What a wondrous thing
that we have fellowship
with the creator of the heavens and the earth
through the Lord Jesus Christ
who condescended for us
before we could know to ask Him for it

What a wondrous thing
that the creator of the heavens and the earth
is our inheritance and we are His

What a wondrous thing
that the the creator of the heavens and the earth
is holy and just and righteous and perfect

What a wondrous thing
that we know He always works for our good
which makes us more like Him
which glorifies Him
which is always for our good
whatever things may seem

What a wondrous thing
that we have hope for heaven
with new heavens and a new earth
with heavenly bodies
that shed no more tears
because of death or mourning or crying or pain
where He will be our God
and we will be His children
Forever and ever

But what should frighten us even more [than arrogant rulers] is that the same spirit of the self-deifying empire remains in every human heart that seeks to make itself the center of life while burying thoughts of its own mortality. From openings pried for it by earlier transcendentalism to the modern New Age movement, our consumer culture has democratized self-idolatry to include everyone’s divinity and freedom to seek self-fulfillment instead of answering to a higher authority.

–Craig Keener, The NIV Application Commentary: Revelation

Revelation 13:11-18
11Then I saw another beast come up out of the earth. He had two horns like those of a lamb, but he spoke with the voice of a dragon. 12He exercised all the authority of the first beast. And he required all the earth and its people to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13He did astounding emiracles, even making fire flash down to earth from the sky while everyone was watching. 14And with all the miracles he was allowed to perform on behalf of the first beast, he deceived all the people who belong to this world. He ordered the people to make a great statue of the first beast, who was fatally wounded and then came back to life. 15He was then permitted to give life to this statue so that it could speak. Then the statue of the beast commanded that anyone refusing to worship it must die.

16He required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. 17And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name. 18Wisdom is needed here. Let the one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. His number is 666.

Mark 13:13
And everyone will hate you because you are my followers. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

The disciple, says Jesus, must hold fast right to the end in order to be saved: but, as Paul says, true Christians will in fact hold fast, because God will hold them fast (Rom. 14:4). Here is another biblical paradox which we do well to hold reverently. Its solution, like that of similar theological paradoxes, is to be found not, as with mathematical problems, at infinity, but at eternity, and in God.

–R. Alan Cole, Mark

paradox
A statement that seems contradictory or absurd but is actually valid or true.

I noticed a few interesting points in this portion of the Gospel of Mark. There are ironically more details in Mark’s usually concise account of events.

Mark 11:11 HCSB
And He went into Jerusalem and into the temple complex. After looking around at everything, since it was already late, He went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

If he was angry at this point, Jesus held it until the next day. He didn’t just burst on the scene and start driving people out in a sudden fit of rage.

Mark 11:15-17 HCSB
They came to Jerusalem, and He went into the temple complex and began to throw out those buying and selling in the temple. He overturned the money changers’ tables and the chairs of those selling doves, 16 and would not permit anyone to carry goods through the temple complex. 17 Then He began to teach them: “Is it not written, My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations? But you have made it a den of thieves!”

This wasn’t a political or revolutionary act but it was a demonstration of Jesus’ wrath (Rev. 6:16)–his anger at using His house for pilfering and even using it as a shortcut for those who lived nearby (“would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts”)! As always, He is perfectly sane even though “He is not a tame lion” as C.S. Lewis said of Aslan and which our culture often betrays.

It’s also interesting that he used this as an opportunity to teach (v. 17). He didn’t just ransack the place and then storm out of there.

R. Alan Cole in his commentary on Mark states:

The Greek verb edidasken, taught (i.e. ‘continued teaching’), implies a deliberate teaching programme adopted by Jesus rather than a casual pronouncement, uttered in the heat of anger, amid the justification for his action, as any rabbi would. The Scripture quoted by him is Isaiah 56:7, telling how foreign proselytes will one day be welcomed to the temple. It is noteworthy that Jesus here quotes only the clause in Isaiah about prayer, and omits that about offering sacrifice, for he himself was soon to be the sacrifice that would unite Jew and non-Jew in one (John 11:51-52).

Since I’m a fan of commentaries and they are a staple in my book collection I was glad to read this:

When the wonder of the gospel breaks into your life, you feel as though you are the first person to discover its power and glory. Where has Christ been hidden all these years? He seems so fresh,
so new, so full of grace. Then comes a second discovery—it is you who have been blind, but now you have experienced exactly the same as countless others before you. You compare notes. Sure enough, you are not the first! Thankfully you will not be the last.

Discovering a Key

If my own experience is anything by which to judge, discovering Romans can be a similar experience.

I still remember, as a Christian teenager, the slow dawning of this thought in my mind: all Scripture is God-breathed and useful to me, but it also seems to have a shape and structure, a center and circumference. If that is so, then some biblical books may be foundational; these should be mastered first.

Then came the realization that (alongside systematic theologies) biblical commentaries must be the foundation of my book collection.

–In Christ Alone, by Sinclair B. Ferguson

1 Timothy 6:17-19 ISV
Tell those who are rich in this age not to be arrogant and not to place their confidence in anything as uncertain as riches. Instead, let them place their confidence in God, who lavishly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18 They are to do good, to be rich in good actions, to be generous, and to share. 19 By doing this they store up a treasure for themselves that is a good foundation for the future, so that they can keep their hold on the life that is real.

In a radio conversation with the late Dr. John Stek (PDF file), Chair of the Committee on Bible Translation for the NIV and TNIV Bible versions, broadcast on “Conversations with Carl Zylstra” (program #237), radio station KDCR, Dordt College, Sioux Center, Iowa, April 5, 2002, Dr. Stek speaks about the vocative.
HT: Esteban

Dr. Stek: Well, just to indicate some of the kinds of things that we think have brought the version up into more contemporary English, for example, we’ve eliminated almost all the vocative Os, except where they have some rhetorical purpose.

Dr. Zylstra: where it says, “O, Israel,” or

Dr. Stek: Yeah, or “O, Lord,” or “O, God” or whatever.

Dr. Zylstra: Has that really been lost from the English language?

Dr. Stek: Oh, yes. Well, it has been lost as a vocative “O” and it’s been turned into what we call a pathetic “Oh.” It’s the emotional “oh” and there’s nothing in the original language to indicate that. Because it’s out in everyday speech, it no longer functions as the vocative, it functions as a pathetic “oh” or a rhetorical one.

I like the use of the vocative “O” and use it all the time when I’m praying. I miss seeing it in these translations. But then I’m 44 years old and am used to it from reading the Psalms in the NIV for so many years.

Here is my favorite example as an illustration.

With:
Psalm 5:3 NRSV
O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.

Psalm 5:3 NIV
In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.

Without:
Psalm 5:3 TNIV
In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.

Psalm 5:3 NET
LORD, in the morning you will hear me; in the morning I will present my case to you and then wait expectantly for an answer.

Psalm 5:3 NLT
Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.

So should it be left untranslated? Is it important?

Point a gun at each of the 60 million people who, according to Mr. Gallup’s poll, are born-again Christians. Tell them to renounce Christ or have their heads blown off, and then take a recount. I think George, like Gideon, would find his troops dwindling. Actually, the price probably wouldn’t have to be so extreme today. Threatening to confiscate their TV sets might just produce the same results. When faith is cheap, it is easily pawned.

–John Fischer, “When Christianity Pays,” Contemporary Christian Magazine (Dec. 1985), 46 – as quoted in The NIV Application Commentary by Craig Keener

I believe this is part of the reason why we shouldn’t be looking to every pageant winner or American Idol contestant or professional athlete who says they’re a Christian to be the next great spokesperson for Christ. They very well may be, but we shouldn’t so easily look for heroes just because they’re in the spotlight and (mis)quote Philippians 4:13.

Luke 14:26-28 KJV
If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. 27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple. 28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?

Matthew 7:21 KJV
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

In a post here about the HCSB, Jonas left a link in a very helpful comment about the status of the updated version of the HCSB and the editions that are planned for printing it looks like the study Bible won’t come out until October of 2010.

HCSB 2009 – status

Does anyone have any suggestions for a Bible study guide for Ecclesiastes suitable for a small group Bible study? I wouldn’t be leading it but would be suggesting it.

We just finished 1 Corinthians using the NavPress LifeChange series which is pretty good and I don’t usually like those booklets. They don’t have one for Ecclesiastes. Thanks.

Christian contentment, therefore, is the direct fruit of having no higher ambition than to belong to the Lord and to be totally at His disposal in the place He appoints, at the time He chooses, with the provision He is pleased to make.

It was with mature wisdom, then, that the young Robert Murray McCheyne wrote, ‘It has always been my aim, and it is my prayer, to have no plans with regard to myself.’ ‘How unusual!’ we say. Yes, but what people noticed about McCheyne was how content he was to pursue one driving ambition: to know Christ (Phil. 3:10). It is not accidental that when we make Christ our ambition we discover that He becomes our sufficiency and we learn contentment in all circumstances.

–In Christ Alone, by Sinclair B. Ferguson, pg. 190

Philippians 4:11-13 TNIV
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

The NIV Application Commentary: Revelation by Craig Keener

I liked this commentary so much I thought I’d write a mini-review with some information about Craig Keener and type out some of the quotes I liked.

Craig Keener is someone who has an extraordinary passion for the Bible and a very high view of Scripture and God’s sovereignty. He’s an excellent exegete influenced by Gordon Fee and nearly as objective in his interpretation.

He’s also lived in dangerous urban environments where his life has been threatened and he knows what it is to be persecuted, as much as can be in the U.S. and he writes briefly about some of these experiences as they relate to the book of Revelation.

If you’d like to learn more about him you can read Fridays with Craig Keener at Word and Spirit, a series of eight interviews (in reverse order here).

Here is a brief video where Craig S. Keener tells the story behind the NIVAC Revelation commentary. He writes about this in the preface of the commentary.

My exposure to Revelation has been reading through it a few times, participating in a group Bible study on it which I have almost no recollection of and reading about bits of it here and there in various books. I wanted a commentary that was substantial, but not a large technical tome such as Aune or Beale. The only other NIVAC commentary I have is the one on Luke and I was a little disappointed in it as a commentary. It’s a great book on the life and teachings of Jesus, but many questions weren’t addressed. So I was reluctant to try another one but this didn’t disappoint at all. It seemed to be tailor made for someone like me.

In the commentary portion Keener addresses nearly all of the text of Revelation succinctly but fully. I never felt that there was a portion that was glossed over without addressing it.

In the Bridging Contexts sections he often writes about common gross misinterpretations, interpretations throughout history and how the passage relates to other parts of Scripture among other things which is extremely helpful.

Some may think it difficult to write about how the whole book of Revelation is relevant to us today but Keener does this with ease in the Contemporary Significance sections.

Here are some of my favorite quotes.

The necessity of remaining faithful until the end (Revelation 2:26) fits historic Calvinist and Arminian belief: The former argue that those who fall away were never converted, whereas the latter argue that they have lost their salvation–but both concur that they will not be saved. Verses such and this one and countless others, however, may prove uncomfortable to those who think that merely praying a prayer without truly persevering in Christian faith is adequate for salvation.

One [also] wonders how Luther, Calvin, Wesley, or others would feel about some who in their name privilege theological traditions above firsthand study of Scripture itself.

…not a single text supports addressing the devil as if he were omnipresent, during prayer. [On spiritual warfare, rebuking the devil etc. Revelation 12:7-9]

More quotes to come in future posts.

Buy it from:

• Amazon.com

In Christ Alone: Living the Gospel Centered Life by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson

This is a Reformation Trust review.

Sinclair Ferguson draws heavily on the Gospel of John and the book of Hebrews to paint a portrait of Christ and His sufficiency for living out our faith.

The book is accessible for the lay person but meaty enough for anyone although it may not be for those who are new Christians.

The book is comprised of 50 somewhat short chapters making it suitable for devotional reading. The chapters are divided into six sections, each pertaining to a different aspect of Christology.

The book is one quotable quote after another. The chapter entitled Santa Christ? has been quoted in part on blogs from time to time.

Ferguson’s theology is fully and obviously Reformed but the nature of the book is not polemic, apologetic or comparative. He even gives a few warnings to those who are Reformed.

The apostles saw that Pentecost was a once-for-all-time, epoch-making event, but with often-repeatable elements built into it. The empowering for witness that Jesus promised was to be limited neither to the single event of Pentecost nor exclusively to the apostles. It extended beyond their persons and time (Acts. 2:4).

A Word to the Reformed

This is what we still need: power to witness. The truth is that nothing would as readily silence gainsayers against the Reformed faith as would this. Far more important, it is only through such empowering that we will get beyond witnessing to fellow Christians about the Reformed faith and start witnessing to non-Christians about saving faith.

His zeal for Scripture is evident:

[A]biding in Christ means allowing His Word to fill our
minds, direct our wills, and transform our affections. In other words, our relationship to Christ is intimately connected to what we do with our Bibles!

For those who have a hard time with the book of Hebrews (although I’m not sure why there are so many), Ferguson explains how “there is no letter in the New Testament that tells us more about Christ and His work” in the chapter entitled: Hebrews—Does It Do Anything for You?

Some of the later chapters seem a bit disjointed. Maybe this is because the book began as articles in Table Talk and Eternity Magazine. However this is only a stylistic point and doesn’t detract from the quality of the content.

Other than that very minor point I have nothing negative to say about this book. While reading it I found myself worshiping our Savior, learning more about Jesus, having some questions answered and looking foreword the the next chapter. It’s the best book I’ve read in a long time and is my favorite so far of the books I’ve read from Reformation Trust. I highly recommend it.

Table of Contents and Sample Chapter (PDF File)

Book details:

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Reformation Trust Publishing
• Publication Date: December 15, 2007
• ISBN-10: 1567690890

Buy it from:

• Ligonier Ministries Store
• Amazon