Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 3)
By pitchford | September 8, 2008
The wildesteed carried its rider closer to Mishael, until it stood at the very foot of the cliff above which he was stranded. Looking up intently for a few seconds, the rider finally broke the silence, crying out, “Are you he for whom the trumpet has summoned aid?”
Mishael, still not sure what or whom to believe, and suddenly feeling ashamed that he had ignored the rider’s first “Hallo,” finally collected his thoughts sufficiently to stammer out in a timid tone, “Yes, um, that is, I think so”.
“Stay there,” the rider called out (although it was quite obvious that there was nowhere for Mishael to go); “I’ll be up presently to assist you”. Then, the wildesteed promptly disappeared from Mishael’s view. The rider was gone for what seemed quite a long time, but was really only a few minutes; and just when Mishael was beginning to wonder if he had only promised aid in order to mock him, he heard him again, this time above him; and soon he appeared on the now scorched ridge from which he had fallen at first, and promptly proceeded to lower a rope, with instructions to tie it around his waist, and then to attempt the steep climb back up to the ridge. A few bumps and scrapes later, Mishael was again on top of the ridge, face-to-face with his unexpected succorer. Read the rest of this entry »
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Images of the Savior (33 — The Holy Feasts of Israel)
By pitchford | September 5, 2008
In many ways and at many different places in the book of Leviticus, we have encountered the theme of holiness to the Lord as that one central motif which binds everything together, and gives all the diverse regulations a unity and singularity of purpose: in the tabernacle, the children of Israel had a holy place, where they might meet with their holy God; in the laws of morality and cleanness, they were shown the way to be set apart from sin and the world as a holy people, among whom the holy God might dwell; in the laws concerning the sacrifices and the priesthood, they were given a way to be cleansed and made holy in spite of all their failures to follow God’s Law, so that the tabernacle might remain a holy place, and they might continue to be a holy people living in the presence of the holy God. Of course, all this emphasis on holiness led the children of Israel straight to their promised Messiah, who would be the true tabernacle, bringing the very presence of the holy God down to men; and also the true Sacrifice, offered up to make men holy, the true Priest, bringing them out from the world of sin and uncleanness, the true Law-keeper, able always to stand in the thrice-holy presence of God, and so on. In light of this history, it should come as no surprise that the next portion of Leviticus, in which the sacred feasts of Yahweh are detailed, is likewise underscored by the need for holiness, and designed to lead to Christ the Savior: just as the people of Israel were to be a holy nation; just as the tabernacle was to be a holy place; and just as all the worship rituals were to be holy activities; so the appointed feasts were to be holy times. And furthermore, even as all the elements preceding the discussion of these feasts pointed ahead to a better and more lasting fulfillment in the days of the Messiah, so it was with the feasts too: just as, when the Messiah came, he would make his people utterly holy, cleansing their conscience indeed (Hebrews 10:9-14); and just as he would make the whole world their holy place, ensuring its entire recreation as a world where righteousness dwells (John 4:21-24; 2 Peter 3:13); so also would he make all the time of his people holy time, and would ensure an eternity set apart for them to enjoy his holy presence (Hebrews 4:9-11). Read the rest of this entry »
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On the Birth of Our Daughter
By pitchford | September 3, 2008
At 10:32 P.M., on Labor Day, September 1st, 2008, God interwove his covenant faithfulness and mercy with the miserable effects of the ancient curse on the woman (see Genesis 3:15-16), and miraculously changed the tortured cries of birthpangs into the joy and triumph of new life. This was both a shadow-reminder of what he had done through Christ Jesus our Lord, some two thousand years ago, when he worked the greatest mercy through the deepest anguish, bringing eternal salvation out of the tortured cries of our Savior, who was made sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21), who became the curse that our rebellion deserved (Galatians 3:13), and who, through that unspeakable suffering, flooded the wicked world of darkness and despair with the joyful beams of light and life (cf. John 16:20-22); and it was also a sign and promise of what he will complete someday, turning the birthpangs of this cursed world into the eternal joy of redemption, in a new heavens and new earth, where righteousness dwells (Romans 8:18-25; 2 Peter 3:13-14). It is only fitting, as we pause to consider the mighty thing that God has done for us this day, that we take advantage of this opportunity to commemorate the mighty and merciful triumph of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ the Righteous. Read the rest of this entry »
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Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 2)
By pitchford | September 1, 2008
What Mishael had realized, when he glanced at the portrait overhanging the entrance to the gameroom, was that the interstices between the wyrms’ writhing bodies were not at all random or accidental, as they at first seemed to be; but they were in fact carefully designed to form a map, showing a very tortuous, winding, labyrinthine way from the bottom of the picture, under which was the Divertisment, or in other words, the very soul of Fair Semblances, and leading into the field of green in which the High King stood triumphant. And what struck him more poignantly yet, as he stood there for some minutes staring at the picture, was the growing conviction that the map laid out in precise proportions those very causeways that he had wandered through the night before, when he was lost in the Impenetrable Thicket. The longer he looked, the more certain he became, until what he had at first thought to pass off as a mere hunch became a solid conviction, and not a merely theoretical conviction, but one of that kind which impels men’s actions, and always undergirds the great deeds and heroic acts of history. Of course, Mishael did not think of his sudden discovery in this way, as he continued to scrutinize the hidden map; he merely noticed something he had not seen before, was struck by it, and had an irresistible urge, having noticed it, to prove once and for all whether he were actually correct in his suspicion. Read the rest of this entry »
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Images of the Savior (32 - Holiness to the Lord)
By pitchford | August 29, 2008
Of all the things we have observed so far from the book of Leviticus, the sum is this: God is a pure and holy God, and if he should have any people at all, and should stoop to dwell in their midst, they must be made holy as well, so that he might walk among them, and not consume them altogether in his righteous fury against sin and uncleanness. This shows just how important holiness to the Lord is: for the true substance of every redemptive blessing is only the presence of God, and fellowship with him; and that goal can only come through sanctification, that is, through being made holy, as God is holy. As we shall see presently, this observation must ultimately lead us to Christ, and drive us to cast ourselves upon him alone, who sanctified himself to his redemptive mission, that we too might be sanctified in the truth (John 17:17-19). In order to unfold these principles more minutely, let us touch first upon the greatness of that one redemptive principle, that God should dwell among his people; then, show how necessary a thing holiness is to that end; and finally demonstrate how those two great truths, which form the core of the book of Leviticus, lead us to Jesus Christ. Read the rest of this entry »
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Another Album
By pitchford | August 26, 2008
Lately, I’ve been showered with gifts from our brothers over at Christcentric; besides the new album from Evangel, which I just mentioned a few days ago, I’ve also received the new album by Voice, called the Process of the Pardon. There’s some phenomenal stuff on it, so I want to give everyone a quick heads-up. Read the rest of this entry »
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Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 1)
By pitchford | August 25, 2008
At the far north-eastern corner of the most honorable Consortium of Fair Semblances, one chilly April evening, stood three young men, scarcely more than boys, peering into the inscrutable gloom of the Impenetrable Thicket. The two closest to the thicket, remarkably alike in appearance, were in fact brothers, not quite two years apart. The name of the older was Javan Togarmah, and his younger brother was Elishah, although everyone called him Shahshi, a nickname which had a very notable history, no doubt, but a history which does not fall within the scope of this tale. Read the rest of this entry »
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Images of the Savior (31 - The Day of Atonement)
By pitchford | August 22, 2008
The Day of Atonement, coming as it does in the middle of the festive cycles, and in the heart of the calendar year, being observed on the tenth day of the seventh month, which is the month having the greatest symbolic and ceremonial significance; and being described most minutely, moreover, in the heart of the most intricate elaboration of the Law, which comprises the book of Leviticus, and which is itself at the center of the Pentateuch; must therefore take on a character of utter centrality and solemn importance from the very outset. With regard to the festive cycles, it is distinct in that it alone is a day of solemn affliction and mourning over sin (Leviticus 16:29-31); and yet, its observance prepares for the celebration of the most joyful of feasts, that of Tabernacles (see Leviticus 23:26-43); by which we may learn that it constituted the deep and solemn foundation for all the feasts of joy by which Israel’s entire year was structured – without its time of sorrow and affliction, there would be no times of joyous fellowship in the presence of God. And then, it is likewise set apart from all the other feasts in the book of Leviticus, where it is described in great detail in chapter sixteen, in the midst of the laws and regulations governing cleanness and holiness; even though it is also described again in chapter twenty-three, where all the feasts of the Lord are discussed. In this way, its distinct character is emphasized, and especially its relationship to the heart of the Law, which existed to show God’s people what it was to be clean and holy, so that he might dwell among them. The Law described what it is to be holy in God’s sight: and in the midst of the Law, lest its overwhelming and unyielding demands should terrify and discourage the people, God enjoins upon the people this solemn feast, as if to say, “Although you are insufficient to keep my holy statutes, I have prepared a way for you to be made clean and holy again, so that I might continue to dwell among you”. Read the rest of this entry »
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Images of the Savior (30 - The Laws of Clean and Unclean)
By pitchford | August 15, 2008
The very heart of the Levitical laws, being summed up in this one phrase, “You shall be holy, as I the Lord your God am holy,” signified the need for God’s people, in the midst of whom he had condescended to dwell, to be separate from all that was common, or tainted with the manifold deleterious effects of sin and the curse. And of the many ways in which this basic truth was taught to the children of Israel, one of the most instructive was the elaborate system of laws making a separation between the clean and the unclean, and governing the way in which God’s people had to go about their daily lives, if they should continue in his presence without being consumed by his wrath. In this symbolic code, we may learn very poignantly, and in very concrete and exemplary fashion, the truth that, if we should be permitted to enjoy God’s fellowship, we must distance ourselves from all that is contrary to his nature: God is a God of order, life, wholesomeness, and consistency; and nothing that is chaotic or commingled in a disorderly fashion, nor anything tainted by death or the curse, nor anything unwholesome or abnormal may be found in his presence. We may also learn, moreover, that these unclean elements which God will not tolerate are all around us, ever barring us from his courts; but that he has provided a way to restore, renew, and cleanse us again, and make us separate from the defiling agents of sin and its loathsome consequences. Of course, this cleansing is to be found only in Jesus Christ, as we shall soon observe. Read the rest of this entry »
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Christcentric
By pitchford | August 14, 2008
When it comes to today’s Christian music scene, it’s quite easy to find much that’s shallow, meaningless, man-centered, and just plain wrong. It’s a little harder to find theological depth and rock solid truth. That’s why I’ve been very pleased in the past to highlight a growing movement in the medium of hip hop that is characterized by a commitment to biblical truth and the historic, reformed faith — previously, I’ve spoken of Lampmode recordings, and specifically of some phenomenal albums by Shai Linne and Timothy Brindle.
Well, recently I came into contact with a sister ministry, called Christcentric. One of Christcentric’s artists, Evangel, has a debut album ready to release the twenty-sixth of August, called Expository Journey. Christcentric very graciously sent me a copy ahead of time, so I’ve been able to preview it. Read the rest of this entry »
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