In a de-anonymizing move inspired by Mark Goodacre, I've decided to place a small picture of me on the ricoblog front page. Actually, it's on every page. You won't be able to get away from my watchful eye ...

The pic was taken in January 2005 when photos were shot for the article about me (and ricoblog) in Nortwestern College's alumni publication, The Classic, though this particular photo wasn't used in the magazine. I've lost a little weight since then, so that picture really is "larger than life".

Folks --

Just a few notes on things I've come across over the past few days.

1. zhubert.com's "Book Detail" page, with cool graphs and a new "Improbable Phrases" feature. The improbable phrases are three-word combos that are statistically improbable based on Zack's number-crunching prowess. It would be nice to have chapter/verse links next to the phrases generated to head to the full context of the phrase, but it's cool that Zack is doing stuff like this. Thanks, Zack! (Disclaimer: I've been doing some stuff with three-word phrases too, as most of you no doubt know, so my opinion toward the coolness of this type of thing is a little biased.)

2. I stumbled across some cool music on Rhapsody. The band is the Fareed Haque Group, and they simply jam. Fareed can play the guitar (several styles -- jazz, classical, etc.) and everyone else just seems to follow along. These aren't studio recordings, they're recordings of live events. The only one I've listened to in full is the 02-22-02 Tommy Nevin's - Evanston IL [Rhapsody link]. If you need some background stuff with no lyrics but a good guitar groove (and some organ too), this is your stuff.

3. At long last, Tischendorf's full apparatus is now shipping in LDLS format. This is T-dog's eighth major edition. ("Tischendorf" is too much to type, so as Logos was working on this edition, I started using the label 'T-dog' for "Tischendorf"). His full Greek NT, with Eusebian Canon references embedded in the text. The apparatus is the full three-volume edition. The apparatus will scroll with any Greek New Testament. Rather than use cryptic sigla like the NA27, T-dog simply listed the word from his text first, then the support for/against the reading. The LDLS uses bold text to distinguish that first word, so you know the word/phrase under discussion. Associated text is mostly in Latin (apart from MS numbers/sigla) but it is quite usable (though the prolegomena volume takes some work to get through, especially if you don't know Latin). Scroll along and check for variants. Very cool. Check out the screen shot at the bottom of the Logos product detail web page.

Caspar Olevianus, A Firm Foundation, Question 44 (translated by Lyle D. Bierma [more info])

Q. Why do you believe in Jesus, the Son of God?

A. First, seeing as the Son is of one substance and like glory with the Father, I rightly place my trust in Him. As the Scriptures testify, "I and the Father are one" [Jn 10.30], and "You believe in God, believe also in me" [Jn 14.1]. See also Ro 9 and 1Ti 1.

Second, I believe this because it is the Father's command that we believe in the Son. We are firmly to trust Him that through Him and for His sake this salvation comes to us and we are received into grace, heard, and saved. For the command of the Father from heaven, "This is my beloved Son, in whom my soul is well pleased" [Mt 3.17], carries with it the promise that through His Son His heart is pleased with us. We hear the Son explain the command and promise of the Father as follows: "This is the will of the Father, who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him has everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day" (Jn 6.40). The Father is so serious about this command that He attaches eternal punishment to it for those who do not obey it: "He who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him" (Jn 3.36). Likewise Jn 8.24: "If you will not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." See also 1Jn 2.

Thus I confess that I believe in the Son of God, that from the heart I submit to this command and gracious promise of the Father, and that I desire, miserable and unworthy though I be, to be accepted for the sake of this eternal Son. I also confess that I do not wish to add to my manifold sins this greatest sin of all -- the rejection of the Son of God. Rather, I heartily desire to withstand all unbelief and to submit to the command of the Father to listen to the Son and trust Him. In this Son He will be pleased with me, as St. Paul says, "In Him you are complete" (Col 2.10).

[Question & answer Copyright 1995 Lyle D. Bierma]

Have you ever stopped to put your own confession of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior into words? Your own words, not someone else's? If you haven't, it is a good exercise. That's essentially what Olevianus is doing with this question, albeit in a general, formalized setting. You can start with just writing the account of when you first believed, as narrative or a story. Remember what happened, and record the event. If you want to expand from there with a more confession-like statement that formally puts forth what you believe, feel free to do so (Here's an example from fellow supakoo dude Eli). It doesn't have to be super-formal.

What's my story? Well ... parts of it are in this article. But for me, the basics why I believe that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior are:

Eternal life is found in Jesus Christ alone.
Salvation from sin* is found in Jesus Christ alone.
He redeems me.
He restores me into right relationship with the Father.
Through Jesus Christ, I am adopted into the family of the Father.
Without Jesus Christ, the Father will reject me and I will be subject to the Father's wrath.

* The totality of our depraved, sinful nature and its manifestation in specific sins.

In the past few weeks, I've splurged and picked up some books. Since Uncle Sam came through and gave me back the money I over-paid him, I figured I'd spend some of it on books. So here are the three I've purchased recently. The title links are to some quick notes on the books I've posted over at PastoralEpistles.com.

• Miller, James D. The Pastoral Letters as Composite Documents. Miller applies form and redaction criticism to the Pastorals and in the process finds very little that he would consider having its origin with Paul. I don't agree with his method or conclusion (I think he's seeing what he wants to see ... but then again, I probably am too) but the book is good to read to get an idea of the differing views of authorship/development of the Pastoral Epistles. I'm about halfway through reading this book. My frustration is that Miller writes well — his prose and argument is very clear — I just think he's wrong. There is of course some obvious content of a non-Pauline origin (e.g. the creedal statement in 1Ti 2.5-6 and also 1Ti 3.16) but I don't see any argument against why Paul himself couldn't have co-opted that material for his own purposes in composition of the letter.
• Van Neste, Ray. Cohesion and Structure in the Pastoral Epistles. Van Neste responds to Miller's thesis with a viewpoint that the Pastorals really are cohesive in structure. I haven't read this yet, I'll dig into it after finishing Miller's book.
• Kenny, Anthony. A Stylometric Study of the New Testament. Kenny's study is the primary work in this area. I just got the book yesterday (found it cheaper than the $100 retail via a used bookseller) and am itching to get into it. This has been recommended to me from three different sources, each of whom I hold in high esteem in this area — so I figured I'd have to get the book. Should be fun to work through, and it should help me in analysing the three-word-phrase data I've been generating and thinking about. 

Next I'll have to actually get some new bookshelves.

Ever since I owned a Jeep Wrangler soft-top that was easy for theif-types to break into, I haven't been too concerned about the audio capabilities of my vehicles. I now own a Subaru Forester (affectionately dubbed "Subie") and the audio capabilities are decidely low-tech: the factory AM/FM/Tape deck.

But this is cool; I can easily plug my laptop into my home stereo and, over the local network hooked up to a broadband connection, make tapes for the Subie from Rhapsody playlists. I've fallen into the habit of doing this about once a month. Here's what's in the player (tape was made with "shuffle" on, so this isn't the order I listen to them in) for April 2005 [links are to Rhapsody]:

• Carbon Leaf — Message To Me
• Five for Fighting — 2 Frogs
• Great Big Sea — Sea Of No Cares
• Great Big Sea — Old Brown's Daughter
• Great Big Sea — Let It Go
• Justin Rosolino — St. Francis
• Justin Rosolino — Legacy
• Justin Rosolino — Oprah
• Justin Rosolino — 29
• Lyle Lovett — This Old Porch
• Lyle Lovett — Step Inside This House
• Jars Of Clay — God Be Merciful To Me
• Jars Of Clay — I Need Thee Every Hour
• Jars Of Clay — I'll Fly Away
• Jars Of Clay — On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Stand

Here's the whole playlist: Subie Sounds (April 2005). I'm particularly fond of On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Stand and the Justin Rosolino tunes along with 2 Frogs by Five for Fighting.

Enjoy! If you don't know about the streaming music service RealRhapsody, by all means check it out.

Caspar Olevianus, A Firm Foundation, Question 116 (translated by Lyle D. Bierma)

Q. What is the third benefit? [of the ascension of Christ]

A. Christ took the flesh and blood that He had assumed from us up into heaven as a guarantee of our ascension. He also sent down to us a further guarantee, which He received not from us but from the Father, namely the Holy Spirit. This He did in order that the Spirit might live in our bodies and souls, be an indissoluble bond between our head in heaven and us, His members on earth, and assure us, like the money in a downpayment, of our eternal inheritance in heaven. John 14.16: "I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever." John 16.7: "I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away the Comforter will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send him to you." See also Acts 2; 2Cor 1, 2Cor 6; Eph 1; Rom 5, Rom 8.

The Holy Spirit assures believers of this so strongly that the holy apostle says in Ephesians 2.6 that "God has made us to sit together in the heavenly places with Christ," as those who not only await heaven with a mere hope but already possess it in Christ our head. That is why by the power of the same Holy Spirit we should detach our hearts from these earthly things and "seek the things above, where Christ is, sitting at God's right hand" (Col 3.1; see also Php 3.20-21).

[Question & answer Copyright 1995 Lyle D. Bierma]

In this Q&A, Olevianus rightly points out one of the often-overlooked benefits of the ascension of Christ: the giving of the Holy Spirit. If Jesus hadn't ascended into heaven, the Holy Spirit would not have been sent to be our guide and comforter. The assurance provided that "those who not only await heaven with a mere hope but already possess it in Christ our head" along with the exhortation to apply Col 3.1-4 in seeking the things above (living as our Savior would have us live instead of how the world lives) is both comforting and challenging. Because the Holy Spirit has been sent (and we know it has been, based on Acts 1-2) those who claim Christ must realize that the Holy Spirit is here in order to assist us, guide us and comfort us as we strive to (in our humanity) walk the Christian walk.

So we've gotta walk. One step at a time, but we have to move our feet. As we focus on serving our Lord, His Spirit will guide us in that walk. Thanks be to God for His glorious provision of the Holy Spirit to help us in this manner.

If you've read ricoblog for more than a few weeks, you know that I have strong interests in the Pastoral Epistles (1 Timothy, 2 Timothy and Titus) and also in the writings of the Apostolic Fathers (those who wrote in the immediate post-apostolic age, from say 80 AD through 200 AD).

The truth is that I have a general interest in church history, and the later Paulines (some would say deutero-Paulines) and the writings of the Apostolic Fathers seem like a good place to focus that interest. Within this general interest of church history, I have a soft spot for creeds, catechisms and confessions.

One Reformation-era catechism that I always find challenging and reassuring is Caspar Olevianus' A Firm Foundation. Olevianus (along with Zacharias Ursinius) is responsible for the Heidelberg Catechism, one of the foundational statements of doctrine for many of the Reformed church denominations in existence today.

While many folks know of the Heidelberg, not too many seem to know of Olevianus' Firm Foundation. And that's a shame because this work of Olevianus' is essentially a commentary on the Apostles Creed (and thus a commentary on the portion of the Heidelberg that deals with the Apostles' Creed).

If you have any interest in creeds or statements of faith, particularly those of a protestant sort, I'd highly recommend Olevianus. I've had this book for years and have found it helpful when dealing with how to put a clear explanation, with Biblical support, on tough-to-explain theological or doctrinal concepts.

I hope (emphasis on "hope") to post a few examples over the next few weeks of the sort of stuff that Olevanius' work includes (hence this introductory informational post). The first post (posted directly after this one) will have to do with the benefit of the ascension of Christ.

Amy and I had dinner with my brother and his fiancée on Friday. It was the first time Amy and anyone in her family met a member of my family. All in all, it was a pretty cool night.

During the dinner conversation, talk turned to blogging and ricoblog in particular. I found out that my brother now checks ricoblog with regularity and that his fiancée plans to as well. So that means that ricoblog readership has officially doubled!

Ok, there are more readers than that (currently at around 100 unique hits a day mostly from searches for balsamic vinaigrette; with aggregator hits on top of that) but you get the picture. So I figured it was time for a welcome message for the new ricoblog readers.

If you're new to ricoblog, you probably want to read the about ricoblog article. That should cover most of the bases. If you're interested in the Apostolic Fathers, check out my Apostolic Fathers Lookup Tool. Or do a blog search for "Diognetus" or "Polycarp" or perhaps "Ignatius" for bloggin' on those sort of dudes using the search box in the sidebar. Or check out the different topic listings in the sidebar. Or the comprehensive site Table of Contents, organized by subject. Lots of fun stuff, just a click away.

All in all, welcome to the party. If you have questions, feel free to comment on articles or drop email to me at the address listed in the sidebar.

Thanks for readin'!