Samson Agonistes

I have been bringing the morning devotions at the Mission where I work/minister. I try to take a passage from each book in the Bible, in canonical order, and bring out some devotional thought as an encouragement or exhortation to our staff. My next session takes me to Judges where I land on chapter 16. This, of course, is the final chapter in the life of Samson, probably the most well known figure in this book. As we read of the last days of his life as a Judge of Israel, I find several warnings. And since Judges is mostly about warning, I will phrase these as cautions.

• Don’t imagine that usefulness in the past builds up credit that will cover foolishness in the present. Serving Christ is our daily duty. Doing so well does not accrue merit points to offset demerits later. Our attitude in serving Jesus is best expressed in the parable found in Lk. 17:7-10: “We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty” (v.10).

• Don’t assume that the reasons for one’s usefulness by God will always be apparent. It seems that there was nothing about Samson that would give a clue as to the reason for his astonishing strength (Judges 16: 5-6). In fact, God delights in using the foolish and diminished things of this world so that He might receive the maximum glory (1 Cor. 1:26-31).

• Don’t expect to be fireproof when you play with fire. Samson may have enjoyed the “pleasures of sin for a season,” but it was only for a season. Sin is deceptive. Even believing people can be deceived by sin. It is true that our sins have been paid for by the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ as “he (God) made him to be sin, who knew no sin” (2 Cor. 5:21). It is also true that for those in Christ, there is no condemnation (Rom. 8:1). But though there is no condemnation, the life of Samson shows us that there will yet be consequences for sin. Those who play with fire are sure to get burned.

Although there is a morbid word of commendation upon his demise (Jud.16:30), he did not end well. May we take heed that we might end well.

Think

Many have taken pen in hand examine the dismal record that we evangelicals have regarding the life of the mind. Mark Noll’s The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind, Os Guiness’ Fit Bodies, Fat Minds, and Love God with All Your Mind by J.P. Moreland and Dallas Willard are notable among these treatments. John Piper throws his hat into the ring with Think, the Life of the Mind and the Love of God.



Piper challenges us to think clearly, deeply and accurately about God and His Word. His aim, however, is not to produce a generation of evangelical theologians who can pontificate on matters of deep theology. Instead, he encourages deep intellectual exercise to the ultimate end of knowing, loving, and delighting in God.  

When it comes to the life of the mind, we Christians love to castigate ourselves. Certainly, when like lemmings we follow every fad, gimmick and innovation that parades itself before us without even considering whether or not it is doctrinally sound; when the perceived leaders of our movement are those whose primary qualification is that they have a great media presence; and when we announce Armageddon every time a camel blinks in the Middle East, then there is certainly room for criticism. But I wonder if some are critical of “the evangelical mind” solely on the grounds that, by and large, evangelicals are not taken seriously in academia.

In one sense, should this not be expected? How can people who, for good and sufficient reasons, hold to the inerrancy of Scripture expect to find themselves taken seriously at Harvard or Yale? We can see the reasonableness of believing in a God Who has revealed Himself in His Word and His world; but if we understand His Word, we know that the unregenerate mind will not and cannot grasp what makes sense to us.

This is not an endorsement to return to the days of a stick-your-head-in-the-sand, retreat-from-the-culture fundamentalism. Nor does Piper insist that advanced degrees are required to adequately serve God. He is not arguing for academics as such. He does argue that the time has come for Christians – those who display the mind of Christ – learn to really use their God-given ability to think hard on God and His Word. Good advice, and well worth the read.

Abortion – A Rational Look at an Emotion Issue

Tomorrow marks the 38th anniversary of the Roe v Wade ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States. As most know, this was the landmark ruling that defined a woman’s right to abortion in the 1st trimester of pregnancy. This ruling opened the flood gate of abortion on demand and fueled one of the most volatile and enduring controversies in the history of our country.


It is safe to say that Christians have been somewhat less than unified in their position on this ruling and its implications. Some liberal Christian denominations have favored the ruling, while the Roman Catholic Church has been consistently and vocally opposed to it. For the evangelical, the one who adheres to the authority of the Bible, the issue is not open for discussion. If that statement seems to be too dogmatic, too presumptuous, or too absolutist, then the one who objects needs to read Abortion – A Rational Look at an Emotion Issue by Dr. R.C. Sproul. The 20th anniversary edition has been revised and reprinted by Reformation Trust.

In his forward, Dr. George Grant notes:

In the two decades since this landmark book was first published, four different presidents have occupied the White House, seven justices have come and gone on the Supreme Court, and eleven sessions of Congress have held sway in the Capitol … Through it all, the divisiveness of the abortion issue has remained constant. The many and varied political turns of events during the past twenty years have done nothing to ameliorate it—much less, to resolve it. If anything, the divide over abortion has become more pronounced, more acrimonious, and more entrenched. While political gridlock on nearly any and every other issue ultimately has been overcome, no rapprochement on the issue of abortion is anywhere in sight.

In his usual fashion, Dr. Sproul approaches this issue from the perspective of logic, history, theology and Biblical exposition. After reading the book, I am persuaded that one could be convinced to re-examine his or her views relative to the pro-abortion position based upon the logical arguments alone. In other words, this is not an issue that requires commitment to evangelical faith to know the truth. Of course, as one of the leaders in the evangelical movement, Sproul is careful to cite Biblical evidence for the pro-life position. Nonetheless, the arguments from logic and natural law are convincing in themselves.

What is absent from Dr. Sproul’s work is the vitriol that often flows from advocates of the pro-life position. Sproul does not demonize the opposition. Certainly, this is an issue that arouses passionate debate. In Sproul’s case, there is not more heat than light. Both are in sufficient quantity.

I understand that Reformation Press will send a copy of this book to every member of the new Congress. I pray that many will read it. I am sure that some will. I am sure that some will throw it away. If read objectively, the book has the potential to change a lot of the thinking on Capitol Hill

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Reformation Press as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commision's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Unbroken

So, I have joined the ranks of those who can read electronically. For Christmas, I received a Kindle. Actually, it was a combined gift for both my wife and me, but I imagine I will get the most use from it. The books she reads – and she reads a lot – are readily available at the library.


The 1st book I read on my Kindle was Unbroken by Lauren Hillenbrand. I had meant to purchase the book after Christmas, but thought that this might be a good way to test drive the device. I must admit that I enjoyed reading this book on the Kindle. But, it is a great book that I would have enjoyed reading in any form. I couldn’t wait to snatch a few moments to read.

Unbroken is the story of Louis Zamperini, a member of the US Olympic track team in 1936. It is a story of human endurance in the most desperate of conditions. As a bombardier in a B-24, his aircraft crashed in the Pacific. He endured nearly a month and a half at sea in shark infested waters. Finally spotting land, he came ashore and was immediately made a prisoner of war by the Japanese. The trials spent as a POW made the hardships of shipwreck pale in comparison. Without disclosing all of the details, Billy Graham’s famous crusade in Los Angeles in 1948 makes a significant contribution to the end of the story.

Zamperini’s treatment as a POW speaks volumes about human depravity and the power of hope. That the Japanese could so brutalize their prisoners and that the Nazi’s could deal so inhumanly with Jews, Slavs, and all they considered to be inferior, testifies to the Biblical doctrine of total depravity. As the book shows, not all of Zamperini’s captors were harsh and brutal. In fact, after the war he went to Japan to try to locate one who claimed to be a Christian and treated him with dignity. Yet, as I read this book, I took these thoughts away for further development:

• Unlike John Lennon who accused religion of being the chief propagator of warfare in history, it was non-Christians, both in Germany and Japan (not to mention Russia) who were the most sadistic and inhumane.

• What was going on in the world that at the same time in history, such brutality could emerge in both Europe and Asia?

• Germany and Japan were both civilized and technologically advanced societies. Yet their achievements did not save them from themselves. Our culture and society likewise cannot save us from ourselves. The remedy for depravity is not found in education, politics, or economics. It is found in the gospel of Christ.

With All Your Mind

Jesus’ counsel to “love God with all your mind” is recorded in 3 of the gospel accounts (Matt.22:37, Mk. 12:30, and Lk 12:27. Dr.Albert Mohler describes what this looks like in a Christian worldview:

A robust and rich model of Christian thinking—the quality of thinking that culminates in a God-centered worldview—requires that we see all truth as interconnected. Ultimately, the systematic wholeness of truth can be traced to the fact that God is himself the author of all truth. Christianity is not a set of doctrines in the sense that a mechanic operates with a set of tools. Instead, Christianity is a comprehensive worldview and way of life that grows out of Christian reflection on the Bible and the unfolding plan of God revealed in the unity of the Scriptures.

A God-centered worldview brings every issue, question, and cultural concern into submission to all that the Bible reveals and frames all understanding within the ultimate purpose of bringing greater glory to God. This task of bringing every thought captive to Christ requires more than episodic Christian thinking and is to be understood as the task of the Church, and not merely the concern of individual believers. The recovery of the Christian mind and the development of a comprehensive Christian worldview will require the deepest theological reflection, the most consecrated application of scholarship, the most sensitive commitment to compassion, and the courage to face all questions without fear.

Read the entire post here.

The Kennedy Detail

The Kennedy Detail by Gerald Blaine is an insider’s look at the Secret Service agents responsible for the protection of President John F. Kennedy. This is a fascinating story of the lives of the men who protected JFK and how they interacted personally with the First Family. For these men, protecting the president was the most important responsibility one could have. When they failed to do that, all of them became traumatized.

It is interesting to see how the Secret Service performed their responsibilities with what we would today consider primitive resources. There were no computers or databases, no cell phones or smart phones, no wireless communication except for the cumbersome walkie-talkie that was carried by one agent. Information was kept in personal notebooks, written in the field by the agents who did the legwork.

I gained a new respect for the Secret Service from Blaine’s account. He likewise managed to portray this iconic president and his family in very compassionate and human terms. This is refreshing in a day when there has been so much ink devoted to the less than sterling moral character of the family of Joe Kennedy. For whatever JFK was, he was still a father, a husband, a brother, a son, and a president.

Word Games

I write a blog where I wax ridiculous about a variety of topics that spew forth from my twisted mind. Recently, I posted a submission that examines the strange expressions we often use in popular language. As I considered material for that blog, I thought of expressions that are more serious in nature.


I attended a funeral service for a former co-worker where in his eulogy the minister exhorted the people that, if they wanted to see_____ again, they needed to “accept Jesus as your personal Savior.” While the majority of the attendees felt this was an “awesome” message, I, the curmudgeon, squirmed in my seat.

This kind of talk reinforces the “me-centered” mania that has invaded much of popular evangelicalism. The popular appeal to become a Christian is now based on certain benefits that I may accrue from such a transaction. If I become a Christian, I can go to heaven when I die. How many people have been asked to raise their hands if they want to do this? One would have to be insane to not want to go to heaven if he believed that such a place exists. The appeal is often made to guarantee that if I become a Christian, I can see my loved ones for a grand reunion in the sky. Now, these are true statements, but why do they become the primary motivation for becoming a Christian? Notice that, in much evangelical preaching today, there is precious little talk about what Jesus did to pay the penalty for sin and to satisfy the righteous wrath of a holy God who is offended by our transgressions. We do not frequently hear that “repentance toward God and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ” is the natural response of sinful man to the gospel.

It’s true that Jesus did this for us. But he did this for us that God would be glorified in His grace and mercy, not primarily to provide us with benefits.

This leads me to my second rant. Where do we get the idea of “accepting Jesus as our personal Savior?” Our personal Savior? I see problems with this on two levels. First, is Jesus my personal Savior like a personal shopper or personal masseuse or personal butler? Am I to think that I am so important that all of this is for me alone? Second, understand that there are some things that we all accept but do not necessarily appreciate. Are we to accept Christ as we would accept a root canal – very unpleasant, but I’ll do it if it is necessary?

I realize that questioning such long held shibboleths might label me as a heretic. That’s OK. I realize that we use non-biblical words to describe Biblical truths (“trinity,” for example). However, let’s be careful and think about the words and phrases we use.