Psalm 33

1 Rejoice in the LORD, O ye righteous; for praise is comely for the upright.
2 Praise the LORD with harp; sing unto him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings.
3 Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.

4 For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth.
5 He loveth righteousness and judgment; the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.

6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap; he layeth up the depth in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
9 For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.

10 The LORD bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought; he maketh the devices of the people to none effect.
11 The counsel of the LORD standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.

13 The LORD looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men.
14 From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.
15 He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works.
16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host; a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.
17 An horse is a vain thing for safety; neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.

18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;
19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waiteth for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.
22 Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.

JW: The Psalmist exhorts the righteous to praise God for his truth, justice and goodness, ver. 1-5; for creating the world, ver. 6-9; for his providence in governing it, ver. 10-17; for his peculiar favour to his people, encouraging them to trust in him, ver. 18-22.

3: 'A new song' - Renewed or continued from day to day.

5: 'Goodness' - He not only doth no man wrong, but he is kind and merciful to all men.

11: 'The counsel' - All his purposes and designs are always successful.

13: 'All men' - Although he hath a relation to Israel, yet he hath a general care over all mankind, all whose hearts and ways he observes.

15: 'Fashioneth' - Having said that God sees and observes all men, he now adds that he rules and governs them; yea, even the hearts which are most unmanageable he disposes and inclines according to the counsel of his will. 'Alike' - Or, equally, one as well as another: whether they be Jews or Gentiles, princes or peasants; all are alike subject to his jurisdiction. 'Their works' - Both outward and inward, all the workings of their minds and actions, and all their endeavours and actions.

16: 'No king' - He instances in these, as the most uncontrollable persons in the world, and most confident in themselves. By which he strongly proves his general disposition of God's powerful providence over all men. 'By an host' - But only by God's providence, who disposes of victory and success as he pleases and that frequently to the weakest side.

17: 'An horse' - Though he be strong and fit for battle, or for flight, if need requires. And so this is put for all warlike provisions. 'Vain thing' - Heb. a lie; because it promises that help and safety which it cannot give.

18: 'The eye' - Whosoever therefore would have safety must expect it only from the watchful eye and almighty hand of God. 'That fear' - These are the chief objects of his care and favour. 'Hope' - That place their hope and trust and happiness not in any creature, but only in God, and in his mercy and blessings.

I'm frozen at the statement of verse 5: The earth is full of the goodness of the LORD. Everything within me wants to shout, "Amen!" Yet everything within me wants to shout, "WHAT?! Have you seen this place? Japan? Haiti? Libya? Iraq? Any funeral home? Any morgue? (And on and on)..." It's one thing to say that all things will be put to right...that in the end "Love Wins" or "Goodness wins"...but now? Shall I see that God's goodness fills the earth in that earth is not utterly destroyed? Perhaps. And maybe wherever there is hope there is goodness.

There's also goodness in that God is, as Wesley says above, kind and merciful to all [people]. I wrote in a post during the Nativity series that goodness is an underused and undervalued biblical word. God's goodness is God's tender regard for ALL fallen humanity and his desire to rescue us or at least to keep us alive in famine.

A 'vain thing' is something that promises that help and safety which it cannot give. How much of my hope or security is in a stealth bomber? In the stock market? Or maybe in a consumeristic age we can add that a vain thing is something that promises that...comfort, ease, satisfaction, fulfillment, security...that it cannot give. The NIV has a great way of rendering Jonah 2.8 - Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. What are we clinging to?

We must cling to hope in a God who beholds us and plead, 'Kyrie Eleison' (Lord, have mercy).

A Wesleyan Prayer for Monday

This prayer is taken from a weekly prayer guide adapted by John Wesley for daily devotions. This is the prayer for Monday mornings & evenings. Frederick Gill edited this short collection, which I came across in January at the MWRC library.

Let us with reverence appear before him and humble ourselves in the presence of his glory.
For himself he made us and for his glorious kingdom.
Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power
For thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
To know thee, O Lord, is the highest learning.
And to see thy face, the only happiness.
Suffer us not to go till thou hast given us thy blessing
And then may thy blessing bind us faster unto thee.
He that framed the heart of man designed it for himself
And bequeathed it unquietness till possessed of its Maker.
All thy ways, O Lord, are mercy and wisdom.
And all thy counsels tend to our happiness. Amen.

Psalm 32

A Psalm of David, Maschil.

1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

3 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long.
4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me; my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.

5 I acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, "I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD"; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

6 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found; surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.
7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.

8 I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go; I will guide thee with mine eye.
9 Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding; whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.

10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about.
11 Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous; and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.

JW: The happiness of them whose sins are forgiven, ver. 1, 2; the necessity of confessing our sins, and of prayer, ver. 3-6; God's promise to them that trust in him, ver. 7-10; an exhortation to rejoice in God, ver. 11. Title of the psalm. Maschil - Or, an instructor. This psalm is fitly so called because it was composed for the information of the church, in that most important doctrine, the way to true blessedness.

2: 'Imputeth' - Whom God doth not charge with the guilt of his sins, but graciously pardons and accepts him in Christ. 'No guile' - Who freely confesses all his sins, and turns from sin to God with all his heart.

3: 'Silence' - From a full and open confession of my sins. 'Old' - My spirit failed, and the strength of my body decayed. 'Roaring' - Because of the continual horrors of my conscience, and sense of God's wrath.

4: 'Hand' - Thy afflicting hand. 'My moisture' - Was dried up.

5: 'The iniquity' - The guilt of my sin.

6: 'For this' - Upon the encouragement of my example. 'Found' - In an acceptable and seasonable time, while God continues to offer grace and mercy. 'Waters' - In the time of great calamities. 'Not come' - So as to overwhelm him.

8: 'I will' - This and the next verse seems to be the words of God, whom David brings in as returning this answer to his prayers. 'Mine eye' - So Christ did St. Peter, when he turned and looked upon him.

9: 'Will not' - Unless they be forced to it by a bit or bridle. And so all the ancient translators understand it.

10: 'Sorrows' - This is an argument to enforce the foregoing admonition.

I LOVE that Wesley referenced the account of Jesus' turning to look at Peter after the rooster crowed (cf. Luke 22.61; image to the right). What a great way of connecting this penitential psalm to the Passion of our Lord.

I find the timing of my brief conversation with Jonathan Powers on twitter earlier today very appropriate in light of this Psalm. He wrote about the "grace of repentance" in light of St. Clement's comments on the matter. Have you considered repentance a grace before? Since Wesleyans believe that it is God who enables us to respond in faith and repentance to the gospel message, then we should treat really the entirety of life, including our ability to respond to God's saving offer, as grace.

I also find that this psalm fitting squarely within the Lenten season during my blogging journey through the Psalms very appropriate.

Lots of atonement talk taking place these days...also appropriate for the season of Lent as we take the path of downward mobility that will lead us to Calvary. Matt O'Reilly has recently written a post over at his blog on the historicity of penal substitutionary atonement that has sparked some interesting discussion. Wesley's language in his comments, as you can see above, focus heavily upon language associated with the atonement: guilt, pardons, accepts, confesses, turns from sin, God's wrath.

It is a given that our concept/doctrine of sin will guide how we understand the atonement, its nature, its application to the people of God, etc. Gary Anderson wrote a book entitled Sin: A History. Among other things, Dr. Anderson traced the transitions of the semantic domain of sin from the Old Testament through the New and into the history of the Church. He argues that sin in the earlier portions of the Old Testament had a significant connotation of something weighty. Sin weighs us down and this hinders our ability to relate to the Divine, to others, and to the created order. While sin largely connoted images of 'debt' and 'guiltiness' in times since (and not that these are off-putting or wrong but), I think we'd do well to republish a sense of sin's weightiness. That's why there's a significance to Aaron's placing the sins of the people upon the goat that was sent away in the Day of Atonement. The weight of Israel's sin was being lifted and taken away. Ever hear how people express that "it was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders/chest" when they confessed something hidden for years? That captures a sense of this weightiness we're talking about. I guess that's pretty significant, as we see in this psalm too, that confession lifts something out of us, or as this psalm declares, delivers us from what was keeping us down. We see here, as in the creation account of Genesis 1, the power of words...especially when accompanied by action. I suppose Anderson is onto something because the author of Hebrews brings out this sense of sin's weightiness in saying, Therefore...let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run...

Cyril of Alexandria on the death of Jesus

Upon the suggestion of Shenoute of Atripe on twitter, I returned to Cyril of Alexandria's second letter to Nestorius for help in clarifying thoughts I raised in the last post regarding the divine nature of Christ at Jesus' death. Cyril is most known for his defense of the language of 'Theotokos' (Mother of God) to describe Mary. Nestorius, whose position was condemned, argued for such a split in the natures of Christ that he was only comfortable with attributing the title of 'Christotokos' to Mary. The implication is that Cyril was correct in maintaining the unity of the Person of the Son where the pre-existent Logos was joined to the human flesh in the womb of the Virgin. This distinction would have implications for the death and resurrection of Jesus, too, as you will see below. In what follows, I hear what we might call echoes of Tertullian's beliefs, but the language (at least in the English translation) is a little more crisp:

We assert that this is the way in which he suffered and rose from the dead. It is not that the Logos of God suffered in his own nature, being overcome by stripes or nail-piercing or any of the other injuries; for the divine, since it is incorporeal, is impassible. Since, however, the body that had become his own underwent suffering, he is - once again - said to have suffered these things for our sakes, for the impassible One was within the suffering body. Moreover, we reason in exactly the same way in the case of his dying. God's Logos is by nature immortal and incorruptible and Life and Life-giver, but since, as Paul says, "by the grace of God" his very own body "tasted death on behalf of every person" [Heb. 2.9], he himself is said to have suffered this death which came about on our account. It is not that he actually experienced death as far as anything which touches his [divine] nature is concerned; to think that would be insanity. Rather it is that, as I said earlier, his flesh tasted death.

So it seems to me that Jesus' divinity continued to accompany the body after his death, but death itself did not kill his divinity. Am I seeing it correctly here?

Tertullian on the Godhead at the Cross

As promised in the last post I did on Psalm 31, I now want to revisit the issue of the unity of the Godhead at the crucifixion of Jesus. Last week, I wrote a brief post with some quotes from Saints Athanasius and Chrysostom that counter any suggestion of a "split Trinity" or "split Godhead" and in fact they conclude in agreement with the Roman centurion at the cross that even in Christ's deepest moment of despair and seeming (or felt) forsaken-ness that the Father and the Son were actually very, very close to one another. Isaac Hopper and Matt O'Reilly then posted much more elaborate posts than mine delving into the biblical, theological, and pastoral implications of the statement(s) from Marva Dawn, who had suggested that the Trinity was split at the cross. I highly recommend you check those posts out. You can read Isaac's here and Matt's two posts here and here.

My aim in this post is not to rehash the debate about Dr. Dawn's statement specifically, but to bring a related issue to light that might bear on the debate that has taken (is taking?) place regarding the relationship between the Persons of the Godhead at Jesus' crucifixion. When I posted on Psalm 31 and came across a statement that was also quoted by Jesus and was the last one he cried before breathing his last, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit," I started digging into some other early Church Fathers' writings to see if they had some wisdom on this connection with Psalm 31 and Jesus' death. I turned to Tertullian and found some helpful insights not only into this statement, but also of the relationship of the Godhead at the moment of Jesus' death.

Tertullian: But this was the voice of flesh and soul, that is to say, of man - not of the Word and Spirit, that to prove the impassibility of God, who "forsook" His Son, so far as He handed over His human substance to the suffering of death. This verity the apostle also perceived, when he writes to this affect: "If the Father spared not His own Son." This did Isaiah before him likewise perceive, when he declared: "And the Lord hath delivered Him up for our offences." In this manner He "forsook" Him, in not sparing Him; "forsook" Him, in delivering Him up. In all other respects the Father did not forsake the Son, for it was into His Father's hands that the Son commended his Spirit. Indeed, after so commending it, He instantly died.

To let you know briefly about Tertullian: he was a Church Father in the West who wrote in Latin. Likely his most known quote is "What has Jerusalem to do with Athens? The Church with the academy?" He was a lawyer by trade and so was very technical and investigative into theological matters. What makes Tertullian especially important is that he was the first to employ the language of the Trinity (Trinitas in Latin) as well as the formulation of tres Personae, una Substantia (translated to English: 3 Persons, 1 Substance). He employed this language prior to the Council of Nicea (AD 325), whose conclusion, championed by Athanasius, was the Greek equivalent of Tertullian's description. So it is certain that Tertullian is an important figure of the first of the two primary theological controversies (Trinitarian & Christological) of the first few centuries of the Church. But from the statement above (taken from his treatise Against Praxeas) we can even begin to see glimpses of how the Christological controversy would be centered upon, which would come to a head at the Council of Chalcedon (AD 451).

I realize I'm glossing over quite a bit here, but since it's a blog...The conclusion at Chalcedon is that Jesus Christ is 1 person, 2 Essences, and further that he is fully divine and fully human. However, to understand how the two essences relate within him is beyond our capacity but we should avoid any belief that leads us into separating the essences so much that he essentially becomes two people or anything that leads us into blending the two essences such that they lose their distinction. You can read the Chalcedonian definition here. In (very short), Jesus is God-Human. The place where these two controversies (Christological and Trinitarian, which we should note have significant implications upon each other) comes with perhaps the most difficult questions is with the death of Jesus.

St. Augustine suggested that when Jesus cried aloud, "Why have you forsaken me?" it was his humanity that was crying. Tertullian seems to have suggested the same above, or at least it is along the same lines when he says He handed over His human substance to the suffering of death.

So, here I'm asking for your help...perhaps I'm missing a key element of these controversies and their implications at Jesus' death. I wince a little bit when people say, "God died." That statement is problematic because 'God' implies Father, Son, and Spirit. Only Jesus died, so to say 'God died' can easily imply what the early church denounced as patripassianism (or belief in the passion/death of the Father). But if one affirms that Jesus died without his divinity being sacrificed is that not dividing the essences, something that goes against the Chalcedonian definition? If that isn't a necessary conclusion, then that Jesus' divinity was not sacrificed seems to be the case, at least in terms of how Tertullian and St. Augustine see it. If so, then we have further reason to conclude that the unity of the Godhead was preserved in and through the cross/Jesus' death.

Please know that I'm not trying to speak with authority or convince you that you need to believe this or else you're a heretic. Perhaps I'm the heretic here, but if so, I ask you to be gentle in your correcting me, and be patient if I still have questions. At the very least I ask for your hand as we worship this God who has so demonstrated his love that his Son has tasted death for every one of us.

Psalm 31

To the chief musician,

A Psalm of David.

1 In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust;

let me never be ashamed;

deliver me in thy righteousness.

2 Bow down thine ear to me;

deliver me speedily;

be thou my strong rock,

for an house of defence to save me.

3 For thou art my rock and my fortress;

therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me.

4 Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me;

for thou art my strength.

5 Into thine hand I commit my spirit;

thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth.

6 I have hated them that regard lying vanities;

but I trust in the LORD.

7 I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy;

for thou hast considered my trouble;

thou hast known my soul in adversities;

8 And hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy;

thou hast set my feet in a large room.

9 Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble;

mine eye is consumed with grief,

yea, my soul and my belly.

10 For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing;

my strength faileth because of mine iniquity,

and my bones are consumed.

11 I was a reproach among all mine enemies,

but especially among my neighbours,

and a fear to mine acquaintance;

they that did see me without fled from me.

12 I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind;

I am like a broken vessel.

13 For I have heard the slander of many;

fear was on every side;

while they took counsel together against me,

they devised to take away my life.

14 But I trusted in thee, O LORD;

I said, "Thou art my God."

15 My times are in thy hand;

deliver me from the hand of mine enemies,

and from them that persecute me.

16 Make thy face to shine upon thy servant;

save me for thy mercies' sake.

17 Let me not be ashamed, O LORD;

for I have called upon thee;

let the wicked be ashamed,

and let them be silent in the grave.

18 Let the lying lips be put to silence;

which speak grievous things proudly and contemptuously

against the righteous.

19 Oh how great is thy goodness,

which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee;

which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee

before the sons of men!

20 Thou shalt hide me in the secret of thy presence

from the pride of man;

thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion

from the strife of tongues.

21 Blessed be the LORD;

for he hath shewed me his marvellous kindness in a strong city.

22 For I said in my haste, "I am cut off from before thine eyes";

nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplications

when I cried to thee.

23 O love the LORD, all ye his saints;

for the LORD preserveth the faithful,

and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer.

24 Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart,

all ye that hope in the LORD.

JW: David professes his confidence in God, intermixing prayer to him, ver. 1-8; complains to God and prays for deliverance, ver. 9-18; concludes with giving glory to God, and encouraging others to trust him, ver. 19-24.

1: 'Ashamed' - Of my confidence in thy promise. 'Deliver me' - According to thy faithfulness and goodness.

5: 'My spirit' - My soul or life; to preserve it from the malice of mine enemies. 'For' - thou hast delivered me formerly, and therefore I commit myself to thee for the future. 'O LORD God of truth' - Who hast shewed thyself so, in making good thy promise.

7: 'Known' - Loved me and cared for me.

8: 'Room' - Made way for me to escape, when I was encompassed by them.

9: 'Grief' - With continual weeping.

12: 'Broken vessel' - Which is irreparable and useless, and therefore despised by all.

20: 'The secret' - Or, as in the secret of thy presence: either, As if they were in thy presence chamber, where thine own eye and hand girdeth them from all the assaults of their enemies; called his secret, partly, because the greatest part of the world are strangers to God and his presence; and partly, because it is a safe and secure place, such as secret and unknown places are. Or, as if they were in the secret of God's tabernacle, as it is called, Psalm 27.5, the place of God's special presence, where none might enter save the high-priest. With thy secret favour and providence, which saves them by hidden and unknown methods.

'From' - From their vainglorious boasting and threats, and from their bad and insolent attempts.

22: 'Haste' - When my passion took away my consideration and weakened my faith. 'Cut off' - Cast out of thy sight , and out of the care of thy gracious providence.

I'm quite surprised Wesley didn't notice or at least point out the statement of verse 5 ("Into thine hand I commit my spirit") and its correlation to the last statement of Jesus from the cross (see Luke 23.46). It's very interesting that I'm coming across this Psalm today because this statement at the cross has implications on the issue I raised in the post a couple of days ago and that Matt O'Reilly and Isaac Hopper have also been streaming recently related to the activity and unity of the Persons of the Godhead at the cross. I've come across some additional stuff from Tertullian that may shed some new light on this issue that I'll elaborate upon in my next post. So stay tuned...

As for the remainder of this Psalm, however, it seems to be right in line with much of Psalm 22, which incidentally also has implications/fulfillment in the crucifixion of Jesus. There is at least one mention of the 'iniquity' (v. 10) of the psalmist, so in that sense it is distinguishable from Psalm 22. Still, the overarching spirit of this Psalm is of one who is experiencing grief, human enmity, isolation, and faces dying alone, seemingly more than he deserves. So the psalmist is pleading for God to come through and not allow him to be put to shame. Yet throughout, the psalmist is confident in God's deliverance, that he will make good on his promise to "strengthen the heart" of those who hope in God.

One final note that is worth mentioning: Wesley has a long comment on "the secret" in verse 20. I emboldened the last portion of that comment because I think it speaks a truth that we must remember we engage in seeking understanding of the saving significance of Jesus' death. On the one hand, we are made participants in the death of Christ. St. Paul speaks of knowing Christ by partaking in his sufferings. He also speaks of being crucified with Christ. But since Christ is our High Priest (as the author of Hebrews frequently reminds us), Wesley adds "...with thy secret favour and providence, which saves them by hidden and unknown methods." I constantly try to remind myself, since I am researching the doctrine, that Christ's atonement is not a puzzle or mathematical problem/conundrum. I think that's where atonement theology can easily get off track: with questions like "If Christ died for all sins and if all aren't saved in the end, then doesn't that make part of Christ's death ineffectual?" When it comes to describing the grand work of God in reconciling us to himself through Christ, we need to proceed with the awareness that we won't be able to exhaust all the answers. Christ's atonement evokes our awe and worship as we express gratitude for the work that Christ has done for us; and participate by becoming disciples of a crucified (now risen) Lord, who invites us to take up our cross, too.

St. Patrick's Day: on a personal note

A couple of years ago, I posted what is below on my old blog. It's a detailed account of the day that Sam was born, a day that was full of crazy stuff, but finished with a healthy arrival of a blessing to Carrie and me...

I love St. Patrick's Day. John Mayer has a song so entitled, but that's not why I love the day celebrating the patron saint of Ireland. You could say that it is because the same reason that many other Americans love the holiday, but that would not be entirely accurate. It's partly because St. Patrick's Day is my "2nd Birthday" (when I publicly professed trust in Christ). It's also partly because March 17 is the birthday of Samuel's godfather, who is Carrie's cousin (Blaine). But because of the day's happening in 2007, I have come to consider it perhaps my favorite day of the year. No, I didn't get plastered on booze...I got plastered as it was the day I officially became a father. That day was so long and involved and my being the only one not on an hallucinogenic drug that day enables me to report some of the days details more specifically than anyone else.

It all started the night before when some friends were over at our house hanging out. Carrie started having contractions (of which she had had the Braxton-Hicks variety for a month or so, off and on) that seemed to be more regular and painful than any prior to then. I called the hospital (since it was after hours and on the weekend...a Friday night)...the doctor asked, "Do you think she's going into labor?" Hmm...well let's see...that's why I'm calling you! With the fact that we were unsure if it was "actual labor" he suggested a warm bath, but that if they persisted through the night to go ahead and come in without having to call again...so our friends prayed with us and they went home so we could rest. The warm bath calmed and slowed the contractions so that we went to sleep...but they came back in a few hours.

Carrie woke me up at 3 am...out comes the stop-watch...5 minutes apart each lasting a minute or so...regularly for an hour. So we go in...get there about 4:30. They "check" her...not dilated and only 50% effaced (look it up if you don't know what it means...too technical for this blog), which was only 10% more than she was a week and a half prior to that. So they sent us back home, but before leaving they give her an Ambien CR and told me, "She'll be sleepy so when you get home you'll probably have to help her in and guide her to bed." They didn't tell me about the rampant screaming that would continue (though to be fair, they thought it would slow or stop the contractions). It did not slow or stop them. Though it would be a while before they grew closer together and became more painful, they stayed at 4-5 minutes apart and lasting a minute each time. We make it home and she sleeps between the contractions and wakes up for each one screaming, "Make it stop! Make it stop!" That freaked me...I called the doctor back, "What should I really be expecting with this magic pill?" "Well, if she wakes from time to time she may say weird stuff, but she should pretty much get some good rest." That didn't happen.

I called a lady from our (then) local church asking her to start a prayer chain for us. She asked if we needed her to come to our place. I suggested she come later in the morning and she offered to bring some lunch. I had a suspicion we'd go back to the hospital in the afternoon (if not earlier) and I would need a nap beforehand, if so. She came and I got an hour nap or so when she woke me up to say that the contractions were lasting longer and getting closer together. I got up, called the doctor, and upon hearing my voice, he recognized who I was and realized that we needed to get back up there "because if the contractions aren't doing anything to progress her labor, then we'll have to do something," which we took to mean c-section, which we were definitely okay with by that time. We go back to the hospital (about 2 pm by this time) and they "check" her again...4 centimeters and fully effaced. "THANK YOU JESUS" were Carrie's exact words.

The next few hours were not as eventful until the time came for pushing. Pushing proved difficult as it lasted for an hour and 45 minutes without hardly any progression. They had to use forceps and within a couple of minutes of that intervention Sam entered our world. Though he was born 3 1/2 weeks early, he weighed 6 lb. 7 oz. and was 19.5 inches long. They only had to have him in NICU for a couple of hours to be sure his lungs were developed enough...he was healthy!

And though despite the long and painful hours preceding the arrival, Samuel's healthy screaming and pink appearance has made St. Patrick's one of my favorite days.

Athanasius & Chrysostom on Cry of Dereliction

To counter the suggestion that at the cross when Jesus cried, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" we have the idea of a split Trinity, I have written in a couple of posts on the matter, which you can read here and here. I heard someone mention this idea being spoken today so I thought I'd revisit a couple of Church Fathers on the matter to see if they had a concept of a split Trinity on their radar...what I found was far from it.

Athanasius: For behold when He says, "Why hast Thou forsaken Me?" the Father shewed that He was ever and even then in Him; for the earth knowing its Lord who spoke, straightway trembled, and the vail was rent...then seeing these signs, [the centurion] confessed that "truly He was the Son of God."

The confession from a Roman centurion, no less, that recognizes the closeness between Jesus and God to such a degree that he proclaims that Jesus was God's Son is far from any notion that the Son and the Father were split at the cross.

Chrysostom: That darkness [at the cross] was a token of the Father's anger at their [the crowd's] crime...He saith, "Eli, Eli, lima sabachthani?" that unto His last breath they might see that He honors His Father, and is no adversary of God...and by all things, He shows how He is of one mind with Him that begat Him.

Can we please, especially when speaking from a place of authority, like a pulpit, stop promulgating this idea that the union between the Father and the Son was split or broken at the cross? Bad hermeneutics leads to bad theology...and vice versa perhaps.
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Addendum: Since I originally posted this, Isaac Hopper and Matt O'Reilly have posted responses that voice similar concerns as I raised above to the statement that was made. They also offer the context in which the statement was made (by the same person) recently on more than one occasion. You can read Isaac's here and Matt's here.

Also: in case there was any confusion, the quotations from Athanasius & Chrysostom are in blue. The black font is my input. I also followed up this post with a tweet stating that I don't think that the writings of such Fathers as St. Chrysostom and St. Athanasius to be infallible. Still, since they are highly esteemed throughout the history of the Church, specifically in regards to the theology of the Trinity and of the atonement, then I think if something we say today runs counter to their idea(s) then the burden of proof is upon us to show where, how, and maybe even why they were mistaken on a particular issue. Given their MUCH closer proximity to the age in which the Scriptures were written, they have an advantage over us in getting nearer to the heart of the message of the Bible than the western world in the 21st century, and thereby we should defer to their judgment more often than not. That's not to say that they said everything that needs to be said nor that we cannot build upon their tremendous insights; just that stating something in stark contrast to their agreed opinion should give us pause in assessing the validity of a novel contemporary statement.

Psalm 30

A Psalm and song,
at the dedication of the house of David.

1 I will extol thee, O LORD;
for thou hast lifted me up,
and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
2 O LORD my God, I cried unto thee,
and thou hast healed me.
3 O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave;
thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.

4 Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his,
and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
5 For his anger endureth but a moment;
in his favour is life;
weeping may endure for a night,
but joy cometh in the morning.

6 And in my prosperity I said,
"I shall never be moved."
7 LORD, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong;
thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.

8 I cried to thee, O LORD;
and unto the LORD I made supplication.
9 What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit?
Shall the dust praise thee?
Shall it declare thy truth?
10 Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me;
LORD, be thou my helper.

11 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing;
thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;
12 To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent;
O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.

JW: He praises God for delivering him, and exhorts others to praise him, ver. 1-5; recollects his former security, and his prayer when in trouble, ver. 6-10; and stirs himself up to thankfulness, ver. 11-12.

5: 'Cometh' - Speedily and in due season.

7: 'Mountain' - My kingdom.

9: 'The dust' - Shall they that are dead celebrate thy goodness in the land of the living (or), shall my dust praise thee?

11: 'Sackcloth' - Given me occasion to put off that sackcloth, which they used to wear in times of mourning, Esther 4.1, Psalm 35.13, Isaiah 32.11, Joel 1.13. 'Girded' - With joy, as with a garment, surrounding me on every side.

12: 'My glory' - My tongue.

On the prescript, Wesley adds: At the dedication of David's house, which was built, 2 Samuel 5.11, and doubtless was dedicated, as God had commanded.

The passage from 2 Samuel is in the context of David being anointed king over Israel by the people (post-Saul, so this is a different situation than when Samuel came to anoint David in 1 Samuel 16). I'm drawn toward what the Scripture says in the verse before and after the one Wesley pointed to.

And David became greater and greater, for the LORD, the God of hosts, was with him. And Hiram the king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, also carpenters and masons who built David a house. And David knew that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.

To be honest, I'm finding it difficult to write too much about this achieved prosperity, glory, and joy, being in the midst of Lenten season. Maybe I should be looking forward, anticipating the deliverance that is forthcoming...when mourning will turn to dancing...darkness, sorrow and death to Hallelujah. After all, Jesus endured the cross despising its shame all because of the joy that was set before him.

On the other hand, this Psalm displays a reflection upon past troubles and how God has responded, delivered, healed, etc. So in that reflection there is some resonance with this season of the life of the Church, esp. verses 7b-10.

Thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled. Boy, this phrase doesn't feel very comfortable does it? My pastor said on a couple of occasions a while back that "There are times when God hides from us." I'm not sure he ever heard the criticism directly, but I certainly heard a lot of negative reactions to those statements and even I had difficulty swallowing the way he said it. After all, we Wesleyans believe that God relentlessly pursues EVERYONE, right? God doesn't hide; God always pursues! Okay, yes, but what did David mean here? I think it's central to point to God's wooing (prevenient & convincing) grace...God's cosmic and grand pursuit of fallen humanity. But what of our pursuit of God? I mean if all we need to stress is God's pursuit of us then why go through seasons like Lent? Why learn what it means to be a disciple when, if God pursues me, he can find me sitting still in the pew? I don't think that's what is meant by our affirmation of God's pursuit, but we need to be careful not to let that belief talk us into sitting still so he doesn't miss. Remember, from Psalm 26, that discipleship involves the whole body...except for your butt (as in don't just sit there).

Remember this is poetry, too. Don't take everything to their logical extremes. That goes for both statements Thou didst hide thy face and "God pursues us." Truth is there are times when at least it seems like God is nowhere to be found. What do we do then? Surrounded by ashes. Surrounded by flooding waters and tsunamis. Surrounded by loss and destruction and death. I cried to thee, O LORD! What profit is there in my/our blood/death? Shall the dust praise thee? Shall it tell of thy faithfulness? Hear, O LORD, and have mercy! Be our helper!

Sackcloth: a sign of grief...and of solidarity. Praying for mercy upon Japan in the wake of earthquakes and tsunamis is the first and appropriate step. May it be accompanied with true empathy, just as Christ empathized with the entire human plight of a drama of the creation groaning in pangs of childbirth. It took death to get to resurrection. Otherwise, would death really be defeated? Would we really have any hope?

Psalm 23 Revisited

Listening to my iPod this morning brought me to Jon Foreman's rendition of Psalm 23, and since I already shared a lengthy post on the psalm, I thought I'd tack this one on in a separate post. Enjoy:

Psalm 29

A Psalm of David.

1 Give unto the LORD, O ye mighty,
give unto the LORD glory and strength.
2 Give unto the LORD the glory due his name;
worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

3 The voice of the LORD is upon the waters;
the God of glory thundereth;
the LORD is upon many waters.
4 The voice of the LORD is powerful;
the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

5 The voice of the LORD breaketh the cedars;
yea, the LORD breaketh the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He maketh them also to skip like a calf;
Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.

7 The voice of the LORD divideth the flames of fire.
8 The voice of the LORD shaketh the wilderness;
the LORD shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh.

9 The voice of the LORD maketh the hinds to calve,
and discovereth the forests;
and in his temple doth every one speak of his glory.

10 The LORD sitteth upon the flood;
yea, the LORD sitteth King for ever.
11 The LORD will give strength unto his people;
the LORD will bless his people with peace.

JW: It is probable David wrote this psalm during a storm of thunder, lightning, and rain; as that he wrote the eighth in a moon-shining night and the nineteenth in a sun-shining morning. He calls on the great to give glory to God, ver. 1, 2; observes his power in thunder and lightning, ver. 3-9; his dominion over the world and care over the church, ver. 10, 11.

3: 'The waters' - Above in the clouds, which are called waters, Gen. 1.7; Psalm 18.11. The Divine power displays itself in those high places, which are far above the reach of all earthly potentates. 'Many' - Upon the clouds, in which there are vast treasures of water, and upon which God is said to sit or ride, Psalm 18.10, 11; 104.3.

9: 'To calve' - Through the terror it causes, which hastens the birth. He names the hinds because they bring forth their young with difficulty, Job 39.1, 2. 'Discovereth' - Heb. maketh bare, of its trees, which it breaks or strips of their leaves. 'Glory' - Having shewed the terrible effects of God's power in other places, he now shews the blessed privilege of God's people that are praising God in his temple, when the rest of the world are trembling under the tokens of his displeasure.

10: 'The flood' - The most violent waters, which sometimes fall from the clouds upon the earth. These are fitly mentioned as being as many times in the companions of great thunders. And this may be alleged as another reason why God's people praised him in his temple, because as he sends terrible tempests and thunders, so he also restrains and overrules them. 'Sitteth' - He doth sit, and will sit as king for ever, sending such tempests when it pleaseth him.

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Where poetry meets reality: the voice of the LORD is upon the waters...the LORD is upon many waters...creating, ordering, restraining, transforming, redeeming. Notice how the creation responds.

And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters...

God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered into one place"...and it was so...God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures"...

The LORD said to Moses..."Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry land"...Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided...Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen." So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course...

So Jonah was hurled into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging...and the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights...

And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am will pleased"...

Then Jesus rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, "What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?"...

And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus came to them, walking on the sea...

Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast." So they took it. When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from...

Words are powerful: they can inspire life and confidence in ways that nothing else can; they can inflict wounds much deeper and longer-lasting than any "sticks and stones." And in Scripture, we can see from this Psalm and these passages that the creation depends on the Word for its source and sustenance. So what happens when the Word draws his last breath? The creation must respond...

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice...And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split...

The voice of the LORD:
is upon the waters...
is powerful...
is full of majesty...
breaks the cedars...
divides the fire...
shakes the wilderness...
makes the deer give birth

Psalm 28

A Psalm of David.

1 Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock;
be not silent to me; lest, if thou be silent to me,
I become like them that go down into the pit.
2 Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee,
when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.

3 Draw me not away with the wicked,
and with the workers of iniquity,
which speak peace to their neighbours,
but mischief is in their hearts.
4 Give them according to their deeds,
and according to the wickedness of their endeavours;
give them after the work of their hands;
render to them their desert.
5 Because they regard not the works of the LORD,
nor the operations of his hands,
he shall destroy them, and not build them up.

6 Blessed be the LORD,
because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.
7 The LORD is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusted in him, and I am helped;
therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth;
and with my song will I praise him.

8 The LORD is their strength,
and he is the saving strength of his anointed.
9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance;
feed them also, and lift them up for ever.

JW: A prayer for help, ver. 1-3; the doom of the wicked, ver. 4, 5; a thanksgiving, closed with prayer, ver. 6-9.

2: 'Towards' - Towards the holy of holies, because there the ark was; from whence God gave oracular answers to his people.

3: 'Draw not' - Do not drag me; as thou dost these, to execution and destruction.

5: 'Regard not' - The providential works of God toward his people.

7: 'I am helped' - He speaks of it as past, because God assured him by his spirit, that he had heard and accepted his prayers.

Herein we see communication at its best and its worst. Specifically, the lines of communication are open and dishonest between God and his people (including the psalmist). Both sides speak and listen. The lifting up of hands toward God's oracle indicates the reception of the psalmist to hear the words of the Lord. The implication is that the psalmist and God's people listen to and attend to God's words. Therefore, he feeds them (v. 9).

Then we have the mixed signals and plugged lines of communication among the 'wicked.' Verse 3 speaks of something all too familiar: ...which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts. Most of us have been there...either taking part in this sort of hypocrisy and/or being the victims of it. This especially gets messy when the "neighbors" are stubborn or the ones in error. You know the ones I'm talking about. The ones that everyone plays nice with, but deep down will do anything to avoid them. Speaking peace to neighbors like these doesn't mean playing nice...but neither does it mean bashing them. It calls for graceful truth-telling...not an easy task. And that truth-telling may take time to be heard and/or healed from. So if you find yourself in such a situation that requires delicate balance like this, pray for wisdom and grace to be bestowed to yourself and your bothersome neighbor(s). However that manifests is the way to speak peace to this neighbor but to avoid the mischief.

Open and honest...and lest we forget, loving...lines of communication.

The wicked in this psalm not only send mixed signals, but also just completely ignore God's communication to them. Whereas God feeds those who listen to him, those who ignore God will find a desert (v. 4, 5): an image of aridity, hunger, and thirst, with nothing to fill or quench. So keep the lines of communication (with God and your neighbors) open, honest, and loving, so you don't dry up.

John Wesley on the role of the Trinity in the Atonement

The origin and cause of our redemption is the ineffable love of God the Father, who willed to redeem us by the blood of His own Son; the grace of the Son, who freely took our curse upon Him, and imparts His blessing and merits to us; and the Holy Spirit, who communicates the love of the Father and the grace of the Son to our hearts. When we speak of this and of the satisfaction of Christ, we speak of the inmost mystery of the Christian faith.

-Letter to William Law, 06 January 1756

Psalm 27

A Psalm of David.

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

2 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes,
came upon me to eat up my flesh,
they stumbled and fell.

3 Though an host should encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear;
though war should rise against me,
in this will I be confident.

4 One thing I have desired of the LORD,
that will I seek after;
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.

5 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion;
in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me;
he shall set me upon a rock.

6 And now shall mine head be lifted up
above mine enemies round about me;
therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy;
I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the LORD.

7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice;
have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8 When thou saidst, "Seek ye my face,"
my heart said unto thee, "Thy face, LORD, will I seek."
9 Hide not thy face far from me;
put not thy servant away in anger;
thou hast been my help;
leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.
10 When my father and my mother forsake me,
then the LORD will take me up.

11 Teach me thy way, O LORD,
and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.
12 Deliver me not unto the will of mine enemies;
for false witnesses are risen up against me,
and such as breathe out cruelty.

13 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see
the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
14 Wait on the LORD;
be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart;
wait, I say, on the LORD.

JW: David declares his confidence in God, ver. 1-3; his desire to be in the house of God, ver. 4-6; he prays for light and salvation, ver. 7-12; and exhorts others to wait upon God, ver. 13, 14.

1: 'Light' - My counsellor in all my difficulties, and my comforter and deliverer in all my distresses. 'Strength' - The supporter and preserver of my life.

4: 'Dwell...' - Have opportunity of constant attendance upon God. 'To behold' - That there I may delight myself in contemplation of thy amiable and glorious majesty, and of thy infinite wisdom, holiness, justice, truth, and mercy.

11: 'Because of' - That I may neither fall into their hands by my folly, nor give them any occasion of triumphing over me.

13: 'The living' - David was thus earnestly desirous of this mercy in this life, not because he placed his portion in these things, but because the truth and glory of God were highly concerned in making good the promise of the kingdom to him.

No experience or feeling builds up confidence like victory. Nothing. David's enemies came to kill him. They stumbled and fell. David, with confidence, expresses whom shall I fear?...of whom shall I be afraid?...my heart shall not fear...in this I will be confident. In what? That God is his light, salvation, and strength. When we have this confidence, we'll realize that God grants us grace and strength to endure the darts that the enemy throws at us. A pattern of defeat is demoralizing and exhausting, but just one victory can do a world of difference to turn the tide. There's a key here. God is the psalmist's 'salvation,' or put differently, God rescued and delivered him.

Nowhere here is there an intimation that the psalmist achieved the victory on his own. Christ needed the Father to bring him back to life to secure victory. Addiction is like death. We're trapped. We need someone to roll the stone away, breathe life into us and get us the hell out of there. I hope in this: 'death and all of his friends' are stumbling. One day they will be fallen for good. But we can taste that now...in the land of the living. Deliverance. We can't set ourselves free. Sanctification isn't sin management. It's being set free from it. It involves discipline, and we're called to follow and take up a cross, but we're not alone and we have a Captain. We have no need to fear. Be of good courage, and God shall strengthen your heart.