1517 Blogcast

Who doesn't want to take a shortcut? Who isn't looking for a new life hack? Who wouldn't want directions that help to navigate the hard path? Who doesn't want to be the best possible version of themselves? Who doesn't want someone to show them how to reach the goal, develop good qualities, achieve true happiness, and avoid getting on God's bad side?

The essence of God defies reason. Through the revealed Word of God, the mystery can be revealed, but never fully comprehended. And a person really has to ask themselves, is a god that can be grasped by sinful flesh, a god fully understandable and explainable according to the finite logic and world we inhabit, is that a god one can trust and truly believe? Or does such a god actually demand that we dismiss him or her?

One of my favorite bands is Band of Horses. They are not a Christian band. I don’t think they’re Christian at all. To be honest, it doesn’t determine whether I appreciate their music or not. Non-Christians can write some great music. Christians have produced some duds. The opposite is also true. There’s one song from Band of Horses that especially sticks out to me—well, there’s more than one, but this one came to mind most recently. It’s called “Compliments.”

The following is an excerpt from Handing Over the Goods: Determined to Proclaim Nothing But Christ Jesus & Him Crucified - (A Festschrift in Honor of Dr. James A. Nestingen), edited by Steven Paulson and Scott Keith (1517 Publishing, 2018). Edited and used with permission.

Like many famous photographs, the existence of “Grace” can be chalked up to randomness. Photographer Eric Enstrom had set up a photo studio on the Iron Range in Minnesota, a region located up north and surrounded by big woods and glacial lakes, and chock full of open-pit iron ore mines and mountains of rust-colored mine tailings.

We live in a world full of fear and anxiety. When we turn on the news, we are greeted by suffering, tragedy, and disaster. Our politicians are determined to destroy one another’s reputations, and so they take turns dragging each other through the mud and making more and more outrageous accusations against one another all for the sake of being elected or keeping their position.

How do we deal with death? How do we find a way to deal with each death? How do we wrap our heart around death each time it happens? Is there a coping method that relieves our grief? Is there a remembering that eases our sorrow? Do some take death harder than others? Do some seek therapy? Do we draw strength from others who seem so strong? Do we go home and sit by ourselves, emotionally overwhelmed by the moment? Do we even want to talk about it, or are we just stuck with the cruel grip of death on our heart, and no talking will relieve the pain?

Galatia was a region, not a city. Paul knew the congregations there well. Galatians is one of the earliest epistles, or letters. It shows something, then, that already in this, one of the earliest epistles, Paul begins with a furious defense of the Gospel. This is how quickly things can go wrong, how prone we are to turn back to the Law for what it can’t give, not because it isn’t good and salutary, but because we aren’t.

As we approach the Advent season, we are happy to introduce a special blog series on the hope we find in, through and given by Christ. Each week’s installment will look at hope from a different perspective with special emphasis on corresponding passages of Scripture. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 15:13).