Isaiah's Hymn of Praise

Isaiah 26 is beautiful. It is the song to be sung in Judah "in that day".

We have a strong city;
God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks.Open the gates,
That the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in. You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever,
For in Jehovah, the Lord, is everlasting strength.

God's salvation is the wall around us. He is our strength.

It's so tempting to find our strength in something else. The financial advisor Suze Orman has a lot of confidence in people who listen to her. John Galt (of Altas Shrugged) would also claim money and the freedom and ability to make it as the strength of man. In our extreme consumerism, we have all lived as those who serve mammon, and are thus enslaved by it. Moreover, we have lived as if our nation itself is our strength.

But salvation is the strength, the walls and bulwarks, of those who serve our God.

Yes, in the way of Your judgments, O Lord, we have waited for You;
The desire of our soul is for Your name And for the remembrance of You. With my soul I have desired You in the night,
Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early;
For when Your judgments are in the earth,
The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

What do I really desire? I can't claim my desires are totally pure. But the thing that comes back to me every night, as I lie down, and when I rise up, is the desire to truly be with my Lord, to hear His voice saying, "Well done, my good and faithful servant." I want to know that my life is a blessing to others, to encourage them in the faith. And I want my family to know this joy and hope, and be There with me. I want to learn righteousness, what it really means, inwardly and purely, and ultimately, by obedience that comes from love for God and for those He loves.

The song goes on to describe the resurrection. This may be the most profound mention of resurrection in the Old Testament. It is crystal clear and unmistakable.
Then he concludes with somber warnings:

Come, my people, enter your chambers, And shut your doors behind you;
Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, Until the indignation is past. For behold, the Lord comes out of His place
To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity;
The earth will also disclose her blood, And will no more cover her slain.

Waiting. That's the key to faith here. It was the same thing Jesus said, "Be watching." There will be hard and terrible times for all the earth, when God unleashes his justice. May God help us to wait and hide, yet not be afraid, but trust and hope in His coming.

Jesus' sermon strategy

The Lord's dialog with the Pharisees in Matthew 23 is a powerful example of his teaching style.

An outline doesn't work, because Jesus doesn't make one point, then the next, then the next, in didactic fashion, but gradually moves from a logical diagnosis, with a long crescendo of pathos, to a conclusion containing the cure.

At first, he appealed to them as a doctor, naming their infirmity, hypocrisy, and proving that his diagnosis was correct with hard, indisputable logic. Then he gradually moved to more rhetorical language to appeal to their emotion .

Finally at the end, he concludes,

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, `Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!' "

The cure is to accept Jesus, the cure for their hypocrisy and for the desolation it leads to. The strategy is to present the diagnosis logically, and prescribe the cure with utmost passion.

Jesus spent much time dealing with the Pharisees. He deeply cared about them, and really wanted to win them, but was not successful in the main. He scattered the seed in love. His strategy was love for those who he preached to.

To love people is easy for some, but not for me. I'm tempted to pray that God may stop giving us mercy, and rather give America what we deserve, justice, discipline, harsh adversity. Jesus didn't ask for such dreadful things to come upon Israel, but he most assuredly prophesied them. He also did not ask that these things would not happen. He never says, "Prosper Israel forever." or "God bless my country". Why not? God HAD blessed them. HE was right there with them, and they were rejecting Him. What blessing could he give them beside the one they were trampling?

As it was, so is it still, now with America and the Western world. We are becoming so secular, having no thought of God in our public life at all, and thus, no fear of God, that it is hard to pray or expect that God can bless America. Let those who fear God preach as Jesus preached, touching the problem directly and logically, and proclaiming the gospel cure with pathos and all the rhetorical powers we may muster.

Comparison: the way to envy, pride and immaturity

Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, "But Lord, what about this man?" Jesus said to him, "If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me." [Jn 21:21,22]

Peter had only known and followed Jesus 3 years. He was like a little child. The other disciples were not much more mature. When he heard Jesus' words about his future, "you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish", his first thought was, "What about John!? Why should I suffer while he goes on happily forever?"

There is no way for a disciple to mature if he compares his life with some other Christian. He will be stunted, just as one who becomes proud is stunted, because he also compares himself with others. Pride is the response to thinking I am better than others. Peter's envy is the same godless emotion turned upside down. While they are opposites from each other, they are the same in their response to God. They are both spiritual pride, which inhibits maturity as slavery inhibits freedom.

I fear one of my dear friends has stumbled in this regard. He finds his ministry stifled and not up to the level of success he expected of himself, partly because he is a saintly genius, and then because he compares himself with others. It is terribly sad. But he must work this out. My mentor, OC, wrote regarding this passage,

One of our severest lessons comes from the stubborn refusal to see that we must not interfere in other people’s lives. It takes a long time to realize the danger of being an amateur providence, that is, interfering with God’s order for others.

I do not dare interfere with this friend's struggle. He must stand or fall, and learn from Jesus on his own. My prayers for him are more potent for good. My advice would be ignored or taken as offense.

The same may be true for interfering in other people's ministries. Our entire church is learning this painful lesson, because many of us are possessed of a notion that we can "fix up" one another with our advice and manipulations and gossiping. Perhaps we can, in small ways. And we certainly shouldn't refuse to help or advise those who come to us. But meddling is the province of the unspiritual Christian. Like judging, which Jesus forbad, we learn to trust in God when we let HIM deal with HIS servants as HE sees fit. Jesus advised Peter to follow Him, and as to John, "If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You must follow me."

I submit that this kind of teaching argues for a less meddlesome community life, where the one who is spiritual will interfere and intervene much less with the workings of others. Alas, in America and in my own church, we have a much more superior view of man, who should control things centrally with his best wisdom, who must surveil and manage all the details from headquarters, and control all matters from Washington. Rather, let God be sovereign in others' lives, "What is that to you? You must follow me."

Lord, show us when to get involved, and when to simply follow you, and let others do the same. Give us courage to help those who would be helped, and trust to you the rest. IJNA

Dog Dream

Had the oddest dream last night.

We were having dinner with my mother. I don't remember that it was Thanksgiving. But it was good, as always. After the meal, entering the kitchen, I saw the carcass there, all carved up, with the head still hanging on, but not visible. "Must've been a goat", was my thought. "What was that animal, Mom?"

"Ohhh, you don't want to know," she said. But it was too late. As I turned the meat around there was the head of about the ugliest black dog I've ever laid eyes on. Another dog from the same litter was sitting beside the one that had just been eaten, only it was even uglier, just sitting stupidly. They were like hideous, flat-faced Cerberuses, with tiny ears and a short, pink tongue sticking out---not lolling, poking out as if it were too big for the dog's tiny mouth. No snout at all, utterly brachycephalic. Very dumb and ugly! I couldn't find a picture that could capture it.

I said, "That was one dumb looking dog."

To which Mom replied, "He won't be missed." Then as she was turning and cleaning the rest of the meat off the bones, I saw that it had been roasted without being gutted. It was hard not to wretch, but I didn't want to hurt Mom's feelings. She's really sensitive about her cooking.

But that's how the dream went. Apologies to all you ugly dog lovers.

Paul's request for prayer

"...praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints---and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." [Eph 6:18-20]

The last piece in the Christian's armor is this, it is his prayer. This is spiritual readiness. It is the difference between an armed Christian and one who is both armed and dangerous. Prayer is the secret weapon, the discipline that enables him to wield his sword effectively to cut down the enemy and deliver the captives.

I know in my heart that this alone is the reason I have not prevailed in that boldness for which Paul asks prayer. I receive not because I have asked not, nor asked others to join me in the asking. So for the last six years, while wanting to go out boldly to speak the mystery of the gospel, I have not done so. It should not be surprising in the least. But it is very saddening, that after so long as a Christian, I am still so undisciplined. When I should be a dangerous adversary to the devil, I am a patsy.

How should I ever grow up? Simply by doing as Paul says, "praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints". There is nothing I lack, really, but this. Yet it is the substance of what a soldier and a man is, namely his boldness.

Lord, please embolden me, as you alone can do, giving, granting boldness to open my mouth to all people everywhere regarding the mystery of the gospel. Please make me as Proverbs 28:1 says, "the righteous are as bold as a lion". For to date, I am like the wicked, who flee when no one pursues. Gracious Creator, create in me a clean heart and a steadfast spirit, that is ready and empowered to do your will, speak your truth, and claim those for whom You died, at UVa, in my neighborhood, and everywhere you lead me, as well as to my family and friends. IJNA

The Fear of Isaac

This expression, the Fear of Isaac, appears in Genesis 31 vv.42 and 53. As Jacob is justifying himself to Laban, after he has stolen away with Laban's daughters and grand-children without telling him he was leaving, he says,

"Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night."

Later he swears an oath "by the Fear of his father Isaac." [53]

What does he mean here? "The Fear" can only refer to the God of Isaac. But it has so much meaning! Fear of God, reverence, awe, godliness, also describes the characteristic attitude of his father Isaac. This fear made Isaac a man who could marry a woman he had never met based on the testimony of his father's servant. He could live in a foreign land, with enemies all around him confiscating his wells, each time moving on and simply trusting God to provide, and digging another. At the end of this struggle with his neighbors, Isaac was receiving kings at his tent with their hats in their hands.

My study this week is from Eph 5:21 - 6:9. This passage begins with,

Submitting to one another in the fear of God.

Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. It won't get me a Ph.D. or a bigger salary or any other worldly recognition. But it made Isaac a truly great man. The fear of God teaches us to submit to God and to one another. The fear of God enables us to "do good to those who hate us", like Isaac. This submission, contrary to appearances, raises us above others spiritually. The fear of God makes us like Jesus, and is the key attitude to the imitation of Christ. I believe it is also the secret of true happiness, as it was the basic attitude of Adam and Eve before the Fall. It is what enables a wife to submit to her husband, husbands to love their wives, children to obey their parents, and employers and employees, even slaves, to be happy and prosperous. [Eph 5:21-6:9]

Submit is a dirty word to most Americans. But, Father, help me to learn this attitude of Christ, who "made himself of no reputation". [Phil 2:7] Lord, I want to "become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation". I want to "shine like the stars" with your light. Please take me and change me today, more like Jesus, in submission to You, God, and to others in the fear of God.

Prayer Journal

A dear friend in Illinois suggested today that a prayer journal has been one of the greatest helps in his prayer life, and that those who've done it have invariably told him how much they were helped. Thanksgiving, praise, intercession and supplication are the four aspects of prayer, and it is best to MAKE TIME for these each morning, writing down 1) what we're thankful for, 2) praises, 3) who I'm interceding for, and 4) lastly personal supplications.

Today, by God's grace, I shall take his advice. I shall put only my praise on this blog, for that is what praise should be, public acclaim for my Lord Jesus!

Lord, I praise you for my friend and his good and timely advice. Thank you that, while I have had such difficulty making time for intentional prayer, you have moved me to "pray constantly". Help me to take prayer as a more serious duty, like eating with my family, and worshiping on Sunday. You know how easily and quickly I forget my resolutions. Lord, help me not to forget this one, but begin each day in earnest, ordered prayer, with journal. Praise you for the glorious love you have for me. Thank you for teaching me to pray, and for sending such friends.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
For friends we've only come to know.
Praise God who leads us ever on,
In glorious friendship with His Son,
and one another where'ere we go
enabling our faith to grow.

Captivity led captive

"They will take them captive whose captives they were, and rule over their oppressors." [Isaiah 14:2]
"You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive..." [Psalm 68:18]
"Therefore he says, 'When he ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.'" [Ephesians 4:8]

Isaiah saw Babylon being led captive.  His prophecy also included the remarkable words,
"The strangers will be joined with them [Israel] and they will cling to the house of Jacob."  It isn't a prophecy one hears on the lips of Jews very often.  In all these passages, there is a consistent message.  It is a message of victory for the people of God, because He has won it and turned the table on the captors. 

Who are the captors, that are now led captive by Messiah?  The captors are sin, shame, death.  And I would also think among the captors now led captive are war and strife. Isaiah continues in 14:6,7,

"He who ruled the nations in anger, Is persecuted and no one hinders.  The whole earth is at rest and quiet; They break forth into singing."

Peace on earth isn't even desired by those who love power and money.  They enrich themselves through war, shamelessly.  I happen to work in the military-industrial complex part of the time.  And I am truly ashamed of this fact, and ask the Lord to set me free from THIS prosperous vocation, to serve HIS KINGDOM only.  I do not equate national success in an imperialistic war with obedience to God.  Personally I am obeying Him.

But the peace where "the earth is at rest and quiet", that is a spiritual peace, and I want to proclaim and lead people to find it.  Walking through a quiet forest with a friend is about the closest thing I can compare it to. In the quiet, you can hear the trees singing, and saying to the oppressors, "Since you were cut down, no woodsman comes against us.  Now we are happy too!"

Do people want to hear this message of peace?  I am skeptical of them, but not of the Gospel. Lord, let me find out by giving it to them. 

Lord, here am I, send me! Send me!  Lord, no one seems to believe there are apostles any more, except the Catholics, who imagine this apostleship is inherited by their popes and bishops alone.  What?  Can you not raise up children of Abraham from stones?  Cannot you even make the rocks sing the praises of your Son Jesus?! Yes, you can. Lord, open my dumb lips also, and give me words from on high to proclaim in Virginia.  Send me!  Lord, by yourself alone, send this unworthy sinner. Yea, make me worthy and send me.  I would be an apostle, sent in the power of your Name. Lord Jesus, sanctify me to your service. And whether our message is accepted, ignored, or utterly rejected, please embolden and enable me to deliver it to them, soon. In Jesus' holy Name, amen.

My Favorite Bible Verse

hey chris,

do you have a favorite bible verse? hard question to answer, i know, but just curious

-ts

Hi Tommy. I do have a few favorites.

My lifelong "key verse" has been Romans 8:28. My mother taught me this verse right before she and dad divorced. I have trusted it fully and lived by it ever since. It says,

"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose."

Another favorite, also very dear to me, is 1 Peter 2:24. My pastor in Chicago gave me this verse. I think the Lord put it in his heart for me, and so it has been my testimony since 1989, when my heart was again broken very severely.

"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."

It is very much like another favorite, John 12:32,

"And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me."

God graciously impressed this verse on me in 2009, and Galatians 6:14:

"May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."

These all point to Jesus on the cross, which is by far my favorite story in all the Bible or anywhere else. Jesus cry from the cross has always been the most moving and astonishing verse to me. Mark 15:34. I find no end of mystery and beauty and power in it, the pain and utter sorrow that He bore for me never fails to bring me to tears:

"And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

Every year around New Year a choose one verse (or occasionally two) to dwell upon and hold as my favorite for that year. This year my key verse is 1 Timothy 4:13:

"Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching."

I could say these are my favorites, but I have another that surpasses even these, as dear to me, the words of Jesus in John 15:15:

"No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you."

My favorite books are Matthew's Gospel and Genesis. What I most love studying with students is Genesis and John's Gospel. How I wish you and I could study The Word again!

My favorite Psalm is Psalm 25. My favorite prophet is Jeremiah. I could go on, but you get the idea. I can't possibly pick a single favorite verse, as you probably can't name a single favorite work of architecture to put above all others.

Thank you for asking this question. It is so rewarding to reflect on it this morning. I am

His,

- chris
-------------
Our passions are not too strong, they are too weak. We are far too easily pleased. [C.S. Lewis]

Reading the Bible in New Ways

For Christmas a few years ago, my mother-in-law gave me a new Bible, called the Chronological Study Bible (NKJV), which has all the books arranged chronologically. In many cases, even chapters are divided up and interspersed with pieces of other books and chapters. It's a little odd at first, like anything new. But once you get used to reading it, there comes a really wonderful satisfaction: it is reading the old, old story newly, with fresh insights on every page.

For example, today on pp.1106-7, there are passages from Luke 4 and 5, Mark 1 and Matthew 8. These are about the very beginning of Jesus' public ministry, and include the stories of his early morning prayer, the miraculous catch of fish, and healing the leper.

I'm ever moved by the fact that Jesus prayed early in the morning, and have always hoped I might learn to do this. This year I shall endeavor again to pray, in solitary places, before dark, or at least before noon.

But what really struck me is that, throughout these various passages, Jesus is shown as reclusive in some way, reaching out boldly to individuals, but NOT to crowds. Jesus avoided, even eschewed popularity. How can this be? I mean, how can it be that preachers and teachers have so missed this character of our Lord in the current age? We have made Popularity our idol, our goal, our measure of success and even the measure of God's blessing, while Jesus cared nothing for it and even avoided it.

Consider Lk 4:41:

Demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, "You are the Christ, the Son of God!" And He, rebuking them, did not allow them to speak, for they knew he was the Christ.

Nowadays, what healer would refuse to let the recipients of his miracles "testify" like this? Who would even assume it was the demons crying out, instead of the person being healed? NO! We will have testimonials and write them down and publish them everywhere we go, not rebuke them to be quiet. Why else would Jesus do this, but that he wanted genuine faith in his words, more than faith in his miracles? Yet words never make a man popular today. The man of persuasive and truthful words always loses the election to the man of good looks and popularity.

Next consider Mark 1:35-39, (Luke 4:43 is similar), where Jesus goes out early to prayer. When the disciples found him they said, "Everyone is looking for you." It was the moment they'd been waiting for, but Jesus was, in a sense, hiding from people to spend time alone with God. Then he said to them,

"Let's go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth."

What? Leave now, just as we're getting a following? It makes no sense at all, unless we assume that to our Lord reaching some people everywhere was more important than reaching a lot of people in one place. Churches today can't even function if the minister is always visiting other places. He is the CEO, who makes the business and programmes successful. Yes, Jesus Christ would never be chosen as the pastor of your neighborhood church.

Finally, on my two page voyage through time, I read of his compassion on the leper. "If You are willing, You can make me clean," cries the pitiful man. To which Jesus responds by actually touching him, still with leprosy all over him, and says, "I am willing; be cleansed." Of course the man is completely cleansed and excited beyond control. But Jesus

strictly warned him and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone."

Why? I remember when I was 8 or 9, a little girl who was Catholic told me that what she learned was this: Jesus told people not to tell anyone about him, and when he put his finger across his lips to indicate "be quiet", it made the little dimple that we all have under our nose, above our lip. Why would Jesus tell people not to testify about him? Clearly it was intended for this man, not all people, that he keep silent about his miracle. But why? Jesus also told him to go offer a sacrifice at the Temple and show himself to the priests "as a testimony to them". So it wasn't that Jesus wanted NO ONE to know. He did want the priests to know what he was doing; He just didn't want a crowd to follow him because of the miracles.

But wait! Most of us have always thought that Jesus did his miracles expressly so that people would accept and listen to him. But here he works to the opposite effect. "Keep quiet about this." It was impossible for the man, who went out and spread the news wildly. Now I cannot accept that Jesus was using trickery or reverse-psychology to get the man to advertise his miracle. And I will not accept that Jesus was feigning humility. He was telling the man what he wanted him not to do, so that crowds would not hear a testimony of miracles from this excited and obviously genuine man.

The only conclusion I can draw is that Jesus was avoiding popularity. Our bias makes this a very strange conclusion. We can't conceive of someone who wants to be obscure. Our age craves relevance, and without popularity and widespread acceptance, we think we have done nothing with our lives, especially preachers and evangelists.

I wish someone would offer a better explanation of why Jesus said such things, appearing to eschew fame and large crowds of enthusiastic followers, because I don't trust myself to interpret these things well. But until someone does, I confess, this interpretation is encouraging to me, because I've long since realized that, as Jesus said, "Woe to you when all men speak well of you." It is, in "this wicked and adulterous age" [Mt 16:4], a fearful thing to fit in with the popular consensus.

More Thoughts on the Updated NIV of 2011

As most of you know, the NIV Bible has been used by millions of readers since it first appeared in 1984 and is one of the best-loved translations for many reasons. But this year those who hold the copyright to the NIV have introduced an updated version on BibleGateway.com, and their plan is to replace the 1984 version with this new version. This new translation is not only needless and dishonest, but harmful in the following respects:

It is an attempt to win the approval of people. It is a capitulation to the whims of men and women of this godless age rather than a resolve to be faithful to the word of God. It will lead to the loss of a great and beloved translation, which is being replaced with a lesser, though newer one.

One does not need a crystal ball to see into the motives of the folks at Biblica, the newly named International Bible Society. For already, they have produced two similar translations under different names, first 1n 1996 the New International Readers Version, then in 2001 the Today's NIV. The updated NIV-2011 resembles the TNIV far more than it resembles the original NIV of 1984. Why take something really old and conform it to something newer that one already has in print? Why give the new translation an old name?

This move cannot be honest. Even Professor Moo's explanation defies common sense. He talks about "transparency", which is a modern euphemism for "conformity", in the way that chameleons are "transparent" by blending in with their surroundings. When I expected to hear "faithfulness to the original text", what I hear is "conformity to the contemporary English usage". (I am simply translating Dr. Moo's words for clarity and ease of understanding to non-academics.)

Conformity to what? To a culture steeped in feminism and immorality; conformity to a language that demands political correctness over truth; conformity to a Christianity that is increasingly lukewarm and unwilling to challenge people of this age.

I don't remember reading this goal in the 1984 version Translators' Preface. They write instead of "continuity with the long tradition of translating the Scriptures into English" and of "accurate translation, clarity and literary quality". The 1984 NIV was popular for all these reasons. The 2011 NIV is something else. 5% has been changed, by Moo's estimate, "not just here and there, but in every verse". It sounds as if what he means (if again I may "translate") is, "The spirit of this translation is updated, and you will sense it in every verse".

No clairvoyance is needed. The words of these translators tells it all. The 2011 Translators' Notes read: "When the original Bible documents first emerged, they captured exactly what God wanted to say in the language and idiom of ordinary people. There was no friction between hearing God’s Word the way it was written and understanding it the way it was meant."

Au contraire! The word of God has always rubbed some people the wrong way, because "the wisdom of God is foolishness to men". It rubbed the educated the wrong way because the New Testament was written in common Greek. It rubbed every Gentile the wrong way because it was written by Jews. It rubs all sinners the wrong way because it demands holiness. This goal of "reducing friction" is exactly the goal of making the Bible more acceptable to our generation, to make it less abrasive.

Then there is a scholarly argument that the KJV was out of date (after 400 years) and likewise the NIV is now in need of an update, if we would maintain the lack of friction they imagined the KJV had in its day. But after only 30 years, they suggest there is a similarity. Has our language actually changed that much in 30 years? Of course it hasn't. But our culture has changed dramatically; many, many things that didn't cause friction then rub people the wrong way now.

The point here isn't to argue whether some might need a newer translation, or one that doesn't cause any friction to their modern mindset. The point is, they've already given us such a translation twice. So why not just make these little updates to one of the two other NIV-like versions? The 5% changes to the original NIV would only constitute around 0.5% in the TNIV. Really! Here is an example, that is quite common. Look at Phil 3:10 in the old and new NIV and the TNIV:

NIV (2011): I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death

TNIV (2005): I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death

NIV (1984): I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death

Why replace the NIV with the TNIV? or give the TNIV the name NIV and leave the older, more familiar NIV in the dust? I have suggested that money or pressure from feminists are at the root of this move. I ask Professor Moo, then, please tell us the full rationale.

I was told by members of my church that strong language wasn't necessary in this matter, that I needed to be more "christian" in how I write. But sirs, the Bible is the word of God and you know this. I'm sure you value it as such, just as all true believers. It has always been a touchy matter to tamper with the words in this Holy Book. I will, then, be Biblical in my criticism. Romans 12:2 reads,

And do not be conformed to this world...

Is this not your goal in these changes? It is HIS word, not yours or mine. It is not for us to make it less abrasive, but to translate it faithfully and preach it boldly. The very roughness of the original, which you consider outdated, was assuredly rough to those who heard it then. You know this is true. It was never a politically correct book. Do not do this to the Bible.

What is more, it is unbecoming of us to conform the Bible to the culture in ANY age, especially one that is increasingly immoral. Spurgeon wrote (on March 28th in his devotional Faith's Check Book):

It is for the saints to lead the way among men by holy influence: they are not to be the tail, to be dragged hither and thither by others. We must not yield to the spirit of the age, but compel the age to do homage to Christ. If the Lord be with us, we shall not crave toleration for religion, but we shall seek to seat it on the throne of society.

Shall we adapt our Holy Bible to the whims of an unholy age? I trow not! Men, do not be the tail of society, be leaders. Do not follow feminists who take offense at the word He---for indeed this constitutes the bulk of the substantive changes you've made. Do not follow bean counters who've noticed the dismal sales of your TNIV. Do not foist upon Christians something totally changed in spirit from what we have loved and read. It will not be blessed by God. The Spirit in which it was surreptitiously replaced on BibleGateway back in January tells it all, it is a Spirit we do not know.

PS: My son just reminded me that I need to consider other people's view point (bias) on this, or I risk being ignored by all who don't share my own. I admit that 40 years ago, when the Living Bible and the NIV first came out, I heard the same points I'm making now being argued about those translations. I brushed them off as being from old-fashioned people who resented anything new. At that time, I did not consider these people's point of view at all. I'm older now, and I am a little better at recognizing my own as well as others' biases. I want to be fair. Thus, I do not condemn the TNIV or NIrV or ESV or any translation at all. I'm not on a crusade to bring back the King James. But I insist that replacing the NIV with the TNIV is needless and hurtful to Christian tradition. And I suspect, but not insist, that this move is purely driven by business goals (translated, "greed").

Copyright © 2011, by Christopher Kelly.

An open letter to the NIV©2010 translators

It is sad to think that the best minds in the church today are so careless and unspiritual. But it seems clear that Dr. Moo and others are more interested in a resurge in profits than an upswing in Bible study and spirituality. Certainly people are "over" the initial infatuation with the newest English Bible translation, and are looking at other versions, so NIV sales have gone down for that reason. And certainly there are those who want a more liberal and especially gender-neutral translation, after 50 (or perhaps 80) years of radical feminism pervading the English speaking world.

But now these scholars have once again assumed that those of us who aren't hanging out in the ivory towers are unaware of their motives and uninterested in the esoteric subtleties of Scripture translation. So they are tinkering with words in the new 2010 version of the NIV, primarily (I am convinced) to bolster their profits and palliate those who would reinvent the roles of men and women according to the corrupted sensibilities of the vast majority in the 21st Century. This is a grave mistake on the part of Dr. Moo and his colleagues.

I find it not only strange but hypocritical that the International Bible Society, which owns the copyright of the NIV, is so sensitive to the change in its own direction that they felt they should rename themselves (now they are called Biblica) while the rather meaningful, but unnecessary, changes to the NIV did NOT, in their sensitive opinions, require the translation to be renamed. It surprised me when the Today's NIV (tNIV) came out. But it shocks me that they are introducing a new translation with the same name as an old one. This is hypocrisy and dishonesty of a glaring nature, particularly when they unveiled it on BibleGateway without any notice at all that it was a new version. And they call this "transparency", claiming it is even one of their goals in the new translation. I know they have not demonstrated transparency in the more important matter of doing business; I don't really know what transparency even means in terms of translation. Both matters are disturbing.

I used the word "unnecessary", and for this reason the NIV©2010 is all the more disturbing. For nearly 500 years, the King James version, with all its errors and ambiguities was sufficient for generations of English-speaking Christians. But Dr. Moo would have us believe that in 30 years since the original NIV, this translation has become "dated". It is an insult to our intelligence (we've come to expect this from arrogant liberal theologians.) Another disturbing problem.

The International Bible Society should do the RIGHT THING, not the profitable thing. After all, the Bible is the word of God, painstakingly translated by men who came to agreement in an honest attempt to really translate, not interpret the Scriptures. Update your tNIV if you like, and continue publishing that translation with (so called) minor changes. This we could accept. Of course, that translation never made you any money, perhaps now it will. But sirs, you are hindering the whole Church by your tinkering. And you are breaking your own promises. Think again! And do not change the NIV itself. You do not have the right, powerful and wise as you may be. Even owning the copyright, you do not have the right. It is not your book, it is His.

The RIGHT THING is what you have done in the past: Create a new translation with a new name. The New King James version did this. Everyone does this. They didn't revise the old version and give it the same name. That is dishonest, and you know it is (or used to), everyone knows it. Don't be so arrogant! What has happened to you? Did your stockholders pressure you to do such a fool thing? God have mercy on your souls.

Holiness and the call to preach

A few days ago I had a strange vision, sort of. I saw, or perhaps it was just my imagination, that I was going out to preach, as I have long wanted to do, but have not had the courage or strength or guts or passion. I keep asking myself "Why don't I do this, since I want to do so and God has commanded it?" But this vision or thought came very strongly to my mind: When God answers this prayer, it will be all-consuming. He will not have me part-time, on contract, for a few hours per week. He will make this preaching become something that completely consumes me day and night. It will be as if I have lost myself in doing his work. My job will suffer, my family will feel neglected, my garden will be overgrown with weeds, and my debts will probably mount. But souls will hear the Gospel, and some will believe. Even if most do not believe, they will listen and will welcome me everywhere I go, inviting me here and there, until I am hardly able to keep up with the invitations.

This of course is only what I hope, what I envision, not what I actually want or expect. I see why I have been afraid to even preach openly one time: For once it begins, it will not be stoppable. If I give myself to God, he will have all of me, or none.

Lord, how can we claim to be Christians when we have no interest in or desire for holiness? No boldness t proclaim the Word of the Lord, no obedience to your calling? Lord, heal us from our sins and carnal wandering, to be holy to you, not legalistically rigorous, but devoted to please you, obey you, and have you with us always. Show me your truth.

Lord, I am truly tired of being outwardly harmonious, when inwardly there is cynicism and criticism for everything. Please cleanse me and purify my unclean lips, as you purified Isaiah. Anoint me to preach, Lord, here I am, send me.

He said, "Go and tell this people: " 'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed." Then I said, "For how long, O Lord?" And he answered: "Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged, until the LORD has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken. And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land."

Father, I want your word. Give it to me, please, that I may have it at least, and if you will embolden me, also give it to others. Bless Ireland, which has been laid waste, by raising up your remnant there. As America is likewise laid waste through the greed of evil men, please raise up a holy seed here. For Jesus' name's sake. Amen

I have found you righteous

The Lord said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation." [Genesis 7:1]

Ever notice that the Lord did not say to Noah, "... because you are righteous", but, "because I have found you righteous"? The Lord reckoned Noah to be righteous. As Abraham, the Lord "credited' Noah with righteousness, as if he did not really possess righteousness. In his own eyes, Noah knew he was a sinner. His sons knew it too, at least Ham thought so.

And so we have this testimony in Genesis, that God found Noah righteous, though Noah's sons found him passed out from too much wine, and naked. Ham didn't seem to respect his father or consider him righteous.

But God reckoned Noah righteous. Most English translations have "I have seen you righteous before me". [e.g. Darby's] The words "before me" seem to indicate that God knows we are not righteous in a legal sense, that within we are fallen and weak, but that HE is able to credit us with righteousness that comes from without. This is what Paul meant when he said, [Ro 1:17]

For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

We are not righteous when we live by the law, or live by our intelligence, common sense, or maintaining appearances of being righteous. Most don't even try to maintain the appearance of righteousness, but only speak of avoiding the appearance of evil. Oh for Christians who would really seek to follow Jesus and obey God at any cost! Oh that I myself would have this desire.

Lord, find me righteous. I have no way to be so, but my heart desires you, Father. Be with me, and let me be with you.

My new favorite book

"Let us go forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come." [Heb. 13:13-14]

Tonight I finished reading The Pilgrim Church, by E. H. Broadbent. Where can I begin to tell how delighted I am to have read it through? except that I fully intend to start again at once at the beginning and read it through again, taking notes and integrating its thesis into my own book.

Strange how a book can become a friend of a sort. Like travelling to a foreign land and filling my heart with fond memories of places seen, people met, hills hiked, bridges crossed, new sights and smells and tastes previously unknown, I feel I have travelled not only the world over, but over all the last 2000 years!

Then I measure every book by how much it inspires me to read further and write. In this case, the book has done both, as well as inspired me hopefully with the courage to preach in the open air, courage I have not found in myself yet, but hope to soon receive from my Lord.

Praise God who gives us HIS Kingdom, and not some stuffy church with its petty politics and prejudices.

Praise Jesus who gives his Holy Spirit to those who will obey in faith, not because they are highly qualified, but because they take up his command in faith, to "Go and preach the good news to all creation."

Praise God who sustains his own, even though they have no name and no rolls and no recognition in the world, no edifices, no grandeur, no place in the parades, no power.

Praise Jesus Christ who is coming again to all who "go to Him, outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore," not pining for a city here, but for one that is to come! [Hebrews 13:13-14]

Lord, that I might follow those strangers and pilgrims in Thy kingdom's work. Lord, grant only this: that I may faithfully proclaim Jesus and Him crucified wherever you lead, beginning here and now in Charlottesville. Lord, may your inspired word overturn the rationalism and unbelief that has this place as its American capital.

PS. The only place I know to buy this book is HERE. But you can read it online HERE.

Not One Jot Nor Tittle (v1.0)

17 "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19 Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. [Matthew 5:17-20]

From a discussion at JAMBS on 1/6/11.

Here is perhaps one of the hardest of the "hard sayings" of Christ. By itself it seems easy enough. But taken with the concept of "sola fide"---salvation by faith alone, apart from works---it challenges the simple. Even taken with Jesus' own declaration that all foods are clean, it presents a challenge. Is it one of the mythical contradictions in the Bible?

I think not. But let's consider that the food restrictions in the Bible were in fact laws, and that by declaring all foods clean, Jesus has negated this group of laws. Then has he taught people to put away these certain commands in the Law? It appears he has made the dietary laws obsolete.

But what he says is that not one jot nor tittle of the law shall pass away from the law "until all is fulfilled". What does this mean? When did this take place, such that some (or all) of the law was fulfilled?

I'll come back to this when I blog next.

Jeremiah 17

This will be the text of my first open-air sermon.

"My mountain in the land and your wealth and all your treasures I will give away as plunder, together with your high places, because of sin throughout your country. [Jer 17:3]

How can a people hope to prosper who indulge in sin? Who even teach and legalize evils such as abortion and sodomy? Can God bless such a nation? Surely he is a just God, who will repay. May God help Christians everywhere to preach and proclaim the forgiveness of sins and the holiness of God, calling people to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

Primitive Church and Austrian Economics

The connections between the countless primitive church movements (Bogomils, Waldenses, Huguenots, Mennonites), and the theories of the Austrian economists (Hayek, Mises) are interestingly similiar. As big church organizations tend to easily become state controlled, then corrupt, so are big states that try to control economies (a la Keynes). Contrast the libertarianism and small-state of the Founding Fathers, and their Non-Conformist (Puritan) and Quaker roots, not least of which is the important notion of separation of Church and State, which grow out of the English experience of these and others.

Such a book or tract could be just the thing needed to re-awaken the independent spirit of Americans and other Western "sheeple" of our times. Lord grant it, if it is your will to re-awaken Christians to the Apostolic example of church, even if our American government is beyond saving.

Thanksgiving Topics

These things I'm Thankful for from 2010:

1. My Lord Jesus Christ, who loves me and gave Himself for me, who pardons my sins and works to create a clean heart in me every day.
2. The awesome word of God, the Bible, esp our study of Luke's Gospel, Galatians, 1 Kings (Elijah).
3. The Holy Spirit, who speaks, gives and guides my Sunday message each week.
   
4. My precious wife, Christine, who loves and bears me, prays for me and supports everything I do.
5. Dr. Bill Pottenger and his gracious support as my employer, and my coworkers Byunghee, Christopher, Isaac, Paula.
   
6. M. Jacob and Esther Lee and their trust and encouragement, as well as their hospitality while I worked in DC for three months last winter. Great debt here!
   
7. The visit of Mother Sarah Barry last summer.
   
8. Hosting the first "Come-and-See" in Charlottesville, and all those who came, esp. Brad Williamson of Paladin Pictures.
9. Tommy Schapperkotter's friendship and hard work to build a really beautiful prayer chapel.
10. My new favorite book, The Pilgrim Church, by E.M. Broadbent, and Dr. Bill for recommending it to me. What a heritage we have as the church of Jesus!
11. Matthew Henry, Charles Spurgeon, Oswald Chambers, D. M. Lloyd-Jones, and several other great preachers who daily encourage me through their writings.
12. My children:
    - Josh, for always showing respect and honor to his father, even when said father is not very reasonable, and for his back rubs, and helping so much in the yard.
    - Sadie, for being so loving and encouraging, and helping so much around the house.
    - Matthew, for his charming ways, friendship and good attitude.
    
13. This house-church God has called me to, and given me responsibility for as overseer.
14. The friends we have made in Richmond, Charlottesville, and in UBF chapters, esp. Raleigh, Lehigh, Penn State, College Park, Shippensburg.
15. Yonathan in Raleigh, for his exemplary open air preaching.
16. Steve Hendrickson, my neighbor and friend.