It's the community!

Torah provided the means for them to be in relationship with Yahweh through the covenant; it did not reconcile them to God by permanently obliterating their sin. (Reconciliation to God is another concept that is absent from Old Testament theology, except in regard to restoration of favor following covenant infidelity.) Individuals could be faithful to the covenant, and that put them in good standing in the covenant community, a community that continued to exist in covenant relationship with Yahweh generation to generation, though individuals would come and go. Individuals who failed to observe the Torah could be cut off from the community so that they would not negatively affect the good standing of the community as God’s people. If the community as a whole failed to keep the covenant, the covenant curses would come upon them and they could lose the covenant benefits (land and the privilege of Yahweh dwelling among them) and instead suffer exile.—Walton and Walton, The Lost World of the Torah, 159

We Believe in One True God

463 We Believe in One True God

1 We all believe in one true God,
   Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
   Ever-present help in need,
   Praised by all the heav'nly host,
   By whose mighty power alone
   All is made and wrought and done.

2 We all believe in Jesus Christ,
   Son of God and Mary's Son,
   Who descended from his throne
   And for us salvation won,
   By whose cross and death are we
   Rescued from all misery.

3 We confess the Holy Ghost,
   Who from both fore'er proceeds,
   Who upholds and comforts us
   In all trials, fears, and needs.
   Blest and holy Trinity,
   Praise forever be to thee!
                         Tobias Clausnitzer
                         Trans. by Catherine Winkworth
                         The Methodist Hymnal, 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Wow. For a hymn that only occurs in 50-odd hymnals, this one sure shows a lot of variation. The basic theme stays the same, but the words are all over. I couldn't find one that aligned fully with the Methodist hymnal I'm going through.

You can definitely tell that the hymnwriter is a Western Christian and not Eastern Orthodox: "Who from both fore'er proceeds" is something only a Western Christian would say. The filioque clause is still a hotly debated issue between East and West. </idle musing>

Is there continuity?

Salvation from sins is not something that was expected in the Old Testament and is therefore not even a major theme of the Old Testament, let alone its defining and central subject. If one were to try to draw connections between salvation from sins in the New Testament and deliverance from slavery or exile in the Old Testament, again difficult obstacles would have to be overcome since these crises are very different from the problem of sin.—Walton and Walton, The Lost World of the Torah, 157

The Head That Once Was Crowned

458 The Head That Once Was Crowned

1 The head that once was crowned with thorns
   Is crowned with glory now;
   A royal diadem adorns
   The mighty Victor's brow.

2 The highest place that heaven affords
   Is His, is His by right,
   The King of kings and Lord of lords,
   And heaven's eternal light,

3 The joy of all who dwell above,
   The joy of all below
   To whom He manifests His love,
   And grants His name to know.

4 To them the cross, with all its shame,
   With all its grace; is given,
   Their name an everlasting name,
   Their joy the joy of heaven.

5 They suffer with their Lord below,
   They reign with Him above,
   Their profit and their joy to know
   The mystery of His love.

6 The cross to them is life and health,
   Though shame and death to Him;
   His people's hope, His people's wealth,
   Their everlasting theme.
                         Thomas Kelley
                         The Methodist Hymnal, 1964 edition

Theodoret of Cyprus on the incarnation

But Apollinaris, who values drivel more than truth, and who sets his homely prattle before the pious dogmas, says God the Word put on flesh and used it rather like a veil; and that, having no need of a soul, He takes the place of a soul in the body. But, my dear, someone may say to Apollinaris that God the Word had no need of a body either, for He had no lack at all. He was able even to carry out our salvation by a simple command; but He wanted also to have some properly arranged communion with us. To that end He assumed sinful nature and justified that nature by His own deeds. He set it free from the bitter tyrants, Sin and Devil and Death, and deemed it worthy of heavenly thrones, and through that which He assumed He gave to all the race a share in liberty.—Theodoret of Cyprus in William A. Jurgens, Faith of the Early Fathers, 3:242

It was never intended that way…

What is important for our study is that we understand that Torah, in the context of the Old Testament, was never intended to provide a way to heaven or a way to pay the penalty for sin fully and finally. It was never intended to do what Jesus accomplished through his death and resurrection. It is therefore not a failed approach; it did precisely what Yahweh intended for it to do. When we talk about Christians not being under law, but under grace, it is a reflection on what Christ has done for us, not a biblical rejection of the Torah as a means of salvation (which it never was intended to be). Non-Jews can neither accept nor reject the Torah because it was never offered to them.—Walton and Walton, The Lost World of the Torah, 155

Come, Let Us Rise with Christ

457 Come, Let Us Rise with Christ

1. Come, let us rise with Christ our head
   And seek the things above,
   By the almighty Spirit led
   And filled with faith and love;
   Our hearts detached from all below
   Should after Him ascend,
   And only wish the joy to know
   Of our triumphant Friend.

2. Enthroned at God’s right hand He sits,
   Maintainer of our cause,
   Till every vanquished foe submits
   To His victorious cross;
   Worthy to be exalted thus,
   The Lamb for sinners slain,
   The Lord our King, who reigns for us,
   And shall forever reign.

3. To Him our willing hearts we give
   Who gives us power and peace,
   And dead to sin, His members live
   The life of righteousness;
   The hidden life of Christ is ours
   With Christ concealed above,
   And tasting the celestial powers,
   We banquet on His love.
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal, 1964 edition

<idle musing>
I can't believe the stats on this one: A Wesley hymn that only occurs in four hymnals! I've never seen that before. And it's not like the hymn is bad; the theology is good. Wonder why it isn't more popular...
</idle musing>

Cyril of Alexandria on the incarnation

They are utterly stupid who represent, I know not how, that Christ was able to err, because of His having been made incarnationally into a form like us. . . . And if he wore the nature of man for this very reason, that just as that nature in Adam was weakened, in Himself it might prove most powerful and superior to sin, why do they waste their time vainly seeking what they cannot possibly find? . . . Just as in Adam we were condemned because of his disobedience and his transgression of the command, so too in Christ we have been justified because of His utter sinlessness and His perfect obedience and blamelessness; and it is in Him that human nature has its boast.—Cyril of Alexandria in William A. Jurgens, Faith of the Early Fathers, 3:236

Economics

There is no ideal economic system because people will always find a way to corrupt any system and abuse others through it. Any system can be operated with integrity or alternatively be used repressively or oppressively. The Torah insisted that God’s people should not abuse people through the system that was in place in their world. The Bible does not call on us to return to an agropastoral economy, and it did not call on them to abolish debt-slavery.—Walton and Walton, The Lost World of the Torah, 141

<idle musing>
Ain't that the truth! I have never understood how people could say that God's endorsed form of economics is capitalism. Yet I have run into it time and time again over the years. I would go a step further than the Waltons do, though, and say that captitalism especially is prone to abuse—especially in our society that has thrown off so many moral restraints against greed and abuse of power.
</idle musing>

Tozer for Tuesday

Any doctrine that makes the world your friend is not your friend. And any doctrine that makes it easy for you to hobnob with the world and the world’s ways and accept the world’s values, and do the way the world does, is not of God.—A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 216–17

Ambrose on the incarnation

Letter of Ambrose to Sabinus, a Bishop. ca. AD 390

Just as in the form of God, He lacked nothing of the divine nature and its fullness, so too in the form of man there was nothing lacking in Him, by the absence of which He might have been judged an imperfect man; for He came to save the whole man. It would not have been fitting for One who accomplished a perfect work in others to allow anything imperfect in Himself. If something was lacking in His humanity, He did not redeem the whole man; and if He did not redeem the whole man, He was a deceiver when He declared that He had come to save the whole man. But He did not deceive, because “It is not possible for God to lie. ” Because He came, therefore, to save and redeem the whole man, it follows that He took upon Himself the whole man, and that His humanity was perfect.—Ambrose in William A. Jurgens, Faith of the Early Fathers, 2:148

Is it really all or nothing?

Since the Torah cannot be divided into categories of ritual, moral, and social, if we read any of it as divine legislation, we must read all of it as divine legislation, with social ideals standing equally beside moral ideals. Some interpreters, of course, are inclined to read the social stipulations of the Torah as divine ideals anyway.—Walton and Walton, The Lost World of the Torah, 136

<idle musing>
Not sure I buy that. I read a review of one of John's books a while ago where the reviewer basically said that John needed a better theological foundation from which to read. I believe this is one of those places... Not that I think that he's wrong about torah not being laws; I just think nuance would be a bit better. YMMV, of course.
</idle musing>

Look, Ye Saint! The Sight Is Glorious

453 Look, Ye Saint! The Sight Is Glorious

1 Look, ye saints! the sight is glorious;
   See the Man of Sorrows now;
   From the fight returned victorious,
   Every knee to Him shall bow:
   Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him,
   Crowns become the victor's brow,
   Crowns become the victor's brow.

2 Crown the Savior, angels, crown Him;
   Rich the trophies Jesus brings;
   In the seat of power enthrone Him,
   While the vault of heaven rings:
   Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him,
   Crown the Savior King of kings,
   Crown the Savior King of kings.

3 Sinners in derision crowned Him,
   Mocking thus the Savior's claim;
   Saints and angels crowd around Him,
   Own His title, praise His name:
   Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him,
   Spread abroad the Victor's fame,
   Spread abroad the Victor's fame.

4 Hark, those bursts of acclamation!
   Hark, those loud triumphant chords!
   Jesus takes the highest station:
   O what joy the sight affords!
   Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him, Crown Him,
   King of kings, and Lord of lords,
   King of kings, and Lord of lords.
                         Thomas Kelly
                         The Methodist Hymnal, 1964 edition

O Sons and Daughters, Let Us Sing

451 O Sons and Daughters, Let Us Sing

1 O sons and daughters of the King,
   whom heavenly hosts in glory sing,
   today the grave has lost its sting.
   Alleluia! Alleluia!

2 That Easter morn at break of day,
   the faithful women went their way
   to seek the tomb where Jesus lay.
   Alleluia! Alleluia!

3 An angel clad in white they see,
   who sat and spoke unto the three,
   "Your Lord has gone to Galilee."
   Alleluia! Alleluia!

4 How blest are they who have not seen
   and yet whose faith has constant been,
   for they eternal life shall win.
   Alleluia! Alleluia!

5 On this most holy day of days,
   to God your hearts and voices raise
   in laud and jubilee and praise,
   Alleluia! Alleluia!
                         Jean Tisserand
                         Trans. by John M. Neale
                         The Methodist Hymnal, 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Cyberhymnal inserts the following verses:

4 When Thomas first the tidings heard
   that some had seen the risen Lord,
   he doubted the disciples' word.
   Lord, have mercy!

5 At night the apostles met in fear;
   among them came their Master dear
   and said, "My peace be with you here."
   Alleluia!

6 "My pierced side, O Thomas, see,
   and look upon my hands, my feet;
   not faithless but believing be."
   Alleluia!

7 No longer Thomas then denied;
   he saw the feet, the hands, the side.
   "You are my Lord and God!" he cried.
   Alleluia!

</idle musing>