St. John of Damascus penned the Treatises on the Divine Images in response to iconoclasm which swept across the Byzantine Empire under Emperor Leo III. Throughout his three treatise, St. John of Damascus works to distinguish veneration from worship, and he justifies icons imaging Jesus and the saints. As a modern reader the distinction between veneration (characterized as honor) and worship appeared— at least by verbal distinctions— quite clear, and I’ve never really taken issue...
We believe what we sing, so it’s important to sing the most important doctrines of our faith. But I don’t think we give Jesus’ ascension the attention it deserves. Here is a beautiful hymn text that considers the Ascension biblically, theologically, and with implications for our lives, below with my comments: The author introduces us to the Ascended One with biblical allusions from the Psalms, most notably Psalm 24, from which Handel also helps us sing...
This past week has been tough. Orlando, Paris, Tel Aviv, and many others have been a constant source of tears, heartache and mourning for the global community I know for me, death has hit home in a different way. Last week, my Grandma passed away at 89 years old. She was an amazing woman who was first and foremost, a Christian. She loved Jesus in so many ways, and in every way she embodied a older...
The Spirit prays for us. We do not know what to pray, nor necessarily to pray for that which we do not know what to pray for. Neither did we know how to pray, nor even how to pray for what we do not know to pray for, but our Lord has taught us. He did not merely teach us how to pray, but he has trained us in his own Spirit. It is the...
I was reading Josh Carroll’s post about the disease called “Critiqueomania” and I found that I myself have had rather severe bouts of this plague. Some of these outbreaks have been part of my former angst, but others seemed very well meant. Some were definitely “Critiqueomania,” but there were other times where my criticism was well founded and was not coming from a place of pride or scholarly arrogance. So what do you do if it seems...
At the time of writing this blog I am sitting outside of the secondary venue at the Keswick Conference in the Lake District of England waiting for the main speaker to begin his sermon. I just listened to an older white guy warm up the crowd with a vigorously spoken word concerning God’s preeminence over all creation. It was an interesting and unexpected mishmash of cultural style that, despite being hampered by the lagging video...
Thanks to Logan’s post a few weeks ago, I have been introduced to an absolutely fabulous worship band called Kings Kaleidoscope (hereafter KK). If you’ve never heard of them, go buy their album, Becoming Who We Are, right now. I did the very same thing after reading Logan’s review and I am so glad that I did. In this post I won’t rehash Logan’s analysis of the main reasons that make KK (#1) so good,...
Block, Daniel I. For the Glory of God: Recovering a Biblical Theology of Worship. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic, 2014. 432 pages. Hardcover. Retail: $34.99. In the spring semester of 2011, I had the privilege of attending a course at Wheaton College, IL that Dr. Daniel Block taught based upon the content that would become his new book, For the Glory of God: Recovering a Biblical Theology of Worship. It is a joy to now...
I have just recently returned from Scotland and there have been a lot of interesting adjustments in the process, like a reverse culture-shock. But one of the things that has particularly stood out is the fact that I haven’t known any of the worship songs at the chapel and church services that I’ve attended since returning home. Before moving to Scotland I attended Grace Evangelical Free near Biola where our worship pastor would create songs...
“Your love never fails. It never gives up. It never runs out on me.”* I stood, watching a gym full of hundreds of college students, singing these words of praise and truth. Arms-raised, dancing, clapping, and shouting – I admired their passion. The pulsing drums, the rocking guitars, the melodic keyboard, and the passionate vocals all came together to celebrate God’s relentless love. I joined them in singing these words, and I remembered sitting in...
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