BOOK REVIEW - "THE FEASTS OF REPENTANCE: FROM LUKE-ACTS TO SYSTEMATIC AND PASTORAL THEOLOGY" (NEW STUDIES IN BIBILICAL THEOLOGY BOOK 49) BY MICHAEL J. OVEY

Does Christianity require repentance, or can we have faith without turning from sin and forgiveness?? Biblically, is the root sin we need to repent of idolatry, and if so, is that a problem that is relevant today?

When I saw the main title of Michael J. Ovey's book "The Feasts of Repentance," my first thought was this concerned the feasts God commanded in the Law, such as Passover, Pentecost, and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). However, the subtitle mentions the Biblical focus is on Luke's contributions to the Canon: Luke and Acts.

One debate in Christianity is the role of repentance. Is repentance merely a change of mind, or does it involve turning to God and thus turning from evil? The first chapter of this book introduces the puzzle of how the call to repentance can be universalized, and deals with the Greek words associated with repentance and turning.

Chapter 2 focuses on the book of Luke, with particular attention to six feasts that take place in this Gospel. These feasts often include someone considered a sinner who is repentant, as well as the Pharisees who not only are unrepentant but aren't happy when someone does. In the next chapter, Acts carries these issues from the Jewish church founded on Pentecost to the Gospel's spread into the Gentile world.

 The final three chapters take the concepts learned through looking at Scripture and applies them to identity and idolatry (Chapter 4), faith and faith and salvation (Chapter 5), and forgiveness and its importance in the lives of God's people (Chapter 6). 

I found it very intriguing when Ovey mentioned that idolatry is the main thing we need to repent of. Additionally, the dialog about the views of Calvin, MacLaren, and Barth was invigorating.

This was the 49th book in the New Studies in Biblical Theology. These books are definitely intelectual, but some help your head knowledge while others offer a challenge into a deeper relationship with God. This is one of the latter. I highly recommend this book. 

SUNDAY PSALMS PART 44 OF 48 - PSALM 139

Swamp trail boardwalk, Ritchie Woods Nature Preserves, Fishers, IN

 1     O LORD, You have searched me and known me.

2     You know my sitting down and my rising up; 

       You understand my thought afar off.

3     You comprehend my path and my lying down, 

       And are acquainted with all my ways.

4     For there is not a word on my tongue, 

       But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether.

5     You have hedged me behind and before, 

       And laid Your hand upon me.

6     Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; 

       It is high, I cannot attain it.

7     Where can I go from Your Spirit? 

       Or where can I flee from Your presence?

8     If I ascend into heaven, You are there; 

       If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.

9     If I take the wings of the morning, 

       And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

10   Even there Your hand shall lead me, 

       And Your right hand shall hold me.

11    If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me," 

       Even the night shall be light about me;

12   Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, 

       But the night shines as the day; 

        The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

13     For You formed my inward parts; 

        You covered me in my mother's womb.

14     I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; 

        Marvelous are Your works, 

        And that my soul knows very well.

15     My frame was not hidden from You, 

        When I was made in secret, 

        And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

16     Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. 

        And in Your book they all were written, 

        The days fashioned for me, 

        When as yet there were none of them.

17     How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! 

        How great is the sum of them!

18    If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; 

       When I awake, I am still with You.

19    Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God! 

        Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men.

20   For they speak against You wickedly; 

        Your enemies take Your name in vain.

21    Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You? 

       And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?

22   I hate them with perfect hatred; 

       I count them my enemies.

23   Search me, O God, and know my heart; 

       Try me, and know my anxieties;

24   And see if there is any wicked way in me, 

       And lead me in the way everlasting.

                            Psalm 139:1-24, New King James Version

No, you're not imagining things. Yes, this is the largest Psalm I've quoted in its entirety. Yes, I'll be a nice guy and give you a short comment. 

It's obvious that this Psalm talks about God's greatness, His omnipotence, His omniscience, and His omnipresence. This Psalm is so full of God's praise. 

But am I the only one who notices most focus either on the first 18 verses or the final two? 

It is interesting me the sharp turn this Psalm takes in verse 19, moving the focus from a great and good God to the depraved enemies of Our Sovereign. And whoever sent the message that we're supposed to love everbody? Apparently King David, who wrote this Psalm, didn't get the memo. By the way, doesn't "perfect hatred" sound like an oxymoron? "Complete" would be a better word, or as the NIV puts it, "I have nothing but hatred for them."

And right after that, we have the awesome prayer for God to search our hearts in verses 23 and 24. We often remove it from the context as a godly prayer, but let's look at it in context. We get angry when we see and hear those opposed to our Lord and Savior, and we should. But that is when David asks God to search our hearts. "Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him." (Prov. 26:4) We should respond to God's (and our) enemies with a heart purified by the Holy Spirit.

WHAT IS REVIVAL? WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? WHY IS IT NEEDED? AND ARE WE WILLING TO PAY THE COST?

Fort Wayne's Children Zoo, Fort Wayne, IN

 My introduction to the topic of Revival was when I saw a half dozen Chick Tracts. Most of them, of course, were evangelistic, but one of them was his tract "Why No Revival?" I was in 6th grade that time, and I didn't catch his points well until a few years later.

Little did I know as I thumbed through that pamphlet at home in Prescott, Arizona, there was revival taking place on the other side of the country. 

Fast forward half a century. Another revival is taking place at the same university it happened in the '70's. I learned about it as I was watching half a dozen Christian musicians from the Jesus Music era at the time of the first revival. These musicians (John Fischer, Randy Stonehill, Glenn Kaiser, Paul Clark, Barry McGuire, and Swedish singer Ingemar Olsson) are talking about needing a song to start revival among Millennials.

But what does Revival look like? What are we looking for? 

One problem with the church as a whole (and it may have been a problem since Pentecost) is  that we focus on experience. We want the positive feelings. Could it be that we feel entitled to God's blessing on us? Likewise, is this desire for revival absent from a need for the Church to genuinely repent (both individually and corporately)? 

One of my favorite musicians, who's also a pastor, has some questions on the current revival. Namely, is it based on Scripture? Is it encouraging assembling together with the Church?

Another question I have is how lasting is it? Is Revival a peak that we descend from eventually and return to status quo? I remember reading No Compromise, the biography of Keith Green, where it mentioned a revival that lasted only for hours before being quenched. Is that real revival?

I would love to hear what you all think revival looks like, and if you want to comment before reading on so I don't influence your answer, go ahead and comment! 

Thank you to all who have commented. Here's my thoughts on what real revival will look like.

1. It will come from prayer and solid Bible teaching. Not only are these two elements a starting point, but true Revival will create a desire for yet more prayer and Bible Study.
2. It will transform a life. Yes, there may be a let down, but I believe genuine revival would result in changes that last in a person's life.
3. It will be a community event. I heard one speaker say renewal involves the individual while revival involves the corporate church. The hunger for prayer and Bible Study and the staying power I mentioned above will be strengthened by the encouragement of one another, as Hebrews 3:12-13 and 10:24-25 encourages.
4. It will not only be active in the church's four walls, but it will also spread out. There will be a desire to evangelize. There may even be a desire to go to the Mission field. 

Are we willing to make changes for revival to take place in the church and for renewal to happen in our own hearts? There will be costs. We'll definitely have to give up our sins and probably some activities that are not sin but are keeping us from serving God whole heartedly. We may also face opposition from the world, from our family and friends, and maybe even the church.

 

 

SUNDAY PSALMS PART 8 OF 48 - PSALM 32

 

Rock Island State Park, Rock Island, TN

1    Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
    Whose sin is covered.
2   Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,
    And in whose spirit there is no deceit.
3   When I kept silent, my bones grew old
    Through my groaning all the day long.
4   For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
    My vitality was turned into the drought of summer.

Selah

5   I acknowledged my sin to You,
    And my iniquity I have not hidden.
    I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,"
    And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.

Selah

6   For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You
    In a time when You may be found;
    Surely in a flood of great waters
    They shall not come near him.
7   You are my hiding place;
    You shall preserve me from trouble;
    You shall surround me with songs of deliverance.

Selah

8   I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
    I will guide you with My eye.
9   Do not be like the horse or like the mule,
    Which have no understanding,
    Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle,
    Else they will not come near you.

10   Many sorrows shall be to the wicked;
    But he who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him.
11   Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous;
    And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!

Psalm 32:1-11, NKJV

I think of Psalm 32 and 51 as the repentance Psalms, dealing with David asking God forgiveness for his sins.

There are a lot of good points in this Psalm, but there's one point I want to focus on, which is in verse 6. David says, "For this cause, everyone who is godly will call to You when You may be found." Maybe I'm wrong, but I think another way to say this is that whenever the godly call on the Lord is a time when He may be found. In other words, God's not hiding from the prayers and pleas of the righteous.

DOES LOOKING BACK AT '22 AND FORWARD TO '23 CONVINCE US WE NEED A SACRED ASSEMBLY? (PART 6 OF 6)

Courtesy of Abolish Human Abortion, Ames, Iowa, 2016

"Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly." Joel 2:15

In 2018, I read The Benedict Option, where Rod Dreher was warning of a coming flood and that we needed to build our Christian community.

In 2021, I read Live Not By Lies, where Rod Dreher interviewed several Christians who survived the Soviet Regime, in which all said the current climate in the U.S. was identical to when the Communists took over.

Now, in late 2022, I'm in the middle of Letter to the American Church, where Eric Metaxas is saying that the American Church is at the same place the German Church was in the early 1930's when Hitler rose to power. He stated some, like Dietrich Bonhoeffer, say the danger, while most did nothing.

A good friend of mine for 30 years unfriended me on Facebook in early 2021 because I committed the unpardonable sin: I voted for Trump in 2020. He considered Trump a threat to our democracy. He didn't want to hear that I was concerned by voting out Trump we could open the door for someone worse. And now, I'm pretty certain that we opened the door and that someone worse - or an ally of those worse than Trump in Congress - entered.

In other words, I do not trust our government. I do not trust our media to tell us the truth. And does it help my mood that I had recently finished another book pointing out that Christ is calling us to repent and to return to the five solas? That is, Scripture alone, Faith alone, Grace alone, Christ alone, to the glory of God alone?

Becky heard a pastor say that persecution of Christians can happen quickly, both in suddenness and in it being soon. Metaxas wrote that Hitler changed things in Germany quickly. I hope they're wrong, but I'm not expecting them to be.

What is the answer? Should Christians be developing strong communities/churches not unlike a monastic brotherhood? Should we be doing what we can to stop evil from rising to power? Should we be most concerned with turning from any idols in our heart or from complacency (which Zephaniah 1:12 describes as believing God will neither do evil or good) or from trusting in men and the word of men than in God and in the Word of God (the Bible)?

I am writing this on December 23rd, and setting it to be posted on December 31st at 6am EST (though the website might post it 3 hours earlier). Today at 12noon, Northside Baptist Church is praying in the New Year for two hours. I'm planning on being there.

No, not a cheerful blog to end 2022. But do we need to be encouraged 2023 will be better? Or do we need to be awakened that 2023 could be worse, and we either need to do something or be prepared for dark times? 

 

 

TENNESSEE DAY OF PRAYER, HUMILITY AND FASTING

 

 

Yesterday (Wed., Sept. 28, 2022), Becky noticed an e-mail from her alma mater, Lipscomb University, mentioned Tennessee Governor Bill Lee proclaiming the 30th (today) as a day of Prayer, Humility, and Fasting.

Tennessee, 49 other states plus the District of Columbia, and every other nation needs such a day directed to the Sovereign, Ominpotent Creator of the Universe.

Do I need to say more?

I didn't think so.

I would like to encourage each of you to pray for:

1. This country, your state, and your city.
2. Your church, and especially for your pastor.
3. For each of us individually to return to the Lord.

I'm sure, Gov. Lee, that you won't see this blog from a former Tennessean and current Hoosier, but I'd like to thank you for your boldness in the faith and the stand you've taken toward righteousness. May the Lord Jesus Christ richly bless you and your ministry as governor.