Do I have a gift for spotting the blindingly obvious ?
I'd love to have that gift, but I don't. And you'll see why I am so sure in a moment.
In the UK, charged with the energy of the ProcTrust and the Biblical Theology Movement, we have got used to thinking of a unifying theme of the Bible being God's presence, with God's People, under God's King, in God's Place. Or some variation on that. We trace it from Eden through the fall through Abraham to Egypt to Canaan through David through the exile through Jesus to the final chapters of the book of Revelation. And a mighty fine scheme it is.
Here in France I'm in a Presbyterian church and presbyterians tend to emphasise another unifying scheme, that of covenant theology. The covenant being God's fulfilment of his promise to save all his people. We trace it from it's first announcement in Eden after the fall through Abraham to Moses to Canaan through David through the exile through Jesus to the final chapters of the book of Revelation. Quite, quite wonderful. ( Incidentally I still remember when we first got excited about covenant theology way back in the late 1970s in Aber. Aha ! That little grey cell is still firing ! )
But I hate it when you have two things that both claim to be the unifying theme (and I know there's others, too) and I hate it when you have to say of people "well really they're kingdom rather than covenant" or vice versa. And anyway, it is just not neat. There must be something that links these parallel rails.
I was pondering this in the car some weeks ago when it dawned on me. In the covenant God acts like the King that he is. In the near-east Kings made covenants with their subject peoples, and here we have the great King making his covenant with his subject people. It's not either or. It's both and, in a blindingly obvious way.
It was so obvious at the time that I was too embarrassed to post it to the blog, but I have been encouraged to by this interview with Vern. It is so reassuring when other people address the same blindingly obvious question .
In the UK, charged with the energy of the ProcTrust and the Biblical Theology Movement, we have got used to thinking of a unifying theme of the Bible being God's presence, with God's People, under God's King, in God's Place. Or some variation on that. We trace it from Eden through the fall through Abraham to Egypt to Canaan through David through the exile through Jesus to the final chapters of the book of Revelation. And a mighty fine scheme it is.
Here in France I'm in a Presbyterian church and presbyterians tend to emphasise another unifying scheme, that of covenant theology. The covenant being God's fulfilment of his promise to save all his people. We trace it from it's first announcement in Eden after the fall through Abraham to Moses to Canaan through David through the exile through Jesus to the final chapters of the book of Revelation. Quite, quite wonderful. ( Incidentally I still remember when we first got excited about covenant theology way back in the late 1970s in Aber. Aha ! That little grey cell is still firing ! )
But I hate it when you have two things that both claim to be the unifying theme (and I know there's others, too) and I hate it when you have to say of people "well really they're kingdom rather than covenant" or vice versa. And anyway, it is just not neat. There must be something that links these parallel rails.
I was pondering this in the car some weeks ago when it dawned on me. In the covenant God acts like the King that he is. In the near-east Kings made covenants with their subject peoples, and here we have the great King making his covenant with his subject people. It's not either or. It's both and, in a blindingly obvious way.
It was so obvious at the time that I was too embarrassed to post it to the blog, but I have been encouraged to by this interview with Vern. It is so reassuring when other people address the same blindingly obvious question .
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