Lifted Veil

http://liftedveil.org/philippians-in-rap/

Not a bad summary of Philippians.  Rap ain't too bad either but if you're not into it mute the sound - still worth a watch.

 ”Our life is nothing but Christ is all so conduct yourselves worthy of his righteous call!”

I was recently asked for a diagram as to how I understand the Biblical Covenants fit together.

I’ve pasted here (http://liftedveil.org/diagrams-of-the-biblical-covenants/) what I came up with plus what has been sent to me by a friend.  They should be downloadable by right-clicking on the links and saving them.  See also the zip file below with all of them together.

1a.  Simplified Chart:-  http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/1a_NCT_View_Simplified_ShaneBecker.pdf

1b.  Expanded Chart:-
http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/1b_NCT_View_Expanded_ShaneBecker.pdf

(The only note I’d add is that the above diagrams could be read as saying there were no spiritual aspects to the Old/Mosaic covenant.  There was, however that didn’t define the covenant or its membership. Being part of National Israel defined the membership of that covenant Deut 4:13, 5:1-3).

2a.  Chart from Kyle Frampton:- http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/2a_NCT_CT_DT_Diagram_fromKyleFrampton.pdf

2b.  Notes from Kyle:- http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/2b_NCT_CT_D_Notes_fromKyleFrampton.pdf

I also have these developed earlier which may be of interest.

3.  New Covenant Newness Table:  http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/3_NC_Newness.pdf

4.  Primary Redemptive Covenants Table (Abrahamic, Old, New).  http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/4_CovenantsTable.pdf

(Again, in table format the covenants can appear a bit ‘flat’.  I think viewing this table along side ‘1b’ above will be a good way of getting a handle on things.  Also, I’m not sure that now I’d speak of the Lord’s Supper as the sign - singular - of the New Covenant.  It certainly is identified as the primary ceremonial sign.  Now, I’d probably speak of the signs - plural - of the New Covenant. Don’t know. I think the table is still correct - maybe needs minor qualification to identify ‘Primary Physical Sign’ or something.)

5.  Sabbath Timeline:  http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/5_SabbathTimeLine.pdf
(This was developed to aid discussions with Sunday Sabbaterians.  I should add a box 9 at the end to identify Christ as our eternal Sabbath rest per Colossians 2).

Folder:  http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/

Zip-File of all the above Charts and Tables:
http://liftedveil.org/content/nctdiagrams/NCT_Tables.zip
(Right click and save it to download).

I’m also expecting a diagram, which is a work in progress, from Josh Wood outlining where different people sit on the continuity/discontinuity line.  I’ll past it here also when it is completed.

And of all my charts and stuff, this is my all time favorite illustration that I developed a few years back (although it is not directly related to the subject at hand):-

6.  Oar That’s Hard: http://treasuringchrist.com/_TCCC/Hard_26Apr06.swf : )

Your brother in Christ,

Shane Becker.

___

(Trackback Link: http://liftedveil.org/diagrams-of-the-biblical-covenants/ )

“In one sense the whole object of being a Christian is that you may know the love of Jesus Christ, his personal love to you; that he may tell you in unmistakable language that he loves you, that he has given himself for you, that he has loved you with ‘an everlasting love.’ He does this through the Holy Spirit; he ’seals’ all his statements to you through the Spirit. . . . He tells you directly. You believe it because it is in the Word; but there is more than that; he will tell you this directly as a great secret. The Spirit gives manifestations of the Son of God to his own, to his beloved, to those for whom he has gladly died and given himself.”

D. M. Lloyd-Jones, Romans: An Exposition of Chapters 7.1-8.4 (Edinburgh, 1973), page 61.

Source: http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/rayortlund/

“Sunday’s Coming” Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.

“The power of prayer has never been tried to its full capacity in any church.  If we want to see mighty wonders of divine grace and power wrought in the place of weakness, failure and disappointment, let the whole Church answer God’s standing challenged; “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knows not.” - James Hudson Taylor

“The Protestant Churches owe an immeasurable debt to the Evangelical Revival… it added an intense sense of civic responsibility, and this naturally found its expression both in such movements of reform as the campaign for the abolition of slavery and in zeal for missionary endeavour…  At a time when all these movements were showing signs of dying down, the Second Evangelical Awakening crossed the Atlantic from America to Britain in 1858.  This was undenominational in character, and produced that new phenomenon of the nineteenth century, the interdenominational or undenominational missionary society.” – Stephen Neill

“In regard to our foreign mission, we are at present in need of almost everything. We are greatly in need of money, and we are sorely in need of missionaries; but what we want most is life and an increase of spiritual power… Money will flow in streams to God’s treasury, and men will offer themselves in companies, and our missionary enterprise will expand into missions worthy of the name, when the enthusiasm of Christ, the fire of the Holy Ghost, possesses the Church - never till then.” – Rev. Archd Scott, The Church of Scotland Home & Foreign Missionary Record

“Following the 1858 Prayer Revival, a world-wide interdenominational student missionary movement began to flourish.  In 1886, the Student Volunteer Movement was founded. This movement heightened missions awareness and over the next several decades helped recruit some 20,000 students who went forth to serve on the mission field.” - Timothy K. Beougher, Evangelical Dictionary of World Missions

Restore us again, O God of our salvation,and put away your indignation toward us!
Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?
Show us your steadfast love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation.
Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people,
to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.
Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.
Psalm 85: 4-9

http://liftedveil.org/

“When the Church sets itself to pray with the same seriousness and
strength of purpose that it has devoted to other forms of Christian
effort, it will see the Kingdom of God come with power.” - Report of
The Edinburgh Missionary Conference

“When the prayer-life of the people of God comes to be the dominant
feature of Christian experience, the power of God will sweep the earth
with the victories of grace.” - Howard Agnew Johnston

“Ask , and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock,
and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he
who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Matt
7:7-9)

“Prayer is the greatest force that we can wield.  It is the greatest talent which God has granted us. He has given it to every Christian. We may differ among ourselves as to wealth, social position, educational equipment, natural ability, inherited characteristics; but in this matter of exercising the greatest force that is at work in the world today, we are on the same footing.  It is possible for the most obscure person in a church, with a heart right toward God, to exercise as much power for the evangelization of the world, as it is for those who stand in the most prominent positions.” -John R. Mott

“When we rely upon organization, we get what organization can do; when we rely upon education, we get what education can do; when we rely upon eloquence, we get what eloquence can do. But when we rely upon prayer, we get what God can do.”  - A. C. Dixon

“Ask of Me, and I will give you the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession.” (Ps 2:8)

http://liftedveil.org/prayer-quotes/

This movie looks interesting.

Link: http://www.withgodonourside.com/index.html

“We as Evangelicals have endorsed an Israeli domestic policy that has placed over 3 million people under military occupation and has created the largest refuge population in the entire world. And you have to ask yourself, “Why is this defended by the Christian church? How is it that we don’t see the suffering of so many people?”  (From the Trailer.)

“This film demonstrates that there is a biblical alternative for Christians who want to love and support the people of Israel, a theology that doesn’t favor one people group over another but instead promotes peace and reconciliation for both Jews and Palestinians.” (From the web site.)

Although I have never been one to get caught up in the details of end times prophesies or Israeli/Palestinian politics, in light of the Ephesians studies I’ve been looking at recently I do find the implications of Christian Zionism disturbing. Especially the branches that are actively against their Palestinian brothers and sisters in Christ for simply living in their own homes.

The Christian Church aught to embrace the work of Jesus and the teaching of Paul in the New Testament:- we are to rejoice over the ‘one new man’ created in Christ, that Christ has destroyed the barrier of the law that once defined the nation of Israel as a special nation before God, there is no longer “Jew or Greeks” but are all one in Christ, and if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.

^“11Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)—¹²remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. ¹³But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

¹⁴For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, ¹⁵by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace,¹⁶and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. ¹⁷He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. ¹⁸For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

¹⁹Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,”           Ephesians 2:11-19

^“27for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. ²⁸There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. ²⁹If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”  Galatians 3:27-29

“¹²The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. ¹³For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.” 1 Corinthians 12:12-13

“There have been several UN Resolutions dealing with the Israeli / Palestinian issue. The one we would like to highlight is UN Resolution 242, which was first adapted in 1967 after the 1967 war

• Full Israeli Withdraw from lands occupied in recent conlficts.
• Full recognition from Arab states of the right for Israel to exist.
• Resolution and/or compensation for Palestinians refugees affected by the displacement from war.

The resolution cites the 4th Geneva Convention, article 49. The responsibilities of an occupying power (Israel) have toward peoples living under occupation. The Geneva Convention prohibits the transfer of the occupying powers population into areas that it has occupied.” (From the web site.)

I guess it goes to show all bad teaching ultimately hurts people.  In this case it hurts our brothers and sisters in Christ seeking to live peacefully, it actively promotes the violation of human rights under the UN resolutions and Geneva convention, and also divides the Church unnecessarily.

5 Reasons why community is so important in the Christian life.

(I’m currently working through Ephesians and also am helping lead the community teams ministry of our church this year. These points come out of some considerations in working through those subjects. )

1. Individual growth is a community project. Our growth comes through speaking the truth in love, supporting each other, and building each other up in dependence upon Christ.

“15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” Eph 4:15-16

2. Loving life-on-life interaction within community is the way Christian’s learn together and comprehend the love of Christ.

“And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,” Eph 4:17b-18

3. We are called to receive the filling of the Spirit as a community through displaying a Christ-like pleasantness to our fellow believers, speaking true words of encouragement, with a praising heart, and thankful attitude.

“Instead, be filled with the Spirit. 19Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord,” Eph 5:18b-19

“21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” Eph 2:21-22.

“15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” Col 3:15-16

4. God’s mission is achieved through the witness of community love, fellowship and prayer.

34″A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:24-25

“19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,” Ephesians 6:19

5. In our life-on-life relationships within the church we are called to “be patient, bearing with one another in love” and “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4: 2-3.

Some other bigger picture points:

The church is being built together as a holy temple for the dwelling of God by His Spirit.

21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. Ephesians 2:21-22
The church is God’s chosen means of displaying His glory through Christ (our head) and His body (the church).

The church is God’s chosen means of displaying His glory through Christ (our head) and His body (the church).

“22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” Eph 1:22-23

“10For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Eph 2:10
“10His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,” Ephesians 3:10

The church exists and grows through life-on-life relationships in community.

15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Eph 4:15-16