Today in Blogworld 8.31.12

Mike Leake

Worshipping at the Altar of Family

This article is not what I thought it was going to be.  It’s interesting.  Read it and let me know what you think.  You may also want to read through some of the comments. 

9 Ideas for Better Members Meetings

What are members meetings?  They are business meetings.  But one way to have better business meetings is to stop calling them that.  Check out the other nine.

A Simple Explanation of How to Interact With Introverts

As an introvert myself I found this a really interesting explanation.  And you’ve got to love anything that can explain stuff in pictures. 

More Thoughts on Friends Who Leave You

Encouraging words here from Piper:  “Whatever you do, don’t let the failure of your Christian friends become the basis for abandoning the one Friend who never fails.”  Read the whole thing…

A Few E-Reader Deals

The blessed struggle against fear and anxiety.  Great words from Ed Welch:

What Writing and Preaching Is Like

Mike Leake

My little girl is getting old enough now to intentionally wreak havoc upon her little brothers joy.  Not that she intends to spoil his fun, but she has an idea about how life should be and how toys ought to be played with that sometimes do not match up with Isaiah’s idea.  If it comes to Isaiah’s Beyblade’s or anything he is building it does not end well if Hannah messes it up.

One area that we are dealing with right now is that people are more important than things.  Yet, I know some people much older than Isaiah (one in particular that is 31) that at times has a hard time with these lessons as well.  When Isaiah decides that it is okay to push Hannah in order to protect his Beyblade’s we usually get to talk about that for a bit. 

While I’m acknowledging his frustrations, trying to give him alternatives, and exhorting him to respond better he’s usually more concerned with explaining to me the in’s and out’s of his little sisters offensive behavior.  “You DON’T understand, Daddy!  I was…I was…playing with my Beyblade, and she kept messing it up!  So, in order to get her to stop I pushed her away from me.” 

I usually reassure him that I will also be talking to Hannah and somehow trying to teach a two year old not to destroy her brothers games.  But mainly what I have to do is say, “I’m not addressing that side right now!  I’m asking you this question”. 

That’s kind of what preaching and writing is like at times. 

12 Bold NFL Predictions for 2012

Mike Leake

  1. Brady Quinn will win 3 games for the division leading Chiefs
  2. Kamerion Wimbley will lead the NFL in sacks
  3. Aaron Hernandez will have more TD’s than Rob Gronkowski
  4. Tim Tebow will start before the Jets week 9 bye
  5. The Bengals will win 12 games
  6. Robert Turbin will gain more yards than Marshawn Lynch
  7. Matt Ryan will throw for 40 TD’s
  8. Brandon Weeden will not start every game for the Browns
  9. The Colts will not be horrible, narrowly missing .500
  10. Peyton Manning will almost throw more INT’s than TD’s (24-27)
  11. The worst team in the NFL will be the Arizona Cardinals
  12. The Buffalo Bills will make the playoffs

Usually when I make bold predictions like these the exact opposite comes true.  That means you should be sure to bench Matt Ryan, get every Arizona Cardinals player for your fantasy team, and not even bother with Robert Turbin. 

Review of The Gospel According to Isaiah 53

Mike Leake 1 Comment

Isaiah 53 is a phenomenal passage.  As I read through it I wonder how anyone could possibly not see Jesus in this passage.  Actually it is a passage that God has used “more than any other portion of Scripture…to lead Jewish people to himself.” (22)

Yet even though Isaiah 53 has been so instrumental in bringing Jewish people to faith in Jesus the Messiah, “there has never been an evangelistic campaign that used this text as the focal point in bringing the gospel to Jewish people”.  (22)  The Gospel According to Isaiah 53, edited by Darrell L. Bock and Mitch Glaser hopes to pioneer such a movement. 

The overarching goal of the book is to be accessible to those that regularly preach and teach with an emphasis on helping those that desire to engage in the task of Jewish evangelism.  It is written by faithful biblical scholars but is not meant to be relegated to academia.  It is meant to help faithful pastors use this time-tested passage of Scripture to present the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53. 

The book is divided into three parts.  The first part concerns itself with the Christian and Jewish interpretations of Isaiah 53.  The second part considers Isaiah 53 in light of biblical theology.  Here the various scholars attempt to show Isaiah 53 in its own canonical context as well as how it relates to other passages of Scripture.  The final section makes Isaiah 53 practical.  An essay by John Feinberg shows how it relates to Postmodern Themes, Glaser shows how to use Isaiah 53 for Jewish evangelism, and the book closes with an essay on Preaching Isaiah. 

I should also mention that there are two sermons attached to the book on Isaiah 53.  One sermon is expositional and the other is a dramatic-narrative.  The inclusion of these sermons is meant to assist the pastor or lay-leader in presenting the beauty of Isaiah 53 for the purpose of evangelism.

My Take

Though I do not believe they intended it to be the book is still pretty scholarly.  In some of the essays they dip into Hebrew language, there are places were they use words like “scanta”, and they also frequently interact with modern scholarship. 

If I were reviewing this as a seminary student wanting more information on Isaiah 53 and how it relates to its Jewish context then this would be one of the first books that I would look.  It is very faithful and beneficial in scholarship.  You can tell that the authors are faithful biblical scholars.

As a pastor preaching through Isaiah 53, and even more so if I were doing so in a Jewish context, then I would also find this book very helpful.  I would want a couple of months to really pore through the book as I did sermon preparation.  It’s not a book for a pastor to merely skim and then when he gets to Isaiah 53 pull it out and try to use it as a resource.  But it would benefit any pastor that had the time to use it.

What if I were a lay-leader that feels called to minister to the Jewish people?  I personally have never had the opportunity to share the gospel with a Jewish person.  My perspective is limited. I do not know if one would need to be very scholarly to engage with a Jewish person on Isaiah 53.  So, I’m not certain that the entire first part of the book would be helpful for your everyday Christian speaking to your everyday Jew.  But perhaps it is better fitted for Christian scholars/pastors speaking to Jewish scholars/rabbis. 

Yet at the same time Mitch Glaser’s chapter on using Isaiah 53 for Jewish evangelism is phenomenal and accessible to anyone.  So, I’m left a little confused.  If you are more the scholarly type then by all means get the book and use it as a resource.  As a pastor I would also suggest this book.  If you are a lay-leader then Glaser’s essay is worth the price of the book and you might benefit from the other chapters as well. 

I completely support the effort of the contributors in this book to use Isaiah 53 as a centerpiece for Jewish evangelism.  I am glad that this book is on the shelves and in libraries to assist those that desire to use Isaiah 53 to share the gospel with the Jewish people.  I am grateful for this book.  If it is something that seems interesting to you then you will not be disappointed. 

I received the book free from Kregel, in exchange for a review.  But you can Buy it today.