The Most Useless Sort of Christian

Right now, I am the most useless sort of Christian.  In these past few months I have gained a great amount of knowledge.  That knowledge was not given to me in the abstract; it was directed not only to my head, but to my heart as well.  However, over this period of time, I have just been a reseptical.  A lot of stuff going in, and nothing coming out.  This is not how things should be.

My situation has changed dramatically over the past half year.  I went from a job at a secular company, to a full time student learning from some of the best pastors in the PCA.  I now live in a great neighborhood, but here all of my neighbors are Christians.  I went from involvement in teaching Sunday School, working on the missions committee, playing in the church orchestra, and occasionally preaching, to doing, well, nothing.

At the end of the book of Matthew, after powerfully demonstrating Jesus' status as the greater king than David and the greater prophet than Moses, we read this charge given as Jesus departs from the presence of his followers in Matthew 28:

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.   Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

Currently, I am only benefiting from others who are carrying this out, but I am failing to do this in any way.  If I take the indicative (id est "what is true") of this passage in Matthew seriously, namely "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me..." (and I do), then I must willingly and gratefully fulfill the imperative (id est "what to do").  As Dr. Chapman pointed out, the emphasis of this passage is on making disciples.  (For those interested, the imperative in this passage is "make disciples" while "go," "baptizing," and "teaching" are participles that help to describe the making of disciples).  If I am not actively involved in making disciples, then I am disobeying my Lord.

There are plenty of excuses that I could make.  I'm new to St. Louis.  I don't know anyone here.  I am trying to get use to a new and busier lifestyle.  I wasn't a member of a church here yet so they might not let me get involved, but that is all they are.  Just excuses for not doing what I should.

In one of my favorite quotes by John Calvin he says:

Here indeed is pure and real religion: faith so joined with an earnest fear of God that this fear also embraces willing reverence, and carries with it such legitimate worship as is prescribed in the law... all men have a vague general veneration for God, but very few really reverence him...” (1,2,2)

In other words, real and authentic Christianity is demonstrated when one loves God so much that he desires to obey Him.  He loves God and God's Law, and obeying that Law is not a burden, but a true joy.  It is my hope that in the coming weeks I will find some places where I can serve and be one who gratefully serves God out of love for Him.  It is my prayer that I will, as our Lord commands, make disciples.

"Cor meum tibi offero, Domine, prompte et sincere."

A Lecture Worth Hearing

On Thursday at Covenant Seminary, Dr. Sklar lectured on the Exodus community.  We are beginning to study hermeneutics.  Since the Pentateuch was written to the Exodus community, the professors want us to know and understand that community.  In so doing, we can better understand the text and how it related to its original audience.

We began our discussion with God's revelation of His name to Moses at the burning bush.  He is YHWH.  He is the God who is known by His action in the world.  He is the one who made promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  He promised Abraham in Genisis 12.1-3, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”


 As the Israelites in Egypt looked around, they could see that they were indeed a great nation.  If God kept this promise, surely He will keep the rest of the promises of His covenant.  The God of promise, Yahweh, is their king.  He is all-powerful.  He keeps His promises.  He is Israel's covenant-keeping God and Lord.

As they wandered out from Egypt into the desert and faced trials, they knew that they had a Sovereign, all-powerful God who had adopted them as His children.  As His children, they were to be about the Father's business.  As Dr. Williams said, "What God is doing in Abraham redemptively is what God intended to do with Adam creatively."  Israel was God's redeemed people.  They were part of His re-creation through a redeemed, covenant people.

Because God is who He is, each and every Israelite could look back to this event, the Exodus, and know that God keeps His promises.  They are to remember this during the Passover.  They are to confess the Lord's grace to them.  They are to remember His salvation.  They were called out of Egypt to the land, not just for rescue, but to do something.  They were to be a nation of priests, a holy nation.

The Exodus was God's great redemptive act for the nation of Israel in the Old Testament.  As this community received the Pentateuch, they were to look back on God's faithfulness to His covenant with Abraham and have faith that he would uphold His word.  And in that confidence, they were to be what Adam failed to be.

The Pentateuch, then, answers the questions of a people half way to the destination, a people wandering in the wilderness.  "How do we know we will inherit the promises?"  "How do we praise God?"  "What is a faithful member of the community?"  "What is a kingdom of priests?"  And most importantly, "Who is Yahweh?"

Today, there has been yet another great redemptive act of God.  God Himself has come to earth to be what Adam could not, and what Israel could not.  God, through Christ, was reconciling us to Himself.  Jesus fulfilled the promises made to Abraham.  He is the "seed" of the promise.  He has reconciled us to God and has made us, His church, a nation of priests, a holy nation.  And so we, like the Exodus community, are to be about our Father's business.  Out of love for God we are to live lives of service to Him.  We should live as a thankful people.  That thankfulness should cause us to live a life that is pleasing to Him.  As Calvin said in his Institutes, “Here indeed is pure and real religion: faith so joined with an earnest fear of God that this fear also embraces willing reverence, and carries with it such legitimate worship as is prescribed in the law." (1,2,2)

As Paul says in Romans 12.1, "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."

"Cor meum tibi offero, Domine, prompte et sincere."

My heart I offer

In my first systematic theology class at Covenant Seminary, one of my professors suggested that each of us in the class choose one modern, and one ancient pastor/theologian as mentors.  His intention is that we get to know two of our fathers in the faith as intimately as possible.  Mostly, this means that we read everything that they put on paper.

I am still undecided about the modern theologian (any suggestions would be welcome), but I knew straight away who the ancient would be:  John Calvin.

I first became acquainted with Calvin's work during my undergrad.  I didn't really read him until the summer of 2010 when I started reading the Institutes.  Instead of the stodgy, rationalistic, ethereal man I expected to find, I found a passionate pastor who loved the Bible.  He is brilliant, to be sure, but his writting is pastoral and deep.  It takes some time and work to read him, separated as we are by nearly 500 years and different languages, but the effort is worth it.

The title of this blog is "My heart I offer."  I took this from Calvin's motto, "My heart I offer, Lord, promptly and sincerely."  For me that is a prayer and a goal.

This blog will contain reflections.  Here I hope to reflect on theology, on life at seminary, and on preparation for the ministry.  It may be a bit amorphous at the beginning, and as schoolwork piles up, my blogs may be sporadic as well.  In all of it, though, I hope it will live up to the title.

My heart I offer, Lord, quickly and sincerely.

"Cor meum tibi offero, Domine, prompte et sincere."