This Sunday I had the sobering responsibility of filling the pulpit at our church in the midst of the unfolding coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Our church is small enough that we decided to meet, but we cancelled SS and nursery. I preached on the OT priesthood in relation to Christ, taking my title from Hebrews 9:11 “high priest of the good things that have come.” I spent most of the sermon setting the stage for the first ever public worship service of the LORD described in Leviticus 9. Eventually I ended up in Hebrews 9 and we reveled in the superiority of Jesus Christ as our high priest.
I trust this sermon will be bless my readers. If you don’t have time to listen to the entire sermon (50 minutes), please do look over my notes.
Earlier this month I once again had the privilege to fill the pulpit and deliver the Sunday morning message. My theme this time was on how Elisha is a type of Christ. My text was in 2 Kings. I really enjoyed the challenge of crafting this message to be clear and impactful and yet not say more than the text warrants.
I trust this sermon will be bless my readers. If you don’t have time to listen to the entire sermon (43 minutes), please do look over my notes.
500 years ago the Reformation was transforming Europe. Politics and nation-states would be affected, but the relationship of the average Christian to the Church was forever altered. Protestant Evangelical Christians look back on the Reformation with gratitude. The Reformation recovered the Christian Gospel of grace after all. But the contemporary Church has wandered far from the faith of its fathers, and more than ever before calls for denominational unity and even ecumenical togetherness with Rome are hitting home. Secularism is a threat to Catholic and confessing Protestant alike, so why not band together? How big, after all, are the points that separate us? Didn’t the Roman Catholic Church reform in the wake of the Reformation too?
It is these questions and this concern that D. G. Hart addresses head on in his recent book Still Protesting: Why the Reformation Matters (Reformation Heritage, 2018). Hart expertly unfolds the history of the Reformation and evaluates key evangelical truths (including the important “5 Solas”) as compared to the historical Roman Catholicism of that day. He goes on to examine whether the Roman Catholic Church has truly changed in its stance on these points over time. In his case against Rome, Hart also finds liberal Protestantism and lackadaisical evangelicalism at fault as well. He argues that the Reformation is still needed and a return to the faith of our fathers may well help American Christianity as it faces its own cross-roads.
An intriguing feature of the book is his examination of conservative political theory in America in relation to “anti-Catholic” sentiment. Historically, Protestants looked at the “golden age” of America as an advance in the history of the West (almost a postmillennial viewpoint) and lauded the rise of democracy and liberty. However “Roman Catholics saw those same developments negatively, as declension from an ideal time when church, government, society, and culture coexisted harmoniously under the sacred canopy of Christian influence” (p. 152). As progressive politics moved on to promote social change and “progress” in general – Catholicism’s opposition to unfettered equality and freedom became more in-step with conservatism’s resistance to progressive politics. For those who have wanted to “dissent from the logic and momentum of progressive politics” more help is found “for political conservatism in Roman Catholic sources” (p. 159). This leads to the pain-point that Hart is addressing: many political conservatives today claim that to be a true conservative, you must become a Roman Catholic. In response, Hart points to Abraham Kuyper (an evangelical leader and Prime Minister of The Netherlands) and J. Gresham Machen (founder of Westminster Theological Seminary) as examples of Protestant contributions to conservatism.
What sparked my interest in that section of the book was his point that American Protestantism had developed a “form of patriotism that unhealthily equated the faith with democracy and liberty” (p. 159). Protestantism’s fight against Catholicism mirrored democracy’s fight against the Monarchy. The founders of our country very much fit in with this patriotic version of faith. Indeed, this patriotism must have enabled the onset of the “social gospel.” Today’s patriotic, “God and Country” version of evangelical “faith,” which is “unhealthy” and unbiblical, has a long history indeed.
Those well-versed in the Reformation are sure to find new insights and connections in the pages of this book. Readers less familiar with the Reformation will also be helped. Anyone interested in what really separates Protestants from Catholics will find this book useful. I highly recommend it.
Disclaimer: This book was provided by the publisher. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a positive review.
About Book Briefs: Book Briefs are book notes, or short-form book reviews. They are my informed evaluation of a book, but stop short of being a full-length book review.
If you were to list the most popular books of the Bible — those most preached from or commented on — would Song of Solomon make your list? Probably not. In his new book The Love of Loves in the Song of Songs, Philip Ryken points out that in actuality for most of Church history (up through the 1600s), Song of Solomon would find its place near the top of that list (p. 44)! This is surprising to anyone familiar with Solomon’s Song because no book in the Bible is more sure to bring redness to the face when read aloud in mixed company! Indeed the book is a collection of love poems centering on the relationship between a man and woman, which like many love poems can be quite suggestive and evocative (almost erotic).
For those who need help in understanding and appreciating the Song of Solomon I recommend picking up Philip Ryken’s new book The Love of Loves in the Song of Songs. This book helpfully includes the entire biblical text (ESV) of Song of Solomon alongside Ryken’s easy to read devotional thoughts on this fascinating (and often troubling) book.
In earlier eras of the church, Song of Solomon was often interpreted allegorically as a way to sanctify its use in the church. Ryken approaches the Song in a similar way noting that it “awakens a desire for intimacy that can be satisfied only by a personal relationship with the living God.” (p. 44). He notes how sexual imagery is often used to describe Israel’s rejection of the exclusive worship of Jehovah. And marriage itself is a picture both of God’s relationship with Israel, and more especially (from our perspective) Christ’s relationship with the Church. Yet Ryken stops short of reading the book allegorically: there are parallels between the relationship between Christ and the Church in the relationship idealized in Song of Solomon, but there is also something to be learned with regard to human relationships as well.
The context of the love relationship described is, according to Ryken, a covenant marriage: he affirms that the book upholds traditional Christian teaching that sexuality is intended to flourish within (and only within) a marriage between a man and a woman. Ryken also holds that the book uses Solomon as an ideal figure but the relationship described is not necessarily Solomon’s. He doesn’t speak too dogmatically on that interpretive point, however. Ryken does draw out important lessons from the book with regard to singleness, purity, engagement and marriage — and more.
But Song of Solomon is more than a marriage manual or typological description of Christ and the Church. It is poetry. Ryken often describes the book as a collection of song lyrics: “Read this book the way you read the liner notes to an album of love songs” (p. 31-32). Ryken masterfully reads the poetry and follows the Hebrew text to spell out who is talking and sets the stage, so we can follow along and enjoy the love poems and their underlying story.
One other point deserves mention with respect to Ryken’s handling of the text. Ryken does not eagerly proclaim Song of Solomon as a manifesto on sexual liberation. Instead he finds its instruction on marital love appropriately muted by the poetic nature of the book, and not as graphic or explicit as quite a few modern writers envision.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Love of Loves. It rekindled my appreciation for Solomon’s Song. I highly recommend it.
Disclaimer: This book was provided by the publisher. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a positive review.
About Book Briefs: Book Briefs are book notes, or short-form book reviews. They are my informed evaluation of a book, but stop short of being a full-length book review.
“In the Box” posts highlight new books I’ve received in the mail.
In this post, I want to showcase two of the new titles that at arrived at my doorstep in the last few weeks. I’m truly blessed to be able to read so many great books, and Christian publishers seem to never let up in their race to get high quality materials out the door. We are truly blessed with an abundance of Christian resources to help us in our walk with Christ.
The Love of Loves in the Song of Songs by Philip Ryken
This book is a meditation on Song of Solomon, and helpfully includes the entire biblical text (ESV) of that book. Ryken’s style is easy to read and he shares a wealth of insight from others on this fascinating (and often troubling) book. I appreciate that from the start he does not shy away from appreciating the parallels between Christ and the Church that have historically dominated the interpretation of this book, even as he rejects outright allegoricalism. He also does not eagerly proclaim the book as a manifesto on sexual liberation either, finding its instruction on marital love appropriately muted by the poetic nature of the book, and not as graphic or explicit as quite a few modern writers envision.
Parenting with Loving Correction: Practical Help for Raising Young Children by Sam Crabtree
The next Crossway title I received is by Pastor Sam Crabtree of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis (where I was a member for several years). Knowing Pastor Crabtree personally, I am eager to dig into this work. Like the title of his other book Practicing Affirmation, Pastor Sam is warm and encouraging, and I expect his parental advice to be refreshing and uplifting – while also insightful.
This Sunday I had the sobering responsibility of filling the pulpit at our church in the midst of the unfolding coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Our church is small enough that we decided to meet, but we cancelled SS and nursery. I preached on the OT priesthood in relation to Christ, taking my title from Hebrews 9:11 “high priest of the good things that have come.” I spent most of the sermon setting the stage for the first ever public worship service of the LORD described in Leviticus 9. Eventually I ended up in Hebrews 9 and we reveled in the superiority of Jesus Christ as our high priest.
