bible reading day 1

I began this morning with Genesis 1, and here are some thoughts...

Order. God created it all. It all belongs to him. We are all accountable to him. A parallel NT passage: John 1, where the new creation (redemption) is begun by God the Son entering our world to save us. "Save us" includes the return of form and fullness to his creation. He blesses us with salvation, and "it is good." We go forth with the gospel to bring order and fullness of blessing to our world.

Joy. God saw that all he did was good. We see the joy of God's creativity, and hence, we have joy in creating and sharing in his creation.

The "image of God" is our created constitution to rule over God's creation with righteousness and goodness. It means having a body and soul, and specifically, the mind, and will, and emotions to share dominion in a God-like (godly) and good way.

"And it was so..." (wayehî Gen. 1:7 et al) This is a common phrase used throughout the Bible to indicate that something happened, and sometimes specifically that what God said "came to pass". You will see it often translated as "and it came about". The important thing to note is that this phrase does not require immediate or instantaneous fulfillment. Even in the context of the six days of creation we see that the creation of the vegetation on day three (Gen. 1:11) had not actually "come to pass" yet by day six (Gen 2:5).

I hold to a position that the days of Genesis are days of decree. God spoke these things in the order of three days of forming and separating; and three days of filling creation with its creatures. We are told of God's speaking his design and his blessing, but we must be careful in how we infer the manner of accomplishment. There were both supernatural and natural forces at work in creation, just as there are in redemption.

"And he blessed them, saying..." (1:22 et al) The blessing (barak) is the good word given by God to his creation which also imparts the power to bring about the blessing.

What's my take away from the first chapter of Genesis on the first day of the new year? Our God is a God of creation, communication, design, order, and fullness of blessing. This is his universe and I am his creation, and now I am his child by redemption. My calling is to submit to God's design and plan for fullness of life and, as I am able, to bring godly order and blessing into my immediate world. My words of blessing in this new year can help others enjoy God's goodness.

I'm using this plan this year. Feel free to follow along!

Image above is a photo from Topsail Island, NC, taken in 2018 with a Nikon Coolpix.

clement quotes hebrews

Clement of Rome wrote to the church in Corinth around AD 90. This is perhaps the same Clement, companion of Paul, mentioned in Philippians 4:3. Many hold him to be the first bishop / pope in Rome, aka St. Clement I. Clement quotes from the letter to the Hebrews. Origin suggested that Clement was in fact the writer (as transcriber or amanuensis) of Hebrews. Perhaps this letter began as a "word of exhortation" given by Paul at the synagogue (Heb 13:22; cf Acts 13:15) which then became a circular letter for the churches. Other possible authors of Hebrews include Luke, Barnabas, or Apollos. The theology is Pauline, but the transcriber is obviously second-generation (Heb. 2:3-4). At any rate, this early church leader in Rome, is already quoting Hebrews in his letter in AD 90: CHAPTER 36 ALL BLESSINGS ARE GIVEN TO US THROUGH CHRIST This is the way, beloved, in which we find our Savior, even Jesus Christ, the High Prie...

Howard Hendricks on OT books chronology

When I was in seminary, Howard Hendricks (aka "Prof") gave us a little card with the books of the OT chronologically arranged. The scanned copy I have was a bit blurry and I wanted to make something like this available for our church class in OT theology ("Story of Redemption"). A few minor edits and here it is...

a brief history of bcf

Blacksburg Christian Fellowship, or BCF as it is popularly known, was founded in November 1969. Prior to this time several families had been meeting for Bible study and prayer, with a particular concern that the Lord raise up an effective biblical ministry to the students of the Virginia Tech campus. Growing from these meetings, the Lord led them to begin a public ministry on Sunday mornings. The Wesley Foundation agreed to the rental of their facilities, and the first meeting was held in November 1969, with about 30 people in attendance. Since the first meeting BCF has been greatly blessed by the Lord and has seen a steady growth in ministry and in numbers. Two other local churches were formed in part from BCF. In 1974 the Lord led Houston Couch, who at that time was an Elder in BCF, to leave and start Dayspring Christian Fellowship. In 1980 Max Harris, who was a regular attender at BCF, was encouraged by the Elders and members to start a ministry which has now become Grace Cov...

my burg

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