The Blog of Toby J Sumpter
The 2007 Biblical Horizons Annual Weeklong Bible Conference will be 23-27 July.
The topic this year is Outside the Box. Speakers on the topic will be Peter Leithart on the challenging work of Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy; Mark Horne on Ephesians; Blake Purcell on Russian Orthodoxy; James Jordan on Nazirites and Knights, including Rohmer’s film Percival. There will be other speakers and other topics as well.
More information can be found here.
As it turns out, the good folks over at Veritas Press are now offering a wide range of online classes for homeschooling families. This fall, I will be teaching two sections of their Omnibus III which consists of the literature and history and biblical-theological themes from the Reformation to the Modern Era. This should be an excellent year examining a number of classic texts such as Pilgrim’s Progress, the Federalist Papers, A Tale of Two Cities, 1984, The Great Gatsby, and several others.
If you or someone you know might be interested this class or any of the others being offered through Veritas, you can find out more information here.
Cheers!
One of the glories of Pentecost is wine. When the Holy Spirit breaks out in the upper room, and the crowds gather together, their first inclination is to think a frat party has gotten out of control. Peter is quick to deny the accusation, but we should notice the fact that the Holy Spirit is not so concerned about the reputation of the disciples.
But the irony of Pentecost is that Wine is precisely what God had promised. When Peter stands up he quotes from Joel 2, but just prior to that God says: “Be glad then, you children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, and He will cause the rain to come down for you –the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. The threshing floors will be full of wheat, and the vats will overflow with new wine… Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God, in your midst.”
Pentecost is the celebration of new wine. It is God’s victory dance, rejoicing over his Son, and pouring out all of his joy and vigor onto us. Before us now is bread and wine. You are about to eat and drink Christmas. You are about to eat and drink Good Friday. You are about to eat and drink Easter. You are eating and drinking the Ascension. This is Pentecost before you bread and wine, and you are what you eat. God is making you into a new family. Look around you. These are your mothers, your fathers, your sisters, and your brothers. This is mind blowing, this is insane, this is glorious. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. Therefore come in faith believing the promises of God.
Opening Prayer: Almighty God, we praise you for pouring out your Holy Spirit on your people. We thank you that this is how you are building your kingdom in this world. Remind us once again this morning that it is not by might or by power by your Spirit that all things are accomplished. Renew us, remake us, and send us from your presence with your glory that we might be faithful witnesses, through the Faithful Witness, and Amen!
Introduction
The resurrection of the King of Kings was the rebirth of the world, the remaking of the universe. In this new universe, all authority has been given to Jesus Christ both in heaven and on earth. The dominion that was lost by man has been re-given to man at Pentecost (Acts 1:8). At Pentecost, God has begun a new building project in the world. The Kingdom of God is the building of a city, a New Jerusalem. Thus one way of looking at the task set before us is urban planning. What should the city look like? How do we build? If we don’t know the answers to these questions then we are like builders trying to ‘wing it’, and too often we reflect this.
Babel
The whole earth was one lip, the Hebrew says, and had all things in common. This of course reminds us of the early chapters of Acts. The text also tells us that they were going to the East. Directions are loaded with meaning because of the early chapters of Genesis. When Adam and Eve were sent out of the Garden of Eden they were sent eastward, away from God’s presence and cherubim were placed there (Gen. 3:24). This means that for Adam to re-enter paradise he must “go west.” When Cain murdered his brother, he was sent to the east of Eden, away from the presence God even further (Gen. 4:16). The fact that these Babylonians were going East should be our first clue that all is not well. Nimrod and the heads of all the peoples of the earth were intent upon building two things: a city and a tower. The tower was to be gigantic, and the fame of the city and its tower would make a name for them in the earth. They view themselves as Adam, in fact this is what the Lord calls them: Sons of Adam (v. 5). Adam’s first job was naming, and these over officious building contractors even have proof texts, “See? See? It’s in the Bible!” We’re taking dominion, they might say. But of course it’s the fool that wants a simple faith, a simple religion. And the God of heaven laughs. That great tower all pristine and pointy in the clouds is still a tiny speck from the vantage of God. And so God decides to come down and see what all the racket is about. There at his footstool is a bustling patch of ants. And having seen the gory details (‘Jeepers!), a Triune council is held, a course is decided upon, and the Lord goes down to scatter the ants from their little sandbox. Go play nice somewhere else.
Shem to Abraham
We’re not given the details of when the building project began or how long it lasted before it was abandoned. But if we assume that there was a significant city and building project underway, it doesn’t seem unlikely that they may have been building for some time perhaps as long as a couple hundred years. Remember, these folks were used to long life spans and a few hundred year project was feasible. We know that it was in Peleg’s days that the earth was divided (10:25), so we might estimate that God scattered these first Babylonians between two and three hundred years after the flood. We also notice that the life spans of these men decrease significantly over the ten generations from Shem to Abram. From five hundred years to a little over a hundred, it’s notable that Shem outlived a number of his descendents and was probably still alive when Abram was born. And from this weakness (short life spans), the chapter ends with movement in the opposite direction: west. Wherever Ur may have been, Canaan was surely to the west of the Chaldeans. Two opposing civilizations are matched together in this chapter, two cities are at odds. One is a great unified people with a city and tower stretching into heaven. The other is a rag tag family plagued by death and barrenness. But notice that Abram, no less than Nimrod, hoped for a great city, but he was holding out for better. He sought a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God (Heb. 11:10). And this is the pattern throughout history. It is the story of the city of God and the city of Man, one that seizes power and authority and is reduced to ruins, the other which embraces the way of the servant and the martyr and is raised up to glory and honor. It’s not that we don’t want the glory. It’s not that we don’t want the city or the tower or the name. It’s just that we want the real glory, the real city, the real tower, the real name. And we will not settle for less.
Babel Reversed
Pentecost marks the reversal of the curse of Babel. Where God scattered the nations of the earth defying their plans to build a city, God has reunited the nations of the earth by the outpouring of his Holy Spirit. Acts 2 clearly notes that when the Holy Spirit was poured out in Jerusalem, “there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven” (2:5). It is this international multitude that assembles before the disciples thinking that they’ve run across a Frat house soirée. But Peter stands up and tells the crowd that they’ve not had anything to drink, but that the Day of the Lord is at hand in fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy. The Day of the Lord signifies many things, but one of the central elements is that the world is remade. Babel is reversed, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, it has become possible for all men to speak with one tongue. The boundaries of language no longer divide men, the risen Christ in heaven means that the King is on the throne. And if the King is on the throne, then the Kingdom is being restored, the building of the city is commencing. The tower can now be built into heaven, and a name can be made for all those who enter. But that name is Christ, and the tower resembles a cross.
Conclusions & Applications
Beware of lurking individualism. Abram was not seeking isolation; he was seeking a city. Beware of thinking that seclusion is a protection from evil for you or your children. Abram was seeking a city, and the writer of Hebrews says that we have found it. Babel was reversed at Pentecost. You are a part of a new family, and you need each other. You need help in the raising, training, and educating of your children. You need help and advice concerning medicine, car repair, job hunting, finances, and all manner of other areas. This is an exhortation to ask for advice and being willing to help, but this is not the same thing as exhorting you to always give advice. Don’t be a nuisance. Throughout the New Testament, the Spirit is what unites us to Christ and to each other. It is the Spirit that gives gifts to the Body. It is the Spirit that knits all of the members of the body together in unity (1 Cor. 12, Eph. 4). This is what Pentecost is all about. It means loving one another, serving one another, building one another up.
This Spirit that we have been given is one of “power.” The authority and power that Jesus has been given has been given to us. One practical ramification in the life of a local church is recognizing your city and your neighborhoods as your problem. Yes, care for your families, yes, care for your own in need, but if you stop there you haven’t really understood the resurrection. To the people of God has been committed the word of reconciliation. This means that you have been called into the service of the King to minister mercy and grace to your neighbors. Love has hands and feet. Love gives time and sacrifices energy for people who don’t deserve it. This may take many different forms. But begin by recognizing all the people in your parish as your people. This is not a form of ‘sheep steeling’, this is just grace to a messed up world.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ means that every last square inch of the world belongs to Him, and if it belongs to Him, it belongs to us (Rev. 4-6). You are the godparents of the children down your street. You are the counselors of the confused and lost teenagers in your school district. You are the first line of defense for every domestic dispute. You are the authorized social workers, peace keepers, and judges of civil disputes (1 Cor. 6:2). You are the friends of the lonely and the outcast. You are the homeless shelter, the food kitchen, and the friendly face (Mt. 25:31ff). All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him, therefore go.
Finally is the fact that God builds His city His way. And His wisdom is not our wisdom. God is pleased to send His Spirit upon the weak and the afflicted. God is pleased to build mighty kingdoms and nations out of children, strangers and barren wombs. God likes to stack the odds against Himself, and we might as well get used to it. The builders of Babel had everything, the entire earth was at their disposal, and yet God scattered them and thought it better to build His Kingdom out of a rag tag family from Ur. God likes to build cities under fire; He likes to build His Church under duress. Whatever fire you are under begin by giving thanks. This is not Stoicism; this is real faith in the God who raises the dead. This is how the city looks; this is how the city is built. Christ is the blueprint. The word “witness” means “martyr” (Acts 1:8).
In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen!
Concluding Prayer: Gracious Spirit, you are how we worship, how we live and move and breathe, and therefore we worship you and glory in how you are remaking this world. We thank you that there is no obstacle too great for you, and that you delight to do the impossible. You part seas, open barren wombs, and defeat giants through the faith of children. Fill us evermore with your glory, your strength, and bless the work of our hands.
Authority means responsibility. When Jesus sends his disciples out, it is because of the authority that has been given to him. But Jesus didn’t get this authority because he was the biggest, strongest, or loudest. He received this authority because he accepted responsibility for all things and then suffered the consequences of that. This is why Jesus first died; Good Friday comes before Ascension Day. Last we celebrated our ascension with Christ to rule in the heavenly places, but today we celebrate the giving of the Spirit, the anointing that gives us the same authority and glory as Jesus. But as his disciples we are called to join in his authority and glory by imitating him, and He gives them his Spirit in order to carry this out. Because the death and resurrection of Jesus was God’s taking responsibility for the world, this means that we are called to assume responsibility for our world. And we do this by dying for it. Husbands, true masculine authority is found in dying for your wives and children. Wives, true feminine authority is found in dying for your husbands and children. Being a Christian means fundamentally declaring that if this world is going to live, everyone must learn to die. When we claim to be the rulers of this world, we are claiming the responsibility for the state of this world. We are claiming that our house is our responsibility, our street is our responsibility, and our city and nation are our responsibility. Why is this? All authority in heaven and in earth has been given to Jesus, and therefore it is our problem. This is why Jesus said if anyone wants to be great, he must take up his cross. Do you want glory? Then come and die. But be assured, you have been given the Holy Spirit, and therefore all who die in faith God will raise up and give glory and honor and authority in King Jesus.
In Ephesians 2 Paul says, “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” This means that salvation is being raised up (just like Jesus) and being seated in heavenly places (just like Jesus). You have been raised up and you have been seated here at the table of the Lord. How do we know that this is what Paul is talking about? Because Paul goes on to explain to the Gentiles in Ephesus that they have been brought near by the blood of Christ (2:13), and it is through Christ that we have access by one Spirit to the Father (2:18). “Drawing near” and “access” to the Father are loaded terms that recall all of the sacrifices and offerings of the Old Covenant tabernacle and temple. One of the mind blowing things about this is that in the Old Covenant only special priests could go into the presence of God, but even when they went into the presence of God to offer sacrifices, they could never sit down. They were always on their feet. But now in the New Covenant not only have we all been given access by the blood of Jesus, but we have been invited into the presence of God and invited to sit. We are invited to sit like friends of God, invited to sit like King Jesus, as though we are royalty, as though we are rulers: because we are. Paul goes on to say that we are no longer strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. This is what it means to “be saved.” It means to know that you are forgiven in Jesus. It means that he has raised you up, cleansed you, and seated you in his presence to be part of his family. This is salvation. So come eat, drink, and rejoice with one another.
Opening Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, our ascended Lord and God, we worship you now and ask that you would speak to us through Your Word. Declare to us your will, your orders, your directions for our lives, that we might know and live in the same power that raised you from the dead and seated you in the heavenly places. Hear and answer, for you are our King. And Amen!
Introduction
Ascension Sunday is the last hurrah of the Easter Season. He was seen for forty days by his apostles before being taken up into heaven (Acts. 1:3), and ascension day commemorates this fact and we celebrate it today. The entire Easter season comes to close with the celebration of Pentecost next week, the celebration of Christ’s Spirit being poured out on to the Church.
Faith and Love
Paul begins Ephesians with an extended doxology of praise (vv. 3-14). And it is following that doxology that he begins his address to the Ephesians, “Therefore…” Paul begins by saying that he has heard of the Ephesians’ faith in the Lord Jesus and their love for the saints (v. 15). It is this combination that Paul does not cease to give thanks to God for. In fact, in his letter to Galatians, Paul connects the two by saying that it does not matter whether one is a Jew or not. The issue is “faith working through love” (Gal. 5:6). This is Paul’s version of what James describes as faith being perfected by works (Js. 2:22). And given what Paul has “gushed” about in the preceding verses, it is safe to say that Paul is excited because the Ephesians “got it.” They understood just how amazing and spectacular their redemption really was.
Understanding the Gift
But Paul’s thanksgiving is part of his prayers in which he asks that the Ephesians would receive the “spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him…” (vv. 17-18). The Ephesians have begun to understand and act on that understanding, but it is only the beginning. Notice that what the Ephesians need to come to understand is what has already been given to them. It is “His inheritance in the saints” and exceeding greatness “toward us who believe” (vv.18-19). Paul wants the Ephesians to recognize the greatness of the glory which is promised to the Ephesians, the hope of their calling. They have not been saved to grin and bear it and go to heaven when they die. That is not the gospel.
The Heavenlies and Rule
Paul says that the same power which is at work in them (the Spirit of wisdom) is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and seated him at the right hand of God in the heavenly places (v. 20). Paul has already hinted at this in his opening doxology where he blessed God for blessing us “with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (v. 3). What is Christ’s is yours. But we need to recognize that the “heavenlies” have invaded this world (Eph. 2:6, 3:10, 6:12). Yes, we are speaking of a reality that is beyond our reckoning, but we are not talking about something far away or in another dimension. Heaven pervades this world, and it will more and more (Mt. 6:10). So we need to understand what the Spirit has done and is doing in Christ’s resurrection and ascension because Paul says that this is what has been given to us. Christ has authority over every authority (v. 21) and all things have been put beneath Him (v. 22). To what end? For what purpose? For the church which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all (v. 23). Paul says that the center of this authority and power and rule is found in the church which Christ is the head of. This is why the church matters.
Conclusion & Applications
Faith and Love: Brothers and sisters, this is nothing more than the two greatest commandments, loving God and neighbor. And the two have to go together. And John says that anyone who says they love God and doesn’t love his brother is a liar (1 Jn. 4:20). This is just what faith does. Love in the little things and in the big things.
Understanding: You don’t get to check your brain at the door here. And neither do you get to check your brain at the door when you leave as though it only matter what you think for an hour and a half one day a week. You are called to grow in knowledge and understand and wisdom (vv. 17-18). The wisdom of God is the Word of God. This means that you are called to be here in the Church where Christ’s fullness fills all in all. And this means that your entire lives should be permeated with his words in song and speech.
The Hope of Our Calling: All of this is based on the ascension of Jesus. That Jesus went into heaven and is seated there, and that in the power of the Holy Spirit we are seated with Him. This means that Jesus rules over all, and we cannot get tired of saying this. Jesus is king. But this means that we are rulers too. Atheists and secularists and materialists are our slaves, our servants. They are ignorant fools, and we let them carry on with their blather. But we are the rulers of this world because Jesus reigns. This is the hope of our calling. This is not our imagination; this not last night’s dinner. Jesus lives and rules, and we fully expect that this whole world will slowly but surely submit or be destroyed. Jesus said that the meek will inherit the earth (Mt. 5:5). We are called to this hope, to the riches of the glory of this inheritance.
In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen!
Concluding Prayer: Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus, you have seated our Lord Jesus at your right hand, and you have given him authority and power over all things. And in your infinite wisdom and goodness you have granted us a share in this rule and reign. We ask that you would teach us to speak like nobles, to live like rulers or this world, and to believe with firm conviction that you are giving us this world for your glory and for the glory of your saints.
One of the things that the Bible clearly commands the people of God is to sing, and specifically it urges us to sing Psalms. In Ps. 105 we are commanded to thank the Lord and to sing to him. In Js 5 he says that if we are cheerful we should sing psalms. Paul says that we are supposed to speaking to one another with Psalms. Surely this means singing them, for if we don’t sing them, we’ll never know the right words we’re supposed to be speaking to each other. In another place, the apostle says that the Word of God is to dwell in hearts richly, and we are to do that by singing Psalms and hymns. By God’s blessing, we have already begun to recover this, but as a minister of this gospel, I exhort you to fill your days with singing psalms and hymns more and more. If you are not regularly singing the word of God together, you are disobeying. If you need a psalter or hymnal, ask for one or buy one. Fathers you are responsible to see that your homes are growing in this. Sing a psalm at breakfast, sing a few at dinner time, and maybe another when the family is retiring for the night with your evening prayers. Sing when you have friends over, sing when you’re all by yourself. But take care: the point isn’t that you need to go home and start singing “because the Pastor said we have to. So I guess we better do it.” That’s all backwards and upside down. The point is that we have been forgiven, we have been delivered. We have family, we have health, we have eyes for sunsets and stars and lips for kissing and tongues for ice cream and teeth for steak and bodies for dancing and sex and hard work, and the list goes on and on. God is good! And God’s goodness has been dumped all over us: how can we not rejoice in that. We are to be thanking the Lord constantly, making melody in our hearts because we just can’t get over how kind God has been to us. People sing when they’re in love; they can’t help singing, it just spills out of them. So get over your pride, get over your arrogance. God loves you, his people. He can’t get over you; therefore sing and do it loud.
My professor in Reformation and Modern Church History made a passing comment this semester regarding communion tokens which I couldn’t recall ever hearing about. Turns out there’s actually quite a bit of information on this practice. I did a little google action and up comes a number of hits. Here’s one quote I found on the history of the practice of communion tokens. The quote is also a link to the page it came from where you can find out more.
But it was in the Presbyterian churches of Scotland that communion tokens were most widely used. Many believe that there was a second reason for using tokens, to protect communicants from betrayal by spies during periods of religious persecution. The use of communion tokens in the Presbyterian churches of Scotland began during the reign of the Stuarts in 1605. The conflict between church and state continued until the reign of William and Mary and the establishment of the Presbyterian Church as the Church of Scotland in 1690. For nearly 50 years, the Presbyterians had been forced to meet in glens or other secluded places at long and irregular intervals to celebrate the communion service. When the struggle between the church and state finally ended, the use of tokens was by then considered to be an essential part of the Scottish communion service. Communion tokens were used in the Presbyterian churches of Scotland until World War I and a few of the Reformed Presbyterian Churches in the United States and Canada may have used tokens until about 1950. A number of churches have issued tokens in recent years, but these are normally replicas to commemorate a church centennial or some other important event.
Communion tokens have been used in Great Britain, Ireland, France, Germany, Greece, Netherlands, Italy, Africa, India, South America, the West Indies, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. Churches in at least 24 states in the United States issued communion tokens. But it was in Scotland where the tokens had their deepest roots with over 5000 different types being recorded.”
