Month: January 2017

In Pursuit of Patterson

On January 27, 2017

I just started listening to the podcast “Patterson in Pursuit.” You can find it here.

In episode 2, he discusses the problem of consciousness with Dr. Westacott. He argues that human self-awareness is the one reason he does not hold to a merely physical explanation for existence. Patterson calls himself a reluctant Cartesian dualist. He holds to the reality of the physical world and he holds to the reality of self-consciousness but he is not sure how to connect the two.

In their discussion, the two men bring up several possibilities that might bridge consciousness and physicality. Patterson posits God as an answer. Our self-awareness suggests an awareness of something other. That “other” can help explain the very fact that we have self-awareness. The two men look back to Spinoza, who. among others, suggests a universal mind, which all selves participate in. Patterson is not satisfied with either option. In his mind, they are the philosophical version of the “Deus Ex Machina.”

I’m one of those people, who sees God as the answer. But I don’t want to end my contribution there. I think that it is particularly the doctrine of creation that helps cut through reluctant Cartesian dualism. God, who has his existence in himself, freely chose to create something other than himself. Our physicality is a gift. Consciousness is a gift. Our consciousness is a gift, which allows us to respond to the God who made us.

This helps us understand why we cannot have a comprehensive understanding of “I” without positing something other than ourselves. We are dependent beings. This reflects our lives as humans as well. We begin our lives as babies. Our parents name us. Our parents hand down traditions to us. They, along with our communities, form us before we ever begin to be self-aware. The created order around us already teaches us dependence.

This is a coherent explanation but where is the proof? The proof of creation is in the historical person of Jesus Christ. God has shown who he is in Christ and in the historical documents that teach us about Christ. It is the resurrection, in particular, which proves this. God put new life into that which has no life; he enacts a new creation. Christians look to that work of God in history as their starting point.

n.b. I’ve just started listening so I don’t know how Patterson’s beliefs develop in later episodes.

We Receive our Heritage by the Grace of God

By James

On January 24, 2017

In The Basics

This post is written for those of those, who like me, trace their theological roots back to the reformation of the 16th century.

About a week ago Canadian Reformed Theological Seminary put on a conference about the Reformation. Dr. Ted Van Raalte gave the opening speech. He argued that the Reformation happened by the grace of God. He demonstrated that earthly factors could not account for the reformation

This simple fact seems obvious to Christians (Maybe not to those who don’t see the reformation as a good thing). Even though it is obvious, it remains essential. The gifts that we have and the truth that we believe are all a gift from him. We stand in grace.

It is a warning against idolizing those men who were the means to that reformation as well. God worked through their weakness. It wasn’t the strength of their ideas or their logic that won the day. God won the day, sometimes despite the reformers.

Understanding this is important. It is important for our labor in understanding the scriptures. Here we continue to grow by God’s grace. It is important for how we view other Christians. We are nothing special for our knowledge. It is a gift. God’s Word calls us to humility. We are to demonstrate humility in our interactions with others; including those with less understanding. We are to pray for them. Let us continue as little children, receiving the gifts of our heavenly father.

God’s grace in Christ is indescribable. God’s grace in our history is indescribable. That grace is fundamental to whatever wisdom or knowledge that we have. That grace is the reason we seek to convince and persuade others to join us in the kingdom of God. It is that same grace, which gives us a reason to encourage all Christians to grow in knowing God in an increasingly fuller and better way. For that reason, I want to continue the work of the reformers, both in defending what they grew to understand and in continuing their work of further submission to the word and work of God.

Subjective Truth

By James

On January 22, 2017

In Hermeneutics, The Basics

There is always a certain subjectivity in a response. We evaluate something through a number of pre-conceived notions. Because of these pre-conceived notions, we tend to organize the truth we receive in certain categories. Then we try to structure what we have received according to certain patterns. We test this structure through careful re-evaluation. Even though our response is based on the objective truth we have responded to, there is always an element of subjectivity.

I want to argue that this is a good thing. This is what people should be doing. It’s already part of our nature. We don’t give a bare recitation of facts or truths, rather we work them into a narrative. We do this all the time with history. A good historian doesn’t only give us a bunch of facts, he wants to tell a story with it. It should be the same for reading scripture. In fact, this should be even more true for scripture. God intends scripture to be one book. We are called to find the themes and symbols that bring scripture together.

The problem is that our subjective response is often wrong. Historians go out of their way to prove that other historians have the wrong way of interpreting history. Theologians and exegetes do the same with scripture. Now some of this is due to perspective, but many views actually contradict one another. Somebody has to be wrong. Isn’t it better to just stick to the data?

Absolutely not. If we just “stick to the data” we lose out on our ability to gain a deeper understanding of things. When we study something, we need a structure in order to understand it. The less arbitrary the structure, the better we will remember it.

We also lose the ability to gain a greater understanding of who we are. We are not the result of a set of data points we are the result of a narrative; a story. As Christians, we believe that God is writing the story of the world. Being made in the image of God, we are also storytellers. God wants us to re-tell the story of scripture. He wants us to understand history in light of that story. When we lose the desire to find a structure for that story so that we can re-tell it, we lose some of the impact of that story. We lose the ability to create a shared framework through which to understand ourselves.

Think about this in terms of typology for a moment. We can isolate the figure of David in two ways. We can either isolate him from ourselves, by looking at him as an ancient figure that has little to do with modern life. He is then a data point from scripture, that has something to do with the history of salvation. We can also isolate him from an interpretive framework of scripture, making him a nice moral story that really doesn’t have much to do with history. Or as a part of the history of salvation, we can integrate him into our understanding of the message of the whole of scripture. He becomes a type of Christ and so also a type for us.

The Bible gives us an objective beginning of both an interpretive framework for itself and for history. The beginning is the person of Christ. We often get the details wrong. We miss some data or over-emphasize a theme, but if we begin with Christ, we can be confident that we do have the basic interpretive framework of scripture and of history; that Christ is bringing sons to glory.

Bread and Wine are Necessary

By James

On January 17, 2017

In education, sacraments

Are the forms an important part of the sacraments? Is it necessary that we use bread and wine for the Lord’s Supper? Is it necessary that we use water for Baptism? I would argue that the form of the sacrament is an important part of the sacrament. As a rule, effective sacraments will use the forms that are ordained by scripture.

The importance of the forms of bread and wine.

How do we know certain forms are important? God gives precise rules. He teaches in precise language. We can see this in the detailed description of the construction of the tabernacle and the temple. At the same time, God does not highlight everything. He highlights what is important.

Let’s think for a moment about bread and wine in scripture. One of the first times bread and wine are mentioned in scripture is the story of Abraham and Melchizedek. Melchizedek brings out bread and wine to Abraham when Abraham has just won a victory over Israel. A little later in Genesis, Abraham’s Son Isaac, promise’s his son Jacob the riches of the abundance of the land. These riches are grain and new wine. Bread and wine are the foods that we receive from the land. They exemplify the abundance of the land. This image is there all through scripture.

Along with oil, bread and wine are important substances through all of the scriptures. Oil and bread are used in the sanctuary. Bread is the food that the world produces, glorified by the industry of human hands. Wine is connected to kings and the joy and the peace a righteous king brings. Wine is the eschatological drink. Abraham may enjoy wine once he has defeated his enemies. The Nazirite may take wine after he has completed his vow. It is not surprising that the righteous king, Jesus, chooses bread and wine to represent his body. It is his body that will provide abundance for his new creation.

To choose other forms, such as chips and pop instead of bread and wine is to lose some of the rich imagery that is connected to bread and wine.

Rules with exceptions.

But does this mean that those who use other forms do not participate in the grace of God? I do not think that we can say that. We can say they miss something by participating without the forms. This in part depends on the heart of the reason for choosing a different form. It may be that wine and bread are in short supply. It may be that there is a misunderstanding by those who are willing to exchange the given forms for others. (We also need to be careful to be careful not to box in God, with doctrines that he himself has not given.)

A helpful proverb here is “Too whom much is given much is required.” Those who know better and those who are able to provide the given forms should do so. But we also trust that our God is a merciful God who understands our weaknesses.

We can learn another helpful lesson from Malachi 3: 14, “The deceiver is cursed who has an acceptable male in his flock and makes a vow but sacrifices a defective animal to the Lord.” We know from the New Testament that these sacrifices in themselves did not do anything. They only did so far as they pointed to Jesus Christ. Yet at the same time God cared about the form (that an acceptable male was offered) of the sacrifice. He saw that the form showed a lack of obedience in the heart. The simple command of God is to bring bread and wine. That is important to him. We demonstrate obedience by obeying this simple command. However, even in the supposedly more formal Old Testament, God allowed for the fact that a person might not be able to bring an acceptable male. God will be merciful to our weakness.

We learn then that God does give exceptions for those who are weak. But that does not mean that God cares only about the heart, not the form that is offered. He sees the form as a demonstration of a heart. This is a rule we can gather from reading scripture. However, it is a rule with exceptions.

Bible Curriculum

By James

On January 12, 2017

In education

How do you teach the whole Bible in a constructive way? In a way that gives the student a full grasp of what it is all about? Here is a quick draft of a possible four-year program for Bible teaching.

Year 1: A call to holy war

Genesis: Faith

Exodus: Deliverance

Leviticus: Holiness

Numbers: Perseverance

Deuteronomy: Law

Joshua: Holy War

Year 2: A king of salvation

Judges: The fallen bride

Ruth: a savior will be born

1-2 Samuel: A king for Israel

Job: A suffering king

Psalms: The wisdom of prayer

Proverbs: The wisdom of God’s instruction

Song of Songs: The wisdom of love

Ecclesiastes: The wisdom of Joy.

Year 3: The death and resurrection of Israel

Isaiah: The ax is at the roots.

1-2 Kings: Disobedient Israel

Jeremiah-Lamentations: God’s Lawsuit

Ezekiel: God’s heavenly temple for a disobedient Israel.

Daniel and Esther: Intercession for Israel

The book of the 12: Swallowed up and spit out by the nations.

Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah: The re-establishment of Israel.

Year 4: Putting on Christ

Matthew: Christ the lawgiver

Mark: Christ the warrior king

Luke-Acts: Christ heals a broken people

John: Christ tabernacled among us.

Paul’s letters: A new creation

Hebrews: A new administration

James: The complete man

1-3 John: A new commandment

1-2 Peter, Jude: Preserved from the destruction of the old world.

Revelation: The coming Jerusalem

My divisions and themes are, in a large part, due to reflection on the work of James Jordan.

Is the Non-Aggression Principle Biblical?

By James

On January 5, 2017

In Applied Hermeneutics, Libertarianism

In a recent blog post, I argued that the NAP was an expression of God’s justice. In that article, I assumed the biblical nature of the NAP and argued via the doctrine of the “image of God” that the NAP necessarily is an expression of both divine and human justice.

This, of course, begs the question, is the NAP biblical? Does the Bible teach the NAP? Literally, the Bible does not teach the NAP. The Bible never tells us that the most important principle of social co-operation is non-aggression. I would argue, however, that when we reflect on Biblical teaching, we can demonstrate that the NAP is a reasonable way to summarize biblical teaching on social ethics.

I don’t have time to give a full argument. Instead, let me give some impressions on biblical teaching

1. Creation and the NAP (Adam’s vocation and the image of God)

When Adam and Eve are created They are given the command to take dominion. He is to mix his labor with the land around him and so show ownership over the land. This work begins with a garden that God himself has planted. God reserves rights over the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam sins by transgressing on God’s property, rather than enjoying the other gifts that God has given him.

Adam and Eve are also given the image of God. God has imprinted them with righteousness and holiness. They reject that gift by attempting to attain the uniqueness of God on their own terms. In seeking to be like God (This is the temptation of the serpent), they challenge the uniqueness of God and attack his image. They now deserve the punishment of exile and death. God deals with them according to the NAP.

2. Israel and the NAP (Holy War and the Law)

Israel’s war on the Canaanites seems to violate the NAP. Except we are shown in Genesis 15: 16 that the Israelites will be the hand of God to punish the Amorites for their iniquity. The Canaanites are condemned justly for their destruction of God’s image in themselves and one another. We can see some of the cruelty of the Canaanites in Judges 1, where Adoni-Bezek is punished for his cruelty toward 70 kings, with the same indignity he meted out to them.

Further, the ten commandments given to Israel are all in accord with the NAP. The first four are all an attack and God and the image of God in man. The 5th commandment condemns ignoring the natural authority of parents; an authority which God has instituted. An attack on that natural authority also constitutes an attack on God’s authority. The 6th and 8th commandment are obvious; both condemn an attack on somebody’s person or property. The 7th commandment condemns an attack on the image of God in man through sexual sin. It also condemns the breaking of the only contract that is grounded in nature. (see 1 Corinthians 6:16) The 9th commandment condemns attacking a person’s life or property through lies in court. Finally, the tenth commandment condemns the heart that desires to do any of these things.

3. The Nations and the NAP (A lawsuit over violence)

God does not treat Israel, Judah, and the nations in the same way when it comes to his lawsuit against them. In Amos 2, Judah is condemned for disobeying the statutes of God. Israel, or the northern part of the kingdom of David and Solomon, no longer connected to the temple, is condemned for cruelty and for sexual immorality. The other nations, given in Amos 1, are almost unequivocally condemned for cruelty. We have a similar situation in Nahum, where the nation of Assyria is condemned for cruelty.

4. The Church and the NAP

The church inherits the law of God, as it has been transformed in Christ. Christ has covered our aggressions against God. From an earthly perspective, those who confess Christ continually remain in the church. Those who deny Christ, whether verbally or by demonstrating a love for sin by continuing in and celebrating their sin are removed from the communion of the church by the elders of the church.

5. The Civil Magistrate and the NAP

The role of the civil magistrate is outlined in Romans 13. The civil magistrate is called to protect the righteous and to bear the sword against the wicked. The most natural way to interpret this is that the civil magistrate should punish the wicked men who commit violence (coercion) against the righteous. This violence is exclusively directed at person and property.

I hope these short impressions will help in understanding how the NAP is Biblical.

Narrative, Poetry, and Prophecy

By James

On January 5, 2017

In Uncategorized

I recently wrote a blog post on telescoping and argued that typology would be a better way of talking about what was to come. I believe I was wrong and I was right.

There is truth in telescoping, in the idea that both author and reader could see beyond the first fulfillment. I did not need to condemn telescoping. They could see the greater mountain peak behind the first fulfillment. Perhaps they could even guess at a greater mountain peak behind that one. In prophetic literature, it is often the Lord himself who gave the prophecy. The prophet would have seen the fulfillment of the Lord’s words, but as he studied those words it is likely he would have seen the promise of greater fulfillment.

The problem with telescoping is that it is a hermeneutical principle that is limited to prophesy.

I want to propose that both typology and telescoping apply to every genre of biblical literature. When David writes in Psalm 110, “The Lord said to my Lord, sit down at my right hand,” he wrote because of what the Lord had done in his time and in his life. At the same time, he guesses at the further mountain peaks, which will fulfill that poetic truth he has written down. This is not a prophecy, it is a poem. When Moses sits down and writes down the story of his early life, he guesses at what further things God will do, based on what God has done in his life. Telescoping is not limited to prophecy. Typology is not limited to narrative. The Word of the Lord, in whatever genre, allows its readers to guess at what is coming in the future and at the same time to recognize the type when it comes.