Toward a Missional Understanding of God’s Eternal Purpose, a (re)Introduction, or John Piper May or May Not be a Moose

Time for my “semi-annual” post. I’m sure all six of you that read this thing have been very disapointed in the lack of activity on the ol’ blog. So here, finally, is part two of my series on God’s Eternal Purpose. All the content for this series  is written, so now the only question is whether or not I will actually post it in a timely manner!

 

Toward a Missional Understanding of God’s Eternal Purpose Part II

If you got a problem, yo I'll solve it.

Yesterday I scribbled some introductory thoughts concerning the way we understand scripture. I proposed that God’s Eternal Purpose should inform our interpretation of the entire scriptural narrative. I also said that it is only after understanding God’s Eternal Purpose could we go on to understand our OWN purpose (for, after all, we were made to be in his image, and the task of the Christian disciple is to become more and more like his/her rabbi Jesus).

In order to do this I got a little prophetic and pointed out (albeit mildly) that maybe the most historical and beloved conception of man’s purpose is skewed because it doesn’t take this conversation into account. Yikes.

So, this morning I’d like to clarify a bit of what I was trying to say yesterday. Upon reflection I realized that some may think I was trying to undermine or belittle the first question of the Shorter Catechism. By no means! I greatly appreciate the entire Catechism, especially the first question. I have been influenced by John Piper in my appreciation of this formulation inasmuch as he emphasises the joy associated with glorifying God with out rives.

However, I do think we need to be recalibrated to understand scripture in light of God’s Eternal Purpose. And though the formulation “Man’s Chief End=Enjoy God+ Glorify Him Forever” is helpful, it doesn’t flesh out the “how.” How are we to enjoy and glorify God, and how does this relate to God’s Eternal Purpose?

In order to answer this question, I believe we must go back to the Garden. But before we do that, I’d like to return to Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians where we find the clearest explanation of God’s Eternal Purpose.

 

Toward a Missional Understanding of God’s Eternal Purpose Part 1

In March of 2008 I undertook a study of Ephesians with the junior high and high school students I work with. It was exactly a year later that we finally concluded our study. I didn’t intend to take a year studying Paul’s letter to the Ephesians…it just happened.

 

…emerging from slumber…

Hi again.

At One-Eighty we’ve been studying the parables using an awesome film series. With possibly one exception, all of the films are well made, are minimal in the cheesy acting department, and are generally free of the stigma associated with Christian film. “Modern Parables” stick closely to the Biblical text, rarely taking liberties. In fact, in their modern interpretations of Jesus’ parables, rarely do their own interpretations sneak into the film itself in any overt way. To be certain, film is like any art and by necessity draws upon the worldview and intent of its creator. Suffice it to say, however, that there is nothing heavy hand

ed about “Modern Parables.” Like Jesus stories, they leave the interpretation left to your own openness to the Holy Spirit (well, and the pastors that are featured in separate “teaching videos. Incidentally, the “teaching” videos are almost completely extraneous. Our group of teenagers did fine in a discussion without them! To tell the truth, I don’t always agree with the pastors’ interpretations anyway.

Check out their website. You can view the movies online. I highly reccomend both Samaritan, and Prodigal Sons.

UPDATE: We watched Prodigal Sons last night. The film was very powerful to me, but for some reason I think it was lost on the students. For my part there is nothing more dramatic than seeing the return of the prodigal and the older brother’s hissy fit.

 

Five Favorite Sites/Blogs of 2008

5) www.intothehill.com: This one comes at the bottom of the list only in the interest of absolute objectivity, since, I am a contributor. Into the Hill, if you aren’t going there religiously already, is a great source of independent music and movie news, reviews, and general hilarity in the form of their resident, extremely good-looking cartoonist.

4) www.sheldoncomics.com: My new favorite webcomic is just too cute. Dave Kellet is forging a new path for an old medium. His strip is reminiscent of classics like Calvin and Hobbes.

3) www.emusic.com: cheap, cheap, cheap, indie music. Gotta love it.

2) www.noisetrade.com: another way to get good indie music, sometimes for free, is by spamming your friends. That’s always fun. Do it here.

1) www.maplemountain.blogspot.com: My smarty-pants cousin takes the top spot this year for his blog about God, art, and Jack Handey quotes. SD Smith knows how to keep me interested, and how cool it is to refer to yourself in an abreviated way.

 

Proof I am an Old Man

Sally Jesse Raphael

In my latest Miracle Valley over at Into the Hill, I prove I am now officially an old fart (at the tender age of 24) by getting all nostalgic.

 

What has been keeping me so busy, and an announcement…

Alright. So there was a flurry of comic postings not long ago. Suddenly I had rediscovered my lost love of cartooning. You may have noticed that those have greatly tapered. Here’s why.

I’ve been spending all my cartooning time not on writing more gag panels (though I will continue to do so eventually) but on developing an ongoing webcomic. The comic will eventually appear on the WWW. Not here, either. It will get a site all its own.

So consider this an announcement.

And a preview.

I’ve been doing quite a bit of character design lately. Here is, in all his blurry wonder, the star of the show, as presently conceived. Ladies and gentlemen I give you SKUNK THE SKUNK.

Look for The Misguided Misadventures of Skunk the Skunk sometime around the new year. Cumbersome title, eh? Yeah, well, that’s how I roll.

Thanks for faithfully stopping by. I greatly appreciate your time.

p.s. if anyone out there wants to help me with the web stuff, I’d love to hear from you.

p.p.s. I’m meeting with the editor of three local publications tomorrow. Looks like some more possible sales…

 

…another place to see my work…

So, Into the Hill is publishing my cartoons now. The first installment of my series “Ruled Line Sequential” is up now. Of course, the whole concept of “Ruled Line” is to produce quick, “doodley” comics on lined paper, evoking the off the cuff honesty of folk music. This first installment is just another gag that you’ve seen here on my blog.

Nevertheless, I hope you check back at the Hill often to see work you CAN’T SEE ANYWHERE ELSE!

While there, go to the main page and check out the latest session. It’s my favorite yet.

Cheers!

Tyler

 

My Thoughts on the Election…

…are said best by my dear friend Andrew.

And also Derek Webb in the bonus track to the re-released Mockingbird.

Get it at NoiseTrade.

For some more of what I think about the election, read the latest Miracle Valley at the Hill.

Al Mohler said it well, too.

All hail King Jesus.

 

Michael Crichton, Dead at age 66.

I was shocked to just discover that Michael Crichton died from a “private battle with cancer” yesterday.

Crichton is not the type of writer I typically blog about here. His work was very commercial, very popular, and occasionally predictable. However, he was a great storyteller. When I was 12 years old he got my imagination running with Jurassic Park. When I read Sphere, I doubted I would ever find a more enthralling book. I read Crichton’s work voraciously, consuming most of what he had written up until Timeline. It was always riveting, always intellectual, and (despite his reputation) was about much more than rampaging dinosaurs and far-fetched sci-action plots. Like all great science-fiction writers, he warned of the danger of human beings meddling too much in the business of God. And he did so while entertaining the hell out of his readers.

I for one am thankful for his career. Though I haven’t read his work in many years, I am convinced that I would not be writing or creating today were it not for his influence. Perhaps it was his grasp of science and technology (or his incredible ability to fake it!) that influenced me the most. Though I have never tried to emulate that in my own writing, his ability to talk just enough over my head for it to seem believable, and just enough on my level for me to understand it, made me believe that the impossible is POSSIBLE.

You will be missed, sir.