R.C. Sproul's Blog, page 546

Video Now Available: Theology Night with Sinclair Ferguson & R.C. Sproul

On January 20, 2012, Saint Andrew's was the location for "Theology Night with Sinclair Ferguson and R.C. Sproul." It was a relaxed and informative evening where two notable theologians and pastors answered questions submitted by online viewers and those present in the audience. Topics addressed included the doctrines of grace, when to leave a local church, dispensationalism, free will, and the peccability or impeccability of Jesus.

You can now stream the video of this edifying evening below or by clicking here.

 

A Christian in Silicon Valley: An Interview with Gary Starkweather

I recently had the opportunity to interview a man whom most of you will have never heard of, but the fruit of whose labor almost all of you enjoy on a weekly—if not daily—basis. That man is Gary Starkweather, a Christian, and the inventor of the laser printer.

Nathan W. Bingham: Tell us briefly how you came to know the Lord.

Gary Starkweather: Since my earliest childhood, I had been going to church. We consistently went to either Baptist, or Methodist churches and Sunday school as well. One of my maternal grandmother's brothers was a Methodist pastor. As such, I heard the gospel all the time as well as at summer camps, but had not made a personal commitment until age 17. At 17, I realized by virtue of attending Christian youth groups that I had not made a clear commitment to a trust in Christ and made that commitment real. As I had grown up in church, it was not easy to see earlier that I was not a Christian. Once I made a commitment to Christ, there was a real feeling of peace that came over me and while I did not yet realize all the detail of imputed righteousness, the angst that I had felt prior to making this commitment was gone.

NWB: One of your most notable achievements is being credited as the inventor of the laser printer. This was a project that received quite a bit of opposition; with one article quoting your wife as saying you had to work on it "covertly" at one time. Briefly tell us about this.

GS: I have spent over 44 years in Research and Development. The usual expectation from those not familiar with the "real world" of business is that new ideas are welcomed as that drives the business. Well, in reality this is generally not true. The corporate immune system often rises up to kill an new idea that threatens to challenge the way business is presently being done. My experience at Xerox was no different. My manager at Xerox really disliked the idea of anything "laser" as that was some wild new invention that was impractical in his view. As such he did everything he could to discourage working on a laser printer or anything like it. Thus, I had to work on the project in a covert area of a laboratory where he rarely visited. He threatened to lay off any one who worked with me on this project. I felt very strongly that this effort would yield a new way of printing and hence, contrary to his wishes I continued to work on the idea in hiding so to speak. This, by the way, is often true of several ideas that really have paid off in practice in almost every company.

NWB: Has your theology of God—that He is a creative Creator—in any way influenced or motivated your desire to innovate and invent?

GS: Since I can remember, I always thought that God was a rational being and that based on my knowledge of prior scientists who were Christians such as Newton, Faraday, Maxwell, etc. that He made the world discoverable, hence, His power and majesty knowable. Otherwise we might just as well be like most animals that are unaware of what makes things tick. Thus, I asked Him to show me a little bit of how the Universe works and what might be done with what He has made. Thus, the discoverability of our world and the fact that he is Creator and has made us in His image gave me reason to believe that when we build things and create things from our ideas this could be a way of worshipping as well. As Eric Liddel, the great athlete said, "God made me fast, and when I run, I feel His pleasure." I felt the same way in my field of endeavor.

NWB: In Tim Challies' The Next Story, he states:

"Technology becomes an idol when we start to believe that humanity's hope, humanity's future, will be found in more and better technology. It becomes an idol when we place greater hope in technology than in God and when we measure human progress, not by the state of our hearts, but by new innovations in technology..."

That technology can become an idol, and is an idol for many, seems almost self-evident. However, how do inventors of such technology and those on the forefront of technological innovation view themselves? Do they see themselves as "saviors" of humanity? If so, how does a Christian in this industry resist this kind of thinking?

GS: It has not been my general observation that most inventors think about this a great deal. The usual fascination is in making something that makes life better, more efficient or more creative. There are certainly some who feel that they can create a perfect world if only they had the right technology but that has not been true of most of the folks I have known. They are often more interested in making something unusual that benefits, business, education or medicine. There is always a danger of thinking that mankind's problems are technologically solvable but the Christian realizes that in making life better they are in a sense loving their neighbor. If the computer improves the speed of communication or the ease of printing ( a' la' Gutenberg ), many will benefit from being able to get things they were not able to get earlier. Personally, I see technology as a way of using what God has made available in creation to enable us to live better here and increase His Kingdom. People who could not get a Bible in China for example, can now readily read or print one from the Internet. Technology is no more an idol capable field than is cooking, finance, fashion or any other field of endeavor in my view.

NWB: Thinking more broadly, what particular dangers and temptations have you observed in the corporate business world and how have you sought by God's grace to overcome them in your life?

GS: There are some large dangers in the business world that one needs God's grace to overcome and stay clear of. First, there is the danger of over commitment. The business world will use as much of your time as you will give it and this can make one improperly use time. There is also the danger of saying or doing things that get you the permission you need to proceed without always being honest about a project. Some of this is management's fault for not being properly analytical but it is fundamentally the employee's responsibility to be up front about risks and rewards not just "selling" the idea to skeptical managers. One needs to constantly ask the Holy Spirit to keep one's conscience active and alert to such temptations. One key risk is valuing success so much that you will do anything to achieve it. Real success in research or business is keeping one's integrity. If the dog is not going to hunt, say so not make excuses. I killed a project once that was not making the right progress and looked like it was hopeless. I had several corporate teams visit me to ask how I got the project stopped. I had to tell them that I just quit spending money after I realized it was not going to work. One has to keep one's ego out of the problem. Otherwise, you are often tempted to press on even when there is little hope of success. Also, as employees, we are spending stockholder money and have to be good stewards of that responsibility no matter where we sit on the corporate ladder.

NWB: From God's perspective you are not only an engineer and an inventor, but a husband and father. How does a person live coram Deo out there in their vocation as well as at home?

GS: Here is a difficult issue. While I may have spent too much time on the job, it is not easy to determine that at the point of action. It would have been better if I had arranged the time I spent at work in a better way. Rather than stay at work until I could not go any longer, I should have come home more on time, had dinner with the family and then returned to work to complete what had to be done. The extra gas and time would have been worth it. To tell someone that they should just spend less time at work is often flawed logic for the creative individual. When you are developing a new and exciting technology or trying to out muscle competitors, etc. you often have to spend a lot of hours working hard. However, the hours do not have to be contiguous. My children would have certainly appreciated more of my time when they were in need of it and I could have then spent the extra time I needed on work issues when they were asleep or doing other things. Therefore, time planning is a key aspect of a driven personality for both career and family success. I wish I could have had better insight on that when I was younger.

NWB: You have worked for Apple and had personal interactions with Steve Jobs. Since his death and the release of his official biography, many have criticized the accounts of Jobs' behavior and character. Is godliness antithetical to being a successful leader in business? Is it possible to be a Christian in such a position, pursuing service, love, and humility?

GS: Steve Jobs was a very creative and innovative character. He could certainly be hard on people and was not always a "smooth" operator. However, compared to some other executives I have worked with, his passion was intoxicating. I think high tech as well as innovative organizations should be run by real leaders and not just a "consensus builder". Management committees just do not work when it comes to innovation. I do believe that the Christian can be in such positions. While as Christians, we need to show love and concern for others, milque toast personalities do not accomplish much. You can be encouraging and driven without being harsh or difficult to live with. Such characteristics may be rare but are important and often too many think that just being nice is being Christian. The Biblical character of Nehemiah was a person of high integrity but he did not tolerate stupidity or perverse behavior. He drove people to get the job done and yet respected the various concerns that they had.

NWB: When the news of Steve Jobs' death broke, I wrote the following on my personal blog:

"We should thank God for His common grace; for the way in which God has used the life of Steve Jobs, and Apple, to bring about so much innovation."

Is it a right response to thank God for technology? Is God at work in Silicon Valley?

GS: There are some wonderful Christians and churches in Silicon Valley. When one thinks of how the world has changed in just my lifetime it is hard not to thank God for His gifts of creative people and companies. My son, who is a doctor, says that everyone longs for "the good old days" but not when it comes to medicine. There are not many things someone can think of that they would give up to go back to 1945. Give up the computer? Airconditioning? The modern car? Joint replacement therapy? Modern medicine? Modern agriculture? Air travel? Modern communication, including cell phones, etc.? I don't think so. We may misuse or overuse some of these things but abandoning them would be truly silly. As long as technology is not seen as our "savior" we are OK. As a way to make our lives better, technology is fine. I truly believe that God's grace in providing us companies and people who have come up with great inventions and products are a blessing from the Creator. It is sad that God is not, in our present era, given the credit for making us in His image. We need to live more and more coram Deo.

NWB: You have experience working with Xerox, Apple, Microsoft, Lucasfilm, and Pixar. You hold 44 patents and have received many awards including being inducted into the Technology Hall of Fame at COMDEX. In addition to being a published writer you have received opportunities to lecture at Stanford University and UCLA. With the unique opportunities your life has brought with it, how do you see Jesus' description of Christians as "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world" as being true in your life?

GS: It is very hard (and perhaps risky) I think to self-determine whether one is being salt and light. What one can do is to try their best via a study and application of the scriptures to do what the Word commands. With my skills mix I try to make sure that I do a number of things. First, give God the credit for my skills and opportunities. While I have invented things, it is God who gave me the abilities I attempt to properly use. I try to let others know that fact and that we are made in God's image. In our naturalistic and materialistic world many folks see themselves as self-made or the product of chance mutations over eons. Studying their philosophical positions so that I can rebut their views via scripture and practical observations is an important way to use one's notoriety and accomplishments to challenge their views. The Apostle Paul tells us in Colossians 4:6 that we should be ready to give an answer that is "seasoned with salt" so we may know how to answer each one. There are scientists and researchers that I have worked with that would not generally listen to anyone not trained in their way of thinking and reasoning. Being one of their "group" in training and learning, I have a unique opportunity to question, challenge and yes, even protest views that the Bible says are not proper ways to think. In my talks I often refer to "design" rather than another term in seeing how things are. Through this, it is my hope that folks will question what I mean and I can explain the Biblical worldview. This approach has worked many times, especially in Universities.

One's technical accomplishments and achievements in the sciences is the best way to get similar folks who question the Christian position to listen. I have had many interactions with senior technical folks on why they believe something they cannot experimentally verify. Most scientists and technical folks have pretty much swallowed the views, often without serious questioning, that were fed to them in the University. To me salt and light is working with folks to help them see the Truth from a believer's perspective and not that of the skeptic. Most have never seriously confronted Jesus' claims directly in their pursuit of truth. Hopefully I can do that through integrity and accomplishment in a unique way. This is not a choice without cost in one's career. One may be restricted in career growth, ridiculed or ignored but popularity of our position has never been a Biblical expectation. We are to show forth the scriptures and Who it is they declare and what one has a responsibility to do with this truth. As Carl Walenda, the great aerialist once said, "Life is on the wire. All else is watching."

NWB: What are your current projects and passions?

GS: My current projects involve a number of things. I am an avid model railroader and a member of a local club. I study computer technology and how to use it as well as do some consulting for Microsoft. Additionally I enjoy digital photography, music and golf and traveling with my wife of 50 years. Lastly, I do a lot of reading on biology and how God has made us. I want to use my mind and skills as long as I am able and to work with St. Andrew's as an Elder to assist in growing the Kingdom. I love to study the Word deeply and to understand what tells us. To me the combination of revealed truth in the Word and objective truth holds wonders we have yet to fully grasp. Somewhat akin to the "narrow way" described in the scriptures, I always liked a section of the Robert Frost poem "The Road Not Taken" written in 1915. The last section of this poem says the following,

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I —
I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference."

Gary Starkweather is an American engineer and inventor most notable for the invention of the laser printer. He is also a Christian who serves as a ruling elder at Saint Andrew's.

$5 Friday: God's Sovereignty, Jonathan Edwards, & Apologetics

It's time for our weekly $5 Friday sale. This week you'll find $5 Friday resources on God's sovereignty, Jonathan Edwards, apologetics, the Lord's Supper, worship, and the church.

Sale runs from 8 a.m. Friday through 8 a.m. Saturday EST.

View today's $5 Friday sale items.

2012 National Conference Preview — Sinclair Ferguson

Dr. Sinclair Ferguson is a pastor, professor of systematic theology, and Ligonier Ministries Teaching Fellow. He is also a member of the Council of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, a prolific author whose many books include By Grace Alone, and one of the most renowned Reformed theologians of our day.

Dr. Ferguson was asked if he saw encouraging signs of renewed interest in biblical Christianity and the Reformed tradition and here's how he answered:

While the churches of the historic Reformed tradition that have been given so much have often sold their birthright, God has been raising up a new generation of young men and women who want to be serious students of Scripture, who want to learn to pray, to build strong families and solid churches, and to work the gospel into their everyday lives at home and in the workplace. Fifty years ago looking for the Reformed faith could be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. It was preserved in a few rather small denominations. Now it is possible to find biblical ministries in all kinds of churches and denominations (think of the diverse church affiliations of the speakers at Ligonier this year). There are untold riches in Reformed literature, too much for any of us to read in an entire lifetime! There are magazines like Tabletalk as well as others... Then there are many conferences, like this one, attended by large numbers of hungry young people. A Reformed conference of the variety, size and scope of the Ligonier National Conference would have been unimaginable in the years immediately following the Second World War. But here we are!

Very aware to whom he will be speaking, Dr. Ferguson's message at our 2012 National Conference is sure to encourage and stretch all of us. Here's a preview of what to expect in Orlando this March.

Losing My Religion by Sinclair Ferguson

Even among those who hold to the basic truths of the Christian gospel, there is a tendency to remain content with milk and never strive to dig into the meat of the Word. Doctrinal shallowness is endemic and accepted. In this message, Sinclair Ferguson encourages us all to wrestle with the deep things of God and to stretch ourselves by reading some of the great theologians of the past.

The Christian Mind: 2012 National Conference

Registration | Speakers | Schedule | Trailer (Video)

On March 15-17, 2012, we invite you to come and hear R.C. Sproul at our 2012 National Conference, "The Christian Mind." It will be an edifying time of fellowship and teaching together, helping prepare you to think like a Christian in an anti-Christian culture.

Register today

An Interview with Sinclair Ferguson & Chris Larson

In June last year, Chris Larson sat down with Dr. Ferguson to discuss a variety of topics, including mentoring and leadership, corporate worship, the "new calvinism", and sanctification.

Soft Hearts, Solid Spines

The Internet allows unprecedented opportunity for communication between Christians from different theological traditions. The results have not been pretty. Comment threads are the Devil’s playground and blogs his amusement park. And even if we exclude online media, theological bickering between Christians is and has been pervasive. Regrettably, Christians who hold to the Reformed confessions are often viewed by other Christians outside our tradition as some of the least winsome members of what we call the communion of the saints.

The command to love has been lost by us, if not lost on us. But how can the theologically astute love their equally theologically astute brothers and sisters across contentious theological and denominational lines? The solution is in the life, death, and love-commanding witness of Jesus.

Jesus did not draw attention to every theological imprecision that He heard. —@JoeHolland

Consider Jesus' silence for a moment. As a weekly synagogue attender and itinerant preacher, Jesus was bombarded with heterodoxy, moralistic deism, theological mush, progressive nationalism, and spiritual immaturity. And I’m only speaking of what came from devout Jews. Jesus was able and entitled to rebuke the slightest theological imprecision among the faithful at any moment. But when we consider how much theological correction He could have done, His silence speaks more than His teaching. Jesus did not draw attention to every theological imprecision that He heard. He loved sinners and was patient with their theological inaccuracy and spiritual immaturity.

Continue reading Soft Hearts, Solid Spines, Joe Holland's contribution to the February issue of Tabletalk.

Columns from Tabletalk Magazine, February 2012

The February edition of Tabletalk is out. This month's issue examines what Jonathan Edwards called charity as described by the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:1–13. This passage rings familiar to many people on account of its frequent use (or misuse) in wedding ceremonies and other occasions demanding a proclamation of love. Yet the truth of Christian love as laid out in 1 Corinthians 13 reaches far beyond these settings. Contributors include R.C. Sproul along with Joel Beeke, D.A. Carson, Michael Haykin, Joe Holland, Steven J. Lawson, Keith Mathison, Ray Ortlund, John R. Sittema, R.C. Sproul Jr., and Cal Thomas.

We do not post all of the feature articles or the daily devotionals from the issue, so you'll have to subscribe to get those. But for now, here are links to a few select columns and articles from this month:

True Love by Burk Parsons
For Glory and Beauty by R.C. Sproul
Love's Shroud by Ray Ortlund
Smart is Not a Fruit by R.C. Sproul Jr.
Theology and Doxology by Michael Haykin
Soft Hearts, Solid Spines by Joe Holland
Repairing the Ruins: An Interview with Cal Thomas
A Child’s (Mis)understanding by Keith Mathison

If you have not yet subscribed to Tabletalk, now is the perfect time. It's only $23 for a year, and $20 to renew. You save even more if you get a 2- or 3-year subscription (as little as $1.36 per issue). We offer special discounts for churches or businesses who want multiple copies of each issue.

Get your subscription to Tabletalk today by calling one of Ligonier Ministries' resource consultants at 800-435-4343 (8am-8pm ET, Mon-Fri) or by subscribing online.

Introductions: Genesis

Who wrote it? When was it written and why?

These are some of the important questions to answer as you explore any book of the Bible. To aid you in your study of God's Word we have been adapting and posting some of the detailed book introductions found in The Reformation Study Bible. Having introduced you to the Gospels, we now start a series through the Pentateuch. 

Please allow The Reformation Study Bible to introduce you to...

The Book of Genesis

Author | Date & Occasion | Interpretive Difficulties | Characteristics & Themes

Author

Because this anonymous book is part of the unified Pentateuch, establishing its authorship and date cannot be separated from that. Evidence relating to Genesis itself, however, suggests that, like the remainder of the Pentateuch, Moses gave the book its essential substance and later editors supplemented it, all by the Holy Spirit's inspiration.

It would be arbitrary to exclude Genesis from the New Testament testimony that Moses (fifteenth century B.C.) authored the Pentateuch. More specifically, our Lord said that "Moses gave you circumcision" (John 7:22; Acts 15:1), which is uniquely given in Gen. 17. It is not surprising that the founder of Israel's theocracy gave this masterful foundation to the Law. Its historical narrative furnished the theological and ethical underpinnings of the Torah: Israel's unique covenantal relationship with God (Deut. 9:5) and its singular laws (e.g., the Sabbath,). Moreover, since creation myths are basic to pagan religions, it is natural that Moses would have included a creation account opposing the pagan myths. This account is, in addition, foundational to the Law Moses mediated.

This Bible's own witness to Moses' authorship is supported by extrabiblical data.

This Bible's own witness to Moses' authorship is supported by extrabiblical data. The first eleven chapters of Genesis share many parallels and conscious dissimilarities with ancient Near Eastern myths that preceded the time of Moses and were known to him (Mesopotamian creation accounts such as the Enuma Elish and flood accounts such as those included in the Atrahasis Epic and the eleventh tablet of the Gilgamesh Epic). Names and customs in the narratives about the patriarchs (Gen. 12–50) accurately reflect their era, suggesting an early author with reliable documents. The Ebla texts (twenty-fourth century B.C.) mention Ebrium, possibly the Eber of Gen. 10:21, and the Mari texts (eighteenth century B.C.) attest to names such as "Abraham," "Jacob," and "Amorite." The practice of granting a birthright (i.e., additional privileges to the eldest son, Gen. 25:5–6, 32–34; 39:3–4; 43:33; 49:3) was widespread in the ancient Near East, and the sale of an inheritance (25:29–34) is documented at different periods in this area. The adoption of one's own slave (Gen. 15:1–3) is found in a Larsa letter from Old Babylonia, and the adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh by their grandfather (Gen. 48:5) may be compared with a similar adoption of a grandson at Ugarit (fourteenth century B.C.). The gift of a female slave as part of a dowry and her presentation to her husband by an infertile wife (Gen. 16:1–6; 30:1–3) are attested in the laws of Hammurabi (c. 1750 B.C.). These and similar facts corroborate the historical reliability of the narrative.

Date and Occasion

Given the biblical and extrabiblical evidence linking Genesis and its contents to Moses and his era, we may reasonably conclude that the book dates from the fifteenth century B.C. Certainly, for example, since David (c. 1000 B.C.) set the creation account of Gen. 1 to music (Ps. 8), a date of composition in the second millennium is indicated for Gen. 1. Readers should be aware, however, that, although occasionally words known only from the middle of the second millennium appear in the text, the grammar of the Pentateuch was updated at some point, as were some place-names (Gen. 14:14 note). Also, the list of kings in Gen. 36:31–43 was apparently added after the time of Saul.

We may reasonably conclude that the book dates from the fifteenth century B.C.

Like its authorship and date, the purpose of Genesis cannot be considered apart from its place within the Pentateuch as a whole. The Pentateuch is a unique combination of history and law, a history that explains the origins of its laws. For example, the narratives in Genesis explain the rite of circumcision (Gen. 17:9–14), the prohibition against eating the sciatic tendon (Gen. 32:32), and Sabbath observance (Gen. 2:2, 3). More importantly, its narrative recounts God's election of Israel to a unique covenant relationship with Him, in order to bless a fallen world. That covenant relationship consists of God's commitment to the patriarchs to make of their elect offspring a great nation and the chosen nation's commitment to obey Him and so to become a light to the Gentiles. Genesis recounts the origins of this redemptive nation, reaching back to the beginnings of mankind and the world and of the conflict between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan in which the nation was to play a crucial role.

The Hebrew title, following the ancient custom of naming books by their first word(s), is bereshith, "in the beginning." The Greek title, based on the book's content, is genesis, "origin." Both titles are appropriate since the book is about the origin of history.

Interpretive Difficulties

Great emphasis is placed on the unique significance of Jesus' miracles, but some passages seem to suggest that belief based solely upon seeing signs is not a good thing.

The tension between Genesis and modern science about the origins of the universe and of living species is largely resolved when it is recognized that they are speaking from different perspectives. Genesis is concerned about who created and why, not about how and when. Science cannot answer the former questions, and Genesis is largely mute about the latter (Gen. 1:2, 5, 6, 11 and notes).

For the past century scholars holding to the "documentary hypothesis" have contended that Genesis is composed of conflicting documents: J (for Jahweh/Yahweh, "the LORD"), E (for Elohim, "God"), D (for Deuteronomist), and P (for Priestly writer). While this scheme is still widely accepted, few believe any longer that these documents can be used to reconstruct a history of Israel's religion because all the alleged documents contain what are thought to be "early" and "late" materials. In other words, the alleged four documents actually share elements and characteristics that were supposed to belong in only one of these hypothetical sources (e.g., J contains material that would be expected to occur only in E). To be sure, documents were composed in the ancient Near East by combining earlier written sources, but Moses himself probably used them (Gen. 5:1 note). Moreover, many scholars today question the criteria used for identifying these alleged sources and emphasize instead the unity of the text as we have it. For example, the Flood story, once thought to be a classic example of the documentary hypothesis, is now conceded to have remarkable integrity (Gen. 6:9–9:29 note).

Characteristics and Themes

A study of the literary structure of Genesis discloses the following highlights. After the prologue Genesis is divided into ten parts marked out by the formula: “These are the generations of.” This heading is followed by a genealogy of the person named or by stories involving his notable descendants. The first three accounts pertain to the pre-Flood world and the last seven to the post-Flood period. Accounts one through three and four through six parallel one another: (a) stories about the developments of mankind universally at the creation and at the re-creation after the Flood (accounts one and four respectively); (b) the genealogy of the redemptive lines through Seth and Shem (accounts two and five); and (c) the stories of the epochal covenant transactions with Noah and Abraham (accounts three and six). The final two pairs of accounts expand the Abrahamic line, contrasting his rejected offspring, Ishmael and Esau (accounts seven and nine), with stories about the elect, Isaac and Jacob respectively (accounts eight and ten).

The paradise lost by the first Adam is restored by the Last Adam. This marvelously unified sacred history certifies that the focus of Genesis is Christ.

The key to the stories is often given in an opening revelation: e.g., the promise to Abraham (Gen. 12:1–3), the prenatal sign of the rivalry between Jacob and Esau (Gen. 25:22, 23), and Joseph’s dreams (Gen. 37:1–11). A transitional section is found at the end of the accounts (e.g., Gen. 4:25, 26; 6:1–8; 9:18–29; 11:10–26).

The closing section of the last account contains strong links with Exodus, concluding with an oath Joseph elicited from his brothers to take his embalmed body with them when God came to their aid and returned them to Canaan (Gen. 50:24, 25; Ex. 13:19).

The book’s focus on the origins of Israel unfolds against a backdrop of matters affecting the world. Moses tells us that prior to God’s election of the patriarchs, the fathers of Israel (Gen. 12–50), mankind asserted its independence from God by striving to know good and evil apart from God and in defiance of His command (Gen. 2; 3). Humans proved their depravity by token religion, fratricide, and unrestrained vengeance (Cain, Gen. 4); by tyranny, harems, and thinking evil continually (the pre-Flood kings, Gen. 6:1–8); and by erecting an anti-kingdom against God (Nimrod and the infamous tower, Gen. 10:8–12; 11:1–9 note). God's verdict about mankind stands: "the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth" (Gen. 8:21).

Just as miraculously and surely as God sovereignly transformed the dark, empty void at earth's origin (Gen. 1:2) into a glorious habitat for mankind and brought it to rest (Gen. 1:3–2:3), so also God sovereignly elected His covenant people in Christ to conquer Satan (Gen. 3:15) and to bless the depraved world (Gen. 12:1–3). Unconditionally He elected the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, promising to make of their elect descendants the nation destined to bless the earth, a promise entailing an eternal seed, land, and king (Gen. 12:1–3, 7; 13:14–17; 17:1–8; 26:2–6; 28:10–15). Before Jacob was born and had done either good or evil, God chose Jacob, not Esau, his older twin brother (Gen. 25:21–23). He chose Jacob, even though he cheated his brother, deceived his father, and blasphemed God (Gen. 27). God even used Judah's scandalous wrongs against Tamar, and her daring ruse as well, to advance the messianic line (Gen. 38). The heavenly King displayed His glorious rule by miraculously preserving the matriarchs in pagan harems (Gen. 12:10–20; ch. 20) and opening their barren wombs (Gen. 17:15–22; 18:1–15; 21:1–7; 25:21; 29:31; 30:22). He overrode man's ways and customs by time and again choosing the younger, not the older, to inherit the blessing (Gen. 25:23 note). Blatant prophecies and subtle types are sterling witnesses that God directs history. For example, Noah prophesied Shem's subjugation of Canaan (Gen. 9:24–26), and the greater Exodus led by Moses was prefigured when God delivered Abraham and Sarah from the oppression of Egypt with wealth (Gen. 12:10–20 note).

God inclined the heart of His elect to trust His promises and to obey His commands. Against all hope, Abraham counted on God to give him an innumerable offspring, and the lawgiver says that God credited that as righteousness (Gen. 15:6). Confident of God's sure promises, Abraham gave up his rights to the land (Gen. 13); and Jacob, renamed "Israel" and clinging only to God (Gen. 32), symbolically gave back the birthright to Esau (Gen. 33). At the beginning of the Joseph story, Judah sold Joseph as a slave (Gen. 37:26, 27), but at its end the former slave trader was willing to become a slave in the place of his brother (Gen. 44:33, 34). Secure in the truth that God's gracious design had brought good out of sins as heinous as murder and slave trading, Joseph forgave his brothers without recrimination (Gen. 45:4–8; 50:24).

What was begun in Genesis is fulfilled in Christ. The genealogy begun in Gen. 5, and advanced in Gen. 11, is completed with the birth of Jesus Christ (Matt. 1; Luke 3:23–27). He is the ultimate offspring promised to Abraham (Gen. 12:1–3; Gal. 3:16). The elect are blessed in Him because He alone, by His active and passive obedience, satisfied the law's demands and died in their stead. All who are baptized into Christ and united with Him by faith are Abraham's descendants (Gal. 3:26–29). The bold prophecies and subtle types in Genesis show that God is writing a history leading to a rest in Christ. On the threshold of biblical prophecy Noah predicted that the Japhethites would find salvation through the Semites, a prophecy fulfilled in the New Testament (Gen. 9:27 and note), and God Himself proclaimed that the woman's offspring would destroy Satan (Gen. 3:15). That offspring is Christ and His church (Rom. 16:20). The gift of the bride to Adam prefigures the gift of the church to Christ (Gen. 2:18–25; Eph. 5:22–32); Melchizedek's priesthood is like the Son of God's (Gen. 14:18–20; Heb. 7); and as Israel redeemed out of bondage in Egypt found rest, resources, and refuge in the Promised Land, the church redeemed out of the cursed world finds that life in Christ (Gen. 13:15 note). The paradise lost by the first Adam is restored by the Last Adam. This marvelously unified sacred history certifies that the focus of Genesis is Christ.

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Adapted from The Reformation Study Bible, © 2005 Ligonier Ministries.

Ligonier's Theological Stewardship and Ministry Momentum [VIDEO]

Recently, Chris Larson sat down with Dr. Sproul to reflect on the ministry's past and to consider the future. In this portion of the conversation they discuss Ligonier's theological stewardship and the momentum the Lord continues to provide us for further ministry opportunities.

You can watch the conversation in its entirety here.

Ligonier Ministries is donor supported, so we thank you for your generous donations that continue to enable us to serve the body of Christ.

Get the 2011 National Conference "Light & Heat" DVD for a Gift of Any Amount

Every day on our Renewing Your Mind broadcast we provide an opportunity for listeners to receive a biblically enriching resource for a gift of any amount and at the same time support the ongoing work of Ligonier Ministries. Occasionally, we highlight one of these offers on the blog.

Today and tomorrow, you can get the messages from the 2011 National Conference, Light & Heat: A Passion for the Holiness of God, on DVD for a donation of any amount.

Light & Heat: A Passion for the Holiness of God: 2011 National Conference

Essential doctrines of the Christian faith are under attack, even from within the church, and it is important that we be well grounded in biblical truths so that we may have a deep affection for our holy, triune God. Celebrating the faithfulness of God to the work of Ligonier Ministries and Desiring God, Ligonier Ministries’ 2011 National Conference looked at the holiness of God and the way it is to inform Christian living. Featuring conference lectures by Sinclair Ferguson, Robert Godfrey, Steven Lawson, John Piper, R.C. Sproul, and R.C. Sproul Jr., this collection also includes Drs. Piper and Sproul’s reflections on what they have learned in their many decades of ministry.

This conference also includes optional sessions by the teaching fellows and special guests Tim Challies and Susan Hunt.

Spanish Tracks included.

Get your copy of the 2011 National Conference, Light & Heat: A Passion for the Holiness of God, for a donation of any amount.

We would also love to see you join us in Orlando, March 15-17, for our 2012 National Conference.

Gimme Shelter

Dear Dr. Schaeffer,

This change we go through at our death, at our glorification, I wonder how much we'll know about what is going on down here, and how much we remember about when we were here. Do you even remember me? We met twice, with a gap of a decade between. I'm looking forward to when we will meet again.

At our first meeting I was around seven years old. You had come to visit the Ligonier Valley Study Center. I imagine the extent of our interaction consisted of you thinking, "Gee, what a cute little red-headed boy." Whereas I was thinking, "He seems a smidge too tall for an elf, though he sure looks like one," what with your knickers and that long hair and beard.

About a decade later we met at the Congress on the Bible conference in San Diego. Your thoughts probably went something like this," Boy, R.C's son sure looks like a sophomoric, pseudo-intellectual ninny," and my thoughts were, "Wow! That's Francis Schaeffer." I went home with several of your books, and as the saying goes, they changed my life. Which is interesting because you had already changed my life. I grew up at a study center that existed in part because of L'Abri. That upbringing, the conversations and the community, shaped who I am, and informed what I am now doing.

But I'm sure this wouldn't surprise you. You seemed to have this knack for seeing how history's ripples keep on moving. You showed us that we think what we think because of what we learned yesterday, that ideas have consequences. It was you, like some reincarnated Abraham Kuyper, which got us Reformed folk in American to start working to take every thought captive. You gave us a vision for worldview. Indeed it is my habit, whenever I am teaching, if the word worldview even comes up, to stop and remind the gathered, "We wouldn't even be having this conversation were it not for Francis Schaeffer."

I hope we at Ligonier are making you proud. We are striving not only to look backward into history to glean the wisdom of our fathers, but are laboring to think in a forward direction, teaching our children what we learn. We want the make the ripples run deeper, and truer, participating in creating that great tidal wave that will one day cover the whole earth!

Do you reflect on your life, on the ways in which God used you? I wish you could write back and let us know enough of the future that we would act with greater confidence. But then I suppose we have word from Someone I admire even more than you, and He has given us all the reason in the world to be confident. His Kingdom will come in its fullness, His will will be done on earth as it is in heaven and we get to participate in that.

And therein lies another lesson we learned from you. We can be prophetic, denouncing all that is wrong in the world and in the church, and still sleep the sleep of children, at peace and at rest, knowing that all that is wrong works out for the best. Even when we fail we do exactly what we are supposed to do, bring glory to God, if only because He has redeemed sinners like us, that He gives us shelter under His wing.

We thank God for you Dr. Schaeffer, for what you taught, and how you taught it. And we are not alone. You served your King faithfully, and we hope to follow in your footsteps, who followed in the footsteps of Paul, who followed in the footsteps of Jesus. And we hope too that others will follow in that same path, walking simply, separately and deliberately to the glory of God and for the building of His kingdom.

In the King's Service,

R.C. Sproul Jr.