e’s baptism

e got baptized with z at Tenth today. e was sleepy enough not to make a fuss during the ceremony, though his friend z was a little more vocal. It was nice the two of them could share this initiation together.

Keep an eye out for an update to this post; I plan to include a link to the sermon for that day when it gets posted. I really enjoyed Pastor Ryken’s sermon that day on servant leadership and hope e will listen and learn from it as he grows. (I was also enormously amused that Dr. Ryken actually used the word "pimpology").

[Update: A House Divided, as posted on Sermon Audio]

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Family Worship: Infinite, Eternal, Unchangeable

Q4: What is God?
A: God is a spirit, Whose being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth are infinite, eternal, and unchangeable.

Such a needed meditation today! Dana and I are both freaking out about overwhelming pressure and stress. Dana has her DAT tomorrow, and I feel way behind the ball at work. And yet as we prayed today, and acknowledged God’s traits, we were able to relax about our petty neuroses and put on a more proper posture of worship. Everything we were anxious about — our limitations, our press for time, our fragile, fickle natures — God is the opposite of. And he has allowed us to shelter under his wings.

Family Worship: The Bible

Q3: What does the Bible primarily teach?
A: The Bible primarily teaches what man must believe about God and what God requires of man.

This week we discussed the purpose and revelations of the Bible. How it reveals our sinfulness and unfolds the sacrificial salvation offered by Jesus Christ. How it then provides guidelines for pursuing holiness.

On a related note, this week was highlighted by a fun, funny, exciting, but ultimately sad end to the weekly Bible study Dana and I attended for the past year with three other families. In sharing the crossroads we each found ourselves in, we reached a consensus on the direction God’s Spirit seemed to be guiding the group — which was in official dissolution but continued fellowship. I know I’ll keep in touch with every one of these friends, but my heart is heavy with the loss of this weekly meeting that I always looked forward to.

I don’t know how many, if any, of you read this blog, but I love you guys — and thank you each for being so awesome.

Family Worship: Traits of Scripture

Helped Sandi and Nick move and I barely have enough energy to eke out this post.

Today’s worship reflected on how Scripture is 1) infallible 2) clear and 3) sufficient. Sola Scriptura!

Family Worship: Contained in Scripture

Q2: What rule has God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him?
A: The word of God which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him.

Today’s reflection described three different views of Scripture — liberalism, neo-orthodoxy, and reformed — which each have different interpretations as to what it means that the word of God is “contained in” Scripture. Liberalism views the word of God as a subset of Scripture; it’s in there, but not every word of Scripture is the word of God. Neo-orthodoxy views Scripture as the word of man which can be transformed into a medium of the word of God upon reading. The Reformed view (the one we subscribe to) sees all Scripture as the word of God plain and simple.

Family Worship: Special Revelation

Q2: What rule has God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him?
A: The word of God which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him.

Due to my absent-mindedness, I left the Training Hearts book in New Jersey, so we’ll probably have to rely on the Williamson book for a few days. Today we read about general or natural revelation versus special revelation, and how only special revelation gives us the proper interpretive framework for understanding general revelation. I cannot help but think of this passage from Everyday Theology (a book I hope to post about very soon):

When the people of God fulfill their vocation, the church becomes not a sign of the times — this way lies cultural conformism — but rather a sign of the end time: a work and world of evangelical meaning. The church’s life thus becomes an “apocalypse” — a revelation, an unveiling — that unmasks the powers that be and reminds us that they will not, contra appearances, be dominant forever.

Family Worship: Or Else

Q1: What is the primary purpose of man?
A: Man’s primary purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

Finally, we considered the consequence of not giving God His due. Because all glory belongs to God, even negligence is robbery and the slightest selfishness is sacrilege.

Just as Belshazzar did not learn the lessons of his father, Nebuchadnezzer, we considered the pitfalls of not glorifying God in the models around us. We may not explicitly lay claim to our own glory, but we do get subsumed by our concern for the stuff put in our stewardship, effectively turning them into idols.

Family Worship: It’s the Little Things

Q1: What is man’s primary purpose?
A: Man’s primary purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

Continued thoughts on how we can glorify God. We can, of course, glorify him directly in worshipful praise. We can glorify him by revealing His character through our actions. And, as 1 Corinthians 10:31 indicates, even the smallest action, thoughtfully considered, can glorify Him.

A true and terrible privilege — to think that the smallest action can have such consequences.

Family Worship: Moon River

Q1: What is man’s primary purpose?
A: Man’s primary purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

Today we reflected on how creation glorifies God and how humanity is unique in that glorification. The rest of creation glorifies God by its very existence, by being a somewhat static specimen of his creativity. I suppose that a Buddhist could say that man is no different; that every moment of time is an instance of creation, a polaroid that discretely reflects that cosmic consciousness.

I believe different, though — that man (and woman) is said to be unique, is said to be made in the image of God, because his personal consciousness produces another dimension of meaning across time — the power to discern, participate in, and create narrative. The power to shape, influence, and alter reality. The glory of God is evident in free will at the level of immediate experience, and destiny at the level of eternity.

Family Worship: Whistling in the Dark

Q1: What is the primary purpose of man?
A: Man’s primary purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

Today’s reflection centered on how having a transcendental purpose frees us from being tied to conditional fulfillment or happiness. Though we may not be happy with our circumstances, we can always enjoy God, who never changes. This was handy to remember as we prayed through our anxiety of being caught up in the chaos and anxiety of child-rearing.