Jason S. DeRouchie's Blog, page 6

Fathers Discipling Children

Deuteronomy 6:4–9 commends formally and informally teaching our children the Supreme Commandment to love God with our everything. But what might this practically look like in daily, weekly, and yearly rhythms—in both the good times and the hard times? See my recent article at Christ Over All: https://christoverall.com/article/concise/fathers-discipling-children/.

A Month in the Servant Songs

Over the next several weeks, the GearTalk Biblical Theology podcast will enjoy A Month in the Servant Songs. Hands to the Plow’s Creative Director, Mark Yaeger, has also designed some great cover art that may serve your ministry as you teach through these gospel-saturated poems from one of the Old Testament’s most well-known prophets. Isaiah’s Servant Songs include Isa 42:1–9; 49:1–13; 50:4–11; 52:13–53:12. They occur in the Bible’s second division (= the Prophets), so the second gear is in yellow in the first speech balloon; yet all Scripture’s gears (= Law, Prophets, Writings, Gospels and Acts, Epistles, and Revelation) influence or draw on Isaiah’s prophecies, which is why all the gears are colored in the second speech balloon.

The Images: PDF / JPEG
The Images with Scriptures: PDF / JPEG
DeRouchie’s Notes on the Servant Songs: PDF

Included in the “album cover” are images from each of the four Servant Songs. The whitened area in each image represents the role of the Servant Savior himself.

The light piercing into the darkness of a prisoner’s cell comes from Isa 42:6–7, in which Yahweh declares to the Servant the hope of all who find themselves in need of a Savior: “I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, … to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.”The arrows filling the quiver and the sharp arrow in the bow of the archer come from Isa 49:2, wherein the Servant himself declares how Yahweh readied him for a specific mission to kill in order to save: “He made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away.”The man whose beard is being pulled comes from Isa 50:6, which finds the Servant speaking about the substitutionary suffering he endured en route to his triumph: “I gave my back to those who strike and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting.”The lamb being led to the slaughter comes from Isa 53:7 and depicts the Servant’s substitutionary sacrificial mission to save the many: “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”

We at Hands to the Plow Ministries hope your heart is moved to marvel at the majesty of our Servant Savior who came to satisfy God’s wrath and to atone for our sins through his substitutionary victory over the powers of darkness.

Be sure to tune in to the GearTalk Podcast’s A Month in the Servant Songs.

Journey to Mount Sinai II

In this sixth installment to the Patterns of Evidence series, investigative filmmaker Tim Mahoney concludes his 20 year search for the biblical Mount Sinai. The onsite footage in this film is remarkable, and it draws together interviews, pictures, and videos that Mahoney and his team have gathered in over two decades of research. The five previous documentaries have all wrestled hard with the biblical, archaeological, and epigraphical evidence and have argued strongly for the faithfulness of the Bible’s claims. I strongly encourage you to get your tickets now and to see the film during one of its two Fathom Event showings. Watch the trailer here and visit www.patternsofevidence.com to learn how to get your tickets for either the May 15 or 17 shows. Before heading to the theatre, be sure also to download the Scorecard, so that you can assess the various site proposals against the biblical data.

Journey to Mount Sinai I synthesized the biblical requirements for identifying the true Mount Sinai and then evaluated three of the six top proposals. This new film evaluates three more. The six sites include (PDF):

Traditional Mount Sinai at Jebel Musa (southcentral Sinai Peninsula)Jabel Saniyah (southwestern Sinai Peninsula)Hashem el-Tar If (eastcentral Sinai Peninsula north of the Gulf of Aqaba)Har Karkom (southwest Negeb near the northeastern Sinai Peninsula)Hala-‘l Bedr (northwest Saudi Arabia south of the Gulf of Aqaba)Jabal al-Lawz (northwest Saudi Arabia just east of the Gulf of Aqaba)

Before “Journey to Mount Sinai I,” Tim Mahoney interviewed me for 30 minutes on “Encountering the God of Sinai and Salvation.” You can watch the video here:

I encourage you to get your tickets and to attend this film! Here are links to the following:

Tickets: https://www.fathomevents.com/events/Patterns-Of-Evidence-Journey-to-Mount-SinaiTrailer: https://patternsofevidence.com/mtsinai/Scorecard PDF: https://patternsofevidence.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/POE5-Scorecard-WHOLE-v7a.pdfEncountering the God of Sinai and Salvation: A Video Discussion between Tim Mahoney and Jason DeRouchie: https://vimeo.com/user90730940

 

A Month in the Psalms

Over the next several weeks, the GearTalk Biblical Theology podcast will enjoy A Month in the Psalms. Hands to the Plow’s Creative Director, Mark Yaeger, has also designed some great cover art that may serve your ministry as you teach through the Psalms. The Psalms occur in the Bible’s third division (= the Writings), so the third gear is in green in the first speech balloon; yet all Scripture’s gears (= Law, Prophets, Writings, Gospels and Acts, Epistles, and Revelation) influence or draw on the Psalms, which is why all the gears are colored in the second speech balloon.

The Images: PDF / JPG / PNG
The Images with Scriptures: PDF / JPG / PNG

Included in the “album cover” are images from the initial psalm in each of the Psalter’s “Books 1–5.”

The flourishing tree near the water comes from Ps 1:3 at the head of Book 1, which declares of the blessed man, “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.”The panting deer running from the wolves comes from Ps 42:1, 5 at the head of Book 2, where the psalmist declares, “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.” He then preaches to himself out of his trial, “Why are you cast down, O my soul? … Hope in God.”The image of the man who almost stumbled comes from Ps 73:2–3 at the head of Book 3, which reads, “My feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.” Later, however, when he entered God’s presence, he discerned their wicked ones’ tragic end.The depiction of Moses comes from Ps 90’s superscription and Ps 90:14 at the head of Book 4, where the great prophetic mediator prays from the wilderness, “Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.”Finally, the ships at sea come from Ps 107:23–29 at the head of Book 5, where to some who “went down to the sea in ships” Yahweh displayed his power through the waves so that they “mounted up to heaven” and “went down to the depths.” When they “cried to the LORD in their trouble … he made the storm be still,” thus anticipating the work of Jesus in Mark 4:39.The stars in the sky represent the universal praise that climaxes the whole Psalter (Ps 146–150). “Praise the LORD from the heavens! … Praise the LORD from the earth!” (Ps 148:1, 7).

I hope your heart is moved to worship our living and reigning God through these images and week’s of reflective conversations!

Be sure to tune in to the GearTalk Podcast the receive from A Month in the Psalms.

Rejoicing in Hope at DTS: Three Lectures on Zephaniah

I recently was honored to provide this year’s W. H. Griffith Thomas Memorial Lectures at Dallas Theological Seminary. My theme was “Rejoicing in Hope: Understanding and Applying Zephaniah.” Each of the three lectures consider the New Testament’s use of Zephaniah and wrestle carefully with Zephaniah’s close, continuing, and complete biblical context.

[MP3 / GearTalk / SoundCloud / Vimeo] Revering God: Punishment on the Day of the Lord (Zeph 1:2–18):The prophet emphasizes how the nearness and nature of the day of the Lord as cataclysm, conquest, and sacrifice demands that listeners revere God.[MP3 / GearTalk / SoundCloud / Vimeo] Seeking God and Waiting: Hope on the Day of the Lord (Zeph 2:1–4; 3:8–10): The prophet stresses the need to seek the Lord together to avoid punishment and to wait on the Lord to enjoy satisfying salvation.[MP3 / GearTalk / SoundCloud / Vimeo] Rejoicing Then and Now: Pleasures on the Day of the Lord (Zeph 3:11–20): To motivate listeners to wait for the Lord, the prophet graphically portrays the day of the Lord as renewal while highlighting the pleasure of both the Redeemer and the redeemed.

All three lectures will be published later this year in DTS’s quarterly journal Bibliotheca Sacra. I hope you are blessed by these studies.

Interpreting Old Testament Wisdom

DeRouchie, Jason S. “Interpreting Old Testament Wisdom” (Christian Challenge Leader Training, Kansas State University, Jan 17, 2022).

Grasping the significance of the Old Testament’s wisdom literature is not just essential for understanding large swaths of the Bible but also for knowing how to live rightly in this world. I recently gave a presentation to college students that is part lecture and part Bible study overviewing the concepts and literature pertinent to wisdom in the Old Testament. To this end, I consider wisdom’s foundational principles, definition, and types and formats. I then provide different examples of interpreting wisdom literature by considering a dialogue (Job 1-2), a couple of monologues (Eccl 3:9-14; 11:7-12:1), and various proverbs. I hope the presentation will help anyone interested in learning about wisdom in the Old Testament.

(Audio / Notes / Handout / PowerPoint) “Interpreting Old Testament Wisdom”

The goal of learning about wisdom in the Old Testament is to grow in fearing God and treasuring Christ more. May God grant you this goal as you enjoy this presentation.

Five Views of Christ in the Old Testament

King, Andrew M., and Brian J. Tabb, eds. Five Views of Christ in the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2022.Jesus says that what we call the Old Testament Scriptures “bear witness about me” (John 5:39) and that to “understand the Scriptures” means that we will see them declaring “that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations” (Luke 24:45–47). Jesus also claims that “[Abraham] saw [my day] and was glad” (John 8:56), that “[Moses] wrote of me” (5:46), and that “many prophets and kings desired to see what you see” (Luke 10:24). Such texts testify that Christ is indeed in the Old Testament. Yet not all agree on what this means or implies for the church today.

In this new five views book, I join with an international cast of scholars to debate how best to understand that, “what God foretold by the mouth of all his prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled” (Acts 3:18), and that the Old Testament prophets who foretold the saving grace that is ours in Christ “searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories” (1 Pet 1:10–11). The five scholars and views are as follows:The First Testament Approach––John GoldingayThe Christotelic Approach––Tremper Longman IIIThe Reception-Centered, Intertextual Approach––Havilah DharamrajThe Redemptive-Historical, Christocentric Approach––Jason S. DeRouchieThe Premodern Approach––Craig A. Carter

I was committed to this project because “the knowledge of God’s glory in Christ” is a treasure (2 Cor 4:6–7; cf. Matt 13:44) and because it is in “beholding the glory of the Lord” that we “are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” (2 Cor 3:18). I long for God’s people to see and savor Christ faithfully in the whole of Scripture wherever he is found.

The For the Church blog team interviewed Dr. Andrew King (book editor) and myself regarding the project, and I encourage you to check out our responses to their questions. Our exchange sets the book in context and also helps Christians have discernment when reading the differing perspectives: https://ftc.co/resource-library/articles/five-views-of-christ-in-the-old-testament/.

Also, Dr. King and I participated in a Midwestern Seminary BookTalk, which serves to introduce the volume, clarify its importance, and guide readers in using the whole with benefit: https://vimeo.com/765749154?fbclid=IwAR0d48lVmyW5UB5uRYiINuFd4gZ7QlMdQPTsGLIF6xpjW4GOgECBsRyppV4.

 

Journey to Mount Sinai

Tonight opens the latest installment in the Patterns of Evidence series. Journey to Mount Sinai is part 1 of a two-part documentary that, more than any previous Patterns of Evidence movie, draws the viewer in on the path of discovery. I enjoyed the clarity with which this film synthesizes the biblical requirements for identifying the true Mount Sinai and then evaluates three of the six top proposals. Viewers should download the Scorecard PDF before seeing the film, as it aids the viewer in assessing the evidence.

I learned just a month ago that I have a brief appearance in the film, and then I watched an early version to ready for an interview with Tim Mahoney, the investigative filmmaker behind the saga. You can watch the 30 minute interview here, which is titled “Encountering the God of Sinai and Salvation”:

In this Focus Video, Tim Mahoney and I discuss the tremendous importance of understanding the events of the Exodus and the Old Testament. The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10 that these things took place and were written down for us as examples. As followers of Christ, how well do we know these Scriptures? Tim and I also discuss how critical it is in this culture that we pass our faith on to our children and grandchildren so they can have an encounter with the Living God, leading to a relationship with Jesus Christ. I also expand on my comments in the film regarding manna, highlighting the spiritual significance behind this historical and miraculous provision from God.

I encourage you to get your tickets and to attend this film! Here are links to the following:

Tickets: https://www.fathomevents.com/events/P...Trailer: https://patternsofevidence.com/mtsinai/Scorecard PDF: https://patternsofevidence.com/wp-con...Encountering the God of Sinai and Salvation: A Video Discussion between Tim Mahoney and Jason DeRouchie: https://digitalpatternsofevidence.vhx...

 

Announcing GearTalk: Biblical Theology

Along with my role as research professor of Old Testament and Biblical Theology at Midwestern Seminary, I serve as Content Developer and Global Trainer with Hands to the Plow Ministries. Recently, my friend Tom Kelby and I have begun to partner in a weekly podcast on biblical theology titled GearTalk: Biblical Theology. The title comes from our main Developing Leaders: Biblical Theology curriculum, which characterizes the various parts of the biblical canon like gears in a transmission, all of which work together to help Scripture progress, integrate, and climax in Christ.

This podcast targets the majority of church leaders in this world (85%) who have no formal theological training but who love God and long to better help others understand the whole counsel of God from Genesis to Revelation and from creation to consummation. Here are the episodes that have gone live so far:

Jesus’s Bible (May 20, 2022)What Is Biblical Theology? (May 20, 2022)What Did the Prophets Know? (June 4, 2022)The Second Exodus––Part 1 (June 20, 2022)The Second Exodus––Part 2 (June 28, 2022)A Place for God’s People (July 19, 2022)Developing Leaders (July 25, 2022)Text or Event––Part 1 (Aug 1, 2022)Text or Event––Part 2 (Aug 8, 2022)Matthew! (Aug 15, 2022)

Come join us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Audible, or another of your favorite Podcast media tools.

How Old Is the Earth?

DesiringGod asked Dr. Wayne Grudem and me to offer arguments for our respective old-earth and young-earth views, and then respond to each other. You can access the full set of articles and responses on the “How Old Is the Earth?” series page. Links to the individual articles and responses are below:

Jason DeRouchie: “Our Young Earth: Arguments for Thousands of Years”Wayne Grudem: “Our Old Earth: Arguments for Billions of Years”Jason DeRouchie: “A Response to Old-Earth Arguments” and “Additional Notes”Wayne Grudem: “A Response to Young-Earth Arguments”

Related to this is a four-part teaching I did on “Creationism and the Age of the Earth.”

I pray these studies honor our Lord, clarify the Bible’s truth claims, indicate the weaknesses of scientific inquiry, and move many to embrace the belief in a young earth, while maintaining warm collegiality with brothers and sisters who hold a different view.