walt & wilf in preaching

Chatting to a teacher the other day, we spoke about looking for outcomes from the lesson. One way that is handled is by each lesson having a WALT ('We Are Learning To') and a WILF ('What I'm Looking For') - what is the intended outcome of the lesson (WALT) and what is the evidence it has been achieved (WILF).

It struck me that it might be useful to adapt that approach to the preaching context - having established the lines of meaning and application in the passage, to ask what I hope people will know, feel & do as a result of listening to the sermon and what the evidence of that might consist in.

It's not particularly revolutionary but maybe it helps to focus thinking on the hearer, rather than the deliverer, and on genuine transformation of lives rather than simply transfer of information.

kindle: sample chapters

Avid readers of this blog (as distinct from aphid readers of this blog, of which there are swarms) will know that I do not have a Kindle, the Amazon ebook reader (again, please feel free to rectify my lack), but that I do have the freely-available PC and iPhone Kindle apps . You buy books in the same way and get to read them on your PC or on your iPhone.

Well, I thought you'd like to know that, most of the time, a sample chapter or so can be downloaded for free, to see if you'd like to buy the book. Yesterday, I downloaded about seven such chapters of books by Don Carson, William Willimon, Craig Blomberg and the likes.

So, my advice is pour yourself a coffee and settle down to read - think of it as a leisurely browse without the prospect of a shop assistant demanding to know if you intend to buy the book and, if not, please put it back on the shelf. And if you've creased the spine, you're paying for it.

the living water

Commenting on Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman and the contrast between the water from the well that Jacob gave to his family and the living water that Jesus offers, Ridderbos very helpfully comments,

the point of this story and the way by which Jesus leads the woman to faith can only be understood against the salvation-historical background of God's revelation to Israel. The gift of water from the well of Jacob was for the Samaritans, like the manna in the wilderness to Israel, a reminder of the sacred tradition - continuing evidence of God's richly salvific involvement with his people through history. When Jesus describes the gift of God in terms from tradition, such as 'living water' and 'bread from heaven', the adjectives 'living', 'true', 'good' and the like are rooted theologically not in an ontological contrast between illusion and reality but in a salvation-historical contrast. What Jesus brings is the fulfilment, the 'truth' and the 'fulness' of the gift of God. Everything that preceded had reference to that fulness, but could not provide it.

(Herman Ridderbos, The Gospel of John: A Theological Commentary, p.157)

a world full of God's love

Psalm 33:5 tells us that the whole earth is filled with Yahweh's unfailing love. It's a nice thought - the world filled with love. But this isn't the warm, gooey love that comes with a box of Roses. It's God's loyal, covenantal love - his hesed, that combination of intimacy and security which is expressed in the self-giving of God himself.

The psalm affirms that the whole earth is filled with this covenant love. It's a remarkable statement at this point in redemptive history, when Yahweh's hesed was particularised in Israel. It isn't the land that is filled with hesed but the earth.

God's particular demonstration of covenant love and loyalty towards Israel was an expression of his covenant faithfulness to the whole of his creation. In places where torah was unknown and the voice of the prophets unheard, Yahweh's covenant love was nevertheless (mysteriously) present.

Maybe it was for this reason Paul felt able to use Psalm 19:4, material that is generally understood to speak of general revelation, as evidence that God's saving message has been heard (Romans 10:16ff).

a pattern of prescience

In John 1, Jesus displays his prescience in his encounter with Nathanael and it takes a particular form: statement by Jesus (v.47); response by Nathanael (v.48a); disclosure by Jesus of his knowledge (v.48b); recognition of Jesus' identity by Nathanael (v.49); a promise of greater things by Jesus (vv.50,51).

In John 4, Jesus displays his prescience in his encounter with the Samaritan woman and it takes a particular form: statement/instruction by Jesus (v.16); response by the woman (v.17a); disclosure by Jesus of his knowledge (vv.17b,18); recognition of Jesus' identity by the woman (v.19); a promise of greater things by Jesus (vv.23,24)

the church as temple

In his helpful material on Exodus, Peter Enns makes the following observations:

For centuries readers of Exodus have seen that the tabernacle is described in a way that makes one think of Genesis 1.

- The tabernacle instructions (Exodus 25-31) are given in six segments, each beginning with “Yahweh said to Moses” (25:1; 30:11, 17, 22, 34; 31:1). “Speaking” these six “creative” words to Moses parallels the six creative words of Genesis 1 (vv. 3, 6, 9, 14, 20, 22).

- The seventh word creative word in Exodus 31:12 introduces the Sabbath command. As in Genesis 1, we see a seven-fold creative act culminating in rest.

- In Exodus 39: 32 we read that the work was “completed.” This is the same Hebrew word used in Genesis 2:2 to refer to the completion of God’s creative work.

- In Exodus 39:43 we read that Moses “inspected the work and saw” that they had completed the work according to plan. Likewise in Genesis 1 God inspects his creative work and “sees” (same Hebrew word) that it was good.

- Just as Moses “blessed” the people after completing the work (Exodus 39:43), God “blessed” (same Hebrew word) his creation in Genesis 1:22, 28; 2:3.

- In Exodus 40:33 we read that Moses “finished the work,” which parallels how God “finished his work” (same Hebrew vocabulary) on the seventh day (Genesis 2:2).

Further, the structure itself has creation overtones. The very fact that it is to be built according to exact specifications, no less than a heavenly “pattern” (Exodus 25:9) speaks to the “ordered” nature of the tabernacle as well as to its “heavenly” identity. The tabernacle is an earthly representation of God’s heavenly temple. Commentators regularly also note that the lampstand (Exodus 25:31-40) represents a tree and so likely symbolizes the tree of life, not only found in the creation story but a common ancient Near Eastern motif. The curtains of the tabernacle are blue, purple, and scarlet linen with cherubim woven into them (Exodus 26:1). This is not just a nice design. Rather, when you walk into the tabernacle and look around, you are to think of the heavenly place the tabernacle symbolizes.

All of this means that the tabernacle is more than a really nice tent. It is a micro-cosmos. It is a smaller version of what God did in Genesis 1. It is a “world” that symbolizes created order. It is a “sacred space” separate from the surrounding “chaos”.

And this is where Israel’s God dwells. Like Marduk in Enuma Elish or Ugaritic Baal, conflict ends in the building of a residence suitable for the high god. The tabernacle is the resting place of the victorious Yahweh. It is not an afterthought. It had to be built in response to the cosmic battle.

And in the NT we're told, over & again, that the church is now the temple of God. Sacred space. Separated from chaos. Orderly and harmonious; reflecting heavenly beauty. A 'place' to encounter the reality of God's own presence.

Which makes me want to pray with Timothy Dudley-Smith:

Lord of the church, we pray for our renewing:
Christ over all, our undivided aim.
Fire of the Spirit, burn for our enduing,
wind of the Spirit, fan the living flame!
We turn to Christ amid our fear and failing,
the will that lacks the courage to be free,
the weary labours, all but unavailing,
to bring us nearer what a church should be.

Lord of the church, we seek a Father's blessing,
a true repentance and a faith restored,
a swift obedience and a new possessing,
filled with the Holy Spirit of the Lord!
We turn to Christ from all our restless striving,
unnumbered voices with a single prayer:
the living water for our souls' reviving,
in Christ to live, and love and serve and care.

Lord of the church, we long for our uniting,
true to one calling, by one vision stirred;
one cross proclaiming and one creed reciting,
one in the truth of Jesus and his word!
So lead us on; till toil and trouble ended,
one church triumphant one new song shall sing,
to praise his glory, risen and ascended,
Christ over all, the everlasting King!

(© Timothy Dudley-Smith)

keller: some thoughts on approaching the big questions

I previously posted a link to Tim Keller's helpful piece on the big questions facing western churches today.

Here are his thoughts on how to approach those questions. Again, very helpful reading.

A taster....

4. We must develop a far better theology of suffering. Members of churches in the west are caught absolutely flat-footed by suffering and difficulty. This is a major problem, especially if we are facing greater 'liminality'--social marginalization--and maybe more economic and social instability. There are a great number of books on 'why does God allow evil?' but they mainly are aimed at getting God off the hook with impatient western people who believe God's job is to give them a safe life. The church in the west must mount a great new project--of producing a people who are prepared to endure in the face of suffering and persecution.

Here, too, is one of the ways we in the west can connect to the new, growing world Christianity. We tend to think about 'what we can do for them.' But here's how we let them do something for us. Many or most of the church in the rest of the world is used to suffering and persecution. They have a kind of faith that does not wilt, but rather grows stronger under threat. We need to become students of theirs in this area.

a joyful discovery

It's what Spotify is so very good at - giving access to jewels you never knew existed or had, at best, only heard rumours of.

The First Of A Million Kisses is one of those diamonds.

And thanks to The Masked Badger for reminding me that this album existed.

Exodus 16 in 2 Corinthians 8

It's another of those 'Not sure I'd have used the OT in quite that way, Paul' passages. And with an interesting twist. A number of things are possibly worthy of comment:

i. He does not give the Exodus text a Christological focus. While all the OT speaks of Jesus, it doesn't (or so it seems) only speak of him. It can be framed to teach NT believers quite directly.

ii. In Paul's use of Exodus 16:17,18 in 2 Corinthians 8:13-15, he aligns the experience of Israel in the wilderness with the church at Corinth. He isn't so much using fulfilment language as equating the two experiences. There is a proper continuity between the two communities.

iii. But there is a twist. In Exodus 16, the implication seems to be that people didn't pick too much or too little, even though it might have seemed that they had. Somehow - and the text could almost be taken to imply God's direct intervention - they all found that they had just the amount they needed. How will such need be met in Corinth and elsewhere? Through the generosity of God's people - those with more than enough will give to those who have too little, and in that way there will be parity.

Is Paul implying that this is what actually happened in Exodus 16, that he is seeing beneath the text to an implication that may not be clear at first sight? Or is he aligning the two experiences in such a way as to suggest that, whilst God may have directly intervened in the past and could still choose to do so today, the real emphasis lies on his people sharing the generous nature of God and taking steps to ensure their brothers and sisters are provided for? Perhaps his use of 'as it is written' is designed to show that there always was intended to be progression from an Exodus 16 type of situation, to the sort of action he is advocating. In which case, it raises the possibility of similar use of the OT in other places.

Maybe.

being authentic

This piece wasn't written for pastors but it contains wisdom that is eminently transferable.

a hundredfold: patriarchal blessing

Isaac inherited God's promises to Abraham. In Genesis 26:12 we're told that he planted crops and in that same year "reaped a hundredfold because YHWH blessed him".

When Jesus spoke of the fruitfulness of his word in people's lives, he spoke of it multiplying thirty, sixty or even a hundred times.

Maybe he had in mind God's blessing of the patriarchs and his promises to them, now coming true through his transforming word.

At Jacob's well

Jesus asks for a drink from a woman. She then takes his offer of living water to the townspeople who also come to believe that he is 'the Saviour of the world'.

Way back in Genesis, Abraham's servant asked a young woman for a drink at a well. Later on, again at a well, Jacob drew water for a young woman's flock.

Maybe we're meant see feel the resonances. A woman deeply mired in shame will share the blessisngs of Rebekah and Rachel. A town of despised Samaritans will share the blessings of Abraham - not through the purity of their lineage but through faith in the Messiah.

messiah & his people: incorporation; representation

In Psalm 28:8 there is a great example of synthetic parallelism that brings out the connection between the people and the Lord's anointed one (Heb. מָשִׁיחַ; mashiakh). "YHWH is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one."

He is their strength and a fortress for his Messiah. The two are bound together; what the LORD is to the King, he is to the people. He represents them and they are incorporated into him.

You get similar ideas in Psalm 84:9 and in Psalm 89:38ff, all preparing the way for the representative and incorporative language of the NT as it speaks of Messiah and his people.

the rule of faith: jesus the messiah

The claim of the NT writers was that

in light of the event of Jesus Christ, the Old Testament takes on new, unforseen significance. This depends on a very particular conviction about the identity of Jesus Christ. In the second century, Irenaeus had a nonbiblical term for it that nonetheless gets to the center of New Testament claims about Jesus: recapitulation. jesus was not just a great teacher, nor was he just God with limbs and a mouth. In Jesus, the whole history of Israel - and through Israel, humanity - was recapitulated, or lived again. But this time the one who was true Israel and true human being did not take the path of the first Adam. As the second Adam, Christ was the righteous one, the perfect human covenant partner. But this perfect covenant partner was also the Word incarnate, the one in whom the fulness of the deity dwelt. If the New Testament writers really believe claims like this about Jesus, then it is logical to apply any Old Testament passage related to the true end of Israel, humanity, and the new work of God that is hoped for in the future to one person Jesus Christ.

If the New Testament writers saw Christ as the key to Scripture, should we as followers of Christ do any different? The idea that Jesus is the road we travel on the journey of biblical interpretation has very deep biblical and christological roots.

J Todd Billings, The Word of God for the People of God: An Entryway to the Theological Interpretation of Scripture, Eerdmans 2010

the great albums (2) - kind of blue

Years ago I'd have been stunned to think I would include a jazz album in a list like this - it just wasn't on my horizon at all. But my defences were slowly taken down by exposure to Humphrey Lyttleton's Best of Jazz on Radio 2 and then this album made me realise I'd turned the corner; decisively so.

I think the motivation for picking-up a copy of Kind of Blue, Miles Davis' masterpiece, was down to it being enthusiastically recommended by Chris Rea. I'm not sure I understand all that's going on in music like this but I really love this album. I wish I could explain it more coherently but I can't.

It just blows so cool.

the kindle app: so easy (and cheaper, too)

If you don't have a Kindle (and I, for one, don't know anyone who has) yet you do have an iPod Touch or an iPhone (and there are hordes of you out there) then the Kindle app for the iPhone is really rather good. It's so easy to get hold of a book - and sometimes (maybe often) cheaper, too. Oh yes, there's a free app for Windows PCs too. So you're not restricted to reading on the small (but entirely adequate) iPhone screen.

Take this one example. Todd Billings' book The Word of God for the People of God looks really interesting. The UK price on Amazon is £11.99. It can be had from Amazon.com for $12.99 but that's extra postage. But on Kindle it's $14.09, which is about £8.75. And delivered to my iPod in seconds.

Brilliant.

little by little

I found this post by Mike Rohde really helpful - I'm trying to take the same approach to reading big books (well, any books actually) - a little bit every day and, lo and behold, one day you get there.

But what I also liked was the emphasis on enjoying the little bit that you're doing. In the past I've been tempted to despise the enormity of the whole task which then translates into something of a dislike of the process involved. I can see now that that need not be.

And what a great sketch, too!

sulk: crazed hysteria

Friday nights are often punctuated by new discoveries on spotify; this week is an album by The Associates that spills 1982 into the air with unerring accuracy - just check out the album cover for starters.

I remember the singles - Party Fears Two in particular - they were odd, club-based songs and not my natural milieu. But something always made me want to listen to Sulk; I think something about them intrigued me.

Well, now I can and it's perplexing, rewarding, unsettling and more. Fascinating. One review said, "Extravagant yet haunted by doubt." Precisely.

lewis: the nearness of god

The relation between Creator and creature is, of course, unique, and cannot be paralleled by any relations between one creature and another. God is both further from us, and nearer to us, than any other being. He is further from us because the sheer difference between that which has It's principle of being in Itself and that to which being is communicated, is one compared with which the difference between an archangel and a worm is quite insignificant. He makes, we are made: He is original, we derivative. But at the same time, and for the same reason, the intimacy between God and even the meanest creature is closer than any that creatures can attain with one another. Our life is, at every moment, supplied by Him: our tiny, miraculous power of free will only operates on bodies which His continual energy keeps in existence - our very power to think is His power communicated to us. Such a unique relation can be apprehended only by analogies: from the various types of love known among creatures we reach an inadequate, but useful, conception of God's love for man.

C S Lewis, The Problem of Pain, p.33

psalm 21 - messiah reigns

The king rejoices in your strength, YHWH.
How great is his joy in the victories you give!

2 You have granted him his heart's desire
and have not withheld the request of his lips.

3 You came to greet him with rich blessings
and placed a crown of pure gold on his head.

4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him—
length of days, for ever and ever.

5 Through the victories you gave, his glory is great;
you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.

6 Surely you have granted him unending blessings
and made him glad with the joy of your presence.

7 For the king trusts in YHWH;
through the unfailing love of the Most High
he will not be shaken.

8 Your hand will lay hold on all your enemies;
your right hand will seize your foes.

9 When you appear for battle,
you will burn them up as in a blazing furnace.
YHWH will swallow them up in his wrath,
and his fire will consume them.

10 You will destroy their descendants from the earth,
their posterity from the human race.

11 Though they plot evil against you
and devise wicked schemes, they cannot succeed.

12 You will make them turn their backs
when you aim at them with drawn bow.

13 Be exalted in your strength, YHWH;
we will sing and praise your might.