Today's blog is a little different from the usual! The topic is "Ancient Letter-Writing Practices," and it is an interview with Professor AnneMarie Luijendijte of Princeton University by Harvard Divinity School Professor Laura Nasrallah. It includes an intriguing peek at some ancient papyri from Princeton University's collection. For anyone interested in understanding more about first-century Christianity and how letters - including Paul's biblical texts - were circulated, this is a must-see!
I saw the new Son of God movie yesterday with a friend. As with any biblically-based movie, I knew there would be controversial elements, but I went with an open attitude, asking the Lord to speak to me. And I was pleasantly surprised by three aspects of this new Hollywood portrayal of Jesus.
1. From the moment Jesus climbs into Peter’s fishing boat to his punishment and death at the end, we are reminded of the truth that Jesus was an ordinary man. Peter’s reactions to and dialogue with Jesus are exactly what I would have imagined them to be. (“Who the heck are you and why are you getting into my boat?!”) I expected a Hollywood-style glorification of the supernatural, mystical aspects of Christ, but the producers (Roma Downey and Mark Burnett) did just the opposite. There was nothing “spooky Christian” or “new age” about this Jesus. In fact, if you weren’t paying attention, you might miss the healing of the paralytic or the multiplication of loaves, because Jesus was NOT drawing attention to himself. He was simply loving people and meeting needs in a humane way, with supernatural results. Isn’t that what real Christianity looks like today? I have seen people healed and miracles happen, and they are rarely accompanied by great fanfare from heaven or earth-shattering effects. They are often quiet and unnoticed at first, without sensationalism. I appreciated this approach in the movie.
2. Son of God spent a great deal of time outlining the political and religious conflicts of the first century world. The grandeur of the temple at Jerusalem was evident; the contrast between the religious Sanhedrin and ordinary Jews, and the tension between Pilate and the temple priests was well described. Because of this, Christ’s claim that He would destroy the temple stood out for what it really was: a direct challenge by a “revolutionary” against what most believed to be sacred, God-ordained structures and practices. I understood more clearly the threat that the religious leaders would have felt and their subsequent frustration over what to do with a man they couldn’t legitimately kill under their own law. Jesus’ trial was also an eye-opener for a westerner who hadn’t quite envisioned what a small trial by religious leaders might look like: not a courtroom drama, but rather a “guilty” judgment unjustly rendered by a few jealous priests, with no defense.
3. The most powerful take-away for me, however, was near the end. In light of the “ordinariness” Jesus (Diogo Morgado) conveys throughout the story, I wondered how the disciples could go out later with such boldness to preach and even suffer martyrdom for Him. After all, even at the end they still were not clear about the kind of kingdom Christ represented, nor were some fully convinced of who He was. The resurrection, of course, clinched it for most, but the movie takes the time to show us that for at least two men, the resurrection was not enough to propel them into ministry.
Son of God Movie review: Click to Tweet!
There are two tasks for every believer which influence our entire life in God: surrendering and submission. Mastering these two things leads us into a deeper relationship with God; ignoring them can have eternal consequences.
Like the words in Matt Crocker’s popular worship song, “I Surrender,” we long to “know God more,” and so we give Him our lives, first at salvation and then over and over again as we realize there is a cycle of surrendering followed by knowing more intimately, then desiring to surrender again.
Once we become believers, however, we can get derailed when our focus remains on fulfilling our purposes or what we feel called to do, even within our strengths and spiritual gifting. True surrender includes yielding all to the purposes of God. I may be a gifted speaker, but if God’s purpose for this particular period of time is for me to serve in children’s ministry, then I will grow best as I submit to His will and serve there. He will reveal more of Himself to me as I walk with Him than He will if I try to do things in my own strength.
The mature believer must learn to respond to his renewed spirit before his soul.
We have struggled with these terms throughout church history, and still do today. I believe the reason surrender and submission are so hard to embrace is because we lack the balancing factor to both: the power of love.
behind all true spiritual surrender.
The love of God is the motivating factor behind all true spiritual surrender. It is what enables us to shift, as someone once said, from trying to trusting, from ambition to submission. Complete trust in God’s love is what enabled Jesus to surrender Himself on the cross to purchase our freedom. (See Philippians 2:1-10).
so that even if any of them are disobedient to the Word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives.
Maturing Christians realize that there is spiritual power in surrendering to God’s will. A wife who chooses to follow this pattern of submission and alignment with God’s purposes is activating God’s power in the Spirit realm to draw men into relationship with Christ. She is agreeing with the very heart and mission of God, which is to draw all men to Him.
Not only that, but the Bible encourages us all in James 4:7 to submit to God, so that the devil will flee from us. Satan has to flee from believers who are truly in Christ because he cannot withstand God! When we come into agreement with God, we gain the protection of Christ, who is seated far above all rule and power, and has put everything in subjection under His feet. (See Ephesians 1:18-23). When we humble ourselves, He exalts us over our enemies.
Submission is a powerful weapon in our arsenal. Peace and power come when we stop struggling and yield our souls to the Spirit of God. We see how lovingly He cares for us. We deepen our relationship with Him and – amazingly – want to surrender even more! It is a dynamic cycle of cause-and-effect that spirals us in closer and closer to His heart. In the end, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.
I read a great blog this morning. It wasn’t a blog from the usual online blogosphere, nor was it written by one of today’s biblical experts. But this guy is an expert at understanding God. In fact, the writer is so famous that his blog has been published around the world in nearly every language. The post I read today was actually published in two places (with a few minor changes), so I think it deserves a “retweet” here! You can find the originals in 2 Samuel 22 and Psalm 18.
David is the man whom God calls an expert in “knowing God’s heart.” (See Acts 13:22). Experts commonly write blogs these days, but David was “blogging” in the Psalms long before blogging was invented. He was a forerunner in sharing, in diary form, his thoughts concerning life in God. The genius of David’s “blogs” is that he is so very personable and honest (an endearing factor for his readers) while simultaneously teaching about God and His Word. His psalms contain testimonies, visual imagery, reliable information, stories, personal revelations and feelings – really, everything that a good blog needs.
His posts in 2 Samuel 22 and Psalm 18 are almost identical. They are songs, which were set to music by temple musicians in his time. And they are David’s musings after going out to battle for what was likely the last time with his armies (2 Samuel 21:15-17), as he was growing old.
A man who was losing physical strength in his own body spent his time blogging about the sustaining strength of God. He writes: “For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? God is my strength and power, and He makes my way perfect.” (2 Samuel 22:33, NKJV).
David was very familiar with God’s rescuing power! His psalms chronicle rescues from death, “floods of ungodliness,” his enemies, and violence. He expertise lies in understanding God as both deliverer and sustainer, two of the main attributes of Christ as well: “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.” (Hebrews 1:3, NIV).
David’s “blog” describes a mighty God who is like a rock and fortress to him. He is a mysterious, thundering, even angry God (Psalm 18:7-15, NIV), yet also supportive, merciful, and gentle (Ps. 18, verses 18, 25, and 35, NIV). The same God who was sustaining David in his Psalm–blogs is still sustaining us today.