Seedlings

So little time is available to me these days. There are lots of things I wish I could write about, and there's just not much time to develop them. It's late already—I need to be up in a little less than eight hours—and all I can do right now is chart a list of topics kicking around in my head:

• Kenotic Arianism (the name's not mine, though I dearly wish I were smart enough to coin it)


• Pictures of Christ in Genesis


• Chrysostom on 2d Corinthians 5.21


• The redemption of Lot in Ruth (among other things)

Someone else is supposed to be writing on the Arianism bit, since I'm undereducated for that sort of writing, but the others are more within my grasp.


On a personal note, I confess that the past months have made me sorry to write things down in journals; when I go back to read them, as I have been doing (pawing through memories during my drawn-out moving process), I inevitably learn worse things about myself than I wished to record. My memory is a bad one, and lately I have come to realize that this is another case of God's grace to me. He has granted me to hold on to good things in my memory and forget many of the bad ones, including some about myself.

What has been interesting, though, is to realize how different the spiritual journey of the past decade has been than I expected (if I expected anything at all). My personal writings reveal a great deal of stunning spiritual ignorance, and I am sure that in the coming years I will find the same true of these writings.

But in all things, I can say that God has been remarkably gracious and patient. I have learned a great deal through the valleys of the last 10 years—the mountains were fewer and farther between than you might guess. But it has been a decade of learning; I am much different spiritually today than I was then.

Looking Ahead

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

(Romans 6.5–11, ESV)

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

(Colossians 3.1–4, ESV)


Happy Easter, everyone.

Tidbits

It's been busy lately, and it's unlikely that I'm going to be here very often. A few nice things of note in the past months, however, and I thought I'd summarize quickly while I watch the Colts and the Saints.


First, I spent a Sunday at Redeemer Pres in New York City in November. It was one of the first church services in a long time that I felt like I could fully participate in. Gospel-centered, good worship, and weekly communion (with wine!). The service was the end of Philippians, the final greetings, and he spent time appropriately commenting on being "saints in Christ Jesus." That sainthood is a consequence of our union with Christ.

Second, Piper wrote some lessons from CS Lewis, among which was Lewis' definition of joy: a desire which is in itself more desirable than any other satisfaction. I suppose there's really more to it, but the definition is pretty descriptive. Desire supposes want, or lack, and it seems essentially that Lewis is arguing that Joy is a desire that is more desirable to have than any other satisfaction.

After reading Piper's discussion, I was reminded of Hwin's first meeting with Aslan in The Horse and His Boy. Upon seeing the Lion, she says to him, "I would rather be eaten by you than fed by anyone else." While I have favored The Dawn Treader to this point, this line (among a couple others) makes me think very highly of The Horse. Lewis is often a tougher read than we imagine because the complexity of his thought is often hidden in the simplicity of his writing. His gifts of communication are in my opinion unparalleled in any other author I've read.

Third, I have been reading more in general: Foxe's Book of Martyrs (the easier to read version), Chesterton's The Everlasting Man and Eugenics, Reinhardt's Germany: 2000 years, Lewis' Surprised by Joy (with The Four Loves in queue), miscellaneous fiction, et c. It's been nice to read a little more, though it's cost me a bit of sleep; there's a lot to learn.

Fourth, some thoughts on the first chapter of John. There's an interesting contrast made throughout the first verses between verbs of becoming (especially ἐγένετο compared to ἦν). So "In the beginning was [ἦν] the Word," an imperfect that indicates his being was not yet completed, contrasted with "The Word became [ἐγένετο] flesh" (the KJV says, "was made," consistent with their use in 1.3; cp ESV, which uses "were made" in 1.3 and "became" in 1.14). This is yet another way that we can see the deity of Christ emphasized in the first chapter of John.

Fifth, I was re-introduced to Shai Linne, whose lyrical thoughts have been appreciated, though he's not much my style. But "Jesus is Alive" is a great song.

Last, I've done some more writing...not so much for here, but for myself. Thinking about the implications and necessity of the resurrection, the problem of pain, the uniqueness of Christianity. There's a lot afoot in my life, and it seems unlikely I'll be writing here too often—but I will when I'm able.