wordandspirit

I had the privilege of being invited to preach at Bishopdown Baptist Church a week ago. They had been working their way through the book of Joshua and I was tasked with speaking on the final chapter.

As part of my preparation, I worked through the book of Joshua with the help of Dale Ralph Davis’ excellent exposition, No Falling Words. The chapter is interesting because it brings up the subject of idolatry, so I also drew on some of Tim Keller’s insights from his Counterfeit Gods book.

Anyway, the sermon is available online to listen to here. There was a slight technical hitch with the recording which meant the level isn’t quite as good as it could be, but it seems to be reasonably good quality.

Actually the whole sermon wasn’t about idolatry. My main points were:

1. God’s faithfulness in the past
2. A choice to make in the present (turning from idols)
3. The need to persevere to the end

In fact Joshua 24 is rich enough to preach several sermons on. I didn’t even get a chance to touch on Joshua’s famous words “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”. (Josh 24:15)

While I’m on the subject of idolatry, here’s a link to another sermon on idolatry I preached back in September 2008 as part of a series on the Ten Commandments at KCC.

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Introduction

In his introduction, Alec Motyer argues that James is a preacher, and that his book is a sermon with a coherent plan. In other words, despite the often abrupt changes of topic we find, Motyer thinks he can determine an overall plan. This basically involves James introducing his key topics in chapter 1, expanding on them in chapters 2-4 and returning to them in chapter 5.

Commentary

The commentary includes the text of the RSV version and, like a number of the Bible Speaks Today volumes on New Testament letters, is very thorough. Every phrase of the book of James gets attention. Motyer is careful to show how each section relates to what has gone before, and I think manages to demonstrate some persuasive evidence for his proposed structure.

Of course, a practical book like James lends itself extremely well to an expository commentary – there is lots for us to take on board and apply. In particular the challenges concerning our care for the poor and our attitude towards money are made forcefully.

The Bible never teaches that wealth is wrong … everything depends on how it has been acquired, how it is used, and what place it holds in the heart of the possessor.

If we would follow the Lord Jesus then it must be our glory, as it was his, to be incessantly and preponderantly on the side of the poor, the underprivileged, the disadvantaged and the oppressed.

Money still does the talking far too loudly in Christian circles, and where and when it does, the glory of Christ departs.

When he comes to the supposed tension between Paul and James, he resolves it as follows:

To Paul the question was “How is salvation experienced?” and the answer “by faith alone”. To James the question was “How is true and saving faith recognized"?” and the answer “by its fruits”.

He says that for James, “works” means all that should be distinctive about the person who believes and is saved. Faith promotes works, faith needs works and faith precedes works. One of the applications he draws out is the need for Christians to pressure governments to address human need.

Motyer’s understanding of the structure of the book is that the main three “points” of James’ sermon are three characteristics of true religion: the controlled tongue, care for those in need, and personal holiness.

He shows that for James, control of the tongue is not merely evidence of spiritual maturity, it is the means to it. Motyer is also very challenging on the issue of divisions amongst Christians, which we tend to treat as of little consequence – we should consider these as grievous as wars and murder.

Another point of interest is his handling on the matter of prayer for the sick person. He takes some time to disagree with the Roman Catholic concept of “extreme unction”, and steers a moderate line on the subject of healing. The onus is placed on the elders of the church to pray genuine “prayers of faith” that a person will be healed, although Motyer notes that there are also times for “prayers of rest” where we commit ourselves to whatever the will of God may be. His take on confession is also interesting. He discourages generally confessing sins to those we have not sinned against – the confession to one another in view then is confession to those we have wronged.

Verdict

Bible Speaks Today volumes are great for personal study, as well as aids for preparing small group studies or sermons, and this is no exception. Motyer doesn’t simply explain the message of James, but drives home the challenge of his message. At over 200 pages it is not as concise as some of the others in the series, but it is worth making the effort to reflect in depth on this powerful book of the Bible.

We need to examine ourselves; … A thing as potent as the new birth, if it has taken place, cannot be hidden; it cannot fail to make its presence felt. To have the life of God in us and to remain unchanged is unthinkable.

Better late than never, here’s some of the albums I listened to on Spotify in January.

	Soul Survivor & Momentum 2009 – Not Ashamed (Listen on Spotify) For the nostalgic amongst us, a live worship album is a great way to remember a conference you have been to. They can also serve as a good source of new songs. But if you weren’t at the conference and you already know all the songs, then these albums have little to offer, especially when the arrangements of the songs differ very little from the “official” versions of the songs. Having said that, the quality of musicianship and recording is high, so there is plenty to enjoy here with some good live versions of songs written by Ben Cantelon, Phil Wickham, and Tim Hughes. It features Hosanna, and How He loves, both tracks that have showed up all over the place in recent years. 2 CDs (or 1 and a half since the second CD only features half a dozen tracks) represents good value, but only if you don’t already have all the songs on other albums. It wasn’t until well into the second disk that I heard my first unfamiliar songs – Great is the Lord and King of Wonders Rating:
	Brenton Brown – Adoration (Listen on Spotify) Somehow the titles on Spotify are completely muddled up on this album except for two tracks. The correct titles are as follows: A Thousand Stars All who are thirsty Adoration Because of your love (correct) Amazing God Come let us return (correct) Holy Our God Saves We Need You Send Your Rain Wonderful It’s well produced, and features a few old favourites All Who are Thirsty and Holy. Whilst there are no killer tracks, he clearly has the knack for writing congregational songs, and I wouldn’t be surprised if songs such as We Need You and Wonderful start doing the rounds of churches. Rating:
	Casting Crowns – Until the Whole World Hears (Listen on Spotify) Despite their popularity, I’ve never really got into Casting Crowns. Their latest album come out in November. As usual what they bring to the table is forthright lyrics rather than any musical innovation. The songs include themes of discipleship, witness, and repentance. The album also features several modernisations of hymns. Rating:
	Newday 2009 – No Shout too Loud (Listen on Spotify) This is (with the exception of a repackaged mid 90s Stoneleigh album King of Love), the first newfrontiers live worship album to feature on Spotify. Newday is a youth event and worship was led by Phatfish and Simon Brading, with Matt Redman making a guest appearance. Phatfish introduced a number of songs from their new In Jesus album, but I can’t say I’m overly keen on the blues direction they seem to be going in. Simon Brading also introduced some new songs, the best of them being The Third Day. Matt Redman’s new You Alone Can Rescue is the album highlight for me. Rating:

The Focus on the Bible series is similar to the Bible Speaks Today series, in that it reads more like a expository sermon than a commentary. The intention is very much to go beyond merely understanding the text, to allowing it to speak to us today.

Dale Ralph Davis is something of an expert in the historical books, having written the Focus on the Bible volumes on Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings. He writes as a pastor rather than a scholar, even though he does have a good grasp of Hebrew and is willing to interact with the issues raised by the more academic commentaries, often in footnotes.

He unashamedly approaches the text as “bread from God” – in other words, he writes from the settled conviction that God intends to speak directly to us through every part, even the lists of towns and cities that can seem so “dry” to us. He even criticises other commentators at various points for getting so bogged down in historical debate that they neglect to ask what God is saying to us. His writing style is engaging and he has a knack of presenting drawing out fresh insights from both well-known and obscure portions of Scripture.

Having said that, he is always cautious not to draw more from the text than is warranted. He does not fall into the trap of assuming that if any story triggers a particular devotional thought, then that must be the point of the story. He seeks to be faithful to the writer’s intention.

The subtitle to the book is “no falling words”, which is to say that the great theme of Joshua is that none of God’s promises fail. His approach is roughly one chapter of exposition per chapter of Joshua, although some of the chapters on the allocation of the land are treated as a unit. He often points out the significance of the way the story is structured, to help get to the heart of what the writer is trying to say.

Overall I would say this is a great model of how the Old Testament historical books should be approached. He demonstrates the importance of understanding the historical context and a careful exegesis of the text, but refuses to stop there, believing passionately that all Scripture is profitable and that it should never be “cold”.  If you haven’t read any of his commentaries it is well worth checking one out.

The Tyndale New Testament Commentary series is pitched at a level that falls somewhere in the middle between academic and devotional focuses. They are relatively small paperback volumes, but there is enough space for each verse to be covered with at least a couple of paragraphs. Despite its age, IVP are in the process republishing the entire series which is testament to how highly regarded they are.

This volume, covering Colossians and Philemon was written by the prolific author and historian, N T Wright in 1986. The thing that immediately stands out is his engaging writing style. There are few commentators who have such a way with words. Although the Tyndale Series is primarily intended to be exegetical rather than expositional, Wright has a knack of drawing out penetrating insights and points of application with a remarkable economy of words (e.g. on Col 3:20-21 "Children need discipline; so do parents.").

I read this commentary at the same time as working through Douglas Moo’s much larger and more technical commentary on Colossians and Philemon. Many of the points made are of course very similar, but Wright does bring a fresh perspective to most subjects he looks at, and this commentary is no exception.

He argues that the false teaching Paul opposes in Colosse was actually simply Judaism, which is a minority view amongst evangelical commentators. He does a good job of showing how this holds together, although I was not entirely convinced. He views the main emphasis of the letter as a call to maturity, and agrees with O’Brien that we can view Paul as the author.

Some of the concepts I found helpful in his commentary on Colossians were his emphasis on the "new Genesis", and "new Exodus" that Christ represents, as well as his explanation of the significance of baptism as a transition from old to new "solidarities". Wright spends considerable time analysing the poem of Col 1:15-20, which he views as presenting Christ as God’s Wisdom, his Torah.

On Col 3:6 Wright explains his conception of hell as a place where people become less and less human, until the image of God is obliterated in them, but rejects the suggestion that hell does not exist, or that it will be unpopulated.

His commentary on Philemon is equally strong. He draws out fellowship (koinonia) as the key theme of the letter. His best material is on the parallels between Paul’s work of reconciling Philemon and Onesimus, and Christ’s reconciling work in the gospel:

Here, at the climax of the letter, we witness nothing less than the radical application of the doctrine of justification to everyday living. No Christian has a right to refuse a welcome to one whom God has welcomed. Faith in Christ, the basis of justification, is the basis also of koinonia. … Onesimus’ debts are to be put in the ledger under Paul’s name: and there they will find that they are more than cancelled out. They disappear as totally as the sins placed to Christ’s account on the cross.

So I highly recommend this commentary to anyone wanting to study or preach from Colossians or Philemon. It is hard to imagine you could read it without benefit, even if you had access to some of the more in depth commentaries such as those by O’Brien or Moo.

The Pillar New Testament Commentary series is often described as a mid-level commentary, falling somewhere between popular level expositions on the one hand and more academically minded exegetical commentaries on the other. However, weighing in at 450 pages, a more detailed exegesis than his previous Pillar offering on James, so don’t expect a light read.

Colossians Intro

In his introduction to Colossians, Moo deals with two major questions. First is the identity of the author, and second the identity of the false teachers. On the authorship question, he begins by surveying the case against Paul, before providing his own response to it. As with O’Brien’s commentary on Ephesians, he strongly rejects the pseudepigraphical hypothesis. Moo thinks it most likely that Paul wrote it from Rome in AD 60-61.

As for the identity of the false teachers, Moo settles on a syncretistic mixture of paganism, local folk Judaism and Christianity, following Clinton Arnold’s proposal. The best section of the introduction though, is his brief analysis of the theological themes in Colossians. Unsurprisingly the centrality and supremacy of Christ is picked out as the key theme, and there is some interesting material on demythologising the powers (which he returns to in his commentary on 1:16), as well as some helpful thoughts on the place of “rules” in the Christian life.

Colossians Commentary

The commentary itself as extensive and thorough with each verse having a few pages of comments. Moo gives a great deal of attention to structure, especially in introductions to sections. Unsurprisingly, given his involvement with the NIV, he also shows a lot of interest in English translation choices. The commentary itself is based on the TNIV, and Moo will often highlight which translations he feels give the best sense of a verse. In some places he chooses to provide his own paraphrase, which is a helpful way of summarizing, especially if multiple options have been considered.

Colossians is a densely packed epistle. Barely a verse goes by without some tricky concept requiring explanation. Moo sure-footedly guides us through the exegetical possibilities, outlining the major interpretive options before giving us his judgment. He is rarely dogmatic, usually indicating with words like “perhaps”, “probably”, or “tentatively” the degree of certainty he feels about his conclusions. Paul’s statements are often illuminated by considering them in light of the false teaching, in light of his other writings, and detecting many echoes of OT language.

I won’t go into details on his exegesis, but I’ll mention a few highlights. I found him very helpful on circumcision and baptism in 2:11 and on the meaning of the “elements” (στοιχεῖα) in 2:8. I also gained a new perspective on 3:9-10 where he argues that the concept of the “old self/man” does not refer to a nature or part of the individual human being, but rather that the “new self” is a corporate entity (c.f. Eph 2:15 – one new man / humanity).

Philemon Introduction

The introduction to Philemon addresses two main issues. The first, more briefly, he considers a recently proposed alternative to the "traditional" view that Onesimus was a runaway slave. That is, the idea that Onesimus had deliberately gone to Paul in order that he might act as mediator in a dispute. Moo slightly prefers the traditional view.

The other major issue he addresses is that of the New Testament attitude to slavery. He outlines the usual reasons why the NT lacks the explicit condemnation of the institution of slavery that many modern Bible readers would like to find, but does go a little further by tentatively suggesting that the NT writers themselves had not necessarily reached a place where all the implications of their views were fully worked out. Although this sounds like it could be an uncontrolled hermeneutical framework, allowing justification of almost anything, Moo does at least attempt to constrain it by affirming that the NT writers were prevented from writing anything that contradicted the implications of the gospel.

Philemon Commentary

Again, the commentary is thorough. Whenever there is a phrase that could be taken in more than one way (several examples are found in Philemon 6), Moo will carefully outline the possible options, together with supporting evidence, before opting for his favourite. Sometimes I felt that he considered the merits of options that did not seem substantial enough to warrant the space devoted to them (e.g. on verse 9).

Moo considers “fellowship” to be one of the key themes of the letter of Philemon. Whilst he acknowledges that we cannot be sure, he does think that v16 and 21 do hint that Paul is hoping that Onesimus would be set free.

Conclusion

No one who has read any of his previous commentaries will be surprised to learn that this is another excellent offering from Moo. The attention to detail will be a blessing to anyone wanting to home in on a particular word or phrase, but at the same time may make for slow progress for those who like me are working through the entire book.

For my purposes, I would have gladly sacrificed a little detail on structure and allowed Moo to elaborate on some of his interesting ideas such as that of biblically oriented environmentalism mentioned in his comments on Col 1:20. But it would appear that Moo has decided to leave the preaching mainly to Paul and only give pointers towards how he would preach the passage himself.

It is not hard to imagine that Moo will take over the baton from O’Brien of having written the premier evangelical commentary on Colossians & Philemon (which I confess to not having read yet). That is not to disparage O’Brien’s highly regarded work in any way, but Moo’s is more up to date (O’Brien’s was published in 1982), slightly longer, and the Pillar series layout is significantly more reader-friendly than the Word Biblical Commentary series.

I was privileged to receive a pre-publication copy of Mark Driscoll’s forthcoming book, thanks to the good folks at re:Lit. It should be appearing soon at all good booksellers, so here is my review to whet your appetite.

In this book, Driscoll explores what it means to be a “real man”, lamenting the fact that too many Christian guys have got completely the wrong idea about how they should behave. He exposes the lie that manhood is somehow all about courage and strength, and calls us to lay down the tough guy exterior to reveal your “inner sweetheart”.

The book is organized into three main sections, each exploring a different facet of biblical manhood:

1. Crying

A moving chapter on John 11:35 demonstrates that real men cry. Lots. He tells the tragic story of one pastor who was so hard-hearted he remained dry-eyed right the way through Sleepless in Seattle. He explains how in choosing Peter, himself a cry-baby (Matt 26:75), Jesus shows the type of sensitive soul that he is looking for in church leadership.

2. Caring

The way some people talk, you might think that being a man is all about feats of strength and endurance, winning wrestling matches or climbing mountains. But Driscoll shows that the real way to be a man is to care for beauty. Those men closest to God have always enjoyed what some might consider “girly” interests. He illustrates this with examples of Calvin’s love for poetry, Stott’s love for bird-watching, and Don Carson’s gift for interpretive dance.

3. Cowering

One of the real problems with being a macho man, is that by confronting problems you could get hurt. And God doesn’t want any of his little preciouses getting hurt, does he? Driscoll shows how the great masculine heroes of the Bible knew when to run and hide. The great apostle Paul set the example for us by hiding inside a basket rather than facing up to his opponents (Acts 9:25).

Of course, the greatest example of what it means to be a man is Jesus. Driscoll unpacks from Matt 12:19-20, the need to avoid conflict, speak quietly, and have gentle and soft hands (he recommends this hand cream).

Verdict: This makes essential reading for Christian men, who are so easily made to feel ashamed of their love for lime green cardigans and herbal tea, and suffer under the crushing pressure of being expected to achieve things or take a lead. Driscoll sets us free from all that false guilt, and proves once and for all that the true symbol of manhood is not the sword, but the daisy.