Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 20)
By pitchford | January 5, 2009
All that night, Mishael slept very fitfully in Gilead’s little abode, high above the city streets. When he was asleep, he would have strange, vivid dreams, in which the lofty towers of Lebben-Or, the homely dwellings of the happy cottagers, the serenity of Winsome Forest, and the awful, relentless fires of the Chasm of Wrath far beneath the Beautiful City were all mingled together, and passed before him one after another, in a ceaseless parade that left his spirit in a state of breathless exhilaration, until he would finally wake with a jolt, and wandering out to the little terrace connected to his room, gaze out upon the city’s unrivaled splendor. The crystal streets and structures all around caught the light of the moon so adeptly that their reflections seemed to magnify its soft glow; and while there were no artificial lights to be seen, the pale luminescence of the moon and stars alone lit up the vistas below far more gently and thoroughly than the harsh lights of Lusk had been able to accomplish. There, the nighttime city had been a cacophonous mixture of glaring brilliance and deep, Stygian shadows; but here, there was only perfect, mild illumination without stark change or abrupt borders. There, the atmosphere of the night had been tended toward a feeling of desperate, fleeting excess; but here, the feeling was one of eternal calm and an unending joy not subject to the backlash of disappointment or pain. Read the rest of this entry »
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Book Review: C. H. Spurgeon on Spiritual Leadership, by Steve Miller
By pitchford | January 2, 2009
Synopsis: Few preachers in the history of the Church have had as profound and lasting an impact as Charles Haddon Spurgeon, whose ministry in the Metropolitan Tabernacle was characterized by an amazing output in a vast array of ministries, and a worldwide influence for the cause of Christ. For this reason, perhaps, few lives have been as frequently recorded in biographies and as often used for exemplary inspiration as his. In Miller’s book, which is not quite a biography and not quite a collection of themed quotations, but displays a little of both, the reader is introduced in a very manageable way, not just to Spurgeon, but to the very heart of the great preacher, and to his thoroughly Christ-centered and Spirit-dependent philosophy of ministry, largely in his own words. For anyone aspiring to the sacred call of the ministry, or for that matter, any believer at all whose heart-cry is simply not to waste his life, this book will be instructive and inspiring reading, everywhere suffused with the godly wisdom that came from a heart that rested always on Jesus alone, and strove always for the greater display of his matchless glory. Read the rest of this entry »
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Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 19)
By pitchford | December 29, 2008
The ride to Lebben-Or was altogether delightful. Although Mishael had been longing to see the Beautiful City, he had also been dreading the day of his arrival, and of his reacquaintance with the company, because of all the troubles he had caused them through his foolish choices. He felt ashamed and embarrassed, and as ardently as he yearned to see them all, he almost wished he could hide himself away forever, and doubted that he would ever have the strength to look any of them in the eye again. But strange to say, the closer he got to the City of the High King, the more those fears seemed utterly to dissipate away, until only the excitement and joyful longing remained. The very atmosphere seemed hopeful and forgiving, and his thoughts all came with an unwonted clarity and truthfulness, such as he had not experienced since his time with them in the camp, before his desperate journey through the Desert of Salt. The thought struck him, and seemed especially significant and true, that the atmosphere of the Bountiful Plains surrounding Lebben-Or was the exact opposite of the atmosphere in the Impenetrable Thicket surrounding Fair Semblances, which had only filled him with confusion and evil, despairing thoughts. Read the rest of this entry »
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Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 18)
By pitchford | December 22, 2008
All that night, Mishael kept the Eye of the Eagle, which is what men call the northernmost star in the sky, around which all the constellations revolve, on his right hand; and with so sure a guide joyfully sparkling in the unclouded heavens, and the words of Ariel burning in his heart, he continued to the West, where he hoped again, with the fervent expectation that had so suddenly revived from the ashes of his earlier longings, to gaze upon the true beauty of Lebben-Or, and see the High King face-to-face. His soul was awash in a mixture of deep, strange emotions, not the least of which were utter amazement at how quickly he had been deceived by the lying pleasures of Lusk, and acute shame at the memory of the last six weeks. But oddly, this shame and regret seemed almost hopeful and healthy to him, as if it were the first and most difficult step toward a glowing destination; and as deep as his remorse truly was, it could not restrain the glad incursion of the joy and hope that seemed to breathe in the air all around him, and force themselves into his inmost being. At times he caught himself softly singing some old, pleasant tune, and coming to himself, he would chuckle with a sort of abashed amusement, and wonder anew at how good it felt to be free from Lusk, free from the empty charade, free from himself. Read the rest of this entry »
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Images of the Savior (48 — Conclusion)
By pitchford | December 19, 2008
Dear ones in Christ, we have now finished our survey of the books of Moses, and we have had many weighty things impressed upon us. Let us now take a few moments to consider what we have heard, in order that we might be very careful not to drift away: “for if the word which was spoken through angels was firm, and every transgression and disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape, having been careless of so great a salvation, which began to be spoken of by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by those who heard, God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders and diverse miracles and apportionings of the Holy Spirit according to his will” (Hebrews 2:2-4)? But we trust that it will not be so, but rather, having witnessed the beginning of the gospel of Christ, which Moses testified to, we will run all the more assiduously to the fullness of the gospel in the broad daylight, which God has now spoken to us perfectly through his Son (Hebrews 1:1-4). Read the rest of this entry »
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Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 17)
By pitchford | December 15, 2008
The beautiful Queen Isabella scrutinized Mishael for some seconds, and then, with an approving air that seemed warm with the most intimate familiarity, and at the same time distant and unobtainable in its royal magnificence, she addressed him:
“I have chosen you on the belief that you may be one in whom the consummate splendor of my kingdom might take on a natural and dignified air. That is the only use I have for you. If you please me, I offer you the world, and every conceivable amenity and pleasure that it has ever produced. But in exchange, your soul must be mine alone. You must be at once ineffably glorious and set apart, an ideal which everyone will strive to emulate; and at the same time, familiar and approachable. Your glory will be a reflection of my own glory, and the glory of the City of Lusk; and make no mistake, the greatness of Lusk is built primarily upon the impression of unruffled happiness that is to be found in unrivaled prosperity; and secondarily upon the impression that such a state of perfect joy is obtainable to him who strives for it. If Lusk is to grow more prosperous, and capture the attention of more seekers of the pleasures of extravagance, who will bring in their wealth to swell its own greatness, then you must be the embodiment of both those things, the pleasure of wealth and its ready availability to all who are of a proud and noble spirit.” Read the rest of this entry »
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Images of the Savior (47 — The Final Song and Blessing of Moses)
By pitchford | December 11, 2008
We have now come to the conclusion of Deuteronomy, and with it, the conclusion of the five books of Moses, which are of such foundational importance to the entire bible, that it might be said without exaggeration that the whole divine plan of redemption and the schematic for all of history is here laid out, so that all the prophets who should later arise could speak no new thing, but only apply and exegete what Moses had already said; and even the Christ himself, when he came, set about to do only what God had before promised and signified by the hand of Moses so long before; and in these final chapters, although the superiority of Moses is again signaled (Deuteronomy 34:10-12); yet what is particularly emphasized is his inadequacy and failure, and the need for someone greater than he, to do what he could not. And so, as he admits his incapacity to do in earnest what he had spoken of and seen afar by the Spirit of prophecy, at the same time, he commits the people to God, who he trusts should go before them, and do himself what Moses had not been able to do, through another greater Moses. Read the rest of this entry »
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Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 16)
By pitchford | December 8, 2008
It was mid-day when the slave drivers came for Mishael and the other prisoners in the holding cells (about a dozen in all); and they soon had them all driven out of the little brick building and loaded into a covered wagon, barred on all sides, and drawn by two huge and rather filthy draft mares. Mishael moved mechanically and impassively from the locked dungeon to the locked cart, and sitting on one of the long benches lining its sides, looked out at the city with a listless gaze. Read the rest of this entry »
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Images of the Savior (46 — The Second Confirmation of the Covenant)
By pitchford | December 5, 2008
At the conclusion of the book of Deuteronomy, which has been a book marked by very many repetitions and second affirmations of things, there is also a second confirmation made of the Covenant which was originally confirmed on Mount Sinai, in Horeb (see Deuteronomy 29:1). On the occasion of this confirmation, Moses takes great pains to describe many notable things about this covenant, what benefits and advantages it holds forth, wherein it is essentially inadequate, and so on; and when he is coming to the climactic conclusion of his speech, he is very emphatic to drive home Christ to the people, that they might take comfort in the certain hope of his mercy, and not be overwhelmed by the strict demands of the Law. Let us look to the comforting words quoted above, to see how well they are designed to lead the children of Israel, who were under the Law, to Christ their Savior, who should free them from its demands and enable them to obey it; but first, we must notice a few significant things about the nature of this Covenant of Law that Moses is here confirming; for it may seem to many minds to be in such opposition to the gospel of Christ, that it is enigmatical or even impossible that it should at one and the same time hold him forth so freely to the people. But this is a confusion that we will certainly clear up, by the Spirit’s illuminating grace. Read the rest of this entry »
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Book Review: Lord and Servant, by Michael S. Horton
By pitchford | December 3, 2008
Synopsis: In Lord and Servant, Michael Horton has argued, meticulously and adroitly, that a truly biblical christology cannot be got at except through the lens of a strictly biblical covenant theology. What it is to be God cannot finally be arrived at through the metaphysical and ontological categories of the philosophers, for God will ultimately be known only as he reveals himself through his mighty saving acts as the Lord of the Covenant. What it is to be man, in the image of God, can only be apprehended through the ethical and relational parameters of covenant responsibility. Hence, the covenant is necessarily the locus in which we meet Christ, at once the Lord and Servant of the covenant, who both reveals the nature of the covenant God and brings man to his intended position as the ruling representative of God on earth. Irenic in tone, academic in presentation, and engaging a wide spectrum of opposing viewpoints, this work is sure to be a conservative standard for all who would stay up-to-date on the contemporary conversation about the person of Christ and the nature and design of the atonement. Read the rest of this entry »
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