Psalm 103.

Geoff Chang preached on Psalm 103 yesterday, which was a great meditation and study of God's love and how this deserves our hearty praise. He divided the chapter into two parts: (1) Praise God for what He has done; (2) praise Him for who He is.

What He has done (vv. 1-5).

God not only forgives the guilt of sin, but also heals the effects of sin. We are crowned with royal affection and when we are discontent, we are subscribing to a limited view of what God has done. We are to beware of our tendency to forget, which is one reason to assemble together as Christians on a regular basis to remind each other.

Who He is.

1. For His gracious love (vv. 6-10): meditate on how gracious God is to counteract our indifference toward sin; His kindness leads us to repentance.
2. For his boundless love (vv. 11-13): It is easy for us to doubt God's love, so we should pray with Paul for the supernatural strength needed to grasp the bounds of this infinite love.
3. For His eternal love (vv. 14-18): The eternal nature of this love should motivate us to treasure God above earthly treasures, which will pass away.
4. For His reign fo love (vv. 19-22)

The sermon reminded me of John Bunyan's All Love's Excelling, which is also a wonderful reflection on God's love shown forth in Christ.

General Updates:

• I got bitten by a bee for the first time, which was not a pleasant experience. But I didn't have an allergic reaction, which was good.
• Going to a memorial day party at Amber's this afternoon and then going to have a cook out at the batcave for dinner.
• Lost is fascinating.
• I have an Arabic test/interview on the phone tomorrow for the Boren; my performance doesn't affect my status as a Boren Scholar, but I'm still nervous.

Reading Updates:

• Still working through Biblical Theology by Vos.
• Finished The Reformation by McCulloch, so I'll hopefully be posting something about it tomorrow or the day after.
• My new bedtime reading is an anthology of poems and tales by Edgar Allen Poe.

Legalism and antinomianism.

I read this yesterday and still find it stuck in my head. This is from an interview by Justin Taylor with Tullian Tchividjian on his new book Surprised by Grace: God's Relentless Pursuit of Rebels. The transcript that Taylor posted on his blog began with: Is the gospel the middle ground between legalism and lawlessness?

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Tchividjian: This seems to be a common misunderstanding in the church today. I hear people say that there are two equal dangers Christians must avoid: legalism and lawlessness. Legalism, they say, happens when you focus too much on law, or rules. Lawlessness, they say, happens when you focus too much on grace. Therefore, in order to maintain spiritual equilibrium, you have to balance law and grace. Legalism and lawlessness are typically presented as two ditches on either side of the Gospel that we must avoid. If you start getting too much law, you need to balance it with grace. Too much grace, you need to balance it with law. But I’ve come to believe that this “balanced” way of framing the issue can unwittingly keep us from really understanding the gospel of grace in all of its depth and beauty.

I think it’s more theologically accurate to say that there is one primary enemy of the gospel—legalism—but it comes in two forms.

Some people avoid the gospel and try to “save” themselves by keeping the rules, doing what they’re told, maintaining the standards, and so on (you could call this “front door legalism”).

Other people avoid the gospel and try to “save” themselves by breaking the rules, doing whatever they want, developing their own autonomous standards, and so on (you could call this “back door legalism”).

There are two “laws” we can choose to live by other than Christ: the law which says “I can find freedom and fullness of life if I keep the rules” or the law which says “I can find freedom and fullness of life if I break the rules.”

Both are legalistic in this sense: one “life rule” has as its goal the keeping of rules; the other “life rule” has as its goal the breaking of rules. But both are a rule of life you’re submitting to—a rule of life that is governing you—which is defined by you and your ability to perform. Success is determined by your capacity to break the rules orkeep the rules. Either way you’re still trying to “save” yourself—which means both are legalistic because both are self-salvation projects.

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You can read the whole thing here.

I found that this is how I usually view the two ditches of legalism and antinomianism, with the gospel in between the two. Luther emphasized a more grace focused approach in his churches, and the Reformed Zwingli and Calvin wanted more discipline in their churches (third use of the law). This is how I've interpreted Romans 6 and 7 many times; Paul addressing going either of two directions off course of a "cross-centered life". But I think Tchividjian is being very insightful here, and helpful as well--if we see these as two different categories/ditches, then we've put the gospel of grace on a spectrum and also have robbed grace of its true implications and meaning.

General Updates:

• Been busy furnishing the house; my desk arrived yesterday so I'm almost fully situated.
• Was Kasey for the day at CHBC, manning the front desk answering phones. Also grabbed a really good fish sandwich at the H Street Corridor with Dangus because Ashley had seen it spoken of on the Food Network. I actually recall going here before on Urban Plunge but not getting anything.
• I'm excited to be grabbing lunch with the Leemans today out in Cheverly and dinner with the Merkers after moving some of their stuff.
• I've begun watching Lost (yes, from episode one) with Matt P. We're supposed to just watch one a day, but yesterday we splurged and watched three episodes...this may be going in a bad direction!
• Still waiting to hear back from two internship possibilities, but in the meantime I've been busy running errands.
• Happy birthday Kevin!

Dominion and dynasty.

Although I've been back in town for three days, my plate has been full with running errands, buying groceries, and furnishing the batcave. But I did have the opportunity to finish Stephen Dempster's Dominion and Dynasty: A Theology of the Hebrew Bible, which I picked up before I left for Michigan, but left in DC to finish when I got back. After reading this condensed OT theology volume--only a little over 200 pages--the Hebrew Scriptures make a lot more sense. I highly recommend it for those who feel reading the OT to be daunting, and even if you have a good grasp of how the OT coheres together it still might be worth delving into.

A major take away is the amazing way the OT fits together. It is not a series of individual texts, but actually works together to form a single Text with common threads and themes that run throughout. After reading Dempster, I feel like I really missed a lot when I read through the OT because I treat the individual books as in a vacuum-like hermeneutic. I also think the consistency within the OT is a testament to it being God's Word; it is astonishing to realize that these books were written over hundreds of years by a plethora of authors yet all coherent in displaying a metanarrative of what God was accomplishing through Israel.

OT Structure

The way OT is structured has actually eluded me for quite some time. The OT can be divided into two parts:

Part I: Adam, patriarchs, Moses, Israelite conquest of Canaan, exile [Torah (First 5 books) and Former Prophets (Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings)]

Part II: Poetic commentary and resumption of storyline

• Poetic commentary: Latter Prophets (Jeremiah to the Twelve) and first half of Writings (Ruth to Lamentations)
• Resumption of storyline: Second half of Writings (Daniel to Chronicles)

The OT is also structured with a story-commentary-story progression, as described above. But what is fascinating is that we see this same literary structure in the NT. Story (gospels, Acts), commentary (Letters), story (Revelation).

We see an hourglass shape form, where "there is a movement form the universal to the particular and back to the universal." Humanity is called to be the image of God, fails and is replaced by Israel (particular), even more particular with an individual (David) and then points to a Davidic king who will bring just rule to all humanity.

Genealogy and Geography

This universal-particular-universal pattern is characteristic of two major themes running through the OT: genealogy/dynasty and geography/dominion. The dual-themes of genealogy and geography are present at the very beginning of Israel; with Abraham being promised children and also the land of Canaan. However, fulfillment remains in the realm of hope for the OT saints, as the author of Hebrews reminds us in the Hall of Faith (Ch. 11). The genealogy would culminate in Christ and the geography the whole globe.

What struck me was the constant prophetic word being spoken of a universal goal, whereas we are accustomed to viewing the Israelites as radically exclusive with partisan aims (with this as their own view of themselves as well). However, Dempster reminds us time and again that the prophets pointed to a greater Davidic king who would reign over a universal kingdom.

Ruth and Esther

Both narratives of Ruth and Esther tend to be a big puzzling to interpret if we wish to keep away from interpretations that create moral examples of these women, instead of a more theocentric hermeneutic. Dempster was helpful in placing both these books in the larger framework of the OT.

Ruth contains a ten-member genealogy "that had soteriological implications for the human race...This new ten-member genealogy, set within the context of the exile, keeps the reader on track, ensuring that the 'movement toward a divine goal within history' is not forgotten." When Ruth first meets Boaz, he speaks of how she finds refuge under the 'wings' of Yahweh. His marriage to her foreshadows the nations--Ruth being a Moabitess--finding refuge through a Davidic descendant.

Esther fundamentally shows that the kingdom of God will triumph over all earthly ones. The Jewish nation survives because God has an overarching purpose for history. Esther's opposition to Haman also draws out a biblical theme of the woman against the beast. Examples: Eve versus the serpent; Sarah and Rebekah versus barrenness, Tamar versus Judah; Ruth and Naomi versus death; Hannah versus barrenness.

Faith and a desire for more.

Geerhardus Vos' Biblical Theology is a classic treatment of the subject from a Reformed perspective. I brought it with me on my two-week excursion out of DC and have been doing a balancing act, reading McCulloch's The Reformation alongside it. It's definitely an eye-opening work in many ways; Vos has a clear grasp of Scripture and a knack for perceptive analysis of the metanarrative of biblical revelation. While I was reading a little yesterday, sitting in the living room...or, as AJ's dad corrected me, the "family room"...I worked through a chapter on "Revelation in the Patriarchal Period". Here's a striking quote I found:

From Gen. 15 we learn that there was at one and the same time in Abraham a relatively mature faith, and an intense desire to have the insufficiency of his faith relieved by further assurance...There is fine psychological observation here. Faith and a desire for more faith frequently go hand in hand. The reason is that through faith we lay hold upon God, and in grasping the infinite object, the utter inadequacy of each single act of appropriation immediately reveals itself in the very act. It is the same in the Gospel: 'Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief' [Mark 9.24].

I think Vos accurately describes the experience of many a Christian; I can say at least that this has been true in my life and something I've observed in the lives of others. I do think there is something to be said about this mental posture of faith and a desire for more faith being the norm in a Christian life. Battling with indwelling sin, we should naturally see our trust in God as inadequate and pray for more.

I think we can also see this desire for more assurance tied in some measure to a desire to see God vindicated. We sing it in our hymns...

Soon shall close thy earthly mission,
Swift shall pass thy pilgrim days,
Hope shall change to glad fruition,
Faith to sight, and prayer to praise.

[Jesus, I my cross have taken]

Savior, take the power and glory,
Claim the kingdom for Thine own;
O come quickly! O come quickly! O come quickly!
Everlasting God, come down!

[Lo He comes on clouds descending]

I hope that my own desire for both more faith and a desire for Christ's vindication would be increasing daily, by God's grace.

General Updates:

• Going to a sushi joint with AJ and his dad for lunch and then playing a game of golf in the afternoon (Lord willing, I won't lose too many balls).
• Felt like I was backstage of a fashion show yesterday, trying on some of AJ's old clothes that he had outgrown to see if I wanted some hand-me-downs. I have a whole new wardrobe...don't worry, I rejected all the pink shirts. Maybe I'll start giving off a midwestern vibe?
• Watched Daybreakers with AJ and his dad last night. An interesting movie. I'd recommend it if you're just looking for something to entertain you. The plot wasn't too complex, but had a fascinating premise. Be warned, ending was disappointing.
• Congrats to Sophia (C3, Curtin) and Samuel (sammy, wammy, wamuel, wamsta) on their engagement!
  

I lied.

So...I lied. I'm not in fact waiting until I get back to DC to start blogging again because I realized that if I waited until I returned I would have an insurmountable amount of things to post about. So just consider this a massive general update.

Mackinac Island
My family and I drop northward from Bloomfield Hills up to Mackinac City and took a ferry across to the island. We were there for two nights and the island was gorgeous. I loved the picturesque streets with horse-drawn carriages, boutique shops, and seeing the Great Lakes stretched out before you. I was lucky enough to stay at the Grand Hotel, which was not too comfortable, but nonetheless a beautiful building. Every night, there was live jazz music that accompanied semi-formal dinners, and afterward, more live jazz music in a separate room with a dance floor (and no, I did not dance). During the one full day we were there, we went hiking around the island and were able to see the geological features like Archway Rock and Skull Rock. The weather was fantastic.

Frankenmuth
On the way to Mackinac Island, we took a lunch break detour to Frankenmuth, which is a small German town that serves great fried chicken at a place called Zehnders. The batter was really special because it was light and not as greasy, and the chicken was perfectly cooked. We weren't able to see the year-round Christmas store though, since we were running late.

Birch Run
Birch Run is a massive complex of strip malls that are all outlet stores, so the prices were amazingly low, on top of which also came discounts as high as 75% off. It doesn't take a large leap of your imagination to assume that we did a lot of shopping. Had lunch at Uno's, which was better than the one in Union Station.

Fishing
Went fishing for a few hours, but only caught 5 bluegill. Was also able to meet my step-brother's girlfriend, who came with us on that brief outing.

Sylvania, OH
AJ came to pick me up from my aunt and uncle's place in Bloomfield Hills yesterday. I'll be staying with AJ for the next four days before heading over to Massachusetts for the wedding. Had some good pizza last night at a small joint in "downtown" Sylvania and hoping to go bowling (I'm going to dominate...Lord willing) and play some golf later on (I'm going to fail). It's been pouring rain since yesterday though, so not sure when we'll be able to play golf.

Reading Update:

• I brought on my trip three books + Kindle...Setting the East Ablaze by Peter Hopkirk, Biblical Theology by Geerhardus Vos, and The Reformation: A History by Diarmaid McCulloch.
• Finished Setting the East Ablaze on the way to Michigan because I had a long layover in Atlanta and also some nice hour-long flights. Hopkirk's a good writer and gives a good story. It was very detailed, following specific individuals' lives as they worked against or for revolution in Central Asia and India. However, he didn't provide much in terms of big-picture or world politics, so not much was spent on USSR grand strategy at the time or British politics. Julia's recommended that I pick up Inside Central Asia by Dilip Hiro, so that's a next must-read. On top of which, I'm hoping to also get a cheap copy of Islam after Communism by Adeeb Khalid.

Out of town.

I'll be out of town for the next two weeks visiting family in Michigan and then heading up to Mark and Maggie's wedding in Massachusetts. General things you could be praying for me about...

• Time with my step-brother, that our conversations would be edifying and also that I would be bold with the gospel.
• Time with family in general, that I would be an imitator of Christ.
• Travel safety.
• That Mark and Maggie's wedding would be a beautiful proclamation of the gospel and of Christ's love for the church.

As can be expected, I will have limited time on the internet so I won't be posting on this blog while I'm gone.

Blank.

Sorry, I'm afraid I don't have time to put up a substantive post; this is going to be a busy day!

Now - 12:40pm: Breakfast, study, lunch

12:40pm - 2:40pm: ECON 180 Exam

3:00pm: Phone interview with U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission

3:30pm - 4:20: Pack to move on Saturday

5:00pm: Interview with Bailey Law Group in Farragut North

6:00pm: Dinner

7:00pm: UCF shindig

Because I know that some of you (ahem, Kaitlyn) are sometime bored at work...here are some things that I've found amusing recently:

The Jesus Cookie: some weird website where they're selling "Jesus" cookies that spark dialogue about Jesus...not sure exactly yet how this works.

Swagger Wagon: AJ showed this to me and I just saw it again on Kaia's blog...hilarious! Reminds me of Matt one day when he's secretly gangsta living in the 'burbs.

Awkward Situation Survival Guide: Kaia showed this to me. I couldn't stop laughing. The "Responding to someone who isn't talking to you," solution section, option #2 reminds me of Homere. Just so you have a taste of what could be in store for you (pun intending)...

ENCOUNTERS WITH CLOSE TALKERS

Solution:

Brilliant.

Unable to serve.

Stephen Dempster's Dominion and Dynasty: A theology of the Hebrew Bible is the new book sitting next to my bed for pre-sleep reading. A treatment of Joshua was particularly striking. Near the end of the book, Joshua gives two speeches. The second speech takes place at Shechem and renews the Sinai covenant. He reminds the Israelites of God's actions (24:2-13) and the people respond by cheering and showing their commitment to serve God alone. Joshua cynically respods "You are not able to serve Yahweh, for he is a holy God! He is a jealous God an he will not forgive your transgressions and sins!" (24:19). Dempster quotes Anderson:

...the statement that Israel is unable to serve Yahweh is unparalleled in the Old Testament, and in some way it relates to the verdict, to which prophets like Jeremiah and Ezekiel were driven, that Israel lacks the capacity 'to live with and belong to God' (1976: 350).

Interesting enough, Dempster points out that this verdict was already present at Sinai (Exod. 32; Lev. 10), the departure from Sinai (Num. 10-25) and Moses' farewell address (Deut. 4:23-28; 29:21-27).

This mirrors our own inability, as Paul tells us in Romans 8:7 that sinners dead in their sin cannot submit to God's law. What we need is a heart that will keep Torah (Deut. 30:6). This understanding of the radical nature of sin is present even in the OT. The concept of the Fall is not a Christian import, like modern Biblical commentators and Rabbis would have us believe, but is integral to the story of the Israelites' failure to please God. This hearkens me back to Piper's T4G address, where he challenged his listeners to study the gospel accounts and realize that they teach Paul's Gospel, so that they might not be afraid to preach the gospel accounts and be wiling to lean on them. In the same way, I feel that I generally don't turn to the OT as often because I don't trust it to clearly teach the same Gospel and so I don't dedicate enough time to studying it.

General Updates:

• Two exams today: US Foreign Policy in the Gulf and Int'l Security Politics. Should be a hectic day; between the two exams I'll be studying for the second one, and after the second one I'll be studying for my Int'l Economics exam tomorrow morning.
• Was contacted by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission for a brief phone interview this Friday.

Empires of the Silk Road.

Today's post is a bit out of the ordinary. I finished reading Empires of the Silk Road by Christopher Beckwith last night and am still a bit overwhelmed my data overload. Originally I thought it was going to be a book about Central Asia, which it did cover quite a bit of, but it focused on the broader Central Eurasia entity. The beginning was extremely hard to follow because of all the unusual people group names that I'm not used to reading. Once Beckwith began speaking of colonialism, the establishment of the littoral trade system and decline of the continental Silk Road economy, things became more comprehensible. A few takeaways (can be edifying in any way you want it to be)...

• Central Eurasia was not merely geographic "wasteland" where no strong urban life or culture developed. Commonly, historians have depicted the area as simply where goods traded hands on their way along the Silk Road. Beckwith tries to overturn this thesis, arguing that Central Eurasia was in itself an integrated civilization and economy, much like the periphery states of Russia, China, India, SW Asia, and Europe.
• Beckwith is very concerned about the common portrayal of the steppe people and its prevalence in historiography. Since Herodotus, these "nomad" steppe peoples have had foisted on them characteristics of the "barbarian." That is, uncommonly good at warfare, violent, uncultured, nomadic, relying upon pillaging urban civilizations because they cannot produce anything of their own. On the contrary, Beckwith shows that these steppe people actually lived a better life in many ways, especially relative to peasants in places such as the Roman Empire. They were also not more violent than the periphery states, but instead only waged war when these peripheries refused to open up to trade. In many ways, the periphery civilizations were more aggressive, actually conquering large swaths of land (e.g. Tibet, East Turkistan (Xinjiang)) and massacring whole people groups (as in the case of Chinese extermination of the Jungahar rulers of East Turkistan). All that to say, the steppe peoples were not "barbarian" any more than the periphery nations were.
• Modern Central Eurasia has still not recovered from the coup de grace of the littoral system, which undermined the continental economy. Moreover, the decision between Russia and China to split Central Eurasia into spheres of influence has meant fracturing and economic devastation. Beckwith argues that what needs to happen is an integration in Central Eurasia, much like the EU, to create an economic unit, reflecting the premodern arrangement.

I'm not sure exactly what people can take from this, but at least JWar would be interested. I just finished reading it yesterday, so it's still at the front of my mind.

General Updates:

• IHOP!!!
• Got contacted for an interview at the Bailey Law Group as an administrative assistant. It's close by, in Farragut North area. Scheduled for Friday at 5pm, before the UCF last shindig.
• Last solid day of studying before the final stretch. It's been difficult staggering my exams since I have two on Thursday, which means I have little time to study for the Friday one on Thursday.

Reading Updates:

• Reading has come almost to a standstill with the onset of finals. Since I've finished Empires of the Silk Road, I will be turning a more undivided attention to Dominion and Dynasty.
• I've picked up Setting the East Ablaze as a follow-up to the Beckwith volume, since I was not satisfied with his treatment of specifically Central Asia.

Implications of Isaiah 55:10-11.

Last Sunday (still posting about it because both morning and evening services were so striking) evening, Jonathan Leeman preached on Isaiah 55:10-11 and gave nine application points right at the beginning:

1. Read Bible daily
2. Don't stay up late Saturday night (stay attentive on Sunday morning)
3. Ask God for a soft heart before Sunday service
4. Listen carefully to the sermon
5. Don't let other things become important over the Word (music style, etc.)
6. Preach/teach the Bible to family and friends
7. Preach faithfully
8. Evangelize/preach to non-Christians
9. Praise God for the pardon of our sins

Kudos to JWar for sending this to me. I didn't even attempt to write them all down when Jonathan was listing them out. I've realized that I don't prepare my heart as I ought before Sunday morning service; going to church has become routinized and just another part of my schedule (I even have it slotted in my Google Calendar!). Instead of coming to hear the Word of God proclaimed, I've treated it more as a lecture or class time.

One of the focuses of the sermon was on the idea in Isaiah 55 that God's Word does not come back void. That means whenever we sow the seed, God's Word is working as intended. Either it is hardening or softening. It is stopping the ears and blinding the eyes or it is piercing the heart. This reminded me of a Puritan image to explain Matthew 13:10-17:

The same sun that softens the wax hardens the clay; and so the very same gospel message that humbles the honest heart and leads to repentance may also harden the heart of the dishonest listener and confirm that one in their path of disobedience.

God's sovereignty over the application of the Word both encourages me to be more evangelistic, while simultaneously cautioning me to check my heart to see if it is resembling wax or clay. Pray that it be wax!

General Updates:

• First final exam is rolling up in about 20 minutes: East Asian Religions. All true and false questions, so should be a breeze.
• Going to be hardcore studying for economics today; Juan Valdez, here I come!
• Still figuring out Boren Scholarship issues.
• Wednesday morning our room is going out to iHop for breakfast...bonding time!
• I'm trying out Arial font...Georgia was getting annoying on the eyes (sorry Cur'in!)

Interacting with nominal Christians.

Kaitlin asked a great question at college lunch on Sunday. In essence, she asked how we are to interact with people on campus (or even in the "real world") who profess to be Christian, but at the same time lack outward signs of fruit. I found Mark Dever's advice helpful: take them at their word and treat them as Christians. I found that this indirectly tied to Mark's first reasons for why it's important to have a good understanding of conversion...for our church. That is, among church members we are to have high expectations of each other because we assume all are converted and thus are repenting and trusting Christ.

That means, for those who are nominal Christians and still profess to be Christian, we should talk to them about the Bible, ask what they've read in their quiet times, about their prayer life, about their evangelism, about their discipleship. If they're actually Christian, this will hopefully be encouraging and spur them on to godly living. If they're not, hopefully they will, by God's grace, be genuinely converted; or they will recognize that they are not actually Christian.

I thought Mark's nugget of wisdom was worth sharing.

General Updates:

• Grabbing coffee and lunch with Kevin. Last chunk of quality time I'll be able to spend with this dear brother for a few months.
• Time to start studying, beginning with polishing up a final draft for an essay-exam and then catching up on readings for my Eastern Religion class. Should be a wonderful time of brain-enlargening...both components (a wonderful time and brain-enlargening) are questionable.

Hip-hop modesty.

So, I took up Matt's offer of a free ticket to go watch "Funk Academy" in Lisner, which is a showcase that Capital Funk (a huge hip-hop group on campus) puts on every year. They also invite a lot of the other hip-hop troupes and even some rappers and spoken word lyricists. What I found interesting was that some teams required sensuality and shockingly crude choreography to be considered different and thus more eye-grabbing, instead of relying upon skill and creativity. Whenever there was a number with all girls, I was immediately getting ready to turn away from the risqué dance moves and sometimes immodest clothing.

Randomly, this connects to the book I'm currently reading, Empires of the Silk Road, which takes a strange tangent on the impact of Modernism on art. I'm no cultural, art scholar, but Beckwith argues that the allegiance of Modernism to new as better than tradition has undermined art that required technique and skill.

One of my favorite show cases at Funk Academy was Culture Shock DC, which was clean, very innovative, and showed some awesome mastery of different styles of dance. What was most attractive about the group was what they wore: nothing revealing...although yes, very "hipster". I think I've read and heard a lot about modesty being attractive, but I think I'm beginning to grasp more fully the inherent dignity and confidence, and thereby attractiveness of godly modesty.

General Updates:

• Theology in the Park w/ Restoration Church was really fun. Was cool meeting some of the folks at AJ's church and also just throwing ideas around about the implications of what both incommunicable and communicable attributes of God have for our daily lives.
• Taught about the Tabernacle today in Sunday school. Ivette did a great job leading the group.
• The last college lunch was good; breakfast for lunch. I really enjoyed Mark Dever's thoughts on both assurance as well as how to interact with people who profess to be Christian, but who we also have doubts that they really are.
• Got to chill out with Dangus for a couple hours between services. Took care of Sam, watched him get fed, burp, poop, get cleaned up, play around, then to bed. Also got to go through Dangus' chapel sermon manuscript with him.

Pharisee and the tax collector.

Working through the T4G main session talks and I arrived at John Piper's message on whether Jesus taught Paul's gospel. He basically tackles the common assertion in seminaries and most religion departments that the gospel that evangelicals hold to today is essential Pauline, and was not something that Jesus actually teaches in the gospels. Piper accuses this type of mentality as a dangerous disease, of which adjustments of the gospel are common symptoms. I've seen this in the way I think about approaching the gospels, even without the influence of seminaries and the movement to find the "historic" Jesus, who we find traces of in the gospel accounts. In my mind, I've tended to inaccurately create a mental picture of Jesus in the gospels as the Jesus of the social gospel, of the social justice movement, whereas the Pauline epistles lay out justification by faith alone, by grace alone, in Christ alone, to the glory of God alone, through the imputation (not impartation) of Christ's righteousness.

I'm not actually finished listening to Piper's talk yet, but so far he's set up camp in Luke 18 and has begun exegeting it. Piper has set out for himself a goal of seeing whether or not Jesus taught imputation, not impartation, as an integral part of the Gospel. What he points out is that the pharisee actually thanks God for his righteousness (v.11) and so is not necessarily a legalist nor a Pelagian. He actually understands his righteousness to be a gift from God, but understands his righteousness to be personal, not alien. That is imparted, not imputed. At the end of the day, it is the tax collector who walks home justified, not the pharisee.

Piper passes over the story of the children (vv.15-17) with some brief explanatory notes of how this proves his thesis, and then moves on to the rich ruler. We see a parallel with the rich ruler and the pharisee in that both know their personal righteousness quite well, but have no understanding of an alien righteousness. That's where I've stopped thus far, but I highly recommend listening to the talk, especially those who do a lot of studying in religion and philosophy. It can be found here.

General Updates:

• The Mansfield Foundation internship interview went alright; a bit bumpy, but overall a nice time.
• Was able to help Patrick Muller move this morning, where I got to re-meet Jeremiah and Brian and work out my "guns."
• Going to the mall today to hang out with some Restoration folk and talk theology.
• Tomorrow I'm going to meet up with Mike and hang out with Daniel, both of which should be a awesome.
• Procrastinating my exam studying...
• Weather is getting hot! I love it!