Thoughts on the Last Two Chapters of the Bible

The Bible is incredible.

One place that has been opening up to me in recent weeks is Revelation 21-22, John's vision of the new heavens and new earth. In particular I'm seeing how the last two chapters of the Bible envision a recapitulating (summing up) restoration of the world created and diseased in the first three chapters of the Bible.

Briefly:

Gen 1:1 speaks of heaven and earth, Rev 21:1 of a new heaven and a new earth.

In Gen 3:8 God walks in the garden, in Rev 21:3 speaks of God once again dwelling with man.

In Gen 2:18 the Lord sees that man has no helper suitable for him, and gives him a bride; in Rev 21:9 we hear of 'the Bride, the wife of the Lamb,' culminating a recurring theme throughout the Bible of the people of God as God's wife.

In Gen 1:16 God makes the greater light and the lesser light; in Rev 21:23 'the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it . . .'

In Gen 2:10 a river flows out of Eden; in Rev 22:1 the angel shows John 'the river of the water of life . . .'

In Gen 2:9 we hear of a tree of life--so also in Rev 22:2, 14, 19.

In Gen 3:14, 17 the serpent and the ground beneath man is cursed; in Rev 22:3 we hear that nothing will be cursed any longer.

In Gen 1:28 God told mankind to rule and exercise dominion over the earth; in Rev 22:5 we learn that the saints will indeed reign forever and ever in the new earth.

What a hope. The world will one day be what it was meant to be.

And it is through Jesus, is it not, that each of these categories of Genesis winds its way to Revelation?

Through Jesus the heavens and earth were made, and through him they are being remade (Col 1:16, 20).

In Jesus God dwells with man (John 14:23).

Jesus is the true Bridegroom (Mark 2:19).

Jesus is the light of the world (John 8:12).

Jesus is the source of true living water (John 4:10).

Jesus is the real, life-giving tree (John 15:1).

Jesus is the source of all blessing, because he submitted to the greatest curse (Matt. 27:46).

Jesus is the King, the permanently-reigning Son of David (Luke 18:38).

Immanuel Church, Nashville

One reason I am encouraged about what is happening for the sake of the gospel today is our brother Dan Orr. Dan has just joined my wonderful dad in Nashville at Immanuel Church, an Acts 29 plant begun three years ago.

Dan and I graduated from Wheaton College together in 2001. Since then he has been serving with Young Life here in Wheaton while chipping away at an MDiv at TEDS. He and his wife and their two kids moved to Nashville a few months ago to work with Dad and Immanuel for the sake of the gospel and God-sent revival. Dan blogs at It's a Beautiful Gospel.

I love Dan Orr. He walks humbly with the Lord and cherishes the gospel of grace, understanding better than most of us the all-encompassing liberation that comes from the gospel. He works hard. He knows life is short. He refuses to project himself as anything other than what he is. He says what he means and means what he says. He is hilarious. He is courageous.

So I am thrilled Dan has joined Dad. These are two men I love and admire and I cannot imagine a more exciting church to be part of right now. Say a prayer today for Immanuel and continue, with me, to expect great things from God for and through his Church in days ahead.

Themes in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Chicagoland Lewis readers may want to be aware that Will Vaus, author of The Hidden Story of Narnia, will be on campus here at Wheaton on November 5-6.

On the 5th he'll lecture on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. On the 6th--I love it--he's going to give a kid-friendly talk on themes from Dawn Treader.

Details here.

Over-Preparation Can Be Self-Trust

If I can’t work hard and then leave the results to God, that shows I am ultimately trusting in myself, not Him. Especially in my sermon preparation, I am learning that over-preparation can be a form of self-trust.

A good word for us all in this post from my brother Gavin.

What's the Least I Can Do?

That's the question we all tend to roll out of bed asking. What's the least I can do here? What's the minimum requirement? What bar do I have to meet, after which I can do what I want to do?

It's the question Peter asked with respect to forgiveness--what's the least number of times I can forgive before finally having the right to stop forgiving? (Matthew 18:21-35)

It's the question the Pharisees asked with respect to marriage--what's the least excuse I can have for divorcing my wife? (Matthew 19:1-12)

It's the question the rich young man asked with respect to morality--what's the least I can do to have eternal life? (Matthew 19:16-22)

C. S. Lewis insightfully writes:

Our temptation is to look eagerly for the minimum that will be accepted. We are in fact very like honest but reluctant taxpayers. We approve of an income tax in principle. We make our returns truthfully. But we dread a rise in the tax. We are very careful to pay no more than is necessary. And we hope—we very ardently hope—that after we have paid it there will still be enough left to live on. ('A Slip of the Tongue,' in The Weight of Glory [Touchstone 1996], 140).

The alternative?

'But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.' --Matthew 6:33

'. . . how shall he not also with him graciously give us all things?' --Romans 8:32

Taxpaying obedience is miserable. Quit dividing your time between you and God. Kill your self-preservation instinct. Kill it. Galatians 2:20.

Violent all-out surrender is our only rest; our only real, solid joy.

First Lecture in 'Jonathan Edwards and the Church' Series

This looks like an interesting event to kick off the Jonathan Edwards and the Church series--George Marsden speaking on Edwards and beauty, and Colin Smith responding, November 3 at TEDS.

Details here.

What, Essentially, Is Reformed Theology?

In a word, Reformed theology is fundamentally about grace. . . .

At its heart, Calvinism is simply a lens that magnifies a persistent theme in the narrative of God's self-revelation: that everything depends on God. Everything is a gift.

--James K. A. Smith, Letters to a Young Calvinist (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2010), 14

Amen!

This wonderful book is a short, accessible series of 23 letters, each a few pages long, written from the perspective of an older saint who is helping walk a younger man into the Reformed faith. The two consistent themes throughout the book are (1) Reformed theology is inherently self-contradictory if it breeds pride, and (2) there is much more to Reformed theology than the five points.

Our brother Justin Taylor has another nice excerpt from the book here. Dr. Smith briefly introduces the book at his blog here. Tullian helpfully comments on one of the main themes of the book here.

Resurrection, Justification, and Union

A nice statement on the connection between Christ's resurrection and our justification from Cornelis Venema's The Gospel of Free Acceptance in Christ, which engages the New Perspective from the angle of historical and systematic theology. Venema is president of Mid-America Reformed Seminary and did his PhD on Calvin at Princeton. Commenting on Romans 4:25, Venema says:

[T]he resurrection of Christ represents the justification and vindication of believers. Since Christ bore the consequences of sin on behalf of his people on the cross, his resurrection was God's declaration of both his and his people's righteousness. The great and complex event of Christ's death and resurrection constitutes the basis for the positive verdict of justification for all who are in union with him through faith. In the death of Christ, the trespasses of his people were punished; in the resurrection of Christ, the justification of his people was declared. The justification of believers occurs by virtue of their participation in the reality of Christ's death and resurrection on their behalf.

--Cornelis Venema, The Gospel of Free Acceptance in Christ: An Assessment of the Reformation and New Perspectives on Paul (Banner of Truth 2006), 44

Our Whole Life Long

Bavinck, in the midst of exulting in Luther's doctrine of justification:

God's grace and it alone is the object of a Christian's trust, at the beginning of a Christian's conversion and similarly to the end of one's life.

--Reformed Dogmatics, 4:196

P.S. If you don't like Bavinck, you might want to stay away for a few weeks! I'm working on a paper on Bavinck's view of justification so I'm immersed in the great Netherlander at the moment.

The Gospel's Strange Inversion

Intrinsically the saints are always sinners; extrinsically, therefore, they are always justified. Hypocrites, on the other hand, are always [viewing themselves as] intrinsically righteous; extrinsically, therefore, they are always sinners.

--Martin Luther, LW 25:257; quoted in Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, 4:194