redemption

Ending Bloodthirst

by Ben Zornes · Aug 22, 2023

In Moses’ Law, God restricted Israel from eating blood. A few things are readily obvious in this. First, this ought not to tangle you up with guilt if you prefer your steaks done rare. Rather, this guarded Israel from participating in the occultism of the demon worshipping nations around them. The literal blood-thirst of paganism imagined that drinking a slain beast’s blood would impart the vitality of that beast to you. Even more darkly, the heathen practice of drinking the blood of other humans was a twisted hope for grasping after eternal life.

The Altar of the Lord alone was the lawful place to offer up sacrificial blood. To partake of ritual blood for yourself would be to make a covenant claim that you can assuage your own guilt. If your sin demands death, offering another’s blood to yourself is a claim to sovereignty, setting yourself up as your own judge & pretentiously becoming your own mediator. This is just part of why God forbid this practice. The blood belonged on His Altar, reminding the worshipper that guilt deserved death, but God received the creature’s blood as the worshipper’s substitute. But this arrangement only worked because God covenanted with His people, establishing these terms according to His sovereign will.

When Christ came as the fulfillment of all these laws & ordinances, He surprises us with a command to drink wine as a covenant sign of His blood. While Moses outlawed the partaking of ritual blood, Jesus invites us to drink this covenant blood, every last drop.

Life is in the blood. Until Christ, the blood of guiltless beasts was required. But now, an eternal sacrifice has been made. You drink this covenant sign of the blood of another, and it’s not some dark & twisted way to wrest eternal life from God’s Hand. Because this blood was shed by the Son of God’s own hand.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

1 John 5:16-19 | The Sin Unto Death

by Ben Zornes · May 15, 2023

16 If any man see his brother sin a sin not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death, I do not say that he shall pray for it. 17 All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not unto death. 18 We know that whosoever is born of God does not continue in sin; but He that is the Begotten of God guards him, and the wicked one touches him not. 19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in wickedness.
1 John 5:16-19

Think of the sense of joy you experienced when all the documents are signed and the realtor hands you the keys to your first home. That’s a pale shadow to the joy which should come from the knowledge which John has been imparting: if you have Jesus, as proclaimed by John & the other Apostles, you have life. The warnings which follow aren’t intended to spoil the joy of the central message of this book. This passage about the “sin unto death” has become the source of great confusion in the souls of certain saints. Some tender souls convince themselves they’ve committed this sin, and wonder if all hope of salvation is lost for them. But to think that way is to miss the whole point of this letter. John just reiterated his purpose statement in verse 13: he wrote so that you would know you have life eternal.

Notice as well, that John has just exhorted believers to pray with a certainty that your “prayer is always heard, and never unanswered.”^⁠1 This passage is a continuation of that thought. He continues by using (one last time) his familiar “if/then” argument, which he’s repeatedly used throughout his letter. If you see a brother caught in sin, pray, and trust that God will answer that prayer for restoring the wayward brother. Until repentance is out of reach, do not fail to pray for restoration. This reality is brought out in greater clarity in verse 18, reminding us that those born of God leave off their habitual pattern of sin. Those born again will not persist in unrepentant sin, so pray boldly for their restoration.

The “sin unto death” shouldn’t be a cause of trepidation, as if you’ll accidentally commit it while pruning your rose bushes one spring morning. Rather, remember that John tells us to pray for the brother who has fallen into sin, trusting for God to restore him; if you can see that there is hope of restoration pray for him. If there is no hope of reformation, don’t pray for him. I take this to mean a few things. First, we ought not to pray for the departed who we suspect were not believers. No purgatory, sorry Rome.

Secondly, remember that the presenting problem which John is addressing is the rampant message of the Rival Christs; their formal renunciation of Jesus Christ should be received with the church’s “amen, so be it.” As Calvin remarks on this tricky verse, “we ought not contend with the just judgement of God, or seek to be more merciful than He is.”^⁠2 If someone begins to hold to a false Christ, and will not recant, this should be met with a sorrowful but certain “so be it” from the church. Cerinthus, Arius, the modern progressive views of Jesus, and other false teachers have made their Christological bed, and should be made to sleep in it. This isn’t describing the Coal Miner, who reads his bible at 4am each morning, prays for his wayward cousins, but misunderstands the finer points of the hypostatic union.

Just because you sinned, even grievously, does not mean that you’ve “sinned unto death.” This is the point of verse 17, all our unrighteousness is sin. This is why we must be born of God. The twice-born see their sin, grieve their sin, and confess it (Cf. 1 Jn. 1:9). This is the case because the “Begotten of God” guards you, and the wicked one can’t touch you. I take the phrase “begotten of God” here as a reference to Christ, and not to the believer. The Father keeps you, because He has answered Christ’s prayer that you would be kept (Jn. 17:11-12).

The “touching” here (v.18) has allusions of the Levitical duty to refrain from touching unclean things. But in this sense, while the saint must refrain from touching the unclean thing, the orientation has been reversed. The OT mindset was to keep at bay the death & uncleanness of the world. But in Christ, the world is made clean, and the devil scrambles to try to find some foothold, and just keeps losing ground. United to God and guarded by His Spirit, we despoil the wicked one, and his efforts to defile us are like a sailboat without a sail. If you are born of God, the Begotten Son of God keeps you, and preserves you––despite your sin––because you are of God.

And although the whole world lies in wickedness, the devil’s war machines are rendered useless (1 Jn. 3:8b). If you believe that Jesus is the Christ of God, you can proceed through the whole earth unafraid, for you are kept. Let the nations rage and rebel, the victory is not theirs but Christ’s and His people. Which was how John began this section of his letter (5:4-5). This whole letter is a letter of triumphal assurance which comes through the clear knowledge of Christ as proclaimed in the Gospel, not grave and mysterious doubt which arises from the mystical knowledge of Antichrists.

¹Smith, David. The Expositors Greek Testament. Edited by W. Robertson Nicoll. Vol. Five. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1979. Pg. 198.

²Calvin, Jean. Calvins Commentaries. Vol. XXII. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1999. Pg. 270.

Narnia Talk 1: The Lion, The Witch, & the Wardrobe

by Ben Zornes · Nov 14, 2022

Jack the Giant Slayer

CS Lewis, or Jack as his friends called him, gave the world a great gift in the seven Chronicles of Narnia. My hope in these talks is to show that Lewis is a modern-day “Jack the Giant Slayer”. His insightful story-telling shapes and teaches us how to overcome all variety of dragons, giants, and grumpy cousins named Eustace.

Some Film Critic Nit-Pics

In Disney’s adaptation of LWW, one moment stands out as indicative of how someone can completely miss the central point of the source material. The scene is in the Beaver’s Dam, when Mr. Beaver tells the four children, “Aslan is on the move.” The music swells, the children have looks of wonder, and then Edmund asks with confusion, “Who’s Aslan?” The film makes this a comedic moment. Mr. Beaver laughs at how anyone could not know who Aslan is. But Peter doubles down, and confusedly explains they have no idea who or what Aslan is.

By contrast, in the book, the moment at which Aslan’s name is first spoken is a converting moment for three of the four children, while it is the aroma of death to Edmund. The filmmakers make the mistake of turning the first mention of Aslan’s name from a moment of converting power and wonder to a moment where Mr. Beaver is panned for being so dense and lacking all self-awareness. In Disney’s Narnia, there is no magic in Aslan’s name.

But what else should we expect from the unenchanted modernist/postmodernist world which Hollywood believes we live in? Lewis’ fantasy world is of course intended to help us better see the enchantment of our own world.

Magic & Deeper Magic

Lucy’s entrance into the snowy forest of Lantern Waste brings us into a different world. A world of fauns, talking beasts, nymphs, and a White Witch. A world seemingly unlike our own. And yet, in this Narnian world, we find an out-of-place reference to Christmas: it’s always winter & never Christmas in Narnia. Not only that, but later on, Father Christmas makes an appearance in a world where Christ was not born. This along with the “hodge-podge” of mythical creatures and characters has been often criticized by Lewis’ detractors.

But this is no literary mis-step. There is deeper literary magic at work. Of course, we are at once confronted with Narnia’s “magicality”: a Faun, a Lamppost in the middle of a wood, the Witch giving Edmund enchanted Turkish Delight, and we soon learn that it is her magic which maintains Narnia’s enduring winter.

Her magic is powerful. Her magic turns to stone. Her magic holds Edmund in sway. Her magic prevents Christmas. But though evil ones always try, Christmas cannot be stopped. Just ask Herod or Athaliah. And if Christmas cannot be stopped, neither can Easter.

Lewis brings us into a magical world, where magic is used for cruelty, to snuff out joy, to make the world a colorless white and have all the vibrancy of stone statues. But then the deeper magic turns everything golden as the sunrise, golden as the Lion’s mane.

The Emperor’s deeper magic decreed, before that world began, that a willing substitute for traitors was promised resurrection. Lewis wants his readers to feel & know that the Incarnation & Resurrection are the reason our world is magical. God became a man. The God-man died. But the God-man then killed death and lives forever. The resurrection overthrew the powers and principalities. We now live in a world in which a Man who rose from the dead rules the world for all eternity.

This insight in Narnia should enable us to spot when magic is being misused by tyrants and cruel men. Magic (technology, medicine, etc.) will always be wielded by the wicked as a means to crush joy. We distract ourselves to death with these magical pocket devises. Porn has led to a generation who is increasingly disinterested in the glory & fruitfulness of marital intercourse. Plants and chemicals are used to “balance” the chemicals in our brains, held out by the pharmaceutical companies as the means to restore joy. Instead, users are turned to stone. We call them stoners for a reason. This is a generation lost in an enchantment of make-believe, whether in the form of cosplayers & LARPers, or in the more grievous transgender attempt to going beyond costume and carve the body to suit the imagination.

Lewis offers us a breath of fresh air. The cruel try to wield the magic of our world for their own empire of icicles & stone; all the while they are ignorant of the deeper magic. The Resurrection thwarts the petty magic of the wicked, and summons the Sons of Adam & Daughters of Eve to reign with Christ.

A Royal Calling

It is this “royal calling” which drives the narrative in LWW. Thus, Lewis opted to employ Jovian imagery to reinforce this. As Michael Ward has masterfully pointed out, the seven books of Narnia map onto the seven planets. LWW is presented in prevailingly Jovial terms. Royalty returning. Thrones & Coronation. Prophetic glory. The largess of gift-giving. The dying & rising God.

Notice, that throughout the story the theme is that Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve are royal titles. The Pevensie children are fulfilling an almost “messianic” prophecy. Narnia was never right except when ruled by Adam’s offspring. The Pevensies were not mighty ones in and of themselves. But Aslan made them mighty, and by what we would call Providence, he ensured their ascent from commoners to eternal King’s & Queen’s of Narnia.

This is one of the central lessons of LWW. This first adventure in Narnia is intended, in part, to fortify us to rule in this world as the lawful heirs of this world. The meek shall inherit the earth.

Even for Traitors

Perhaps the clearest lesson, however, is presented in the character arcs of the two younger Pevensies. In Lucy & Edmund we’re confronted with a question: will you believe or will your bitterness lead you to betrayal? Lucy, throughout the books, is an embodiment of child-like faith. She takes Tumnus’ word without any doubt. She is delighted by the simple joys of sardines on toast, and a humble Faun’s cave. Edmund, loaded with cynicism & bitter resentment, caves quickly to the Witch’s enticement.

While it is far preferable to be a “Lucy”, Lewis goes out of his way to make it clear that the restoration of Narnia will be incomplete unless even the worst sinner is redeemed. The Good News is plainly presented to us here. While we all should be a “Lucy”, in reality we’re all Edmunds. We’ve betrayed our brothers & sisters. We’ve been in league with evil. Thus, it is only by the shedding of innocent blood whereby we might be restored to our calling to rule.

Aslan lays down his life so that Edmund might be given a knighthood, a throne, a crown, and a title (a new name). He goes from Edmund the bitter, Edmund the traitor, Edmund the worst; to Edmund the Just. Indeed, Peter tells us that their victory over the Witch in the Battle of Beruna was “all Edmund’s doing.” Those forgiven much, love much.

I’ll close with two final observations which should be of great encouragement to our faith in this enchanted world we live in. First, while Aslan is not a tame lion, he is good. You won’t get far if you think you can keep God on a leash, or whistle Him up when it is convenient. You are in His Story, so boldly follow Him in His wild romps of restoration, knowing that even when things get messy it is all working together for your good and His glory.

Lastly, the most touching moment of LWW is when Lucy and Susan discuss whether to let Edmund know all that Aslan did & suffered to redeem him:

“Does he know.” whispered Lucy to Susan, “what Aslan did for him? Does he know what the arrangement with the Witch really was?”
“Hush! No, of course not,” said Susan.
“Oughtn’t he to be told?” said Lucy.
“Oh, surely not.” said Susan. “It would be too awful for him. Think how you’d feel if you were he?”
“All the same I think he ought to know,” said Lucy.

Lucy is interrupted, so we never find out if she told Edmund. I’d like to think Lucy did tell Edmund, but all the same, he could never comprehend all the greatness of what was done for him. The poignant truth which Lewis brings in this exchange is that we too have been told of our redemption, and though we cannot comprehend the full scope of all that was done by Christ in our stead, we are brought to be, as Wesley’s hymn puts it, “Lost in wonder, love, and praise.”

The Divine Novella | Ruth 1 | Though All the Field Should Wither

by Ben Zornes · Sep 19, 2022

Introduction

The story of Ruth isn’t a fairy tale tucked away in a corner of the OT. Though there’s high drama, disaster, intrigue, even romance, this episode is more than just thrilling narrative. Rather, it’s an anticipation of the redemption of all things in the coming of the promised Seed. The literature is delightful, the story is thrilling, but the providence & purpose behind it all is glorious beyond compare.

The Text

Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehemjudah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehemjudah. And they came into the country of Moab, and continued there. And Elimelech Naomi’s husband died; and she was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelled there about ten years. And Mahlon and Chilion died also both of them; and the woman was left of her two sons and her husband. […]
Ruth 1:1-22

Summary of the Text

During the wild-west days of Israel, when the judges judged, a famine came upon Israel (Cf. Jdg. 6:3-4) and the severity compelled Elimelech to resort to sojourning in the fields of Moab, along with his wife, Naomi, and his two aptly named sons Mahlon (sickly) & Chilion (pining) (vv1-2). Then the hard times got harder when Elimelech died. Though Naomi’s hope arose through the marriage of her two sons to Moabitess women (Ruth & Orpah), it was soon dashed to pieces by the tragic death of the sons before they’d brought forth any sons themselves (vv3-5).

Rumor of returned abundance upon the Lord’s people reached Naomi, so she set out to return to Bethlehem, accompanied by her daughters-in-law (vv6-7). She gives them her blessing to depart without any obligation to her (vv8-9); initially, they both refuse (v10). She reasons a second time with them, remonstrating with them that she has no hope of providing them husbands, in satisfaction of the levirate law (Cf. Deu. 25:5); this demonstrates–not for the last time–her godliness & piety (vv11-13). Ruth & Orpah are clearly affected by her speech, but whereas Orpah is compelled to return home, Ruth clings the closer to Naomi (v14). Naomi tries a third time to persuade Ruth (v15); but Ruth wonderfully avows her steadfast resolve to remain united to both the people & God of Naomi (vv16-17). Seeing Ruth’s resolve, Naomi ends the debate; they come at last to Bethlehem, causing a great hubbub amongst the Bethlehemites (vv18-19). Naomi insists on being renamed “Mara” to reflect the afflictions which the Lord’s hand had brought upon her (v20-21). Like any good story, a clue is given to us by informing us that the return to Bethlehem took place at a specific season of the year: the barley harvest (v22).

Setting the Stage

The initial crisis of this story is striking: a breadless house of bread. It’s likely that this famine came about during Gideon’s time, when the Midianites had brought ruin upon the fields of Israel. This tale (likely written by Samuel) is intended as an origin story for the house of David. That being the case, admitting to his “tainted” ancestry seems problematic. But the story “leans into” this controversy. In the end we see that God always intended the arc of Israelite history result in gathering in the Gentiles into the harvest of Redemption. Not only that, but this narrative is asserting that the prophecy of Jacob that the scepter would not depart from Judah is being fulfilled through these twists and turns of providence. The crooked lines of man can’t thwart God’s purposes.

Moabites were descended from the incestuous union of Lot and his eldest daughter (Moab means, “from my father”) (Gen 19:37). Moses had warned against marrying “strange women” (Ex. 34:16); Solomon, later on, repeatedly warns his sons against being enticed by the “strange woman” (Pr. 2:16, 7:5). Balaam had prophesied that a scepter would arise from Israel, destroying Moab (Num. 24:17); he then concocted the scheme to seduce Israel into whoredom; this led to Phinehas’ heroic act (Num. 25:7-8). Moses died in the realm of Moab (Deu. 34:5). Moab had repeatedly persecuted Israel in the days of the judges, most famously by the tyranny of the enormous Eglon (Jdg. 3). In other words, by every token, we should be suspicious of Ruth.

The Breadless House of Bread

Naomi had fled the breadless House of Bread full (of offspring); but now the House of Bread was full of bread once more while she had been emptied. She is barren, and is accompanied by a barren, but loyal, daughter-in-law. The hope of having their inheritance in Israel preserved hangs by a thread.

Namoi could have resentfully claimed that the deuteronomic blessing rang hollow: “And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new. […] The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee (Lev. 26:5,10; Deu. 28:8).” Yet we find her devoutly explaining the Law to her daughters-in-law (Deu. 25:5). In the depths of bitter suffering, she endures without becoming bitter, and without spurning the Lord’s covenant promises.

Her three debates with Ruth & Orpah aren’t marked by the briny waters of self-pity. Her return to Bethlehem is a return of hope that the Lord who’d brought the judgement of famine upon His people, had now visited them with abundance. It was this hope which Ruth, by Naomi’s faithful witness, wished to join herself. Even in Ruth’s famous lines, we see a depth of understanding of Israelite law which can only be attributed to Naomi. Indeed, Naomi embodies the lines of that wonderful hymn:

Though vine nor fig tree neither their yearly fruit should bear,
though all the fields should wither, nor flocks nor herds be there,
yet God, the same abiding, His praise shall tune my voice,
for while in Him confiding I cannot but rejoice.

We Don’t Name Ourselves

One of the ironic features of this story is Naomi’s attempt to rename herself. She tasted the bitter cup which providence had sent her, and she thought she knew the ending of the story. But the Storyteller refuses to go along with her renaming. Despite telling everyone to call her Mara (bitterness), we get no indication that the Bethlehemites complied, and the narrative certainly doesn’t.

Naomi, in her just complaint, is learning the lesson which every saint must learn, to hope in God’s goodness, even when confronted with the most bitter trial. This is the same truth which Naomi’s descendant David would one day wonderfully compose in the 42nd Psalm. Why are you downcast? Hope in God. We don’t know the end of the matter. Thus we must trust ourselves to the One who shall give to His redeemed a new name (Cf. Rev. 2:17).

Forsaking Foreign Gods

The most poignant moment in this first act of the story is when Ruth avows her loyalty to the laws of Moses, the people of Israel, and, above all, Jehovah God. This is true faith. In Ruth, through Naomi’s witness of suffering through famine, exile, the valley of the shadow of death, and the pain of barrenness, we see that true faith looks not to circumstance but to the promise.

God had promised the Messiah, a conquering Seed, to Israel; Christ is not only there in the triumph, we must learn to see Him in the darkest and most bitter moments of Trial. This is all from His hand, and will all be worked together for the good of those who love Him and are the called according to His purpose.

Though there are many practical lessons to glean from these characters, and their example is worthy of emulation, the golden thread is found in Ruth’s confession of faith. Redemption is of God. She confesses this in the midst of barrenness, with future prospects of comfort & blessing looking bleak. Yet she sees clearly: the foreign gods are impotent. They won’t raise up a promised Seed. Out of Jacob shall the scepter rise, a promised Seed springing up to bring deliverance from all evil. The barley harvest has come, even for the barren woman.

That Grace May Abound

by Ben Zornes · Jul 19, 2016

Curses Abounding

Many commentatorsÂ have pointed out and the discussed the reasons that in the “blessings and curses” section at the end of Deuteronomy, there are more curses than blessings. Obviously, one reason for this is Moses’ desire, at the end of his mediatorial role in Israel, to warn them againstÂ forsaking God’s covenant and the dire consequences of such disobedience.

The sin of breaking God’s covenantÂ must always be viewed as horrific, terrible, and dreadful; though sin offers great pleasure and promises alluring treasures, it is always, in the end, ugly. There is nothing sexy about blindness, disease, enemy conquest, blighted crops, a bronze heaven, an iron earth, and cannibalism (Deu. 28:15-68). Moses does not want the people to think that once he is gone, thatÂ God’s covenant of love to Israel is to be taken lightly. He wants themÂ to enjoy God’s blessings (which he states simply and beautifully in Deu. 28:1-14); but he knows their wayward hearts and thus, gives a most dreadful warning.

Failure On Display

Israel was to be a priestly nation upon earth for God. Amidst the nations of the earth, God and chosen them, delivered them, and raised them up to be an ensign of His redemptive purposes for all the world to see. They were, in a sense, “on display” for the observation of the pagan nations. They were the people of God, set up to show how all mankind was to worship & serve the Living God.

The commentators, when looking at this passage in Deuteronomy 28, note how Moses seems to think that the curses willÂ inevitably come on Israel. To which it might be asked, why would God choose Israel, give them the covenant, fully knowing they would fail and worse yet (so we might say), fail inÂ front of the world?Â Did God put them on the stage, only to watch Israel fail, and then judge them for their failure?

Some might say this is unfair, to which we must respond that this was all God’s mercy. This was all part of His revealing the glory of Christ, the true Israel who didÂ not fail. When God put Christ on display, He performed flawlessly. God, in His kindness, ordained Israel’s failure, in order toÂ make it abundantly clear that salvation is from and in God alone, and not in man’s self-effort, merit, or moralism.

Sitting inÂ Moses’ Seat

Christ came and sat in Moses’ seat, unveiling the mystery that had been hidden in the Pentateuch. The dark and dreadful cloud of the curses which hung over Israel, were rolled back as He declared the gospel of the Kingdom; which was that He would become the curse for us, that we might become the righteousness of God (Gal. 3:13).Â Like Moses, HeÂ sat atop a mount, speaking on behalf of God.

The Law left Israel (and mankind) with the question of “What must we do to be saved?” His messageÂ answered the question by announcing the blessedness of those who come into the Kingdom throughÂ Him, by faith (Mat. 5:1-12). Poverty of Spirit (i.e. repentance), not lineage (i.e. being of Abraham) would procure the blessing which God, all along, intended for sad mankind.

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The Lion on the Other Side

by Ben Zornes · Jan 28, 2014

One of the key principles of Christian discipleship is that to say the same things over and over again must not be grievous to the teacher, because this repetition is safe for the disciple (Phi. 3:1). I remember hearing an anecdotal story about someone in Lutherâ€™s ministry telling him that he was always saying the same thing in all his sermons, and by gum, when will Luther say something new. Luther replied, â€œWell, when you start living what Iâ€™m preaching now, then maybe Iâ€™ll consider preaching something else!â€ We are creatures that oft forget, and need continual reminders of what it is we actually believe.Â [Read more…] about The Lion on the Other Side