Favourite Hymn #7

Be Thou My Vision


Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

Death in the City - Chapter Six

Death in the City: Chapter 6 – The Significance of Man

Educated men of the modern era have increasingly turned to determinism as an explanation for our existence. Determinism is usually expressed as one of two varieties: chemical determinism, where life is just the outcome of chemical forces, and psychological determinism where humans are not responsible for what they do or who they are. Man has been reduced to simply a cog in the giant machinery of the cosmos.

Schaffer emphasizes that the biblical view is radically different. Quoting Romans 1:21-22, “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools” he states that if man can truly turn away from the truth, then man is wonderful: he “can really influence significant history.” A creature made in God’s image cannot be trapped in determinism. Man’s ability to choose, even to turn away from his creator shows his greatness.

Naturalistic humanism leads to a lessening of man’s significance. Only the biblical view can produce a real humanism, one that recognizes man’s greatness. Humans are not part of a theatrical play where the lines are set. Humans are responsible beings. Their choices influence history. To be sure, man is lost; but he is great. He matters.

Christianity is not Platonism which views the body as bad and the soul as the only thing that matters. God made the whole man; therefore “the whole man is to know salvation, and the whole man is to know the Lordship of Jesus Christ. The great teaching of the resurrection of the body is not just abstract doctrine; it stands as a pledge and reminder of a very important and a very hopeful fact.” God made humans with both body and soul, so He is concerned with both. He made man with intellect and so He is concerned with the intellect. He created man to be artistic so He is concerned about the creation of art and beauty through such creative capabilities.

Salvation, then, is not concerned with just a small area of our lives. It applies to every part, every division of our being. “Man is separated from God…he is separated form himself, thus the psychological problems of life…he is separated from other men, thus the sociological problems of life…he is separated from nature, and thus the problems of living in the world, for example, the ecological problems. All these need healing.”

Lewis and "300"

Bruce Edwards makes a connection between C. S. Lewis and the battle of Thermopylae.

Should I go to seminary?

No. (Though, if I had the money, I wouldn't mind taking a few courses). But I think those who want to be pastors and church/parachurch leaders (never mind theologians) should. Read John Stackhouse's take on this

C.S. Lewis's Case for Christ

C.S. Lewis’s Case for Christ by Art Lindsley (IVP, 2005)

Lindsley’s book takes a brief and concise but quite thorough look at the thought of Lewis and the importance it has for those today who are seeking for answers to the meaning of life. It covers Lewis’ views on myth and imagination, rationalism and miracles, chronological snobbery, the problem of evil, belief in God as wish fulfillment, postmodernism, relativism, non-Christian religions, and death and immortality. The discussion on all these topics hinge on the person of Jesus Christ whom Lindsley, through the lens of Lewis’ writings, considers to be worthy of trust and commitment

Each chapter begins and ends with the narrative device of a Lewis seminar given at a bookstore (such as, say, Chapters or Borders bookstore). This allows for some discussion between a cast of characters (e.g., an atheist, a pluralist, etc.) that gets the ball rolling for the main body of text. The exposition that Lindsley provides is quite good. He gets Lewis’ main points without getting lost in the smaller details. Given the short and succinct, yet satisfying, nature of his explanations, this book would make a great introduction to Lewis for those who are asking the question: “Why should I believe in Christ?”

And those familiar with Lewis should find this book interesting as well.

More on the Jesus Tomb

Ben Witherington has a second great post on the Jesus tomb.

One note: Christians who, when confronted with this controversy or the Da Vinci Code, should remember that the purveyors of these controversies are presenting their side of the story only. It's easy to make a case for something when you only present one set of evidence, the set that supports your viewpoint. But, orthodox Christianity has evidence on its side too, lots of it. We ought to weigh the evidence on both sides and see which fits the facts the best.
There are plenty of books one could read, for example, The Historical Reliability of the Gospels by Craig Blomberg; and there are plenty of internet resources such as this article by W.L. Craig, The Historicity of the Empty Tomb, as well as various articles at Tekton Apologetics

Morris on Books

Philosopher Thomas V. Morris has written a couple of articles on the value of reading good books.
Reading Great Books and Living the Good Life

Reading Great Books Part 2