Happy Reformation Day!

I know it's Halloween. Everyone is excited about costumes, candy, and parties. But there is something far greater to celebrate than the sugar rushes and belly aches just waiting to be unleashed.

On this day in 1517 (almost 500 years ago), Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses on the church door in Wittenberg, Germany. While his desire was not to start an official movement or even split from the church, this sparked the 16th century Protestant Reformation.

In addition to preaching justification by faith, the Protestant Reformation also sought to transform worship. For those of us who enjoy congregational singing (hopefully all of us), we have the 16th century to thank. Men like Martin Luther and John Calvin begin putting psalms to music and writing hymns. Through these, important doctrines could be heard, understood, and spread throughout the church. Luther described music as "the handmaiden to theology." It was complementary to the gospel preaching of the Word each and every Sunday.

In the spirit of Reformation Day, I figure it would be fitting to include a hymn from that time period. I could have gone with Martin Luther's "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God." It is a fantastic hymn. Instead, I have chosen a potentially unfamiliar hymn with a very familiar tune. It is from the Genevan Psalter, which John Calvin implemented in the church in Geneva. It is entitled "All People That on Earth Do Dwell" which carries to the tune of the doxology.

All people that on earth do dwell,
Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice;
Him serve with fear, His praise forth tell,
Come ye before Him and rejoice.

The Lord, ye know, is God in deed;
Without our aid He did us make;
We are His flock, He doth us feed,
And for His sheep He doth us take.

O enter then His gates with praise,
Approach with joy His courts unto;
Praise, laud, and bless His name always,
For it is seemly so to do.

For why? The Lord our God is good,
His mercy is forever sure;
His truth at all times firmly stood,
And shall from age to age endure.

To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
The God whom heaven and earth adore,
From earth and from the angel host
Be praise and glory evermore 

Happy Reformation Day!

a true child

To Timothy, my true child in the faith...

The second verse of Paul's first letter to Timothy is easy to read over. On the surface it appears as nothing more than Paul identifying who his intended audience, in this case Timothy.

While this certainly is the case, Paul's description of Timothy is worth noting. Timothy was a Gentile with a heritage of faith passed on from his grandmother and mother. Paul was Timothy's father in regards to the faith. He took a vested interest in Timothy. Timothy accompanied Paul on a number his journeys. Paul intimately trained Timothy as a teacher and leader. Paul sent Timothy in his stead to visit the various churches he planted. Paul poured himself into Timothy.

I say this introduction is of note because how many of us can utter the same words as Paul? Can any of us proudly call someone else a true child in the faith? I would hope and pray each and every Christ-proclaiming parent could join Paul. I personally am thankful for my father and mother who raised me both physically and in the faith. And I am even more thankful as I recognize how rare this reality is in our day and age.

Christianity in Western culture has grown more and more individualistic. All that matters is "me and Jesus." We show up to church, read our Bible, pray, and live out our faith (all of which are good and commanded). However, we do not invest in other people. We do not take the time to do with others what Paul did with Timothy. We cringe at the notion of discipleship. Instead we would rather complain about the failings of the generations before and after us.

What if we started to adopt Paul's approach? What if older men took on the role of spiritual fathers for younger men. What if younger men desired and sought out such relationships? What if older women took on the role of spiritual mothers for younger women? What if younger women desired and sought out such relationships?

The reality is this is the picture and call of the church. Paul will explain this later in 1 Timothy as well as the book of Titus. The gospel frees us from the obsession of self for it frees us from trying to earn what has already been giving to us in Christ. This freedom enables us to turn outward to those in the body who need to grow and mature into the image of Christ.

It frees us to be father, mothers, sons, daughter, brothers, and sisters.

simply beautiful

It is a bit lengthy, but there may not be a better presentation of the blessedness of union with Christ than Martin Luther in "the Freedom of the Christian."

Here we have a most pleasant vision not only of communion but of a blessed struggle and victory and salvation and redemption. Christ is God and man in one person. He has neither sinned nor died, and is not condemned, and he cannot sin, die, or be condemned; his righteousness, life, and salvation are unconquerable, eternal, omnipotent. By the wedding ring of faith he shares in the sins, death, and pains of hell which are his bride's. As a matter of fact, he makes them his own and acts as if they were his own and as if he himself had sinned; he suffered, died...

...now since it was such as one who did all this, and death and hell could not swallow him up, these were necessarily swallowed up by him in a mighty duel; for his righteousness is greater than the sins of all men, his life stronger than death, his salvation more invincible than hell. Thus the believing soul by means of the pledge of its faith is free in Christ, its bridegroom, free from all sins, secure against death and hell, and is endowed with the eternal righteousness, life, and salvation of Christ its bridegroom. So he takes to himself a glorious bride...

Beautiful!

abide with me

One of the benefits of attending a Presbyterian seminary is their love for hymns. Not only are the classics heard, but also those which may either be far less popular or altogether unknown. One falling in the latter category is "Abide with Me" by Henry F. Lyte.

It serves as a prayer, which would benefit us each and every day.

Abide with me; fast falls the eventide; 

the darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide. 

When other helpers fail and comforts flee, 

Help of the helpless, O abide with me. 

Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day; 

earth's joys grow dim; its glories pass away; 

change and decay in all around I see; 

O thou who changest not, abide with me. 

I need thy presence every passing hour. 

What but thy grace can foil the tempter's power? 

Who, like thyself, my guide and stay can be? 

Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me. 

I fear no foe, with thee at hand to bless; 

ills have no weight, and tears not bitterness. 

Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory? 

I triumph still, if thou abide with me. 

Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes; 

shine through the gloom and point me to the skies. 

Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee; 

in life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

walking in the light

Every Wednesday I attend chapel from 10:30-11:15. And every Wednesday at 10:25 I attempt to convince myself of using those 45 minutes for something else. And every Wednesday at 11:20, I am thankful for my lack of persuasive skills.

The text was 1 John 1:5-10. At one point, the speaker harped on verse seven, But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. He stressed that walking in the light does not mean perfection. The verse assumes that even when walking in the light, we will slip and fall. More bluntly, he said we walk in the light as a "mess" inviting the Spirit to work in us and the Body to come along side of us.

Walking in the light is a corporate endeavor. Later on in verse nine, John stresses confession which is also a corporate endeavor. We are to walk in the light and confess our sins to one another. It keeps us in the light. It brings true and lasting fellowship. It brings cleansing.

So why don't we see this more often? Why are we content groping in the darkness?

The simple answer is pride, which is a great irony.

When we wrestle and struggle with sin, what is we most often ask for? Grace. We ask God for the grace to overcome the particular sin. We ask because God promises to grant such requests. However, Scripture is very clear the means by which we receive this grace: humility.

God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5; Proverbs 3:34 (loosely)

The grace we desperately long for in our struggle against sin comes through humility. Humility ties back to 1 John 1:7. Humility means stepping out of the darkness. It means allowing the Spirit to expose our sin. It means allowing others to see our sin. It means removing the facade of perfection we unsuccessfully put on. It means letting other see us in our messiness. It means embracing the biblical notion of fellowship. It means confession.

Much of the pain and grief we bear because of our sin feeds off the pride by which we keep that sin in the dark. Bring it out in the light. Confess it to brothers and sisters. Find the grace promised in the time of weakness.

fall

While you would not know it by this picture (of which I must give credit to my fiance), autumn has arrived. By far, autumn is my favorite season. 

The colors are beautiful, even for a colorblind individual like myself. I can be distracted easily simply looking at the vast array of colors on display by endless trees.

The weather is ideal. The days are comfortable. The nights are crisp and cool, perfect for fires and s'mores. And this year has started off exceptionally well with the warm days coupled with the cool evenings.

The sports world is thriving. Football season is in full swing. Baseball decides its champion. Hockey and basketball start back up again. 

The pallet expands. Apple season is upon us rendering apples (my favorite) plentiful and cheap. This leads to applesauce, apple cider, apple pie, and general apple eating. Pumpkin becomes a staple to my diet: pancakes, muffins, cakes, and lattes (though only occasional because I prefer my coffee black). Spices such as ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg abound.

Throw in a little "September Grass" by James Taylor, and I cannot help but smile.

drama

I watch the television show Nashville.

I admit it.

First and foremost, I like the music. While I am not a country fan, I do like the live music scene, which is incorporated into just about every episode. Simply I have always been a sucker for music, so it was inevitable that I would wind my way to this show since it centers on the music industry.

Equally More appealing is the aspect of human drama and emotion. Nashville is ripe with it. The show is essentially an soap opera with far better acting and story lines. In fact, the lead female was nominated for an Emmy which validates my watching (or at least I hope). No matter how mad the characters make me, I still find myself coming back each and every week.

While the show is not always the most wholesome, it does provide an excellent glimpse into the human experience. It reveals the innumerable ways broken people deal with the brokenness around them. In these responses, it is evident where these individuals look to for salvation. And each and every time, this salvation miserably fails.

Here are a few examples from just the first episode of the second season:

The victim of an alcoholic relationship and a failed marriage throws inhibition to the wind. She indulges in all sorts of immoral behavior because her attempts at virtue and happiness have left her scarred and more broken.

An alcoholic turns to self-hatred and self-abuse. He hopes it will serve as a means of penance to make up for all the lives he has effectively ruined.

A terrible husband along with his equally terrible father-in-law rely on power and prestige to manipulate people. They feel this will cover over or at least mask just how poorly they have loved their wives and daughters.

A brother cannot cope with the guilt of his success at the expense of his criminal, and now dead, brother. He turns to women, partying, and shutting out everyone and anyone to dumb the pain.

The love deprived daughter of a drug-addicted mother cannot trust anyone. She is entirely self-sufficient, which leaves her miserable. Very few people like her and even those who do can only handle her in small doses. She looks for love in all the wrong places with all the wrong people.

A sweet and naive girl tries to save everyone in her life. She fails over and over, but still holds out hope that one day she will break through. She gets taken advantage of. She is treated poorly. Her hearts is repeatedly broken.

A young girl copes with the divorce of her parents. Their lies to her are exposed sending her into a tailspin. She chooses to bottle up her emotions. She seeks the approval of questionable role models. Eventually, she seeks out the counsel of one whose own life is filled with the same brokenness.

This all sounds depressing. It is depressing to watch. However, it is not far from what many people deal with each and every day. They are walking around looking for someone or something to save them from their guilt, misery, and brokenness. Sadly, every savior fails to come through.

If anything shows like these remind me how good the good news of the gospel is. The gospel exposes all functional saviors. They are unable to save anyone from anything.

In his life and death, Jesus bore all our shame, guilt, pain, brokenness, and sin. He took it upon Himself. And in His resurrection, Jesus claimed victory over them all. His resurrection promises our freedom from them, both now and in the age to come.

And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. ~Acts 4:12