Cicero on the offence of the Cross

Wretched is the loss of one's

good name in the public courts,

wretched, too, a monetary fine

exacted from one's property,

and wretched is exile.

But, still, in each calamity

there is retained some trace of liberty.

Even if death is set before us,

we may die in freedom.

But the executioner,

the veiling of heads,

and the very word ‘cross,’

let them all be far removed

from not only the bodies

of Roman citizens

but even from their thoughts,

their eyes, and their ears.

(Cicero, 106-43BC, Pro Rabirio Postump 16)

Crucifixion was a reserved for the lowest of the low, rightless non-Roman citizens who had been sentenced to suffer a most excruciating death for their crimes. As a method of execution it was designed to humiliate and degrade as well as kill. On that basis it might be thought that the Christian church would want to hush up the fact that its founder, Jesus Christ was crucified. The opposite is the case. Jesus regarded his death by crucifixion as the moment of his exaltation when his divine glory would be most fully revealed, John 8:28, 12:32-33, 17:4. 

The apostles placed the crucifixion of Jesus Christ at the very heart of their preaching, 1 Corinthians 2:2. This was despite the fact that the idea of a crucified Messiah was a stumbling block to the Jews and an offence to the Greeks, 1 Corinthians 1:23. No amount of rhetorical razzle dazzle could obscure the "offence of the cross" (Galatians 5:11). That is why Paul renounced rhetoric and preached a crucified Christ in a crucified style, 1 Corinthians 2:1-3. He knew that nothing but the power of the Spirit of God could make his preaching convincing and effective, 1 Corinthians 2:4-5. 

The reason why the apostles made Jesus' scandalous death so central to their message is that they believed that he did not die for his own sins as a failed Messiah, but for ours, as the world's true Saviour. "Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8),  "Christ died for our sins" (1 Corinthians 15:3), "who have himself a ransom for all" (1 Timothy 2:6), "he himself is the propitiation for our sins" (1 John 2:2). 

The cross of Jesus is the great revelation of the glory of our triune God. There we see that the Father so loved the world that he have his only Son to suffer and die for us at Calvary. There we see the Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us, bearing our sins in his body on the tree. There we see the eternal Spirit lovingly upholding the Son as he offered himself to God in our place. 

Cicero urged his fellow Roman citizens to avert their thoughts, eyes and ears from the cross.  But the cross of Jesus holds our thoughts captive. We live by looking to him who was lifted up for us. The message of the cross is a symphony of God's grace to our ears. That which was most shameful to Cicero was the proudest boast of the apostle Paul, Galatians 6:14.

That is why we sing...

 1    O what matchless condescension
            The eternal God displays;
        Claiming our supreme attention,
            To his boundless works and ways.
                    His own glory
            He reveals in gospel days.

    2    In the person of the Saviour,
            All his majesty is seen!
        Love and justice shine for ever;
            And, without a veil between,
                    Worms approach him,
            And rejoice in his dear name.

    3    Would we view his brightest glory,
            Here it shines in Jesus’ face;
        Sing and tell the pleasing story,
            O ye sinners saved by grace;
                    And with pleasure,
            Bid the guilty him embrace.

    4    In his highest work, redemption,
            See his glory in a blaze;
        Nor can angels ever mention
            Aught that more of God displays;
                    Grace and justice
            Here unite to endless days.

    5    True, ’tis sweet and solemn pleasure,
            God to view in Christ the Lord;
        Here he smiles and smiles for ever;
            May my soul his name record;
                    Praise and bless him,
            And his wonders spread abroad.

            (William Gadsby, 1773-1844) 

Herman Bavinck on the Covenant of Redemption

The idea that the Father entered into a 'covenant of redemption' with the Son in eternity is a staple of Reformed covenant theology. As typically expressed, the Father appointed the Son Mediator and Surety of the covenant of grace and promised him a glorious reward on completion of his redemptive work. This construction is found in the work of early covenant theologian, Johannes Cocceius, seventeenth century Orthodox Reformed divines, old Princeton theologians, Charles and A. A. Hodge, and more recently, Louis Berkhof. 

However, Robert Letham complains that as traditionally explained the 'covenant of redemption' is open to a number of criticisms. It seems to entail the eternal subordination of the Son to the Father, and as the pactum salutis (pact of salvation) is taken only to concern the Father and the Son, with little or no mention of the Holy Spirit, it is sub-trinitarian.  Indeed, in his The Work of Christ, (endnote 34, p. 254), Letham points out that in his Outlines of Theology, (p. 371-372), A. A. Hodge makes no reference at all to the Holy Spirit in his discussion of the covenant of redemption. More promisingly, Charles Hodge defends the notion of the Father entering into a pre-temporal pact with the Son by invoking the doctrine of the Trinity (Systematic Theology Volume 2, p. 359). But, once more, when it comes to the substance of the 'covenant of redemption', the doctrine is unfolded in terms of an arrangement between the Father and the Son. The Father is said to give the Holy Spirit to the Son to facilitate the work of redemption, but that is about as far as it goes. Louis Berkhof's treatment of the 'covenant of redemption' likewise pays scant attention to the role of the Holy Spirit, (Systematic Theology, p. 265-271). He defines the compact thus, the agreement between the Father, giving the Son as Head of the elect, and the Son, voluntarily taking the place of those whom the Father had given Him. (Italics original, p. 271). As Berkhof's definition makes no mention of the Holy Spirit, it clearly falls foul of the principle that both the external acts of the Trinity are undivided. On this basis the 'covenant of redemption' in its traditionally stated form is highly problematic.

Now we come to Herman Bavinck. The Dutch dogmatician is critical of some aspects of the construction of the pactum salutis found in Orthodox Reformed divines such as Cocceious. But he nevertheless sees a clear biblical basis for the idea that in eternity the Father appointed the Son as Mediator (amongst other texts, he cites: Isaiah 42:1, John 6:38-40, 10:18, 1 Peter 1:20, Revelation 13:8). As he develops his teaching on the 'covenant of redemption', Bavinck is keen to set out the trinitarian character of the doctrine,

The pact of salvation makes known to us the relationships and life of the three persons in the Divine Being as a covenantal life, a life of consummate self-consciousness and freedom. Here, within the Divine Being, the covenant flourishes to the full.... The greatest freedom and the most perfect agreement coincide. The work of salvation is an undertaking of three persons in which all cooperate and each performs a special task... It is the triune God alone, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who together conceive, determine, carry out and complete the entire work of salvation. (Reformed Dogmatics Volume 3, p. 214-215).

The pact of salvation between the persons of the Trinity in eternity is the foundation of the saving acts of the triune God in the history of redemption. 

All the grace that is extended to the creation after the fall comes to it from the Father, through the Son, in the Holy Spirit. The Son appeared immediately after the fall, as Mediator, as the second and final Adam who occupies the place of the first, restores what the latter corrupted and accomplishes what he failed to do. And the Holy Spirit immediately acted as the Paraclete, the one applying the salvation acquired by Christ. (RD. 3, p. 217). 

And so it is that under both Old and New Testament dispensations that the Father saves his people by the redeeming work of the Son, applied to them by the Holy Spirit. "There is one faith, one Mediator, one way of salvation, and one covenant of grace." (RD. 3, p. 217).  

Bavinck's treatment of the 'covenant of redemption' is thoroughly grounded in Scripture. He takes into account the trinitarian dimensions of the doctrine, relating the eternal pactum salutis between Father, Son and Holy Spirit to the historical fulfilment of the work of redemption. John Murray is not altogether happy in speaking of pre-temporal 'covenant' between the persons of the Trinity, preferring the designation 'inter-trinitarian economy of salvation.' (Collected Writings of John Murray, Volume 2, p. 130). But, as his suggested rewording implies, he is in full agreement with Bavinck's trinitarian emphasis, 

The title ['inter-trinitarian economy of salvation'] is inclusive enough to comprise all aspects of the economy, eternal and temporal, pre-temporal design and fulfilment in time and in the ages to come... After all, our study of the plan of salvation will not produce abiding fruit unless the plan captivates our devotion to the triune God in the particularity of the grace which each person bestows in the economy of redemption, and in the particularity of the relationship constituted by the amazing grace of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The fellowship of the living God is the fellowship of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. (CW. 2, p. 131). 

As set out by Bavinck and Murray (despite the latter's reservations concerning the use of covenant language when it comes to the pactum salutis), the 'covenant of redemption' demands a place in biblically faithful Reformed theology. In eternity and time salvation is of the Father, by the Son and through the Holy Spirit. 

FIEC News: Our Vision and Progress by John Stevens

John Stevens, the FIEC's head honcho has recently started blogging at Dissenting Opinion. See here for for a post on Our Vision and Progress. 

What have the Welsh done for you?

Especially for St. David's day:

1) Shown the English how to play rugby.
2) Invented cheese on toast, 'Welsh rarebit'.
3) Dylan Thomas
4) R. S. Thomas
5) Doubting Thomas - must have been Welsh with a name like that.
6) Ivor the Engine - better than Thomas the Tank Engine any day. Could Thomas (not Welsh because Thomas was his first name) sing Cwm Rhondda (see here)? Er, no.
7) The Severn Bridge that ensures England is not cut off from civilisation.
8) The bloke from The Alarm's mullet.
9) Majestically mournful minor key hymn tunes, Aberystwyth, Trewen, Llan Bagan.
10) Powerful preachers, John Penry, Vavasor Powell, Howell Harris, Daniel Rowland, William Williams, John Elias, Christmas Evans, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones....

Need I say more?

Truth matters

One of the first lessons that parents impart to their children is the importance of telling the truth. But one of the first lessons that children learn in life is that it sometimes seems easier to lie that tell the truth. This is especially the case when they are tempted to be dishonest in order to avoid being punished for being naughty. Of course, when the lie unravels, they find themselves in double trouble. As the Good Book warns us “Be sure your sins will find you out.”

Relationships are based on trust and relations soon sour when it turns out that someone has not been altogether honest with us. When governments casually break their manifesto promises, the electorate quickly becomes disillusioned. The phone hacking scandal has broken the bond of trust between newspapers and their readers. If, on a personal level we discover that someone has lied to us, we find it difficult to believe their word ever again. Remember the boy who cried, “Wolf!”? The Christian faith recognises the vital importance of honesty. One of the Ten Commandments tells us, “You shall nor bear false witness”.

God is almighty. Nothing is impossible for him. But the Bible reveals that there is one thing that even he cannot do. He is “the God who cannot lie” (Titus 1:2). That explains why human beings, created in the image of God also have an inbuilt concern for truth. That is why dishonesty is an expression of something badly wrong with the human heart.

Christian believers follow Jesus not because their faith makes them feel good about themselves, but because they are convinced that the claims of Christ are true. We believe that he really is the Son of God who became man. We believe that he really did die on the cross for the sins of the world. We believe that he really did rise again from the dead. We believe that he really will give forgiveness and hope to all who trust in him. Truth matters. Jesus said, “I am the truth”. 

And if you think that speaking of faith with such conviction is off-putting in our age of fashionable posdmodern   doubt and uncertainty, then read this.   

Banner of Truth Leicester Ministers' Conference 2012

Get the low-down and book online here. 

Let us pray?

Who might have thought that prayer would be the subject of headline-grabbing controversy? Mr Justice Ouseley of the High Court ruled that Bideford Town Council has no power to include prayers as part of the formal agenda of its meetings. The case was instigated by the National Secular Society. The ruling has implications for local councils across the country. Secularists greeted the ruling with glee. Their rejoicing looks to be short lived. Eric Pickles, the Government’s Communities Secretary has vowed to pass legislation that will give councils the right to begin their meetings with prayer if they so wish.

It is interesting that it is prayer of all things that has thrown up the issue of the role of faith in public life. For what could be more essential to the life of faith than prayer? A person becomes a Christian when they call upon God to save them from sin through the Lord Jesus Christ. The Christian life is sustained by prayerful communion with God. Jesus taught his followers to pray to their Father in heaven, to worship him and bring their requests to him. In prayer believers acknowledge their total dependence upon God and seek his help to live in a way that brings glory in his name.

Christians may pray to God for all manner of things; for the provision of their daily bread, for guidance when perplexed, for strength to resist temptation and so on. But prayer involves more than brining a “shopping list” of requests to God. It involves enjoying fellowship with God the Father in the name of Jesus Christ by the power of his Spirit.

But prayer is not simply a matter of “private spirituality”. It is right that believers pray for God’s blessing on their country. The prophet Jeremiah wrote to the Jews who were exiled to Babylon, “And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace.” (Jeremiah 29:7) Similarly the apostle Paul said, “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Saviour, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:1-4).

For Christians, prayer should always be top of the agenda.


* For the March edition of News & Views, West Lavington parish magazine. 

Exiled Publishing

I'm thinking about trying to get a collection of some of the stuff posted here published. Anyone with experience of being published got any suggestions on how I might do this? 

On reading The Confessions of Saint Augustine

The Confessions of Saint Augustine,

Translated by Rex Warner, Signet Classic, 2001, 352pp. 

It has long been my habit to leave a book in the car for occasions when I know I'm going to be kept waiting around. A visit to the doctor, or dentist etc. For the last year or so The Confessions of Saint Augustine has served that purpose. Maybe reading this spiritual classic in short, sporadic bursts isn't the best way to go about it, but there we are. I finished reading the Confessions  the other week when taking my daughter to an orthodontist appointment. While she was getting all braced up, I concluded Book XIII, Augustine's somewhat mind-bending reflections on Genesis 1. 

This isn't a review of the Confessions (despite what it says in the link below), so much as an attempt to urge those who haven't yet read this work to give it a go. Rex Warner's translation in the edition I read is wonderfully vivid, crisp and clear. 

In a sense, the Confessions is Augustine's autobiography, 'a work of unique self-revelation, in which he becomes something more than his own Boswell'. (B. B. Warfield, Augustine and His "Confessions" in Calvin and Augustine, P&P, 1980). But it is an autobiography with a difference. The work's title is not incidental, for the Confessions takes the form of an  elongated confession to God. While others are invited to eavesdrop on Augustine's confession, it is primarily directed at God himself. The work opens with a note of praise, citing Psalm 145:3. Augustine asks for permission to pursue God, "Let me seek you, Lord, by praying to you and let me pray believing in you; since to us you have been preached." This element of dialogue with God continues throughout the Confessions, "Oh that I might find rest and peace in you!", "My God let me remember with thanks and let me confess to you your mercies done to me.", "Command what you will and give what you command.", "I have heard you, Lord my God, and I sucked a drop of sweetness from your truth and I understood." 

Augustine charts the course of his life from his birth to the time of writing his confession. He tells of how he was delivered from the error of Manichaeism to embrace the truth of the Catholic faith. He details his conversion experience, when, famously he heard a child in a neighbouring garden calling out, "Toll lege", "Take and read." He took and read Romans 13:11-14 and was never the same again. Augustine wrote out of a deep sense of the sovereign grace of God by which he was saved from sin. He us utterly entranced by the beauty of  the Lord, 

Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would have not been at all. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for your peace.

This was the triune God who revealed himself to Augustine in his Son and by his Spirit, "The Trinity, my God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Creator of all creation." 

In prayerful dialogue with God, Augustine reflects on love and desire, friendship and bereavement, memory and time (see here), faith and reason. It really is remarkable stuff. For good reason Augustine's Confessions is regarded as one of the great works of Christian theology. Time spent with the Confessions is time well spent. Better if you find yourself waiting around to listen in to Augustine's conversation with God than read the standard waiting room fare. Will it be for you, Hello! magazine, a leaflet on root canal treatment, playing Angry Birds on your phone, or The Confessions of Saint Augustine? As the voice said,  Toll lege.  

My current "time redeeming" read is Letters of John Newton. Mine is a second hand copy of the Banner of Truth 1965 edition, original price 4s6d. I had to interrupt this post for a family visit to the dentist (it's all teeth, teeth, teeth with us). While waiting for my six monthly check (yea, no fillings this time!), I read Letter I, Grace in the Blade and very good it was too. 

London Theological Seminary: The Movie

See here for a short film on the London Theological Seminary. The seminary will be holding a Open Day for budding preachers on 10th March. Visit the LTS website for details.