|
Friday,
November 28 |
If you are crazy brave enough
to go out shopping, be sure to look for my wife and her
sister. They are out in the madness of Black Friday
somewhere...
Here's another of the new 76-word reviews!
 Father, Son, & Holy Spirit
Bruce A. Ware
BOOK / THEOLOGY
Release date: 01.21.2005
174 pages
Widely accepted yet often neglected is the doctrine of the
Trinity – one God in three distinct persons. Ware begins
with an overview and then systematically addresses each
member in turn. Although it can read a bit too academic in
places, there is great value in thinking about the nature
and roles within the Trinity. Especially helpful is Ware’s
discussion of how these Trinitarian roles are to be
reflected and practiced in our own relationships. Highly
recommended.
A
REVIEW ARCHIVE
Here are some quotes from
Father, Son, & Holy Spirit:
So it is with the Trinity: it is God's unified nature
expressed richly and beautifully in the three equal and full
possessions and manifestations of that one nature, with each
"voice" contributing variously, yet with complete unity and
identity of nature or essence. [42]
The Father is the sovereign Revealer of truth to those whom
he chooses and the Withholder of that revelation from
others, as he so chooses. [49]
Everything in heaven and earth, everything from initial
creation to ultimate eternal life in heaven and hell is both
planned according to the purpose of God's will and
accomplished according to the counsel of that very will.
[53]
Freedom is not my deciding, from the urges and longings of
my sinful nature, to do what I want to do, when I want to do
it, how I want to do it, with whom I want to do it.
According to the Bible, that is bondage, not freedom.
Rather, true freedom is living as Jesus lived, for he is the
freest human being who ever lived. In fact, he is the only
fully free human being who has ever lived, and one day we
will be set free fully when we always and only do the will
of God. So, what is freedom? Amazingly, Jesus' answer is
this: Freedom is submitting -- submitting fully to the will
of God, to the words of God, and to the work that God calls
us to do. [75]
It is just as Godlike to submit gladly and joyfully to
rightful authority as it is Godlike to exercise legitimate,
rightful authority. [98]
The Spirit willingly takes the behind-the-scenes position.
He is present and even central in bringing to faith those
who worship the Lord as the redeemed, but he is not up front
being honored. The Spirit, then, while being eternally God
and while possessing the identically same nature as the
Father and the Son, willingly and eternally takes the
position of supporter, helper, assistant, and
behind-the-scenes worker, always pointing attention to the
Son, to the ultimate glory of the Father. [127]
We should look not only to the character of God, and to the
commands of God, but also to the triune roles and
relationships among the Triune Persons of God to see what it
means to live our lives as his images. We are created to
reflect what God is like, and this includes a reflection of
the personal relationships within the Trinity. [133]
We live in a culture that despises authority at every level.
Whether the authority of police, or of government, or of
parents, or a husband's authority in marriage, or pastoral
authority in our churches -- our culture has programmed us
to despise authority. We find it very hard to think
positively about authority for one very simple reason: we
are sinners who want to be in charge of our own lives. We
want to be captains of our own destiny. We want to govern
our own futures. And here, one of the lessons of the Trinity
is that God loves what we despise; namely, God loves,
exercises, and embraces rightful authority-submission
relationships. [137]
Distinction in role does not indicate distinction in value.
Men and women are fully equal in essence, worth, value, and
dignity, even though God has ordained that there be male
headship in our relations in the home and in the church.
Equality of essence does not conflict with distinction of
roles. In God, and among us, both must be embraced and
honored. [139]
God is good, and his ways are good. Given this, we will
experience the joy and satisfaction of human life only when
we embrace, not resist, his created design. [156]
TOP |
|
Thursday,
November 27 | Thanksgiving |
|
 Happy Thanksgiving!
If you're like me, you probably take some time today and
come up with a list of things to be thankful for. My list
includes Tricia, Ethan, my parents, my brothers, all the
in-laws, my friends, my church family...and it could go on
for pages and pages!
But look at what Colossians 1:12-14 says should be at the
top of that list: “giving
thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the
inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he
has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us
into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have
redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
My prayer for
everyone who reads these words is that your heart would be
filled with thankfulness to God for who he is and what he
has done for you through his Son, Jesus Christ! There is no
greater gift, there is no greater blessing, there is no
greater thing to be thankful for!
If you're not able to thank God for
these things, it might be because you haven't ever trusted
him to be able to do what he promises. But you can trust
God! If you'd like to know more, click
here.
Happy Thanksgiving!
 Worldliness
C. J. Mahaney, ed.
BOOK / THEOLOGY
Release date: 09.30.2008
192 pages
Several authors address the subtle allure of worldliness by
dealing in practical terms with what we watch, hear, and
wear. Not a call to avoidance but a challenge to discern and
act with the wisdom given by God. While providing some very
applicable help in these areas, the book feels disjointed at
times and perhaps could have more strongly emphasized the
underlying principles that are to govern our choices.
Immensely practical and, at times, quite convicting.
B
REVIEW ARCHIVE
Here are some quotes from
Worldliness:
(paraphrasing John Calvin) The evil in our desires often
lies not in what we want, but in the fact that we want it
too much. [30]
We must fight worldliness because it dulls our affections
for Christ and distracts our attention from Christ.
Worldliness is so serious because Christ is so glorious.
[35]
Culture isn’t the same as worldliness. Our society’s
cultural makeup has both positive and negative
characteristics. We can seek to relate to our culture
without being worldly. But worldliness – self-exalting
opposition to God – is present in every culture. [79]
The Son of Man is to be cherished above all because he came
to reconcile sinners to God through his atoning sacrifice,
to deliver us out of bondage into eternal life with him, and
to display his glorious reign through a people of his own
possession. To value him and celebrate his worth is not just
important, it’s the whole point. [93]
When we seek happiness in stuff, we find that no amount of
it makes us happy. Life becomes earthbound and chained to
things that are passing away. But when we resist the
seducing whisper of worldliness, we discover eternal joy.
[101]
(quoting John Owen) When someone sets his affections upon
the cross and the love of Christ, he crucifies the world as
a dead and undesirable thing. The baits of sin lose their
attraction and disappear. Fill your affections with the
cross of Christ and you will find no room for sin. [108]
Worldliness is not a matter of matter, but of the heart. The
“world” we’re forbidden to love is not the earthly creation
but the rebellious, independent, God-rejecting mindset of
those who inhabit this creation. [147]
Knowledge of God gained exclusively from observation of the
natural world will always be partial at best, and it can
never impart a saving knowledge of God. We need the
particular revelation of Scripture to disclose the saving
purposes of God in the gospel, as well as to confirm,
clarify, and correct our perceptions of the natural world.
[152]
Of all people, it is the Christian who should appreciate
aesthetics, discerning with renewed powers of perception the
handiwork of God in creation. And as our own aesthetic
achievements reflect his creativity and skill, we join him
in expressing and celebrating beauty – a beauty that points
us to God and intensifies our delight in him. [153]
God remains committed to his creation, and he’s actively
working to restore it. As his redeemed image bearers, we
have the privilege of laboring to see him dominion
manifested throughout his creation. Swept into the kingdom
of God, we now become agents of that kingdom in a fallen
world. [166]
TOP |
|
Monday,
November 24 |
|
The idea behind the 76-word limit on book reviews is to
force clarity and conciseness. Can I provide a good summary
and review in exactly 76 words? It may take me a while to
get the hang of it, but since I don't plan to stop reading
anytime soon I'll eventually get it right! Here's another
crack at it with this review:
 The Gospel of the Kingdom
George Eldon Ladd
BOOK / THEOLOGY
Release date: 06.1959
144 pages
The Kingdom of God (referring not to place or people but to
God’s reign) has been brought to us via Christ’s victorious
death and resurrection. It exists now in part, and works in
anticipation of its full revelation at Christ’s return. This
Kingdom breaks the power of sin and spurs the redeemed to
righteousness, reminding that the best is yet to come. While
thought-provoking, Ladd overstresses core concepts and
minimizes concrete application. More insightful than
instructive.
B-
REVIEW ARCHIVE
Here are some quotes from The Gospel of the Kingdom
(no word limit on these!):
The primary meaning of both the Hebrew word
malkuth in the Old Testament and of the Greek word
basileia in the
New Testament is the rank, authority and sovereignty
exercised by a king…a kingdom is the authority to rule, the
sovereignty of the king. [19]
Sin is primarily religious and secondarily ethical. Man is God's
creature and his primary responsibility is towards God. The
root of sin is found in his refusal to acknowledge in
grateful dependence the gifts and goodness of God, which are
now imparted in Christ. Darkness is the assertion of
independence rather than God-dependence. [31]
When God's people are called upon to pass through severe sufferings
and tribulation, they should remember that God has not
abandoned them, but that their sufferings are due to the
fact that they no longer belong to This Age and therefore
are the object of its hostility. [39]
The Kingdom of God will never fully be realized apart from the
personal, glorious, victorious Coming of Christ. Men cannot
build the Kingdom of God; Christ will bring it. [39]
Christ's resurrection is not an isolated event; it is in fact an
eschatological occurrence which has been transplanted into
the midst of history. We are living already on the
heavenward side of the first stage of the resurrection. This
puts a new light on the whole human predicament. Heaven has
already begun in that the resurrection has already begun to
take place. [44]
God has permitted us to attain something of the knowledge of divine
truth here and now; yet at best, it is partial and
incomplete. Nevertheless, it is real. Although imperfect, it
is the greatest and most wonderful reality in life, because
the truth of God brings men into fellowship with God. [73]
The righteousness which the Kingdom of God demands is not concerned
alone with outward acts of sin. It goes behind the act,
behind the deed, to the heart, and deals with what a man is
in himself before God. Kingdom righteousness says, "What you
are is more important than what you do." [83]
Do not play with sin, do not toy with temptation, or it will
destroy you. [85]
Death is the mighty conqueror before whom we are all helpless. We
can only beat our fists in utter futility against the
unyielding and unresponding tomb. But the Good News is this:
death has been defeated; our conqueror has been conquered.
In the face of the power of the Kingdom of God in Christ,
death was helpless. It could not hold Him, death has been
defeated; life and immorality have been brought to light. An
empty tomb in Jerusalem is proof of it. This is the Gospel
of the Kingdom. [128]
The ultimate meaning of history must be found in the action of God
in history as recorded and interpreted in inspired
Scripture. If there is no God, man is lost in a labyrinthine
maze of bewildering experiences with no thread of meaning to
guide him. If God has not acted in history, the ebb and flow
of the tides of the centuries wash back and forth aimlessly
between the sands of eternity. But the basic fact in the
Word of God is that God has spoken, God has been
redemptively at work in history; and the divine action will
yet bring history to a divinely destined goal. [131]
TOP |
|
Sunday,
November 23 |
We had a family Christmas picture made yesterday (thanks to
Tricia's sister Ashley for snapping the shot). It's not anything
professional, but I think it turned out very nice. Judge
for yourself:
You can see the full-sized version by clicking on the
thumbnail in the Photos column. Switching gears, here's another of the all-new 76-word book reviews:
 Fade
Away
Harlan Coben
BOOK / FICTION
Release date: 11.02.1996 / 08.26.2008
328 pages
Agent Myron Bolitar is back. (The word “agent” cleverly
referring to both his job as a sports agent and his history
with the FBI.) When a professional basketball player goes
missing, Bolitar is asked to find him. Suspense mounts as
the mystery deepens. As with the other Bolitar novels
(currently being reprinted in hardback), they are somewhat
dated and Coben clearly hadn’t hit his stride as an author.
An enjoyable read, but far from Coben’s best.
C+
REVIEW ARCHIVE
TOP |
|
Friday,
November 21 |
|
Remember when I said that I would post more in November than
I did in October? Yeah, not so much. I do have a few things
I want to put up this month, but with the way I've been
slacking, no promises.
Earlier this month Tricia, Ethan, and I went to the
Indianapolis Zoo! It was a lot of fun, and I think Ethan had
a good time. He really liked looking at the fish, and he
also watched the gibbon swing around for quite a while. Here
are some animal pics from the trip:
In other news: Book reviews have been a part of this site
for a while, but I'm switching things up and making each
review exactly 76 words long. (Sure, it sounds like fun now,
but I'm sure I have no idea just how difficult that will
be.) We'll start things off with two new reviews:
 Manhunt
James L. Swanson
BOOK / HISTORY
Release date: 02.07.2006
448 pages
After John Wilkes Booth fired the shot
that killed President Lincoln, he went on the run, hoping to
escape to the sympathetic depths of the Confederacy. He
never made it. The 12-day manhunt -- meticulously pieced
together from a wealth of sources -- not only gives us
insight into Booth, but into the psyche of a fragile nation
reeling from civil war. A powerful and suspenseful account,
even when the outcome is known from the start.
A-
REVIEW ARCHIVE
TOP
 The
Infinite Day
Chris Walley
BOOK / FICTION
Release date: 05.14.2008
576 pages
The conclusion to the
Lamb Among the Stars trilogy finds Merral
D'Avanos fighting against the evil Dominion, who are blazing
a destructive path straight toward Earth. But enemies within
the Assembly and doubts in D’Avanos’ mind threaten to crush
the Assembly before the first shot is fired. These tensions
are developed nicely and, while not perfect, this story
provides a superb ending to an amazing saga. Ending well can
be difficult, but not in this case.
A
REVIEW ARCHIVE
TOP |
|
|
SCALE |
A =
Outstanding
B = Solid
C = Average
D = Lacking
F = Disappointing
|
|
|
more to come... |
Hi. My name is
Mark
and this is my website.
I am very happily married
to my beautiful wife and long-time friend
Tricia.
We have an amazing son named Ethan.
I was born way back in
1976, which is where the name of this site comes from.
This website is created
and maintained with the use of:
all
original content is (c) 2003-2008
se7enty6ix
|
