- Jonah
I have a little widget on the side of both the Blog and Quote pages. It is a link that will play Pirate Christian Radio live. Pirate Christian Radio is where Fighting For The Faith, Issues Etc, White Horse Inn, and many other awesome podcasts and radio programs can be found. I subscribe to many of the podcast feeds from the programming on PCR. I link to it as a thank you for all the work they do to get out the Gospel and good theology. Enjoy.
- Jonah
0 Comments
http://coldcasechristianity.com/2015/its-time-to-train-in-mma-mixed-martial-apologetics/
J. Warner Wallace is a (retired) cold-case detective. He is also an apologist whose work I greatly admire. His book "Cold-Case Christianity" is an excellent introduction to Evidential Apologetics, a facet of apologetics which focuses on gathering together the facts or "evidence" and making arguments from that. It closely relates to Historical-Legal Apologetics. His book and blog helped me at a point when I believed the Christian Faith untenable from the "modern" man's perspective. One of the interesting things about academic apologetics is that there are many sub-categories. Each category often operates under different theological paradigms (such as Calvinists using primarily pre-suppositional apologetics due to their view of the corruption of man's nature). But the cool thing about the different forms of apologetics is how almost anyone can use them. Growing up I thought apologetics was just using science to prove the existence of God. In order to use that however, one would need a vast grasp of Science that the average layman does not have time to learn. Now I see that that is one part of the bigger picture. This is pretty cool, because different people have different skill sets and levels of education. I am not a Lewis or Tolkien who can weave apologetics into fairy tales by retelling the biblical stories and themes in beautiful writing. But I do enjoy learning about the historical evidence for things like New Testament reliability, the Crucifixion, and the Historical Accuracy of the Old Testament. I simply found my niche in apologetics. That in fact is why I'm minoring in Biblical Languages, so I can gain the tools to delve into the wealth of resources we have on these topics. I leave you the reader with a question: What skills or education do you have that can be woven into a type of apologetics? Look around the internet and find definitions for different types of apologetics and find one or a few that fit you. A great place to start is the wikipedia page for "Christian Apologetics." A few apologists whom I deeply respect are John Warwick Montgomery, Dr. James White, and Gary Habermas. They all have books, blogs, articles, debates, and lectures scattered around the web. *** I have had a crazy two weeks! I was at the beach, going to summer orientation at CUI, and a backpacking trip. I will continue to get content out, and have several blog posts I'm working on. Tuesday and Friday posts will resume this week. I should have the next Trinity blog out on Friday. Also keep checking out the quotes section for thought provoking phrases and ideas. Soli Deo Gloria, -Jonah As a young man about to go off to University I would like to write a list of goals for the next season of life (age 17-26).
Goals:
Language Goals: -Become fluent (defined as being able to read without constant dictionary use in the Dead Languages and Conversant and Reading in the Living Languages) in (some or all, as time allows)-
*Funny story - I told a pastor at a church in Quito that I was 50** years old... ** I was fifteen at the time. And most importantly, to do all these things to the Glory of God, Soli Deo Gloria, - Jonah http://pulpitandpen.org/2015/07/03/should-we-celebrate-independence-day-viva-la-resistance/
Check this out. As a Christian living in America these days we need to think about these issues and rejoice in true "freedom" and "liberty." -Jonah I will kick this series of blogs off with the main tenant of Christian Theology, that God the Father is eternally existent and that Jesus has existed eternally with Him.
That Jesus is God and yet distinct from the Father is the crux of Trinitarian Theology. If there was no New Testament Jesus, the Trinity would not be as clear. There are certainly hints at the Trinity in the OT. The main one is the Angel of the Lord, who often receives worship and unlike other angels, does not rebuke the human worshipping him (see Genesis 18, Joshua 5:13-15, and Judges 13 as opposed to Revelation 22:8-9 for instance). However it isn't until the New Testament that the concept of the Threeness of God is truly shown. All Scripture quotations are from the NET Bible (see About page for copyright info). Let's jump into John 1. 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God. - John 1:1 (NET) John starts off his Gospel with parallels to Genesis, the First book of the Jewish Scriptures; 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. - Genesis 1:1 (NET) John in the first chapter of his Gospel is saying that this man I am talking about, he is God! He is the God you read about in our Scriptures, but he is also distinct from him. He is also making a point that modern Christians should remember: Jesus is the God of the Old Testament, in the sense that Jesus and YHWH are both part of the Trinity while being distinct. Marcion was a heretic in early church history who tried to say that Jesus wasn't the same God as the Jew's YHWH. He made up his own list of books of the Bible, which included an edited version of Luke's Gospel and some of Paul's letters and completely throwing out the Old Testament, the other Gospels, several of Paul's letters, and anything that sounded like "Judaizing interpolations." [Metzger, Canon, pg. 93] 2 The Word was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created by him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. - John 1:2-3 (NET) Here John is refuting an error that has often crept into the Church since the time of John's writings: Jesus is not a CREATED creature the way we are. The Divine Word has existed since before time with God the Father. He is the agent of creation. And if you think back to Genesis, one thing pops out: God speaks things into existence. If I speak, do I not use words? Even way back in Genesis, Scripture anticipates the revealing of Christ in John's Gospel. Fascinating, no? 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind. 5 And the light shines on in the darkness, but the darkness has not mastered it. - John 1:4-5 (NET) Again, John is drawing parallels from Genesis 1, by bringing light and darkness into the picture: 3 God said, “Let there be light.” And there was light! 4 God saw that the light was good, so God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day" and the darkness “night.” There was evening, and there was morning, marking the first day. - Genesis 1:3-5 (NET) Next comes John the Baptist. John (The Apostle, not the same John) skips from the beginning of the world to the First Century A.D., when there was a man named John prophesying about the coming "light." 6 A man came, sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that everyone might believe through him. 8 He himself was not the light, but he came to testify about the light. - John 1:6-8 (NET) John then goes back to talking about Jesus: 9 The true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was created by him, but the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to what was his own, but his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who have received him—those who believe in his name—he has given the right to become God’s children 13 —children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God. - John 1:9-13 (NET) Gospel! Jesus was the Creator who stepped into the Created World (Platonic Greeks say WHA???)* but the beings whom He crafted rejected Him. To all who do receive Him however, they become TRUE Children of God. 14 Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory—the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father. - John 1:14 (NET) For all us thick-headed people, John makes it clear whom he has been talking about: Jesus. The God who took on flesh and lived with us. This is awesome stuff, a God who humbles himself for our sakes. 6 who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. 8 He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross! - Philippians 2:6-8 (NET) Amazing how the whole Bible echoes itself huh? Kinda like all 66 books have the same Author... ;) 15 John testified about him and shouted out, “This one was the one about whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is greater than I am, because he existed before me.’” 16 For we have all received from his fullness one gracious gift after another. 17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came about through Jesus Christ. - John 1:15-17 (NET) John compares Jesus to Moses. Jesus brings the Gospel, Moses brought the Law - This is especially important to Jews, most of whom viewed Moses' books, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, as the most authoritative of the Jewish Scriptures. [Tomasino, Judaism, pg. 19] But Jesus brings something better than the Ten Commandments. He brings the fulfillment of God's revelation: His body on a cross in our stead as the final sacrificial lamb. And now his disciples have left us the teachings that Christ gave them to teach to others:) (see Matthew 28:19-20 and John 14:25-26) 18 No one has ever seen God. The only one, himself God, who is in closest fellowship with the Father, has made God known. - John 1:18 (NET) I think what this verse is saying that no one has seen God, but the one who is closest to God (Say... His Word?) has made God known (by taking on a body and walking among men). Until the next blog (Which may or may not get out next Monday, it depends on my time management as the next few days are Cray-Cray...), Soli Deo Gloria! - Jonah Bibliography (quoted material and influences): - The NET Bible https://net.bible.org - Athanasius; On the Incarnation [Fig Books, 2012] Print. - Metzger, Bruce, The Canon of the New Testament [Oxford University Press, 1987] Print. - Metzger, Bruce; The Jehovah's Witnesses and Jesus Christ https://www.1517legacy.com/freebies/Bruce%20Metzger%20-%20The%20Jehovah's%20Witnesses%20and%20Jesus%20Christ.pdf - Tomasino, Anthony J.; Judaism Before Jesus [Intervarsity Press, 2003] Print. - The Lutheran Study Bible (Thanks CPH for such a great resource!) - Also, thank you to Spotify Premium for music to blog too;) *Blog reader says huh? This is a reference to the Platonic (and Gnostic) concept of hatred of matter and glorifying of spirit... Philosophical humor ;) http://virtueinthewasteland.com/3/post/2015/06/ep-129-on-cs-lewis-with-dr-steve-mueller.html
The podcast link above is an interview with Dr. Steven Mueller, the Dean of Christ College, which is the School of Theology at Concordia, the school I'm going to. The interview is on C.S. Lewis, which was the topic of Dr. Mueller's doctoral dissertation. The interview is on the Virtue in the Wasteland Podcast, done by Dr. Daniel van Voorhis and Dr. Jeffery Mallinson, both professors at Concordia. It is an enjoyable interview on one of the most well known Apologists of the last century. One of the things I enjoy about Lewis is a quote from Book IV of Mere Christianity, where he says, "Everyone has warned me not to tell you what I'm going to tell you in this last book. They say ‘the ordinary reader does not want theology; give him plain practical religion’. I have rejected their advice. I do not think the ordinary reader is such a fool. Theology means ‘the science of God,’ and I think any man who wants to think about God at all would like to have the clearest and most accurate ideas about him which are available. You are not children: why should you be treated like children?" Lewis offers Theology in a way that is understandable and interesting. The Narnia Chronicles, The Space Trilogy, and The Screwtape Letters are all theology hidden in narratives and stories. Lewis's apologetic and theological works, such as Mere Christianity and The Problem of Pain are both written in clear English, and while dealing with difficult topics, is accessible to a wide audience. This is one of the goals of this blog as a whole, a place for me to take what I'm learning and put it in understandable terms. I will not try to "water it down," but rather define the words that must be used and "translate" the words that can be simplified. I will also work on my writing skills, which are currently appalling... And specifically I hope to keep this in mind as I write this series on the Trinity. Because this is such an important topic, I hope that I can make it understandable, as much as the Trinity is understandable. If at any point there are questions, feel free to leave a comment! The first blog on the Trinity will drop on July 3rd. It will be on Jesus and John 1. Soli Deo Gloria, - Jonah This week (6/28/15-7/3/15) I will be working on a series of blogs on the Trinity, going through Scripture, the Athanasian Creed, some of the Church Fathers, and even C.S. Lewis! The goal is to have a series of four to six posts (I will be releasing them NEXT week, after Fourth of July) that will work through Trinitarian doctrine and why this is such a big deal in understanding Scripture. I was going to write a paper on this, but never quite got around to it...
A presumptive plan for the Blogs:*** The Trinity 1. Major Biblical Texts 2. John's Gospel + Revelation 3. Paul's Letters 4. Creeds, Confessions, and Confessors 5. So What? How a Basic Understanding of the Trinity Resolves Scriptural Tensions I will try to keep the blogs concise and on topic. My disclaimer is that I am a teenager with a blog, and am open to correction! ;) Because I am an amateur theologian, I will point you to resources for each topic I address. And ultimately, I hope that these blogs will be helpful to you, my reader, and give you a better understanding of the God of the Bible, whose name (nom sg) we are all Baptized into: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Grace and Peace, - Jonah *** Extremely presumptive, will probably change! My basic plan is to post two blogs a week, maybe on Tuesdays and Fridays, and add quotes whenever possible. Consistency is key for me. Thank you for reading! I hope my writing teacher never finds this blog... She would probably underline everything in red... Anyways, goodnight one and all! I must get some sleep.
Soli Deo Gloria! - Jonah I love reading books. I have a full sized bookshelf in my room that contains all the books I read the sixteen years leading up to my Senior year of high school. The Giver, Hatchet, A Wrinkle in Time, Brian Jacques’s Redwall series… I loved reading fiction. I also have books on gardening, drawing, magic tricks, codebreaking, fly-fishing, and my Lego Magazine collection. My desk has several bookshelves build it. The lower shelf houses Roget’s Thesaurus, Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, Strong’s Concordance, Guitar Chord Books, My Fly Fisherman magazine subscription, and sundry other writing and music books. Staring me in the face are the books I have bought and (mostly) read this year (Senior). Mounce’s Basics of Biblical Greek, Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot, The Complete Short Stories, Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, Calvin’s Institutes, Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings, C.S. Lewis’s Signature Classics, Augustine’s Confessions, A collection of Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, The Silmarillion, and Unfinished Tales… You get the point. I live in books.
Why, you may ask, do I like to read? Opportunity. I enjoy the opportunity of sitting at the feet of the best Storytellers, Theologians, Historians, Philosophers, and Thinkers to hear why the believe what they believe and learn about the times that they lived in. There is a level of interaction that happens when you read a book that is fascinating to me. I can, for a stolen moment, step into another person’s life or even their mind. Spending a day hiking with Bilbo in The Hobbit, sitting in on one of Walther’s evening lectures on Law and Gospel, considering the impact finding Christ’s corpse would be with Dr. Weber in Paul Maier’s A Skeleton in God’s Closet, being Catechized by Martin Luther in his Large Catechism, learning about the cloud of witnesses that I have in the Early Church with Eusebius in his Church History, and considering the depths of my own sin with Augustine in his Confessions. I especially enjoy reading books by dead people because they lived in a different time. Their assumptions and philosophies can help me take a step back and evaluate my own. We are very good at assuming that because we are the most recent humans, with our smartphones and Wi-fi, therefore we are the most intelligent. This is false. We are simply a generation that is reaping the benefits of past generation’s technological advances. And I like to learn about how we got here. Right here, with so many toys and so little joy. I can learn about suffering by people who lived before antibiotics or anesthesia. Happiness from people who didn’t have all the junk that should make me happy. And most importantly I enjoy being strengthened in my faith by the sainted members of the Church who have gone before me to be with the Lord. Read a book. I dare you. Then thank a teacher that you can read ;) Here are a couple summer recommended reads:
|
AuthorMy name is Jonah, I am a Student at Concordia University, Irvine, and this is my blog. I will attempt to capture the conversations that happen in my head on paper... Digital "paper" as it happens to be. My Favorite Quote:"The Law says, 'Do this,' and it is never done. Grace says, 'Believe in this,' and everything is already done."
- Martin Luther, (1518), Heidelberg Disputation, Thesis 26 Archives
June 2016
Categories
All
|