Having Two Legs

Archives For January 2012

How Pride is the Father of Depression

January 24, 2012 — 4 Comments

Pride is a promiscuous sin and begets bastard iniquities all over the landscape of any given life. But one sin fathered by pride and frequently unnoticed is depression. In a fallen world there may be numerous factors contributing to depression, darkness, deep sadness: Death, sickness, chemical imbalances, sin, guilt, broken relationships, failures, regrets, etc. I grant all of that, and this is not meant as a one-size-fits-all diagnosis for you or someone you know.

But pride is idolatry of self. Pride pretends to be sitting in a palace, on a throne. Pride imagines importance, glory, and authority. Pride is brash, pride is haughty, pride is self-assured, self-serving, self-loving, self-vindicating. Pride is self-worship.

As it turns out, fallen, sinful people are losers. Left in their sin, people are naked, exposed, ashamed, scrambling for leaves. And thus the need for lots of pretending and wild self-aggrandizing imagination. Pride is a liar and a deceiver, and tells a tall tale to cover the shame. Pride re-tells the Fall, guilt, sin, and death renaming these curses as virtues, personality traits, gifts, callings, differences. In the history of the world, the race of Adam which is at war with God and His grace is a Naked Empire. The city of man, as Augustine called it, is more than just an emperor with no clothes, it’s an entire empire full of naked, guilty people.

People are small, people are mortal, people are weak, people really are naked under all their clothes. But pride hates shame; pride hates humility. Pride is opposed to everything weak, everything small.

But pride is destined to make you sad. Pride is destined to make you despair. This is because apart from Christ people are losers. Apart from Christ, you are naked, ashamed, guilty, alone. Pride lies and tells a different story, but self-worship, self-love, self-assurance has to look in the mirror. You have to worship your image, and as many people worship the image, they become more and more empty, more and more hopeless because look at you: you are a lousy god. Continue Reading…

In Bible - 1 Peter, Bible - James, Grace, Pastoral Theology, Wisdom

Wave Offering Warfare

January 23, 2012 — Leave a comment

“And in every place where the grounded staff shall pass, which the LORD shall lay upon him, it shall be with tambourines and harps: and in battles of shaking will he fight with it.” (Is. 30:32)

The phrase “in battles of shaking will he fight with it” is interesting. The word for shaking is sometimes translated brandishing, and in the rest of the Old Testament it usually means “lifting” or “waving.” When Aaron and his sons were originally ordained to the priesthood, a loaf of bread was put into their hands and they were to lift them up as a wave offering before the Lord (Ex. 29:23-27). The same word is used to refer to the offering of gold and bronze that was used to construct the tabernacle. As the priests began their ministry in the tabernacle, God explained that the portions of meat that the priests lifted up as wave offerings before the Lord were the portions for the priests to eat. It’s striking that when the Levites are appointed to serve in the tabernacle in Numbers, the people of Israel lay hands on the Levites assembled, and God says that this is a wave offering of the children of Israel (Num. 8:11-21). When the people lay hands on the Levites, God says that is how they are lifted up, to serve before Him. Pastor Leithart has already pointed out how music and singing is part of our warfare; here Isaiah also says God’s war will be fought through the wave offering, through the ministry of priests offering sacrifices and eating their portions. Israel of old thought they would find safety and security in what looked strong. In that day it was Egypt. In our day maybe it’s the military, maybe it’s keeping up with fashion, maybe it’s certain food fads or diets or health trends. People think that money will keep them safe, or certain lifestyles will set them free. But God’s power is found singing and eating together. When we lift up this bread and this cup, this is our wave offering, and this means that we are all priests to God. And when the pastor lifts his hands to bless the people of God, he is placing the Name of God on them, and he does that by lifting them up before the Lord as a wave offering. Here you are given your priestly portion to eat and drink, and then you are sent out as a priestly portion to be food for the world. And you do this as you go out singing and eating together in the joy of the Lord. This is wave offering warfare.

In Bible - Isaiah, Eucharistic Meditations

When Asking for Advice is Actually Lying

January 23, 2012 — 1 Comment

“Woe to the rebellious children, saith the Lord, that take counsel but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin…” (Is. 30:1)

Isaiah confronts the nation of Israel as a nation of rebellious children. Isaiah isn’t merely talking to teenagers or young people or college students. Isaiah is talking to the whole nation, and accuses them all of being rebellious children. Later in the passage he calls them liars, children that will not hear the law of the Lord. Taking these two descriptions together, we can get a fairly clear picture of the kind of hypocrisy Isaiah is confronting: these people say they love wisdom, they read books and use their Google search proficiently. They probably occasionally even go ask the pastor or one of their friends for advice. Because after all, it is good to ask for advice.

But these people are not really looking for counsel from the Lord. They are not looking for deliverance; they are looking for self-vindication, self-justification. These kinds of people can have a show of wisdom, an appearance of holiness, but Proverbs calls them fools because they are wise in their own eyes. They already know the answer they are looking for. The counsel they are looking for is just a covering for their own conceit, their self-confidence. They are liars: they say they are looking for wisdom, but if the law of God tells them something offensive, they’ll go looking for a different interpretation. And God calls this rebellion. Continue Reading…

In Bible - Isaiah, Bible - Proverbs, Exhortations, Wisdom

Ten Scriptures for Fathers

January 20, 2012 — Leave a comment

1. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in the heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquities upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. (Ex. 20:4-6)

2. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust… But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children; to such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them. (Ps. 103:13-14, 17-18)

3. We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly. Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt; they remembered not the multitude of thy mercies; but provoked him at the sea, even at the Red sea. Nevertheless he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known. (Ps. 106:6-8) Continue Reading…

In Bible - 1 Thessalonians, Bible - 2 Corinthians, Bible - Ephesians, Bible - Exodus, Bible - Isaiah, Bible - Malachi, Bible - Proverbs, Bible - Psalms, Child Kingdom, Family

The Gospel of Kings

January 17, 2012 — 1 Comment

The Book of Kings is a train wreck of a story. While the first number of chapters relate the building of the temple and Solomon’s wisdom and glory, they always have a bit of an ominous silence in the background. We know what’s coming. We know Solomon is going down. We know his wives will lead him into idolatry, and then it’s all downhill from there. King after king after king, doing evil in the sight of the Lord, leading Israel in idolatrous worship, bowing to shrines, making alliances with foreign powers, just like his father before him, like his father before him.

Peter Leithart has pointed out that part of the pastoral theology of the book of Kings is the nearly unbearable patience of God. By half-way through the book, we are about as desperate and depressed as Elijah. How is there anyone left who fears the Lord? If there is anyone left, the king is probably trying to kill them. The book of Kings is a painfully careful narrative of the nation of Israel circling the drain, round and round and round. And it’s pretty tempting to just get fed up with how patient God is with His people. Sure, He gets angry. Sure, He brings calamities and trials, but again and again God spares Jerusalem. And again and again, His people don’t get it.

But this means that one of the central themes of the book is God’s commitment to His own promises concerning His people. They may be wicked, they may be wayward, they may be worshiping other gods, but Yahweh is undeterred. The Lord God of Israel is steadfast, unmoved, unshaken. He does grow weary of their sin, and He will ultimately cast them off into exile. But He does not cast them off in order to get rid of them. God does not destroy Jerusalem and the temple in order shed the ugly, harlot nation. He sends her into exile to purify her. He sends her into exile and actually goes with her into exile. Continue Reading…

In Bible - 1 Kings, Bible - 2 Kings, Church Calendar, Evangelism, Grace

All Christians are Sheep and Shepherds

January 15, 2012 — Leave a comment

The elders have become increasingly convinced that while God has blessed us enormously with a great warmth of fellowship and hospitality during our first 8 years as a church, we have also grown to a point where unless we give more organization and structure to our fellowship and hospitality, we will not be able to keep up. And this is a good problem to have. We want to cultivate a growing community culture that shares responsibility for one another and takes that seriously. It’s not as though the elders are the only shepherds and everyone else is sheep. The Bible sometimes speaks that way, but it also calls us all to bear one another’s burdens, to love one another, to care for one another. In some sense, we are all called in various ways to shepherd one another, to watch out for one another. And we are all sheep under Jesus our Good Shepherd, the Chief Shepherd. While the elders are committed to remaining active in pastoral care, we want to see you, our people, growing in confidence and joy in the Lord such that you are discipling one another, counseling one another, teaching one another, and sharing the gospel more in your neighborhoods and wherever the Lord takes you. In so many ways, this table means all of these things already. At this table, we serve one another, we feed one another like shepherds. Here at this table we are both undershepherds and sheep. We are fed by each other, and we feed one another. Here we enact what our baptisms mean, that we do not belong to ourselves, but rather to our faithful Savior Jesus Christ and to His body, the Church. Our membership vows also make this explicit: we have sworn loyalty and love to one another, and this means our highest priority is to see Christ formed in each other. And so we want to be intentional about this: planning to love one another, eating together, fellowshipping together, praying together, and supporting one another as we seek to love the hurting and lost in our lives. So come eat, drink, and rejoice. You belong to Jesus, and therefore you belong to one another.

In Eucharistic Meditations

Epiphany Means Light

January 15, 2012 — Leave a comment

Today is the Second Sunday after Epiphany. Epiphany means manifestation; it means to shine forth. Epiphany picks up where Christmas leaves off. Where we celebrate the light coming into the world at the birth of Jesus, Epiphany celebrates the ways in which that light began to burst out into the world. The wise men came from the East because they saw the star. Many began to follow Christ at His baptism because God the Father spoke and the Spirit descended upon Him. In John’s gospel, it was the miracles of Jesus in particular which highlighted who Jesus was, manifesting the glory of the Father. Like all the seasons of the Church Calendar, Epiphany highlights something that is in fact true all the time. God’s mission is to fill this world with His light. That mission was inaugurated in the person and work of Jesus, but it continues and will grow and flourish by the working of His Spirit in you. This is why Jesus says, you are the light of the world. Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. This outlines both the method and the purpose of bringing the light of God into this world. The method is good works. Serving those in need, loving the unlovely, giving up your rights for the sake of another, defending the defenseless, speaking the truth in love, working hard as to the Lord. The purpose is for the glory of our Father in heaven. The purpose of the light is to create more worshipers, so that that the earth is filled with people who praise the Father of Jesus Christ. Epiphany means that the light of God has shone forth; Epiphany means evangelism. And this gospel light must begin in our own hearts, in our homes, between husbands and wives, between roommates and friends, between parents and children and siblings. But too frequently, we are embarrassed, shy, lazy, or just too busy, and when that happens it is ultimately because we prefer the darkness.

“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” (Jn. 3:19)

In Church Calendar, Evangelism, Family

Gratitude or Grabbing?

January 15, 2012 — 1 Comment

Andy and Emily,

The language of Isaiah 62 in the lesson that was read a few moments ago is breathtaking. God declares a love that is pretty much insane, disorienting. God, who created the worlds from nothing, who could uncreate it all and start again from scratch in an instant, is completely and unalterably taken with Zion, He is obsessed with Israel. Isaiah has spent many chapters foretelling the coming judgment, the coming doom of Judah for her infidelity, for her wickedness and unfaithfulness. Jerusalem will be destroyed, the temple will be burned, and God’s people will be dragged into exile. And yet here at the end of Isaiah, God is swearing His loyalty, swearing is undying affection and love for His people. This seems schizophrenic. It’s almost as if the book of Isaiah could be summarized as God saying: I hate you; I love you. No wonder many scholars try to explain the radical shifts with multiple authors. It can’t be the same author, and by implication the claim is: this can’t be the same God.

It’s actually rather scandalous to think of our God in such a position, crying out in agony at Israel, denouncing her in one breath and insisting that the future holds a glory and a peace for them in the next. You have seen enough in real life or in movies or television to see this kind of drama, this kind of sensationalism. God blessed both of you with faithful Christian families where you saw the grace of God at work in your parents and their marriages, you grew up watching the reality of forgiveness unfolding before you. And you have come to embrace that grace. You have claimed the promises of God given to your parents concerning you, and by God’s mercy, you have likely not had to endure the heartbreak of betrayal, the agony of abandonment, the raw, the emptiness of confusion, when all feelings go numb. And it really is the blessing and mercy of God that you have been spared this pain. But you know it’s out there.

You might be tempted to think that there is no possibility that your marriage, your family, your home could ever undergo such a curse. In a good sense, it seems so foreign, so distant, so impossible especially on day like today, but in this world where sin still looks for a hold in our hearts, where Satan still lurks like a prowling lion, where the lures of the world still practice their fake beauty, it is still possible for glory to be turned to shame. It is still possible for beauty to be turned to ashes, for dancing to be turned into mourning. Continue Reading…

In Bible - Isaiah, Wedding Exhortation

Christian Ritual is the Real World

January 6, 2012 — Leave a comment

For groups, ritual depicts the world as it ought to be, the real world as it is believed to be, especially the social and political realities of the world. Christian ritual displays the world as we believe and hope it one day will be. Ritual displays to public view who goes where, how each of us fits into the whole, how the members of the body are knit into one while yet remaining many, how the melodic lines of each individual life harmonize into a common symphony. By repeated display, ritual reminds us again and again that this is the real world, objectively real outside our imaginations, and encourages us to live on the confidence that this is the real world.

-Peter Leithart, Against Christianity, 82.

In Against Christianity, Theology - Sacraments, Worship

Liturgy as Training for Life

January 5, 2012 — Leave a comment

…Christian ritual trains the body and soul in suitable posture and movement. By moving us through a series of spiritual and physical postures, liturgical ritual imposes a choreography on us. Patterned by rituals of worship, we begin to live life before God as kneeling to confess, as standing to hear, as singing and clapping in praise, as sitting to eat and drink. Worship trains us in the steps for walking, for dancing rightly through life.

-Peter Leithart, Against Christianity, 82.

In Against Christianity, Worship