There Will Be No Post This Week

Once again I am in the position of having no post prepared for this week. In the past I have taken a certain amount of pride that I rarely fail to write at least one post per week. Lately I have been failing and it bugs me. It’s not that I don’t have a good excuse, I had outpatient surgery a week ago, but I am afraid that if I start slipping that it will become just too easy to get lazy.

At any rate, I do have some ideas for posts and I am confident that I will have something prepared next week. Vaya con Dios until then.

Christian vs. Christian: Conclusion

I began posting on this topic back in August (it has been almost five months now) and I am very happy that I did (please read my introductory post for why I started this series). I have been very disillusioned with how Christians go about treating each other. I knew that in John 13:34-35 Jesus gave the disciples a new command:

34 “I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you must also love one another.
35 By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Using this standard there sure don’t seem to be many disciples of Jesus these days since there seems to be a lot more disdain than love being shown to one another.

Christian vs. Christian: Hebrews 10:24-25 Part VIII

This week I am continuing with my series of posts on Christian behavior toward other Christians (please read my introductory post for why I am posting on this topic). However, I think this will be my last post which seeks to reconstruct Dr. Robert Dean’s Doctrine of One Another. Next week I will finish this series and provide some final thoughts on this vital doctrine.

This week I have reconstructed what I think is Robert Dean’s eighteenth point in his Doctrine of One Another (I think he incorrectly numbered one of his points about half way through and our numbering has never matched since).

18. Be hospitable to one another [allēlōn] without complaining. (1 Peter 4:9)

I have spent some time looking for commentaries on this verse but I haven’t found any that add to the sense of the verse that you can’t get just by reading it. Here is my understanding, and pretty much everyone else’s, of this verse: Christians! Be hospitable to each other and, just because you have been hospitable, you don’t get to complain about it. There, that wasn’t so bad was it?

Happy New Year 2012!

I want to wish anyone reading my blog a very happy New Year! It has been my goal since starting this blog 2+ years ago to publish at least one post per week and up until now I have done a pretty good job doing that. However I think I am going to miss next week. The holidays are always very busy but then I had to go and get sick earlier this week which knocked me down for a couple of days. This afternoon we leave to visit the in-laws for a long New Year’s weekend/second Christmas. Add to that a very busy week at work when I get back into the office next week and my blog plans have been shot full of holes.

At any rate, I plan on starting to post again after a week or two of needed rest. Until then I wish any visitors a happy New Year!

Christian vs. Christian: Hebrews 10:24-25 Part VII

This week I am continuing with my series of posts on Christian behavior toward other Christians (please read my introductory post for why I am posting on this topic).

This week I have reconstructed what I think is Robert Dean’s seventeenth point in his Doctrine of One Another. It is difficult to tell because he skipped a number at one time and I’m not sure he ever got back in order again. Fortunately it isn’t the numbers that are important but the doctrine:

17. Therefore, confess your sins to one another [allēlōn] and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The intense prayer of the righteous is very powerful. (James 5:16)

Rather than pull Dr. Dean’s exegesis from his study on Hebrews (see his transcript for Hebrews Lesson 169) I have decided to provide excerpts from his study of the book of James.

The one thing to keep in mind here is that in my previous posts on the Doctrine of One Another we keep receiving commands to be patient with each other and to seek to build each other up. This passage in no different from the others we have looked at in that regard.

I also want to point out that the sick, as in spiritually sick, believers discussed James 5 might not be very likeable people. You all may have that firmly in mind but I have to keep reminding myself. I am required to help other believers even if I do not like them!

Christian vs. Christian: An Example

This week I am back to the Christian vs. Christian series of posts that I have been working on for over two months. I was planning on posting the next couple of points in Dr. Dean’s “Doctrine of One Another” when I stumbled upon two seemingly unrelated posts on two different blogs. One post took an offhanded jab at Christian apologist William Lane Craig and the other post, which I read immediately following the first one, reviewed a book inspired by Galatians 5:15:

15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.
Galatians 5:15 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)

I have no problem with Christians disagreeing with each other over theology and I actually believe that debating issues can keep us from becoming spiritually flabby. However there are bounds to such debates which I believe Christians violate so regularly that we don’t even think about it. Not only do casual expressions of disdain for other Christians violate the principles laid out in the doctrine of “one another” but are classic examples of Christians consuming “one another.”

In addition this seemed like a strange coincidence to me (call it Divine providence if you like) since I began reading one of William Lane Craig’s books last week for the first time and have been enjoying it very much. Whether anyone likes William Lane Craig is completely up to them but I don’t think that Christians have a lot of latitude in how we treat each other.

I am going to provide links to both articles, some commentary on Galatians 5:15, and then finish with my take on all of this.

There Will Be No Post This Week

I really hate to miss posting this week but it is unavoidable. I spent Monday through Wednesday on a business trip to Los Angeles. They have nice weather out there but it really wrecks havoc with my ability to post. However I do plan on pulling something together for next Friday. I don’t want to make a habit of missing posts!

Some Thoughts on the Husband’s Authority

A couple of weeks ago I published one of my continuing series on Christian vs. Christian (see “Christian vs. Christian: Hebrews 10:24-25 Part VI”) which touched on the biblical authority that husbands are given within the second divine institution of marriage. Commenter Bobbi, who also happens to be my sister, took exception to some of the statements that Pastor Robert Dean made. Her comments made me think (which is always a dangerous thing) so I decided I would post some more of my thoughts on the topic. Of course what I am going to say probably won’t make any of the ladies feel better (sorry Bobbi) but I think it is worthwhile to discuss this anyway.

I am going to make three general statements that I think are true and help me think about this. If I am wrong, or just not thinking this through, then please let me know.

Thanksgiving 2011

I won’t be posting a regular article this week because of the Thanksgiving holiday. Right now I plan on spending a very long weekend at my in-laws’ home taking it easy and eating too much rich food. It sounds wonderful and I am looking forward to it.

Even though I won’t be posting a regular article I have been thinking about posting one of those what-I-am-thankful-for articles that are always the rage this time of year. I have read a lot of those and they are usually a laundry list of the good things in the writer’s life at the moment. I suppose that is fine but have you ever noticed that no matter how hard the author tries their list always seems incomplete? It’s not that I can do a more complete job but I think that their emphasis is wrong and I have decided, through the study of scripture, that what we emphasize in life (our priorities) is what makes all of the difference.

So, here are the top things that I am thankful for:

Christian vs. Christian: Hebrews 10:24-25 Part VI

This week I am continuing with my series of posts on Christian behavior toward other Christians (please read my introductory post for why I am posting on this topic).

This week I have reconstructed points fifteen and sixteen of Robert Dean’s Doctrine of One Another:

15. Submit to one another (Eph 5:21).
16. Think about one another to stir up to love and good deeds [application of doctrine in thought, word, actions] (Heb 10:24).

If you read the exposition on Ephesians 5:21 that I quote below, you will note that the topic of authority comes up. Authority in several areas is mentioned but I want to focus on authority within marriage. This is really a hot button issue in this day and age. I believe a lot of the consternation regarding husbands having authority over wives is due to the simple fact that this authority has been abused. To give any reader a proper understanding of how authority in marriage is supposed to work I encourage you to read the Doctrine of Marriage by Robert Dean. There is a lot of great information in there but I want to turn your attention in particular to the Doctrine of the Dance which begins at the very bottom of page 5. Anyone who is interested in what Christian marriage should look like needs to read and think about what is written there. The husband is never given permission to mistreat his wife!