January 31, 2015 marks Thomas Merton’s hundredth birthday. Using Eberhard Arnold's book "Why We Live in Community" as his basis, Merton gave two talks in September 1968, three months before his untimely death. Here are some excerpts.
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Building Community on God’s Love
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What Most “Successful” Bloggers Forget to Share
My wife passed me this article last night about how many “successful” authors don’t share explicitly with their audience that they are essentially “sponsored” in their writing careers: The truth is, my husband’s hefty salary makes my life as a writer easy. Pretending otherwise doesn’t help anyone. The reality is this happens online as well … Continue reading What Most “Successful” Bloggers Forget to Share
The post What Most “Successful” Bloggers Forget to Share appeared first on John Saddington.
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America's 10 Most Bible-Minded Cities
(CHRISTIAN POST)—America's 10 most Bible-minded cities are all still located in the "Bible Belt" of the South and Birmingham, Alabama sits at the top of that pack. The state of Alabama also became the state with the most Bible-minded cities in 2015, according to a Barna survey commissioned by the...
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5 Ways to Avoid Becoming Irrelevant to Teens
Do you feel like your ministry is becoming irrelevant to teenagers? Are you looking for creative ways to get out of “that rut?” Maybe I can help. I want to share with you 5 Ways to Avoid Becoming Irrelevant (to … Continue reading →
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Preaching Christ from Daniel
Sidney Greidanus, Preaching Christ from Daniel. Foundations for Expository Sermons. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012.
The present volume merits attention as it brings together two issues of great interest: Evangelicalism's perennial fascination - arguably an unhealthy obsession! - with the Book of Daniel, and the Christological interpretation of the Old Testament, which has recently become a matter of some controversy in Presbyterian circles. This book is neither a series of sermons on Daniel nor a commentary proper, though it shares some features in common with both genres. As the title indicates, its distinctive feature lies in its focus on preaching the Book of Daniel Christologically.
The author is an established name in Reformed homiletics, having served parishes in the Christian Reformed Church and taught at various academic institutions, most notably as professor of preaching at Calvin Theological Seminary. Greidanus' doctoral dissertation at the Free University of Amsterdam, Sola Scriptura: Problems and Principles in Preaching Historical Texts, remains an invaluable historical study of the early 20th century controversy over redemptive-historical preaching in the Reformed Churches of the Netherlands. In it he traced the conscious attempt by theologians such as Benne Holwerda and Klaas Schilder to "reform" the preaching of Old Testament historical texts by moving away from an "exemplaristic" approach which located a text's primary application by analyzing Biblical characters as examples to be emulated or avoided. In contrast, Holwerda and Schilder (and others) sought to bring homiletical practice more consistently into line with the exegetical and Biblical-theological convictions of Reformed orthodoxy: If the historical texts of the Old Testament are rightly interpreted as being primarily the narrative of an unfolding history of redemption, then they should be preached and applied as such and not as catalogs of moral examples. As could have been anticipated, however, the push for redemptive-historical preaching provoked an inevitable reaction by others within the Reformed Churches of the Netherlands, and Greidanus' study helpfully analyzed the many issues involved in the debate as it played out.
On a fundamental level, the issues surrounding redemptive-historical preaching have continued to provide the driving force behind a number of more recent works by Greidanus, in which he has sought to explore how the Christological interpretation of the Old Testament should affect Reformed homiletics. These recent works include a general manual, Preaching Christ from the Old Testament (1999), as well as two specific volumes on Preaching Christ from Genesis (2007) and Preaching Christ from Ecclesiastes (2010) in addition to the present book.
The introductory chapter is entitled "Issues in Preaching Christ from Daniel", but a significant portion is first dedicated to a discussion of important historical and literary issues pertinent to the interpretation of the book such as its date of composition, authorship, extensive use of Aramaic in addition to Hebrew, the apocalyptic genre, and compositional unity. Contrary to much mainline scholarship, Greidanus defends a 6th century (rather than 2nd century) origin for the book. As a result he argues (p.22) that the book's goal in its original setting was to comfort and encourage a community of God's people as they lived in exile rather than as they faced the persecutions of Antiochus Epiphanes. Eventually Greidanus turns to discuss some preliminary homiletical issues such as how to preach the book (e.g. a selective series of sermons on either the narratives of chs.1-6 or the visions of chs.7-12), how to select particular textual units for exposition, and so on. Of particular importance here is the general framework he lays out for preaching Christ from Daniel, a framework which he developed in more detail in his earlier Preaching Christ from the Old Testament. He argues that there are multiple perspectives by which preachers "can move legitimately from an Old Testament passage to Jesus Christ in the New Testament" (p.27), specifically:
- Redemptive-historical progression
- Promise-fulfillment
- Typology
- Analogy (i.e., "noting the similarity between the teaching or goal of the text and the teaching or goal of Jesus" [p.27])
- Longitudinal themes (i.e., tracing a theme from a Biblical-theological perspective)
- Examining New Testament references (citations or allusions)
- Contrast (i.e., "noting the contrast between the message of the text and that of the New Testament, a contrast which exists because Christ has come" [p.28])
These perspectives can overlap to some degree, and a given passage will not display all of these. Nevertheless, they provide fruitful perspectives for Christological interpretation of the Old Testament. Greidanus will systematically employ them in the remaining chapters, which focus on interpreting the discrete textual units of the Book of Daniel.
Each of the body chapters follows a consistent format. After some introductory remarks, Greidanus first considers the "Text and Context", seeking to discern the natural textual boundaries of a passage (a relatively easy task with the Book of Daniel) and to place the unit within the book's larger literary context. Next he examines "Literary Features" such as narrative structure, plot, characterization, and repetition. He proceeds then to consider the text's "Theocentric Interpretation". For this he poses questions such as (p.37), "Where is God in this story? What is God doing?" (It may be observed in passing that the weakness of the "exemplaristic" preaching method is precisely in its failure to ask such questions.) At this juncture in one's study of the text, one should be in a position to articulate the "Textual Theme and Goal", which should seek to be as specific to the text as possible. For example, with regard to Dan 1:1-21, Greidanus critiques various textual summaries as being too broad (e.g., focusing on God's sovereignty and power in general). Instead, he proposes as the central theme: "The sovereign Lord, who guided the faithful Daniel and his friends to positions of power in Babylon, will guide his faithful people even in exile (p.39)." By and large I would say that Greidanus is correct to seek the greatest textual specificity possible, though in this particular case I think his summary fails to integrate the aspect of Daniel's ability to interpret dreams and visions (Dan 1:17), which will form an important motif in subsequent chapters (e.g. chs. 2, 4, 7, etc.). After determining the basic theme of a passage, he discusses "Ways to Preach Christ", utilizing the seven perspectives mentioned above (redemptive-historical progression, promise-fulfillment, etc.). This is one of the most stimulating and helpful sections of each chapter. Greidanus then provides specific homiletical guidance with "Sermon Theme, Goal, and Need" and "Sermon Exposition" (this last-mentioned section is typically quite lengthy, being essentially a quasi-commentary on the text).
Greidanus' stated goal is "to help busy preachers and Bible teachers proclaim the good news of Daniel" and to "enable them to uncover rather quickly the important building blocks for producing sermons and lessons on Daniel" (p.x). I would say that he has achieved his goal admirably. The author is a homiletician and not an academic Biblical scholar, but solid exegetical study undergirds the volume. The emphasis on Theocentric interpretation and Christological analysis and preaching make this a useful volume for preachers and teachers. I recommend it highly.
Max Rogland is Associate Professor of Old Testament and Associate Dean of Erskine Theological Seminary
reformation21 is the online magazine of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals. It is supported only by its readers and gracious Christians like you. Please prayerfully consider supporting reformation21 and the mission of the Alliance. Please donate here.
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Pet Owner Discovers a Never-before-seen Species Sleeping on His Kitchen Floor
This guy’s pit bull was nowhere to be found, but there was some strange, new animal taking a nap in his house…
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Why There Will be No Sports in Heaven
It's FOOTBALL WEEK! So I was wondering if there would be sports in heaven.
Some say no, some say yes. Depending on how you answer, this reveals a lot about what you think of our eternal bodies and more than that, what you think about God.
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Click the following link to read the entire post and leave a comment: → "Why There Will be No Sports in Heaven" by Jeremy Myers
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Kevin Peck – Leadership Culture
Kevin Peck – Leadership Culture: For more great resources: http://vergenetwork.org Redemptive...
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Faith of Niger Christians grows stronger in face of unprecedented violence
Categories: Africa News Tags: Christian persecution, faith, Islamists, jihadists Originally published in Christian News Christians in Niger are joyfully meeting in homes under police protection as they plan to rebuild church buildings and houses after attacks last weekend (January 16-18) that were unprecedented in scale. “Nothing of this magnitude […] |
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-Should a President Lead America Spiritually?
On at least a dozen occasions President Obama has said that he has relied upon his Christian faith and has turned to God for guidance in leading the country. No journalist has directly questioned whether that was a good idea or not. Presidents have been doing that in various ways since Washington. Literally hundreds of […]
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Vote Now for the Greatest Super Bowl Commercial Ever
2014's "Doberhuahua" from AudiNo matter what team you root for, for many, the best part of the Super Bowl is the commercials. Tonight, CBS will air Super Bowl's Greatest Commercial! with hosts...
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Thrahimam 2 Telugu Songs Lyrics free
Thrahimam 2 Telugu Songs Lyrics free Thrahimam 2 Telugu Christian Mp3 Songs Lyrics 2013, Thahimam 2 All Mp3 Songs Lyrics Download Thrahimam 2 is Telugu Christian Songs sung by variours Artist the songs in...
The post Thrahimam 2 Telugu Songs Lyrics free appeared first on Gospel Daily.
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Do you know my friend Gospel Track Telugu
Do you know my friend Gospel Track Telugu Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12 Everyone...
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EPPC Briefly: George Weigel on Charlie Hebdo, Jihadism, and the Future of Europe
January 22, 2015 FOLLOW EPPC ON FEATURED PUBLICATIONS Europe and Nothingness “You can’t beat something with nothingness,” warns EPPC Distinguished Senior Fellow George Weigel as he reflects on the horrific jihadist attack on Charlie Hebdo. “Freedom, justice, and human solidarity cannot be grounded in nihilism.” A War of Ideas EPPC Senior Fellow Mona Charen […]
The post EPPC Briefly: George Weigel on Charlie Hebdo, Jihadism, and the Future of Europe appeared first on Ethics & Public Policy Center.
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But God
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:4–5)
“But God.” These two words are overflowing with gospel. For sinners like you and me who were lost and completely unable to save ourselves from our dead-set rebellion against God, there may not be two more hopeful words that we could utter.
Once we were dead to any real love for God at all, buried under the compounding and disorienting blindness of our sins (Ephesians 2:1), but God. Once we were deceived by our own lust for glory and self-determination; once we were unknowingly led by the pied piper called “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2), but God. Once we lived enslaved to the passions of our flesh, being driven and tossed between the impulsive waves of our flesh and mind (Ephesians 2:3), but God. Once we were God’s enemies (Romans 5:10), hating him (Romans 1:30), children of his wrath. But God.
But God being rich in mercy, but God showing his incomprehensible “love for us in that while we were yet sinners” (Romans 5:8) he said to us God-dead, God-ignoring, God-rivaling, God-hating, dry-boned children of wrath: “live” (Ezekiel 37:5)! Live to true beauty, live to true glory, live to true hope, live to true pleasure, live to true joy! Live to God (Galatians 2:19) and live forever (John 6:58)!
And he did so by taking our God-deadening, God-ignoring, God-rivaling, God-hating, God-wrath inducing sin and placing it on his Son, the Life (John 14:6), and said: “die” (Romans 5:8). And so he who knew no sin became our sin for us — for an infinitely hellish moment became a child of wrath (Ephesians 2:3) for us — the righteous for the unrighteous, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him (2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18). So that we might live forever (John 3:16)
These two words, “but God,” tell us that we have been saved only by God’s grace. Dead children of wrath do not become living, loving children of God but for God.
Revel in these two priceless words. Every thing, sweet and bitter, that will occur between now and the moment of your death God will work for your good (Romans 8:28), and every glorious pleasure that you will ever enjoy in your future eternal life in his presence (Psalm 16:11) because of the gospel of these two words: “but God.”
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New Preferred Service Provider: ChurchCast
Creating a Solid Church Foundation Through Communication As a pastor, your greatest honor is being trusted with the spiritual growth of other believers. Your greatest responsibility is to set the overall tone of the ministry while providing a safe environment for believers to thrive. And one of the most vital ways you do this is... Read More
The post New Preferred Service Provider: ChurchCast appeared first on Church Community Builder.
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This Crazy Mom’s Texts Are So Funny You Won’t Even Care How Awful She Is
Kate Siegel and her mom have a very close relationship. And a key part of the ongoing communication that keeps them close is texting. Lots and lots of texting… Sweet, right? Of course. Because Kate’s mom is full of tenderness, patience, and acceptance. OK, that’s not true at all. Fortunately, though, what she lacks in […]
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Who I Am
In her single, Who I Am, former Group 1 Crew member, Blanca, sings about the many doubts that often plague so many of us. Doubts that keep us from soaring and hold us back from being all that God created us to be. Are we strong? Are we beautiful? Are we good enough? After all […]![]()
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Against the Wind
It’s one of the loneliest of all encounters, The most agonizing of all relationships, Where it seems as though the very air you breathe Pushes hard against you as you try to move forward. Yet move you must. The calling is too strong… The need is too great… Press on … Press on against the […]
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To Get Hebdo Cartoons You Must Get Laïcité
Laïcité is not equivalent to the American notion of “secularism.”
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