Papias' Logia

Fixed photos

2012-01-30T22:48:00.000-06:00

Black & White

2012-01-25T23:09:00.005-06:00

Snowy Owl

2012-01-17T20:57:00.000-06:00

Geese @ Squaw Creek

2012-01-17T20:51:00.001-06:00

Purple Iris

2011-08-03T14:42:00.000-05:00

Getting Kicked Out of High School Band and Other Fallout

2011-08-02T12:08:00.000-05:00

My freshman year I was in the HS marching band and in ROTC (yeah, you could have pasted a “IMADORK” sign to me). In ROTC, I was also in the Drill team/Color Guard class, so I had two classes of ROTC, and two of band. I knew how to march.

The band had raised money to march in Ronald Reagan’s 1980 inaguaral parade, but another CA band was picked over us. (Nice intro to political process). So we had this money we raised, and needed to go somewhere – and Hawaii was picked as the destination to go to over the Easter break. There was supposed to be a band competition, but it really wasn't.

We had to bunk up three people to a room, and I got picked by my section leader and his buddy to be roomates – as they told me, “We know that you won’t talk about what we are doing here”. They kicked me out of the room to have girls over, drink beer, and smoke pot. They did this most every night.

The last night there, I get back to the room and they are pretty wasted and the girls are gone. They had to get rid of the beer, so they told me to drink the rest of one. A few minutes later, there’s a knock at the door, I answer it, and its the band director and the VP. They come into the room, and after a few tense minutes, tell us that we will discus this back home.

I was kicked out of the band and suspended for a few days from school.

At the end of the school year(month or so later) the ROTC has their awards dinner. As part of the Drill Team/Color Guard, I earned some ribbons that I did not get. I asked the teacher about this later, and he stated “You are not going to get those ribbons due to that incident” – he meant the band incident. I told him that that was band and had nothing to do with ROTC, and he said it did, and that was that.

The politics of having to maintain the “proper look” was a bit of a surprise to a high school kid. I became upset about ROTC, and when a buddy of mine quit mid way through the next, I wanted to as well. The teacher actually had the gall to call my parents and try to convince them to make me stay in ROTC, but I had made up my mind to get out of the political game. This upset my parents to no end, but later on when I told them about the ribbon fiasco, (which they had not known about), they understood why I did what I did.

I don't regret getting kicked out of the band or leaving ROTC. It was part and parcel of growing up and figuring out that I wasn't going to have those labels attached to me.

Voodoo the Leopard

2011-07-29T10:40:00.000-05:00

John Chrysostom Quote

2011-07-28T10:49:00.000-05:00

Let no one grieve at his poverty,

for the universal kingdom has been revealed.

Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again;

for forgiveness has risen from the grave.

Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free.

He has destroyed it by enduring it.

—John Chrysostom, bishop of Constantinople; sermon, ca. 400

Prayer from Clement's Letter to the Corinthians

2011-07-14T11:22:00.000-05:00

Read this prayer from the Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians:

1 Clem. 59:3 [Grant unto us, Lord,] that we may set our hope on Thy Name which is the primal source of all creation,
and open the eyes of our hearts,
that we may know Thee,
who alone abidest Highest in the lofty,
Holy in the holy;
who layest low in the insolence of the proud,
who settest the lowly on high, and bringest the lofty low;
who makest rich and makest poor;
who killest and makest alive;
who alone art the Benefactor of spirits and the God of all flesh;
who lookest into the abysses,
who scanest the works of man;
the Succor of them that are in peril,
the Savior of them that are in despair;
The Creator and Overseer of every spirit;
who multipliest the nations upon earth,
and hast chosen out from all men those that love Thee through Jesus Christ,
Thy beloved Son, through whom Thou didst instruct us,
didst sanctify us,
didst honor us.
1 Clem. 59:4 We beseech Thee, Lord and Master, to be our help and succor.
Save those among us who are in tribulation;
have mercy on the lowly;
lift up the fallen;
show Thyself unto the needy;
heal the ungodly;
convert the wanderers of Thy people;
feed the hungry;
release our prisoners;
raise up the weak;
comfort the fainthearted.
Let all the Gentiles know that Thou art the God alone,
and Jesus Christ is Thy Son,
and we are Thy people and the sheep of Thy pasture.

An Example of Humility from Clement Letter to the Corinthians

2011-07-13T13:42:00.000-05:00

While re-reading Clement's epistle to the Corinthians, I am fascinated by this quote:

"We know that many among ourselves have delivered themselves to bondage, that they might ransom others. Many have sold themselves to slavery, and receiving the price paid for themselves have fed others." Chapter 55.

Did people sell themselves into slavery so that they might get the release of others, or feed others? It would seem to be the case, if true.

Back in the day, if you fell into debt and had no other way of paying it off, you could sell yourself into being your creditors slave. Depending on how you were treated, it wasn't always a bad deal: Your master had to feed, clothe, and provide housing to you until you paid off your debt. Depending on how you were treated, you could decide to stay with your master and become their bondservant.

But to sell yourself into slavery for someone else - who does this kind of thing? I suppose that if my wife and kids were needing to be released from slavery, I might do it without thought.

Would I sell myself into slavery for someone else? What about another family member, a good friend, or even a complete stranger? That would take some serious "hearing from God", the farther away from me you are(thinking 6 degrees of seperation here).

Which all causes me to wonder, "How far am I willing to go for someone else?"

Redbud Tree in Spring

2011-04-26T10:49:00.000-05:00

Painted Horse in Fog

2011-03-04T15:40:00.002-06:00

Cast Out - Part 14

2011-03-01T16:15:00.002-06:00

Sunrise came to the parking lot of the Club Store, with many cars already parked near the front. A few people had begun to mill around the entrance, waiting for it to open and talking amongst themselves. Some of them were armed with handguns, not quite hidden by their jackets. Others were trying to look inside the store, while some had decided to stay in their vehicles until the store opened.

At 7AM, the store opened and the parking lot seemed to come to life. Some of those who had been in the front of the store began to push their way inside. People began to shout and then scream as the panic started.

Someone fired a gun. More screams and panic ensued. People were being trampled on as their bodies blocked the front of the store.

Then some of them started to get up.

Some got up like they were awakening from sleep, looked around, and then began to attack those trying to get by them, grabbing them by the legs and pulling them down. Screams and more gunshots filled the air, as blood sprayed the air, ground and windows.

A handful of people who had been sitting in their vehicles got out and made their way to the trunks of their cars and backs of their trucks. They began to unload their hunting rifles and shotguns, grabbing a few stray shopping carts and loading them with ammo crates. While panic ensued at the front of the store, they nodded to each other and began to push their carts towards the entrance. One of them without a cart walked in front of the rest, pulling his pistol from behind his back. Seeing this group, several more people began to get out of their cars and followed.

He calmly walked towards the mayhem, paused, raised his gun, and shouted out “Hey! Over here!” One of the bodies on the ground turned looked at him. The body had black eyes. Before it could raise itself off the ground, a bullet ripped the top of its head off. More of the infested bodies started to stand, but were quickly dispatched themselves.

After the entrance was cleared of bodies, the group pushed their carts forward. Loud moans made them stop.

The noise had attracted ghouls within a radius of the Club Store. They were now swarming to the source of the commotion.

The people slowly making their way to the entrance looked to the left side of the store. About 20 figures were making their way towards them. On the right side of the store, about 15 more bodies. And behind them, more were coming from the direction of the street. A few stumbled out of the restaurant from across the parking lot.

“There’s too many! Get inside the store!” said the shooter.

The group quickly pushed the carts around the bodies and into the store, while the shooter yelled at everyone else to get inside. Others were already inside, screaming at the store manager to close the doors.

At last the shooter came in and said “That’s it! Close the doors! No one else is out there!”

The dead were getting closer with every moment.

“Lock the doors!” the shooter shouted. Others shouted as well. The shooter turned around to face the crowd.

“Who’s locking the doors!?” NOW!!”

“ME!” said a running man with a vest. With the shooter next to him, the manager locked the outer glass doors. They turned around and faced a gun pointed past them.

“NO!!” said the shooter. “No shooting outside! You’ll break the windows! Get inside the store!”

Between the glass doors the store, they had warehouse rollup doors.

“Can we lock those doors?” the shooter asked.

“Try and stop me!” the manager yelled.

Once they got everyone else inside, they closed the doors and secured them.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Some sat on the floor and cried.

“Thanks.” The shooter said to the manager, breathing heavy. Looking at the managers nametag, he asked him, “Randy? That you?”

“Yeah, no problem. Good job yourself.” The manager said to the shooter, also out of breath. “You?”, he said with a head nod.

“Dan”.

“So Dan, how did you…..get to be a..such a good shot?” Randy asked.

Dan replied, “Comes with being a cop”. Randy nodded, as did Dan. They both looked down at the floor.

Blood had been tracked all over the floor.

Both of them exhaled, and said nothing.

Cast Out - Part 13

2011-02-25T11:01:00.002-06:00

Pam awoke to the sound of moans outside of her apartment, She looked at the clock – 4:30AM.

“Who could it be at this hour?” she thought.

She slid out of bed and put on her robe, quick and quiet, and went down the hallway. She peeked into each of the kids rooms, and then went toward the front door.

She grabbed the baseball next to the door, and with both hands on it, placed it on her shoulder. She took her opposite shoulder and looked out the peephole.

The lights in the foyer were always too bright, but tonight she didn’t mind them so much.

In a moment her eyes adjusted to see a couple of people moving around outside of her neighbors door across the foyer.

Pam saw her neighbors door open and the people outside went into his apartment. She heard some muffled voices and then silence. “Maybe they were his friends?”, she thought. “I may have to say something to him about his friends waking me up.” She turned away from the door, put the baseball bat down, and began to tiptoe back to bed.

The sound of a hand striking the door startled her. She stopped. Then came the sound of the hand hitting the door again, this time harder. “What could they want?” she thought to herself.

She didn’t move. She didn’t turn around. She breathed through her mouth, not making a sound. In her mind, she prayed. She decided to not answer the door.

The hand hit the door again. And again.

And then it stopped.

“Whoever it was must have found something more interesting than my door”, she thought. She soon heard a voice and then..nothing.

Still not moving or turning around, she stood there until she could not hear the sounds of shuffling of feet and the sound of moans any longer.

Every few minutes she heard muffled screams from elsewhere outside her apartment. She stood there, praying, and praying hard.

After what seemed like an hour, she turned around and ever so gently moved toward her door. She again looked out her peephole, but saw no one and nothing else, but a stain on the wall across the foyer. She shuddered. Tears started to come down her cheek, as she realized that the stain was blood.

It was daybreak before she moved away from the door.

She tiptoed into the kitchen and turned on the little TV they had there, not turning on any other lights. She leaned against the counter and watched the news, not believing what she was hearing.

She was glad that she had not opened the door.

After watching the news for awhile, she decided that the best course of action was going to be staying put for awhile. She had to quietly get the kids up and let them know not to make any noise. Keeping quiet was going to be their plan, until a better one came up, or they ran out of food, whichever came first.

Ice is nice

2011-02-25T09:37:00.001-06:00

And no, I have not forgotten about writing my Zombie story....thanks for visiting!

Just cause...

2011-02-18T16:47:00.000-06:00

I haven't written anything for awhile, and I wanted to post something!

Cast Out - Part 12

2010-12-31T11:10:00.000-06:00

Hank was ambivalent about owning the donut shop. His dad had built and ran it for years, until he retired and gave it to his son. Hank loved his dad, but the shop kept his dad busy or tired, so when his dad died a few years later, he thought about selling the store and moving on. But donuts was what he knew, and going back to school just didn’t interest him.

While people loved the donuts Hank made, they didn’t much care for his bad attitude, some even took it as part of the “experience”. This made sure that the shop never got too big or busy, or that they expanded into franchises. Actually, they sold more donuts when Hank went on vacations, a fact in which he was acutely aware. The shop was also successful because of its great location. Being between the hospital and Hanks house, he missed anything happening around the hospital.

Hank got to the shop around 3AM, his usual time, and turned on the lights in the kitchen area. Working by himself, he was able to start mixing batches before the rest of his crew came in at 4 and they opened the doors at 5. He preferred to work in silence, with only the noise of the mixers and the hum of the fluorescent lights overhead to keep him thinking about…being away from donuts.

Around 4AM he unlocked the front door for his crew and went back to work. He still had not given anyone else a spare key to let themselves in, something learned from his dad. He thought about this for a moment, and then went back to work.

About 10 minutes later he began to wonder when the crew was going to arrive - they were late.

Soon afterward, he heard the front door open and the shuffling of feet on the old linoleum floor. He glanced up at the circular mirror to see who was entering, and he saw what looked like people stumbling in the dark, in front of the counter. “Customers already?” he thought.

“We open at 5.” He said nicely, but forceful. He went back to work.

No answer. He saw them standing there still, not moving.

“Folks, no donuts yet. Come back at 5.” He said with more conviction.

He looked up at the mirror again, and still they were not leaving. There were maybe a half dozen of them.

“No donuts!..” Hank said as flipped on the light and went out front. He looked at the people waiting on the other side of the counter - something about them wasn’t right. A few of them seem to have hospital gowns on, and the rest of them had clothes that were torn and ripped.

He raised his eyes and looked at their faces. One in front had his head down, but the rest ….all he saw was the large black eyes that seemed to bore into his soul.

The one in front raised his head and looked at Hank as he spoke in a deep inhuman voice, “Join us!” as the rest came around the counter and grabbed Hank.

Before Hank knew what was happening, they had bitten into his arms and drove him to the ground. His last thought was of complete terror, and then all went dark.

After killing him, they moved away from his body.

Hank’s body soon awoke with black eyes and then got up from the floor.

Leaving the shop, the group saw the light of the 24 hour diner down the street, and shuffled off towards it.

Cast Out - Part 11

2010-12-24T14:54:00.001-06:00

Continued from Part 3

Walt was back on the road a few hours after the accident. He had been interviewed by the police, and gave his statement to them, but leaving out the exchange he had with …what was he going to call it? A crazy person? Someone with a death wish? A demon?

The police told him that they had heard strange things going on that night, and they had been warned about dead people attacking the living. They were told that they could shoot on site anyone who they know had died and was now alive. They checked the condition of the occupants of the other car with the paramedics, pulled them aside for a minute, and then followed the ambulance when it left.

“That was strange – the dead attacking the living? The 911 operator told him, now the police were telling him the same thing.” Walt thought.

No it really happened, and he needed time to process it. He drove away from the scene and down the highway, missing the exit he had planned on stopping at, his mind too busy to put the pieces together. He decided to drive on through the night, get to his destination by morning, and hope he didn’t catch heck for getting there too early.

After getting his bearings, he pulled the semi truck over and called his wife. They talked about the accident. He didn’t mention to her the exchange though. “Why bother until he was able to tell her face to face?” Walt thought. They agreed to meet the next day just outside of Kansas City and stock up at the club store, after he dropped his load and his truck. He asked her to bring his hunting rifle and handgun, along with all the ammo she could put in their truck. They prayed, told each other “I love you”, and hung up,

Starting up his rig, he turned on his radio. He heard the announcer talking about the nights events elsewhere. “So this is what we do know: About 4 hours ago, every person who has died within the last few days has come back to life and attacked the living, trying to eat them. Yes, if it sounds like a zombie movie, then….that’s what we believe is happening right now! So far, authorities believe that they have the situation under control in most areas. People are asked to proceed with caution near any dead bodies, and if any bodies come back to life, they are to run away and call the police immediately!”

Another voice broke in, this time a woman, “Chris, Do we know how this started? Was it a virus or chemical agent or….. something else?”

Chris responded, “Laura, No one knows how it started, but it seems to have started everywhere at once, so any talk about viruses or localized outbreak…..seems premature at this point. I mean, all over the world? How could this happen all at once?”

Laura asked, “How long after a person dies do they become…let’s just call them…zombies? How does it happen?

Chris answered, “For how long it takes, we have reports …. that if someone dies, it only takes a few seconds for them to …..change.” He paused, and not for effect. “No one seems to know how it happens, how the dead become alive again….at least not yet.”

Laura paused, and then asked, “What about the dead ….. talking? I have heard that some have reported them talking to people…before they….”.

Chris replied, “I have heard that as well. I don’t know what causes that. I don’t know if anyone knows why they are talking, if it’s happening.”

That made Walt drop his jaw.

“It sounds crazy, but I think I know why they talk!” Walt thought to himself.

“What was that I was listening to last week?” He grabbed his MP3 player and scrolled until he found the recording he was looking for. He played and listened to the pastor read and then explain from the Book of Revelation, chapter 12:

“And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”

“Folks, let me ask you a question: Did you know that at the present time Satan is not in hell? In fact, did you know that he has never been to hell? And did you know that when he finally does get to hell, he's not going to be in charge? In fact, when the devil gets to hell, he will be the lowest being there. He will be assigned the most horrible punishment of any creature ever made. He is not the king of hell. He is not in hell. And he's never been there.

In fact, he spends most of his time, according to this text, where? In heaven. Did you know that Satan who was once the anointed cherub, exalted above all other angels living in heaven with God, even now still spends most of his efforts before the throne of God? He still has access to heaven and he's not yet sentenced to hell. In fact, as I said, he's never been to hell…

Now Michael and the holy angels win a very decisive battle. . the end result catapults Satan and all of his hosts out of heaven down to earth and that explains why the Tribulation is such a terrible, terrible time. Because now all the demons of the universe have hit the earth. No more access to heaven. Literally verse 8 says, "No longer was any place found for them in heaven." No longer can they come before the throne of God…

He was thrown down. Down means down to earth, it says at the end of verse 9, "And his angels were thrown down with him." And what makes the Tribulation in part so horrible is not just the judgment of God, but it is the arrival of Satan and all of his fallen minions landing on the earth. That spells really the end of his time as prince of the power of the air and his whole operation is confined to the earth. And, of course that means that all the demons are fully occupied here in this very place. That horrifying, indescribable and unbelievable epoch of time is waiting..”

Walt had to stop the truck. Tears were streaming down his face.

He sat there listening for a few minutes and then stopped the mp3 player.

He asked, “Is this what’s going on?”

He didn’t get an audible answer, but he did feel a sense of peace, one like he had never felt before.

Wiping the tears away, he started the truck and got going down the highway.

Cast Out - Part Dyes-Yat

2010-12-23T11:44:00.000-06:00

Until last week, practically no one outside of Russia had heard of the Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam. But a few days ago, that all changed. This was the largest power plant in Russia, and the sixth-largest hydroelectric plant in the world. It is now no more.

A few days ago, sometime after midnight, the Dam failed and burst. The flood wave, estimated from 100 to 150 meters high and moving at 200km per hour, destroyed several towns, before moving on to more heavily populated areas of Abakan within an hour. The wave then reached the Krasnoyarskaya Dam and caused its failure as well. The resulting wave reached the city of Krasnoyarsk, and the residents there had little warning. The only news to the outside world consisted of bloggers and social networks providing video, and then the networks picked up on those feeds.

Russian military personal were performing flyovers within the hour, and rescue operations were being mobilized soon afterward. The shear level of devastation was mind boggling, and there were few areas that were not affected by the destruction. The Yemelyanovo airport in Krasnoyarsk was chosen as the site for rescue command and governmental HQ, but it first needed to be cleared of debris and the dead.

The numbers of dead were being reported to top officials in Moscow, and upon hearing the sheer numbers, various scenarios were being considered by those in the know.

The death toll was estimated to be at least 500,000 persons, and was suspected to climb even higher.

Russian news media was on scene within three days, when rescue operations switched over to recovery and clean up efforts. A news helicopter flew over Krasnoyarsk the next day, and where was once no one, spotted people milling about, shambling and limping in all directions. When the helicopter circled about the open city square, people looked up and raised their arms at them. The camera crew continued filming, as they zoomed the camera in, close enough to see faces. What they saw shocked them.

Everyone had deep black eyes.

And they all seemed to be speaking, almost in unison. But what were saying, no one knew at the time.

A convoy of rescue vehicles pulled down the street toward the square. The news crew continued filming, as the mob took notice of the convoy, and began to move towards it, limping and stuttering. The news crew watched in horror as the rescue personal were set upon by the mob and ….attacked and eaten.

The news crew reported this to the authorities on scene and sent their footage along as proof. They in turn informed Moscow. The news was not received well. It seemed as though whatever was affecting the disaster area was also affecting the rest of the country, and “it” appeared to have started at the same time. A decision needed to be made, and made quickly.

General Makarov called for options, and he was presented with several. The most favored one was agreed upon, and presented to the President. He agreed, on the condition that there would be additional ground verification before this option was carried out. He agreed that the option could proceed with preparations, should the verification turn out to be positive.

The Spetsnaz “Alpha” group located in the city of Yekerinburg was tasked with obtaining ground verification from Krasnoyarsk. The “Alfas”, a counter-terrorist unit, was trained in airborne operations, firearms (with silencers), and had the latest night vision gear. Their helicopters are also equipped with the latest equipment, modified for their own use.

Flying over Krasnoyarsk, the pilot informed the crew that he saw multiple bodies down in the primary landing spot. The co-pilot, running the display, informed the crew that he saw no human heat signatures below them. Whatever they were (and everyone suspected, but no one said it out loud), they were not alive. They went to their secondary LZ, verified visually that it was clear, and dropped their troops. The hilos flew towards their standby station, to await the request for extraction. It didn’t take long for the ground troops to make contact and request pickup, as positive confirmation was made. The information was sent up the chain of command, without the additional commentary from the soldiers about “zombies”.

The planes had been in the air for some time when the order came through. They proceeded to the Krasnoyarsk area, carrying their deadly cargo.

All ground personal in the area were ordered to leave their post at once and be outside of the area by dawn.

About 8 AM local time, the first of the Thermobaric Bombs were dropped in the area. The bombs each have the destructive power of a small tactical nuclear weapon, but without the radioactive fallout. Everything alive in the blast zone was incinerated. After Krasnoyarsk was leveled, some of the other planes moved towards Abakan, and ended near the remains of the Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam.

Confirmation of the delivery was given to the President. He thanked the general who gave him the update, and then turned to face the other issues of the day, mostly having to do with the dead throughout the city and the country. He asked his staff “When are we going to start calling them what they are?”

After a slight hesitation, someone said “Zombies”. It turned out to be the President.

Cast Out - Part 9

2010-12-22T12:34:00.000-06:00

The coup had gone better than expected, but more people had to be executed than desired.

While many people had to be killed, it seemed as though peace would finally come to the small African nation, at least for awhile. Who would have guessed that less than a week before, the president was alive and the government - seemingly stable? All that had changed in the last few days.

The soldiers were ordered to round up as many of the government officials and their families as could be found, and to put them in prison. They also gathered up as many of the supporters of the old regime they could find: Military officers, politicians, lawyers, professors, and teachers. The new leader wanted to make sure that any opposition was “done away”. Any who would not swear allegiance immediately while in jail was marked out. Those were told that they would be attending a “re-education camp”. Their entire family was taken out, put into trucks, and driven outside the city. When they arrived, they saw that there was no camp, only armed men. They were pulled off the truck, some kicking and screaming, and promptly executed - Men, women, and children. Cries of mercy fell on deaf ears. This pattern was repeated over the course of several days.

Now workers were preparing the mass graves with a bulldozer, while others stood by with shovels. A number of soldiers were observing the work, and some smoked while watching the preparations. A few laughed and joked, making gestures, reenacting the last moments of some of the people they had executed. They had assault rifles, shotguns, and a few bolt action rifles, as they guarded the dead bodies, stacked upon one another like firewood. The line of bodies stretched on for about 100 meters.

The sun had risen a few hours before, and the smell of gunpowder was waning, but the smell of the dead was becoming unbearable. Many of the workers and soldiers had covered their mouths and noses with scarves in a feeble attempt to keep the stench at bay. Flies were everywhere. Some of the bodies had been there for a few days, and some for only a few hours.

The bulldoze driver had just about completed the pit, when it happened.

All of the dead bodies started to move at the same time.

Anyone who had read the story of Gulliver wrestling in his ropes would have said that it was a comparable visual.

The dead got up quickly, like they were awoken from sleep by a loud noise. They looked at each other, and then they looked at the workers and soldiers with their black eyes. The dead smiled at the living.

As those on top on the pile tumbled to the ground, those on the ground got to their feet, and started moving towards the living. Their mouths opened and they said ‘Join us!” in the native tongue.

Soldiers fired the weapons into the bodies of the dead. They had no effect.

Workers had their shovels in hand, but for every undead they dispatched, five more took their place.

The bulldoze driver was set upon by over 100 of the dead, who came tumbling down into the pit, then mounted the dozer, and tore him apart. The bulldozer was found covered in blood.

The rest of the workers and soldiers were feasted upon by the undead. Blood covered the scene, but very few identifying pieces of flesh or bone remained for burial, and there were no survivors.

They were later buried in the pit they had dug.

The mass of the undead then turned toward the capital city.

Of all the survivors, the people who survived best were locked in prison.

Cast Out - Part Ba

2010-12-21T13:59:00.000-06:00

The Chinese nuclear attack submarine “Zheng He”, a Type 095, was making its way back to its home port of Hainan after an accident that killed 20 of its crew and civilian visitors, occurred yesterday. During an underwater test run the fire suppression system discharged gas, suffocating everyone in the bow of the sub. The on board medical team verified that all the bodies in the bow were deceased.

Rather than dispose the bodies in the sea, the decision was made to leave them sealed in the bow, and go back to port (albeit at a reduced speed and under radio silence). The officers and civilian leaders wanted to make sure they got their stories straight. There was too much at stake to have this mishap scuttle the program.

About 1100 hours there was a report of sounds emanating from the bow of the submarine. Captain Zemong called on the medical team for additional verification that all the bodies from the accident were deceased. They confirmed their initial findings, but asked permission to re-examine the bodies. Captain Zemong granted permission, but told the team to wait for him, as he wanted to personally watch the re-examinations.

Less than 3 minutes later, the medical team, the captain and officers, as well as select civilian leaders were cramming in the space before the bow hatch. The captain ordered silence from all present, even the civilians. All complied.

They could hear the sound of movement in the bow. The captain thought to himself, “The medical team must have made a mistake with one of the bodies.”

He said, with determination, “Someone is alive in there.” He ordered one if his officers to open the hatch.

The hatch was opened, and the smell of decay overwhelmed everyone. Darkness in the bow covered the source of the stench.

Then they heard deep voices say “Jiaru women!” (Join us).

Fear and dread overcame everyone, who tried to take a step back, but they couldn’t. The civilians panicked immediately, the crew took about 2 seconds longer.

Out of the darkness of the bow compartment came the undead. Reaching, grasping, and lunging.

The undead had infested every one of the dead bodies.

They pulled in the unlucky officer who opened the hatch first. Everyone there heard him screaming. They were able to pull in several more unlucky souls, who soon would not have one.

Then they came out of the bow, one by one. Blood was dripping from their mouths and onto their clothes, and the deck.

The undead, increased in their number, moved forward in their hunger.

The living, the lucky few who made it out to the rear of the submarine lived a little longer than the rest. They were able to gather a few firearms from the rear armory, and while trying to take back the sub from the ghouls, a round discharged into the nuclear reactor.

The explosion tore the ship apart, and registered on Richter scales halfway across the planet.

Cast Out - Part 7

2010-12-20T13:26:00.000-06:00

Fire Station 95 was right in the flight path of jets coming in at Los Angeles International Airport. Between the airport and the 405 freeway, they were first responders if there was ever a problem near LAX. The firefighters there liked to be busy, but not crazy busy. This day was pretty quiet so far, with only one minor call to answer earlier in the day.

After having a late dinner at In-n-Out, the guys watched people sitting on the small grassy area across the street, near the runways, with jets flying over their heads. Tom never could figure out why people liked to eat there, with the smell of the jet fuel, much less the noise. A quick drive back to the station, Tom was hoping for a quiet night. He pulled the engine truck into the garage, turned off the engine and started going through the power down list, and then it happened.

A loud boom rattled the windows and shook the ground. ”Was that an earthquake?” Tom thought.

Then the station sirens went off, along with the announcement. Firefighters ran out into the garage, putting on their jackets as they jumped aboard. Tom had already started the engine.

It was a plane crash! “Damn!” A plane went down in a neighborhood in Inglewood! Worst case scenario.

“We’ve trained for this, guys!” the captain yelled out.

This didn’t make Tom feel any better. It was going to be a messy night.

Calls were coming in for all available stations to assist. This was a big one. The radio never stopped blaring.

The whole station rolled out and was in route, heading eastbound on Century Boulevard, heading towards Prairie. They could see the eerie orange glow on the other side of the freeway.

“Please God, let it have missed the hospital.” Tom said to himself. He knew too many good people there.

News was coming in that this was a collision between two planes, and that they both crashed in a crowded neighborhood. This was real bad.

Also on the radio was lots of chatter about the news bulletins, about people attacking other people. There was talk about cannibals or something worse, then the captain told them to shut up.

“What are they talking about?”, Tom asked the guys with him. One of them said that the news sounded bad out there. They were even talking about people carrying guns for safety. “What?” Tom asked, but his mind was on driving the truck.

Turning up Inglewood Avenue, after about a quarter mile they began to see the devastation around them. Fires seemed to be everywhere, as well as debris and plane wreckage. The planes appeared to have come down in big pieces, instead of breaking up. “That’s good”, Tom thought, “Better chance of survivors.” They turned right on Hardy Street and stopped the truck. Other fire trucks pulled in behind them, along with paramedics and police.

The noise was almost unbearable, as screams filled the air along with sirens. Flames seemed to be on every house. Plane wreckage filled the street. It was utter mayhem on a stick. There were people on the street, some standing, some sitting, some limping along.

Tom was the last one out of the truck, and put on his jacket on as he approached what looked like a man with one arm, with his back towards him.

“SIR!” Tom yelled, “Are you hurt?”

The man turned to face him.

He had black eyes.

He opened his mouth and said, “Join us!”

The man then grabbed Tom with his one arm and tried to lunge at him, but Tom stepped back, breaking the man’s grip on him.

The man took another step towards Tom, but Tom took two steps back matching, and looking into the face of what was once a man, but now he wasn’t sure what it was.

Tom heard screams from around him. He glanced out the corner of his eye saw other firemen getting into fights with what appeared to be survivors.

The man still faced him, smiling.

Tom never heard the footsteps, and didn’t know they were there, until a bunch of people grabbed him from behind and started eating him.

The last thing Tom saw was the one armed man opening his mouth to feed on his face.

Cast Out - Part 6

2010-12-18T14:05:00.000-06:00

The Garcia family had just finished watching a movie, at least those members who wanted to watch a “zombie movie”. It was Raul’s night to choose the activity, and being the eldest son, he chose a movie, somewhat to the chagrin of his mother. His father and younger brother watched with him, somewhat ambivalently. Mom was never into horror movies, and had a little trouble watching one without having to deal with nightmares. Now that the movie was over, it was time to talk about it.

“So Dad, what do you think about it?” Raul asked.

“It was pretty good, actually. A bit much on the gore side for me, but I can see why you like zombie movies,” replied Tony, Raul’s father. “I thought it was good to show that even with the zombies around, sometimes the worst things to watch out for are other people.” He called to his wife, “Honey, you can come out now. The movie’s over!”

“I know the movie’s over,” said Eva, the mother. Coming into the room clutching the book she had been reading, she asked, ‘Did you boys like it?”

“It was cool mom!” blurted out Javier, Raul’s little brother. “Zombies getting their heads blown off! People getting eaten.”

“Are you going to have nightmares, hijo?” Eva asked her Javier. Hijo was their pet name for Javier.

“MOM!” Javier exasperated.

“I’m just saying. The last time you watched this kind of thing, you woke up that night.” Eva pointed out, leaving out the most embarrassing part, to which Raul was foolish enough to add.

“You woke up crying!” Raul spoke up, then realized he should have kept his mouth shut.

“Raul….” Tony warned. “You know that your mom and I don’t really like this sort of thing in this house, but we are trying to let you make your own decisions. And when you make your decisions, you have to also man up and own the outcome. In this case, if your brother wakes up tonight, we’ll be waking you up as well.”

An awkward silence filled the room. Raul hesitated, and then let out a low groan. “OK Dad.” He paused, “Thanks for letting me choose this movie,” he said, looking at first his dad then his mom.

“You’re welcome, Raul,” Tony said and smiled. His oldest boy was growing up. “Let’s turn on the news.” Tony liked his family to watch the local news before bed.

Turning it on, they watched the newscaster say “… we are cutting to a live feed from our affiliate in the capitol.”

They went to another shot, this time of a hastily called news conference, with a familiar looking guy that appeared to have been up for hours, or just woke up.

“…stay in your homes. I repeat. Do not go outside. Stay in your home. Turn off your lights and close your curtains. We have reports coming in from all over the country and it appears from other countries as well. It appears as though…the dead are rising again and…eating the living. I know this sounds too incredible to believe, but until we have a better understanding about what’s happening, it would be better for everyone to stay in their homes. If you have a gun, load it and be ready to use it. Do not go outside. If you see someone outside moving slowly, do not approach them, no matter what are the circumstances, no matter who they are. Are their questions?”

“Raul, did you turn your movie back on?” Eva asked her son, looking at him, expecting a positive response.

“No mom! This is the news!” Raul answered back.

The TV blared again.

… “We don’t know how this happened. We just know that a few hours ago we started getting calls from all over the country, all at the same time. The dead were getting back up again and attacking the living. Obviously, we have never seen anything like this before. And that I know of, there is no plan to deal with this threat…”

“C’mon Raul! Stop it! You’re starting to scare me!” Eva said.

Tony spoke up, “Give me the remote!”

“I’m not doing it! This is real!” Raul said, with quite a bit of exasperation, giving the remote control to his father.

Tony changed the channel, but it went to the same news conference, He turned the channel again, same picture. Again and again, the same news conference was on every channel, even ESPN. They watched as the Senator spoke and answered questions, but mostly he seemed to know very little of the origins of this event, but he was sure that it was happening.

Tony muted the TV and spoke, “Is this really happening?” No one answered him for what seemed like a few minutes.

Eva spoke first, “We need to pray.” The family held hands and prayed together. While they were used to praying, this time, the prayers were different and urgent.

When they finished and had agreed together, Tony looked at Raul and asked, “Son, what do we do first? You know this kind of stuff better than all of us, what do you think we should do?”

Raul paused, looked at each of his family, and then said, ‘We need to get out of the city. Away from people. We need food, guns, medicine.” He continued on with his plan.

Tony had to admit that it was a pretty good plan. Tony smiled at his son, “You’ve been giving this some thought, huh?”

Raul smiled back and then said, “Maybe this was why I’ve into zombie stuff for awhile?”

Tony looked at his wife and other son as well and smiled. “You guys OK with his plan?”

Eva kept quiet for a few moments. “Why don’t we just stay here, like they said on TV?”

Raul anticipated that question. “Mom, we have to get out of populated areas and get to the country. It’s not safe around here with so many people. Aunt Maggie’s place is perfect for us to hold up.”

Eva was silent for a few moments. She then asked, “What time does the Club store open tomorrow?”

Tony and Raul smiled. Mom and Javier would go to the store for provisions, and Tony and Raul to get guns and ammo. More ammo. Lots of ammo. Tony got on the phone with his sister Magdalena, who lived in the sticks, She had been awake already and was just about to call her brother, when he called her.

Cast Out - Part Cinco

2010-12-17T11:39:00.001-06:00

Miguel was still angry about what they did. Those bastards! Fired from his job for no reason!

They will pay.

Working the night shift in the assembly plant was an easy job. The hardest part was working alongside some backwater mestizos – “Nacos”. They belonged back on the farm, not here in the city. He told some of them that fact, and while he was warned by his supervisor, “Tener Calma” (take it easy), all it took was a shoving match between him and another worker to get himself fired. OK, so the guy fell down and had to go the hospital.

“What’s the big deal?” Miguel asked his boss as he was being walked out. His boss just shook his head and Miguel heard him say, “Pipirisnais!” (Someone who thinks they are better, but are not).

Miguel had planned his revenge well. He had gathered guns and ammo. He had got his hands on a grenade from the local drug cartel, where he also bought some Coca. Cost him all his 100 peso banknotes that he had collected, but he figured it was worth it.

He loaded up his car, and then took a big hit. “Arre.” (“Let’s do it) He said to himself. He sped off to the plant, feeling pretty good at all he had planned to do that night.

Nodding to the guard, he unloaded his bags from the car and walked casually to the office, where his boss’s office was located. He planned to get them all there, and then proceed to the plant floor, to get rest.

He placed his hand inside a bag as he walked into the office, looked around the room, and no one was at their desk. He walked around the office, and then he heard the TV on in the breakroom. Looking around the corner, he could see that the room was full of people! This is better than he could have planned!

He pulled out his grenade, pulled the pin, and tossed it in. A moment later he heard screams and then the explosion. Then he turned the corner, pulled out his handgun, and started shooting.

When he was done, and no one was moving, he looked around the room. He didn’t see his boss’s body among the carnage.

Miguel grunted, turned around, and went down the hall to his boss’s office.

His boss met him in the hallway.

“Miguel? Lo que esta sucediendo?” (What is happening?)

Miguel just smiled at him and raised his pistol.

Something made his boss look past Miguel.

Miguel, thinking it was a trick, ignored where his boss was looking.

But then he heard deep voices behind him say, “Únete a nosotros”, (Join us)

He turned just in time to see the people that he had shot grab him, and start eating his flesh.

Cast Out - Part 4

2010-12-16T14:04:00.000-06:00

Amy was looking forward to getting some sleep, after pulling a nearly a double-shift at the hospital where she was a nurse. While she enjoyed her job, she also hated the crazy hours. Maybe in a few years she would have some senority and be able to work and live like a regular person, whatever that was.

After graduating from high school, she enlisted in the Army and served as a medic in Iraq. One time insurgents ambushed her medical convoy, and she picked up a rifle and helped keep them at bay until reinforcement arrived, and then tended to the newly wounded. When the media got a hold of her story, she became something of a hometown hero. She was awarded a medal for her bravery, and had several offers for “reality TV”, which she turned down. Even now, a few years later, people would sometimes recognize her as “That girl who...”

The phone rang. It was work. She needed to come in right away. Everyone was being called in.

Pulling into the parking lot 20 minutes later, she was surprised to find a place to park right away, as she could people outside the doors of the emergency room doors. It was busy.

She walked into lobby and had to almost fight her way to checking in. “What in the world is going on?” she asked the desk receptionist.

“Busy night!” was all she said before getting another phone call.

Before she could say anything else, a voice asked her, ‘Can I get some help for my friend? He’s bleeding again!”

She turned around to see a man, a little younger than her, looking at her exasperated.

She asked, “Where’s your friend?”

He pointed over to a man with a large bandage on his arm that seemed to be bleeding through.

They went over to him. She asked him, “What happened?”

“This crazy women bit me.” He looked terrible.

“What’s your name?” She wanted to check and see where he was in the wait list.

“Bob Humprey.”

“I’m Dave”, said his friend, smiling awkwardly.

“Wait just a minute”, Amy said. “I’m going to check and see how long it is until you see a doctor.”

“We’ve been waiting for an hour! Don’t leave!” Dave said. He then sheepishly said, “Please!”

Amy looked at Dave and for a moment wanted to tell him off, but said, “Guys, really. I’ll be right back, with either new bandages or a doctor. Promise.” She held up two fingers like a scout. They tried to smile at her, but she turned around.

As she got back to the receptionist, Amy saw that she was talking to a cop, maybe ten years older than her, and he looked like he meant business.

“Where is cop that was brought in?” the cop asked. “The one with neck injuries?”

“Name?” the receptionist asked. The cop gave his partners name. “He….was taken to ICU. Downstairs”, “ Funny,”she said, “ we haven’t heard from anyone down there for awhile…”

The TV blared “… we are cutting to a live feed from our affiliate in the capitol.”

They went to another shot, this time of a hastily called news conference, with a familiar looking guy that appeared to have been up for hours, or just woke up.

“…stay in your homes. I repeat. Do not go outside. Stay in your home. We have reports coming in from all over the country and it appears from other countries as well. It appears as though…the dead are rising again and…eating the living. I know this sounds too incredible to believe, but until we have a better understanding about what’s happening, it’s better for everyone to stay in their homes. If you have a gun, load it and be ready to use it. Do not go outside…”

Everyone stopped and got real quiet. Then all someone could hear was the realization of what was going on, a combined mixture of groans and sighs.

Then a scream from down the hall startled everyone.

Looking down the hall, all that could be seen were the bloody clothes of the dead walking towards the waiting room. They had started to feed on some people down the hall. There must have been more than thirty of them. Everyone panicked except Amy and the cop.

The cop took out his gun, and started firing. A few direct hits to the bodies, but still they kept coming. They were speaking something in a kind of unison.

“Dammit!” the cop said. Amy stood behind the cop.

“What’s wrong?” She asked.

“They don’t die! They just keep coming! Unless…” he broke off. He took aim at one undead women, pulled the trigger, and hit her in the head. She dropped like a stone.

“Head shots! Gotta hit’em in the head!”

Then his weapon opened up. Out of ammo. He put another clip in and dropped a few more of the undead.

“Good shot!” Amy said.

“I’m out!” the cop said. They looked at each other, then down the hall. It was still full of the undead.

“We gotta go.” They both said at nearly the same time.

They ran outside in time to see many people running for their lives, cars going every which way, people getting run over, and people pulling out others from cars. Complete mayhem.

“Over here! Nurse Amy!”

They both looked over to see the sound of the voice, and the friend of Bob’s was waving his arm at them. “Nurse Amy! Cop! C’mon!”

They ran over to the 4 door sedan and got in the back. Before they knew it, they were out on the street and going about 80.

“Thanks guys” said the cop.

“What’s your name?” Asked the driver.

“Dan” said the cop. “Yours?”

“Dave.”

“Nice to meet you, Dave”, said Amy, a little out of breath.

Dave glanced into his rearview mirror with a slight smile, “Same here”.

Cast Out Part 3

2010-12-10T14:13:00.001-06:00

Walt had only been driving a truck for a living since he lost his job. Took his “severance” and with his wife’s blessing, enrolled in truck driving school. God had blessed him there and got a good job offer as soon as he got his license. The new job kept him away from his family during the week, but at least he was able to get home for the weekends. He was still able to be a deacon in their church, and most folks there were oblivious to the change that had gone on in their lives. So it seemed to Walt.

Walt had gotten into the routine of taking his cellphone and mp3 player with him on trips, along with the other necessities. The cellphone kept him in contact with family and other folks, and the mp3 player was packed with good music and Bible studies. Shoot, he figured that he was learning more of the Bible now more than ever in his life. So maybe this wasn’t so bad after all. He also got more time to pray than he ever had before. Good thing too, because he was going to need to be “prayed up” real soon.

Going down the Interstate at night was not one of Walt’s favorite things with the new job. He wanted to make good time with his load, but he was more thinking about finding a nice place to pull over and stop. Hotels were a luxury he only indulged in once each week, and this night he was looking for one. The road sign told him that there was a town coming up in 5 miles. “That’s good,” he said, “I’m done for tonight!”

Driving further, Walt saw what looked like fog ahead. “Maybe its dust?” he thought. Slowing down the rig, and switching to high beams, what he saw made his heart drop: Two cars had hit, one was in the median, the other was on the road in front of him. They were now just mangled pieces of steel. He stopped the rig, put on the hazard lights, and grabbed his cell.

He got a connection.

“911. What is your emergency?”

“There’s been a car crash about 4 miles outside of Hays! On the Interstate - Two cars! Send help, please!”

“Sir, help will be coming.”

“Thank you! I am going to check them out!”

“Sir! Be careful!” She paused. “Stay away from the dead bodies!”

“What? What did you say?”

“Sir, please. If there are any deceased…no….dead bodies…stay away from them! Run away if there are any dead bodies!”

“What do you mean, ‘Run away from dead bodies?”

“Sir, for the last hour … every call with a dead body…they have come back to life! But they have been coming back and …. and attacking people! For your own safety, if there are any dead, stay away!”

“Uh…OK. Thanks”. As Walt ran up to the car in the median, he thought, “Thanks! Crazy 911 lady tells me to stay away from dead bodies, and I say ‘Thanks’”.

Walt got to the car, or what was left of it. He looked inside and saw a body trying to move around, but it was trapped in the wreckage. It looked like a woman, and she was in bad shape. The wreck had messed her up pretty bad, and was bleeding still.

“Hey! It’s gonna be OK! Help is coming!”

The woman moaned, and then, the head looked up at him. It had black eyes. The darkest eyes Walt had ever seen.

The woman opened her mouth. “Set me free”. The voice was beyond strange.

Walt hesitated.

The woman looked at him like she was sizing him up for a fight.

Under his breath, Walt said “Oh Jesus…”

The woman twitched. “Don’t…say… that… name. Set me free.” Again with that voice!

Walt smelled gasoline.

The woman looked at Walt again and smiled, like when someone has a secret that only they know. “You will join us, Walter. It’s a matter of time.”

Why did Walt feel so cold?

The woman looked at him again and said, “Do you think that He cares for you?”

At that moment, Walt realized what he was talking to.

A moment later the fire started, engulfing the car in flames. The woman’s body just looked at Walt and smiled as the body burned away.

Cast Out Pt2

2010-12-09T10:24:00.001-06:00

Dan and Mike had been partners since Mike got out of the Police academy. Dan was only a few years older than Mike, but he had those years of street smarts before becoming a cop himself. Growing up in the same neighborhood as he was patrolling in now made him more knowledgeable about the “hood” than just about anyone. But what he went though on this particular night – no amount of training could have prepared him for this.

The east side of town was more “ethnically mixed” than other parts of the city. With this mix came a great hodgepodge of cultures, but it also made it more difficult to prepare for each call. Every group needed their own way of being approached, as Mike was finding out – sometimes the hard way. “There is nothing like having every bystander get in your face during routine call, all because you didn’t approach a certain way.”

“You told her what?”, asked Dan.

“’Mike don’t do that!’ - that’s what I told her!” Mike said with a big grin.

Dan laughed. “You are gonna have a hard time keeping a lady with that attitude, my friend.”

Mike thought for a minute and then replied, “Who says I wanna be in the “keeping business” anyhow? The way I figure, I can play around for the next..”

The radio interrupted. “Seven Mary Six, please respond.”

Dan picked up the radio, “Seven Mary Six responding”.

The dispatcher answered, “Seven Mary Six, a report of shots fired in the area of Walnut and Main. Proceed with caution.”

Mike made a hard left turn to the car that surprised Dan a bit. Dan turned on the lights and siren, as Mike then floored it. It would only take a minute to get there.

Dan asked, “Dispatch, proceeding to the area of Walnut and Main. What kind of backup can we expect?”

“Calls just started coming in from all over the area. Sending additional units to backup, but they are a few minutes out. Proceed with caution.” The dispatcher voice, while calm, displayed a hint of angst.

“Great. Shots fired and no backup!” Mike snarled.

“That’s why we make the big bucks.” Dan replied. It was his answer for just about everything he disliked about the job.

They got there in 45 seconds, and it took only 5 more to see what had happened. “Another drive-by? How many does that make this year?” Mike thought to himself.

There were two bodies in the street, and there looked like two more on the grass right in front of the house. Both officers were leary about getting out of the car too quickly. Sometimes first responders got shot at from the vics they came to help.

Mike stopped the car with the lights turned onto the bodies in the street, and Dan turned the spotlight onto the bodies on the grass. You could hear some moaning, but besides that, nothing else.

Dan got on the radio and called for a bus and paramedics. This was going to take awhile.

Mike got out, pulled his sidearm, and checked the bodies in the street. The first one was still breathing but heavy and labored, “HUF….HUF…HUF”. Dan glanced at the second one when it started to rise up.

“You OK?” Mike asked.

No answer. It was starting to stand up.

“Are you OK?” Mike asked again.

Dan shouted, “Whaddya got?” He was checking the bodies on the grass out.

“This one’s getting up!” Mike was scared. He never had a victim get up like this one before. “Back away!” He raised his gun.

It kept coming at him.

It spoke and said, “Join us”.

“BACK AWAY! DAN!”

This person was on top on him and had him down on the ground. It was reaching to bite his neck.

“DAN!!! HELP!!!”

Dan barely had time to think, before it took a bite out of Mike’s neck. It strained its neck to pull Mike’s flesh away, like some kind of predator that had just made its kill.

Dan raised his gun and discharged two rounds, hitting the mark in the head, as splatter exited out the other side.

Dan rushed to his partners side. Mike was seriously wounded and losing blood fast.

“Mike, hang in there! Hang in there buddy! Help is on the way!” Dan said as he tried to find something to apply pressure to stop the bleeding.

Then he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. The other victim, who had been struggling with their breathing, was now getting up as well. And the other bodies were starting to move as well.

Dan yelled “STAY DOWN!” He pointed his gun at the other victim now.

“Join us.” It said, with a voice that sounded utterly inhuman.

“STAY DOWN AND SHUT THE #^%& UP!” Dan yelled again, this time with added expletives.

It stared at him for a moment, with soulless black eyes. Then it said, “What a sensation that was, to be shot. You will join us.” And then it got up and started to move toward him.

Dan shot it twice in the chest, but it had no effect. By the time he hit it in the head, it was nearly on top of him when it fell.

As the others got up to approach him, Dan knew either that either his instinct or training was going to save him. Either one was good enough for him.

He had more time to warn them, but they didn’t listen either. Not one bullet had any effect on them, except head shots. “Weirdest damn thing I’ve ever seen”, he thought.

By now the ambulance siren was getting closer. Dan had a partner down, four victims that he had had to shoot himself, and was sure that he was going to catch hell trying to explain what had happened.

But it didn’t matter unless he could stop the bleeding from Mike’s neck.

Cast Out, Part1

2010-12-08T16:24:00.001-06:00

My first attempt at writing a Zombie type of story. Please give me any comments or suggestions.

David’s account -

No one knew HOW it started, but everyone knew WHEN it started. That was the funny thing. Looking back, it was just business as usual until that day, or as I experienced it, that night. I always thought these things started in one place and then spread out, but not this one. This came on everyone like a ton of bricks.

Once again I was up playing games on the computer, with my lights off at night. The TV was on while I sat there playing a game of one kind or another: FPS, RTS, whatever I felt like, with whoever was on the network. I had my list of “friends”, but they were total strangers, except in the game.

As it was getting later, I saw people dropping off – “wimps!” I whispered under my breath –“get back on and play me!” “Mommy is probably telling them to go to bed.” With no one else on the network, I kept on going for awhile against the computer – at least this one game had pretty good AI, and I didn’t feel like going to bed yet.

I didn’t notice the TV again until I heard the news break in for a bulletin. I had to pause my game for a sec.

On the TV the news person was the reporter that I had seen do those “human interest” stories, and she was onscreen - but in the newsroom. She didn’t have any makeup on and looked…stressed. She fluctuated between rapid fire excited speech and quiet pauses of shock.

“There are unconfirmed reports coming in that say…Is this right?....that the dead are walking. Dead people? ….Yes, its people…. Dead people are getting up and walking? We are watching monitors from several ..OH MY GOD!!!!”

Her eyes were bugged out, like they just saw something that she was still processing in her mind.

“Did you just see that? What the….? What just happened? It looked like someone grabbed his arm! Blood!”

“Wait! What are you doing in here?” The camera got tipped over and then there was a bunch of yelling.

I got up to change the channel, and that’s when I saw the figure out my window. I just stopped.

Who the heck is that? She was naked. “Why is she walking around naked?” I asked myself. She also looked like she was wet. I went to the window to look out, but not so I could be seen.

She looks like my neighbor from a few apartments down. I had spoken to her a few times, but I didn’t really know her that well, except that she was divorced and seemed kind of lonely most of the time. I just spoke to her a few days ago, and she seemed happy enough.

Now she was…shuffling…or something like that, not really walking. And her arms were...dark around her wrists.

She turned toward my apartment. She saw me. I felt like a peeping Tom. She turned and kept coming toward my window. My heart was already pounding. I had to think straight. What do I do?

I slithered over to the door, just enough to look through the peep hole and see if she was still coming. Oh CRAP! She almost here! What do I do? My mind was saying “She’s gonna turn you in as a perv!” or “Maybe she interested in you?”

I stood still. Not breathing. I took a breath out of my mouth. My heart was pounding. “Stay calm” I told myself.

I heard her at the front door.

She spoke. “Open the door. Come out.”

But that was NOT her voice!! It was low, guttural….evil.

There is NO WAY I am opening this door!

She spoke again. “Open the door. Join us.” That voice again!

She banged on my door. Even though I knew she was there, it still made me jump.

What do I do? Think man!

I remembered my gun in the bedroom. Somehow I got it and back to the door before she pounded on the door again. She was getting more forceful.

“JOIN US!!!” She raised her voice. But it was still NOT her voice!

She pounded on the door again.

I looked through the peephole at her. With the porchlight on I could see that her hair was wet, but it was her eyes that made me stop. Her eyes were black. Solid black.

I heard another voice outside. “Hey, what’s going on?”

She turned toward the voice. It was my next door neighbor Bob.

Bob asked “What are you doing there? What’s the matter with you?”

She moved towards Bob and was on him before I could open the door.

He put up his arms to block her, but she grabbed one and bit down. Bob screamed.

“Stop!” I yelled at her. She was eating his arm!

I took my gun and pistol whipped her.

She didn’t react. She kept eating!

Bob was screaming and saying “Shoot her! Do it!”

I hit her again and again. No reaction.

Bob kept crying out “Dave! Shoot her! Please!”

I moved around to her side and took aim at her.

“Stop or I’ll shoot!”

She kept eating.

I fired one round at her chest. It went in and …no reaction from her. I fired another round at her and it got the same response.

She then stopped eating his arm, long enough to pull away from it and look at me. Even though it was dark, I could make out that she dropped her jaw as if she was going to ..BAM! One round into her mouth and shattering her skull.

She dropped to the ground with a thud.

Bob was crying, holding his arm. Blood was all over the place.

Zombie Story

2010-12-07T13:26:00.001-06:00

Working on a zombie story, and shared some thoughts on the PhoenixPreacher.net

Have been thinking about demons lately, and reading about them in the gospel of Luke. They seem to very busy there. They are also busy in my SS classes study of Revelation. Rev 12:7-17 is a passage that I want to use as a springboard. Cast Out.

With all of these inputs, I have begun a little fiction writing, and theorizing what would happen if I mixed demons into a zombie motif? Questioning “What would happen if God allowed demons to infest the dead?” Its a scary thought, that of giving demons a voice to taunt the living.

My thought is to give clues throughout the story (like the zombies talking is not typical zombie fare). Then at one point, one of them gets caught and the main character (a christian) is the only one who can interrogate it without being affected by the stuff it says.
Sort of a spin on the end times stuff with z’s.
I am leaning more for the mortuary moment, that is, the newly dead being infected. At least the embalmed would not be possessed. Disembodied spirits can’t talk – which would be one reason for them to get a body.

Think of it as cross between Dawn of the Dead and Screwtape Letters – kind of.

They would be speaking soothing things to get you to …well….you know. Think of the “backlog” of demons wanting to infect the dead….all over the world. At the same time.

They would speak the most hateful things to Christians and about God, so that stuff would have to stated as such. I am not writing out everything they say..

been writing some things out. Maybe I will post on my blog and ask for opinions and all that?

But I have been thinking through the “abilities” of the z’s and and the backstory of the demons. What you are all seeing here is my thoughts being played out.

"Do these guys eat brains? I kind of want them to, but I also think maybe there is something more spiritually symbolic they can do. What a great idea, Papias. This really has me thinking."

Fall Pics

2010-11-18T08:58:00.001-06:00

Friday Photo

2010-10-08T08:58:00.010-05:00

Yes, another Yosemite pic! Valley floor, winter, at sunset. Click on the photo to make it larger(Will open another window)

I had never been to Yosemite in winter prior to this trip here, so I was excited. I had to go by myself, but I was OK with that.
Night before I am going to leave, big storm blows into SoCal. Closes the Grapevine and Tehachpi passes. But I, I have reservations in Yosemite that night! I'm not gonna let some snowstorm get in my way!
Looked at the map and figured that I could work my way around if I got off the main highways. Let's just say that was a mistake and that I got stuck in snow on a lonely stretch of road. Some locals got me unstuck and I think I paid them 20 bucks, but it was worth it.
I decided that waiting until Tehachipi was the best bet.

Got to the Valley at 5PM, after leaving mt house at 5AM. A trip that usually takes half that time.
Next morning got up and shot all day long!
This shot was probably from the first day, from my fav spot at sunset. The way the light hits El Capitan at sunset is just magical.
And then it got cold. Real cold. Like seeing the heat come out from my finger-tips through my gloves cold.

Redemptive-Historical Method

2010-10-07T08:45:00.000-05:00

The blog series “Redemptive-Historical Method” is an outgrowth of the “Preaching Christ in a Postmodern World”, by Tim Keller and Edmund Clowney, available on iTunes. These are the notes from the course.

HOW? A CHRISTO-CENTRIC FOCUS

INTRODUCTION

For theological, pastoral, and missiological reasons we should read the Bible as 'Redemption History' and not simply as a body of spiritual and moral information. This means that every part and text of the Bible is part of the 'Big Story' of salvation and attests to God's saving purposes which climax in Jesus Christ. Therefore, every text is 'really about Jesus'. But how do we 'get to Christ', practically speaking, when preaching a text that is not directly about Jesus? How can we actually read each text 'Christologically', with a Christo-centric focus?

The preacher feels this most acutely when preaching from the 3/4 of the Bible called the 'Old Testament'. When most people think of "Preaching Christ" from such a text, they think of doing so by typology. They look in the text for a 'type' of Christ within it. So, for example, we might preach Isaac as a type of the sacrificed son, or David as the type of the warrior-savior, and so on. This practice (as we have seen) is still somewhat controversial, but even if it were granted it would not suffice. Most texts of the Bible do not provide a classic 'type' of Jesus. The vast majority of psalms are not clear and consensus 'Messianic' psalms, for example. So in order to 'get to Christ' preachers may very lamely and artificially tack him on to the end of the sermon (e.g. 'You shouldn't lie, but if you do, through Jesus you can be forgiven.") Or they force him in through finding superficial similarities, which really boil down to allegorizing.

But it is important to see how many different ways there are to 'preach Christ' besides direct typology. Sidney Greidanus lays out a number of 'ways' to preach Christ besides typology in his book “Preaching Christ from the Old Testament”. Goldsworthy too writes:

'The essence of typology is the recognition that within Scripture itself certain events, people, and institutions in biblical history bear a particular relationship to later events, people, or institutions. The relationship is such that the earlier foreshadows the later, and the later fills out or completes the earlier ....[But] I want to suggest that behind –the technical uses [of the term 'typology'].. . there is a principle that is far-reaching in its application. We may refer to this as macro-typology because it indicates that we are not dealing mainly with scattered examples but with a broad pattern ... The typological correspondence is not simply between persons, events, and institution, but between whole epochs of revelation ...”

What does Goldsworthy mean? I believe he means something like the following. (Note: I acknowledge both Goldsworthy and Greidanus' works as the basis for my following summaries and categories:

PREACHING CHRIST - BY INTERPRETIVE: METHOD
One way to prepare to preach with a Christ-centered focus is to ways to identify gospel 'pieces' that only Christ can resolve (themes), receive (law), complete (stories), or fulfill (symbols). If I were you I would create my own collection of ways to preach Christ in these ways from:

E. Clowney The Unfolding Mystery (Presbyterian and Reformed)
S. DeGraaf Promise and Deliverance (Four Volumes-Presbyterian and Reformed)
Carson is editing a series of books on these intercanonical themes.
Alec Motyer's Look to the Rock chooses seven of these redemptive themes and shows how Christ is the fulfillment of each.
See the last section of each chapter in Longman and Dillard's An Introduction to the Old Testament (Zondervan. 1994)
See Christopher J.H.Wright. Knowing Jesus through the Old Testament (IVP, 1992)

Upcoming posts on this subject will include:
THEME -RESOLUTION. Only Jesus resolves redemptive themes.
LAW- RECEPTION. Only Jesus lets us truly receive the law's requirements.
STORY-COMPLETION. Only Jesus completes the great stories of the Bible.

SYMBOL – FULFILLMENT. If a feature has symbolic significance for the author (symbolizing God's saving activity in some way) then it may be seen as a type of Christ, even if the author does not evidently have Christ consciously in mind.

Assorted Pics (That I don't think I've uploaded yet, but don't hold me to it...)

2010-10-06T09:24:00.002-05:00

Click on the picture to make it larger..(will open another window)

Gladiolas from the garden. (Take a picture, it'll last longer.)

Scene from last winter.

Garden flowers

Flamingo from the zoo

Fall Tree

Elephants

Redemptive-Historical Method

2010-10-05T09:44:00.004-05:00

Broader Implications of the Approach

by Tim Keller

Two Basic 'Theological Frameworks'.

Richard Lints, in The Fabric of Theology (Eerdmans, 1993) points out that what we have been calling 'Redemption-Historical' exegesis is more than just a way to interpret texts. He believes that one very significant difference among evangelicals lies between those who organize doctrines into a 'redemptive historical” framework and those who organize doctrines along the lines of a 'systematic-topical” framework. (See pp.259-290).

The first framework (which he connects with the names of Vos, Kline, and Gaffin) sees the basic theological structure of Scripture as a series of historical epochs in which God progressively reveals more and more of his redemptive purposes in Christ through successive covenants (Creation. Abrahamic. Mosaic. Christ-inaugurated. Christ-consummated).

The second framework (which he connects with the names of Hodge, Berkhof, and Erickson) sees the basic framework of Scripture as a series of logical categories or subject headings around which the varied texts of Scriptures are organized to produce doctrines (God, Man, Christ, Justification, Sanctification. Glorification).

What is the difference? The traditional teaching of the Reformed seminaries over the last 40 years has been basically correct--the RHM and STM are 'symbiotically related'. On the one hand, the systematics-student should study every Biblical text in its redemptive-historical context before doing topical-synthesis. Many conventional systematic-topics can be taken up and given new life through Biblical-theological treatment. For example, Harvie Conn did a Biblical-theological study of 'church growth', tracing the theme of 'multiplication' from the creation mandate through the whole Bible. On the other hand, if the RHM resists Systematic Theology too much we may not really have a unified Bible. We have to be able to answer the question: what is the authoritative Biblical teaching on this subject?

Having said that, the two approaches, practically speaking, tend to produce two somewhat different 'mindsets' when it comes to reading the Scripture. Lints argues that the redemptive-historical model (RHM) is better than the systematic-topical model (STM) for thinking about the Bible. John Murray speaks of the 'tendency to abstraction" of the STM. The tendency to dehistoricize and to arrive at 'timeless", topically oriented universals. ("Systematic Theology" in The New Testament Student and Theology, J.H.Skilton, ed. P&R 1976). RHM, on the other hand focuses on God's special revelation not primarily as 'naked information” but primarily as God's activity in history. But if this is true, then these different approaches will effect preaching and ministry in general.

Theological Frameworks Compared

a. The RHM gives us a dynamic view of our place in redemptive history. The RHM tells that we are now in a particular period of redemptive history (between the first and second coming of Christ). This is the period of the 'already-but-not-yet" of the kingdom of God, which sets us apart from the epoch previous to and following this one. The STM model has little concept of the all-pervasiveness of the kingdom of God. It tends to see the kingdom mainly in terms of one of the traditional 'millennial' positions.

The massive importance of the 'already-but-not-yet-kingdom' for both faith and practice is largely missed by those steeped in the STM approach. It tends to think of Biblical truth in a-historical categories of doctrine which we now have to 'apply" to our lives today. It tends to rely mainly on 'correctness" or technique ('5 principles for overcoming worryw). The RHM avoids over optimism or pessimism or legalism by focusing always on the dynamic kingdom-epoch lifestyle we live out now. The City of God and the City of Man are present realities. Christ has died, risen, and ascended has put us in a particular, current, dynamic relationship to God, our sin, our past, the Spirit, the world, and to the assembly of heaven itself. It tells us about this new relationship and status we have now, and how to live out as the people of God in this entire epoch. This is a far more “organic” way to think out Christianity.

John Stott, in a very interesting and easy-to-understand chapter called "The Now and the Not Yet" in The Contemporary Christian (IVP. 1992) shows what a powerful effect this theological category has on our practice. This understanding of our place in redemptive history keeps us from fundamentalism (the 'not yet Christians"), Pentecostalism (the 'already" Christians), and Liberalism (in some ways too 'not yet" and in other ways too 'already"). I t keeps us from over - or under-discipline. from over- or under-emphasis on evangelism or social concern, from over-optimism or under-optimism about revival, and so on. A-historical (STM) understandings of the Bible lead constantly to these extremes. By the way, Jonathan Edwards noted these same three enemies of true revival--Dead orthodoxy, Enthusiasm, and Heterodoxy.

b. The RHM gives us a more Biblical and less 'western" framework. Harvie Conn in Eternal Word and Changing Worlds (Zondervan. 1984) points out that the highly rational, scientific approach of STM is difficult for people of non-Western cultures to enjoy or grasp. Many are now pointing out that many of the formulators of STM were unwittingly shaped and affected by the Enlightenment, its detached rationality and its mistrust of history. Harvie (and Rick) note that the RHM gives much more weight to the fact that the Bible is filled with narrative. The gospel itself is a true story, not a set of "principles" or "laws". The STM approach has 'de-storied' the gospel. Harvie also points out that RHM understands that all God's truth is covenantal truth, never abstract from history and life. (See pp.225-234). Thus preaching and teaching from the RHM tends to be much less pietistic and abstract from life. All of this means that RHM is a vastly better vehicle for spreading the gospel through and to all people groups.

c. The RHM gives us a more corporate and less individualistic approach to ministry. The RHM understands that the goal of salvation history is not simply a 'right relationship' with God and live in heaven forever. The goal of redemption is really “re-creation”. God's saving purposes culminate in a new creation, not a disembodied eternal state. The gospel is not that we get to escape earth into heaven, but that heaven is "comes down" to transform the earth. The church then, is not simply an aggregation of people who help one another find God. but it is called to be in this world a sign of the coming new creation. We are to embody the 'new humanity that Christ is creating.

All of this drastically undermines the pietistic, individualistic, privatistic Christianity that can be the result of the STM approach. While the STM approach points us more to how we as individuals get peace with God and 'live right', the RHM framework calls us to live our lives out as a 'counter-culture', a new nation, in which our business practices, race relations, artistic expressions, family life, etc., show the world what humanity could be like under the Lordship of Christ. And the RHM emphasis on 'new creation' calls us to be concerned for the social and material world, since God's ultimate salvation will not only redeem the soul but the body and the physical world as well.

d. The RHM gives a much more relevant approach to 'post-modern' times. This point is closely connected to the previous one. "Post-modem" times are characterized by a rejection of the Enlightenment worship of rationality and technique, and is much more devoted to narrative and story as ways to find meaning. Also, post-modernity rejects the Enlightenment's emphasis on the individual and stresses the importance of community. As we have just seen, the RHM shows us all those resources in Biblical theology that the STM approach has tended to overlook. It breaks the Bible into stages of a Story--the story of Jesus and his salvation—while the STM breaks the Bible into logical categories. More than that, the RHM actually puts us into the story, showing us our place and stage in the unfolding of the kingdom of God. The RHM approach also shows concern for the regeneration of human community and even the physical environment, not just the individual, interior happiness. In all these ways, RHM is much more relevant to post-modern sensibilities.

e. The RHM gives us a more Christ-centered understanding of the Bible. The RHM sees the purpose of each epoch of redemptive history as being the progressive revealing of Christ. God could have poured our judgment on mankind in the Garden, therefore the only reason there is any history is because God has purposed to send his Son into the world, to pour out judgment on him and thereby bring salvation. Jesus is the only reason there is human history, and therefore he is goal of human history. Thus everything God says and does in history explain and prepare for the salvation of his Son. The STM, on the other hand, will examine the Law, the prophets, and history of Abraham, Moses, David, etc. for information about the various doctrinal topics--what we learn about how to live, what to believe. But the RHM sees every story and law and piece of wisdom literature as pointing to Christ and his work. Preaching and teaching from an STM framework tends to be much more moralistic and legalistic.

f. The RHM gives us a more organic way of reading Biblical texts. The RHM works at understanding the differences between stages in redemptive history, while the STM largely ignores such study. But many disputes over the application of the Old Testament laws are really based on a lack of understanding of the role which the Mosaic regulations played in that time in redemptive history (i.e. how they helped us look to and prepare for God's coming salvation) and of how that role is fulfilled in Christ.

Maybe even more fundamentally, the RHM really leads us to see the very purpose of each Biblical passage differently. We have said that RHM understands God's revelation never comes in the form of textbook type information. but in the form of covenant. Why? Because the purpose of God's truth is never to merely inform. but to know God in a relationship of love and service. For example, if we read Genesis 1-2 with an STM mind-set, expecting "naked information" about how the world was created, we will see it differently than those who read with a RHM mind-set, expecting knowledge of who are Creator is and how we are to relate to him and to his creation.

Concluding Note: Do not read the above as pitting Systematic Theology per se against 'Biblical Theology'. There have been many proponents of the Redemptive-Historical approach that virtually deny the ability to do coherent Systematics at all. This is going too far by far. And such a denial ultimately undermines the concept of a single divine author of the whole Bible.

Happy Birthday JE!

2010-10-05T09:30:00.002-05:00

Today marks the 307th anniversay of the birth of Jonathan Edwards!

http://edwards.yale.edu/research/about-edwards/biography

Russia Photos

2010-10-04T09:41:00.000-05:00

Photos of one of my trips to Russia.

This boy came from an area that was exposed to radiation from Chernobyl.

Reading the gospel tract

Some take tracts that you don't expect!

Babushka in Riga.

Jonathan Edwards on Pride

2010-10-03T15:31:00.000-05:00

Written in 1742, Thoughts on the Revival in New England was the second explanation of Jonathan Edwards concerning the marks of true revival, and this section explains his thoughts on spiritual pride:

"The first and worst cause of error that prevails in our day is spiritual pride. This is the main door by which the devil comes into the hearts of those who are zealous for the advancement of Christ. It is the chief inlet of smoke from the bottomless pit to darken the mind and mislead the judgment, and the main handle by which Satan takes hold of Christians to hinder a work of God. Until this disease is cured, medicines are applied in vain to heal all other diseases.

Pride is much more difficult to discern than any other corruption because, by nature, pride is a person having too high a thought of himself. Is it any surprise, then, that a person who has too high a thought of himself is unaware of it? He thinks the opinion he has of himself has just grounds and therefore is not too high. As a result, there is no other matter in which the heart is more deceitful and unsearchable. The very nature of it is to work self-confidence and drive away any suspicion of evil respecting itself.

Pride takes many forms and shapes and encompasses the heart like the layers of an onion- when you pull off one layer, there is another underneath. Therefore, we need to have the greatest watch imaginable over our hearts with respect to this matter and to cry most earnestly to the great searcher of hearts for His help. He who trusts his own heart is a fool.

Since spiritual pride in its own nature is secretive, it cannot be well discerned by immediate intuition of the thing itself. It is best identified by its fruits and effects, some of which I will mention together with the contrary fruits of Christian humility.

The spiritually proud person is full of light already and feels that he does not need instruction, so he is ready to despise the offer of it. On the other hand, the humble person is like a little child who easily receives instruction. He is cautious in his estimate of himself, sensitive as to how liable he is to go astray. If it is suggested to him that he does go astray, he is most ready to inquire into the matter.

Proud people tend to speak of other's sins, the miserable delusion of hypocrites, the deadness of some saints with bitterness, or the opposition to holiness of many believers. Pure Christian humility, however, is silent about the sins of others, or speaks of them with grief and pity. The spiritually proud person finds fault with other saints for their lack of progress in grace, while the humble Christian sees so much evil in his own heart, and is so concerned about it, that he is not apt to be very busy with other hearts. He complains most of himself and his own spiritual coldness and readily hopes that most everybody has more love and thankfulness to God than he.

Spiritually proud people often speak of almost everything they see in others in the harshest, most severe language. Commonly, their criticism is directed against not only wicked men but also toward true children of God and those who are their superiors. The humble, however, even when they have extraordinary discoveries of God's glory, are overwhelmed with their own vileness and sinfulness. Their exhortations to fellow Christians are given in a loving and humble manner, and they treat others with as much humility and gentleness as Christ, who is infinitely above them, treats them.

Spiritual pride often disposes people to act different in external appearance, to assume a different way of speaking, countenance, or behavior. However, the humble Christian, though he will be firm in his duty; going the way of heaven alone even if all the world forsake him; yet he does not delight in being different for difference's sake. He does not try to set himself up to be viewed and observed as one distinguished, but on the contrary, is disposed to become all things to all men, to yield to others, to conform to them, and to please them in all but sin.

Proud people take great notice of opposition and injuries, and are prone to speak often about them with an air of bitterness or contempt. Christian humility, on the other hand, disposes a person to be more like his blessed Lord, who when reviled did not open His mouth but committed Himself in silence to Him who judges righteously. For the humble Christian, the more clamorous and furious the world is against him, the more silent and still he will be.

Another pattern of spiritually proud people is to behave in ways that make them the focus of others. It is natural for a person under the influence of pride to take all the respect that is paid to him. If others show a disposition to submit to him and yield in deference to him, he is open to it and freely receives it. In fact, they come to expect such treatment and to form an ill opinion of those who do not give them what they feel they deserve."

Adapted from "Some Thoughts concerning the Present Revival of Religion in New England" from The Works of Jonathan Edwards (Banner of Truth).

Acts 1 - Study Notes

2010-10-02T15:46:00.000-05:00

From time to time, I get the chance to teach a Sunday School class. Here are the notes from the class.

Acts 1 Bible Study – Digging Deeper

"The Acts of the Apostles" is the name given since at least the middle of the second century to the second volume of Luke's two volume history of Christian origins.

There has almost never been any doubt that the author of Acts is also the author of the third gospel. Luke 1:1-4 (Question 1 How do these statements help assure us of the historical accuracy of the Book of Acts (and the gospel of Luke)?

Theophilus -

It means "beloved of God" or "friend of God."
Little is known about him. Second-century sources indicate he was a wealthy, influential official in Antioch.
Theophilus was a Roman citizen who was a believer.
He may have been a high-ranking Roman official because Luke referred to him as "most excellent Theophilus" (Luke 1:3). The term excellent is also used by Luke in reference to Felix and Festus, who were Roman governors (Acts 23:26, 26:25).
Put yourself in Theophilus’ shoes.

The scroll for Acts is 25 feet in length! It cost Luke to write these books, not only time, but also financial resources. What is God asking of us today?

Acts begins with a prologue in which Luke says that he told us in his first volume "all that Jesus began to do and teach." Acts is intended to tell us what Jesus continued to do and teach after his ascension to heaven, but now through his witnesses. We are to continue the work of evangelism and teaching that Jesus began.

What does v.1 tell us about Luke’s theme or subject for the Book of Acts?

if “Luke” is about what Jesus began to do and teach, then “Acts” is about what Jesus continues to do and teach.

Verse 2: And we are to utilize the same power that Jesus did, namely "through the Holy Spirit". Any work that we try to do or teach without the Holy Spirit is not His work.

"the apostles whom he had chosen" Jesus chose His own missionaries, taught them, and commissioned them with certain responsibilities. The same is true of all Christians: we are chosen by Christ. John 15:16.

Verse 3: "To them he presented himself alive" Luke 24: 40 – 43. – Jesus is ALIVE! He proved it! The Greek word for "proof" here is a word that includes the idea of being convincing – infallible. No other religion in the world can claim anything like this!

Appeared to them during 40 days. NT accounts of Jesus' appearances make clear that Jesus was not continually visible to the apostles during the forty days, but appeared to them on various occasions. 1 Cor 15: 5-7.

The apostles’ exposure to the proofs of the resurrection was spread over more than a month. The resurrection would become the center of every sermon they preached that is recorded in Acts.

"Speaking about the kingdom of God": A constant theme of Jesus' teaching. See, for example, Luke 4:43; 8:1; 9:11. It also a theme of the first missionaries, the Seventy, in Luke 10:1-9. As it should be with us also, preaching the coming kingdom!

Verse 4: Luke had previously recorded this request for the apostles to stay in Jerusalem (Luke 24:49) until they “were clothed with power from on high.

The disciples, many of whom were from Galilee, would otherwise perhaps have returned to Galilee, but Jerusalem was to be the place of the Spirit's descent. Jesus orders them to stay in Jerusalem.
“Don’t start ministering until you have the power to do so.”

What was the "promise of the Father" that He had told them about? The gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told the apostles they would receive the Holy Spirit after He left them (Luke 24:44-49, John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7; 20:22).

Verse 5: For John the Baptizer's prediction that the Messiah would baptise people with the Holy Spirit, see Mark 1:8; Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16; John 1:33.

"Not many days from now": The apostles had been with Jesus 40 days, and they would have to wait another 10 days before the Holy Spirit fell, hence, 50 days from Resurrection to Pentecost.

Verse 6: When Christ taught the apostles about the kingdom after His resurrection, they thought perhaps now He would begin His reign.

The apostles were probably familiar with Ezekiel 36:26 and Joel 2, which say that the kingdom will come when the Holy Spirit is poured out.
When they heard Christ say the Holy Spirit would come soon (v. 5), they thought He was about to set up His kingdom on earth. .
Notice that they do not ask, “When?”, as they had before, but the question is “At this time..?” .
Prophecies are found in Jeremiah 33:7; Psalms 14:7; 85:1; Hosea 6:11.
Did they also have hopes of having great positions of authority in the reign of the Messiah, as before? Luke 22:24-29.
Remember that Israel at this time could be considered a "Roman occupied territory".

Verse 7: Jesus answered the disciples' question about the time of the kingdom's coming,

He didn't tell them there would be no kingdom. He simply said that the time of the kingdom's coming was not for them to know.
If there were no literal kingdom planned for the future, Christ would have said so in Acts 1:7.
It is not for us to know when the Lord will return, for no man knows the day or the hour(Matt 24:36, 25:13, Mar 13:32).

Verse 8: "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you"

They are presently powerless. That powerlessness was manifested at the arrest of Jesus. He was arrested and all of the disciples fled into the night. They ran like frightened sheep. But there will be a change. They will receive power.
The Greek word is dunamis. This is the word from which derives our English words "dynamite", "dynamic" and "dynamo." It is more than mere authority. It the power of ability.

"You will be my witnesses":

Their task will not be speculation about the end, but filling up the time that does remain with bearing witness to Christ throughout the world.
A witness is simply someone who tells what he knows, what he himself has seen and heard. 1 John 1:1-2
The word in the Greek is where we get the term “martyrs”.
We are witnesses. There is no sense in which we are “to be witnesses”.

"Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" is something of an outline of the book of Acts. Chapters 1-7 = "in Jerusalem"; 8:1-11:18 = "Judea and Samaria"; and the rest of the book, "to the ends of the earth." The Holy Spirit was given for this reason: to empower the apostles to be Christ's witnesses in Jerusalem, and then on to the ends of the earth.

Verses 9: The Ascension.

For direct verbal echoes, see 2 Kings 2:9-13 (Elijah's ascension).

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And where I go you know, and the way you know.” John 14:3-4

“But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ 6 But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. 7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. John 16:5-8

Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Rom 8:34

“and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come.” Eph 1:19-21

While only Luke tells us the story of the Ascension, there are other possible traces of the tradition of the Ascension in Ephesians 4:8-10; 1 Timothy 3:16; John 20:17.
He had given them the instruction they needed, their commission, and told them to await the descent of the Spirit. His work was done and so he left them.
Note the quiet removal; no pomp, no ceremony, as would have certainly been the case in a legendary account.
Cloud the Shekinah glory of the Lord? Clouds at Trans, Ascen, Return
What is the point behind the Ascension? The Return

Verse 10: While they strain to look(gazing into heaven) for Jesus, two angels stood by them.

Verse 11 There is almost a reproach in the words of the two angels: "Why are you standing here looking into the sky?" It is a gentle reproach as indicated by the fact that they encourage them with the thought that the Lord will return, just as they saw him leave.

Why two angels?(Deut 19:15)
The Ascension occurred on the Mount of Olives, as we are told in v. 12.
He will return to the Mount of Olives, as Zechariah tells us... Zech 14: 4-5
The same Christ who ascended into heaven in Acts 1:9 will return the same way. He won't be different. He will return in the same glorified body that the disciples saw when Christ joined them for breakfast by the Sea of Galilee in John 21:4-14.

He said that He would leave (John 6:62, 20:17).
He said that He needed to leave in order for the Spirit to come
He needed to make the disciples realize that He would not be appearing to them again
He is now interceding for us in heaven
He will be returning the same way He left

Application: Knowing that Christ will return someday should motivate us to serve Him diligently. Someday we will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ to receive rewards for what we did while on earth (2 Cor. 5:10). Christ said, "Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be" (Rev. 22:12). One of the greatest motivators for serving Jesus is that He will reward us for what we have done.

Verse 12: They were on the Mount of Olives for the Ascension. The spot was a Sabbath days journey – how far? Half mile?

Verse 13: They go to the Upper Room where they were staying.

The disciples most likely gathered in the same upper room where the Last Supper was held and where Jesus appeared to them after His resurrection.
In those days, houses frequently had upper rooms or chambers. The upper rooms were like living rooms. It was a place for fellowship or devotions.
In Acts 9 we read a dead widow named Dorcas was placed in an upper room prior to her planned burial (she was resurrected by Peter).

Eleven Apostles The list of apostles is the same as in Luke 6:14-16 except Judas Iscariot

Verse 14: Everybody was together praying.

While the disciples were waiting for the Holy Spirit, they didn't just stay in the upper room. Luke 24:53 says they "were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God."
So the upper room served as a meeting place.
One thing they weren't praying for was the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit's coming didn't depend on their prayers. Acts 1:4 says that the Holy Spirit was a promise of the Father. They already had the promise; it was just a matter of waiting. In fact when the Spirit did come in Acts 2:2, the people weren't even in prayer.

"The women" were probably the ladies who were with Jesus throughout His ministry, death, and resurrection:

Mary Magdalene,
Mary the wife of Clopis,
Mary and Martha, Salome, and perhaps others (cf. Luke 8:1-3). Acts 1:14 says that the disciples were praying with Mary, not to her.
This is the last mention of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Christ's mother and half-brothers were also in the upper room. (James, Joseph, Simon, and Jude--whom we see mentioned in Matthew 13:55
Christ's brothers at one time weren't believers, but they became believers by the time Acts 1 was written.
How did they become saved? Scripture doesn't say, but I think it may have happened when James saw Christ after the resurrection (1 Cor. 15:4, 7).
Who else was there with the 120? Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimethea..?

Fear of the Jews - John 20:19 “..when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you."

The overarching principle at this point in the disciples lives is not so much that they spent time rejoicing at the Temple and praying in the upper room, but that they were obedient to Christ's command to stay in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came.

Verse 15: During the 10 day wait between Ascension and Pentecost, business needed to be done.

Peter stood up among the brethren – leader or among equals?
About 120 in the company. But their small number was made up by the power they derived from God.
Within thirty years the gospel spread all over the known world and penetrated Rome.
They were people just like us.

Verse 16: Scripture to be fulfilled. Holy Spirit spoke - by David - concerning Judas.

Judas was a guide to those who arrested Jesus.
The Old Testament prophesied that Judas would be replaced (Ps. 109:8), so the change was a part of God's plan.
Peter reassured them that God's plan wasn't thwarted because Judas betrayed Jesus.
God doesn't lose those who really belong to Him.
Judas's betrayal fulfilled Scripture. That doesn't mean God made Judas betray Jesus; it simply means that He used Judas's actions to accomplish His purpose.
God can work through men whether they are saved or not.

Verse 17: Judas was one of their number.

At this time, the disciples were all probably wondering why Judas betrayed Jesus.
Christ had told them that one day the disciples would sit on twelve thrones (Matt. 19:28), but now there were only eleven disciples.
So the things Peter says are a message from God that Judas's betrayal was expected, and that the prophecy in Matthew 19:28 wasn't wrong.

Verse 18: Judas bought a field with the 30 pieces of silver, and died in it.

These verses tell a different story from Matthew of how the Field got its name.
Here the blood is Judas’ rather than Jesus’.
“falling headlong”: Literally flat or prone.

Verse 19: “their language”: i.e. Aramaic, a dialect related to Hebrew.

“Blood”: Here the “blood” in question is that of the betrayer; in Matthew 27:4-5, it is that of the betrayed.

Verse 20 Psalm 69:26

Verses 21-22: Note that Paul does not meet the requirements for being an apostle (not being with Jesus throughout his earthly ministry), but 1 Cor15:8-9: but traceability to Jesus was still required.

Note that Luke does not suppress Paul’s claim to be an apostle: in Acts 14:4 Luke writes “When the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it ...”.

Verse 22: The “baptism of John” marks the start of Jesus’ ministry: see Mark 1:1-4 and Acts 10:37 (Peter’s teaches at Cornelius’ house). This verse is a summary of vv. 1-5.

Verse 23: This verse sets us up to expect the election of Joseph; it is almost as though he was better known than Matthias.

Verse 26: “they cast lots”: This is no casting of votes, for it is God who does the choosing (v. 24) via the incalculable lots. Prov 16:33 “The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the LORD.”

First, then, in the place of Judas, the betrayer, Matthias,who, as has been shownwas also one of the Seventy, was chosen to the apostolate. Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius of Caesarea,

Application: The call of Matthias reminds me of a story told by Fred Craddock about his own ministry and sense of call. Craddock says that he always imagined that someday he'd do something really great, he'd be a martyr for Jesus. There'd be a monument built for him to recognize his deed and people would come by and read "Here's where Fred gave it all for Jesus."

He always thought his call would play out as a spectacular $100 bill kind of experience. But then he came to realize that his ministry was actually about giving lectures, reading books, grading papers, going to meetings. He knew he'd finally accepted that call when he took the $100 bill to the bank and said, "give it to me in quarters." Now, Craddock says, he lives out his call one ordinary quarter at a time.

Walking Dead Trailer

2010-10-01T14:41:00.000-05:00

Posting it here because:

It looks very cool

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yg46DWI_fCE

Omaha Zoo Photos

2010-10-01T08:52:00.001-05:00

They have a nice aquarium with sharks...

...a cool train...

...big kitties who stare at you..

..a new baby seal....just born a few days before...

..peacocks..of course!

Like the Friday Photo, but early..

2010-09-30T09:34:00.002-05:00

Yosemite, about this time of year, but probably 15 - 20 years ago. View from the Tunnel overlook at about 9AM.

Funny story behind this photo. My buddy and I would go up to Yosemite to shoot pics, and we didn't really expect it to get cold. Or rain. Or snow. Which it all did the night before I shot this pic. We rented a canvas tent "cabin", which is fine during the summer...I think we each slept with 6 - 8 army blankets.

So I got up the next morning, and there was snow on the mountains, but not in the valley. I went back to the cabin to wake up my bud, and he wanted to sleep. I jetted off to shoot and got lots of shots, cause I was still using 35mm film at this time.

I got up to the Tunnel overlook and there were a few photogs there already, most of them using large format. I get out and set up the tripod and start cranking, getting the fog moving through the valley. They are still setting up their shots. I think that the fog disappeared before they were able to shoot it.

I never forgot that moment, even when I moved onto large format - setup quick and get the shot!

So when I got back to the cabin, my bud was kinda mad at me for leaving him at the cabin. But we went out and got more shots, but the scenes had changed from earlier in the day.

My bud got kinda mad when I got my slides back and he saw what he missed.

Redemptive-Historical Method

2010-09-29T14:06:00.000-05:00

OBJECTIONS TO THE APPROACH cont'd
by Tim Keller

Remembering the Two Authors
Rodney A. Whitney reiterates what we have just said about the two opposite errors in exegesis, but he bases each one in an incomplete doctrine of the Scripture. He writes that there have always been two basic emphases or approaches to Biblical interpretation. The first he calls this the 'Historic Approach" to Bible interpretation. This stresses the fact that each text has a very human author. This approach asks 'What did the human Biblical author intend to say? What did it mean to the original author and audience?" To discover this, the interpreter looks at the linguistic, literary. and historical evidence. But Whitacre also speaks of the 'Organic Approach" to Bible interpretation. This stresses the fact that all of Scripture has a divine author. This approach asks: 'What does the divine Biblical author intend for us to hear? Why did he put this in the Bible for us?" To discover this, the interpreter looks at all the Bible (especially texts that are most like and most unlike it) and at Jesus Christ, who (as we have seen) the overall message of the Bible is about.

a. The Extreme Forms.
At the extreme end of an 'Organic-Only" approach, we have wildly Allegorical Interpretation. Whitacre gives an example of this in a famous interpretation of Ps. 137:-9 by the medieval church. “0 daughter of Babylon..happy is he.. who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks." The allegorical interpretation goes like this. Jesus is the Rock. Babylon represents evil and sin. So we are being told to take even our littlest sins and most embryonic sinful thoughts and dash them on Christ. This interpretation connects to other parts of the Bible (Christ as the Rock, the need for purity and holiness) but it makes no attempt to connect to the original historical meaning of the text.
(2) At the other extreme of a 'Historic-Only" approach. We have most scholarship in the world today--the Historical-Critical Interpretation. It makes no attempt to align or integrate what Paul says with what Isaiah says. There is no concept of any divine authorship or divine unity. Any attempt at harmonization is scorned and disdained. The meaning of the ancient texts is locked away, therefore, in a very ancient time and has nothing to do with us directly. Any normative or systematic theology is impossible.

b. Moderate Forms. Within the mainstream of the evangelical world these two extremes are rightly discarded. But two more moderate forms of the two poles creates real confusion among orthodox students of the Bible today.
(1) First, there is a moderate Historical-Critical approach which does allow for 'harmonization' with other texts for the purpose of Systematics, but is not comfortable with reading any meanings out of a text that the human author did not know of. Because this view believes in the divine authorship of the entire Bible it will accept that an OT author was talking unwittingly about Jesus, but onlv when a NT author tells us that he was.
(2) On the other hand, the Redemptive-Historical approach, which stresses more the organic unity of divine authorship, believes that many texts mean more than the human author intended. By the Holy Spirit's inspiration, an OT text may tell us about Jesus Christ and we may discover this, even if no NT author tells us so.

c. Criticisms. Of the 'Redemptive-Historical' approach:
First, there is a real danger of allegorizing. If you are not 'controlled' in your interpretation by first establishing the human author's intention, then your imagination can just run wild and you can get anything out of it.
Second, since you are always looking to 'find Christ' in the text, you may miss the very real practical applications and moral exhortations that are there. The people will get an inspiring picture of Jesus, but not get any real practical direction in how to live their lives.
Third, it could be hard for your lay people to learn how to interpret the Bible with this method. When you are done they’ll say: 'My! I could never get all that out of a text." And they'll be right.

(2) But the criticisms of the ‘Historical-Intent Only’ approach are, I believe, more trenchant.

First, as we mentioned above the New Testament writers continually interpret the Old Testament using the 'Organic' or "Redemptive-Historical" approach. They are constantly reading Psalms and other parts of the Bible as being about Christ, even when those texts have no clear 'Messianic Prophecy" in them. This was clearly a 'model' with which the NT writers were interpreting the OT. Why not use the model? The objection that 'they were inspired, we
are not' assumes that no one else in the early church was reading the Old Testament in a thoroughly Christological way. But all indications are that they were.

Second, the historical approach often speaks of the Christo-centric approach being 'arbitrary', but it's own method is much more speculative than it seems to realize. Of course it is somewhat speculative to answer the question "what does this text tell us about Jesus?" when we know that the author didn't intend to tell us overtly about Jesus. But on the other hand, it is somewhat speculative to try to reconstruct the original condition and historical setting as well. We are never sure we are right about the original audience. It takes a great deal of imagination and guess work to posit authorial intent. So the grammatico-historical exegesis is not as scientific and objective as it might first appear.

Third, we must be able to preach Christ from a text or we have the problem of 'synagogue' sermons. We are preaching the same sermon that could be preached in a synagogue-"Here is the righteous law. Do it and you will live." For example, how should we preach Jacob wrestling with the angel? There is no place where a New Testament writer sees this as a type of Christ. In the stricter view, then. We cannot preach this text as being about Christ at all. We must say that we learn here things like: a) life is filled with difficulty but we should persevere, or b) we need to wrestle with God in prayer. But that is what could have been preached centuries before Christ came. It is a sermon that would fit as well in a synagogue.

Fourth, the 'Historical-Intent Only' approach implies that the Church was not able to interpret the Bible properly until very recently we had the historical tools to discern original settings.

The Difference between an "Allegory" and a "Type"
If then we see that a Christological reading of the Bible is a wise and right way to go—the biggest practical issue that comes us in this discussion is-how can you tell the difference between a "type" and an "allegory"? The Redemptive-Historical approach finds types of Christ in OT texts even where a NT writer does not indicate that there is one. How can you be sure you are not allegorizing? Based on the writings of Clowney and Rod Whitacre's paper, here is a summary of the difference.

a. Typology: (1) Clowney - type is based on something in the text of symbolic significance and to the human author and in the Scriptures in general. There must be evidence that the author saw a feature or figure as having some significance of syrnbolism. For example, is the fact that the chord Rahab uses to mark and protect her home (Joshua 2) is scarlet significant to the author? Or does the color red symbolize blood or sacrifice in general in the Bible. If not (and I don't think we can demonstrate that it does), then we cannot preach that the chord- represents the blood of Christ protecting us from justice and wrath--as some people have done.' However, we can preach the blood on the doorposts of the Israelites that way (Exodus 12). Can ' we preach that God's choice of Leah as the mother of the Messianic seed is a type of God's salvation through weakness and rejection (Matt. 1 : 1 - 17; 1 Cor. 1 :26ff.)? We would have to demonstrate that the author of Genesis knew that Judah was the bearer of the Messianic strain and that therefore it's corning to Leah rather than Rachel was an act of grace. I believe we can (Gen.49: 10). Can we preach that Isaac represents Christ? Yes, because in the Old Testament the first-born had redemptive significance; Every first born belonged to God, etc. (Whitacre) A type is also based on connections between macro features and figures. It sees similarities between persons (prophets, priests, kings), events (Passover, exodus), and patterns of practice (saving through rejection, weakness). For example, in 2 Kings 5, we see a type of Christ’s revelation in the exclusivity of the prophet Elisha. Naaman must go to Israel, and he must wash in the Jordan. Because the Lord's salvation is a revealed salvation, we must submit to that revelation. On the other hand, we see a type of Christ's salvation in the prominence of the servants. Naarnan keeps going to kings, but God sends his salvation through the weak and marginal. He must go to a weaker country than Syria. He learns of his salvation through a servant girl who was victimized by his military, he only avoids disaster when his own servants reason with him to listen to Elisha. Because salvation comes through weakness and the powerless, we receive it by repentance/ faith alone and so refuse to worship worldly power and wealth. So types focus on 'macro-patterns' of revelation rather than descending to details.

b. Allegory: (1) Allegory, by contrast, seeks no basis in the author's original intent. Of course, it reads everything as symbolic, but it makes no attempt to show through linguistic or literary analysis that the feature it fixes on was of some symbolic significance to the human author. In other words, it ignores the human nature of the Bible and treats it as if it were simply a supernatural text. (2) Secondly, allegory focuses on microfeatures such as words or even numbers. It may take the two coins that the Good Samaritan left with the innkeeper
as the two sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper left by Jesus to sustain and heal us. It may take the 'little ones' of Ps.137:8-9 as our sinful thoughts or our 'little' white lies. Instead of seeking to identify broad patterns of salvation with Jesus' pattern, it fixes on details.

More Sunflowers...

2010-09-28T09:03:00.000-05:00

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I picked this sunflower and brought it home with me - but the farmer who owns the field allows people to do this - as long as you pay.

A little late in the season, but they still look very cool enmasse.

Preaching Christ or preaching about Christ?

2010-09-27T14:09:00.000-05:00

There is a difference between preaching Christ and preaching about Christ. Preaching Christ is presenting him so clearly and directly that the people experience the sermon this way: “It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified” (Galatians 3:1). Preaching about Christ is presenting ideas related to him. It’s a good thing to do. But preaching Christ is more profound, more daring and more helpful.

In Intellectuals, page 31, Paul Johnson wrote of the poet Shelley, “He burned with a fierce love but it was an abstract flame and the poor mortals who came near it were often scorched. He put ideas before people and his life is a testament to how heartless ideas can be.” It is not enough for us preachers to burn with a fierce love. We must burn with a fierce love for Christ the crucified Friend of sinners and for the sinners right there before us who need that Friend. Ideas about Christ can even be heartless. But Christ crucified befriends sinners, and they feel it.

Calvin comments on Galatians 3:1, “Let those who want to discharge the ministry of the gospel aright learn not only to speak and declaim but also to penetrate into consciences, so that men may see Christ crucified and that his blood may flow.” Christ’s blood flowing into the human conscience, setting people free as they sit there listening to the sermon – that is preaching Christ.

One way to test ourselves is to ask, What are the people who hear me preach walking away with? Have they seen Christ himself during this sermon, or have they only interacted with ideas about Christ? As a preacher, I cannot make people engage with him. I wouldn’t want to try. But I can and must preach in such a way that he stands forth as obvious and available to the people right then and there.

-Ray Ortlund

Additionally, he provided this for further explanation:

"Preaching Christ includes ideas and concepts, of course. But it goes beyond that by presenting him, displaying him and offering him as a living reality and presence in the moment. This is rare and wonderful. A grace."

Redemptive-Historical Method

2010-09-24T09:51:00.000-05:00

By Tim Keller
OBJECTIONS TO THE APPROACH
In light of the RHM approach, there are two opposite exegetical errors to avoid. Let's recall the words of Sidney Greidanus: "We can define 'preaching Christ' as preaching sermons which authentically integrate the message of the text with the climax of God's revelation in the person, work, and teaching of Jesus Christ .. '

Moralizing. If on the one hand, we fail to relate the text to the saving work of Christ we fail both hermeneutically and pastorally.
1) Hermeneutically. We fail to truly reveal the meaning of the text. If every part of the Bible testifies to Christ, then until we discern how a text tells us about him we do not know what it really means.
2) Pastorally, we fail to truly guide the listeners into any real holiness. If they hear us, in isolation, simply telling them how to raise their children, face trials, pray fervently, or create a healthy church--we give them the (totally false) impression that they can be right with God and others through their own efforts.

Allegorizing. If, on the other hand we fail to "authentically integrate" the message of the text with the saving work of Christ, but rather only point out superficial likenesses between the text and Jesus ("As Rahab took shelter under the red cord, so we should take shelter under the blood of Christ")--we also fail hermeneutically and pastorally.
1) Hermeneutically, allegorizing is a 'quick fix' substituting for hard thinking about the meaning of the text. Allegorizing either can lead to doing too little work on the micro-context (you don't spend enough time penetrating to the author's original intent for his readers) or can lead to doing too little work on the macro-context (you will simply refer to superficial features rather than preaching the great 'longitudinal' Biblical-theological
themes like temple, covenant, kingdom, substitution).
2) Pastorally, allegorizing has the same weaknesses. Too little emphasis on the micro-context leads to a lack of practical application. For example, if we jump to Christ' too soon we miss the exemplary value of the text. On the other hand, if we put too little emphasis on the macro-context and make the connection to Christ superficial, we end up with a moralistic sermon anyway. Allegorizing only arouses sentimental feelings. It does not confront self-righteous pride and self-righteous fear.

The concern about allegorizing.
While the proponents of RHM are very concerned about moralizing, it opponents think that the main danger (and main objection) to the RHM is the danger of allegorizing. An example that Sidney Greidanus uses is from Augustine.

'The door [in the side of the ark] surely represents the wound made when the side of the crucified was pierced with the spear ... This is the way of entrance for those who come to him.." Citv of God 13.21

"Allegorizing" has two very bad effects. 1) It makes for completely arbitrary interpretation. Instead of living under the authority of the Word, we can get nearly any message from a text we wish. 2) I t fails to honor the meaning and message of the human author whose conscious intent is the vehicle for God's revelation. Modem interpreters, both of an orthodox and liberal bent, eschew allegorizing by concentrating wholly on the original intent of the human author as the only sure and certain benchmark. But there are dangers on the other extreme as well.

Preaching Christ

2010-09-22T08:59:00.000-05:00

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“My friends, I do not believe it is preaching Christ and him crucified, to give people a batch of philosophy every Sunday morning and evening, and neglect the truths of this Holy Book. I do not believe it is preaching Christ and him crucified, to leave out the main cardinal doctrine of the Word of God, and preach a religion which is all a mist and a haze, without any definite truths whatsoever. I take it that man does not preach Christ and him crucified, who can get through a sermon without mentioning Christ’s name once; nor does that man preach Christ and him crucified, who leaves out the Holy Spirit’s work, who never says a word about the Holy Ghost, so that indeed the hearers might say, ‘We do not so much as know whether there be a Holy Ghost.’ And I have my own private opinion, that there is no such thing as preaching Christ and him crucified, unless you preach what now-a-days is called Calvinism. I have my own ideas, and those I always state boldly. It is a nickname to call it Calvinism. Calvinism is the gospel, and nothing else. I do not believe we can preach the gospel, if we do not preach justification by faith without works; nor unless we preach the sovereignty of God in his dispensation of grace; nor unless we exalt the electing, unchangeable, eternal, immutable conquering love of Jehovah; nor, I think, can we preach the gospel, unless we base it upon the peculiar redemption which Christ made for his elect and chosen people; nor can I comprehend a gospel which lets the children of God to be burned in the fires of damnation, after having believed.”

-Charles H. Spurgeon, Christ Crucified
Spurgeon’s Sermons, Vol. 1, pg 88-89

Great Quote!

2010-09-20T15:11:00.000-05:00

“Jesus’s teaching consistently attracted the irreligious while offending the Bible-believing, religious people of his day. However, in the main, our churches today do not have this effect. The kind of outsiders Jesus attracted are not attracted to contemporary churches, even our most avant-garde ones. We tend to draw conservative, buttoned-down, moralistic people. The licentious and liberated or the broken and marginal avoid church. That can only mean one thing. If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishioners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then we must not be declaring the same message that Jesus did.” - Timothy Keller, The Prodigal God

Cause he's my dog...

2010-09-17T11:13:00.000-05:00

And then one from last winter....

Redemptive-Historical Method - Locating/Reading the Text

2010-09-17T10:16:00.000-05:00

THE REDEMPTIVE-HISTORICAL METHOD

From Tim Keller -

2. LOCATING/READING THE TEXT IN ITS TWO CONTEXTS
Sidney Greidanus writes. "We can define 'preaching Christ' as preaching sermons which authentically integrate the message of the text with the climax of God's revelation in the person, work and teaching of Jesus Christ..” This definition assumes that every text has a 'micro' and a 'macro' context.

To understand any particular text of the Bible, we must first put it into the 'micro' context—its historical and linguistic setting, in order to discern the immediate intent of the human author. This is what in the 20th century has come to be known as the 'grammatico-historical' method, and it is crucial. We must use every tool we have to discern what the original author meant to say to the original readers of the text. We study the use of language, we study the historical context. We put the text in the context of the whole book, and so on.

But every Biblical text also has a 'macro' context--its place in the entire Bible which has as its purpose, the revelation of Christ as the climax of all God's redeeming activity in history. We must not only ask: 'what did the human author intend to say to his historical audience?' but also 'why did God in 'scripturate' this as a way of pointing to the salvation of his Son?

So the Redemptive-historical method of interpretation insists that we put each text not only into the context of its original setting and author-intent but also into the context of it’s 'the big story of salvation' as traced above. The interpreter must 'locate' the text, recognizing what place it holds in the developing salvation-story line (i.e. what stage in redemption-history is occupies.) So what does that mean? I suggest the following two practical measures.

A. First. It means recognizing the text's 'limitations'. This may sound a bit shocking-- isn't all Scripture inspired? Of course, but revelation is progressive. If we fail to put a text in its redemptive-historical context, we will run into trouble. For example, if the purpose of the Elijah narratives (as one minister put it] "is to teach us how to walk close to the Lord and be courageous", then we have some problems with the prophet's behavior! Should we go out and kill false teachers as Elijah did with the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18)? If we see the purpose of 1 Kings 18 to be mainly instruction on how to live--and if we preach it as such--we will either be simply confused and embarrassed by Elijah's conduct or we will mislead Christians into a holy war mentality (!) ignoring the different stage of redemptive history in which we are now (Matt 26:52). But if the focus of every Biblical text is not on us and our behavior but on God and his saving activity, then the purpose of Elijah's ministry is to point us to salvation in Christ. We can say about Elijah. "Jesus told us to put up our swords and the cross shows us that the kingdom of God moves forward now in sacrificial service. But we do learn here that all religions are not alike!” So we must be aware of the 'limitations' or incompleteness of every stage in redemptive history before Christ.

b. Second. It means teasing out all the text's clues to how salvation 'works'. The traditional 'exemplarist' approach to the Bible (not just the Old Testament. but the New Testament! See note 2 below) tends to look for traits of moral behavior in every text. It asks: 'What do I learn here about prayer? Obedience? How to deal with self-pity? How to raise my children? How to conduct myself sexually? How to handle discouragement?" But if the purpose of every text is to point to God's saving purposes--then we must approach every text asking: “What gospel-pieces are here? What does this text show us about how salvation works? What does it tell me of grace, faith, the nature of sin, the attributes of God as they bear on our relationship to him, the nature of conversion, the results or marks of conversion?" It is only if we do this first that we can then treat the
moral-example aspect of the text properly.

c. Third, it means showing how the salvation 'pieces' only 'come together' eventually in Christ. For example, we may point out that Elijah was of course very courageous on Mt. Camel--but he was only courageous because he knew about God's saving purposes. Unlike Baal and all the pagan gods. the true God did not need worshippers to cut themselves and compel his attention and answers to prayer through their efforts. He knew that with only a word of prayer. God would hear and answer. But this incident participates in the Big Plot-Line of salvation's story. It raises the question: "why would the true God be so utterly different than the gods of the world's religions? why would he listen to his prophet without him cutting himself or dancing furiously or providing a perfect moral performance? Why" The only way the interpreter can answer this is to point ahead in the Scripture to how the plot-line resolves itself. It is because of Jesus who was cut literally to pieces for us and who made a perfect sacrifice for sins so that God can come to us and work with us despite our imperfections.

Note 1. Here then we get to the essence of the issue of 'moralism' and application. On the one hand you could so fear 'moralism' and put so much emphasis on the 'limitation' and partial nature of former ages of revelation that you read the text as nothing more than a 'type' of Christ. You may not allow any 'exemplary' force at all to the text to impinge on the listener. This is, however, to forget that every stage in revelation is a stage in redemption-history, very part of the Bible tells us something about how God's salvation 'works'. We learn things about grace, repentance, faith. obedience in every era. On the other hand, 1) just as it is clear in the gospels that the that we are not simply supposed to imitate Christ's example but believe and rest in his work for us (which is the only way we ever will follow his example), and 2) just as it is clear in the epistles that our imperatives ('do this') are based on indicatives ('because you are this'), then 3) whenever we preach on any other character in the Bible we must only exhort people to 'be like' him/her on the basis of faith in the one to whom he/she points.

Note 2: We must not think that 'putting the text into the One Story Line' is something you only have to work on with Old Testament texts. It is just as possible to preach New Testament texts--even Gospel accounts about Jesus--without reference to the overall story line of salvation. It is extremely possible to simply show how much Jesus loves and forgives or how great he is. appealing directly to sentiment, without showing how the particular text points to the longitudinal themes of sin. justice, redemption, and his saving work. It is possible to lift up Jesus simply as an example to emulate. Another example: it is well known that often Paul lays out the 'doctrine' in the early part of his letters and 'practical application' in the latter part. (This is an oversimplification. but a relatively helpful one.) It is extremely easy to preach a sermon on Ephesians 4 about the 'Marks of a Healthy Church' without grounding it in the Christology of Eph I. The same could be said for preaching on 'Love' in 1 Cor 13 without grounding it in the dissension of the Corinthians and its doctrinal solution--the cross (1 Cor 1). In all such cases the preacher is giving listener the strong impression that what it will take to have a healthy church (or a loving life) is simple moral effort.

Note 3: We must not think that 'putting the text into the One Story Line' means that we have to identify one 'longitudinal theme' as the central, controlling theme of the Bible. Many people have tried to demonstrate this. The best candidate is probably the theme of the 'kingdom' and a close second is 'covenant'. No t only do most Biblical theologians disagree with this on hermeneutical grounds. I think it is pragmatically unwise. Every theme has its own nuances and if we choose one theme as the theme we tend to become unbalanced in our understanding of the gospel. We may over-stress the mystical or the legal or the individual or the corporate.

Cause they're cute...

2010-09-16T09:45:00.000-05:00

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Spurgeon on Preaching Christ

2010-09-15T10:22:00.000-05:00

Spurgeon on Preaching Christ

“I believe that those sermons which are fullest of Christ are the most likely to be blessed to the conversion of the hearers. Let your sermons be full of Christ, from beginning to end crammed full of the gospel. As for myself, brethren, I cannot preach anything else but Christ and His cross, for I know nothing else, and long ago, like the apostle Paul, I determined not to know anything else save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. People have often asked me, “What is the secret of your success?” I always answer that I have no other secret but this, that I have preached the gospel,—not about the gospel, but the gospel,—the full, free, glorious gospel of the living Christ who is the incarnation of the good news. Preach Jesus Christ, brethren, always and everywhere; and every time you preach be sure to have much of Jesus Christ in the sermon. You remember the story of the old minister who heard a sermon by a young man, and when he was asked by the preacher what he thought of it he was rather slow to answer, but at last he said, “If I must tell you, I did not like it at all; there was no Christ in your sermon.” “No,” answered the young man, “because I did not see that Christ was in the text.” “Oh!” said the old minister, “but do you not know that from every little town and village and tiny hamlet in England there is a road leading to London? Whenever I get hold of a text, I say to myself, ‘There is a road from here to Jesus Christ, and I mean to keep on His track till I get to Him.’” “Well,” said the young man, “but suppose you are preaching from a text that says nothing about Christ?” “Then I will go over hedge and ditch but what I will get at Him.” So must we do, brethren; we must have Christ in all our discourses, whatever else is in or not in them. There ought to be enough of the gospel in every sermon to save a soul. Take care that it is so when you are called to preach before Her Majesty the Queen, and if you have to preach to charwomen or chairmen, still always take care that there is the real gospel in every sermon.”

-CH Spurgeon, The Soul Winner.

Today in Christian History - Sept 14

2010-09-14T15:19:00.000-05:00

Early church father John Chrysostom, the greatest preacher of his age, dies in exile when, in poor health, he is forced to travel on foot in bad weather.

John Chrysostom is one of my heroes. I can read the Holimies of John today and still pull many practical lessons from them.

Biography from the Saint John Chrysostom webpage:

The legion of saints of the Church is comprised of men of extraordinary ability whose talents may have been dissimilar but many of whom seem to have shared a common genius for oratory. Yet out of this vast assembly of eloquent speakers, whose reputation might have rested on their gift of expression alone, the one for whom the title "Chrysostom" (in Russian, "Zlatoust"), or "golden-mouthed" was reserved, was John of Antioch, known as St. John Chrysostom, a great distinction in view of the qualifications of so many others.

Endeared as one of the four great doctors of the Church, St. John Chrysostom was born in 347 in Antioch, Syria and was prepared for a career in law under the renowned Libanius, who marveled at his pupil's eloquence and foresaw a brilliant career for his pupil as statesman and lawgiver. But John decided, after he had been baptised at the age of 23, to abandon the law in favour of service to the Saviour. He entered a monastery which served to educate him in preparation for his ordination as a priest in 386 AD. From the pulpit there emerged John, a preacher whose oratorical excellence gained him a reputation throughout the Christian world, a recognition which spurred him to even greater expression that found favour with everyone but the Empress Eudoxia, whom he saw fit to examine in some of his sermons.

When St. John was forty-nine years old, his immense popularity earned him election to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, a prestigious post from which he launched a crusade against excessiveness and extreme wealth which the Empress construed as a personal affront to her and her royal court. This also gave rise to sinister forces that envied his tremendous influence. His enemies found an instrument for his indictment when they discovered that he had harboured some pious monks who had been excommunicated by his archrival Theophilos, Bishop of Alexandria, who falsely accused John of treason and surreptitiously plotted his exile.

When it was discovered that the great St. John had been exiled by the puppets of the state, there arose such a clamour of protest, promising a real threat of civil disobedience, that not even the royal court dared to confront the angry multitudes and St John was restored to his post. At about this time he put a stop to a practice which was offensive to him, although none of his predecessors outwardly considered it disrespectful; this practice was applauding in church, which would be considered extremely vulgar today, and the absence of which has added to the solemnity of Church services.

St. John delivered a sermon in which he deplored the adulation of a frenzied crowd at the unveiling of a public statue of the Empress Eudoxia. His sermon was grossly exaggerated by his enemies, and by the time it reached the ears of the Empress it resulted in his permanent exile from his beloved city of Constantinople. The humiliation of banishment did not deter the gallant, golden-mouthed St. John, who continued to communicate with the Church and wrote his precious prose until he died in the lonely reaches of Pontus in 407.

The treasure of treatises and letters which St. John left behind, included the moving sermon that is heard at Easter Sunday services. The loss of his sermons which were not set down on paper is incalculable. Nevertheless, the immense store of his excellent literature reveals his insight, straightforwardness, and rhetorical splendour, and commands a position of the greatest respect and influence in Christian thought, rivaling that of other Fathers of the Church. His liturgy, which we respectfully chant on Sundays, is a living testimony of his greatness.

Random Pics from the Farmstead

2010-09-14T09:06:00.000-05:00

'Redemptive-Historical' Method - Description

2010-09-13T11:22:00.000-05:00

From Tim Keller

A BASIC DESCRIPTION OF THE APPROACH

"1. DISCERNING THE 'SALVATION STORY-LINE'

'Biblical theology' or the RHM posits that "it is the nature of biblical revelation that it tells a story rather than sets out tuneless principles in the abstract. If we allow the Bible to tell its own story, we find a coherent and meaningful whole”. The central story of the Bible is the story of redemption of salvation (thus the term 'redemptive-historical' method). The story is how 1) God initiates a saving work that we cannot do for ourselves 2) in order to a) create a new people for himself out of lost humanity and b) a new creation out of a marred and broken world. To do this takes justice and power on God's part, but also love and mercy. Only in Jesus Christ is it ultimately revealed how God's holiness and love can work together for saving purposes. Then, In him, all the themes--God's initiating grace, his redeeming provision, his presence with his covenant people. His renewing kingdom, and all others--come to a climax and fulfillment in the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. There is no part of the Bible nor text of the Bible that does not participate in these longitudinal 'salvation' themes.

The pre-fall and fall accounts (Genesis 1-3) show us the world as God designed it to be and the reasons it has fallen from its original design. Thus this part of the Bible shows us why salvation in Christ is needed, and what that future restoration will look like.

The post-fall narratives (Genesis 4- 1) show the inadequacy of human effort or God's judgment alone to bring about renewal of the world. God's design for creation seems thwarted by human sin. The story-line and plot of the Bible goes dark very quickly. There is little hope.

The patriarchal narratives, however, show us hope. We see God beginning to intervene in the world's life. Some protagonists (besides God) appear--Abraham, Joseph, etc. We see the embryonic shape of his saving purposes: his sovereign, free grace, his intention to create a new humanity--a new people for himself, the necessity and nature of faith, the promise of a land, of blessing, of God's presence, of mission, and of a future Messiah. It is obvious that the protagonists relate to God through faith and grace, not works--but much the redeeming provision is cryptic and unclear. Why can God continually forgive and work with and be present with people that he should destroy? Why doesn't he destroy them as he did in the accounts of the Flood and of Babel? The Biblical story plot 'thickens'.

The exodus and the giving of the law clarify both how radically gracious God is (since the deliverance from Egypt happens before the giving of the law) and yet how inexorable the law and justice and righteousness of God are. God gives both the law and the sacrificial system as a pointer to the substitutionary atonement which will be his redemptive provision. The tabernacle now makes God's presence among his people a permanent thing. The law (as well as the wisdom literature) reveals God's interest in justice in the world and his desire for a people who are distinct in every respect--a truly 'new humanity1--who will be a light attracting the nations. The nature of the coming kingdom is clarified and focused also in the history of the leaders of Israel. Despite times of decline (the judges) there are times of rising hope that the saving purposes of God will be fulfilled and the world will turn back to God. These hopes climax in the career of David.

But the post-David prophetic period makes clear that God's grace, redemption. covenant, the promise of a land and a kingdom will not be fulfilled by physical Israel or its human prophets, priests. heroes and kings. The decline of Israel brings us the prophets who 'move the story line' along in two ways. Negatively, they expound and develop the great longitudinal saving themes by way of critique of Israel. As they castigate and condemn the rebellious nation in ‘covenant lawsuit’ they provide greater insight into the mission of the people of God in the world, the social and personal righteousness God is ‘after’ in His people, and also the twin mistakes of licentiousness and self-righteousness /legalism. Positively, the prophets begin to (more clearly than ever) point ahead to how God will fulfill all his promises in eschatological fullness in the future. The first major prophets Elijah and Elisha have a remarkable ministry of unprecedented 'signs and wonders'. Under their hands, 'the blind see. the lame walk. The dead raised, and good news is preached to the poor.' These are signs of the powerful restoration the kingdom will bring. A final rebuilt temple, an ultimate return from exile, a consummate and perfect kingdom--are all now in view.

The ministry of Jesus in the gospels shows us how Jesus is the fulfillment and climax of all the longitudinal themes of God's salvation. In him all the 'plot tensions' are resolved. (How can God's promises be conditional--upon our obedience. yet unconditional--upon his grace?) In him all the protagonists of history are re-capitulated and succeed where they previously failed. In his life-story we have the world-salvation story re-told. We have darkness, a light and promise. A rising hope which is dashed on Good Friday, and then an unlooked for victory out of defeat.) Finally, the primacy of grace always present in the former ages, is now crystal clear in the ministry of Christ. His ethical example to us is secondary and based on his saving work for us. We are not saved through our imitation of him. But (ironically) in his substitutionary 'imitation' and representation of US.

The church now lives in the "overlap" of the ages between the first and second comings of Christ. So the 'story of salvation' is not over, despite its climax in Christ. There is an intensification and progression of all the longitudinal themes now and yet an incompleteness for the kingdom of God is 'already' but 'not yet'. So on the one hand, the Christian community itself is now God's temple--we have the Holy Spirit and presence of God. The mission of the people of God as a light to all the nations is now overt rather than implicit. The people of God are now multi-national, multi-ethnic. Much of the wisdom (from the wisdom literature) and the righteousness (from the law) can now characterize us as individuals and a community through the power of the Spirit. But, on the other hand our ethical and life-paradigm now is the cross. In the church age the kingdom moves ahead through loss and poverty and rejection and service and weakness.

The new heavens and new earth are the ultimate end of God's redemptive work in Christ. The RHM helps us see that the goal of God's work in Christ is not escape from the world but the renewal of the whole world. Heaven will re-unite with the earth and the whole world will become a giant holy-of-ho1ies.

Summary: It is Jesus that makes all these stories one story. Only when we understand all the previous stories and pointers (types) do we realize the richness and fullness of who Christ is. But on the other hand, only when we understand him (anti-type) do we understand what the pointers and all the other stories were about. We cannot fully understand one without the other. So for example, when in John 3 Jesus says he is like the serpent lifted up in the wilderness he puts the Serpent-in-the-wilderness into the Big Story. Yes. the purpose of the comparison is that the serpent incident sheds light on how Jesus saves us (e.g. it only takes a look, he is made like and treated like the sin that is killing us. etc.)--but on the other hand it means that we can't understand the incident of the serpent without realizing that it points us to Christ. Jesus shows us that the Bible is not an interesting set of isolated stories, each story telling us something different about how to live. Rather, Jesus unifies all the chapters into one story."

One year ago...

2010-09-10T08:44:00.000-05:00

One year ago my son was born.

This pic I was able to take while the docs were taking him out via C-section.

Drug War Zone - Howard Campbell

2010-09-09T10:08:00.000-05:00

The book is written from the viewpoint of an American Anthropologist, who has extensive contacts on both sides of the El Paso/Juarez border. Initially a slow read, the book picks up pace when the interviews begin. The strength of the book is in the various interviews the author has with both sides of the aisle: narco-trafficers, dealers, police, informants, border agents. The best stories are the ones that have been lived by the teller – some are funny, and some are downright scary. At times the author seems to let the teller give too much background or extraneous information that clouds the narrative. Some tellers leave you wanting more information, while others seem to languish or even repeat themselves. Not much is given in the way for solution to the drug war: only one story from a former border patrol agent who now believes the war is futile,

As others have pointed out, ”the author clearly defines all of the unfamiliar terms used in the interviews, but the inclusion of a glossary of key words and phrases would have been useful. More maps and pictures would have helped as well.

Campbell writes, at the time his book went to press, more that 1,600 killings had been reported in Ciudad Juarez in 2008, making in the bloodiest year in the city's recorded history. Sadly, this record no longer stands, as 2009 saw more than 2,500 killings. Drug War Zone is a valuable attempt to understand the causes and consequences of these statistics.”

Redemptive Historical Method

2010-09-09T08:50:00.000-05:00

From Tim Keller - Chapter 1 - Expounding Christ

"There are two basic approaches to discovering the unity of the Bible in an effort to answer the question: "what does the (whole) Bible teach about....?" One approach is the Systematic-Theological method (STM) which deals with the Scripture topically. It organizes what it says by asking: "what does the whole Bible teach about God? sin? the Holy Spirit? the Church? marriage and family? Prayer?" It looks at every text on a topic and synthesizes them into a set of statements or principles. The Westminster Confession of Faith. for example, is largely the product of the STM.

Another approach is the 'Biblical-Theological' or (better) 'Redemptive-Historical' method (RHM) which deals with the Scripture historicallv. It deals "Diachronically" rather than "synchronically" with the Bible. It sees the Bible less as a depository of individual pieces of data that must be organized and summarized and more as a history of God's salvation--a redemption-history. It notices, for example that the Bible shows little or not concern for historical events that the world would consider momentous. Instead. it only concerned with those events that reveal the unfolding saving words and actions of God. (e.g. How the 'biographies' of Jesus--the gospels--spend up to 50% on the last week of his life.) The Bible is
not primarily not a source of information about how to raise a family or handle money but a redemption-history.

Thus the RHM organizes what the Bible teaches by looking less at category-topics and more at 'longitudinal themes' that re-appear in each historical epoch and thus asks: "how does creation, the kingdom the temple/presence of God, the people of God, the covenant, the promises, the atonement-develop in every age and climax in the work of Christ?" (There is no ultimate reason why these two approaches have to contradict. but we will look more at the relationship of these two methods below.)

Bryan Chapell uses the acorn to illustrate the RHM. If to you I describe the acorn just as it is(it is 1 inch long, brown, has two parts) without explaining what the acorn has the potential to grow into(there is an entire tree within it!) I have not helped you to understand the acorn. If I describe Moses or David as men of faith but do not show you how they point to the ultimate Moses or David then I haven't really helped you understand these men or their stories.

Summary. In other words. the RHM believes that the purpose of every part of the Bible and therefore every text is to bear witness to who Christ is and what he came to do. Every text is about Jesus.

RATIONALE FOR THE APPROACH
I . The direction of Jesus.
When Jesus met the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, he discovered that they were in despair because their Messiah had been crucified. He responds. "'how slow of heart to believe all the prophets have spoken!'... and beginning with Moses and all the Prophets he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself." (Luke 24:25-29) Later he appears to his disciples in the upper room. and we are told "He said to them This is what 1 told you while 1 was still with you: everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms. ' Then he opened their minds so they could understand the
Scriptures." (Luke 24:44-45). Jesus blames the confusion of the disciples on their inability to see that all the Old Testament is "all" about him and his salvation. Another place where Jesus makes this same assertion is Jn 5:31-47. Jesus says that the Father has testified to him in the Scriptures (v.39). But he confronts his hearers with how they do not understand the Scriptures' testimony. He says, for example, that they think they follow Moses, but "Moses wrote about me." (v.46). The Law of Moses can only be understood as it points to Christ.

2. The example of the apostles.
The apostolic writers are famously 'Christ-centered' in their interpretation of the Hebrew Scriptures. Paul and the writer of the Epistles to the Hebrews. for example, continuously quote Psalms as the words of Christ--and not just 'Messianic' or 'Royal' Psalms where the speaker is some clearly Messianic figure. For example, Hebrews 1 : 14 quotes Psalm 9 1 : 1 1 - 12-"For he will command his angels concerning you.. SO that you will not strike yourfoot against a stone." But
when we as readers look at Psalm 91 we see absolutely nothing that would indicate the subject is Jesus or some Messianic figure. How can the Hebrews author know that this Psalm is about Jesus? Some would say--'he was inspired by the Holy Spirit'. Of course that is true, but that begs the question. Though all Biblical writers were inspired as they said everything wrote, the question is--did it require supernatural knowledge to know everything they wrote? For example, they were inspired when they said that 'Jesus rose on the third day', but did it take divine revelation to know that it happened? Were there not lots of others. 'uninspired' Christians who knew this and preached this as well?

Now the question is--did it take supernatural knowledge to know that Psalm 91 was about Jesus? Perhaps. But it is just as likely that the early church knew that everything in the Scriptures was about Jesus. Therefore both apostles and everyone else were able to interpret the whole Bible Christologically. What we have in these New Testament usages of the Old Testament then shows us how the entire early church read the Bible. It gives us warrant and direction to read the Bible in the same way.

The gospel writers also quote passages from the Psalms and Prophets that clearly show they-read the words of the Scripture as being all about Jesus. Peter writes: "Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and the circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow....They spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit..into which things even angels long to look." (1Peter 1:10-12) he shows that the 'Spirit of Christ' in the prophets was pointing to the person and work of Christ in their writings.

So it is not likely that Jesus or Peter are simply talking about isolated explicit predictions of the Messiah (cf. Gen.3: 15; Is.9:6; 53). That wouldn't do justice to the comprehensiveness of the language employed. Jesus says that "all the Scriptures" point to him and that each part--the Law, the Prophets. and the Wisdom literature--are about him (Luke 24:44-45). It is particularly interesting that he would say that the 'Law" is about him! We might understand how he could say that the prophetic literature was about him-but the Law? What we have here is that all the major themes. major figures, major genres, and major story lines are reflective of and
fulfilled in him.

SUM: Every part of the Bible about the historical unfolding revelation and accomplishment of the gospel salvation through Jesus Christ. Paul shows in Galatians 3 that there is a complete unity in the Bible. There is a story within all the Bible stories. God is redeeming a people for himself by grace in the face of human rebellion and human desire for a religion of good works.

3. The problem of 'moralism'.
The ultimate reason that we expound Christ in every passage is because that's the truth! The whole Bible is about Christ. That is the 'theological-hermeneutical' reason for the RHM.

But there is a 'theological-pastoral' reason as well. Bryan Chapel1 points out in a taped message that we are to preach Christ to 'complete' the hearers (Col 1:28: NIV-'perfect is better rendered 'complete'.) This means that our preaching assumes fallenness and incompleteness in the listener. Chapell goes on to say that any sermon that does not focus on Christ and his saving work. but only provides 'marks of a good church' or 'marks of a strong family' or 'how to pray' is to provide a 'sub-text' message that the listeners can complete themselves or make
themselves acceptable to God. Even if the preacher does not say that. even if the preacher says many true things about the text--if the preacher does not put the text into the overall message of salvation by grace and the finished work of Christ. the listener will automatically hear through a moralistic 'grid'. A sermon that only tells listeners how they must live without putting that into the context of the gospel gives them the impression that they are complete enough to pull themselves together if they really try hard.

Any exposition of a text that does not 'get to Christ'but just 'explains Biblical principles' will be a 'synagogue sermon' that merely exhorts people to exert their wills to live according to a particular pattern. Instead of the life-giving gospel. the sermon offers just one more ethical paradigm to crush the listeners."

Sunflowers

2010-09-08T16:29:00.000-05:00

Bible Story

2010-09-08T09:50:00.000-05:00

Ed Clowney -
"There are great stories in the Bible ... but it is possible to know Bible stories, yet miss THE Bible story. The Bible has a story Line. lf we forget the story line ... we cut the heart out of the Bible. Sunday school stories are then tol...d as tamer versions of the Sunday comics, where Samson substitutes as Superman. David...becomes a Hebrew version of Jack the Giant Killer. No, David is not a brave little boy who is't afraid of the big bad giant. he is the Lord's Anointed..God chose David as a king in order to prepare the way for David's Great Son, our Deliverer and Champion..

If we ever tell a particular Bible story without putting it into the Bible story (about Christ), we actually change the meaning of the particular event for us. It becomes a moralistic exhortation to 'try harder' rather than a call to live... by faith in the work of Christ. There is, in the end, only two ways to read the Bible: is it basicallv about me or basicallv about Jesus? In other words. is it basically about what I must do, or basically about what He has done? If I read David and Goliath as basically giving me an example, then the story is really about me. I must summon up the faith and courage to fight the giants in my life. But if I read David and Goliath as basically showing me salvation through Jesus, then the story is really about Him. Until I see that Jesus fought the real giants (sin, law, death) for me, I will never have the courage to be able to fight ordinary giants in life (suffering, disappointment. failure, criticism. hardship). The Bible is not a collection of 'Aesop's Fables", it is not a book of virtues. It is a story about how God saves us."

New Picture

2010-09-07T08:56:00.000-05:00

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I guess that these are Zinias?

Seven Churches of Revelation - Laodicea

2010-09-03T12:11:00.000-05:00

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14 " And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ' These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 "I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 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. 19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 "To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

Ramsay:
"Laodicea was placed as a guard and door-keeper on this road, near the foot of the Lycus Glen, where it opens on the main valley of the Meander. The hills that bound the glen on the south run up northwards to an apex, one side facing northwest, the other northeast; this apex lies between the river Lycus (the Wolf), and its large tributary the Kapros (the Boar), which comes in from the south and passes near the eastern gate: the Lycus is about three miles to the north of the city.

The hills rise not more than one hundred feet above the glen; but they spring sharply from the low and level ground in front; and, when crowned by the well-built fortifications of a Seleucid city, they must have presented a striking aspect towards the glen, and constituted an admirably strong line of defence. Laodicea was a very strong fortress, planted right on the line of the great road; but it had one serious weakness. It was entirely dependent for water-supply (except in so far as wells may have existed within the walls, of which there is now no trace) on an aqueduct conducted from springs about six miles to the south. The aqueduct was under the surface of the ground, but could hardly remain unknown to a besieging army or be guarded long against his attack. If the aqueduct was cut, the city was helpless; and this weakness ruined the character of the city as a strong fortress, and must have prevented the people from ever feeling secure when threatened with attack."

"There is no city whose spirit and nature are more difficult to describe than Laodicea. There are no extremes, and hardly any very strongly marked features. But in this even balance lies its peculiar character. Those were the qualities that contributed to make it essentially the successful trading city, the city of bankers and finance, which could adapt itself to the needs and wishes of others, ever pliable and accommodating, full of the spirit of compromise."

Seven Churches of Revelation - Philadelphia

2010-09-03T12:01:00.000-05:00

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7 " And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ' These things says He who is holy, He who is true, "He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens": 8 "I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. 9 "Indeed I will make [those] of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie -- indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. 10 "Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. 11 "Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. 12 "He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And [I will write on him] My new name. 13 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

Ramsay:
"The Pergamenian king selected an excellent situation for the new city. A long vale runs up southeast from the Hermus Valley into the flank of the central plateau: this is the vale down which comes the river Cogamis to join the Hermus...this is the path by which trade and communication from the harbour of Smyrna and from Lydia and the northwest regions are maintained with Phrygia and the East. It was at that time an important road, rivalling even the great trade-route from Ephesus to the East; and in later Byzantine and medieval times it was the greatest trade-route of the whole country. Its importance is now continued by the railway, which connects Smyrna with the interior.

Moreover, the Imperial Post-Road of the first century, coming from Rome by Troas, Pergamum and Sardis passed through Philadelphia and went on to the East; and thus Philadelphia was a stage on the main line of Imperial communication.

Philadelphia emerges into world-wide fame through a conspicuous disaster. It was situated on the edge of the Katakekaumene, a district of Lydia where volcanoes, now extinct, have been active in recent geological time, where the traces of their eruptions in rivers of black lava and vast cinder-heaps are very impressive, and where earthquakes have been frequent in historical times. In A.D. 17 an unusually severe earthquake destroyed twelve cities of the great Lydian Valley, including Sardis and Philadelphia. Strabo, who wrote about two or three years after this disaster, says that Sardis suffered most at the moment, but gives a remarkable picture of the long-continued terror at Philadelphia. Apparently frequent shocks were experienced there for a long time afterwards...This state of panic set in at Philadelphia, and continued when Strabo wrote, A.D. 20. Many of the inhabitants remained outside the city living in huts and booths over the vale, and those who were foolhardy enough (as the sober-minded thought) to remain in the city, practised various devices to support and strengthen the walls and houses against the recurring shocks.

Philadelphia assumed the name Neokaisareia: the New Caesar was either Tiberius (as compared with Augustus) or Germanicus (as compared with Tiberius). The name Neokaisareia is known both from coins and epigraphy during the ensuing period. At first the old name was disused and the new name employed alone; then the old name recurred alongside of or alternately with the new; and finally about A.D. 42-50 the new name disappeared from us. Philadelphia was the only one of the Seven Cities that had voluntarily substituted a new name for its original name: the other six were too proud of their ancient fame to sacrifice their name, though Sardis took the epithet Caesareia for a short time after A.D. 17

Thus Philadelphia was distinguished from the other cities by several characteristics: first, it was the missionary city: secondly, its people lived always in dread of a disaster, “the day of trial": thirdly, many of its people went out of the city to dwell: fourthly, it took a new name from the Imperial god.

Philadelphia, during the second century and the third, more than recovered its prosperity; and under Caracalla it was honoured with the title Neokoros or Temple-Warden in the State religion. This implies that a Provincial temple of the Imperial cult was built there between A.D. 211 and 217; and henceforward the Commune of Asia met there occasionally to hold some of its State festivals."

Seven Churches of Revelation - Sardis

2010-09-03T10:27:00.001-05:00

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Revelation 3:1 "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, ' These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: "I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. 2 "Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God. 3 "Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you. 4 "You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. 5 "He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. 6 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." '

Ramsay:
"Sardis was one of the great cities of primitive history: in the Greek view it was long the greatest of all cities. At the beginning of record it stands forth prominently as the capital of a powerful empire. Its situation marks it out as a ruling city, according to the methods of early warfare and early kings; it was however more like a robber’s stronghold than an abode of civilised men; and in a peaceful and civilised age its position was found inconvenient. In the Roman period it was almost like a city of the past, a relic of the period of barbaric warfare, which lived rather on its ancient prestige than on its suitability to present conditions.

As the capital of the great kingdom of Lydia, Sardis had a history marked by frequent wars. In it the whole policy of a warlike kingdom was focused. To fight against Lydia was to fight against Sardis. The master of Sardis was the master of Lydia...

Antiochus the Great captured Sardis through the exploit of Lagoras (who had learned surefootedness on the precipitous mountains of his native Crete). Once more the garrison in careless confidence were content to guard the one known approach, and left the rest of the circuit unguarded, under the belief that it could not be scaled

The rock, however, on which Sardis was built was only nominally a rock. In reality, as you go nearer it, you see that it is only mud slightly compacted, and easily dissolved by rain. It is, however, so constituted that it wears away with a very steep, almost perpendicular face; but rain and frost continually diminish it, so that little now remains of the upper plateau on which the city stood..

Sardis suffered greatly from an earthquake in A.D. 17, and was treated with special liberality by the Emperor Tiberius: he remitted all its taxation for five years, and gave it a donation of ten million sesterces (about 400,000 pounds).

..when the Seven Letters were written, Sardis was a city of the past, which had no future before it. Its greatness was connected with a barbarous and half-organised state of society, and could not survive permanently in a more civilised age. Sardis must inevitably decay. Only when civilisation was swept out of the Hermus Valley in fire and bloodshed by the destroying Turks, and the age of barbarism was reintroduced, did Sardis again become an advantageous site. The acropolis was restored as a fortress of the kind suited for that long period of uncertainty and war which ended in the complete triumph of Mohammedanism and the practical extermination of the Christian population (save at Philadelphia and Magnesia) throughout the Hermus Valley."

"Especially on the day of a Triumph white was the universal colour-though the soldiers, of course, wore not the toga, the garb of peace, but their full-dress military attire with all their decorations—and there can hardly be any doubt that the idea of walking in a Triumph similar to that celebrated by a victorious Roman general is here present in the mind of the writer when he uses the words, “they shall walk with me in white.”

Real Preaching

2010-09-02T14:05:00.000-05:00

From Tim Keller:

Dr. D.M.Lloyd-Jones, hardly a trendy type in article on how Edwards effected him, makes a major critique of evangelical-expository preaching as currently taught many places. "The first and primary object of preaching is not only to give information It is, as Edwards says, to produce an impression. It is the impression at the time that matters, even more than what you can remember subsequently. In this respect Edwards is in a sense. critical of what was a prominent Puritan custom and practice. The Puritan father would catechize and question the children as to what the preacher had said. Edwards, in my opinion, has the true notion of preaching. It is not primarily to impart information; and while you are writing your notes you may be missing something of the impact of the Spirit (He mentions how discouraged people taking notes preaching--'this is not a lecture' Welsh growl.) As preachers we must not forget this. We should tell our people to read certain books themselves and get the information there. The business of preaching is to make such knowledge live."

Edwards Thoughts on Revival fits in: 'The frequent preaching that has lately obtained has in a particular manner been objected against..It is objected that..so many sermons in a week is too much to remember and digest Such objections against frequent preaching. if they be not from an enrmty against--re1igion are for want of duly considering the way that sermons usually profit an auditory. The main benefit obtained by preaching is by impression made upon the mind at the time, and not by an effect that arises afterwords by a remembrance of what was delivered. And though an after-remembrance of what was heard in a sermon is oftentimes very profitable; yet
for the most part. that remembrance is from an impression the words made on the heart at the time: and the memo y profits. as it renews and increases that impression' (Thoughts on revival).

Sum: If it is true that auditors are now less rational and more interested in 'encounter' and 'experience', and so on--Edwards and Lloyd Jones' advice is even more on target than ever before. Not iust to make the truth clear, but to make the truth real

Seven Churches of Revelation - Thyatira

2010-09-02T09:49:00.000-05:00

18 " And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write, ' These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass: 19 "I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and [as] for your works, the last [are] more than the first. 20 "Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. 21 "And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality, and she did not repent. 22 "Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. 23 "I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works. 24 "Now to you I say, and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this doctrine, who have not known the depths of Satan, as they say, I will put on you no other burden. 25 "But hold fast what you have till I come. 26 "And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations -- 27 'He shall rule them with a rod of iron; They shall be dashed to pieces like the potter's vessels' -- as I also have received from My Father; 28 "and I will give him the morning star. 29 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

Ramsay:

"In 282 Philetaerus revolted and founded the Pergamenian kingdom. At first he was encouraged by Seleucus in order to weaken Lysimachus; but soon this bond of a common enmity was dissolved at the death of the enemy, and then Thyatira was a useful garrison to hold the road, first in the interest of the Seleucid kings and afterwards on the Pergamenian side. So long as the kings of Pergamum were masters of Thyatira they were safe from Seleucid attack; but if the Syrian kings possessed that key to the gate of the Caicos Valley, Pergamum was narrowed in its dominion and weakened in its defences. Thus, the relation between the two cities was necessarily a very close one. The condition of Thyatira was the best measure of the power of Pergamum.

This historical sketch is necessary, in order to show the character of Thyatira and the place which it holds in history. It came into existence to be a garrison-city; and its importance to the two rival dynasties who alternately ruled it lay in its military strength. But no city has been given by nature less of the look or strength of a fortress than Thyatira. It lies in an open, smiling vale, bordered by gently sloping hills, of moderate elevation, but sufficient to overshadow the vale. It possesses no proper acropolis, and the whole impression which the situation gives is of weakness, subjection and dependence. The most careless and casual observer could never take Thyatira for a ruling city, or the capital of an Empire. It is essentially a handmaid city, built to serve an Empire by obstructing for a little the path of its enemies and so giving time for the concentration of its military strength.

The coinage of Thyatira is a good index of the character of the city. As a military colony, in its earlier stage of existence, it struck various classes of coins, including cistophori. This coinage came to an end before 150 B.C.; for the military importance of Thyatira lay in its position as a frontier city; and that ceased after 189 B.C. It was not until the last years of the reign of Claudius, 50–4 A.D., that it began again to issue coins. They gradually became more numerous; and in the latter part of the second century, and in the third century, the coinage of Thyatira was on a great scale, indicating prosperity and wealth in the city.

It is therefore not surprising that more trade-guilds are known in Thyatira than in any other Asian city. The inscriptions, though not specially numerous, mention the following: wool-workers, linen-workers, makers of outer garments, dyers, leather-workers, tanners, potters, bakers, slave-dealers and bronze-smiths. The dealers in garments and the salve-dealers would have a good market in a road-centre. Garments were sold ready made, being all loose and free; and from the mention of dealers in outer garments we may infer the existence of special trades and guilds for other classes of garments. The woman of Thyatira, a seller of purple, named Lydia, who was so hospitable to St. Paul and his company at Philippi (Acts 16:14), belonged doubtless to one of those guilds: she sold not simply purple cloth but purple garments, and had emigrated to push the trade in Thyatiran manufactures in the Macedonian city. The purple in which she dealt cannot be regarded as made with the usual dye, for that was obtained from a shell-fish found chiefly on the Phoenician and the Spartan coasts. The colour in which Lydia dealt must have been a product of the Thyatiran region; and Monsieur Clerc, in his work on the city, suggests what is at once seen plainly to be true, that the well-known Turkey-red was the colour which is meant. This bright red is obtained from madder-root, which grows abundantly in those regions. It is well known that the ancient names of colours were used with great laxity and freedom; and the name purple, being established and fashionable, was used for several colours which to us seem essentially diverse from one another."

Old Photo - Newer Scan

2010-09-02T08:45:00.001-05:00

Water over Rocks. Taken around Malibu CA at sunset. The camera got really wet on this shot.

Seven Churches of Revelation - Pergamon

2010-09-01T11:29:00.000-05:00

Reconstructed Temple of Trajan at Pergamon

12 " And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ' These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: 13 "I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan's throne [is.] And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas [was] My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. 14 "But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. 15 "Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. 16 'Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. 17 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives [it."] '

The Great Altar of Pergamon is in the Pergamon Museum, Berlin. The base of this altar remains on the upper part of the Acropolis. It was perhaps to this altar, believed dedicated to Zeus, that John of Patmos referred to as "Satan's Throne" in his Book of Revelation (Revelation 2:12-13).

Ramsay:
"Beyond all other sites in Asia Minor it gives the traveller the impression of a royal city, the home of authority: the rocky hill on which it stands is so huge, and dominates the broad plain of the Caicus so proudly and boldly. The modern town is below the hill, where the earliest village was.

It is difficult to analyse such impressions, and to define the various causes whose combination produces them; but the relation of the vast hill to the great plain is certainly the chief cause. It would be impossible for any stronghold, however large and bold, to produce such an impression, if it stood in a small valley like those of Ephesus and Smyrna, for if the valley and the city were dominated by the still greater mass of the enclosing mountains. The rock rules over and as it were plants its foot upon a great valley; and its summit looks over the southern mountains which bound the valley, until the distant lofty peaks south of the Gulf of Smyrna, and especially the beautiful twin peaks now called the Two Brothers, close in the outlook. Far beneath lies the sea, quite fifteen miles away, and beyond it the foreign soil of Lesbos: the view of other lands, the presence of hostile powers, the need of constant care and watchfulness, all the duties of kingship are forced on the attention of him who sits enthroned on that huge rock. There is here nothing to suggest evanescence, mutability, and uncertainty, as at Sardis or Ephesus; the inevitable impression is of permanence, strength, sure authority and great size. Something of the personal and subjective element must be mixed up with such impressions; but in none of the Seven Cities does the impression seem more universal and unavoidable than in Pergamum."

"In 133 Attalus III bequeathed the whole kingdom to the Romans, who formed it into the Province of Asia. Pergamum was the official capital of the Province for two centuries and a half: so that its history as the seat of supreme authority over a large country lasts about four centuries, and had not yet come to an end when the Seven Letters were written. The impression which the natural features of its position convey was entirely confirmed to the writer of the letters by its history. It was to him the seat where the power of this world, the enemy of the Church and its Author, exercised authority. The authority was exercised in two ways—the two horns of the monster—civil administration through the Proconsul, and the State religion directed by the Commune of Asia.

The first, and for a considerable time the only, Provincial temple of the Imperial cult in Asia was built at Pergamum in honour of Rome and Augustus (29 B.C. probably). A second temple was built there in honour of Trajan, and a third in honour of Severus. Thus Pergamum was the first city to have the distinction of Temple-Warden both once and twice in the State religion; and even its third Wardenship was also a few years earlier than that of Ephesus. The Augustan Temple is often represented on its coins and on those struck by the Commune. As the oldest temple of the Asian cult it is far more frequently mentioned and figured than any other Asian temple; it appears on coins of many Emperors down to the time of Trajan, and is generally represented open, to show the Emperor crowned by the Province."

"In the Anatolian ritual the god was the Asklepian serpent, rather than the human Asklepios. Thus in Figure 23 the Emperor Caracalla, during his visit to Pergamum, is represented as adoring the Pergamenian deity, a serpent wreathed round the sacred tree. Between the God-Serpent and the God-Emperor stands the little figure of Telesphorus, the Consummator, a peculiarly Pergamenian conception closely connected with Asklepios.

Asklepios the Saviour was introduced from Epidauros in a comparatively recent period, perhaps the fifth century. He appears on coins from the middle of the second century B.C. and became more and more the representative god of Pergamum. On alliance coins he regularly stands for his city."

"Pergamon's library on the Acropolis (the ancient Library of Pergamum) is the second best in the ancient Greek civilization.[4] When the Ptolemies stopped exporting papyrus, partly because of competitors and partly because of shortages, the Pergamenes invented a new substance to use in codices, called pergaminus or pergamena (parchment) after the city. This was made of fine calfskin, a predecessor of vellum. The library at Pergamom was believed to contain 200,000 volumes, which Mark Antony later gave to Cleopatra as a wedding present"

Seven Churches of Revelation - Smyrna

2010-09-01T09:15:00.000-05:00

Pic found here with additional info and links:
http://www.bibleplaces.com/smyrna.htm

8 " And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ' These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: 9 "I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and [I know] the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but [are] a synagogue of Satan. 10 "Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw [some] of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death."

From Ramsay:
"The Smyrnaeans were specially proud of the beauty of their city. The frequent legend on their coins, “First of Asia,” was contested by Pergamum and Ephesus; all three were first of Asia in one respect or another: Smyrna defined her rank on some coins as “First of Asia in beauty and size.” Strabo says its beauty was due to the handsomeness of the streets, the excellence of the paving, and the regular arrangement in rectangular blocks. The picturesque element, which he does not mention, was contributed by the hills and the sea, to which in modern times the groves of cypress trees in the large Turkish cemeteries must be added. Groves of trees in the suburbs are mentioned by Aristides as one of the beauties of the ancient city. On the west the city included a hill which overhangs the sea and runs back southward till it nearly joins the western end of Pagos: in the angle the road to the south issued through the Ephesian Gate. The outer edge of the western hill afforded a strong line of defence, which the wall of Lysimachus took advantage of; and Pagos constituted an ideal acropolis, as well as a striking ornament to crown the beauty of the city."

Also from Ramsay:

"the phrase “was dead” also is not an exact equivalent of the Greek words: it would be nearer the true force of the Greek to render “became dead” or "became a corpse.”

All Smyrnaean readers would at once appreciate the striking analogy to the early history of their own city which lies in that form of address. Strabo, as usual, furnishes the best commentary. He relates that the Lydians destroyed the ancient city of Smyrna, and that for four hundred years there was no “city,” but merely a state composed of villages scattered over the plain and the hillsides around. Like Him who addresses it, Smyrna literally “became dead and yet lived.” A practical corroboration of these last words is found in an inscription belonging to the fourth century B.C., which mentions Smyrna as existing during the period when, as Strabo says, it had been destroyed and had not been refounded. During those four centuries Smyrna had ceased to exist as a Greek city, but it lived on as a village state after the Anatolian system: then the new period began, and it was restored as an autonomous, self-governing Greek city, electing its own magistrates and administering its own affairs according to the laws which it made for itself."

On being persecuted:

"We may also probably infer from the strong hatred felt by the Jews, that at first many of the Christians of Smyrna had been converted from Judaism. It was the Jewish Christians, and not the pagan converts, whom the national Jews hated so violently. Except in so far as the converts had been proselytes of the synagogue, the Jews were not likely to care very much whether Pagans were converted to Christianity: their violent hatred was roused by the renegade Jews (as they thought) like St. Paul, who tried to place the unclean Pagans on a level with themselves.

The action of the Jews in the martyrdom of Polycarp must be regarded (as a succession of writers have remarked) as corroborating the evidence of this letter. In that case the eagerness of the Jews to expedite the execution of the Christian leader actually overpowered their objection to profane the Sabbath day, and they came into the gay assemblage in the Stadium, bringing faggots to make the fire in which Polycarp should be consumed. It must, however, be observed that they are not said to have been present at the sports in the Stadium. The games were over, as usual, at about the fifth hour, 11 AM. Thereafter the rather irregular trial of Polycarp was held; and about 2 PM the execution took place, and the most bitter opponents of the Christians had ample time to hear the news, assemble to hear the sentence, and to help in carrying it into effect. Undoubtedly, many who would abhor to appear as spectators of the games on a Sabbath would feel justified in putting to death an enemy of their faith on that day."

Polycarp was the famous Bishop of Smyrna who was martyred and his record survives:

"In the Martyrdom, Polycarp is recorded as saying on the day of his death, "Eighty and six years I have served him," which could indicate that he was then eighty-six years old or that he may have lived eighty-six years after his conversion. Polycarp goes on to say, "How then can I blaspheme my King and Savior? Bring forth what thou wilt." Polycarp was burned at the stake for refusing to burn incense to the Roman Emperor."

"In the late second century, Irenaeus also noted:

Polycarp also was not only instructed by apostles, and conversed with many who had seen Christ, but was also, by apostles in Asia, appointed bishop of the Church in Smyrna…always taught the things which he had learned from the apostles, and which the Church has handed down, and which alone are true. To these things all the Asiatic Churches testify, as do also those men who have succeeded Polycarp.[9]

Tertullian wrote circa 208 A.D.

Anyhow the heresies are at best novelties, and have no continuity with the teaching of Christ. Perhaps some heretics may claim Apostolic antiquity: we reply: Let them publish the origins of their churches and unroll the catalogue of their bishops till now from the Apostles or from some bishop appointed by the Apostles, as the Smyrnaeans count from Polycarp and John, and the Romans from Clement and Peter; let heretics invent something to match this.

Hence, apparently the church in Smyrna was one of only two that Tertullian felt could have had some type of apostolic succession. During the mid-third century, however, changes occurred in Asia Minor, and most there became affiliated with the Greco-Roman churches.

On the crown, from Ramsay:

"The mention of the crown would carry a special meaning to the Smyrnaean readers, and would rouse in their hearts many old associations. The “crown of Smyrna” had been before their eyes and minds from childhood. The promise now is that a new crown shall be given to Smyrna. She shall wear no longer a mere crown of buildings and towers, nor even the crown of good citizens which Apollonius advised her to put on, but a crown of life. The earthly Smyrna wore a mural crown like that of her patron goddess: the true Smyrna shall wear a crown suited for the servants of the one living God."

And history has justified the prophetic vision of the writer. Smyrna, the recipient of the most laudatory of all the Seven Letters, is the greatest of all the cities of Anatolia. At the head of its gulf, which stretches far up into the land, it is at present the one important seaport, and will remain always the greatest seaport, of the whole country. But the same situation which gives it eternal importance, has caused it to suffer much tribulation. It has been the crown of victory for many victors. It has tempted the cupidity of every invader, and has endured the greed and cruelty of many conquerors; but it has arisen, brilliant and strong, from every disaster. No city of the East Mediterranean lands gives the same impression of brightness and life, as one looks at it from the water, and beholds it spread out on the gently sloping ground between the sea and the hill, and clothing the sides of the graceful hill, which was crowned with the walls and towers of the medieval castle, until they were pulled down a few years ago. The difference in the beauty of the city caused thereby shows how much of the total effect was due to that “crown of Smyrna.

That hill seems at the first view to be only a rounded hillock of 450 feet in elevation. But, when you examine it more closely, you find that it is not merely an isolated conical hill, as it seems from the sea to be. It is really only a part of the vast plateau that lies behind it, and pushes it forward, like a fist, towards the sea. It is far stronger than at first it appeared, for it is really a corner of the main mass of the Asiatic continent, and is supported from behind by its immeasurable strength. Strength surpassing appearance, brightness, life: those are the characteristics of the letter and of the city.

In this letter no one can fail to recognise the tone of affection and entire approval. Whereas the writer urged the people of Ephesus to be as they once were, he counsels the Smyrnaeans to continue as they are now. Ephesus has to recover what it has lost, but Smyrna has lost nothing. The persecution and poverty which had been the lot of its Church from the beginning, and which would still continue for a period, kept it pure. There was nothing in it to tempt the unworthy or the half-hearted; whereas the dignity and high standing of the Ephesian Church had inevitably attracted many not entirely worthy members. The writer looks confidently forward to the continuance of the same steadfastness in Smyrna. He does not even hint at the possibility of partial failure; he does not say, “If thou be faithful, I will give thee the crown”; he merely exhorts them to be faithful as they have been."

When Constantinople became the seat of government, the trade between Anatolia and the West diminished in importance, and Smyrna declined."

Seven Churches of Revelation - Ephesus

2010-08-31T12:05:00.000-05:00

My Sunday School Class is studying the Book of Revelation. using this blog to plug in areas of knowledge on the 7 Churches in Chapters 2-3, as well as other info on the book.

Revelation 2:1 "To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ' These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: 2 "I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3 "and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake and have not become weary. 4 "Nevertheless I have [this] against you, that you have left your first love. 5 "Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place -- unless you repent. 6 "But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God."

I did not know that there was a Church in Ephesus that was built for the Council of 431.http://www.oeai.at/eng/ausland/marienk.html

William Ransey wrote a book on the 7 Churches from an Archaelogical aspect: http://www.ccel.org/ccel/ramsay/letters.i.html

"The past history of the Ephesian Church had been one of labour and achievement, enduring and energetic. Above all it had been distinguished by its insight into the true character of those who came to it with the appearance of Apostles. It lay on the great highway of the world, visited by many Christian travellers, some coming to it for its own sake, others merely on their way to a more distant destination. Especially, those who were travelling to and from Rome for the most part passed through Ephesus: hence it was already, or shortly afterwards became, known as the highway of the martyrs, “the passage-way of those who are slain unto God,” as Ignatius called it a few years later, i.e., the place through which must pass those who were on their way to Rome to amuse the urban population by their death in the amphitheatre. Occasionally, it is true, they were conducted to Rome by a different road. Ignatius, for example, did not pass through Ephesus, but was taken along the overland route, for some reason unknown to us. The reason did not lie in the season of the year, for he was at Smyrna on 7th August, and probably reached Rome on 17th October, an open time for navigation. But Ignatius knew, though he himself was led by another route, that the ordinary path of death for Eastern martyrs was by land to Ephesus and thence by sea to Rome.

Among the travellers there came to Ephesus, or passed through it, many who claimed to be teachers; but the Ephesian Church tested them all; and, when they were false, unerringly detected them and unhesitatingly rejected them.

The recital of the past history and the services of the Church occupies a much greater proportion of the Ephesian letter than of any other of the Seven. The writer dwells upon this topic with emphatic appreciation. After describing the special kind of work in which the Ephesians had been most active and useful, he returns again to praise their career of patience and steadfastness, and describes their motive—“for my name’s sake”—which enhances their merit. The best counsel, the full and sufficient standard of excellence for the Ephesians, is to do as they did of old. Others may have to improve; but Ephesians are urged not to fall short of their ancient standard of action.

The best commentary on this is found in the letter of Ignatius to the Ephesians, with its profound and frank admiration, which might seem almost to be exaggerated were it not justified by the language of St. John. The Syrian bishop wrote as one who felt that he was honoured in associating with the envoys from the Ephesian Church and in being “permitted by letter to bear it company, and to rejoice with it.” Ignatius shows clearly in his letter the reasons for his admiration. The characteristics which he praises in the Ephesian Church are the same as those which St. John mentions. And yet they are so expressed as to exclude the idea that he remembered the words of this letter and either consciously or unconsciously used them: “I ought to be trained for the contest by you in faith, in admonition, in endurance, in long suffering,” sect. 3: “for ye all live according to truth and no heresy hath a home among you; nay, ye do not so much as listen to any one if he speak of ought else save concerning Jesus Christ in truth,” sect. 6: “as indeed ye are not deceived,” sect. 8: “I have learned that certain persons passed through you from Syria, bringing evil doctrine; whom ye suffered not to sow seed in you, for ye stopped your ears,” sect. 9: “you were ever of one mind with the Apostles in the power of Jesus Christ,” sect. 11.

The ideas are the same; but they are scattered about through Ignatius’ letter, and not concentrated in one place. Moreover the words are almost entirely different. The only important words common to those passages of Ignatius and the letter which we are studying are “endurance,” which almost forced itself on any writer, and “Apostles”; but Ignatius speaks of the true Apostles, St. John of the false. The idea of testing, which is prominent in St. John, is never explicitly mentioned by Ignatius, and yet it is implied and presupposed in the passages quoted from sections 6, 8, 9. But he was interested only in the result, the successful championing of truth, whereas St. John was necessarily interested quite as much in the way by which the Ephesians attained the result."

Steve Brown Quote

2009-05-05T15:44:00.000-05:00

"Evangelical Christians debate about how we can be assured of salvation. Some say the only way we can be assured of our salvation is to persevere in obedience, and as we obey, we will know we belong to Christ. (Detractors of this particular view call it works salvation.) Others say we can rest on the promise Jesus gave when we were saved; that is, "I accepted the gift of salvation when it was freely offered, and God doesn't lie. Therefore, I am saved." (Detractors of this view call it easy believism.) Still others say we can't know we have salvation-all we can do is hope and keep on trucking. When the game is over God will tell us whether or not we are saved. (Detractors of this view call it daisy salvation: He loves me, He loves me not; He loves me, He loves me not.)

Now, with as much humility as I can possibly muster, I'm going to settle the arguments: The way we are assured of salvation is to check and see if we desire to obey God. Please note: I did not say that you had to obey God 100 percent of the time-only that you have to want to. If you want obedience, you've got salvation. Scripture says, "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1 John 3:2-3).

Do you see what John is saying? He is saying that the confirmation of your salvation is not in your being like Jesus now but in the hope you have of being like Jesus in heaven. When John gives us a future promise of being like Jesus (i.e., obedient) our desire for the fulfillment of that promise is not only the assurance of our salvation, it is the motivation (i.e., purifies himself) toward the fulfillment of the reality."

Cedar Cove Animal Habitat

2009-04-30T13:51:00.000-05:00

These are pictures from 2 outings to the Cedar Cove Animal Habitat in Louisburg Kansas.

This is Cheyanne. She stared at my kid the whole time we were there. Makes a father a little nervous.

This is a 3 month old Caracal that is lounging in the open display case.

This is Voodoo. She purrs...loudly!

The big guy! His paws are as big as your head.

Shawdow the wolf. He is about 11 years old, and got kicked out of his pack.

Ducks are Moving on, Sharks going Home

2009-04-28T15:59:00.000-05:00

Next is Detriot.

GO DUCKS!!!

2009-04-24T12:52:00.001-05:00

The Anaheim Ducks won last night, beating the San Jose Sharks 4-0. They lead the series 3-1. One more time boys!

I ain't sayin, I'm just sayin....

Library Finds...

2009-04-23T11:49:00.000-05:00

I saw this at the library, and just picked it up.

I'm glad I did. Just awesome!

Here's another good find:

A bit "smoother" than her previous CD. But a good listen.

Finally:

Yeah.

Readings....

2009-04-23T11:13:00.000-05:00

So I finished the book by JM Boice "Gospel of Grace". It was good, but not as deep as I thought it would be.
Also, he made some sweeping generalizations about church at large that I don't agree with.

I went to the library to pick up a CD, and what else did I find?

Oh yeah BABY! The third Stephen Lawhead book of the King Raven trilogy! I had put a hold on it before it came out, and I must have been high on the list, cause it only came out back in Feb.

As with the previous two books, I plowed through this one in a few days. Actually, I could have gone through faster, but I wanted to "savor" the yarn. Needless to say, I enjoyed the story. Maybe if I see the set on sale somewhere(for less than Bran paid the king) I will pick up the set.

It also keeps the door open for me to read more of SH's books. I loved "Byzantium", but was less than enthused for "Patrick". I liked the story, but felt that like he rushed the ending of Patrick...

New Believer CD Coming Out

2009-03-10T10:16:00.000-05:00

I just found out yesterday that one of my fav old school bands was going to be putting out a new CD on March 17 - Believer. The cover looks GOOD. I may have to save a little money and buy this one outright, if I can find it. I wonder?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_(album)

You see, Believer was one of the bands early in me being a Christian. While most bands were knock offs of some secular band, Believer was a band that was hard to categorize. They were a bit of Motorhead, bit of some other bands that if I mentioned very few people would know.(I actually met Lemmy from Motorhead a couple years back - got to shake his hand.) Believer was pretty original in the thrash scene. I was stoked when Extol covered "Shadow of Death" a few years back, and their CD "Synergy" was pretty much a nod of the cap towards Believer.

Trip to St. Louis Arch

2009-03-05T22:10:00.001-06:00

Cause that's how I feel....

2009-03-02T15:05:00.000-06:00

Friday Photo

2008-10-31T10:04:00.000-05:00

Fall in Yosemite. Near the entrance into the valley, there is a turnout where you can park, and there used to be an old dam there.

This location has changed since this photo was taken. The dam was old and missing boards. The dam was dismantled, so now it is more "natural". But I love the angle the water would flow over this dam.

Fall is my second favorite season in Yosemite, the first being winter.

Ducks Beats Wings in OT, 5-4

2008-10-30T12:33:00.000-05:00

Selanne got a hat trick!

Os not lookin' happy.

Another good shot of Getzlaf - the kid gets around.

Today in Church History - Oct 28

2008-10-28T10:36:00.000-05:00

October 28, 312: According to tradition, on this date the 32-year-old Roman emperor Constantine defeated Maxentius at Milvian Bridge. Before the battle, Constantine had seen the symbol of Jesus, chi-rho, in a vision, accompanied with the words "By this sign conquer." He is considered Rome's first Christian emperor.

Today in Church History - Oct 22

2008-10-22T08:48:00.000-05:00

October 22, 1844: Between 50,000 and 100,000 followers of Baptist lay preacher William Miller prepared for "The Day of Atonement"—the day Jesus would return. Jesus didn't, and though Miller retained his faith in Christ's imminent return until his death, he blamed human mistakes in Bible chronologies for "The Great Disappointment." Several groups arose from Miller's following, including the Seventh-Day Adventists.

William Miller

Read more about it on Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Disappointment

This is a chart showing how Miller came up with the date. Kinda cool looking, if not goofy!

“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but the Father only." Matt 24:36 ESV

Pics from the Ducks Win last night

2008-10-22T07:44:00.000-05:00

The Ducks won in a shootout last night against Toronto, 3-2.

Another Yosemite in October Picture

2008-10-21T11:26:00.001-05:00

Packers Win against Colts 34-14

2008-10-20T12:34:00.000-05:00

Both Ducks and Kings win!

2008-10-18T15:24:00.001-05:00

Neidemeyer given Giggy a big hug after shutting out the Sharks 4-0.

Frolov beatin the Canes.

Friday Photo

2008-10-17T10:44:00.000-05:00

Malibu Beach Clouds.
If I remember correctly, I took this the same morning as several other photos in Malibu, previously posted here.

What I do remember was taking several pics of this scene, then this guy pulls up in his truck with his surfboards. At first, I was bummed that he was now in my pic, then I saw the possiblity of him standing there with a board. So I talked to him about posing, and he says that he is too busy and wants to get surfing. I offered him 10 bucks to stand there with his board, and he suddenly found time to model for me...

Today in Church History - Oct 17

2008-10-17T08:23:00.000-05:00

October 17, 108: According to tradition, Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, was martyred on this date. The Apostolic Father closest in thought to the New Testament writers, Ignatius wrote seven letters under armed guard on his way to Rome—some asking that the church not interfere with his "true sacrifice".

From Wikipedia:
Saint Ignatius of Antioch (also known as Theophorus) (ca. 35-110)was the third Bishop and Patriarch of Antioch and possibly a student of the Apostle John. En route to his martyrdom in Rome, Ignatius wrote a series of letters which have been preserved as an example of very early Christian theology. Important topics addressed in these letters include ecclesiology, the sacraments, and the role of bishops.

Ignatius, along with Clement of Rome and Polycarp of Smyrna, is one of the chief Apostolic Fathers, early Christian authors who knew the apostles personally and were taught and usually ordained by them as bishops.

St. Ignatius was arrested by the authorities and transported to Rome under trying conditions:

“ From Syria even to Rome I fight with wild beasts, by land and sea, by night and by day, being bound amidst ten leopards, even a company of soldiers, who only grow worse when they are kindly treated. —Ignatius to the Romans, 5. ”

He was sentenced to die in the Colosseum. The Roman authorities hoped to make an example of him and thus discourage Christianity from spreading, but his journey to Rome instead offered him the opportunity to meet with and teach Christians along his route, and he wrote six letters to the churches in the region and one to a fellow bishop.

St. Ignatius is claimed to be the first known Christian writer to argue in favor of Christianity's replacement of the Sabbath with the Lord's Day:

“ Be not seduced by strange doctrines nor by antiquated fables, which are profitless. For if even unto this day we live after the manner of Judaism, we avow that we have not received grace.... If then those who had walked in ancient practices attained unto newness of hope, no longer observing Sabbaths but fashioning their lives after the Lord's day, on which our life also arose through Him and through His death which some men deny ... how shall we be able to live apart from Him? ... It is monstrous to talk of Jesus Christ and to practise Judaism. For Christianity did not believe in Judaism, but Judaism in Christianity — Ignatius to the Magnesians 8:1, 9:1-2, 10:3, Lightfoot translation. ”

He is also responsible for the first known use of the Greek word katholikos (καθολικός), meaning "universal," to describe the church, writing:

“ Wherever the bishop appears, there let the people be; as wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church. It is not lawful to baptize or give communion without the consent of the bishop. On the other hand, whatever has his approval is pleasing to God. Thus, whatever is done will be safe and valid. — Letter to the Smyrnaeans 8, J.R. Willis translation. ”

It is from the word katholikos that the word "catholic" comes. When Ignatius wrote the Letter to the Smyrnaeans in about the year 107 and used the word "catholic", he used it as if it were a word already in use to describe the Church. This has led many scholars to conclude that the appellation "Catholic Church" with its ecclesial connotation may have been in use as early as the last quarter of the first century.

On the Eucharist, Ignatius wrote in his letter to the Smyrnaeans:

“ Take note of those who hold heterodox opinions on the grace of Jesus Christ which has come to us, and see how contrary their opinions are to the mind of God. . . . They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer because they do not confess that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, flesh which suffered for our sins and which that Father, in his goodness, raised up again. They who deny the gift of God are perishing in their disputes. — Letter to the Smyrnaeans 6:2–7:1 ”

Saint Ignatius's most famous quotation, however, comes from his letter to the Romans:

“ I am writing to all the Churches and I enjoin all, that I am dying willingly for God's sake, if only you do not prevent it. I beg you, do not do me an untimely kindness. Allow me to be eaten by the beasts, which are my way of reaching to God. I am God's wheat, and I am to be ground by the teeth of wild beasts, so that I may become the pure bread of Christ.— Letter to the Romans.

Ducks Lose 3-2, Fall to 0-4

2008-10-16T10:51:00.000-05:00

At least this picture looks cool!

Today in Church History - Oct 16

2008-10-16T10:04:00.000-05:00

October 16, 1555: English reformers Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley are burned at the stake at the order of Roman Catholic Queen Mary Tudor. The picture is a woodcut of the event.

From Wikipedia:
Hugh Latimer (c. 1485-October 16, 1555) was the bishop of Worcester, and Nicholas Ridley was an English clergyman.

Latimer was born into a family of farmers in Thurcaston, Leicestershire. From around 14 years of age he started to attend Peterhouse, Cambridge, and was known as a good student. After receiving his academic degrees and being ordained, he developed a reputation as a very zealous Roman Catholic. At first he opposed the Lutheran opinion of his day, but his views changed after meeting the clergyman Thomas Bilney.

In 1510, he was elected a Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge and in 1522 became university preacher. He became noted for his reformist teachings, which attracted the attention of the authorities. He became a noted preacher more widely. In 1535, he was appointed Bishop of Worcester, in succession to an Italian absentee, and promoted reformed teachings in his diocese. In 1539, he opposed Henry VIII's Six Articles, with the result that he was forced to resign his bishopric and imprisoned in the Tower of London (where he was again in 1546).

During the reign of Henry's son Edward VI, he was restored to favour as the English church moved in a more Protestant direction, becoming court preacher until 1550. He then served as chaplain to Katherine Duchess of Suffolk. However, when Edward VI's sister Queen Mary I came to the throne, he was tried for his beliefs and teachings in Oxford and imprisoned. In October 1555 he was burned at the stake outside Balliol College, Oxford.

Latimer was executed beside Nicholas Ridley. He is quoted as having said to Ridley:

"Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man; we shall this day light such a candle, by God's grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out."

The deaths of Latimer, Ridley and later Cranmer — now known as the Oxford Martyrs — are commemorated in Oxford by the Victorian Martyrs' Memorial which is located near the actual execution site. The Latimer room in Clare College, Cambridge is named after him.

Nicholas Ridley came from a prominent family in Tynedale, Northumberland, and was born early in the sixteenth century. He was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle and the University of Cambridge, where he received his Master's degree in 1525. Soon afterward he was ordained as a priest and went to the Sorbonne, in Paris, for further education.

After returning to England around 1529, he became the senior proctor of Cambridge University. Around that time there was significant debate about the Pope's supremacy. Ridley was well versed on Scripture, and through his arguments the University came up with the following resolution: "That the Bishop of Rome had no more authority and jurisdiction derived to him from God, in this kingdom of England, than any other foreign bishop."

In 1540, he was made one of the King's Chaplains, and was also presented with a prebendal stall in Canterbury Cathedral. He was also made Master of Pembroke College.

He succeeded to the Bishopric of Rochester in 1549-50, and shortly after coming to office, directed that the altars in the churches of his diocese should be removed, and tables put in their place to celebrate the Lord's Supper. He was translated to Bishop of London in 1550.

He was burned at the stake, a martyr for his teachings and his support of Lady Jane Grey, along with Hugh Latimer on October 16, 1555 in Oxford. He burned extremely slowly and suffered a great deal. A metal cross in a cobbled patch of road in Broad Street, Oxford marks the site, and the event is also commemorated by the Martyrs' Memorial, located nearby.

In 1881, Ridley Hall in Cambridge, England, was founded in his memory for the training of Anglican priests. Ridley College, a private University-preparatory school located in St. Catharines, Ontario, was founded in his honor in 1889. There is also a Church of England church dedicated to him in Welling, south east London.

Today in Church History - Oct 15

2008-10-15T11:11:00.000-05:00

October 15, 1880: Germany's Cologne cathedral is completed, 633 years after construction began.

Good article on the Cathedral from Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne_Cathedral

LA Kings get their first win, against the Ducks..

2008-10-15T09:40:00.000-05:00

Being the child of Canadian parents and living most of my life in SoCal, I kind of HAVE to like hockey and know a little about the happenings of SoCal teams. Especially if I want to talk to my folks in the next few months about anything, since they kind of get glued to the sport. Don't get me wrong, I like it myself, and even had the Penguins/Flyers game on last night, telling my kid that we might go skating this winter. You have to be careful telling a 2 year old about a hockey puck, especially if she doesn't say her "P"s all that well - it could come out as sounding like another word.

I've been more of a Kings fan my whole life, going to games to see Marcel Dionne, Rogey Vachonne, and the rest at the LA Forum. Back when their colors were Purple and Gold(that would be the 70's, in case you wanted to know). This was before Gretzky came to town and changed the look of Hockey in LA. So in my heart of hearts, I want to see the Kings do well. But since the Ducks started, my family has had season tickets to their games, and I have taken in my fair share of contests at the "Pond", in spite of its current name.

In spite of how the picture looks, the Kings beat the Ducks in their first of six meetings of the regular season 6-3. Three of the Kings goals came on power plays! This drops the Ducks to 0-3. The Ducks have had issues with penalties in the previous 2 games that they lost. If they don't turn it around soon, it's gonna be an ugly year for hockey in SoCal. Because yeah, the Kings probably won't do much this year as well....

A Thought from Jonathan Edwards...

2008-10-14T13:45:00.000-05:00

"And confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things, declare plainly that they seek a country." -- Hebrews 11:13, 14

Why the Christian’s life is a journey, or pilgrimage?

1. THIS world is not our abiding place. Our continuance here is but very short. Man’s days on the earth, are as a shadow. It was never designed by God that this world should be our home. Neither did God give us these temporal accommodations for that end. If God has given us ample estates, and children, or other pleasant friends, it is with no such design, that we should be furnished here, as for a settled abode, but with a design that we should use them for the present, and then leave them in a very little time. When we are called to any secular business, or charged with the care of a family, [and] if we improve our lives to any other purpose than as a journey toward heaven, all our labor will be lost. If we spend our lives in the pursuit of a temporal happiness, as riches or sensual pleasures, credit and esteem from men, delight in our children and the prospect of seeing them well brought up and well settled, etc. — all these things will be of little significancy to us. Death will blow up all our hopes, and will put an end to these enjoyments. “The places that have known us, will know us no more” and “the eye that has seen us, shall see us no more.” We must be taken away forever from all these things, and it is uncertain when: it may be soon after we are put into the possession of them. And then, where will be all our worldly employments and enjoyments, when we are laid in the silent grave! “So man lieth down, and riseth not again, till the heavens be no more.” (Job 14:12)

2. The future world was designed to be our settled and everlasting abode. There it was intended that we should be fixed, and there alone is a lasting habitation and a lasting inheritance. The present state is short and transitory, but our state in the other world is everlasting. And as we are there at first, so we must be without change. Our state in the future world, therefore, being eternal, is of so much greater importance than our state here, that all our concerns in this world should be wholly subordinated to it.

3. Heaven is that place alone where our highest end and highest good is to be obtained. God hath made us for himself. “Of him, and through him, and to him are all things.” Therefore, then do we attain to our highest end, when we are brought to God: but that is by being brought to heaven, for that is God’s throne, the place of his special presence. There is but a very imperfect union with God to be had in this world, a very imperfect knowledge of him in the midst of much darkness: a very imperfect conformity to God, mingled with abundance of estrangement. Here we can serve and glorify God, but in a very imperfect manner: our service being mingled with sin, which dishonors God. — But when we get to heaven (if ever that be), we shall be brought to a perfect union with God and have more clear views of him. There we shall be fully conformed to God, without any remaining sin: for “we shall see him as he is.” There we shall serve God perfectly and glorify him in an exalted manner, even to the utmost of the powers and capacity of our nature. Then we shall perfectly give up ourselves to God: our hearts will be pure and holy offerings, presented in a flame of divine love...

Fall in Yosemite...

2008-10-13T15:29:00.000-05:00

Wish I was here....

Today in Church History - Oct 10

2008-10-10T12:44:00.000-05:00

October 10, 1560: Dutch theologian Jacob Arminius, the founder of a theology that challenged Reformed assumptions, is born in Oudewater, Netherlands.

From Christian Classics Ethereal Library:
Jacobus Arminius (aka Jacob Arminius, James Arminius, and his Dutch name Jacob Harmenszoon) was a Dutch theologian, best known as the founder of the anti-Calvinistic school in Reformed Protestant theology, thereby lending his name to a movement which resisted some of the tenets of Calvinism - Arminianism. The early Dutch followers of Arminius' teaching were also called the Remonstrants, after they issued a document containing five points of disagreement with classic Calvinism, entitled Remonstrantice (1610).

Arminius became a professor of theology at Leiden in 1603, and remained there for the rest of his life. The theology of Arminianism was not fully developed during Arminius' time, but was systematized after his death and formalized in the Five articles of the Remonstrants in 1610. The works of Arminius (in Latin) were published at Leiden in 1629, and at Frankfort in 1631 and 1635. After his death the Synod of Dordrecht (1618-1619) judged his theology and its adherents anathemas and published the five points of Calvinism (later knows as TULIP) as a point-by-point response to the five points of the Arminian Remonstrants.

Friday Photo

2008-10-10T08:19:00.000-05:00

Taken in Riga, Latvia, about 1991. I went there with a group for evangelizing. We stayed in Jurmala on the Baltic, and would go into Riga(capitol of Latvia) every day. I was the "official photog" for the group.

One day after lunch, we stepped out of the restaurant, and I saw this man sittng in his parked car, and I knew that I needed to get his picture. He was staring straight ahead, and had a rather stern look on his face. I turned my back to him to get the camera settings correct(this was before autofocus), and then turned back around to snap the picture. He sees me and breaks out this BIG SMILE. So this guy who could break me in half gets out of his car and shakes my hand. I didn't have a translator with me, but I think he wanted me to send him a picture.

He was a really nice guy named Imats, and he gave me a business card. I may still have it somewhere...

Fall Pic

2008-10-09T12:04:00.000-05:00

I went out for a walk yesterday during my lunch hour and took my camera with me. I found this trail that's about a 5 minute drive from the office. With the fall colors blooming, it was theraputic.

I did do a "little" saturation manipulation on the pic before I posted this.

Today in Church History - Oct 9

2008-10-09T10:00:00.000-05:00

October 9, 1747: David Brainerd, pioneer missionary to Native Americans in New England, dies of tuberculosis at age 29. His journal, published by Jonathan Edwards, inspired hundreds to become missionaries, including the "father of modern Protestant missions," William Carey.

From Wikipedia: Brainerd was born in Haddam, Connecticut. He was orphaned at fourteen and had an experience that intensified his dedication to Christianity at age 21 in 1739. Shortly after, he enrolled at Yale, but was expelled his junior year for privately saying of a college tutor, "He has no more grace than this chair", and refusing to publicly apologize. The episode grieved Brainerd, but some two months later, on his 24th birthday, he wrote in his journal, "...I hardly ever so longed to live to God and to be altogether devoted to Him; I wanted to wear out my life in his service and for his glory …"

The University later named a building after Brainerd (Brainerd Hall at Yale Divinity School), the only building on the Yale University campus to be named after a student who was expelled.

He then prepared for the ministry, being licensed to preach in 1742, and early in 1743 decided to devote himself to missionary work among the Native Americans. Supported by the Scottish "Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge," he worked first at Kaunaumeek, an Indian settlement about 20 miles from Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and subsequently, until his death, among the Delaware Indians in Pennsylvania (near Easton) and New Jersey (near Cranbury). His heroic and self-denying labors, both for the spiritual and for the temporal welfare of the Indians, wore out a naturally feeble constitution, and on October 19, 1747 he died at the house of his friend, Jonathan Edwards, in Northampton, Massachusetts. Brainerd is believed to have died of tuberculosis.

He made only a handful of converts, but became widely known in the 1800s due to books about him. His Journal was published in two parts in 1746 by the Scottish Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge; and in 1749, at Boston, Jonathan Edwards published An Account of the Life of the Late Rev. David Brainerd, chiefly taken from his own Diary and other Private Writings, which has become a missionary classic. A new edition, with the Journal and Brainerd's letters embodied, was published by Sereno E. Dwight at New Haven in 1822; and in 1884 was published what is substantially another edition, The Memoirs of David Brainerd, edited by James M Sherwood. Brainerd's writings contain substantial meditation on the nature of the illness that eventually led to his death and its relation to his ties with God.

Today in Church History - Oct 8

2008-10-08T13:32:00.000-05:00

October 8, 451: The Council of Chalcedon opens to deal with the Eutychians, who believed Jesus could not have two natures. His divinity, they believed, swallowed up his humanity "like a drop of wine in the sea." The council condemned the teaching as heresy and created a confession of faith which has since been regarded as the highest word in Christology.

Creed of Chalcedon:
Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the fathers has handed down to us.

For more reading on this, click the links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Chalcedon

Hockey Season Starts Tomorrow!

2008-10-08T13:14:00.001-05:00

This pic is from 2006 Stanley Cup Finals during the National Anthem, and just looks so cool.

GO DUCKS! (Yeah, I feel stupid for saying it, but there's NO HOCKEY IN KANSAS CITY, so there!)