Imagine, you are in the Superbowl. You are down by four points, but your offensive is on the field with only a few minutes left in the game. The opportunity of a lifetime – you can win this game and the championship, but you are ninety yards away from the game-winning—no, Championship-winning—touchdown. After executing a…
Read MoreLessons from the Genealogy of Jesus Christ, Part 5 of 6: Christ for All Sinners
Family relationships are very complicated. Is that not stating the obvious?! Well, Jesus’s genealogy shows some of that as well. We already looked at the inclusion of a few women, which was mildly unexpected. That isn’t the truly odd thing. There are two more curious names included in His genealogy that is very curious. A…
Read MoreOde to Theological Studies
O Studies, O Studies, we’ve been your sad prey For you have worked us so diligently ‘til May Our minds are weary, our bodies fatigued Our teachers are ruthless, folks of intrigue . Midterms were a pleasure, howev’r only some Finals are more a burden than fun Papers, papers, more papers we write ‘Bout the…
Read MoreDeuteronomy for Asian Americans, Part 7 (Covenant Renewal)
Covenant Renewal: Marks of Godly Leadership Once a treaty was drafted and ratified, it became binding upon both the suzerain and the vassal. However, as is the case in life, people die. If one of the two covenant parties passes away, his successor is required to go through a covenant renewal ceremony where he must…
Read MoreDeuteronomy for Asian Americans, Part 6 (Passing It On)
Another important feature in ancient treatises is the preservation of the treaty documents. This is done in several ways. One is what is called a “documentary curse,” which is a statement within the treaty that says all the curses found within it will be executed upon anyone who adds or takes away any portion of…
Read MoreDeuteronomy for Asian Americans, Part 5 (Sanctions)
Sanctions: Covenantal Blessing and Curse Within the ancient treatise are found an elaborate series of covenantal sanctions, i.e., blessings and curses. If the covenantal parties conform to the stipulations of the treaty, there is blessing. If, however, they violate those stipulations, there is curse. Deuteronomy has a rather extensive section on covenant sanctions, chapters 27-30.…
Read MoreDeuteronomy for Asian Americans, Part 4 (Stipulations)
Stipulations: Covenantal Life In the literary order of an ancient treaty, once the identity of the great suzerain is established (preamble) and his major achievements have been described (historical prologue), then the demands upon the vassal are made (i.e. commandments). The rationale for this order is clear: in light of who the suzerain is…
Read MoreDeuteronomy for Asian American Christians, Part 3 (Historical Prologue)
Historical Prologue: The Works of God We move from the Preamble to the Historical Prologue, where the great suzerain describes his great accomplishments. The purpose of this is to instill a proper motive for the vassal to conform to the covenantal stipulations that follows. In other words, in light of all the major things the…
Read MoreDeuteronomy for Asian American Christians, Part 2 (Preamble)
Preamble: The Name of God We begin by focusing our thoughts on the first section of Deuteronomy, namely the preamble. In the ancient world, this is where the great king (the suzerain) establishes his covenantal relationship with a vassal by revealing his name. In Deuteronomy 1:1-4, this is done when the Lord reveals to Israel…
Read MoreDeuteronomy for Asian American Christians: Intro (Part 1 of 8)
The Book of Deuteronomy is extraordinary. I’ve been studying, teaching, and writing about this book for many years. Each time I read it, I’m reminded of how it is packed with so much spiritual vitality and wisdom. It was written during a time of transition for the ancient people of Israel. After the Lord…
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Redeeming Chillingworth 