Funny friends are a gift from God. … Today at lunch I was talking about the sci-fi-ishness of Ezekiel 1. The discussion prompted my friend to point out that in verse 16—“a wheel within a wheel”—reveals the divine origin of spinners.

A blunt-honest reminder of our sinful rebellion—and God’s love—from Joshua Harris’s sermon Sunday:

“To redeem something is to buy it back; to save it by purchasing it. The redemption described here [Ephesians 1] is deliverance by payment of a price. In the Old Testament book of Hosea we find an incredible story that illustrates the spiritual blessing that Jesus Christ has given us.

Hosea was an Old Testament prophet, and God called this man to marry a woman of ill repute. And so Hosea married this woman named Gomer. And she was unfaithful to him. She left him. She was an adulteress and even gave herself to prostitution. Her life was so degraded by her sin that eventually she became a slave.

And in the book of Hosea the story is told of Hosea walking through the marketplace and he comes upon the place in the market where the slaves are sold, where human beings are being sold to other people because of their debt. And Hosea comes upon his wife being auctioned off as a slave. And in a picture of God’s incredible love for his people, Hosea steps forward and lays the money on the table to purchase his wife back from slavery.

This woman who was unfaithful to him, this woman who broke his heart, this woman who is an adulteress, he buys back out of slavery and brings home to be his wife! This is an incredible picture of the love and care of God for us, his people. We have disobeyed him, we have been unfaithful to him, and yet he comes searching for us and he redeems us. And this is what Jesus has done for us!”

-Joshua Harris, sermon, “God’s Blessings in Salvation,” Ephesians 1:3-14, 9/21/08, at Covenant Life Church (Gaithersburg, MD); 15:06-17:17 markers.

Today I posted a review of the Complete Works of Thomas Manton which caps a 5-part series on the Puritan. Manton is one of the most valuable, yet of the one of the most overlooked, of the Puritans. In case you missed one or more of the posts, I offer you this little series index:

Review of the Complete Works of Thomas Manton

Interview: 10 Good Reasons to Read Manton Today

Beeke: Biography of Thomas Manton (1620-1677)

Manton: Walking by Faith

Manton: “God loves us because he loves us.“

Until the inauguration in January, PBS is offering free downloads of 13 documentaries in “The Presidents” series (American Experience). iTunes users can find an entire index to the 20 hours of video by clicking here.

HT:SW

Those in the Omaha area should take note of Dr. D.A. Carson’s conference titled, “Making Sense of Suffering.” The conference will be held Saturday, October 4th at Omaha Bible Church. As usual the OBC conference cost is low—$15 per person and a max of $25 per family (comes with a catered lunch). The conference is structured around Carson’s excellent book on the topic, How Long, O Lord? Reflections on Suffering and Evil. We all need a clear and developed vision of God’s purposes behind our suffering, and this holds true for those not currently experiencing suffering. Register online here.

“Don’t Waste Your Suffering” message

On the topic of suffering, I recommend Pastor Jon Smith’s sermon from Covenant Life Church, “Don’t Waste Your Suffering” (8/24/08). Jon shares his compelling testimony as one who glorified God in the midst of overwhelming personal loss. This message will tug hard at your heart (and especially if you are a parent of young kids) so grab Kleenex while it downloads. Listen/download here.

God is kind to provide the Church with men like Carson, Smith, John Piper and David Powlison who can equip and prepare Her for future personal loss and suffering.

Presently my brain feels like it’s been scooped out of my skull, coated in batter, fried, sprinkled with powdered sugar, and served on a paper plate at the county fair. So today I’m trying something new—a series of miscellanies from my week. This week included helpful reading on the topics of humility, books, politics, manliness, freebies, weight loss, social networking, and the end of the world. And I have conclusive proof that faux hip-hop routines should be forever banned from churches. Presenting the first ever Friday miscellanies…

[Humility] The following quote by Jonathan Edwards (Religious Affections) has been like a meat tenderizer to my heart all week: “All gracious affections that are a sweet odor to Christ, and that fill the soul of a Christian with a heavenly sweetness and fragrancy, are brokenhearted affections. A truly Christian love, either to God or men, is a humble brokenhearted love. The desires of the saints, however earnest, are humble desires: their hope is a humble hope; and their joy, even when it is unspeakable, and full of glory, is a humble brokenhearted joy, and leaves the Christian more poor in spirit, and more like a little child, and more disposed to a universal lowliness of behavior.”

[Books] T-minus 32 days, 15 hours, 25 minutes, and 13 seconds until the ESV Study Bible ships (Oct. 15). Who’s counting? Post the widget on your own blog (here).

[Books] Douglas Moo’s new Pillar commentary on Colossians and Philemon is out. Delicious!

[Books] Getting the Blues: What Blues Music Teaches Us about Suffering and Salvation by Steve Nichols is now out.

[Apocalypse] Contrary to some predictions, the Swiss and their Large Hadron Collider didn’t slip the world into a black hole noose this week. Gene Veith: “Today, a super-particle accelerator will get turned on just outside of Geneva, Switzerland. Some people, though, are afraid it will generate black holes that will suck in all the matter of the earth.”

[Clothing] Don’t Waste Your Threads. DWYLife shirts now available online.

[Church] “The City” is for Mars Hill church [think Mark Driscoll] an innovative way to connect their church that uses the best of online social networking to facilitate care within the church body. I’ve been watching this develop over the past year and I can see great benefit in its ability to facilitate care groups Continue reading →