Bill Smith, Author at Kuyperian Commentary

On December 23, 2018 By Bill Smith In Politics Like

As Far As The Curse Is Found

Is Zechariah confused? What is singing about in Luke 1: a political, sociological, national deliverance or a spiritual deliverance? On the one hand he prophesies about “being saved from our enemies and all who hate us,” and on the other hand he speaks about John giving the “knowledge of salvation in the forgiveness of sins.” Maybe Zechariah is still trapped in the thinking that the Messiah would come as a military leader to deliver Israel. But wait, he also speaks about the forgiveness of sins. Can it be both?

Zechariah’s song resonates with the song of Moses after Israel’s exodus from Egypt. Words such as “visited,” “redeemed,” and “remember” all have echoes of the Exodus. Phrases such as being “saved from our enemies” and being “delivered from the hand of our enemies that we might serve him without fear” all point to Zechariah understanding what is happening with the birth of his son and of Jesus as being a new exodus.

In the Exodus God saved his people with many signs and wonders. He destroyed the entire old creation world of Egypt, burying Pharaoh and his armies in the Sea. Zechariah sees that God is doing this again.

Was this a “political deliverance” or a “spiritual deliverance?” You might hear that Pharaoh and his armies are a “picture” or “representative” of the problem that each of us has with sin. The Pharaohs of the world are not the problem. Sin is the problem. When Jesus comes, he will deal with sin of which Pharaoh was only a picture. This leaves at least the strong implication that the Pharaohs of the world–the wicked rulers and systems of the world–will be untouched by Jesus while he does some sort of internal work on us.

Zechariah wasn’t confused. He knew exactly what salvation from sin would look like when it happened. Sure, the indwelling power of sin in each of us would be a target of Christ’s work of forgiveness. But that is not where salvation would end. Salvation from sin would reach as far as the curse is found.

The Pharaohs of this world–the oppressive governments in China and the Middle East, for example–are expressions of sin in the world. Before Jesus came, Pharaohs would be destroyed, but the power behind Pharaoh continued to live its deathly existence. Jesus came to deal with the power behind the powers. Once the empowering sin is dealt with, then the structures that they support will eventually fall.

Jesus didn’t come merely to work on your individual heart to make you a better person and give you a ticket to heaven when you die. Jesus came to bring the whole world order down by striking at the foundations built by Adam, tearing down kings and kingdoms animated by sin. He came to break the power of sin that rules over individual lives and the power of sin that corrupts societal structures. Salvation touches every part of our human existence, which means that salvation touches everything in the world.

Our Advent hope anticipates the day, not only when we will be freed from the power of indwelling sin, but also when nations will be freed from unrighteous, ungodly rulers. These two aren’t antithetical. This is the salvation that was promised of old and is coming to pass in Christ Jesus.

On December 16, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology, Worship 1

Singing In The New Creation

In the beginning there was God and nothing else. Then Word carried by Spirit begins to pulse in harmonious tones into the nothingness. A world outside of God himself begins to appear. The song sung by the Triune God creates and begins to shape the world. As each element in the cosmos comes into being through this song, the song continues to reverberate in each created thing’s existence. The morning stars created by the song echo back and enhance the song as they become millions of voices (cf. Job 38.7). Mountains and hills, raised from their watery darkness, break forth into singing as they emerge. The trees that spring from the earth clap their hands (cf. Isa 55.12). Sea creatures, birds, and land animals all take up the song and sing the song of their Creator. Then the song shapes the dust of the earth into the form of a man and breathes the song into him. And when the woman is created from the man, the song is then sung in praise to God for the woman.

God is musical. God is a singer. His speech is glorified, and his glory cloud is made up of angelic hosts who surround him with music. The prophet Zephaniah says that he exults over us with loud singing (Zeph 3.17). Is it any wonder why, then, from the beginning of our existence, music and singing have been so prevalent? We are images of the Great Musician. His song, his image, vibrates through every fiber of our being. We are intended to continue this song, continuing to shape and create the world in harmony with God. (more…)

On December 10, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology 2

Mary: Serpent Head-Crusher

Since the fall the woman has played a vital role in the war with the serpent. When God pronounced his curse on the serpent, he first stated that there would be enmity between the woman and the serpent (Gen 3.15). Through grace given to her in child-bearing, she will be saved by the serpent’s head being crushed (see 1Tim 2.15). Child-bearing is the preeminent tool, you might say, given to the woman to play her role in taking dominion over the serpent.

Throughout the Scriptural record we hear of women participating in this war and crushing heads of serpents. They use various tools of their dominion to accomplish this. For instance, when Abimelech, the son of Gideon and self-proclaimed king, approached the Tower of Thebez to defeat the people of Thebez, an unnamed woman throws an upper millstone–a tool for grinding wheat, a tool of dominion–down upon the head of Abimelech (Jdg 9.50-57). (more…)

On December 2, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology 2

Born of the Virgin Mary

“… Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man.” For centuries churches throughout the world have confessed this truth as a fundamental aspect of the Christian faith concerning Jesus Christ. This statement in the Nicene Creed summarizes what Luke records in Luke 1.26-38.

The virgin conception of Jesus takes center stage, you might say, in this passage. It is spoken of three times and is the literary center of the passage. Luke is drawing attention to it as a vital aspect of the gospel story. His emphasis on the virgin conception of Jesus tells us that everything Jesus will be and all that he will do hinges upon the truth of Mary’s virginity. This is not a sideline issue. It is integral to the gospel. (more…)

On November 26, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology Like

Greater Than The Angels

When Zechariah is in the Holy Place burning incense, the angel Gabriel appears to announce that Zechariah and Elizabeth will have a son. Luke records that Gabriel appeared on the “right side” of the altar of incense (Lk 1.11). Why do we need to know this? Wouldn’t it be sufficient simply to record that Gabriel appeared and spoke to Zechariah and leave out the details of where he was in the Holy Place? Apparently not. This bit of information must be important. (more…)

On November 18, 2018 By Bill Smith In Family and Children Like

Baptismal Exhortation: Infant Baptism & Kingdom Mission

This is a baptismal exhortation given at the baptism of Anne Sutton:

Luke’s Gospel opens up with the story of the birth of two children: John and Jesus. Their stories are unique in many ways.

John is the last of the prophets of the old creation. He will be, in some way, bringing that old world to an end with his ministry. His conception and birth are, no doubt, special in the economy of God, something indicated by the parallels of his conception with the promise and conception of Isaac to Abraham and Sarah (cf. Gen 18). An angel comes to visit and announce the fact that this older couple, who have not been able to have a child because of the barrenness of the woman, will now be having a child even though they are also well past the age of child-bearing. The angel promises that this child will be special in many ways. He will be the fulfillment of prophecy, one who will go in the Spirit and power of Elijah to prepare the way of the Lord. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb. (more…)

On November 11, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology Like

Searching For Perfect Parents

Because my parents were not and are not infallible (that is, incapable of error), I can’t trust them and must find parents who are. Through the years my parents discovered that they were wrong on some issues. Some of those issues weren’t so serious. They discovered better diets for me so that I could be healthier, but even before that they never let me starve. Some of the issues are more serious, rising to the level of sin. There was bitterness and unforgiveness between them, and it affected the way I and my siblings relate to this day. Because they were and remain imperfect, how can I trust any of their judgments about anything, much less honor and obey them?

Don’t get me wrong. My parents love me and provide for me doing the best they can with what they have, but they aren’t infallible.

So, as I grow older, because I need psychological stability that comes from parents who claim that they are incapable of error, I go on the search for those parents.

Sounds ludicrous, right? But this is precisely what happens in many Christians lives when they have to live with a church-as-parent who isn’t perfect in all of her judgments and is, sometimes, downright sinful in her decisions. We then set out to find the “perfect parent,” whether that is evangelical church members hopping from church to church or evangelicals taking a journey to the Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox churches. Our present parents aren’t perfect, so we go looking for some who are … and there are a couple out there who will give you your psychological security because they claim a form of perfection. If you will just turn off your brain and not look at the evidence, then you will find your perfect parents.

One of the messy problems with the life of sola Scriptura in the church is imperfect parents; that is, church leaders past and present have made some bad judgments. Some of these have been the judgments that come from immaturity. Some of these have been abjectly sinful. Because the parents God has given us are imperfect guardians of the authority entrusted to them, we don’t think that they deserve honor and obedience. Why should we obey them when they have been wrong so many times?

Because God said so. Yes, their authority is delegated to them by God and is always subject to review. There are times when it would be sinful to obey the church, just as there are times it would be sinful to obey your parents or government authorities. No earthly authority is absolute. God is the only absolute authority, and he has revealed who he is and what he commands in the Scriptures. When we are encouraged or commanded by any authority to do things that run contrary to what God has commanded, then it is righteousness to disobey. However, to obey your authorities in all lawful commands is obedience to God himself … yes, this includes all of your imperfect authorities.

We obey imperfect authorities–parents, governments, and church leaders–by faith; that is, because God commanded us to do so, and we are ultimately trusting him. We don’t blindly or implicitly obey. God has given us a written standard to judge the commands of authorities. If our government commands that we kill our unborn children for population control, we disobey. If our church tells us to pray to dead saints, venerate icons, or encourages sexual deviancy, we reject their commands and do the right thing.

We can do this precisely because we have a standard to judge all imperfect authorities and even ourselves: the Holy Scriptures. It is a difficult business to have to continue to meditate on the Scriptures and judge things that come our way. We have to think, prayerfully weighing what the Scripture says in consultation with others past and present. The answer is not to go searching for the perfect parents. They don’t exist. Give proper honor and obedience to the parents God has put over you and continue to search the Scripture daily to see if all that they are saying is true.

On November 4, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology Like

Sola Scriptura & Honoring Our Parents

Scripture alone is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice for the church. This is, in summary, the Protestant declaration of sola scriptura. Final or ultimate authority, however, doesn’t mean the only authority. Scripture being our final authority doesn’t rule out lesser authorities.

This truth tends to get lost on the heirs of the Reformation in evangelical churches. Tradition, those words and deeds that have been handed down from our fathers and mothers in the Faith, are given little reverence and practically no authority over what we do. We have, in many cases, thrown out the traditional baby with the ecclesiastical bathwater. As such, we have despised the gifts of God given to us. (more…)

On October 28, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology Like

Sola Scriptura & the Israel of God

The aftermath of the sixteenth century Reformation in the Western church isn’t pretty. Death never is. As in the days of old when our fathers and mothers in Israel became unfaithful with the trust that was given to them and God ripped them apart, so we are heirs of the death that was the Reformation. The church of Jesus Christ, though joined mystically as one body, is visibly torn to pieces. There are thousands of communions that are at odds and even at war with other communions. The two big communions—the Roman Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church–are not exempt. They parade a façade of unity before the world, but the emperor has no clothes. I don’t say that with delight. I say it as a fact. One must lie to himself to believe that because he is in the Church of Rome or in an Eastern Orthodox Church he is not in a schismatic church. (more…)

On October 22, 2018 By Bill Smith In Theology Like

An Upside Down World

The opening of Luke’s narrative seems innocuous enough: “In the days of Herod, the king of Judea….” Historical fact. Herod the Great (the king to which Luke is referring) reigned from 37 to 4 B.C. So, whatever Luke is about to write is within that time span.

However, if Luke had only wanted to give us a calendrical setting, there would have been other ways to do it. Sure, the dates are narrowed down for us as to when everything is happening (and that, in itself, is important), but that is not all that Luke is accomplishing with his opening reference. (more…)