Preaching

It's a sermon:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuabITeO4l8

By Paul Washer. Just under an hour long, but well worth it. If you don't want to spend an hour, at least watch the first 14 minutes.

A lot of you have heard this guy before, but some of you may not have. I figured I'd post it just in case.

It's been a long while since I've listened to this sermon, and I went back to it tonight... I'm definitely glad I did.

Blog-Worthy

Something worth writing is probably worth reading. I have some stuff that I thought was worth writing, so it might be worth your reading it.

But first: My life at a glance

I'm finishing my junior year at NCSU (Major=Microbiology, Minor=Genetics). This means I need to start getting my application ready for medical schools, to which I apply summer '08; hopefully I'll matriculate Fall of '09. I'll probably apply at all of the NC medical schools, and maybe a couple others - someplace in Boston, or California, or Canada....

It's a rather busy semester. I'm taking General Microbiology, Organic Chemistry II, History of the Modern Middle East, Communication for Science and Research, and an honors project.

My honors project will hopefully elucidate one or more genes involved in C. jejuni Auto-inducer II quorum sensing. luxS is a relatively well-studied gene, so I'm trying to find and investigate other genes in the pathway. So far, I've come across one that might be a good target for further research, so I'm trying to get a mutant now. It's cool.

Still playing bass and guitar and stuff. I'm listening to some good music, and re-discovering some great music I haven't heard in a while. I'm also reading some good books (The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, and Your Life in Christ by George MacDonald [recommended to me by Joel S.; definitely required reading, O Reader]).

Last semester I tried to do this schedule where I planned to go to bed early, and get up early, and be cool... but it didn't work out.
This semester, it is working out. I'm enjoying it. It is a good thing to rise early, while all is quiet, and enjoy some time and coffee on the porch. We have a great porch for such pursuits.

So there are a few things about my life, for those of you who didn't know.

You may have noticed that I have shared only things that reflect well on me. This is because I am perfect.

The Blog-Worthy Passage

I was reading something the other day, and since then I've been thinking about it. I thought it might be worthwhile to share it with you.

I was reading the gospel according to John, and I noticed that the testimony/witness of Jesus was mentioned in various places; a recurring theme is the concept of believing in Jesus. So I wondered, "What was Jesus' testimony? What did he bear witness to? What was it that he wanted people to believe?"

I guess had never thought about the idea of Jesus having a testimony - of him bearing witness to some specific message. Obviously, he taught and preached, but I guess I have assumed that teaching good things was just part of being Jesus - part of being the Son of God, the perfect sacrifice.

A lot of Christian teachings emphasize Jesus' role as the sacrificial lamb as part of these 3-step salvation plans, perhaps to the exclusion of the study of his actual message. Jesus didn't just come to die. He bore witness to something. He testified to something.

(Nota bene: I'm not trying to minimize the sacrifice of Christ. His sacrifice is, of course, a huge part of his testimony. I'm just saying we might not be fully apprehending Christ's testimony - that which he wanted the world to believe)

So I was thinking about Christ having a testimony. A specific message that he bore witness to. The obvious question is, of course, "to what did Christ testify?"

I'm thinking John 3 might be a good encapsulation of the main idea, especially verses 11 through 21.

It's hard to read John 3:16... I often can't even think about the true meaning of the verse because it's been the flagship verse of Christianity for so long that people's interpretations of it tend to completely take over my mind when I read it.

The classic interpretation of the verse takes the word "gave" to mean "sacrificed," as in
"For God so loved the world that he sacrificed his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life."

But in the context of the passage, I think "gave" might mean something more like "sent forth," "set forth," "presented," "provided," similarly as you might say "God gave the law and the prophets."
("For God so loved the world that he sent/set forth his only begotten Son, that whosoever...")

The first few chapters of John basically lay out a picture of God looking upon the world with love, having compassion on us foolish sinners, unreconciled to the Father, and providing Jesus to call the world unto himself - to shine a great light into the darkness that we might not remain in our condemnation. Essentially, Jesus came to awaken the world to God - people who are just living their lives, wondering about life and various things, trying to pay the bills and have a good time, now encounter God testifying to the world that he wants them to come to him in peace, to have reconciliation, to take their rightful place as his children, acknowledging him in his place as Father.

So the testimony of Jesus is basically "I am the light. I shine forth among you that you might be reconciled to God."

The sacrifice of Christ is indeed part of the reconciliation; just as we can't say "Go in peace, be fed, be clothed" to people, God wouldn't just say "Be reconciled" without providing a means of reconciliation.

But my point is that apart from his sacrificial death, Jesus' presence on earth bore witness to God's love for humanity. His life and message testified to God's desire for reconciliation. (His death provided the means for that reconciliation)

I think that's what it means to say he was the light of the world. He shone upon us, calling people to the Father.



So that's something I've been thinking about. Jesus didn't just come to live a perfect life and die; he had a message, a testimony.


Ben's Wise Insight of the Day:
Romans 8 mentions that to walk in the spirit is essentially to have your mind set on spiritual things. Since walking in the spirit is a very important thing, it is good for us to think about spiritual things.
So read a little scripture in the morning. Thus, my son, will you attain unto life.

It's A Real Song

...

"Pardon Me"

http://freewebs.com/thecravatcommission/Pardon_Me.mp3

Guidance Counselor

Sometimes, it is easy to question whether you're pursuing the right direction for your life.

In such times, you need wise friends who will counsel and encourage you.

I am blessed to have such friends.

Because I Have a Keyboard

When I was much younger, I took piano lessons for about 5 or 6 years. For the first few of those years, we did not have a real piano, but used an electronic keyboard.

This keyboard has been in our attic for some time. We recently had to move it, though, since we are finishing our attic to provide 2 more bedrooms. So when we were taking it down the stairs to sit in the garage, it occurred to me that I would like to have a keyboard in my room...

I've been fooling around on it sporadically for a couple of weeks now. But today, I sat down and actually did some composing/arranging. I really enjoyed the ability to work with a variety of "instruments," and I'm getting better at having my right and left hands work in coordination with one another.

Here's a short demo I recorded today. The piano, organ, "choir," and "acoustic" bass are all keyboard instruments; the guitar actually is a guitar.
Note: please pardon the hissing and popping; our microphone is not long for this world.

http://freewebs.com/thecravatcommission/PreludeNo3.mp3

Evening on a Pier

Doodled in Honors Genetics, Spring '07, subsequently revised.

Walking out along

the high transcendent length

of endless pier

we separate

from the children of the moment

laughing in their drinks

and you and I redeem

these ageless minutes

as we taste the evening firmament

upon our tongues

Conversing youthfully

on words of ancient knowledge

we construe these mysteries

in speculation, seeking wisdom

and trusting to reproachless liberality

If I Could Flow...

Doodled in Argumentation and Advocacy, Spring '07, subsequently revised. We had been discussing the vitally important question of whether or not pictures can be arguments for about 2 or 3 weeks...

If I could flow

If I could tell you, effulge,

I would write you a sonnet

Whoever you are.

I cannot.

Is it poetry for its line-breaks?

Meter eludes me (or perhaps it is my own?).

Don't say I'm lame.

I transmit

From this limbo of narrative;

My professor must think I am taking notes.

I take note of myself, and of you.

In Organic Chemistry I write transcendent lines.

Argumentation depresses me.

Vanity, saith the debater, all is vanity.

This fruitless twaddle…

I smile, for I know that I don't care.

My life is longer than this hour.

Summer is upon us...