The law cannot save

We all know that the law is useless to save since its purpose was to punish error and reveal hidden wickedness, but today I realized it's fundamentally incapable of justifying.

Justification means to count as not sinful, or pardon, when God looks at us and treats us as if we had been perfectly righteous. It's a legal declaration, it ends the trial, case closed.
In other words, it's the pronouncement of the judge.

The law can therefore never justify us because it's not a pronouncement from the judge. In the courtroom it would be the attending witnesses and the evidence table. It does not make a final verdict because God the righteous judge does that, the witness just brings forward proof of the record. It does not make anything new, it does not change things moving forward, it just provides evidence of what already happened.

And for that reason justification, when God declares something to be true, can never be by the law. Therefore justification must be by another means, in this case, by faith alone.

You stopped too early.

What do the New Perspectives on Paul and the Dispensationalists have in common with Theological Liberals and Licentious "Christians?" They all stop reading too soon.

Licentious "Christianity"
I'll pick on the soft target of the gay movement, because they have the Queen James Bible in their corner. For this group, their lusts are ultimately sovereign, their passions guide their understanding of the Scriptures. When a passage comes along that they don't like, they re-write it. I'm not sure much more needs to be said, other than they are fundamentally unserious about obeying Scripture.
What they don't read: Anything they don't like.

Liberalism
A god without wrath brought men without sin into a kingdom through ministrations of Christ without a cross. People like this, in other words, who argue that our chief problem is a lack of environmental stewardship, Christianity is not about individual salvation from sin, or about getting to heaven. To them, Christianity is about bringing heaven to earth. They love the gospels, or the words of Jesus, but don't care much for the epistles, because those are strongly focused on sin, repentance, the meaning of the atonement, and the coming salvation offered by the Lord Jesus Christ.
What they don't read: the epistles.

New Perspectives on Paul
A complex and wearying school of thought that says Paul was really concerned about who was in or out of the Covenant, and not concerned about personal salvation. The argument is that the Jews all believed in Salvation by grace, and it's Martin Luther who ruined our understanding of them.
This is more like sophisticated liberalism, or liberalism with a bit of faith mixed back in. It's a problem that only infects Covenanters, just as hyper-Calvinism only afflicts Calvinists, and I have trouble figuring out why people would stand by it when it's obvious the people who believe this have not read the sermons in the book of Acts.
In those sermons the gospel is always presented as salvation from personal sin, through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, not by works, but by faith. The Apostles understanding of Jesus work and message should be the same one we have, which is where the NPP goes wrong. Besides, the calling of men to repentance makes sense only in light of the gospel being about personal salvation, and makes no real sense if it's about a debate of who is in the covenant.
What they don't read: the sermons in acts.

Dispensationalism
The most harmless of the four. The key mistake here is that the OT prophecies are stand-alone events that are fully explainable in themselves. I'll just take you to this here article to show what I mean. Their argument is essentially, "If the Bible is clear, then the OT prophecies must themselves be clear. On the other hand, if there is a hidden element of mystery, then the Bible is not straightforward."
The problem here is their inability to address 1 Peter 1:10-12:

Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

Which sort of settles the score. The writers of the OT were wrestling with revelation, trying to figure out what it was they were writing. They were inspired and would write, but they didn't really understand all that it was meant. When they asked God why this was so, He told them they were serving someone else, not their contemporaries. That leaves a little mystery in their prophecy, because the fullness is in Christ, not in the prophecy itself. Even the angels who brought this word from God to the prophets didn't understand it.
But you are in Christ, so you do.
What they don't read: that verse.

C.S. Lewis on predestination

From the book Perelandra p149:

"Without any apparent movement of the will, as objective and unemotional as the reading on a dial, there had arisen before him, with perfect certitude, the knowledge "about this time tomorrow you will have done the impossible." The same thing happened now. His fear, his shame, his love, all his arguments, were not altered in the least. The thing was neither more nor less dreadful than it had been before. The only difference was that he knew-almost as a historical proposition- that it was going to be done... There was going to arrive, in the course of time, a moment at which he would have done it. The future act stood there, fixed and unaltered as if he had already performed it. It was a mere irrelevant detail that it happened to occupy the position we call future instead of that which we call past. The whole struggle was over, and yet there seemed to have been no moment of victory. You might say, if you liked, that the power of choice had been simply set aside and an inflexible destiny substituted for it. On the other hand, you might say that he had delivered from the rhetoric of his passions and had emerged into unassailable freedom."

I have underlined the money shot.

At first we have a tenancy to put human free agency and divine sovereignty in opposition, then give up when they come into conflict. For myself I have argued that human free agency is the highest expression of God's sovereignty. But Lewis makes a great point here, predestination is freedom in a couple of ways.

1. Freedom of future 
In the first sense it's a freedom from destruction. Predestination sets men at liberty because it releases us from the certain doom awaiting sinners. It's the warden coming to tell you that the governor has placed a call for you, and you are to be released forthwith. You're still in the cell, but you're free now, you have been transformed. It doesn't matter that the guard hasn't let you out yet. He's reaching for his keys, he's turning the lock, opening the door, but you are already free. Predestination secures your future.

2. Freedom of the will
Fixing the destiny of a sinner for good is the ultimate freedom of the will. In other words, it allows the will of a man to come alive. When Usain Bolt lines up at the blocks he knows that if he runs his best, he's guaranteed to win. He's therefore truly free to run. If you were guaranteed to win before you tried you might think 'why bother trying, no matter what I do I win. I don't even have to run at all.' But this would only belie your desire to not run. You wouldn't actually be competing if you used it as an excuse for laziness, and if that was true, you wouldn't receive the promise in the first place. If, however, you did desire to actually run, as the promise indicated, then you would be free. Free from fear, from uncertainty, from doubt. You are free in the ultimate sense. Your will would transcend all that holds you back, and you would be who you really are.

Nice job Lewis.

Getting Kids Through Service

By popular demand, a post on how we get our kids to sit through service.

But first some reflections: we came from a "denomination" where only the nursery age kids would go to class during the sermon, so not having them with us for any of the service smote our conscious as a terrible idea, and as a result we decided to keep them with us the whole time, even through the sermon. Needless to say this seems like a crazy idea to most of our peers, because our current church is much more of a commuter church, but from the comments of the older people, this trend away from family together the whole time is a recent innovation. Which is another reason I am suspicious of it. My gut tells me that unless my kids see us there, worshiping, honoring God together, unless they sit through those sermons, they are going to be bereft of a solid foundation. After all, why should they want to attend church later if they don't attend church now?

So that's why we do it, partly because we were raised that way, and partly because it seems like a sacrifice we need to make on their behalf. Now for how we do it.

First and Foremost: Commit

If you decide to keep your kids with you in service, do it with courage, dedication, and zeal. Commit to it as if their very soul depends on it. Go into it knowing you are breaking the mold, that you're swimming against the culture, that the kids are going to be difficult, that it's just going to be hard.
I'll speak for myself here - in a challenge my competitive nature comes out to meet the occasion, and if you want to get your kids to sit through service, you are going to need that killer instinct too. Because let's face it, you may have to pick them up and take them out to spank them, or to sit them on time out, you may have to stand in the back and muzzle them for a little bit. But if you commit and really go for it, they will not be able to withstand your might for very long. If you make it clear that failure will not be tolerated and success will be rewarded, they will fall into line soon enough.

Secondly: Plan Ahead

If you know your kids even moderately well you will be able to put together some toys, games, and snacks that will enjoy and will keep them busy the entire time. For our kids the book Goodnight Baby could keep Kaylie busy the whole sermon by itself. Coloring books buy us ten to fifteen minutes, the Disney figurines another thirty, and the kid games like 'draw' and 'memory match' or 'fruit ninja' on the Kindle tablet get us the rest of the way there. Planning ahead a little can go a long way to having a problem free service.

Thirdly: Set Practical Rules and Schedules
While it may sound impressive for our kids to survive a whole service, in reality we only have to survive the length of the announcements and sermon because we make our kids stand and sing with us, and bow their heads and pray with us. We are also aided by some rules:
We begin the first (ten to fifteen) minutes of sitting still time with a snack. With their bellies full it also helps them to sit quietly and be more patient while doing other things.
After the snacks comes games, but these come with rules

• No getting down, or only getting down to pick up an accidentally dropped crayon or toy is permitted. By keeping them in their seats on their bottoms we can keep the wiggles at bay. This may sound counter-intuitive, but if you give them an inch, they are going to take a mile.
• No making noises. We shush them for talking too loudly, crashing things together, etc.
• Nothing that keep them from hearing the sermon is permitted.
• No facing backwards.
• No sitting outside our reach.
• Good behavior is rewarded with freedom to run around immediately after service and bad behavior is punished with having to stay in the seat until we leave the church building. If they have demonstrated discipline and ability to obey the rules they get to be set free to do run around and have fun. If not, they do not get that reward. We also compliment them throughout the rest of the day if they have done well.

Lastly: Expect Success

Every week is different from the last, some are better than others, but in general we do have great success getting our 9 month olds to sit still, face forward, and be quiet because frankly, we expect them to. Kids, like all humans, will rise of sink to the level of expectation you set for them. That's why we won't use the Message Bible, or Contemporary English Bible, or the Living Bible, because we want to come up to the Scriptures, not get lazy and sink down to them. But it's something anyone can do, it just takes work. When our friends express astonishment at us and our success and tell us that we have superhuman kids my wife and I shrug and laugh, because although it looks impressive, it's really only a combination of small things. They have been trained over the course of time to respond properly, not that they were born patient.
So in all things look to the horizon for long term success, be prepared for the occasional failure (more at first, less as you go), and you will shape them into little angels who can make it through even a long sermon with no problem.

A lesson on Church from my Daughter

I was pretty unhappy after church service when for the third week in a row the Pastor skipped preaching so the congregation could put on a children's play. On the car ride home my not quite three year old daughter piped up, "Oh the gospel, I know dat. Jesus took the sin on His body, and He died on the cross. He said 'Do not punish them, punish me Sir.'"
Woah.

Psalm 23

The LORD is my shepherd

• Naturally a shepherd like David would call (by inspiration) the Lord a shepherd.
• Psalm 78:52 “Then he led out his people like sheep and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.”
• Psalm 80:1 “Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock!
  You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth.”
• Isaiah 40:11 “He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.”
• Ezekiel 34:11 “For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out.”
• Ezekiel 34:23 “And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd.”
• John 10: 11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
• The Shepherd is the worst job. You condescend to spend all your time guarding dumb smelly creatures.

I shall not want

• Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
• Psalm 34:10 “The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.”
• Psalm 34:9 “Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack!”

He makes me lie down in green pastures

• Hebrew NEOTH which means pastures, or sheep cot, or lodges.  An open air tent in fertile ground that sheep can cool off under while eating
• Ezekiel 34:14 “I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel.”
• John 10:9 “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.”

He leads me beside still waters

• Hebrew: waters of rest - denoting gently flowing water.
  Sheep have trouble drinking from fast moving waters, and it is harmful to drink from stagnant water
• Is there anything you can think of that the sheep need that they have not gotten? Food, water, shelter

He restores my soul

• Psalms 19:7 God refreshes our soul
• The word means ‘to make new’
• As a shepherd who coddles and heals his sheep, so God does likewise to our soul

He leads me in paths of righteousness

• Righteousness, or ‘right paths’
• Isaiah 49:10 “they shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them, for he who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them.”
• Psalm 143:10 “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!” What does it say of John the Baptist? Make level the ground, make straight the paths, prepare the way for the coming Lord
• Psalm 31:3 “For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name’s sake you lead me and guide me”
• Proverbs 8:20 “I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice,”

For His name sake

• Ezekiel 20:9 “But I acted for the sake of my name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made myself known to them in bringing them out of the land of Egypt.” And 20:14
• Why has God created the world as He has? For His Glory. For His name.
• Psalm 79:9 “Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name; deliver us, and atone for our sins, for your name’s sake!”
• Why has therefore God fed us and clothed us, nursed, healed us?  Because of any good thing we did or will do or are? WRONG! Because there is only One who is good, God alone.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death

• In spite of all that good protection, believers are still exposed to danger
• Hebrew tsalmaveth meaning deadly shade, which connotes near or in a cave of darkness, a den of wild animals
• Psalm 138:7 “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life;
  you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand delivers me.”
• During our trials we are to take comfort in running to God

I will fear no evil

• Psalm 27:1 “he LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
  The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”
• The Lord who is for you is greater than them, therefore be strong and courageous and do not be afraid
• Psalm 118: 6 “The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
• Fear God who can cast you body and soul into hell

For you are with me;

• Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”
• Indeed He is everywhere and has promised not to leave us

Your rod and your staff they comfort me

• The crook and cudgel that is to be used on the enemies of the sheep.  We need not fear the severe justice of God, but delight in it as our protection

You prepare a table before me

• Transitions to future tense
• Psalms 78:19 “They spoke against God, saying, "Can God spread a table in the wilderness?”
• to prepare a table is to make ready

In the presence of my enemies

• On the run from absolom David was blessed by some men 2 Samuel 17:27-29 “When David came to Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites, and Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim, brought beds, basins, and earthen vessels, wheat, barley, flour, parched grain, beans and lentils, honey and curds and sheep and cheese from the herd, for David and the people with him to eat, for they said, "The people are hungry and weary and thirsty in the wilderness."
• Though evil men try to destroy David, though they hate him, still God is good

You anoint my head with oil

• David was anointed by Samuel for kingship
• For visiting guests they would perfume you with oil if you were a friend or welcome guest Jesus said ‘you did not oil me..’
• Psalm 45:7 “you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;”

My cup overflows

• Psalm 16:5 “The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.”
• Or better still: my cup continually is overflowing, you catch the oil in the cup, that it is overflowing is a generous beyond measure testimony to God

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life

• Surely – only
• Mercy – steadfast love
• Psalm 27:4 “One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple.”

And I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever

• In Hebrew: forever = length of days

• In addressing Jesus Psalm 21:4 “He asked life of you; you gave it to him, length of days forever and ever.”
• David’s goal was to make it to heaven with God, in God’s presence, and to seek things not of this earth, but things of the next world.

Inerrancy - Where do you start

There is a blogger named Scott H. who reminds me a great deal of my father when he was my age. Same doctrines, same opinions, same denomination, teachings, and recently he's been mulling over Biblical inerrancy. I really want all the people who read his blog to hold the view I do (which seems overly simplistic to them I know, I thought the same of Baptists when I was CoC) so I'm going to take him up on an offer to tackle an apparent textual discrepancy. 
Compare the earlier account of Matthew 9:18- "While he was saying these things to them, behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, "My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live" with the later text of Mark 5:23 - "and implored him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live" and the similar Luke 8:42 "for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him."
In the first case it looks like the daughter has just perished, in the second, she's about to. How to resolve this?

The answer is found in another question. Do you believe that every word Jesus said is true and fully trustworthy?  I'm going to assume a "Yes" because otherwise I'm not dealing with someone who knows Jesus can't lie (Heb 6:18) and that calls for an entirely different blog post, attempting to convince someone Jesus is who He says and not only can be trusted, but must be trusted.
So yes, He is true in all His ways. We then come to John 10:35 and read, "Scripture cannot be broken." Now since we have God Himself saying that Scripture is perfect, and cannot be anything other than truth it stands to reason it cannot contradict itself, it cannot be a lie, and it cannot be proven false. It's literally breathed out by God, useful for teaching, rebuking, training in righteousness.

And if that is believed then the different accounts of Jairus daughter can easily be understood, because it doesn't take much effort to reconcile the record if you already believe that they were complementary rather than in opposition.

But you still ask, why are they different? The answer is that the gospel accounts are trying to emphasize different things. Matthew is written to the Jews, it's always using the word 'king' - there was a certain king, the kingdom of heaven is like, etc. It's thrust is to teach the Jews the right doctrine and lessons to show them the root and offspring of King David has come. Luke is written to a Roman Judge by a Gentile doctor, who is consumed with giving a fairly detailed and accurate account of the person and work of Christ. Mark is a call to the Gentiles showing the immediacy of His work as a servant and the story of the gospel stripped down to just the good news. Each author has taken the events and juxtaposed them topically, thus giving each a particular emphasis to the story.
In Matthew the account is preceded by the healing of the paralytic, the feasting with sinners and the instruction of the Pharisees about the newness of the Kingdom. It's followed by the healing of a man with demons and the Pharisees saying Jesus operated by demonic power.
In Luke the account is preceded by Jesus calming the storm and healing the man possessed by legion. It's followed by the first commission of the disciples.
In the Mark account it's preceded by Jesus healing the man possessed by Legion, and followed by Jesus returning to His hometown to teach.
At first glance Matthew appears to be wildly different, but this is because he is trying to make a point: the Pharisees largely rejected Jesus at every turn and sought to discredit Him. He on the other hand proved His divinity by forgiving sin and raising the dead. In Luke we have a closer narrative of the events, with the teaching of the Pharisees immediately before the healing left out entirely because the focus was on the miraculous ability to heal.
The Bible doesn't contradict itself, nor can it. Instead, every time it appears to it's worth investigating why one author is choosing to emphasize a certain truth and what they are trying to tell us, rather than demand Scripture be at fault or imperfect.

Post Script
I left out reconciling the text because it should be obvious that if you want to reconcile it you should have no problem doing so. However, if your faith is weak, and you are not taking my advice of doubting your doubts, I'll provide you the narrative if you mash all the details together. Luke 8:41-51 is in green, Mark 5:21-37 is in blue, and Matthew is in red.

And when Jesus returned [and] had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd [was] waiting for him, gathered about him, welcomed him, and he was beside the sea.  

"Neither is new wine put into old wineskins. If it is, the skins burst and the wine is spilled and the skins are destroyed. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved." While he was saying these things to them, behold, there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue. And seeing him, And falling at Jesus' feet, he implored him earnestly to come to his house, for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying saying, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live." And he went with him. 

And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, all that she had, and had suffered much under many physicians, she could not be healed by anyone, and was no better but rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus, came up behind him in the crowd and touched the fringe of his garment, for she said, "If I touch even his garments, I will be made well." and immediately her discharge of blood ceased and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd said, "Who was it that touched me?" When all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!" And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, 'Who touched me?'" But Jesus said, "Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me."And he looked around to see who had done it. And when the woman, knowing what had happened to her, saw that she was not hidden, she came in fear and trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed, the whole truth. And he said to her, "Take heart, Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease."

While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, "Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more." But Jesus on overhearing this answered him, "Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well." and [he] knelt before Him "My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live."

And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. 

Matthew has only condensed the account and picked up the most important element to the Jew: the raising of the dead.

25 Advent Prophecies

Leading up to Christmas I am leading my family through the famous prophecies about Christ and what they mean. I thought it would be good to keep a record of them here.

Day 1 - Genesis 3:15 - "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel."  From this we learn the Messiah will come from the sperm of a woman, but not of a man. He will hate evil, and crush Satan underfoot, but it will cost Him dearly.

Day 2 - Job 19:25 - "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth." The messiah would be a fellow man, a brother, come to save us from misery and bondage. He lives even now, eternally, and will one day come down to earth to deliver us.

Day 3 - Genesis 12:3,7 - "I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed...Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, "To your offspring I will give this land." This prophecy shows that the messiah would own the land of Judah, come from Abraham, and bless all the nations of the Earth.

Day 4 - Numbers 24:17 - "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth" The Messiah will be a king from Israel. He will utterly crush His enemies and those who oppose Him.

Day 5 - Deuteronomy 18:18-19 - "I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him." The messiah will be a prophet, who sees God face to face like Moses did, and will pass on His words to us. He will have the full and complete authority of God, such that anyone who questions Him questions God.

Day 6 - 2 Samuel 7:12-14 - "I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.'" From this we learn a great deal about the Messiah. He will be a son to God, come from the line of David, sit on the throne as a King of a kingdom that will never end (for it will never be taken away, as He will not die). He will be punished by God for sins, by flogging, but God will never take His steadfast love from Him.

Day 7 - Psalm 2:7-8,12 - "I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, "You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession...Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him." The messiah will be one who is not merely a Son of God, but begotten by Him, sharing His essence, nature, and traits.  He will own all that God owns, with the very might and strength of God, and demand worship and obedience of all the nations of the world as is fitting for God. Yet just as the Lord is a shelter to those who trust in Him so will the messiah be to His people.

Day 8 - Psalm 16:10 - "For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption." The messiah will not be abandoned by God to the place of the dead, He would be raised up from the grave before His body would decay.

Day 9 - Psalm 22:7-8,14-16,18 - "All who see me mock me; they make mouths at me; they wag their heads; He trusts in the LORD; let him deliver him; let him rescue him, for he delights in him!... I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet...they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots" The messiah would be mocked by many, and delivered to death by them. His limbs would be pulled out of joint, His strength will run out, and He would thirst. They would pierce His hands and feet, and use gambling to decide who gets His clothes upon His death.

Day 10 - Psalm 41:9 - "Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me." The messiah would be betrayed by a close friend.

Day 11 - Psalm 68:18 - "You ascended on high, leading a host of captives in your train and receiving gifts among men, even among the rebellious, that the LORD God may dwell there." When the Messiah would ascend He would release the captives He loves and take them to God, so that He would dwell among them.

Day 12 - Psalm 110:4 - "The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, "You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek."The Messiah would be a priest, but a priest like Melchizedek, that is, righteous, just, a king of peace. He would have an unending priesthood that continues forever because He Himself will never die.

Day 13 - Psalm 118:22 - "The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone." Although the messiah would be rejected by those of His own people who ought to receive Him (priests, scribes, holy men), He would nonetheless become the foundation of salvation.

Day 14 - Isaiah 7:14 - "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." The messiah would be born of a mother who was a virgin, and He would be 'God with us.'

Day 15 - Isaiah 9:1-2,6-7 - "But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined...For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this." From this passage we know the Messiah would minister and be from the land of Galilee, where there was darkness of understanding. He would be a light, the son of God given to mankind, and not only so, but a King, an ever lasting help (an advocate with the Father) God Himself, establishing peace. He would be of the line of David to assume his throne, and He will hold it forever. This is a certainty, and God will do it.

Day 16 - Isaiah 25:8 - "He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken." By His work and rule the Messiah would forever put an end to the sting and sorrow of death. To His people He will give eternal life.


Day 17 - Isaiah 35:4-6 - "Say to those who have an anxious heart, "Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you." Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert" The Messiah would perform miracles, opening the blind eyes of those who cannot see God, unstopping deaf ears of those who could not hear Him, making strong the legs of those who were incapable of coming to Him. He would make them alive again, bringing them new life.

Day 18 - Isaiah 42:1-3 - "Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice" The Messiah would continually delight God, and would not seek His own or demand justice, but He would continually submit to God in all things. He would be gentile and loving, faithful to show them the mercies of God.

Day 19 - Isaiah 50:6 - "I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting." The messiah would submit to torture and would neither dispute nor resist it.

Day 20 - Isaiah 53:3-7,9-11 - "He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned--every one--to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.... And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities" Perhaps the longest and most comprehensive account of the messiahs work in the Scriptures. Although innocent and sinless, God would place upon Him all our sins. Just as the lamb is sacrificed to atone for sins so would the Messiah be. He would be counted among the wicked disobedient and there killed, buried in a rich mans tomb. Yet although He would be cut off from the living He shall have children, by adoption, those men and women He brings to God, and God will count them as righteous, by justification.

Day 21 - Ezekiel 37:24 - "My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes" The messiah will be a good shepherd to God's people, and will cause the people to obey God by changing their inner disposition.

Day 22 - Hosea 11:1 - "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son." The messiah, the Son of God, would come out of Egypt while He was still a baby.

Day 23 - Zech 9:9 - "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey." The messiah would be righteous, having salvation, and He would come to Jerusalem riding on a donkey in humility.

Day 24 - Micah 5:2 - "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days." Although He would exist long before Bethlehem existed He would be born in Bethlehem of Judah.

Day 25 - Luke 1:31-35,50-51,54-55, 2:4,7 - And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a Son, (2 Sam 7:14, Ps2:7) and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High (Is 9:6) And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, (2 Sam 7:12)and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?" (Is 7:14) And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy--the Son of God...His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever (Gen 12:3).... And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, (Micah 5:2) because he was of the house and lineage of David...And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Dear people who wander in from triablogue

I'm Phil. I'm an engineer, a father, and a husband. In my down time I think about theology, such as when I take my dog for a run, or during my long commute to work. 
I like to think I have a good mind, but I tend to think in digital terms (yes/no, true/false, right/wrong). This blog is really the dumping grounds for my thoughts that I want to remember for later (writing them down helps imprint them firmly in my brain).
I'm always learning, and always willing to listen to a well placed argument from the scriptures. It's a big world out there and there are plenty of people who are smarter than I and have a lot more time to dedicate to theology. If that's you and you want to come help me by pointing me to your blog, by all means! If you want to leave a comment, feel free to do so.
However if I see hyper-Calvinism then I'm going to erase the comments with prejudice. The mark of Christ is patience and grace, so if you cannot take what I say and point out the problem without using a strawman or ad hominem then I'm going to eliminate it.

Update 21-Mar-2019: A lot has changed in eight years. I'm not sure what exactly brought on this post anymore, but I vividly remember how the hyper-Calvinists treated me when I came asking for knowledge. As I look back I see that eight years ago I was very immature and still trying to figure out how things worked, but I also see that I had a good mind and a hunger to know more. I hope that in the future I'll treat the young searchers who come from horrible backgrounds with patience and respect. 

Suggestions for debating like a true Hyper Calvinist

1. Insist that anything less than your theology makes God out to be a [Insert societal perversion unacceptable to your tribe]. 
Nothing is more devastating than a well placed analogy when refuting someone's conception of the Scriptures. Nothing. Example: God doesn't really love the non-elect in any meaningful way, because if that were true then He would be a homosexual transgendered monkey hooker. And since He's not that, He must not love the non-elect. Alternate Example: God is not some hot high school senior who is wooing the ugly girl to a dance even though He knows He's not going to ask her out, therefore moderate Calvinism is wrong. Using a well placed analogy allows you to undercut your opponent without the use of Scripture. 

2. Attack the person, not the argument.  An insult only counts as ad hominem fallacy if someone doesn't deserve it--which, given your position as being right, is never the case. People trying to say that Christ's sacrifice made everyone saveable are working from a faulty presupposition and deserve to be personally ridiculed rather than have their argument interacted with. Example: the Scriptures say 'world', which means 'elect' you ignorant drooling refugee, and you would know that if your IQ was above 10. 

3. Point out you have already and defeated the argument.
Whether you have addressed it or not, just speak the words that bring truth into existence like a word of faith Charismatic hungry for money. Just say their position is defeated and it's as good as done. Example: you assert Christ is weeping over reprobate Jerusalem proves He has a heart for saving all men, but as I have shown on a number of occasions, this is clearly not the case. Alternate Example: God saying in Ezekiel "why should you be destroyed?!" indicates He wants them destroyed, as I have said. 

4. Multiply fallacies. 
Overwhelming your opponent with accusations of fallacy is a great way to feel smart while belittling your opponent. Simply go to Wikipedia, pick 5 fallacies at random, and drop them into a reply. Example: Asserting God loves the non-elect in anyway is really only affirming the consequent and denying the antecedent. Alternate Example: your argument is nothing but a red herring. Non clausa pro clausa. That's just a straw man.

It helps to have an example that puts it all together, so I'm supplying a fine example here for your learning. Good hunting out there!

On Sarcastically Busting Pirate Balls for their Godless Gambling and Heresy!

Captains journal.
Me crew and I were having a jolly laugh at the Triablogue being afire when I heard from the water "You know, we're not done in yet."
I looked and beheld there Captain Manata, clinging to a flimsy bit o driftwood.  Soggy, but not surrendered.
"I say again, you thought you had a good turn sir, but she'll hold fast yet. You have no leg to stand on in this discussion. Ye've lost! Surrender now and I may show ye mercy."
"Ye be swallowing too much saltwater Captain." Says I. "She's afire now, and this here  peg leg of mine works just fine to prop up such theology as I be havin'. Seems that ye've naught but driftwood left. Nonetheless I cordially invite you aboard to discuss the matter further."

Now tis a strange thing to be noticed in such a manner--I could hardly refuse the offer, so I had me first mate extend hand of fellowship (or the hook). 

Captain Manata begrudgingly accepted expecting to make short work of us, only thing is he hasn't seen the likes of me before. "Red beard" Ponter is strong and clever, wild as a shark, but this here sea lover is decidedly more deadly.

"Sit down please, I'd like a word with you sir.  I’ve refuted your “can” argument a dozen times. Suppose you “offers”your  neighbor a piece of pizza for dinner. Your neighbor accepts. You say you’ll bring a piece over later. When the pizza comes, it turns out God has decreed that you will eat the entire thing. You weren’t planning on this when you offered it. However, since God decreed that you would eat the entire pizza, then you couldn’t provide a piece given identical decrees of God. So, as the claim stands, it’s been refuted, since I think all would say that you made a sincere offer of pizza yet couldn’t deliver."

Says he.
"Aye, but that is naught but gibberish." Says I.

"Very well. I suppose I could make another go at it... it’s not just that the person, considered as a libertarian free autonomous agent, doesn’t “want” God’s offer, it’s that God determined that he would not want it, and so the person is not able, given that decree, to want otherwise. God made sure that the reprobate would not accept. If I could make sure, make certain, make unavoidable, your denial of an offer to come to a party at my house before I asked, and then I went ahead and “offered” you a seat at the party, would I be sincere?"

Not knowing me, Manata didn't realize that I parrrley with a loaded pistol. Once he finished talking I pointed it straightaway and fired: "Yer presupposition be askew. God doesn't determine the fate of the reprobate as He does the elect. There be no wall separatin' the wide oceans of mercies of God from the non-elect save their own obstinate hearts. They, and they alone are responsible for their fall and sorry condition, tis not God who cast them inexorably into the miseries. God is like the sun, His positive decrees are always warm, always good, always pure. To the non-elect He simply does not manifest His goodness, whereas you assert He manifests badness. Prepare to be used for chum." 
"Raa! Chum!" barked Sammy, the sea dog, bird on my shoulder.

Seeing he was beat he jumped overboard.
And we sailed away. As far as I know their ship finished burning, and there they be at the bottom of the sea, green zombies insisting that God causes fresh evil in men, having predetermined by His own councils before the foundation of the world to damn them without regard to their deeds or character.  Some of the crew may have been picked up by the Supralapsarian, but Captain Manata wasn't among them.
Beware then sailors, that you don't let your anchor too far down in highCalvinist bay, or they are liable to climb up the chain and board you.

From a non pastor to a non believer

 The end of the OT (Malachi) prophesied that Elijah would be sent to "restore all things" before the dreadful (yikes!) day of the Lord. (God himself coming down, Mt of Olives splitting, death and destruction, etc)
John clearly did not do that. John the Baptist did not even know he was Elijah (are you the prophet? Christ? Elijah? He answered "no" to all these questions) but Jesus said "...If you are willing to accept it, he (John) is Elijah WHO IS TO COME".
So my thinking is this: that when John comes back as Elijah (maybe under another name again, who knows?), only then would he restore all things and turn children's hearts to their fathers....etc. Then God would come and do all things that were prophsied.
So until then, we are still under the old law like the Jews and Muslims. That's my opinion based on this understanding of prophesy and events anyway. Of course I could be wrong. Wise men have argued about the bible for centuries. If we argue that Jesus would fulfill those things at his 2nd coming, then doesn't that prove all the more that we are still under the old covenant?
I think early Christianity followed the law until they were wiped out by the universal (roman catholic) church.

I have another observation: in the book of Revelation, the lamb is said to have been slain SINCE THE BEGINNING OF TIME.
Jesus (if I'm not mistaken) comes back as the Son of Man with clouds in heaven (also in the Rev), unless he is not the Son of Man. It is difficult when he refers to son of man as a 3rd person. Then later there is a rider on a white horse named Word of God, King of Kings, Lord of Lords which can only be God. So son of man (Jesus?) and word of God are 2 completely different entities.
So "I give my glory to no one" and "I am the only savior" makes more sense now. Or does it?

I've been reading and doing a lot of research, praying directly to God, praying for discernment and understanding but let me tell you, it is leading me out of Christianity. I believe in 1 God, no equals, pure, no associates. I have done my search on the origin of certain doctrines including the trinity (3 persons co-equal, co-existing). Jesus clearly states he is not equal to the Father so many times. I don't know if anyone has the answers to these but I just wanted to share these thoughts and observations with you.
My belief in God as the only savior has led me not to trust the teachings of Paul. Jesus never said to worship him but he did say "worship God alone and him ONLY shall you serve". Also, the "son of man came to serve, not to be served". So making him equal to or even a god would not give "there is no other god besides me" meaning. Perhaps "God in him" would make more sense? But the spirit left him before he died. God would not let "His Holy One" (the spirit?) see corruption.
There are many more things that have become questionable to me after reading much of the bible.

-M

Dear Sir,
By the providence of God I have read your letter to Pastor J and have been encouraged to respond. I am myself not a pastor so I ask your forgiveness in advance for the problems that that can create.
I see that you have several concerns here, among them that the Bible is unreliable, that Christ is not God, that the Christian covental framework of grace is groundless, etc., therefore I will forgo an in depth answer to each individually and  attempt to treat the sickness rather than the symptoms.
You have a bad presupposition when you say that you have been praying and thinking about God--you are under the assumption that you have the functioning hardware and powers of reason to draw valid conclusions and carefully weigh evidences impartially. Unfortunately this is decidedly not the case.  Your powers of reasoning are bent, fallen, lost. As all of ours are.
Prov 3:5, Jer 4:22,  Luke 10:21, Rom 3:11 warn us that our minds are broken since birth, and before we can understand the God of the Bible we need them restored. Specifically we are commanded to be transformed by the renewing of our minds that we may then be able to discern the perfect will of God, and the corollary is true that without renewed minds we will know nothing of God outside of what lies we invent to ourselves.
Since minds are unreliable, the conclusions we reach are untrustworthy, ultimately because our wills and desires are fallen and tainted. We have no love for Christ, we have no love of doing the right thing; we do not really want to know the truth, (John 3:19) because at bottom we despise the idea that Jesus is God and in Him only is there life. Our misplaced love causes our other senses to go askew, which is why Jesus said we need new eyes John 3:3, why He only asked some to hear him Matt 11:15, 13:9, 13:43, and why He said we new abilities of understanding Matt 19:11. By default we have minds that are hostile to God, and cannot submit to Him Rom 8:7, we have wills that are deceived by choice into rejecting grace 2 Cor 4:3-4 and our wills not allow us to come to Him.

Therefore I tell you that you must come to Christ in humility, believing in Him that He is true, and that He is God or you will never have an end to your difficulties. But if you do trust Him, confessing Him with your mouth and believing Him with your heart then you will not only be saved but you will be given understanding and wisdom to untie any knot of scripture you encounter. You must stop doubting Christ and start doubting your doubts.You must come to see that the cross of Christ stands at the center of not only human existence and history, but the center of a man's life. In Him only do we live and move and have our being. The scriptures, all of them, are about Him Luke 24:27, and unless you rely on that premise you will not be able to make headway against the mysteries of the gospel.
Therefore to help you I pose to you Lewis' trilemma. There is no doubt that Jesus claimed to be God, asserting divine prerogatives (Mark 2:7-10), condoning worship of Himself as God (John 20:28-29), and it's beyond dispute that the people understood Him to be claiming to be God (John 10:33). Christ is either telling the truth, in which case He is God, or He is a liar, and the only one who would lie about such a thing would be Satan himself, or a lunatic on the level of a man who believes himself to be a poached egg. You must decide where you stand, if indeed you continue your course and say with the Pharisees of old He is Satan, or with the Christians of today that He is God.
Once that issue is settled I think you are wise enough to re-read the scriptures and come to the right conclusions about your current problems on your own. Specifically I would recommend John 1:17, Luke 22:20, 2 Cor 3:6, Heb 9:15 with regards to the issue of new covenant, 2 Peter 3:15-16 with regards to the authority of Paul, and Matt 17:12 about Elijah already fulfilling his purpose of pointing to Christ.
If you have any difficulties after becoming a Christian please let me know and I would be glad to help.
In Christ,
P