Archaeological Findings from the “First Temple Period”

I first came across this story on Justin Taylor’s blog.

During the digging of a trench on the temple mount, the remains of artifacts from the First Temple Period were discovered las week. The announcement was made this past Sunday by the Israel Antiquities Authority.

There are two really good blog posts about the find, one from biblical archaeologist Dr. Ritmeyer, and the other from Todd Bolen professor at Masters College in Israel.

Jesus’ teaching on the Law

Lee Irons blogs on the Law of Christ, specifically in the Gospel of Matthew. An excerpt:

So with the new covenant. We Christians are members of a new polity called the new covenant. We are not bound by the constitution of Israel (the Mosaic Law). We are not Jews. Are there points of similarity and continuity between the old covenant and the new? Of course. Every moral teaching contained in the old covenant is carried forward into the new. Christians are still obligated to flee idolatry, sexual immorality, murder, and so on. If anything, our view of what is entailed by God’s moral law is expanded and heightened in the new covenant. The prohibition against murder entails a prohibition against hating our neighbor in our heart. The prohibition against adultery includes the prohibition against lust. Neighbor-love is expanded to enemy-love. And so on. But in reality, even these heart attitudes were always a part of the moral law. They are just more clearly seen in Christ and made more explicit through his teaching.

[HT: JT]

Reformation Polka

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WU0f_qJLkLg]

Looking around the world around at ya….

I have asked recently where one can find Tim Keller Resources online.  Steve McCoy (Reformissionary) has compiled a good resource page. 

Tim Keller recources online.

Other Stuff….

Driscoll is going to preach anything you want.  

Timmy Brister gives a suggestion to Driscoll.  Want to Vote?

Monergism has $3.99 unlimited shpping.

Irish Calvinist reminds us for the urgency of evangelism.

Derek Webb concert next week at Sojourn.

I was reminded how much I like Norah Jones.

Doctrinal Correctness and Missional Churches

 This is nothing profound, however sometimes it is profitable to think what is going on in churches around the country.  Today at Sojourn Community Church, an Acts 29 church plant, Ed Stetzer spoke about the kind of leadership that transforms churches from dying to revitalized missional bodies that are on the mission of the King and his Kingdom.  Stetzer gathered statistics of “Comeback Churches” for his new book recently.  Some of them are alarming but must shape us in how we should think of leadership.   7 out of every 1000 churches that are in decline have reversed that status in this study.  Stetzer then studied what was going on in the churches that were revitalized.  The number one thing was that of leadership change—either a new pastor coming in or the old pastor being changed.  This must happen through the preaching of God’s Word.  Through our theological engagement we find our mission in advancing the kingdom.  We must help our people start thinking like missionaries in their communities and less like consumers.  Stetzer said, “What you celebrate your people will become.  If you celebrate academics, your people will be good at academics.  If you celebrate evangelism, your people will become good at evangelism.”

Christianity Today Reviews Sojourn’s Worship Album

Sojourn Community Church’s worship album Before the Throne was given the indie spotlight in Christianity Today’s newest edition. The CD was given fives stars in the review by CT which praises the album: “Such genuine and honest moments that combine thoughtful lyrics with varied instrumentation make Before the Throne a winner from start to finish.” I have only briefly listened to the album but hearing many of the songs off the album played at Sojourn, I can say that the music brings a breath of fresh air to Christian worship music. The eclectic sound and gospel-centered lyrics provide a giant leap forward in the journey to reclaiming art for the God who created it. I encourage everyone to check out the album on the community band’s myspace page or off of their website.

Doriani on Truthfulness in the Kingdom

Matt 5:33-37 - “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ 34But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.

Consider why we make promises. Suppose it is Thursday evening. A father tells his children, “If you help me clean up the yard today I will take you out for ice cream on Saturday.” A wary child may reply “Do you promise?”
The request for a promise is a testimony against us. It shows that a child has learned she cannot entirely trust her father’s word. In the past, she cleaned up the yard, but never received the ice cream. When the child pointed this out, her father said, “I forgot,” or “Something came up,” or “You should have reminded me.” So the child learned to seek a guarantee. When she asks, “Do you promise?” she means, “Do you mean it? Can I count on you?”
The very request for a promise testifies that we are not reliable. When a child asks, “Do you promise?” he testifies that our “Yes” has not always been “Yes.” Ideally, a parent’s word should be so reliable that it never occurs to a child to request a guarantee. Our word should bt so reliable that our “Yes” does mean “Yes” (not “Probably”), and our “No” does mean “No.” Then the need for oaths and promises should wither away.
The very existence of customs such as oaths and promises reveals that human life is tainted by deception. Jesus says that the family of God should be an exception to this. In the kingdom, we should be so truthful that we need neither promises nor vows.