Category: Christology
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psalm 22 (3)… suffering physical and social
12 Many bulls encompass me; strong bulls of Bashan surround me; 13 they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; 15 my strength is…
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psalm 22 (2)… spiritual suffering
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. 3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of…
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psalm 22 (1)… introduction
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. 3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of…
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isaiah 7… the virgin birth…immanuel and the assyrian
Isaiah 7 Isaiah, son of Amoz, is a towering figure in biblical history. His prophetic voice spans four Davidic kings (1:1). His prophecies, marked by great rhetorical power, command a book of 66 chapters. The prophecies, while grounded on the period C8-C6 BC, span from creation to a new heavens and new earth. Isaiah is…
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preaching christ
Tim Keller “…So we have a balance to strike—not to preach Christ without preaching the text, and not to preach the text without preaching Christ. Charles Spurgeon gives us a great metaphor for striking this balance. In his sermon “Christ Precious to Believers” (Sermon no. 242, March 13,1859). In it he says that often he…
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God the Son… true God of true God
According to the church father Augustine anyone who denies the Trinity is in danger of losing their salvation, but anyone who tries to understand the Trinity is in danger of losing their mind. To safeguard my mind (and yours) my aim here is modest. I want to consider only one aspect of the trinity namely…
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a bruised reed
Isa 42:3,4 A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; Do you ever feel vulnerable? Do you have times when you. feel like a bruised reed? Perhaps the only thing more vulnerable than a reed blowing in the wind is a bruised reed. And the only thing…
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john 11… jesus and lazarus
In the introduction to John we read of Jesus, ‘in him was life and that life was the light of men’. At various points in the gospel Jesus has claimed to be the source of life in earlier. In Ch 11 his claim is developed is revealed to be demonstrably true in his raising of…
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christ …impeccable yet tempted
Dr D Blair Smith of Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary Charlotte has a good article on Christ’s impeccability which can be found here on the Gospel Coalition website. It is encouraging that impeccability (unable to sin) is defended in a climate where peccability (able to sin) thrives and (through continued Barthian…
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isaiah’s suffering servant… the fourth song 52:13-53:13 (2)
(A fairly long post. Thank you to all who persevere in reading it.) Ch 40 begins a new section in Isaiah’s prophecy. The first 39 chapters address pre-exilic Israel and although they contain some bright spots the tone is largely critical with many announcements of impending judgement. In the second half of the book Isaiah…
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isaiah’s suffering servant… the fourth song 52:13-53:13 (1)
An introduction We have reached the fourth and final servant song. (at least those where he is designated servant). We have previously noticed the ambiguity of the servant in Isaiah. It is clear that Israel, the nation, is God’s servant, his chosen one (41:8-10). Yet Israel is a disobedient servant, a rebellious servant, blind and…
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isaiah 50:4-11… the servant who gives his back to those who strike him
Isaiah 50:4-11 The third servant song Kidner, commenting on the song writes: After the display of patient gentleness in the first ‘Song’ (42:1–9) and the acceptance of frustrating toil in the second (49:4, 7), here the Servant faces the active spite and fury of evil. It is only a step, the reader feels, to the…
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isa 49…. the servant a polished arrow
Intro In previous posts we reflected on some of the themes in Isaiah 40-55. These chapters are addressed to Israel in exile. Isaiah prophesying many years earlier anticipates the Judah’s exile in Babylon and her return some 70 years later. God will raise up a Persian King, Cyrus (the Great), to overthrow Babylon, Israel’s captors.…
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behold my servant… isaiah 42
Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. 2 He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; 3 a bruised reed he will not break, and…
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unto us a child is born…
I don’t know about you but there are times I see the world as an increasingly hostile and threatening place. It can be threatening to non-Christians and is so for many in some deeply troubled places in the world. For Christians it is threatening too for it is at heart hostile to God. This has…
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john 17… jesus prays for his own (2)
Jesus prayer in John 17 follows on immediately from his teaching (ch13-16). It seems as if the disciples were allowed to eavesdrop. It often picks up on themes developed in Ch 13-17. The section now (vv 6-26) is intercessory and gives us insight into Christ’s present intercession for his people today. It is his advocacy…
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john 17… father glorify me (1)
John 17 is sometimes referred to as Jesus’ high priestly prayer because the greater part of the prayer (vv6-26) is his intercession on behalf of the church. He does not intercede for the world but for his own, those the Father had given him out of the world, those both he and his Father love…
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John (2)… in Him was life
Life and light vv4,5 Life and light are fairly universal religious symbols. John tells us life and light come through the Word. The first words God spoke in Gen 1 were, ‘light, let there be’. He goes on to speak living creation into existence, including man. But John’s interests in life and light reach…
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John 1… the Word (1)
Someone has said of John’s Gospel that it is, ‘Safe for a child to paddle in but deep enough for an elephant to swim in.’ In the introduction vv1-18 we have all the big themes that John will expand and develop throughout his gospel. One writer says that after having read the prologue (vv1-18)…
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Jesus… the son of man (4)
All truth is moral. That is, all truth has implications for living. We speak of abstract truth but there really is no such thing if we take this to mean some truth is divorced from real life. Every ‘truth’ is a part of reality that impacts to a greater or lesser extent on the rest…
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jesus… the son of man (3)
We have been reflecting on the important role Daniel 7’s vision of someone ‘like a son of man’ has in explicating the messianic mission of Jesus. It is the designation most used by Jesus to define himself and we have observed how he clearly uses the designation as a messianic title. At first glance it…
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jesus… the son of man (2)
We noted that the title ‘the Son of Man’ was Jesus’ favourite self-designation. The expression ‘son of man’ was not unfamiliar it would seem in C1 Palestine. It simply meant ‘human’ with the stress being on the weakness and humility of such a position. In the words of Psalm 8, addressing God the psalmist asks,…
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jesus… the son of man (1)
When we think of the titles ‘son of man’ and ‘son of God’ ascribed to Jesus we normally assume the former stresses his humanity and the latter his deity. And this is true. However, as with many generalisations, and particularly those that refer to Jesus qualification and nuance is often required. For instance, while ‘son…
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a story greater than star wars is here
Films vie for a Christmas slot, especially ‘feel good’ family orientated ones. The new Disney Star Wars film will no doubt win this years accolades. I know little about it but it will almost certainly involve the triumph of good over evil, the hero over adversity. Whatever its merits, whatever its heroics, it will be…
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jesus is lord
‘Jesus is Lord’ is the basic confession the Holy Spirit produces in a believer (1 Cor 12:3). It is the person who ‘confesses with his lips Jesus is Lord and believes in his heart God has raised him from the dead’ who is saved (Roms10:9). Peter Lewis, whose chapter on Christ’s lordship in his…
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an apologetic of glory
Over the years, my Christian faith has become more and more grounded as the force of truth in a kaleidoscope of ways has gripped and mastered me. I have become inextricably wed to Christ, for all roads of truth lead to him and from him; incontestably he is the truth. In him is truth and outside…
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god’s final word
Michael Card puts it well. http://youtu.be/kuUF152hV9o You and me, we use so very many clumsy wordsThe noise of what we often say, is not worth being heardWhen the Father’s wisdom wanted to communicate His loveHe spoke it in one final perfect wordHe spoke the incarnation and then so was born the SonHis final word was…
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the word became flesh
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he…
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jesus, the logos, the word of god
Christianity is Christ. A Christian is someone who has faith in Christ. He has come to see the glory of Christ and to be enthralled. The glory of Christ is all he is and all he has accomplished. There are many facets to this glory and Scripture uses many images or better, concepts, to describe…
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all things new
all things are new The NT is clear that there is a relationship of promise and fulfilment between the OT and the NT; what is promised in the old is fulfilled in the new. Fulfilment implies both discontinuity and continuity. However, we should note that when the NT discusses aspects of continuity hard on its…
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the glory of the cross
Est 6:6 (ESV) … the king said… , “What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honour?” The story is set in Susa, the Persian capital, during the reign of King Ahasuerus, better known by his Greek name, Xerxes I (486–464 b.c.). Some Jews had returned to Jerusalem, where they enjoyed a…
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a son is given…
Mark’s gospel is often said to portray Jesus as the one who comes not to be served but serve (Mk 10:45). If this is true then it is understandable that there is no account of his birth; the origin of one who serves is of little consequence; Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God…
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incarnation… the word became flesh
John 1:14; And the Word became flesh… I wonder if we grasp just how repugnant incarnation was to the Hellenized (Greek-influenced) world in which it took place. To imagine God who is spirit becoming part of the material universe was shocking to a culture steeped in dualism. Right-thinking and sophisticated people knew the material universe was of…
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… and heals all our diseases
Luke 5:12-26 (ESV) While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And…
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the psalms – experiences of ot faith realized and resolved in christ
The Psalms are the expression of faith in Israel. They reveal the complexity of thoughts and feelings that were the response of faith to the experience of life in the old covenant. Moreover, they gave individual Israelites the language and thought-forms to express and interpret their own experience according to faith. If they express the…
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the story’s end is vital to rightly read the story
Douglas Green, in discussing Psalm 8 (here) makes this important and wise observation: ‘biblical texts should be read (by and large) in the context of the unfolding story of redemption. The meaning of a text varies depending on the way it is related to the larger story in which it is embedded. Each part of…
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… to live is christ
Christianity is Christ. The Christ life is life in Christ. Christ is the source, succour, sufficiency and shape of this life. He is its fulness – its substance. The epicentre of Christianity and its circumference and the mass between is Christ. Christ is the preeminent one – in creation and new creation (Col 1). God…
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Jesus the joy of loving hearts
Bernard of Clairvaux says well what I was trying to express in my previous post. Jesus, Thou Joy of loving hearts, Thou Fount of life, Thou Light of men, From the best bliss that earth imparts, We turn unfilled to Thee again. Thy truth unchanged hath ever stood; Thou savest those that on Thee…
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in the likeness of sinful flesh… (3)
The argument of previous posts (here and here) is that Christ in his person and mission was invincible. However, we understand the vulnerability of Christ in incarnation we must not construe it as moral vulnerability or missional vulnerability. Jesus was never going to fail. He was God’s servant who would not falter or be discouraged…
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in the likeness of sinful flesh… (2)
Matt 11:27 (ESV) All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father… ‘The problem with much modern theologizing about the humanity of Christ is that it is all too human, too fallen.’ So began and ended my last post reflecting on the person of…
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in the likeness of sinful flesh… (1)
Matt 11:27 (ESV) All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father… For some reason, blogs I’ve been dropping into recently often seem to be discussing the humanity of Christ. Unfortunately, most conversations are unsatisfactory. There are a couple of reasons for this. A…
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the second man… the last adam
1Cor 15:45-47 (ESV) Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.…
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Christ is new creation
Our thoughts about Christ leave a lot to be desired. All too often they are inadequate and demeaning. Two notions I have been disputing over the past few months illustrate this well. I have been inveighing against a rising tide that seems to suggest that new creation is simply Eden restored. Christ takes us back…
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piper and christ as the image of God
What do you think of John Piper’s ‘imagining’ of what it means for Christ to be the image of God? I believe he gets it from Jonathan Edwards. … it would be totally misleading to say that the Son in whom God delights was made or created at the incarnation or at any time. “In…
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he shall save his people from their sins…
Matt 1:20-21 (ESV) But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall…
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out of Egypt have I called my son…
Matt 2:13-21 (ESV) Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose…
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following the star and finding the king
Isa 60:1-22 (ESV) Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and…
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let this cup pass from me…
Christ came as one truly human and part of humanity (born of the woman). Yet he was different from Adamic humanity in all manner of ways. Not only is his humanity that of a divine person but it was a humanity neither innocent nor fallen. Adam was created in innocence. He had not the knowledge…
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a hymn that worships Christ
This hymn from my past sums up well (if a little quaintly) the life of our Lord on earth. It provokes worship. A perfect path of purest grace, Unblemished and complete, Was Thine, Thou spotless Nazarite, Pure, even to the feet. Thy stainless life, Thy lovely walk, In every aspect true, From the defilement all…
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reformed judaism!
Classic Reformed Churches house many godly Christians. Some of the most able preachers of the gospel are found in their pulpits. Yet running through this rich gospel lode is a streak of anomalous legalism that causes more than a little head-scratching and hair-pulling. Some of these C21 gentile believers seem almost as zealous for the…
Cave Adullam 