Advent and the Hope of Resurrection (Lecture Notes)

I lectured at First Baptist Church of Santa Ana (my home church), and this my lecture. I went largely off-script, but this might be of help to some of you.

Thanks

Because of the recent terror attacks in San Bernardino, we are reminded of many facets of what it means to be human. Excluding the contentious nature of political discourse, I’m going to focus on two very specific theological points that have direct relevance for our modern Christian context. Because time is limited, I will be primarily focusing upon 1 Corinthians 15, with several additional comments concerning Romans 8 and Psalm 110, as well as other Second Temple Jewish texts.

Before we begin, we need to determine what “death” actually is. Many modern theologians (and not a few ancient ones!) seem keen on defining death as separation of body from soul (or spirit), and the whole matter of death becomes spiritualized almost to the point of being gnostic. Since Christians are not Gnostics (!) we need to look over how Death is viewed in Scripture.

In the Psalms, death is utilized in poetic form, and is most often simply intended to communicate the loss of life. For instance, Psalm 34:21 says, “Evil brings death to the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.” Paul writes in Romans 5:10, “For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life.” Notice the pattern: “death” means death. While “death” can be used in a stylized or metaphorical sense, it largely refers to the loss or extinction of life that makes a human person animated. The heart stops, the brain ceases, and all that kept us moving ceases.

A happy concept, to be certain!

The first theological point has to do with kingship and literary personification or typology. This is a wider point, but it is a major factor in Pauline theology. To put it in perspective, we often think about Paul working from problem (human sin, justification) to solution (Christ’s death as an atoning sacrifice). However, it is necessary to reconsider this configuration.

Putting it succinctly—which is hard to do for New Testament students—Paul operates not with a problem to solution formula, but rather the opposite: Christ is the solution, but to what problem? Why was Christ raised from the dead? In the Old Testament, it was the death of the animal that was necessary for atonement. The animal was not then resurrected to eternal life! It simply stayed dead, having made its own sacrifice.

Christ’s resurrection, then, is a disruption of something. But what? To put a finer point on it, we do not have a New Testament without the resurrection of Jesus. I’m going to offer two considerations for this, and I’d love pushback, or complements, or both! So here we go.

When Paul writes in Romans 5:14, “Yet death exercised dominion from Adam to Moses…” he is likely talking about physical death. Death here is the Greek noun θάνατος (thanatos), and it is articular—that is, it has a definite article that specifies or intensifies the noun (ὁ θάνατος: ha thanatos). Thus, death here is “Death” with a capital D. This Death is said to have “reigned” (ἐβασίλευσεν: aorist active verb) or “exercised kingship.” Death, from Adam, was the one who ran the show, so to speak. We know this from the Old Testament, specifically Genesis 3, where Adam and Eve are addressed as “you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Mortality is imposed upon our ancestral father and mother as a consequence of sin, and thus, as Scripture and the Christian tradition affirm, we now die.

A point of consideration is that, to be immortal and able to sin with impunity, is a horrific thought. It would affirm that Death cannot be destroyed, and that Sin will eternally exist in God’s good creation. The very presence of human Death demands a response, but we do not know what this response is, or even if this problem is even a problem. Death, for us, is often just a sad reality.

We are subjected by this Death, brought about by Adam and Eve. The verb ἐβασίλευσεν occurs five times within Romans 5 (v.14, 17, 21) and each time it is connected with death and contrasted with life.

V.14: … ἐβασίλευσεν ὁ θάνατος… (“Death reigned…”)

V.17: … ὁ θάνατος ἐβασίλευσεν διὰ τοῦ ἑνός… (“Death reigned through the one…”)

V.17: … ἐν ζωῇ βασιλεύσουσιν διὰ τοῦ ἑνὸς Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ (“…will reign in life through the one Jesus Christ”)

The second use is a future indicative verb, namely, we “will reign” through or because of Christ Jesus and he resurrection. The Greek word ζωῇ refers to life in all it’s fullness, and here it refers to physical life—namely eternal life—because of the contrast with Death.

V.21: … ἵνα ὥσπερ ἐβασίλευσεν ἡ ἁμαρτία ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ (“so that, just as Sin reigned in Death…”)

Death and Sin here are articular, and the use of the preposition “in” (ἐν) illustrates a contrast between the evocative idiom, “In Christ” that dominates Paul’s thinking. To be “in Christ” to be included in the people of God, to be regarded as a firstborn Son or Daughter, a full member who participates in the Kingdom of God.

V.21: … χάρις βασιλεύσῃ διὰ δικαιοσύνης εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν (“so grace might reign through righteousness into life eternal through Jesus Christ our Lord”).

The second use is an aorist subjunctive, indicating the hope of the future. In every instance, Death in Romans 5:12-21 is articular, intended to communicate the destructive kingship of Death. Death is King. Death controls our lives, and exercises dominion over our mortal bodies by claiming them for itself. We see this every time we turn on the television, get on the Internet, or open a newspaper.

We know no other reality other than death. As Paul says in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death [θάνατος], but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The contrast between physical death and physical life is intentional; there is nothing abstract about it.

Yet.

As is evident throughout 1 Corinthians, division and strife lie at the heart of the conflict in Corinth (to borrow a phrase from Ben Witherington), and 1 Corinthians is meant to assert a solution. Paul already knows what the problem is, but outlines their problems in order to pry their grip loose.

For Paul, then, Death is an enemy—the last or final enemy. In 1 Corinthians 15, we see into the very heart of Paul’s solution:

Then comes the end,[g] when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

The use of ἐχθρός (“enemy”) is fairly common throughout the New Testament, being used a little over 30 times. In Paul, it seems to refer to a hostile person or concept, an antagonism that suggests that which is negative and opposite of God or the truth. In the Gospel of Matthew, in chapter 5, Jesus says, ““You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy’ (ἐχθρόν) But I say to you, Love your enemies (ἐχθροὺς) and pray for those who persecute you…”

An enemy is that which counters you, betrays you, and seeks your destruction for their own personal gain. Death, for Paul, is the final enemy. The ἔσχατος enemy: final, end, concluding. After Christ, fulfilling for Paul the role of YHWH in Psalm 110:5-6, has “put his enemies under his feet” (see Psalm 110:1), Christ then moves onto the final enemy.

Here, in v.26, Christ “annihilates” (καταργεῖται: present active middle/passive) Death. Mostly likely, the use of the verb indicates a both/and scenario. By Christ’s resurrection, we see the first fruits of the defeat of the final enemy. But since we await Christ’s glorious return, we do not see the final defeat of this evil entity. We know this because we still die. We do not have actualized eternal life.

But because Christ is described as the “first fruit” (ἀπαρχὴ) of the resurrection, those who die before Christ’s return will be resurrected to eternal life, to witness the final death of Death—the enemy that took their mortal body and killed it. Our resurrection, then, is our vindication, and thus we stand and watch as all of God’s enemies are destroyed and utterly removed from all creation.

There is no room for Death in God’s kingdom. God cannot have any enemies when God is “all in all” (v.28).

So where does this leave us?

Without the resurrection of Jesus, we don’t have a new testament. Without the resurrection of Christ, we will all die and turn into nothingness, never to be found again. Without the resurrection of Christ, we might as well live our lives as heathens, unbound by Law or Covenant, because there is nothing for us.

But, brothers and sisters, Christ IS risen. So how do we live?

We are “waiting for the redemption/reconciliation/liberation of our bodies” in Romans 8:23 (ἀπεκδεχόμενοι τὴν ἀπολύτρωσιν τοῦ σώματος ἡμῶν), and we can now live as brothers and sisters, destined for eternal life, knowing that all the terrorism, sexism, racism, violence, and oppression in the world will ultimately be expunged from God’s creation, and that our bodies are precious to God. We hope for the future, based on this little baby, born of a virgin. We confess that great ancient creed:

We believe in one Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins (they were good Baptists!)

We look for the resurrection of the death and the life of the world to come.

Amen.

Live into the hope of your resurrection, be a witness to those who desperately need the good news of Christ’s ultimate triumph over death, and never forget what the Angel Gabriel said to the blessed Mary in Luke 1:

“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

Advent, then, is about hope and confidence and the solution. The solution to the problem of Sin and Death is the resurrection of the Son of God. Thus, we can see the problem all along, and our hope can thus be reoriented towards the resurrected Christ, in whom we live.

Christ’s kingdom will have no end, and our hope, as the community of God, is to remember, to cherish, and to act accordingly with our future resurrection into eternal life. We do not live in fear, but rather we empower others to live into Christ. The evening news is not the last word. May we bless God and one another with these words.

Thank you.

Drinking From The Deep Creedal Wells: Nicaea, Christology, and Salvation-History

This is intended as a reflection on the Creeds in Relation to New Testament Christology and the Christian Life

In reflecting upon this past quarter, one is hard pressed to consider a topic more pressing and pertinent than Christology. The topics of the virgin birth, subordinationism, and Christ’ sinlessness—or inability to sin—are persistently being debated in academic institutions and seminaries, with little end in sight. Often the relationship between theoretical dogma and ordinary life is overlooked, as the academic world and pastoral ministry can be seen as at odds with each other. However, in light of the Christian existence and the need to actually live a life based upon Scripture, one then needs to know the Scriptural reciprocity Scripture and the Creeds. The goal of this paper is to reflect upon the nature and witness of the Creeds for New Testament Christology, and the implications for daily life in the Church.

The Creeds of Nicaea (325AD) and Nicene-Constantinopolitan (381AD) are considered a vital part of the Church’s historical testimony. I confess that I had never read either Creed in its entirety until this past quarter, so perusing the ancient literature provided a theological jolt that would press anyone into more serious study. Thus, there are three crucial issues one may find within the Creeds that present Christian theology with some measure of doctrinal preeminence.

First, the Creeds have centralized key doctrinal issues that most consider to be top tier. For example, Christ’s equality with God the Father, his preexistence, virgin birth, death, and resurrection. Second tier subjects such as church government, differing views on eschatology (eternal conscious punishment or annihilationism), and even the inerrancy of Scripture are not present in any of the early Creeds—although baptism appears quite prominently as a feature as the universal church favors “one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.” This of course does not mean the aforementioned doctrines are not important doctrines—far from it! —But rather the early church did not view them in an ‘essentialist’ manner. Christology was—and is—more important than Christian views of church and government. So, in a way, this Creedal first order has helped provide an essential result of the basics of Christian orthodoxy, confirmed by Paul (1 Cor. 15:1-4 and passim) as Christ’s bodily resurrection from the dead.

Second, the Creeds have really teased out a lot of the theological themes in the New Testament. A classic example is the doctrine of the Trinity. Nowhere in the New Testament—disregarding the textual interpolation in 1 John 5:7-8—is the doctrine of the Trinity clearly and systematically laid out in a manner that would provide unequivocal support. However, given the data regarding Jesus’ divinity (John 5:18; 10:30), some form of his preexistence (1 Cor. 10:4; Col. 1:15-20), his equality with God (Phil. 2:6-7), and his possibly being called God (θεὸς in Rom. 9:5; c.f. Titus 2:13 if by Paul) all offer some strong possible glimpses of the relationship within the Godhead, or as Richard Bauckham says, “the divine identity.” The inclusion of Christ and the Holy Spirit in the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20 is a classic example of an early proto-Trinitarian doxology (c.f. 1 Cor. 12:4-6). Christ is also spoken about in the same way as YHWH, where 2 Thess. 1:8-9 speaks of “the Lord Jesus from Heaven” (τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ ἀπ᾿ οὐρανοῦ) in the same way YHWH is spoken of in the Old Testament (c.f. Isaiah 66:15-16), bringing judgment upon the oppressors of the church. This all seems to culminate in our fulfilled affirmation of Christ:

“And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all things, Light of Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one substance/being with the Father.”

This teasing of doctrine out of the New Testament is helpful, insofar as it finds common threads among the diverse authors of Scripture and manages to intertwine them in an embroidery—an embroidery that illustrates the beauty of Scripture as she dances throughout history, leaving footprints in the sands of time for us to follow.

Third and finally, the Creeds place a definitive capstone on the salvation-history narrative that Scripture seems to point towards. They tell the story of the preexistence and consubstantial Son who was sent into the world “who for us [humans], and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made [human].” In a world driven by personal and corporate narrative and the accumulation of particular experiences, this salvation story offers humanity a glimpse into the divine reality. This narrative categorically rejects other competing narratives, such as sexual, racial, and economic exploitation in favor of a life of humbleness and service. It tells a story of God waging a war against the forces of evil and death, being subjected to these forces in a state of humiliation, and rising in triumph over the grave. It assumes the unity of the holy Catholic Church (Eastern, Roman, Protestant), and where we place our hope: in the resurrection of the dead and in the life of the world to come. It is to stand with the Prophets of old who denounce injustice and corruption, whether secular or religious. It presents to us an ecologically minded framework for the care of the earth, as this earth was given by God the Father through Christ (1 Cor. 8:4-6), and thus demands our care as viceroys, as caretakers. It confirms the unique humanity of both male and female, as Christ died for “us humans” (ἀνθρώπους) and was made human for us (ἐνανθρωπήσαντα), that neither male nor female are excluded from the drama of redemption.

This new creation under the reign of the eternal Godhead will have no end. Thus, fear is no longer a necessity, but a memorial. Our salvation narrative ultimately trusts in the final defeat, abolition, and annihilation of evil and death. It proclaims hope for the dearly departed in Christ, and requires our action within this very page-turning narrative. It is a call for holy living ‘in Christ’ where we place ourselves within his paradigm and partake in his church. Ours is a pursuit of theosis, a dance towards the divine, nearing a place where the streets have no name. It is the rejection of darkness and an assumption of never ending light (Rev. 21:25), where God dwells with mortals (Rev. 21:3).

The richness of the Christian tradition is indeed a comfort for many, offering to us chances of reflection and refinement as we seek to offer our faith in an increasingly unique and challenging world. The Creeds offer us a chance to offer a concise look at this faith, with its potential and implications for the future. It demands allegiance in a military manner, and confirms our trust in the working out of our lives with fear and trembling. It calls us to think of the future as an approaching reality, not as a distant unattainable goal. Our τέλος requires working towards this now. This is why we exhort people to now be reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5), and why we proclaim his coming—where he is both Judge and King. 

The Creeds thus are relevant, necessary, and vital to the Christian understanding of God and our understanding of how we relate to the world. 

NQ

Resurrection as Liberation (Rom. 8:23)

τὴν ἀπολύτρωσιν τοῦ σώματος ἡμῶν.

“…the liberation of our bodies.” Romans 8:23b.

All of creation has been groaning under the bondage of slavery and the forces of death. In some sense, human beings are tied to this. A certain echo can be found in Exodus, where Israel was under the oppression of a foreign power.

Paul seems to press this into something more unique, as we await the “ransom” or “liberation” of our bodies. The genitive use indicates that this ransom is not “from” or “out of” our bodies, but rather ransoming’ of our bodies.

The flesh (that is, the entirety of the human person) is ransomed, likely from death.

The reference to the “απαρχηε” (first fruits) is likely in line with Paul’s view of resurrection, with Christ as the “απαρχηε” of the resurrection (1 Cor. 15:20-28). In that context, Death is seen as task-master, and death-dealer, as king or as one who reigns over (ἀλλὰ ἐβασίλευσεν ὁ θάνατος). The personification of θάνατος (with an article) likely indicates that Paul viewed Death as an impersonal yet ‘living’ force, something that had the ability to dominate or control. Yet, through the resurrection of Christ, θάνατος has no power over those who attach themselves to Christ. In this sense, we are liberated from the oppression of death. In the same way as Israel was oppressed by Egypt, Assyria and Babylon, so did God ransom them from said oppression.

Yet this is uniquely personal. It affects a corporate group of those in Christ, and yet it affects their bodies as well. It is the setting free of something from something.

The writer also indicates that Christ is a ransom in 1 Timothy 2:6 “αντιλυτρον,” though death is not within the immediate context and it is not certain what we are ‘ransomed’ from. Perhaps the “kings and those in authority” in v2. See also the ransoming of Titus 2:14 (λυτρώσηται), the purification of the people of God.

The adoption of us is the salvation of a people from death, from oppression. The body, both individually and corporately, is healed and restored. Resurrection, then, is liberation.

Just some thoughts.

NQ

Divine Remembrance and the Redemption of Our Bodies

 

This was a rough portion of my final project for Dr. Crisp's course. Enjoy!

“…We ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.” –Rom. 8:23.

One is hard pressed to consider a more sensitive topic than death. In coming to the conclusion that human persons are fully but not merely physical creatures, I am forced to ask how physicalism affects the nature of resurrection life. How are Christians raised in bodies fit for the life to come, or as an interlocutor demanded of St. Paul, “with what kind of body do they come?” Because of this, I've come up with a theory titled the Doctrine of Divine Remembrance (TDDR) and how it may answer the question of resurrection and translate into difficult pastoral situations involving loved ones who are passing into death. Because of this, one must first reflect upon the nature of God revealed to Israel, the people in the New Testament, and how He relationally interacts with human creatures.

TDDR may be illustrated like this: upon the death of the human person, She would cease to exist; like spilt water upon the dusty earth, like smoke that vanishes in the wind, like wind that whispers through the trees, she is simply no more. All that was alive is now gone. However, as we understand God’s omniscience and love for creation, He could remember everything about her, as if her blueprint were fully known and stored in the mind of God himself: as God is involved in the birth of a child, then he knows each atom that comprises the entire person. Every strand of neural fiber and muscle memory is found, annotated and backed up into God’s memory for the final resurrection, which involves the restitution of matter into a human being. One’s signature is engraved upon its DNA.

Scripture speaks both corporately and individualistically as regards the language that I am using in support of TDDR. For example, YHWH calls Israel to not forget their deliverance from their oppressors in Egypt (Deut. 6:12), and He does not forget the cry of the afflicted (Ps. 9:12; 10:12). Christians are called to not exercise vengeance, but to leave that to God, who alone can repay, which assumes that He remembers the good and evil done in and to the body. The use of feminine divine representation in Second-Isaiah 49:15 speaks of a maternal bond between YHWH and Israel, where YHWH is the one who does not forget Israel—even in exile. There are two final individual examples of TDDR and they both include the promise of new life: first, after Hannah prayed for a child, YHWH remembered her and she gave birth to Samuel, not forgetting her in her time of despair (1 Samuel 1). The second example is broader and argues that Mary’s stirring Magnificat in Luke 1 is a fulfillment of First Testament prophecy, where God “helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors” (v54-55). Because God did not forget or forsake his people, Mary could look forward to the incarnation of the Word and the restoration of the world.

There is ample biblical material to establish TDDR as a reasonable concept. Because of this, the blueprint of the human person is cataloged to await the redemption—the resurrection—of the body. The main matter, however, concerns the pastoral implications of TDDR. This is necessary because Christian faith is not merely an intellectual exercise; rather also all theology must be done to build up of the body of Christ and empower her to offer hope to all people.

TDDR emphasizes that life, in all its significance and fullness, is what awaits us instead of nothingness. It offers this life to all people (John 3:16). This is why a Christian physicalist can hope for the redemption of her body: as matter, she matters. As a child of God, she is remembered and loved and empowered with eternal life by the Spirit through Christ for the Father. Without TDDR and the resurrection, she is literally nothing. That is why we hope for God’s remembrance on the last day, why we hope for the redemption of our bodies, and why we faithfully confess the last stanza of the Apostles Creed:

I believe in the Holy Catholic Church,

The communion of saints,

The forgiveness of sins,

The resurrection of the body,

And the life everlasting,

Amen.

Karl Barth & the Resurrection

Its short and happy.

"Within history Jesus as the Christ can be understood only as Problem or Myth.

As the Christ He brings the world of the Father.

But we who stand in this concrete world know nothing, and are incapable of knowing anything, of that other world.

The Resurrection from the dead is, however, the transformation: the establishing or declaration of that point from above, and the corresponding discerning of it below."

--Karl Barth.

Peter van Inwagen & the Resurrection of the Body

I'm quickly growing to love this topic. In preparing for my presentation at the Rethinking Hell conference I've shifted my thinking on many a Christian topic. Not in regards to anything that would contradict Scripture or the Creeds, but on more ancilarry items that affect how I regard a lot of secondary doctrines. 

But that's not why you clicked the link.

Peter van Inwagen is quite helpful in this area for me, and I count him as both a mentor and a bit of a guide in the dark in regards to philosophy; an area I am woefully untrained in. This was his unpublished paper and I present part of it for your viewing pleasure. 

Please read and enjoy.

Van Inwagen:

Most people in most cultures believe in a life beyond the grave. They tell stories about it. But not all cultures tell the same story. Some cultures tell stories of reincarnation or metempsychosis. In our western culture there is a tendency to tell stories of the sort we see in the movie Ghost (you may remember it: Whoopi Goldberg, Patrick Swayze, and Demi Moore). 

In this movie, dead people rise from their corpses, and have a kind of diaphanous existence. They look like human beings (to anyone who can see them at all), but they are able to pass through living people and walls and other solid things. (Why don’t they fall through the floor, then? You may well ask.) And, of course, they are for the most part invisible to the living. Eventually, bright beings summon them to ascend a beam of light to heaven, or dark, gibbering creatures drag them screaming off to hell. This is, I am afraid, exactly the picture of the afterlife that is current among undergraduates at Notre Dame, although they might be willing to admit that the visual representation of disembodied souls in the movie was either symbolical or what might be called cinematic license. Most of them, every Sunday and major feast day, say the words, “I await the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” And every time they are present at the baptism of a child, they promise to help the parents and godparents of the newly baptized bring the child up in a faith one of whose tenets is (they say these words), “I believe in the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.” But these words mean nothing to them. They say them, but they are getting no more meaning out of them than a famous six-year-old did from another well- known text; reciting the Lord’s Prayer, he said, “And lead us not into Penn Station.” A few days ago, I heard a speech by the President of Notre Dame about the difficulties of teaching theology to Notre Dame undergraduates. President Malloy remarked sententiously that we cannot presuppose, as we once could, that our students will bring some degree of catechetical formation to the study of theology. I don’t think he knows the half of it. 

This picture of death and immortality, the Hollywood-and-Notre-Dame- undergraduate picture, is, I believe, very far from the biblical picture of death and immortality. According to the bible, God formed us out of the dust of the earth and breathed life into us. When, in punishment for our rebellion against him we die and return to the dust out which he raised our first parents, we’re just, well . . . dead. 

For the rest, enjoy it here. The paper is the first one beneath the label Philosophy of Religion.

--Nick

You Are Beloved: An Open Letter to Women Who Minister

My wife isn't a preacher, but I enjoy this picture of her on our honeymoon. This is an old church on Maui.

Dear Sister,

I've been vocal (sometimes to the point of screaming, so I apologize for that) in support of your gifts and callings. However, this time, I want to say something a bit different. While I have my opinions regarding Scripture and its proper interpretation, these opinions aren't always the most helpful.

You are Beloved.

When I first heard your sermon and listened to your story, I was initially uncomfortable. As someone who never heard a woman preach a sermon until age 24, I recall an experience of divine love. When God spoke through you, something touched me. Scales fell. My heart opened. You were strong like Deborah, proclaiming the goodness of resurrection, of love. You stood against the ropes, facing your calling and you preached with power and the authority of the Spirit.

You are Beloved.

I can only imagine your experiences in Seminary and church, where you underwent both encouragement and disillusionment. Sometimes from people who didn't know any better, and sometimes from people who did. This is tragedy, and it breaks my heart to witness this. However, you stood the tide like Paul, proclaiming the gospel of God as he did to the Roman church. You are an example of strength, of courage, of honor. It takes more than strength of mind and body to follow God's calling.

You are Beloved.

I have never had the desire to preach, and I almost passed out the last time I appeared before a group of people giving a speech. I cannot imagine the tension in your being when you stand to give a sermon. Just know that you have advocates in the crowd, praying for you. On this resurrection weekend, I thank God that there were still human beings who went the extra mile to honor the body of our fallen Lord. Count yourselves among them, and be blessed this day.

Your fellow worker,

--Nick

Hope in Resurrection

Allison:

Beauty from my Ashes 

PTSD is something that hits you over and over again. It is like your mind is stuck in a loop where the traumas repeat over and over again and often the full intensity of what was felt then was felt again. It is draining, humiliating and jarring and yet somehow one has to get through life. I don’t have all of the symptoms I used to have like the constant flashbacks or feeling acid when someone would touch me lightly, but I still have problems with headaches and fatigue and some anxiety that hinders my everyday life. This is why I say that the stuff I experienced did not make me stronger. I cannot handle as much stress or emotional strain as I could if this had not happened (though God gave me a high resiliency and ability to bounce back and so I can still handle more than many). I do very well in my school work, but could do much better if I did not have the fatigue and headaches. Also, what happened in itself did not build character in me. Other kids who have gone through these types of things have killed themselves, turned to drugs, stripped for money, dropped out of school, become bitter…etc. It was God’s work in my life that brought about beauty.

For the rest, enjoy it here.

--Nick

Roger Olson, Time Magazine and "Heaven"

I found this to be interesting. 

And Now…It’s Time’s Turn: April 16 (2012) Cover Story about Heaven

It seems the major weekly news magazines are competing for readers by having more frequent covers stories about religion. A few days ago I blogged about Newsweek’s cover story about embracing Jesus and abandoning the church. The current issue of Time has a cover story entitled (on the cover) “Rethinking Heaven.” The actual title of the story (inside) is “Heaven Can’t Wait: Why Rethinking the Hereafter Could Make the World a Better Place” by Jon Meacham.

Two recent books seem to provide the catalyst for the story: the best-selling Heaven Is for Real (the story of Colton Burpo’s trip to or vision of “heaven”) and N. T. Wright’s Surprised by Hope. Other books about heaven are mentioned as well.

The point of the story seems to be that some Christians, especially scholars like Wright and “activist” young Christians, are “rethinking” heaven as what happens here and now when we lead good lives helping others and the future renovation of earth after Christ returns. The article seems to say, or at least imply, that belief in a disembodied, purely spiritual existence after death is the traditional view of heaven.

The article talks about two “two camps in the heaven debate” as if they are equal in terms of basic biblical Christianity. The one camp that emphasizes an immediate and permanent disembodied bliss in a purely spiritual heaven is labeled the “Burpo-Graham view.” The other that emphasizes resurrection, both of the body and of the earth, as heaven is treated as the Wright (not necessarily “right”) view also held by theologians such as Christopher Morse of Union Theological Seminary.

According to Meacham, the second view better lends itself to activism in the here and now to make this world a better place. He acknowledges, however, that at least some in the first camp, holding the first view (purely spiritual heaven) also believe in working to make this world a better place.

What I wonder is why these are treated as separate and incompatible “views” of heaven with two camps of believers who supposedly disagree about heaven? I am sure that Billy Graham believes in the future bodily resurrection and eventual renewal of earth with the joining of heaven and earth that Wright talks about. (I won’t dare to speak for Colton Burpo or his parents, but there’s nothing in that view—yes, I read the book—that rules out a future resurrection.) And I’m confident, or at least hopeful, that Wright believes in Paradise as the disembodied existence of the dead in Christ awaiting the resurrection.

Toward the end of the article the author seems to acknowledge the “two step” view of life after death in Christian theology with the first step being a disembodied waiting for resurrection in a heaven-like paradise and the second step being the new heaven and earth joined together with resurrected bodies. This is, of course, the traditional view of life after death (for believers) held by most Christians throughout two millennia. Catholics would throw in purgatory as part of that “intermediate state.”

The thrust of the article seems to be that some Christians believe in an intermediate state and others don’t and that some Christians believe in a future resurrection and renewed earth that is heaven (for believers) and some don’t. Only occasionally does the author acknowledge that the two views can be combined. What is missing is any hint that the combination is the traditional Christian view!

I admit that books like Heaven Is for Real worry me. They may tend to reinforce folk religion that thinks of heaven in purely spiritual terms without any idea of a future resurrection and new heaven and new earth. But nothing in the book necessarily denies that. Similarly, I worry that some theologians’ strong emphasis on the resurrection and new heaven and earth as the primary referent of “heaven” may mislead people to deny the intermediate state.

What I do is talk equally about two future realities for believers: “paradise” and “heaven.” I think it is appropriate to reserve the word “heaven” for God’s place now and our future home when this world and our bodies are freed from bondage to decay and God is all in all or everything to everyone. But I think we need to talk also about “paradise” as that place many people, in their folk religion, call “heaven”—the abode of the dead in Christ about which we know little. But the apostle Paul wrote the Corinthians about it and even suggested that he (or a man he knew) went there in some kind of “near death” experience.

A holistic account of life after death takes both equally seriously even though it emphasizes the resurrection of both our bodies and creation as the “blessed hope.”

Olson/Time/Heaven

--Nick

Agnus Dei

Agnus dei

Agnus dei

Qui tollis peccata mundi

Agnus dei

Agnus dei

Qui tollis peccata mundi

Dona nobis pacem

Dona nobis pacem

pacem

Dona nobis pacem

Wainright/Agnus Dei

--Nick