Sure, that’s what they all say…  And I certainly can’t do that – I don’t buy lottery tickets (I have plenty of better ways to steward the finances God has given me).

But what if someone did?  Read about it here!

HT: Challies

As many Logos users have noted on their blogs, Logos is currently offering a free copy of the new Cornerstone Biblical Commentary’s volume on Matthew & Mark (by Walker & Zuck).  You can download that here while supplies last.

I am very much looking forward to the arrival of the ESV Study Bible!  After I purchased an ESV, it didn’t take long for it to become my favorite Bible.  And now it’s coming with an incredible set of notes in the new ESV Study Bible!  The introduction notes for several books are available as “free samples.”  So far, I’ve been able to collect several (as listed below).  Keep an eye on the ESVSB Blog for more!

• Reading the Bible (article)
  
• Psalms
• Isaiah
• Ezekiel
• Jonah (full book)
  
• Luke
• Ephesians
• Colossians
• Revelation

And this last one isn’t really a Bible study material.  In fact, it isn’t a Bible anything.  And it has nothing to do with grace or knowledge whatsoever!  But I think it’s hilarious and it’s free (at the time of this post) – a short video available at the iTunes Store: The Harvest.

I’ve finished this paper for my correspondence course.  That’s a big monkey off my back!  It was a great study and an instructive project, but “better is the end of a thing than its beginning” (Eccl. 7.8).  Two (shorter) papers and a final exam left – and one week remaining!  I’m rejoicing in God’s provision to get me this far!

I don’t know about posting the whole paper (my posts frequently tend toward lengthiness without including 10pp Turabian papers!), but here are some quotes from several key paragraphs.  They combine the two ways in which I described the book: by structure and by theme.

I describe the structure as follows:

Amos’ book is a collection of sermons preached against the transgressions of Israel.  These discourses are arranged in a way that they present a progression in God’s dealings with his sinful people.  The main divisions are Introduction and Presentation of Charges (1.1-2.16), Call to Repentance (3.1-5.17), Pronunciation of Woes (5.18-6.14) and Certainty of Future Events (7.1-9.15).  Except for the first section, each emphasizes the gravity, imminence and urgency of the situation with an oath uttered by the Lord (4.2; 6.8; 8.7).  Repeated introductory formulae give the reader distinctions for discerning the divisions.

And I note the following themes:

God

This theme is developed in the structural division of the book as follows.  God knows the transgressions of all nations, but especially those of his people (1.3-2.6).  God has given them ample time to repent (4.6-11).  Since his people are unrepentant in their sin, he will refuse their vain worship (5.21-24).  God will certainly judge them for their sin (9.8-10).

Sin

This theme progresses through the form of the book as well.  Sin is a common problem to all people (1.3-2.6).  Therefore all sinners must repent (4.6-11).  Sin will bring terrible consequences (5.18; 6.1, 4).  Not even sin, however, can thwart God’s broad plans for his people (9.11-15).

Judgment

Tracing the theme of judgment throughout the main divisions of Amos reveals more about this key idea.  Judgment will come to all sinners, but especially to God’s people (1.3-2.6; 3.2).  Judgment can be averted by truly seeking the Lord (5.4-6, 14-15).  It will destroy cities and decimate their citizens (6.8-9).  Once God declares it, judgment is inescapable and complete (9.1).

Restoration

Though it is less apparent, this theme can also be followed through the structure of the book.  Restoration is based on the historic deliverance and covenant promises that make judgment seem so incongruous for God’s people (2.9-10).  It would most certainly be hastened by a genuine return to God (5.14-15).  God shows mercy even in the face of impending doom (7.3, 6).  Restoration will certainly reverse the sin-caused curses that the remnant has endured (9.11-15).

And I conclude:

The literary structure of Amos describes the progression of God’s dealing with Israel’s sin.  Their persistent rebellions bring God’s righteous judgment.  Judgment may be certain, but so is God’s eventual blessing on his remnant.
The two strongest themes of Amos meet in the third.  When God encounters sin (and sinners who refuse to repent), judgment is his recourse.  God’s promises, however, are not nullified by human sin or divine judgment.  Amos’ prophecy ends with the hope of promised restoration and fulfillment of covenant promises.

That’s where it falls from the “descriptive” biblical theology side of things; perhaps I’ll take time later to put together some thoughts on the “redemptive history” biblical theology of Amos.

Here are some of the more profitable links I’ve visited over the last week or so:

Good Posts:

• Andy Naselli: The Logical and Emotional Problems of Evil
• Michael Spencer: Interview: Dr. David Powlison on “Reading the Bible For Personal Application”
• James Grant: Interview with Mark Futato on Jonah

Good Sites:

• Biblical Theology Blog: an area of theological study that’s receiving a lot of current attention; also an area in which I have a good deal of interest
• Exegesis and Theology: a friend & fellow student of mine (Brian Collins) regularly posts on exegesis and theology (of course!); his series of posts that trace the Prophet/Priest/King themes through the Scriptures are particularly worthwhile!
• BestCommentaries.com: recommended previously here; again, it’s a great site for commentary recommendations for a purposefully-built library!
• BibleMap.org: also previously recommended here; I’ve been using it recently in studying Amos (a book with a LOT of place names!)

Of course, please realize that not everything on each of these sites is of equal value, but I’ve found profit in these places and hope you will too.

Really, the title says it all – God’s grace is sufficient through all circumstances!  For instance, the pressure of a correspondence course that needs to be finished in 10 days.  God’s grace is sufficient!  Add to that an urgent situation at work that’s requiring extensive overtime hours.  God’s grace is sufficient!

I’m thankful for the sufficiency I find in Christ – strength and satisfaction and supply for all I need.  But if I don’t post very often for the next week or two, you know where my time is being spent.

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
~ II Cor. 12.9

I’m accumulating a library and frequently find myself desiring more books than I have budget to accommodate.  I appreciate any advice I’m offered that helps me discriminate between a good commentary and a great one.

There’s a new website that compiles recommendations from several good sources – bestcommentaries.com.  It’ll be a valuable tool for anyone else who has a book-wishlist that’s longer than his pocketbook!

HT: Andy Naselli on Between Two Worlds

Dialogue is a bit of a buzz word within Fundamentalism (the conservative evangelical kind!) – what position do we take on conversations about Scripture with unbelievers (particularly critical scholars).  Traditionally, Fundamentalists have shied away from dialogue and, on many occasions, criticized other evangelicals for what appears to be kow-towing for critical approval.

Kevin Bauder has a good In the Nick of Time article on this subject.

Mark Earley posted a great article at breakpoint.org about the caffeine dependency that seems to be rampant across our busy country.  I must confess to occasional guilt in this area.  For the most part, I’ve been unaddicted to coffee/pop for the last four months (after a year or so of 3+ cups a day).  But I’m about to start PhD classes.  And I’ve got a lot of work on a correspondence course that I need to finish this month.  So I might have to stay up late a couple times (probably a couple all-nighters during the school year too) to get all my work squeezed into a week.  I freely confess, I think that energy drinks are great for late-night study (the warmth of coffee counteracts its caffeine for me, and I do enjoy pop).  I typically cut the energy drink with Gatorade to spread out the dosage.  But addiction?  Thankfully, no.  Last year, I experienced the headaches when I didn’t have my morning coffee and I’m not going back to that!

Earley points out a better solution to sleep-deprivation than coffee:

“God built rest into the very rhythm of creation. Keeping a day of rest made His top-10 list.  And believe it or not, rest serves a purpose—a divine purpose.  It reminds us that God is in control.  What happens when you cannot finish everything that you think you need to get done and your body is telling you, ‘you have to go to sleep’?  You are thrown into a situation in which you must depend on God.”

As I pillow my head at night (whether at 11pm or 1am), I thank the Lord for sleep and remind myself that I depend on him and that my strength is finite (as often as I stay awake long enough to do so!).  I also reserve my Lord’s Day afternoon for rest time.  Napping is not something I have time to do during the week; it is, however, essential if I’m going to profit from the evening service!  God is good to give us rest – we depend on him and his perfections shine when we acknowledge our limitations!

“It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil; for [God] gives to his beloved sleep.”
~ Ps. 127.2

HT: Challies

Last week, I saw the following slogan on a church sign: “The Spirit don’t follow He leads” – I wish I had been ready with a camera!  My first reaction was to laugh at the grammar.  My second reaction was to think to myself that a public testimony like a church sign really ought to have correct grammar.

Although it might make for some funny mass-forwarded from your uncle email content, I’d recommend that if you ever put together a church sign, you ought to check your spelling and grammar!

Picture courtesy of churchsigngenerator.com

Picture created after the fact at churchsigngenerator.com.

A couple days ago, I watched online a sermon preached at a large contemporary church not too far from where I live.  The pastor is in a series of topical messages answering questions from the church and this message was about alcohol.  Definitely a controversial issue!

Unfortunately, the pastor did not do right (toward the Lord or toward the people).  Rather than giving a practical, Scripturally-informed “theology” of alcoholic beverages, he created a straw man out of weak arguments for the position opposite his and poked holes in it.  I was disappointed.

One meaningless “argument” he made was as follows (and noting it is practical for other issues beside this one):  In arguing (wrongly, in my estimation) that Bible wine is just like wine today, he responded to the historical and archaeological research about the dilution of wine in the ancient near east with an utterly illogical comment.  He claimed that such a position is based on information not in the Bible (true) and therefore, those who incorporate that information into their position on alcoholic beverages are “adding to the Word of God” (he quotes the curse of Rev. 22.18) and are like the Pharisees (his choice of labels).

Besides the obvious non sequiters between his labels and the actual biblical contexts, his choice of those condemning terms is inconsistent.  Is it true (as this pastor claimed) that anyone who allows (or seeks) extra-biblical historical information as he interprets Scripture is cursed and Pharisaical?  No.  I saw the congregation in the crowd and not a single one of those ladies was applying I Cor. 11.3-16 by “just taking what the Bible says without ‘adding’ to it.”  In fact, during another part of the sermon, he characterized Christians who have a stricter application than he has as “men wearing suits all the time, our women with doilies on their heads, churning our own butter, reading the King James Version and praying for the Lord to come back because we’re all so miserable!”  It is sad to see this pastor backing himself into a corner of blatant inconsistency – all for the sake of providing a “message” that people are comfortable hearing.

The Bible is sufficient.  It meets spiritual needs fully without addition or change.  Praise God for that!  But understanding historical background (even information that’s not printed on the pages of Scripture) is very helpful for weeding out potential wrong interpretations of difficult passages.  It is a shame to hear such silly “logic” being used to protect a wrong interpretation from extra-biblical correction.

May God grant all his servants the diligence to study his message thoroughly, the illumination to understand it accurately and the humility to preach it unashamedly!