Scotty Smith, with “An Advent Prayer for Our Children and Grandchildren”

Gene Edward Veith shares a brother’s sharp view on whose job it is to “keep Christ in Christmas.”

The Resurgence tempts you to consider the lesson we can learn about God’s law from kids and forbidden marshmallows.

The AV gets a lot of bad press. The archaic “thee” and “ye” pronoun forms are…well, archaic. The English language has changed over the last 400 years, and thus some of the expressions are odd. But no one should deny the sheer beauty of the language. I still contend that it is easier to memorize than many of the contemporary translations. Although I use the ESV in daily reading and in my preaching and teaching ministry, the AV is an old, dear friend, not an enemy. It was the version of my earliest Bible memorization. As long as I retain the faculties of memory, Ephesians 4:32 will come up in my mind as “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” The newer versions just don’t stick like that. A friend and I are currently memorizing the entirety of Paul’s letter to the Philippians, and I keep running across the same phenomenon in efforts to memorize chapter one.

Allen Yeh has written a short tribute to the AV at Scriptorium Daily. It’s worth reading.

Despite efforts to curb these assaults over the last decade, there’s not much evidence of progress. Why? Simple answers include: victim shame, the haze of alcohol (it tends to reduce clarity about whether sex was consensual or not), the desire of the male to deny and cover up, and (very sadly) the fear in some leaders who worry too much about false accusations. Yes, people do lie. However, the ones who bear that cost are usually victims.

The shame felt by victims stays with them a long time. It hinders marital intimacy and oneness, as a victim often does not tell her husband about “what happened in college,” afraid that he would not marry her if he knew the truth. The victim feels like damaged goods and ends up feeling ruled by the shame.

As Christians, it’s not a question of if we will deal with such issues; it’s more a question of when. Most of us can present the gospel in a way that deals with sins for which we bear responsibility and guilt. While this is true and essential, we also need to speak clearly about the ways the gospel addresses sins that have been committed against us. You cannot repent of being abused, tortured, or raped; however, the blood and righteousness of Christ speak of cleansing and hope for shame and defilement. Your identity must be marked only by what Jesus Christ has done for you and no longer by what has been done by you or to you. The scriptural language of atonement, cleansing, washing and purifying speaks a powerful truth to such souls. Jesus’ sacrifice takes away sin and shame forever for those who trust him. It’s a simple truth, but, as John Owen would say, “exceedingly difficult to exercise faith upon.”

Mark Driscoll and Garry Breshears’ Death by Love: Letters from the Cross has a chapter which addresses this issue wonderfully.

Before I could formulate a response, the elder (usually the silent partner at this point in the conversation) spoke up and answered better than I could. “O you don’t have to worry about that. When you need that grace, the Lord will give it to you. You feel like you don’t have it right now, but you don’t need it right now. It’s like manna. It’ll be there.”

Reading Edward T. Welch’s Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest reminded me of that cold afternoon. In one chapter Welch teases out our specific fears of death: fears of eternity, fears of the way you might die, fears of hardship for loved ones, fear of the unknown, and fear of judgment. He addresses the second fear, fear of the way you might die, like my friend and fellow elder did that day. Let me share Welch’s version with you.

You can’t trust in technology, because technology is one of the problems. You can’t trust in pain management, because medications don’t always cut through the pain. There are no other options. Your God has fenced you in so that your only option is to trust that he will give you grace.

What has this grace looked like in others?

• Grace to believe that God is good.
• Grace to have joy even while the body is wasting away.
• Grace to cry out and be certain that God hears.
• Grace to know that you are not alone.
• Grace to trust rather than fear.
• Grace to know that death is not the end.

Welch also points to the manna principle (Exodus 16:16-19): God will give us what need for today and just for today. Fears and worries thrive in the future and imagine that future without Christ present. To thwart our tendency toward self-reliance, God has determined to give us only what we need when we need it. He wants us to trust him in the future rather than our self-protective plans.

At times I will feel as though I am forsaken or surrounded with no way out. But God is not distant or silent at these moments. He is teaching me to call out to him and trust him. Remember something I preached recently: If dependence is the objective, then weakness is the advantage.

Here’s a short video from Ed Welch about Running Scared:

Sundays: read five chapters in the Psalms. When done, read through Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon.

Mondays: read three chapters in Genesis. When done, read through Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

Tuesdays: read three chapters in Joshua. When done, read through Judges, Ruth, 1& 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings.

Wednesdays: read three chapters in Job. When done, read through 1 & 2 Chroniclers, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther.

Thursdays: read three chapters in Isaiah. When done, read through Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

Fridays: read three chapters In Matthew. When done, read through Mark, Luke, John, and Acts.

Saturdays: read three chapters in Romans. When done, read through 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1 & 2 Peter, 1, 2 & 3 John, Jude, and Revelation.

FURTHER ADVICE

• Set a distinct time of day and place for your reading, as free as possible from distractions. Turn off that electronic device that bosses you around.
• Use a good, readable translation. I recommend, in the following order: English Standard Version, New King James Version, New International Version, King James Version, and New American Standard. But the best translation of the Scriptures is one you are actually reading! I don’t recommend a study Bible. All those extra notes and comments can be distracting, and you might need an orthopedic specialist if you haul around an ESV Study Bible for 365 consecutive days.
• When you forget or fall behind, don’t give up. All is not lost. The devil would like you to give up once you’ve fallen behind. Pick back up right where you were. You can double up to catch up, but you don’t have to. So what if you finish in February 2011?
• Pray every day before you read, and after you read.
• Ask a friend or loved one to join you in the venture. Keep each other accountable.

• Tim Keller on how John Calvin taught him that there are two kinds of popularity–one evil and one good.
• David Powlison on whether “quiet times” should be quiet or noisy.
• Sean Michael Lucas with a review of Adam McHugh’s Introverts in the Church: Finding Our Place in an Extroverted Culture.