Category: Biblical Theology

Ryan and I are looking forward to developing and leading this study in June and July with men from Calvary West. If you are interested in joining the study please let us know.

– Click Here to register for the Saturday Seminar –

It’s time for another Saturday Seminar at Calvary! If you are a Bible Fellowship teacher, part of a Bible Fellowship teaching team, or just love to study the bible, you will not want to miss this training opportunity to learn from one of our Southeastern Baptist Theological  Seminary professors! Dr. Heath Thomas will be at Calvary on Saturday, May 19th from 9am-12noon. Dr. Thomas will be walking us through Joshua, Judges, and Ruth.

Dr. Heath Thomas is Assistant Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC. He earned a Ph.D. in Old Testament from the University of Gloucestershire in Cheltenham (United Kingdom) and has also done studies at Oxford University.

• Dr. Thomas is a Fellow in Old Testament Studies at The Paideia Center for Public Theology
• Dr. Thomas’ faculty page at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
• “Building House to House (Isa 5.8): Theological Reflection on Land Development & Creation Care”, this paper appeared on BeginningwithMoses.org

– Click Here to register for the Saturday Seminar –

Not too long ago I finished reading Timothy Laniak’s book Shepherds After My Own Heart: Pastoral Traditions and Leadership in the Bible, which is part of the New Studies in Biblical Theology series edited by D.A. Carson. Here are some reading reflections based on this excellent volume.

The Power of Shepherding Imagery

The meaning of the metaphor of shepherd, from which we get our word pastor, is important for understanding the reality of pastoral ministry. Laniak argues that shepherd is the primary metaphor by which the biblical authors conceptualized leadership. The ancient cultural realities of animal husbandry make it clear that the primary roles of a shepherd were to provide, protect, and guide. The distinct imagery of ancient shepherding practices should elicit experiential reflection and emblazon imagery that shapes pastoral ministry. What Laniak does is provide us with a biblical theology of shepherding that is metaphor-dependent and metaphor-rich.  This is important, namely because “metaphors make use of concrete or physical realities to describe less tangible realities…human thought tends towards an economy of explanatory images.” He continues by arguing that “we cultivate mental categories that preserve as much information as possible with as little effort as possible.”[1] In other words, metaphors invite both comprehension and apprehension. Laniak notes that:

1. Comprehension: Emphasizes the cognitive aspects of interpretation
2. Apprehension: Emphasizes the existential aspects of interpretation

“Shepherd is a felicitous metaphor for human leadership because both occupations have a comparable variety of diverse tasks that are constantly negotiated…Shepherds had to combine broad competencies in animal husbandry with capacities for scouting, defense and negotiation.”[2] The beautiful thing about metaphor is that it carries us beyond the literal meaning of shepherd and instructs us on the nature of pastoral leadership. In this sense, the vehicle of metaphor affects the way shepherd leadership is understood. There is a connection made at a deeper level, and though the details and particulars are left behind the essence of shepherd leadership remains and resonates within our imagination. Therefore, the metaphor of shepherd instructs and shapes us as pastors by way of deep emotive insight.

The Importance of Nourishing the Flock

The nourishment and protection of the flock is one of the most powerful applications we can gleam from the shepherding metaphor. Laniak argues that ‘the good shepherd knows where to find pastures that are not only lush but safe enough for his flocks to rest in peace…it is the skilled shepherd who knows the environment well enough to provide for his animals needs with compromising their security…The wilderness is a confusing environment[15]. Left to themselves, the sheep inevitably go astray.”^[16]

One of the most pressing challenges for any shepherd is to provide nourishment (water, food, rest) for their flocks in harsh environments, environments that withheld essential elements for life and flourishing. A good shepherd watches their flock. Eating and drinking bring nourishment. Rest is a function of being well provided for. Rest also points to a state of security that comes from the shepherd’s protective presence. The idea of provision by way of nourishment and protection is carried forward in the context of theology in pastoral ministry. Consider Jesus words to Peter in chapter 21 of the gospel of John, “feed my sheep”. And in Acts 20 Paul charges the Ephesian elders to protect the flock from those who would twist doctrine. It seems that the picture that Laniak provides is apt: “the image of a gathered flock lying down in green pastures”^[17], imagery of satisfaction and safety.^[18] Satisfaction comes from the nourishment provided by the whole counsel of God, and safety comes from shepherds who pay careful attention to the lives and doctrine of the flock. The church is to be a community of rest, a place for the weary to refresh from the wilderness of everyday life.  The call is clear for pastors to nourish the people God has placed in your care.

The Necessity of Leading and Protecting the Flock

Psalm 23 is one of the most recognizable Psalms that utilizes the shepherding metaphor. In this Psalm David reflects on the confidence one can find in the good shepherds care, even in times of deep darkness. Reflecting on this psalm Laniak notes that “even in the deadly shadows that fall at dusk in the desert’s canyons there is safety in his presence. Though easily frightened by nature, this trusting sheep will move through the shadows without fear.”[19] The language of the psalm provides us imagery of the two simple but versatile tools that ancient shepherds carried to face unexpected challenges within and outside of his flock.

1. The Rod: This defense instrument allowed the shepherd to be ready for any predator. This short club was a crude weapon used to beat cumin[20], as a weapon in battle[21], it was also the shepherd’s implement used for counting a flock at night as the flock passes under it.[22]
2. The Staff: This was the instrument that the shepherd used to nudge wandering sheep back in line, is was a source of comfort because it was used for picking off branches, snagging a trapped animal with the crook, or redirecting misbehaving members of the herd. The staff became a symbol for the protective presence of the shepherd.[23]

Laniak notes that “these two rods may represent the two functions of a shepherd: protector from external threats and peacekeeper among the flocks”.[24] Pastoral ministry calls for gentile assistance, direction, rescue, and encouragement among the flock of God. Pastors are also called to defend the flock from outside threats and even discipline the flock to avoid dangers from within. Both instruments represent the weight of authority that a shepherd carries among the flock. The fruits of this authority are security and comfort among the flock because of a good shepherds care and discipline.

Shepherds Know their Flock

In his devotional book While Shepherds Watch Their Flocks, Tim Laniak comments on the importance of knowing and naming the flock. “Naming is a powerful, tangible expression of the shepherds intimate bond that begins at birth and grows through an animal’s tenure with a flock. Once you begin to fathom how many times an animal may have been counted, checked, carried, nursed back to health, rescued, protected, milked, and shorn, it dawns on you why Bedouin always say, ‘They are family’.”[25]

According to Laniak “responsible shepherds know every member of their flocks in terms of their birth circumstances, history of health, eating habits and other idiosyncrasies. It is not uncommon to name each goat and sheep and to call them by name[26]. One of the most striking characteristics of the shepherd-flock relationship is that control over the flock is exercised simply by the sound of the shepherd’s voice or whistle[27]. This provides a rich depiction of Jesus’ words in John 10:27, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” As for pastoral ministry, this imagery does give some credence to the old adage “people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” To know someone requires time and care. Isaiah provides a good picture of a caring shepherd in 40:11. Explaining how God shepherds his people the prophet writes “He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young”. The imagery is powerful and emotive. This type of care would be expressed in the life of the church through pastoral visitation, counseling, and ministry in times of sickness and grief. “Shepherds who love their sheep notice when their sheep are hurting and seek to be with them to care for them.”[28]

Continue reading “Reflections on Shepherding and Leadership” →

Introduction

It has been said that all we have to do is live long enough as we will be bereaved by death, and ultimately we ourselves will die. In a fallen world this is part of the framework of our existence, and yet when death comes it is, for the most part unexpected. We are often unprepared.

More so, in the modern western world death is something we rarely square up and face. D.A. Carson argues that “death has become the last taboo” (How Long, O Lord?, 103). We usually dont see the deceased until they have been “prepared”. Only in rare circumstances is it ok to express ones grief transparently. Again, “we find it exceedingly difficult to look death squarely in the face and talk about it.” (How Long, O Lord?, 104) But I propose that it would be helpful to look at death as preventative medicine in trying to establish some firm biblical theological structures to help us, as Christians, think about death. This is true not only for Christian thinkers but even for the secular. In fact,

“From Plato to Hegel and beyond, some of the greatest philosophers declared that what you think about death…is the key to thinking seriously about anything else – and, indeed, that it provides one of the main reasons for thinking seriously about anything at all. (Surprised by Hope, 6)”

A Theology of Death

The bible teaches that death, in a general sense, is ultimately the result of sin. (Gen. 2:17) The apostle Paul makes this explicitly clear in his letter to the Roman church by writing that “the wages of sin is death. (Rom. 6:23)” What does death entail? Traditionally theologians have viewed death in three categories.

Physical Death. In Genesis 3:19 the judgment for sin pronounced by God is physical death. God tells man that he will return to the dust of the ground from which he has come (Gen. 2:7) Paul also picks up on this connection in 1 Corinthians 15:55-56. Furthermore, several passages referring to Jesus physical death show that it was a direct consequence to human sin. (Rom. 4:25; 6:10; Gal. 3:13) To put it simply, post fall physical death is an inevitable reality for all of humanity. As Augustine argued, humanity moved from a state of being “able not to die” to “not able to not die.” (On Rebuke and Grace, 33) Furthermore, God’s common grace is seen in the sense that humanity continues to experience life, though fallen, is nonetheless still life.

Spiritual Death. The bible also talks about man being spiritually dead while physically living. The immediate consequence to the sin of Adam and Eve was spiritual death (Gen. 2:17). The language of this verse is often misunderstood. One might ask, why did Adam and Eve not drop dead at the moment their teeth broke the skin of the fruit? I believe the expression “in the day that you eat of it” is best understood as a Hebrew idiom meaning “as surly as you eat of it.” (See Geerhardus Vos, Biblical Theology, pp. 48-49) No longer did Adam and Eve enjoy the life giving presence of God, they were banished from the garden. This is, in many ways, the deepest loss of death – since the deepest meaning of life is fellowship with God. Similarly, Paul reminds the Ephesians that they were once dead apart from Christ but now have been made alive (Eph. 2:1-3).

Eschatological Death. This final death is often seen as the extension or finalization of spiritual death. This final death is the culmination of the spiritual death in which the individual is banished from the presence of God forever (Rev. 20:14-15) Eschatological death is the permanent abode following physical death.

Implications from a Theology of Death

First, death must not be seen as a supreme instance of cosmic lack of fairness, but as God’s just sentence against our sin. We are responsible participants in our own death, in that it is not simply something that happens to us, but we cause death by our sinfulness.

Second, One may ask ‘why death?’ Death is God’s limit on creatures whose sin is that they want to be gods (Gen. 3:4-5; Rom. 1:18-23). We are not gods; and by death we are reminded that we are only human.

Lastly, with 1 and 2 in mind, there is also another sense in which we cry out against this limitation because we have been made in the image of God and we want to live. Often people will rage against God because of death, but this assumes that He was unfair in passing the sentence that our sin deserved. Our rage is better directed at the ugliness of death and the wretchedness of sin.

The Christian’s Hope in Death

The Bible does not encourage us to suppress our grief when loved ones die, but it does insist that we do not “grieve like the rest, who have no hope” (1 Thess. 4:13) Where is our hope then? This may be, perhaps, one of the most underdeveloped aspects of evangelical practical theology. Our hope rests in Christ, more specifically, in his own defeat of death and bodily resurrection from death (John 11:25) N.T. Wright makes an important observation on this point.

“God’s intention is not to let death have its way with us. If the promised final future is simply that immortal souls leave behind their mortal bodies, then death still rules – since that is a description not of the defeat of death but simply death itself. (Surprised by Hope, 15)”

Christ’s bodily resurrection is the seal that sin and death have been defeated. Christ’s resurrection is also the first taste of what is to come, the physical reality,  for those of us who are in Christ. In a very true sense, God is going to do for us what he had done for Christ at Easter.

Therefore, believing the resurrection must cease to be a matter of inquiring to an event in the first century, but is a matter of hope here and now. The resurrection is ‘the’ defining event of the new creation, the new world that is coming through Jesus Christ. See, Jesus comes out of the tomb and inaugurates God’s new creation right in the middle of the old one, the world we occupy. This is our grounds for hope, and the down payment for our future lives.

We thank God that through the work of Christ we may also be delivered form this body of death and may look forward to receiving from Christ at the final resurrection a new body that will be conformed to “the body of his glory” (Phil. 3:21). And we, who are in Christ, also hope in the life to come, eating from the tree of life from which our first parents were driven away (Rev. 22:2). Our ultimate hope is found in the new heaven and new earth (Rev. 21:3-4).

Ministering to the Grieving

D.A. Carson writes:

“Anyone who has suffered devastating grief or dehumanizing pain has at some point been comforted by near relatives of Job’s miserable comforters. They come with their cliches and tired, pious mouthings. They engender guilt when they should be administering balm. They utter solemn truths where compassion is needed. They exhibit strength and exhort to courage where they would be more comforting if they simply wept. (How Long, O Lord?, 221)”

First, we must recognize that grief normally passes through different stages and is expressed by a variety of emotions, which is all dependent on the person mourning and the circumstances of their loss. Be sensitive and wise with how you comfort.

Second, sometimes it takes longer for a person to heal than you might expect. There needs to be a balance of patience and encouragement. It might take months or even years until one has completely moved through the grieving process, perhaps before they are ready to move on or even talk about it.

Third, in the midst of suffering the most comforting thing is simply presence, help, silence, and tears. Intellectual answers do not readily satisfy. There is much wisdom in the word “mourn with those who mourn” (Rom. 12:15).

Fourth, keep in mind that once the initial shock lifts the questions will come. Sometimes questions simply reveal that the grieving is seeking comfort. Carson notes that sometimes the questions reveal that the grieving do want an answer, even if brief. Perhaps a brief answer is all they can bear.

Lastly, above all, our aim must be to help the grieving know God better. To this end we must aim and pray, that “God himself is the one who comforts the downcast; He is the  God of all comfort” (2 Cor. 7:6; 2 Cor. 1:3)

Continue reading “Theological Reflections on Death and Dying” →

When one preaches the gospel of Jesus Christ there are usually religious legalists who claim that it produces antinomianism. Lloyd-Jones said this is a good sign:

There is no better test as to whether a man is really preaching the New Testament gospel of salvation than this, that some people might misunderstand it and misinterpret it to mean that it really amounts to this, that because you are saved by grace alone it does not matter at all what you do; you can go on sinning as much as you like because it will redound all the more to the glory of grace. That is a very good test of gospel preaching. If my preaching and presentation of the gospel of salvation does not expose it to that misunderstanding, then it is not the gospel.

From Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans: A New Man, 8-9. Quoted in Jared Wilson, Gospel Wakefulness, 114.