Prayer and Purpose

“We have learned that ‘politics is downstream from culture, not the other way around . . . . Real change has to start with the culture.’” (page 18 of Total Truth by Nancy Pearcey) I have been reading about apologetics a lot recently. Thinking about its usefulness both inside and outside the church. After all, we are called to make disciples of all nations (Mt 28:19) and while the truth of God is evident in nature (Rom 1:20), I believe sound apologetics within the church can help people walk through their doubt more easily. With Easter season just recently behind us, I had a memory brought to mind frequently in the last few weeks. When I was a Freshman at Pacific Lutheran University, I attended the Easter Chapel service. One of my friends was in the choir group that was singing at this service, so I was especially excited for some Easter selections sung by the ensemble she was a part of. The homily was to be delivered by a professor rather than one of our campus pastors. The music...

Jesus endured the greatest testing any human will ever endure when He spent 40 days in the wilderness without food or drink, and He was tried and tempted (Mt 4:1-11; Mk 1:12-13; Lk 4:1-13. While Jesus walked on this earth He was fully God, yet also fully man. By allowing Himself to become man He was able to truly be tempted by Satan's lies. He was alone during this time, alone in the sense that there was no other human with Him. However, this does not require that we should do spiritual battle alone. Indeed, Jesus shortly before being arrested asks His disciples to pray for Him in Gethsemane, a time when He knew His time to die was drawing near and the temptation to not die must have been brutal (Mt 26:36-45; Mk 14:32-41; Lk 22:39-46).  Paul instructs us to keep watch over ourselves to avoid temptation and to "[b]ear one another's burdens" (Gal 6:2). Bearing one another up helps us, as Paul says, to not begin to think to highly of ourselves, and just like a yoke,...

Did you know that Zondervan has an online offering known as Textbookplus+? It's pretty neat. I realized this when I was looking at the back of my copy of Grasping God's Word. So, I went to the site ( https://zondervanacademic.com/textbookplus ), created my free account, and found that the resources are actually pretty useful. For Grasping God's Word, they offer study guides, flashcards, quizzes, and a guide to plus a sample of an exegetical paper. Even if you don't have this particular book, the materials offered for free here could be useful to you, particularly if you are new to theological vocabulary. Just in the Chapter 1 flashcards you will get introduced to some basic vocabulary that is pretty specific to theological studies or other specific academic areas, such as: autograph, formal translation, and textual criticism. Also identified are major translations of the Bible, such as the Vulgate, the Authorized Version of 1611, and Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. If...

Psalm 137 is one of my favorite Psalms despite how dark it is. I guarantee that has largely to do with two different arrangements of it into a song, one by Boney M and one by Sinead O'Connor. Look them up if you are interested, it helps you memorize a portion of the Psalm. What follows is an exegesis I did for a hermeneutics course, I hope it blesses you and helps you wrestle with this particular Psalm.  Psalm 137 [1] 1 By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down and wept, When we remembered Zion. 2 Upon the willows in the midst of it We hung our harps. 3 For there our captors demanded of us songs, And our tormentors mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion.” 4 How can we sing the Lord’s song In a foreign land? 5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem, May my right hand forget her skill . 6 May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth If I do not remember you, If I do not exalt Jerusalem Above my chief joy. 7 Remember, O Lord, against the sons o...