Adam the failed priest-gardener

check out this post:

http://greenbaggins.wordpress.com/2006/03/13/adam-the-priest-of-the-garden-temple-2/

except for that little comment about the covenant of works =)

The generated soul

Dichotomy - soul/spirit plus body ( 1 cor 7:34, James 2:26, etc)

or

Trichotomy - spirit plus soul plus body (1 Thess 5:23)


what about:

Input = spirit / breathed-in / wind / inner being

Output = flesh / body / members / outer being

Input animates output: James 2:26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Spirit always controls flesh

but how about interaction between spirit & flesh = soul/heart/mind/neck

a Living and Holy spirit - generates an eternal and holy being

the original spirit blown into Adam then - is the Holy Spirit
but like in Stephen's speech - Adam rejected this Spirit
and listened instead to other spirits

the interaction between the flesh and spirit then produces Adam's character - a sinful puppet - controlled by an external spirit

salvation then comes with a 'renewed Spirit' - which unlocks the decayed and hardened deadwood, and allows the life-blood to now flow in and animate the flesh and release it from its puppet-life

the man is now a new man - a real man, animated flesh in submissive listening to the Counsellor

this then renews the soul - creates a new life

one that will continuously be renewed for all eternity - become a 'personality' identical to that of Christ

no wonder the necessity to separate soul from spirit and even flesh from bone by the Word of God (cf Heb 4)

still fiddling with this... let me know your thoughts

Playing on the heart-strings

Ever heard this?



I used to love the song

but actually here's an interesting point..
what Satan does in both the garden of Eden & the wilderness which Christ entered
is he's playing on the affections of the Man

He knows the Man loves the woman...
his temptations are to corrupt the woman, and via the woman, control the Man

He knows the woman is the 'weaker vessel' and easy to become a 'vessel of corruption'

but his goal is the Head-Man
and he will play on His affections for His helper-opposite
He sings to Man a twisted love song for the woman...

Christ then has to judge between His love for His Father and His love for His Bride
Satan makes it seem that there must be a choice - He can only love one, and it seems that He must lose or 'leave' the other

Christ's love for His bride then must be monumentally strong if this is even a real temptation - even after seeing 'the heart of men' for a number of decades
At Gethsemane - He longs for their to be another way... not for an opt-out clause... He really must have His Bride

Yet the Spirit continuously reminds Him that He will get His Bride if He listens to His Father - His Father also longs for them to come into a heavenly home that He has ordained and prepared for them both

The vocal chords of Satan are cut at the cross, and his fiddle goes silent... right now all he plays is some horrendous heavy-metal sounds by smashing the remainder of his wrecked stage - making lots of noise to those who think that sounds like 'music'

The harmony of the orchestra of God is continuously enriched with more and more musical instruments as each 'living stone' is added to the eternal symphony, supported by angelic back up...

Church Dogmatics by Karl Barth for < $100

For those interested....

http://blogs.christianbook.com/blogs/academic/2010/03/19/karl-barths-church-dogmatics-14-vols-ed-bromiley-torrance/

The Lord will be Seen

Genesis 22:14 wayyiqrä´ ´abrähäm šë|m-hammäqôm hahû´ yhwh(´ädönäy) yir´è ´ášer yë´ämër hayyôm Bühar yhwh(´ädönäy) yërä´è

Literally - Abraham called the name of that place, "The Lord will see"; that they might say to-day, On the mount the Lord will be seen

what do you think?

Repentance requires atonement

The whole idea of repentance very often trickles into a works-based mindset

'Father forgive me, i've done something wrong'
'Go my son and don't do it again'

and i keep doing this each time i have sinned, to pay my own price for the wrong

but actually this form of repentance could only work on a completely UNJUST God.. who does not care two-bits about anything

"Dad I'm sorry I stabbed my brother" - "No problem son, don't do it again"

It is completely heartless...

The true repentance coupled with faith is based on the fact that the wrongdoing is already paid for in full at the cross.

That the guilt of the sin is paid for already, and repentance/faith is a pleading for the healing blood to cover and to wash away the source of sin

'Father forgive me, i've done something wrong'
'Son, here is your Brother's body and His blood, paid in advance for your wrongdoing, eat and drink and be healed'

Blind Spots of Discipleship - Part 1

A sermon given last Sunday - on Mark 9:30-50:

http://zionbpc.org.sg/resources/audio/2010/140310%20Dr%20Dev%20Menon.wma

meanwhile - just led a team of 6 young adults to Kolkata for a mission trip
great work being done here:
SAMARITANS HELPS of INDIA
(you won't find anything about them on the internet - but here's one article:
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/articles/learning_from_children/)

they need plenty of support - especially with people willing to actually go there

i got plenty out of it
including what i suspect is viral meningitis from the 10,000 mosquito bites

Swallowing

Death is portrayed as a hungry monster... always wanting to swallow up or consume the Living

Numbers 16:34 34 And all Israel who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, "Lest the earth swallow us up!"


Jonah and the fish are an appropriate picture - death swallows up the One who gives up His Spirit - yet death cannot hold Him

but in this case.. if the story of Jonah were to continue like that...

Jonah now would sit down and eat the entire fish for breakfast:
Isaiah 25:8 8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.

or perhaps
from inside the fish... Jonah would begin to eat it whole.... ?

something like this:

Wisdom

Leithart on the wisdom books:

What is wisdom? Follow the canonical progression of wisdom books.

Proverbs: There are two women. Choose Lady Wisdom and reject Lady Folly.

Ecclesiastes: All is hebel. Death looms. Therefore, eat, drink, rejoice in the wife of your youth. Joy in your wife is the way to Lady Wisdom.

Song of Songs: A man rejoices in his bride, eating and drinking a feast of love.

So:

Wisdom is about sex: Proverbs says, Choose the right woman; Ecclesiastes says, Cling to her in defiance of decay; the Song says, Love brings you back to the garden.

Or: Fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom. Joy in defiance of death is wisdom coming to maturity. Fulfilled wisdom is knowing that love is as strong as death.

Or: Proverbs is priestly wisdom, distinguishing wisdom and folly. Ecclesiastes is kingly wisdom, rendering judgments in the midst of darkness. The Song is prophetic wisdom, the hope of future harmony.

Or: Proverbs is past; Ecclesiastes is present; the Song is future.

Or: Proverbs is the Father; Ecclesiastes the Son; the Song is the Song of the Spirit.

Wife verses Mother

Genesis 24:67 67 Then Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother and took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.

The mother of Christ dies... and now Christ is comforted by His Bride - in His mother's tent... all made into a new family home

Bible

A rather dull talk by me on the Bible

http://www.mediafire.com/?dak1jno0z2j

for catechism class