New Exodus and Gal 5:18

Studying Galatians 5 has sort of been a pet project of mine throughout my time in seminary, so I'm excited when scholars produce helpful and insightful exegesis of this passage, particularly when they are sensitive to the redemptive-historical motifs that run through Paul's writings. So I was delighted when I happened upon this review about a book entitled "Echoes of the Exodus Narrative in the Context and Background of Gal. 5:18" by William Wilder. (Gal. 5:18 says, "If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law") Here is a snippet of the review:

"What Wilder observes is that - contrary to conventional interpretations of this verse - Paul has in mind a 'new exodus' typology in which the guiding Spirit corresponds to the exodus cloud and existence 'under the law' to the Israelites' bondage in Egypt...Wilder looks at the contexts of salvation history, exodus typology, and Paul's apocalyptic perspective before probing Ps. 143:2, 10 as the specific background for Gal 5:18."

Barak

"Perhaps more pertinent to our politics is the name Barack (sometimes spelled Barak) which presumably refers to the warrior who served under the direction of a strong willed woman executive named Deborah (see Judges 4). This has led practitioners of a peculiar style of biblical prognostication to conclude that the senator will accept the vice-presidential nomination on a ticket headed by a strong-willed woman of our time...."

Richard John Neuhaus, First Things March 2007, pg. 68

History and Faith

It seems to me inescapable...that anyone who chanced to read the pages of the NT for the first time would come away with one overwhelming impression - that here is a faith that 'does not understand itself to be the discovering and imparting of generally valid, timeless truths,' but that is firmly based on certain allegedly historical events - a faith which would be false and misleading if those events had not actually taken place, but which, if they did take place, is unique in its relevance and exlusive in its demands on our allegiance.

- Norman Anderson, Jesus Christ: The Witness of History, pg. 14.

Covenant seminary courses online

Covenant seminary is kindly offering many of their courses online for free. I think many of their instructors are great lecturers: I'm familiar mostly with David Calhoun and Dan Doriani, both of whom have courses on this site.

Qur'an and the Bible

Contrast the first statement by Reza Aslan, a Muslim theologian, to the second statement by Geerhardus Vos, a Christian theologian.

1. "The Quran is considered to be direct revelation, the actual words of God handed down through Muhammad, who was little more than a passive conduit. In purely literary terms, the Quran is God’s dramatic monologue. It does not recount God’s communion with humanity; it is God’s communion with humanity…"

2. "Because God desires to be known after this (covenantal) fashion, He has caused His revelation to take place in the milieu of the historical life of a people. The circle of revelation is not a school, but a covenant. To speak of revelation as an 'education' of humanity is a rationalistic and utterly unscriptural way of speaking. All that God has disclosed of Himself has come in response to the practical religious needs of His people as these emerged in the course of history...it (the Bible) has not completed itself in one exhaustive act, but unfolded itself in a long series of successive acts."

Lolita

The reader will regret to learn that soon after my return to civilization I had another bout with insanity (if to melancholia and a sense of insufferable oppression that cruel term must be applied). I owe my complete restoration to a discovery I made while being treated at that particular very expensive sanatorium. I discovered there was an endless source of robust enjoyment trifling with psychiatrists: cunningly leading them on, never letting them see that you know all the tricks of the trade; inventing for them elaborate dreams, pure classics in style (which make them, the dream extortionists, dream and wake up shrieking). By bribing a nurse I won access to some files I discovered with glee, cards calling me "potentially homosexual" and "totally impotent." The sport was so excellent - its results - in my case - so ruddy that I stayed on for a whole month after I was quite well (sleeping admirably and eating like a schoolgirl).
- Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita, pg. 34.

So here's a question: Should Sabbatarians watch the Super Bowl this Sunday? Notice I did not say "Christians" because that would mean I would have to defend the practice of keeping the Lord's Day holy: something that has already been satisfactorily done by Joseph Pipa and even the pope. But assuming that you believe the Lord's Day should be sanctified along the lines of the 4th commandment and the summary of the commandment in WCF 21.8 and LC 116-121, then I will make what is perhaps a bold statement: watching the Super Bowl is inconsistent with biblical Sabbath keeping. The reason, in short: the 4th commandment states that "You are to do no work" and then goes on to state that one's family and animals are also under the purview of this injunction. What is more, "the stranger who is within your gates" is also forbidden from doing work. (As one of my professors has said, the Sabbath is not just about receiving rest, but also giving rest to others.) It seems to me that by willingly (even enthusiastically) participating in watching others work, we are not following the spirit of this law, which is to both rest ourselves and to give others rest as well.

The objection may arise (and I've heard it many a time): "refraining from watching is not going to prevent them from working, so it's not an issue." Firstly, the logic behind this seems like "Well, the stranger who is within my gates will work elsewhere unless I let him work here, so I better let him work here on the day of rest." Secondly, one must again question the assumption behind this statement. For the main concern is not whether one's watching is forcing someone to work or not, but whether one's participation is at the very least an implicit approval of others working, which Sabbatarians do not believe is appropriate on the Lord's day.

It seems to me that if we as Christians want to be "counter-cultural," then resting on the Lord's day is a good place to begin...