sabbath. God knew when he was writing these commands that we need rest, and it shows how devoted our God is to loving us despite how foolish we are that we even need a command. The commandment requires rest both physically and spiritually. There is a gladness that comes from relief of the body and according to Genesis 2:3 (“So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.”), there was an inactivity—a simple enjoyment of the world that God made, a delight and thanksgiving in his Creation.
One article I read talked about rest and work as a rhythm that God built into the world when He made it.
I wanted to look at my life and see what this means for me and my busyness that I hold onto. If I know the way God made it, that I am supposed to rest, to seek that out and to make that a holy priority in my life, then why don’t I do it? Ultimately it stems from my own unbelief in the gospel—an unbelief in the Lord’s promise to control my life despite my actions, and an unbelief in the Lord’s sovereignty. It also shows my lack of love for the Lord, because I am not obeying Him in this area, and shows my lack of trust that he will take care of me. God is sovereign over time. One article I read stated, “God sets boundaries of time for our activities, and our submission to those limits represents our trust in him to take care of us. One entailment of God as Lord of time is that we are to recognize time as a gift. We do not control the time we have—God has given it to us and can do with it as he pleases.” We can only humbly receive time from him, and we must be good stewards of it. So there is a tension between using that time wisely for good, and using it to rest. The practice of this in my life is hard. Wisdom is taking every opportunity and fully using the time granted us. It’s in Scripture to both make the most of evangelistic opportunities and also to seek God’s will and cultivate holiness. “To redeem the time means to fill it with divine purpose, not just with any and every activity.”
Another article talked about something called “holy busyness.” It is okay to be busy if it is a balance of working hard as a manifestation of trusting God and cultivating times of rest, but not if we are busy to justify ourselves. It must be grounded in the gospel: Who we are comes before what we do, and we must remember that our relationship with God precedes the activity we do for him. God has provided the gifts of time and work, and we can trust that each is sufficient for the other. Therefore, holy busyness foes not complain about not having enough time, for ultimately such grumbling is directed against God—He has given us our time. But when it comes to rest, we have to remember that God made us creatures before he made us Christians.
Our priority has to be relationship with God, and out of that should flow our activity. “Too much busyness today is not rightly oriented, even if it has good motives, because it has lost sight of the primacy of knowing God.” One question my mind continually comes back to is ‘Do I love my works/ministry/job/people (and even doing these things in the name of the Lord) more than I love Christ Himself?’ I think that hits the heart of the issue. I love what I am doing more than I love Christ, and that is why it is a struggle for me to rest."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
