A Place for Truth Essays

Word of Encouragement

Volume I: Complete

(Issues 1-35)

Word of Encouragement

Volume I, Issue i

"What is man that thou are mindful of him?" asked the Psalmist.

In Calvin's Catechism of 1538, John Calvin writes concerning the Biblical teaching of man:

"Man was first formed to God's image and likeness, that in his adornments, with which he had been resplendently clothed by God, he might look up to their Author and might worship him with fitting gratitude. But since, relying on the very great excellence of his own nature, and forgetting its origin and ground, he tried to elevate himself beyond the Lord, he had to be deprived of all God's benefits on which he was stupidly priding himself, so that stripped and bare of all glory, he might recognize God whom he, rich in bounty, had dared despise.

Therefore, all we who take our origin from Adam's seed, when God's likeness is wiped out, are born flesh from flesh. For although we consist of soul and body, we savor of nothing but flesh. Consequently, whatever way we turn our eyes, we can see nothing but what is impure, profane and abominable to God. For man's prudence, blind and entangled in limitless errors, ever wars against God's wisdom. Our depraved will, stuffed with corrupt feelings, hates nothing more than his righteousness. Our strength, weakened for every good work, madly dashes off to wickedness."

From 'Calvin's First Catechism, A Commentary', by I. John Hesselink, Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1997, pg. 9.

Thank God for God's grace who did not leave us in an estate of sin and misery but sent Christ as man to redeem us from this estate!

Vol. I, Issue ii

In the early 1840s, Alexis De Tocqueville wrote on his observations of American culture, from politics to religion. In the book 'Democracy in America' he claims in the preface that he writes as a "friend" to Americans, from one who has objectively observed the culture as an outsider from France. He claimed that his main purpose in writing the book was to warn Americans of one issue that he believed would be destructive to a democratic country. The issue was INDIVIDUALISM:

"Individualism is a novel expression, to which a novel idea has given birth. Our fathers were only acquainted with egotism. Egotism is a passionate and exaggerated love of self, which leads a man to connect everything with his own person, and to prefer himself to everything in the world.

Individualism is a mature and calm feeling, which disposes each member of the community to sever himself from the mass of his fellow-creatures; and to draw apart with his family and his friends; so that, after he has thus formed a little circle of his own, he willingly leaves society at large to itself. Egotism originates in blind instinct: individualism proceeds from erroneous judgment more from depraved feelings; it originates as much in the deficiencies of the mind as in the perversity of the heart.

Egotism blights the germ of all virtue; individualism, at first, only saps the virtues of public life; but, in the long run, it attacks and destroys all others, and is at length absorbed in downright egotism. Egotism is a vice as old as the world, which does not belong to one form of society more than to another: individualism is of democratic origin, and it threatens to spread in the same ratio as the equality of conditions...

...As social conditions become more equal, the number of persons increases who, although they are neither rich enough nor powerful enough to exercise any great influence over their fellow-creatures, have nevertheless acquired or retained sufficient education and fortune to satisfy their own wants. They owe nothing to any man, they expect nothing from any man; they acquire the habit of always considering themselves as standing alone, and they are apt to imagine that their whole destiny is in their own hands...[Democracy] can throw him back forever upon himself alone, and threatens in the end to confine him entirely within the solitude of his own heart."

Alexis De Tocqueville, 'Democracy in America', Vol. II, New York: The Colonial Press, 1900, 104-106.

1 Cor. 12:12: "For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ."

For further reading:

Christopher Lasch, 'The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations'; Robert Bellah, et al, 'Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life'.

Vol. I, iii

St. Thomas Aquinas, in his massive 'Summa Theologicae', wrote of the "Seven Deadly Sins". The fourth deadly sin was the sin of sloth. As Christians called by Christ to follow him with all that we are, all that we do, and all that we have, it would be helpful to remind ourselves of this particular sin and its negative effect on our following our Lord Jesus Christ. As Christians we can be tempted to be slothful in loving the LORD our God with all our hearts, souls, minds, and our strengths, as well as our neighbor as ourselves! Here are two short quotes, one recent, one from the 1940s, that remind us to be alert to the sin of sloth in our lives.

"We think of the rise of the modern world as the story of dynamism, energy, progress, and achievement- - which it is. But we often overlook its other side. The world produced by such dynamism is a world of convenience, comfort, and consumerism. And when life is safe, easy, sanitized, climate-controlled, and plush, sloth is close." - Os Guiness, 'The Call', Waco, TX: Word Publishing, 2000, 109.

"[The sin of sloth]…is the sin which believes in nothing, cares for nothing, seeks to know nothing, interferes with nothing, enjoys nothing, loves nothing, hates nothing, finds purpose in nothing, lives for nothing, and only remains alive because there is nothing it would die for…it is indeed a mortal sin." - Dorothy Sayers, 'Creed or Chaos?: Why Christians must choose dogma or disaster.', ISBN: 091847731X (n.d.).

The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Cor. 15:58, in the context of the future hope of our resurrection with Christ: "Stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourself to the work of the Lord, for you know that your labor in the Lord is never in vain (i.e. never vanity, fleeting, a waste of time, etc.)".

Vol,. I, iv

Image and Reality

What is real? What is image? Many people today spend much of their time in 'virtual reality'. It is axiomatic that 'virtual' reality is not true reality. In fact, my dictionary defines 'virtual' (as in virtual reality) as that which is "practically a reality, but not a reality in actuality, only in name." Christians must be discerning of the difference between image and reality. Image is what we seem to be. Reality or our character is who we truly are.

It would be simple to say that image is concerned with the external person, what ideas about oneself one wishes to convey to another. In contrast, character is something developed internally over time (by God's grace) and manifests externally (quite naturally) in our character ("you will know the tree by the fruit it bears" suggests that there is a difference between real fruit and 'virtual fruit').

Here are three quotations submitted to you that will help you to reflect on your image and your reality. Our hope in Christ is that our image and our reality will be harmonious. In other words, what we seem to be and who we are will not be in tension. First a quotation from social historian Daniel Boorstin, from his great book 'The Image' (1963) where he defines the expectations of modern man in the real world and how this reality tends toward making images more attractive to us.

(1) "We expect anything and everything. We expect the contradictory and the impossible. We expect compact cars which are spacious; luxurious cars which are economical. We expect to be rich and charitable, powerful and merciful, active and reflective, kind and competitive. We expect to be inspired by mediocre appeals for excellence, to be made literate by illiterate appeals for literacy. We expect to eat and stay thin, to be constantly on the move and ever more neighborly, to go to the 'church of our choice' and yet feel its guiding power over us, to revere God and to be God." -Daniel Boorstin, The Image, New York: Pelican Books, 1963, 76.

(2) "The real world and our daily experience in it cannot measure up to our expectations- - but the world of image can, at least for a little while. If we hold dearly to our expectations, the image world can become more real than reality itself. The real world becomes bland or gray in comparison. We 'can' make images that 'do' meet our expectations, or pay others to make them for us- - and those images are far more vivid." -Dick Keyes, 'True Heroism in a World of Celebrity Counterfeits', NavPress, 1995, 65.

(3) "Today, however, style has become an end in itself. No longer expressive of substance or inner character, style is all that matters now. No longer enduring, it is transient, changeable, and fashion-oriented. As a glance at any magazine rack will show, style is the number one mantra of late twentieth-century America. Used more often on magazine covers than even the word sex, style is a leading source of anxiety, hope, and fascination for millions. To be up-to-date and in touch with one's style is essential; to be out-of-date or out-of-touch is unforgivable.

At a time when permanence of personality is as forlorn as permanence of place, change is the order of the day. Identity is now a matter of perception and presentation. And style is the art of skillfully presenting illusions as we walk down the corridor of images that make up modern society." -Os Guiness, 'Fit Bodies, Fat Minds; Why Evangelicals Don't Think and What to Do About it', Baker Books, 1994.

Col. 3:9-10: Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him...

Vol. I, v

Loving the Unlovable

In Matthew 5:44-45, Jesus teaches all Christians that we must love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. How are Christians supposed to "love the unlovable"? How are Christians supposed to "respect the disrespectful"? How are we to "honor the dishonorable"? How are Christians supposed to treat others with respect, honor and kindness, and even pray for them, when some act so disrespectful, dishonorable, rude, and unkind? This is a great challenge. But notice in Matthew 5:45, Jesus teaches us that God shows a common benevolence and goodness by providing for his creatures the rain and sunshine they need regardless of whether they are the righteous or the unrighteous, the evil or the good. We are to emulate this perfection by his grace (Mt. 5:48).

I think one important way we should perceive others who are unlovable, disrespectful, dishonorable, unrighteous, and evil is to remember that all men are created in God's image (Gen. 1:26-28). James teaches us in his letter that this is a very important truth that we must remember in order to be obedient to our heavenly Father. We must not curse men because they are made in the image of God. Additionally, I think it is always important for Christians to remember that their calling was all of grace. If we have a difficulty forgiving others or treating with kindness those who are evil or persecute us, perhaps we have not drank deeply enough from the fountain of Christ's mercy.

Below are two quotations to help you to think about the love, respect, honor, and kindness that we owe all men 'just because' they are made in God's image. Despite the fact that the image has been marred, we must continually strive to look to the good gifts that God has given to each of his creatures both good and evil!

(1) Calvin wrote in his 'Institutes of the Christian Religion': "We must not be hindered by the malice of men, but rather contemplate the image of God in them, which by its excellence and dignity moves and enables us to love them."

(2) Oswald Chambers, from 'My Utmost for His Highest': "I have never met the man I could despair of after discerning what lies in me apart from the grace of God."

Alexander Pope said: "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, drink deep or taste not the fountains of Olympia." In the Christian life perhaps it is helpful to remember: "A little grace is a dangerous thing, drink deep or taste not the fountains of Christ's mercy toward us!"

Romans 12:3: (NASB) "For through the grace given to me I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith

Vol. I, vi

Humility from the Perspective of Screwtape and Wormwood

Today's quotation is from a classic C. S. Lewis book entitled 'The Screwtape Letters'. For many of you this is perhaps a favorite book to read and re-read. For those who may be unfamiliar with the book, it is a book written from the perspective of Screwtape, a senior and seasoned devil, writing to his younger devil apprentice named Wormwood. The perspective of the book is from the "devils' point of view" and therefore the "patient" to whom he refers is the Christian and the "enemy" is God himself. Enjoy!

SCREWTAPE TO WORMWORD ON HUMILITY

"Your patient has become humble; have you drawn his attention to the fact? All virtues are less formidable to us once the man is aware that he has them, but this is especially true of humility. Catch him at the moment when he is really poor in spirit and smuggle into his mind the gratifying reflection, 'By Jove! I'm being humble,' and almost immediately pride- - pride at his own humility- - will appear. If he awakes to the danger and tries to smother this new form of pride, make him proud of his attempt- -and so on, through as many stages as you please. But don't try this too long, for fear you awake his sense of humor and proportion, in which case he will merely laugh at you and go to bed.

But there are other profitable ways of fixing his attention on the virtue of humility. By this virtue, as by all the others, our Enemy want to turn the man's attention away from self to Him, and to the man's neighbors. All the abjection and self-hatred are designed, in the long run, solely for this end; unless they attain this end they do us little harm; and they may even do us good if they keep the man concerned with himself, and, above all, if self-contempt can be made the starting point for contempt of other selves, and thus for gloom, cynicism, and cruelty.

You must therefore conceal from the patient the true end of humility. Let him think of it, not as self-forgetfulness, but as a certain kind of opinion (namely, a low opinion) of his own talents and character. Some talents, I gather, he really has. Fix in his mind the idea that humility consists in trying to believe those talents to be less valuable than he believes them to be. No doubt they 'are' in fact less valuable than he believes, but that is not the point.

The great thing is to make him value an opinion for some quality other than truth, thus introducing an element of dishonesty and make-believe into the heart of what otherwise threatens to become a virtue. By this method thousands of humans have been brought to think that humility means pretty women trying to believe they are ugly and clever men trying to believe they are fools. And since what they are trying to believe may, in some cases, be manifest nonsense, they cannot succeed in believing it, and we have the chance of keeping their minds endlessly revolving on themselves in an effort to achieve the impossible." - C. S. Lewis, 'The Screwtape Letters' (many editions of this little book available).

John 8:44b (NASB), Jesus says: "[The Devil] was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks the lie, he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies."

John 8:32 (NASB), Jesus says: "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

By the way, a nice C. S. Lewis box set of six of his best little books (including 'Screwtape Letters') are available at the extremely low price of $23.00 (this is a 50% discount from the retail price of $46). Interested? Click here: http://www.discerningreader.com/

Vol. I, vii

The Significance of Man

"What a chimera then is man! What a novelty! What a monster, what a chaos, what a contradiction, what a prodigy! Judge of all things, feeble earthworm, depository of truth, a sink of uncertainty and error, the glory and the shame of the universe." - Blaise Pascal, 'Pensees' (Many editions).

"Out, out, brief candle!

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,

And then is heard no more; it is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing!"

-William Shakespeare, From his play 'MacBeth'.

"What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him?

For You have made him a little lower than the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and honor.

You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet,

All sheep and oxen -- Even the beasts of the field,

The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!"

-The Psalms, Psalm 8.

"But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying: "I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You." And again: "I will put My trust in Him." And again: "Here am I and the children whom God has given Me."

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham."- Epistle to the Hebrews, 2:9-16.

Vol. I, viii

The Significance and Insignificance of Man

(1) St. Augustine: "Great art Thou, O Lord, and greatly to be praised; great is Thy power, and Thy wisdom infinite. And Thee would man praise; man, but a particle of Thy creation; man, that bears about him his mortality, the witness of his sin, the witness that Thou resistest the proud: yet would man praise Thee; he, but a particle of Thy creation. Thou awakest us to delight in Thy praise; for Thou madest us for Thyself, and our heart is restless, until it repose in Thee. Grant me, Lord, to know and understand which is first, to call on Thee or to praise Thee? and, again, to know Thee or to call on Thee? for who can call on Thee, not knowing Thee? for he that knoweth Thee not, may call on Thee as other than Thou art. Or, is it rather, that we call on Thee that we may know Thee? but how shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? or how shall they believe without a preacher? and they that seek the Lord shall praise Him: for they that seek shall find Him, and they that find shall praise Him. I will seek Thee, Lord, by calling on Thee; and will call on Thee, believing in Thee; for to us hast Thou been preached. My faith, Lord, shall call on Thee, which Thou hast given me, wherewith Thou hast inspired me, through the Incarnation of Thy Son, through the ministry of the Preacher." - St. Augustine, 'Confessions', ca. 400AD, Edward Pusey translation, 1.

(2) Blaise Pascal: "For, in fact, what is man in nature? A Nothing in comparison with the Infinite, an All in comparison with the Nothing, a mean between nothing and everything. Since he is infinitely removed from comprehending the extremes, the end of things and their beginning are hopelessly hidden from him in an impenetrable secret; he is equally incapable of seeing the Nothing from which he was made, and the Infinite in which he is swallowed up.
What will he do then, but perceive the appearance of the middle of things, in an eternal despair of knowing either their beginning or their end. All things proceed from the Nothing, and are borne towards the Infinite. Who will follow these marvellous processes? The Author of these wonders understands them. None other can do so." -Blaise Pascal, 'Pensees', ca. 1660, W. F. Trotter translation, 32.

Ecclesiastes 3:11: "He has made everything beautiful in its time; also he has put eternity into man's mind, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end."

Vol. I, ix

A Contemporary Class of Monks

Prof. Morris Berman (Johns Hopkins Univ), in his new book 'Twilight of American Culture', argues for a new "monastic option" in order to engage in culture preservation in our contemporary cultural crisis. His solution for combating the decline of culture in America is to consciously preserve culture as a contemporary class of monks. His ideas are quite interesting and I submit this quotation for your consideration and thought. The context in which he writes the following is that he has argued for the decline in American culture and particularly in the decline of American character. He asserts that something personally (not governmentally) must be done to consciously try to preserve the good culture in America. He writes:

"...I am referring to a group of individuals, specifically, monks- - who were not able to fit into the disintegrating landscape of the Roman Empire, and who experienced themselves as strangers in a strange land. What Roman culture had discarded, these monks treated as valuable; what the culture found worthwhile, they perceived as stupid or destructive. And so, beginning in the fourth century A.D., these men took it upon themselves to preserve the treasures of Greco-Roman civilization as the lights of their own culture were rapidly fading. In Ireland, and on the Continent, they sequestered and copied the books and manuscripts that represented the greatest cultural achievements of that civilization--material that, six hundred years later, proved to be a crucial factor in the dawn of a new European culture.

...When I speak of a contemporary class of monks...I do not, of course mean that literally. I am not talking about asceticism or religious practice, and certainly not organization into monastic orders. But I am talking about renunciation. Todays "monk" is determined to resist the spin and hype of the global corporate world order; he or she knows the difference between reality and them parks, integrity and commercial promotion. He regards Starbucks as a sad plastic replica of the gritty (or bohemian) cafe' of bygone days. She has no truck with the trendy "wisdom" of the New Age, and instead seeks guidance about the human condition from Flaubert or Virginia Woolf, rather than the latest guru tossed up by the media or counterculture. Computers and the Internet are, for such a person, useful tools, not a way of life, and she understands that both the Republican and Democratic parties represent corporate interests, rather than genuine democracy.

She has no problem being labeled an elitist, because she agrees with Garrison Keillor that "what's really snooty is to put out commercial garbage for an audience that you yourself feel superior to." The new monk is a sacred/secular humanist, dedicated not to slogans or the fashionable patois of postmodernism, but to Enlightenment values that lie at the heart of our civilization: the disinterested pursuit of the truth, the cultivation of art, the commitment to critical thinking, inter alia (trans. "among other things).

Above all, he knows the difference between quality and kitsch, and he seeks to preserve the former in the teeth of a culture that is drowning in the latter. If she is a high school teacher, she has her class reading the Odyssey, despite the fact that half the teachers in the school have assigned Danielle Steel. If he is a writer, he writes for posterity, not for the best-seller lists. As a mother, she takes her kids camping or to art museums, not to Pocahontas. He elects, in short, to save his life via the monastic option." -Prof. Morris Berman, 'Twilight of American Culture', New York: Norton, 2000, 8-10.

For Further Reading [related material]: Os Guiness, 'The American Hour', Free Press, 1994; David Wells, 'Losing our Virtue', Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 1997.

Vol. I, x

Talking to Generation X

Today, I have an article that I "clipped" from the magazine 'First Things' (Feb. 1999, 90). This is an article about how to talk and ultimately reach 'Generation X' with the gospel. It is very interesting and I hope it will be helpful in your thinking and your evangelizing of this particular generation that is looking for hope "under the sun". When reading this, ask yourself: "Is the Church today speaking to the right problems, asking the right questions, and being consistent and effective in its evangelism of this generation?" For a comparative article, see Dr. Horton's article in the July/August issue of 'Modern Reformation'. Also, it would be worth your while to subscribe to 'First Things'. A sample copy is available at www.firstthings.com.

Talking to Generation X

Vol. I, xi

Christianity and Culture

Below is an exceptional excerpt from an address given by Prof. J. Gresham Machen at Princeton Theological Seminary in Sept. 1912. It is from an address entitled 'The Scientific Preparation of the Minister'. As with every great thinker, even though Prof. Machen wrote this in 1912, it is still an extremely relevant and enduring message. As you read, think about the ideas you hear "floating around you" each day in your workplace. Think about the ideas that all men have and confess regardless of whether they have thought through these ideas. Think about how Christianity confronts and challenges the fallen ideas of men in culture. While the ideas of fallen men can be insightful because they are made in God's image, they are usually inconsistent with their own "theology" (or lack thereof), or they are incorrect according to what Scripture teaches. As the Apostle Paul teaches us, we must bring every thought captive and submit it to the Lord Christ who is the LORD of Lords of all ideas and culture! The context of this quotation is Prof. Machen addressing the needs of the Church to educate her ministers so that they may be fit, or able to teach Christ's sheep, and to teach them how to be "in the world, but not of it" rather than to be unconsciously "of the world, but not in it." Please pay particularly close attention to the last paragraph.

J. Gresham Machen:

"Modern culture is a tremendous force. It affects all classes of society. It affects the ignorant as well as the learned. What is to be done about it? In the first place the church may simply withdraw from the conflict. She may simply allow the mighty stream of modern thought to flow unheeded and do her work merely in the back-eddies of the current. There are still some men in the world who have been unaffected by modern culture. They may still be won for Christ without intellectual labor. And they must be won. It is useful, it is necessary work.

If the church is satisfied with that alone, let here give up the scientific education of her ministry. Let her assume the truth of her message and learn simply how it may be applied in detail to modern industrial and social conditions. Let her give up the laborious study of Greek and Hebrew. Let her abandon the scientific study of history to the men of the world. In a day of increased scientific interest, let the church go on becoming less scientific. In a day of increased specialization, of renewed interest in philology and in history, of more rigorous scientific method, let the church go on abandoning her Bible to her enemies. They will study it scientifically, rest assured, if the church does not. Let her substitute sociology altogether for Hebrew, practical experience for the proof of the Gospel. Let her shorten the preparation of her ministry, let her permit it to be interrupted yet more and more by premature practical activity. By doing so she will win a straggler here and there. But here winnings will be only temporary.

The great current of modern culture will sooner or later engulf her puny eddy. God will save here somehow--out of the depths. But the labor of centuries will have been swept away. God grant she may face here problem squarely and bravely. That problem is not easy. It involves the very basis of her faith. Christianity is the proclamation of an historical fact - -that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. Modern thought has no place for that proclamation. It prevents men from listening to the message. Yet the culture of today cannot simply be rejected as a whole. It is not like the pagan culture of the first century. It is not wholly non-Christian. Much of it has been derived directly from the Bible. There are significant movements in it, going to waste, which might well be used for the defense of the Gospel. The situation is complex. Easy wholesale measures are not in place. Discrimination, investigation is necessary. Some of modern thought must be refuted. The rest must be made subservient. But nothing in it can be ignored. He that is not with us is against us.

Modern culture is a mighty force. It is either subservient to the Gospel or else it is the deadliest enemy of the Gospel. For making it subservient, religious emotion is not enough; intellectual labor is also necessary. And that labor is being neglected. The church has turned to easier tasks. And now she is reaping the fruits of her indolence. Now she must battle for her life." -J. Gresham Machen, 'The Scientific Preparation of the Minister,' Reprinted in the 'Princeton Theological Review', Vol. XI, 1913.

JOHN 17:14-15: "I have given them thy word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one."

Vol. I, xii

Classes of Legalists

An excellent and recent book by Prof. Dan Doriani teaches how to "put the truth to work" and to faithfully apply Scripture in preaching. In order to avoid the pitfalls of legalistic preaching, he explains four classes of legalism into which many preachers unintentionally find themselves. The point he makes about "class-four legalists" is that they have the correct teaching, but that they make the correct teaching oppressive without the love of Christ and his fulfillment of the Law as foundational to all of their preaching. This is helpful for all when sharing and living the gospel with others.

"Class-one legalists are auto-soterists; they declare what one must do in order to obtain God's favor or salvation. The rich young ruler was a class-one legalist. Class-two legalists declare what good deeds or spiritual disciplines one must perform to retain God's favor and salvation. Class-three legalists love the law so much they create new laws, laws not found in Scripture, and require submission to them. The Pharisees, who build fences around the law, were class-three legalists. Class-four legalists avoid these gross errors, but they so accentuate obedience to the law of God that other ideas shrivel up. They reason, 'God has redeemed us at the cost of his Son's life. Now he demands our service in return. He has given us his Spirit and a new nature and has stated his will. With these resources, we obey his law in gratitude for our redemption. This is our duty to God.' In an important way this is true, but class-four legalists dwell on the law of God until they forget the love of God. Worshiping, delighting in, communing with, and conforming to God are forgotten.

Class-four legalists can preach sermons in which every sentence is true, while the whole is oppressive. It is oppressive to proclaim Christ as the Lawgiver to whom we owe a vast debt, as if we must somehow repay him- - repay God! -- for his gifts to us. I count myself a member of the legion of recovering class-four legalists. We slide into a 'Just Do It' mentality occasionally, dispensing commands just because they are right.

Psalm 111:1 Praise the LORD! I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation. 2 The works of the LORD are great, Studied by all who have pleasure in them. 3 His work is honorable and glorious, And His righteousness endures forever. 4 He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; The LORD is gracious and full of compassion. 5 He has given food to those who fear Him; He will ever be mindful of His covenant. 6 He has declared to His people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations. 7 The works of His hands are verity and justice; All His precepts are sure. 8 They stand fast forever and ever, And are done in truth and uprightness. 9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name. 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.

Vol. I, xiii

Fools and Folly, Pt. 1

What is a fool according to the Scriptures? How do we minister to a fool? What kind of foolish traits do we have as Christians? The next couple of quotations will be drawn from a helpful chapter in Dick Keyes' book 'True Heroism in a World of Celebrity Counterfeits'. Mr. Keyes is Director of L'Abri Fellowship in Southborough, Massachusetts. I will begin with a few Scripture verses from the Proverbs that describe the fool. I will follow this with one of Mr. Keyes' helpful insights and in-depth wisdom on fools in our contemporary culture (and in ourselves).

What are the characteristics of the fool?

Simply put, the fool is self-sufficient and self-confident in all of his/her needs.

(1) "The way of the fool is right in his own eyes,

but a wise man listens to advice." (Prov. 12:15)

The fool is gullible.

(2) "The fool believes everything,

but the prudent looks where he is going." (Prov. 14:15)

The fool never listens and learns; the fool is very opinionated (whether the fool has knowledge or not)

(3) "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,

but only in expressing his opinion." (Prov. 18:2).

Dick Keyes:

"The fool is not someone who is either uneducated or lacking in mental equipment. At the most basic level, the fool lacks humility. Sooner or later this lack of humility make him or her a loser. In biblical terms, 'fools despise wisdom and instruction,' and so 'they set an ambush for their own lives' (Prov. 1:7,18). Although this is the overarching pattern of folly, there are many variations on it. Just as the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, so folly begins with a denial of God and his authority. King David put it this way, "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God'" (Ps. 14:1). What matters is not so much what is said out loud but what is said in the heart. Perhaps their folly is greatest whose mouths are full of God-talk but who, in their heart of hearts, believe none of it...

...God knows our thoughts, not only our words said out loud or our actions done in public. It is not God who is just a mist, a vapor, or an abstraction. It is the self-important plans of proud people that are 'but a breath'. (cf. Ps. 94:11). But even if only a breath, they do not escape the eyes and ears of God, who sees and hears everything. Only a fool would think that the one who created these organs with their intricate functioning would be deaf, dumb, and blind. Only a greater fool would think that God would not care. The charge of 'fool' is used also by the prophet Jeremiah, speaking the words of the Lord, as he takes the argument another step:

"Hear this, O foolish and senseless people,

who have eyes, but see not,

who have ears, but hear not." (Jer. 5:21)."

Psalm 94:8-11:

"Understand, O dullest of people! Fools, when will you be wise? He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see? He who chastens the nations, does he not chastise? He who teaches men knowledge, the LORD, knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath."

Thanks be to our Lord Jesus Christ, who became a fool in the eyes of the world, dying a horrible and foolish death on the cross to make fools wise, and to display God's wisdom in the midst of our folly!

Vol. I, iv

Fools and Folly, Pt.2

Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs;

rather than a fool in his folly. (Prov. 17:12)

Dick Keyes: The Fool's Cousins

"In the wisdom literature of the Bible [e.g. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job], the fool has two close cousins. They are the scoffer and the sluggard, and they are presented as pseudoheroes who work together in any society. The scoffer is the cynic who sees through everyone. There is nothing in the world that is worthy of his or her commitment or hope. The scoffer does not just withhold commitment but scorns and tears others down who are trying to do something positive with their lives. The sluggard is the natural byproduct of a society that has a lot of scoffers around. In an atmosphere of cynicism nothing seems to be worth the effort. It all seems phony, corrupt, or useless, so there is no point in any exertion. The sluggard, then, is self-justified in doing as little as possible, and so will aspire to a hassle-free life."

"Scoffer" is the name of the proud, haughty man

who acts with arrogant pride. (Prov. 21:24)

Toward the scorners God is scornful,

but to the humble he shows favor.

The wise will inherit honor,

but fools get disgrace. (Prov. 3:34-35)

The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road!

There is a lion in the streets!

As a door turns on its hinges,

so does a sluggard on his bed.

The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.

The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes

than seven men who can answer discreetly. (Prov. 26:13-16).

Vol. I, xv

Fools and Folly, Pt. 3

Today, we will conclude the quotations on fools and folly. In conclusion, we want to appreciate the relationship between folly and sin. Today's quotation is from Cornelius Plantinga, Jr., Professor of Theology at Calvin Theological Seminary.

"The shortest and clearest way to state the relation between sin and folly is to say that not all folly is sin, but all sin is folly. Sin is both wrong and dumb. Indeed, wherever the follies are playing, sin is the main event. Sin is the world's most impressive example of folly...

...Hubris [i.e. foolish impetuosity, or arrogance] is the first and most popular form of idolatry. But all forms of idolatry involve us deeply in folly. All idolatry is not only treacherous, but also futile. Human desire, deep and restless and seemingly unfulfillable, keeps stuffing itself with finite goods, but these cannot satisfy. If we try to fill our hearts with anything besides the God of the universe, we find that we are overfed but undernourished, and that day by day, week by week, year after year, we are thinning down to a mere outline of a human being.

Sad to say, this kind of thing happens all the time. People hungry for love, people who want to 'connect,' open up a sequence of shallow, self-seeking relationships with other shallow, self-seeking persons, and find that at the end of the day they are emptier than when they began. The whole project has been as idle and dehumanizing as the conversations on those dating-and-mating TV programs that explore the sump level of lubriciousness. Beneath all their surface liveliness, the sadness of these programs is that they reduce their participants to mere leering silhouettes...

Sin is folly: no matter what images they choose, the writers of the Bible say that again and again...Above all, at its core, sin is offense against God. Why is it not only wrong but also foolish to offend God? God is our final good, our maker and savior, the one in whom alone our restless hearts come to rest. To rebel against God is to saw off the branch that supports us. As Richard Lovelace remarks, to flee from God to some far country and to search for fulfillment there is to find only 'black-market substitutes': instead of joy, the buzz in your temples from four or five martinis; instead of self-giving love, sex with strangers; instead of a parent's unconditional enthusiasm for you as a person, only the professional support of a fashionable therapist who will indeed pump up your ego whenever it loses pressure, but who also keeps his meter running. Rebellion against God and flight from God remove us from the sphere of blessing; these moves cut us off from our only means of invisible support." - Prof. Cornelius Plantinga, Jr., 'Not the Way It's Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin', Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 1994.

A reminder for all fools: Being foolish is not a permanent condition according to Scripture. The biblical teaching on the fool is designed to help us avoid self-deception. We are all fools and must learn to fear God and seek his wisdom. This we do by grace through Christ, who is the Wisdom of God, as we grow from being foolish to wise. Remember Titus 3:3-5! Here's hope held out to fools:

"For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures...but when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy."

If you want more reading on this, I recommend Prof. Plantinga's book listed above. If you want a short summary of the book, you will find this at www.FirstThings.com, Vol. 46, October 1994.

Vol. I, xvi

The Great Stereopticon

Today's quotation is from Richard Weaver's enduring classic book 'Ideas Have Consequences'. This book was written in 1948 and over fifty years later, it is still in print. In this quotation, Mr. Weaver is prophetically pointing out the dangers of the "Great Stereopticon" which is what we would translate today "the Media" (i.e. Television, Radio, Film, Newspapers -- and he wrote this before digitial television satellites, Ted Turner, Rupert Murdoch, and Comcast!). He warns that the "operators of the Great Stereopticon" can have a debilitating effect on being a people who believe in Truth and in trying to live lives of reflection rather than mere consumption. Mr. Weaver's message is still relevant after fifty years to those who seek to be philosophers ("lovers of wisdom"), rather than consumers ("lovers of pleasure" and immediate gratification). One more "translation": when Mr. Weaver uses the term "materialist civilization" he means a consumer culture, or a culture that needs immediate gratification and consumes more than it produces.

Richard Weaver:

"...the operators of the Great Stereopticon [trans. 'the Media] have an interest in keeping people from breaking through to deeper significances. Not only is the philosopher a notoriously poor consumer; he is also an unsettling influence on societies careless of justice. That there are abysses of meaning beneath his daily routine, the common man occasionally suspects; to have him realize them in some apocalyptic revelation might well threaten the foundations of materialist civilization [consumer culture]...

...In this they ['the Media'] bear out the observation of Socrates that society does not mind an individual's being wise; only when he begins to make others wise does it become apprehensive. This is to say that they fear the spread of what has truth and reason on its side. Has any brilliant social critic of the last century received something better than a sneer from the pundits of journalism until his appreciation by the thoughtful forced a grudging recognition?

...the proprietors of the Stereopticon have a pretty clear idea of the level at which thinking is safe for the established order. They are protecting a materialist civilization growing more insecure and panicky as awareness filters through that it is over an abyss.

...Recurring to Plato's observation that a philosopher must have a good memory, let us inquire whether the continuous dissemination, of news by the media under discussion does not produce the provincial in time. The constant stream of sensation, eulogized as lively propagation of what the public wants to hear, discourages the pulling-together of events from past time into a whole for contemplation. Thus, absence of reflection keeps the individual from being aware of his former selves, and it is highly questionable whether anyone can be a member of a metaphysical community who does not preserve such memory. Upon the presence of the past in the present, depends all conduct directed by knowledge." - Richard Weaver, 'Ideas Have Consequences', Univ. of Chicago Press, 1948, 109-11.

Proverbs 3: "Let love and faithfulness never leave you, bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, and you will find favor in the sight of both God and man. Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on to your own knowledge, in all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall make your paths straight."

A personal note: May I be bold and highly recommend this book. If you are a Christian and have not thought through some of Richard Weaver's ideas from the forties, you are truly missing out on some great wisdom! Think about what he said above concerning the media keeping you from the knowledge of great philosophers. Well, let's put Mr. Weaver's statement to the test: As broad as the media [Great Stereopticon] is able to cast right now in a cable-culture, have you ever heard of Richard Weaver, or the book 'Ideas Have Consequences' (excluding C-Span's book review show)? I truly recommend you read and re-read this book as a Christian. Anyone familiar with Neil Postman's thoughtful work, such as 'Amusing Ourselves to Death' and 'Technopoly' should know that many of the seed-ideas of his theses were planted by Mr. Weaver. I am not exaggerating to say that this is an extremely important read!

Vol. I, xvii

Giving Time to the Dirt in Rows

Here is a poem to reflect upon by Walt McDonald. When I first read this poem I immediately thought of the passage in Ecclesiastes 3:

"There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event (lit. "delight") under heaven..."

In an information age, poetry reminds us to take time to read and understand. Poetry teaches us in images or pictures rather than inundating us with information and facts. I hope you will enjoy this poem about time and life. It is a poem that reminds us that each day is special, no matter how 'insignificant' it may seem. Each day is a single thread that is being woven together to make the larger tapestry of our lives. Too often we look forward to our next holiday, the weekend, etc. without asking what 'this' day holds for each of us! Notice in the form of this poem how Mr. McDonald weaves together the ordinary with the extraordinary. Our memories do not seem to make such distinctions.

Walt McDonald:

My wife framed a poster decades ago,

Take time- - a picture of a daddy holding a kid.

So I made time for them at baseball games,

before survival training and Saigon.

Down on both knees, I taught our babies

tickle and horsey rides, caught all three kids

with the same oiled catcher's mitt,

then waved them away on planes. Berries and beans

sustain us, now that our children have gone --

and okra so slick why bother to chew,

just swallow. There's work in digging our own

potatoes- - never mind the worms, dirt

under the nails. It's grace, no matter how high

the water bill, how many bushels we reap.

All that crawling around between rows

takes time, squatting like ducks hunting for bugs

turning flab into muscle, to tighter skin

and bone. Years ago, each child turned back

and waved- -memories we keep like nights

in Montana, blessings no one could earn,

like potatoes, berries, and beans.

-Walt McDonald, 'Giving Time to the Dirt in Rows'

Vol. I, xviii

Two from G. K. Chesterton-

(1) "It is often supposed that when people stop believing in God, they believe in nothing. Alas, it is worse than that. When they stop believing in God, they believe in anything and everything."

(2) A correspondent of the London Times quite a while back, researching and reporting on many of the same problems we now have, ended every article with this statement: "What's wrong with the world?" G. K. Chesterton once wrote a famous reply:

"Dear Editor:

What's wrong in the world?

I am.

Faithfully yours,

G. K. Chesterton"

Vol. I, xix

Creeds and Confessions

There are two Latin terms which make a distinction between Scripture as the ultimate, or primary authority of our faith(norma norma or the "norming norm"), and our confession of faith as the secondary authority (norma normata or the "normed norm"). Scripture is the only infallible rule for our doctrine and life, but our confession contains the system of doctrine taught in Holy Scripture. All Christians are confessional. It is just that some know what their confession is, while others do not. Here is a helpful quotation by A. A. Hodge (Charles Hodge's son), on the relationship of the Scripture (the "norming norm") and the Westminster Confession of Faith (the "normed norm"). I hope that this quotation will contribute to thoughtful discussion and reflection on the great gift that we have as confessional Christians who have inherited such a treasure as the Westminster Confession of Faith. As well, perhaps it will help you in profitable dialogue with those who claim to be non-confessional, or who think that to be confessional is to undermine the supreme authority of Scripture.

"While, however, the Scriptures are from God, the understanding of them belongs to the part of men. Men must interpret to the best of their ability each particular part of Scripture separately, and then combine all that the Scriptures teach upon every subject into a consistent whole, and then adjust their teachings upon different subjects in mutual consistency as parts of a harmonious system. Every student of the Bible must do this; and all make it obvious that they do it, by the terms they use in their prayers and religious discourse, whether they admit or deny the propriety of human creeds and confessions. If they refuse assistance afforded by the statements of doctrine slowly elaborated and defined by the Church, they must make out their own creed by their own unaided wisdom. The real question is not, as often pretended, between the Word of God and the creed of man, but between the tried and proved faith of the collective body of God's people, and the private judgment and the unassisted wisdom of the repudiator of creeds...

...Creeds and Confessions...have been found necessary in all ages and branches of the Church, and, when not abused, have been useful for the following purposes: (1) To mark, disseminate, and preserve, the attainments made in the knowledge of Christian truth by any branch of the Church in any crisis of its development. (2) To discriminate the truth from the glosses of false teachers, and to present [Scriptural truth] in its integrity and due proportions. (3) To act as the basis of ecclesiastical fellowship among those who nearly agreed as to be able to labour together in harmony. (4) To be used as instruments in the great work of popular instruction.

It must be remembered, however, that the matter of these Creeds and Confessions binds the consciences of men only so far as it is purely Scriptural, and because it is so; and as to the form in which that matter is stated, they bind those only who have voluntarily subscribed to the Confession, and because of that subscription." - Archibald Alexander Hodge, 'The Confession of Faith', Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 1958 Reprint.

The Apostle Paul teaches in Eph. 3:17-19 that interpretation and knowledge of Christ is a community effort. That is, that our interpretation and confession of Scripture is to be "together with all the saints". Ephesians 3:17b-19- "...You, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend, together with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fulness of God."

Vol. I, xx

Richard Baxter on Pride and Humility

Richard Baxter was a Puritan who lived from 1615-1691. He preached most of his life at the church at Kidderminster in England. Baxter was an extremely biblical and practical minister of applying God's truth to sin-sick souls. The following two quotations are from one of his greatest works 'The Christian Directory', which is a manual on biblical counseling.

Pride

"Pride is an inordinate self-exalting, or a lifting up ourselves above the state or degree appointed us...It is an appearing to ourselves, and a desire to appear to others, above what we are, or above others of our quality. It is a branch of selfishness, and contains man-pleasing...and produces hypocrisy, and is its original and life. It contains in it these following acts or parts: 1. A will to be higher or greater than God would have us to be. 2. An overvaluing of ourselves, or esteeming ourselves to be greater, wiser, or better than indeed we are. 3. A desire that others should think of us, and speak of us, and use us, as greater, or wiser, or better than we are. 4. An endeavor or seeking to rise above our appointed place, or to be overvalued by others. 5. An ostentation of our inordinate self-esteem in outward signs of speech or action. Every one of these is an act of pride. The first three are the inward acts of it in the mind and will, and the last two are its external acts."

Humility

"Humility is contrary to pride; and therefore consists: 1. In a contentedness with that degree and state which God has assigned us. 2. In mean thoughts of ourselves, esteeming ourselves no greater, wiser, or better than we are. 3. In a willingness and desire that others should not think of us, or speak of us, or use us, as greater, or wiser, or better than we are; that they should give us not more honor, praise, or love than is our due; the redundancy being but a deceit or lie, and an abuse of us and them. 4. In the avoiding of all inordinate aspiring endeavors, and a contented exercise of our assigned offices, and doing the meanest works of our own places. 5. In the avoiding of all ostentation or appearance of that greatness, wisdom, or goodness which we have not; and fitting our speeches, apparel, provisions, furniture, and all our deportment and behavior to the meanness of our parts, and place, and worth. This is the very nature of humility."

--Richard Baxter, 'The Christian Directory', Morgan, PA: Soli Deo Gloria Books, 2000 Reprint. You may also want to check out his other great work 'The Reformed Pastor' published by the Banner of Truth Trust

Vol. I, xxi

Doctrine and Life

Today's quotation is by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson, pastor of St. George's Church on the Tron in Scotland, and adjunct professor of Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary. The context of the quotation is a section from his book on the Christian life where he is thinking back in his life to how he began to understand the importance of understanding the rich gospel truths of teaching, or doctrine in Scripture, and how this is directly related to our obedience in the Christian life. We can never separate our doctrine (teaching) from our lives. Simply stated, if we have right doctrine, by God's grace, we will live rightly; if we have incorrect doctrine, we will inevitably, live incorrectly. In other words, this quotation is about the relationship between 'right teaching' and 'right living'.

Dr. Ferguson:

"The rather disturbing thought began to dawn on me that many of us who are professing Christians are distressingly weak in our grasp of the basic framework of biblical doctrine. We assume that we know the elements of the message of the New Testament, but sometimes our understanding of them is like that of a child...

...The conviction that Christian doctrine matters for Christian living is one of the most important growth points of the Christian life. Frequently in pastoral work this can be seen. Most of us, by nature, are not students [of doctrine] but more 'practical' types, 'doers' rather than 'thinkers'. Yet both Scripture and the history of the church indicate to us that it is, generally speaking, 'thinkers' who make the best 'doers'!

Cast your mind over the life-stories of the men and women who have had the most practical influences on the church, or perhaps on your own life. You will discover very few among them who were not students of Christian truth, however unsophisticatedly they went about their studies. From the greatest theologians, martyrs and intellectually gifted preachers, to those of lowliest gifts but spiritual power, all, perhaps without exception, have been students of doctrines of the Bible, and therein lies one of the secrets of their usefulness. However paradoxical it seems to our natural minds, it is one of the facts of spiritual reality that practical Christian living is based on understanding and knowledge. A verse in the Old Testament illustrates this. It says that 'as he thinks within himself, so he is' (Prov. 23:7). That summarizes the Christian position perfectly- - how we think is one of the great determining factors in how we live! It is not difficult to demonstrate that this conviction underlies the whole of the teaching of the New Testament." -Sinclair Ferguson, 'The Christian Life: A Doctrinal Introduction', Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1981.

The Apostle Paul counsels Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:16: "Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; hold to that, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers." –RSV

Dr. Ferguson's book listed above is a wonderful introduction for yourself, or for friends, to a clear and concise overview of Biblical doctrine and practical living. Also, James Montgomery Boice's 'Foundations of the Christian Faith' is good, but a bit more lengthy.

Vol. I, xxi

Doctrine and Life

Dr. Ferguson:

The Apostle Paul counsels Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:16: "Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; hold to that, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers." –RSV

Vol. I, xxiii

Charles Spurgeon on Divine Thoughts that humble, expand our minds, and comfort us.

"There is something exceedingly improving to the mind in a contemplation of the Divinity. It is a subject so vast, that all our thoughts are lost in its immensity; so deep, that our pride is drowned in its infinity. Other subjects we can compass and grapple with; in them we feel a kind of self-content, and go our way with the thought, 'Behold I am wise.' But when we come to this master science, finding that our plumbline cannot sound its depth, and that our eagle eye cannot see its height, we turn away with the thought that vain man would be wise, be he is like a wild ass's colt; and with solemn exclamation, 'I am but of yesterday, and know nothing.' No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind, than thoughts of God...

But while the subject 'humbles' the mind, it also expands it. He who often thinks of God, will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow globe...The most excellent study for expanding the soul, is the science of Christ, and Him crucified, and the knowledge of the Godhead in the glorious Trinity. Nothing will so enlarge the intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man, as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity.

And, whilst humbling and expanding, this subject is eminently 'consolatory'. Oh, there is, in contemplating Christ, a balm for every wound; in musing on the Father, there is a quietus for every grief; and in the influence of the Holy Ghost, there is a balsam for every sore. Would you lose your sorrow? Would you drown in your cares? Then go, plunge yourself in the Godhead's deepest sea; be lost in his immensity; and you shall come forth as from a couch of rest, refreshed and invigorated. I know nothing which can so comfort the soul; so calm the swelling billows of sorrow and grief; so speak peace to the winds of trial, as a devout musing upon the subject of the Godhead." -Charles Spurgeon, Sermon preached on Jan. 7, 1855, at New Park Street Chapel in England.

Vol. I, xxiv

The Father's Pruning and the Peaceable Fruit of Righteousness

Our Lord Jesus says in John 15:1-2: "I am the true vine, and My Father is the