Justin Martyr said...

"We lead him who believes and is joined to us, after we have thus baptized him, to those who are called the brethren, where they gather together to say prayers in common for ourselves, and for him who has been enlightened, and for all who are everywhere. . . . We greet each other with a kiss when the prayers are finished. Then bread and a cup of water and wine are brought to the president of the brethren, and he having received them sends up praise and glory to the Father of all through the name of his Son and the Holy Ghost, and makes a long thanksgiving that we have been made worthy of these things by him; when these prayers and thanksgivings are ended all the people present cry 'Amen'. . . . And when the president has given thanks (eucharistesantos, already a technical name for the Eucharist) and all the people have answered, those whom we call deacons give the bread and wine and water for which the 'thanksgiving' (Eucharist) has been made to be tasted by those who are present, and they carry them to those that are absent.

This food is called by us the Eucharist" (the well-known passage about the Real Presence follows, with the quotation of the words of Institution).

On the day which is called that of the Sun a reunion is made of all those who dwell in the cities and fields; and the commentaries of the Apostles and writings of the prophets are read as long as time allows. Then, when the reader has done, the president admonishes us in a speech and excites us to copy these glorious things. Then we all rise and say prayers and, as we have said above, when we have done praying bread is brought up and wine and water; and the president sends up prayers with thanksgiving for the men, and the people acclaim, saying 'Amen', and a share of the Eucharist is given to each and is sent to those absent by the deacons.

CS Lewis says...

"Love begins to be a demon the moment [it] begins to be a god."

The Four Loves by CS Lewis


Our first love always should be God Almighty.

Hoekema says...

"The Kingdom of God is not a state of affairs brought about by human achievement, nor is it the culmination of strenuous human effort. The kingdom is established by God’s sovereign grace, and its blessings are to be received as gifts of that grace. Man’s duty is not to bring the kingdom into existence, but to enter into it by faith, and to pray that he may be enabled more and more to submit himself to the beneficent rule of God in every area of his life. The kingdom is not man’s upward climb to perfection but God’s breaking into human history to establish his reign and to advance his purposes."

by Anthony A. Hoekema, The Bible and the Future, (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company), 45.

Peace Be With You

"Lord, give me a vision of God."

This I pray.

Because I've come to know

my vision is very narrow-sighted.

my understanding is extremely limited.

And the limitation hinders my seeing

the full picture revealed in Your Word.

I might not be able to get it all right

But I believe in the POWER of the Holy Spirit

who teaches me about all things

and willingly guides me into all truth.

I need not to depend on my ability.

I depend on the POWER of the Holy Spirit

which is a promise given to me in Christ Jesus.

This is why I seek.

I believe it is possible to have a vision of God.

That is why I seek.

I am not smart.

I don't have a scholastic mind.

I am a weak, baby Christian

who does not have a solid knowledge

of the Bible.

So please enlighten

the eyes of my heart, O LORD.

I will keep seeking

til my last breath.

For I am so saturated by Jesus Christ

who gives me this desire.

I will defend the truth

for the sake of the truth.

I will stand for God

for He first stood for me.

I pray this prayer

that I will speak Your Truth boldly

til I die.

Thus, grant my prayer, O LORD.

Give me Thy vision, O GOD Almighty

for Your glory and Yours alone.

It's about SEX.

In 2001, I suddenly wanted to know if there was a crystal clear reason why I needed to wait to have sex until I got married. I asked several people, but their answers did not satisfy me. So whom should I ask now? GOD!


I prayed, "God, I am tempted for the first time in my life! I need to know! Please teach me! I know some reasons, but they have not convinced me enough!"


After that prayer, as I was lying in my bed, pondering and questioning about first sex, I was wondering why first sex causes a woman to bleed. Why only the first time? Is there a reason for the bleeding?



And I saw a vision. And that was it! You might not see it, but I GOT IT.


At that time, I was studying the Covenant that God made with His people. As many of you know, covenant means "to cut" literally. Abraham cut the animal, and the blood was shed. The shedding of the blood was an integral part of the covenant relationship between God and His people.


Christ was pierced and His blood was shed. This also leads believers to their covenant relationship with God.


"OH WOW. So... Marriage is also a covenant relationship, ha!? The light is breaking! I am getting the picture!"


God created the hymen. Then the man comes/pierces the hymen, and there is blood. Isn't that the symbol of a covenant relationship?



God did not have to create the hymen. Why did He? God has a purpose in everything He does! When man and woman are joined together, the hymen is pierced and blood is shed, picturing a covenant relationship that God designed for man and woman.



Remember, covenant is sealed by the blood.



Covenant relationship means, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." That's what marriage is suppose to be! It's beautiful. It's perfect. God's designs are always beautiful and perfect including FIRST SEX. Fabulous!

Kobe Earthquake Experience

January 17, 1995 at 12 a.m.: I checked into a luxurious room on the 20th floor at a hotel. I had worked the evening shift that night at an executive floor, serving V.I.P. guests from America. I was very tired because it had been a long day, so I collapsed into bed and set the alarm clock for 5 a.m., so I could sleep for at least five hours. However, I had a peculiar night. Even though my body needed sleep, my heart felt some uneasiness. It was very unusual that I could not sleep. I changed my position many times in the bed, tried to relax, but when I looked at the alarm clock, it was 4:50 a.m. I decided to get up and prepare for work as I needed to be at the front desk at 6 a.m. that morning.



With my heavy head and body, I sat down on the chair by the bed, putting on my make-up. It was 5:30 and still dark outside. Nobody was walking down the street. It looked cold and quiet. Everything was okay, but I was still uneasy for some reason. Well, maybe I was too tired…



January 17, 1995 at 5:45 a.m.: When I was about to put on my lipstick, I heard a noise like Niagara Falls coming up from the ground below. Of course, there were no waterfalls around the hotel. I stopped what I was doing, listened to the noise, and still I could not understand what was going on. “What’s this noise?” I said. Then suddenly, the TV fell off the shelf, and the bed was swinging and bumping from the right to the left. All the drawers jumped out of the furniture toward the floor and closet doors kept opening and closing with a loud noise. As my body was thrown on the floor, I shouted out loud, “It’s an earthquake!”



I crawled on my shaky hands and knees to the table by the bed and crawled under it. And all I could do was to hold tight to the legs of the table. Everything was shaking, me included. I started praying, “Lord, help me! Help me!!” I was almost dancing because of the movement of the ground. But little by little, it calmed down and then stopped.



The earthquake seemed to last about ten minutes, but was only 45 seconds. I thought I would die, but I realized I had somehow survived. I wanted to cry, but I was a professional concierge at the hotel, and felt I should be strong to help our guests. I checked my appearance and my uniform in the mirror, opened the door, took a deep breath, and went out. On the 20th floor, there were guests from America, Australia, and so on. There they were, in the corridor, some in their underwear, their movements showing how panicked they were. "We are all right. Please get ready to evacuate.” As I said this, trying to make my voice strong, I ran down the stairs from the 20th floor to the lobby. The motion made me very dizzy.



Managers were at the front desk already when I got there. Cameron, my manager said to me, “Call every room and say they need to come down to the lobby. The lobby is the safest place for them to be. Do that now.” I started calling 500 rooms, asking them to come down to the lobby. An American airline crewmember said to me, “I cannot move. I am shaking. I cannot walk! What’s going on? I hate Japan!” “Do not worry,” I told her. “We have a new, strong building. We will be all right.” So I sent a bellboy to pick her up.

Around noon, I took a short break and watched the news about the earthquake on TV. The magnitude was 7.2. The earthquake was located in Kobe, my hometown, and the center was about 15 miles away from the hotel. On TV, I saw highways were buckled and saw many buildings on fire. The smoke was all over. It was scary to see that Kobe, my city, was destroyed. It was shocking. I thought where I was in the hotel was the center of the earthquake, but it was not. Kobe was by far the harder hit and it was where my parents, my relatives, and my friends were.

I called my house many times, but could not reach anyone. “We are unable to connect you with this number. Please try again,” came the voice from the telephone. There were many reports that thousands of people had already died in Kobe. Even so, I was very surprised at how calm I was and credited it to my faith in Christ. “God is with you, be strong, Noriko.”



My manager asked me to stay at the hotel, but I said no. I could not be comfortable while not knowing about the rest of my family. I wanted to be with them no matter what their condition was. I knew there would be no transportation at this point, so I asked around to see if anyone had a car. “Noriko, I will take you to Kobe,” Mr. Tatsumi, a front desk clerk, said. We headed off to Kobe immediately. We had no problem as we drove down to Nishinomiya, a city close to Kobe; the streets were okay, but then it became more and more difficult to find a way into Kobe. The earthquake caused crevices in the ground, and all the electric poles were broken off, lying down on the ground. We looked for spaces where one car could go through. I happened to see my friend’s home on the way, and the house had collapsed into the first floor. I knew my friend’s grandfather always slept on the first floor, so I started crying. The buildings were on fire, and the houses were destroyed, but it was eerie because it was very quiet. I could not see even a hint of rescue operations. I felt like I was the only survivor from a horrible war. But when we finally arrived at Fukuike Elementary School in Kobe, the place where I figured I might find my parents, the darkness kept me from seeing much of anything except shadows. There was no light anywhere except for burning homes.




There were hundreds of people outside in the freezing weather. The building was completely packed already; there was no room for more. It was a very cold night, and I could see my breath, but I did not feel cold because my thoughts were consumed by my concerns about my family. All I wanted to do was to look for my family. “Be strong, Noriko,” I said to myself. “God is with you.” And I renewed my search.



“Toshinori!” I screamed, but there was no answer. I was glad because I hoped my parents were safe inside of the building. Even in the dark, the building appeared okay. When I stepped into a corridor, I had to be careful not step on people. Every inch of the building including the corridor was packed. “Toshinori!” “No” “No…” “No…” came the answers. All I heard was “no.” I kept repeating my father’s name. Then I came to a science room. I groped my way to the door in the dark. Strangely, the door was closed. Slowly I opened the door and said, “Toshinori!” Still no answer. I could see many people were on the floor, but they did not move or say anything. The following day, I realized that was the room where the dead bodies were laid. No wonder the door was closed!



Even the stairs were full of people. While screaming my family name, I went upstairs and came to a huge gymnasium room, the last room of the building. The room had a spooky feeling. It was very dark and quiet, but there were hundreds of people, lying down, with no space between them. “Toshinori!” “Noriko! Here we are!” cried my mom. Even as I was embracing them, feeling such joy at having them safe, I was overwhelmed at how calm God had kept me through the whole terrible disaster. They had saved a space for me to lie down between them. My grandmother, uncles, and their families were also there. Unexpectedly, we had a family reunion that night.

And I ended up staying there for two months without water, gas, electricity, etc... More stories to tell, but that is for today. ;)

温故知新 Japanese Proverb

温故知新 [pronounciation: on ko chi shin] is a Japanese proverb, meaning「故(ふる)きを温(たず)ねて新しきを知る」. In English, it means "knowing new things by visiting old ways."


I went to Japanese Tea Ceremony at First Presbyterian Church today. By looking at Sensei's performance, I had a little 温故知新 experience.


It reminded me of home. But the sensei (teacher in Japanese) was an American man and he analyzed and explained Japanese Tea Ceremony through Christian perspective, which was fascinating to me.


Chanoyu (Traditional Tea Ceremony), which attained greatness under Rikyu, has been handed down for over 400 years at Omotesenke's Fushin'an. Fushin'an is the name of the tea room that was run by Rikyu and which has been inherited by the successive Iemotos since then. The sensei said that half of Rikyu's disciples were Christians and it was deeply influenced by Christianity even though the truth had been hidden. That was because under Tokugawa's power, Christians were greatly persecuted. During that era, one fourth of SAMURAI were Christians according to the sensei from Omotesenke.





If you want to discover new things by visiting old ways regarding tea ceremony, go to the website at: http://www.omotesenke.jp/english/chanoyu/2_1_1.html.

Is Noriko Anointed By the Holy One of Israel?

Now I am working on a paper for History of Christianity II.
The topic is women's ordination.


Can a woman become a priest at church?


Before I started reading the articles on that controversial topic, I was simply curious about what ordination really meant and brings. Do priests have a superior power as opposed to lay people? Did God consecrate them in a particular way, like pouring out His special spirit upon them? What's happening to the "ordained" priests in the earthly and heavenly realms?


Then I started asking myself, "Wait, am I anointed? Am I consecrated?"


Before anything, any opinions, any traditions, I wanted to know who I was as a woman in Christ.


When I researched the words in the Concordance, anoint, anointing, anointed, ordained, priests etc and read them all in the Old and the New Testament, I was extremely encouraged. I felt like I could fly!


Now I say to myself, "I have been anointed in Christ Jesus by the Holy One of Israel by grace to be a king and a priest to serve God through the High Priest who is Jesus Christ. I will inherit the kingdom of God and will reign with Him forever!!!"

(e.g. 1 John 2:20 & 27; 1 Peter 1:5 & 9; 2 Cor. 1:21 & 21-22; Rev. 5:10)



Both regenerated men and women will be kings and priests to God in Christ and reign over the Kingdom with Him together. Thus, Paul says, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:28).



Therefore, there is no difference among the saints because of their gender.
No wonder Jesus treated women in a very counter-cultural way. Perhaps Jesus saw women through that lens.


The truth rocks! It is better than good news. It is GREAT news.
As for me, this was an amazing thing to remind myself before I began to study this subject.



We both men and women are kings and priests in Christ Jesus, but God instituted an order, a different role to a man and to a woman. To make a long story short, I think women cannot be pastors because of the order that was given by God, but that does not mean men are superior. As a woman, I am a king and a priest before God in Christ. I will inherit the kingdom and reign over the earth. I am anointed by the Holy Spirit. That is who I am who believe in Christ Jesus.



But in the earthly realm, God gave different roles, Adam a father and Eve a mother. Different assignments. But both subject to God. Simply roles are different. And God created Adam first to be the head of his family. The headship to man is a significant role given by God.


Anyhoooooo, I will start reading the articles now and see how I conclude my opinion on women's ordination later this week. I am very looking forward to knowing the difference between Complementarian and Egalitarian views. I might change my mind! Funnnnnnnnnn!

N.T. Wright said...

"During my second year at McGill, I plunged into the deepest depression I’ve ever known. I wrestled in prayer, searched the scriptures, examined my conscience, and fell apart. I told my wife about it one night; the next morning, a letter arrived from a Christian psychotherapist who had felt an inexplicable but irresistible urge to write. I still have that letter. Over the next year I learned more about myself and my emotions than I had thought possible. If today I manage to function as a pastor, it is not least because I know something about pain. I know, too, that healing of memory and imagination is not just wishful thinking."

N.T. Wright -- My Pilgrimage in Theology
Originally Published in Themelios, January, 1993, 18.2, 35.


"I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." - John 12:24


I was always wondering why God killed me at seminary. I expected that I would be on fire for the Lord and that I would be more confident in who I am in Christ! But my first year at seminary was extremely difficult. I was totally broken, and the process was extremely painful along with a lot of tears. I became nothing. Then I had an "A-ha!" moment. I came to realize God's pattern. When God prepares someone, God often allows death in his/her life first before He accomplishes His purposes. When I faced death in my life, I felt like, "This is it." But praise God. He is the One and the ONLY ONE who is ABLE to bring LIFE out of DEATH, a death situation. And that seems always how God works among His people.


** Abraham had a vision of being the father of a great nation (birth). Sarah was barren and became too old to have children (death). God gave Abraham and Sarah a son in their old age. He became the father of a great nation (Life / fulfillment).

** Joseph had a vision that he would be a great leader and that many would bow down to him (birth). Joseph's brothers sold him to some merchants and he became a slave. Later he was falsely condemned to spend his years in prison (death). God allowed Joseph to interpret the dreams of the butler and baker and later the king, whereupon, he was made a ruler in the land (Life / fulfillment).

** Moses had a vision of leading his people out of the bondage of Egypt (birth). Pharaoh as well as his own people drove Moses out of Egypt after Moses' first attempt to relieve their bondage (death). God gave Moses signs and wonders to convince Pharaoh to free the people and bring them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land (Life / fulfillment).

** The disciples had a vision of establishing the Kingdom of God with Jesus (birth). The very ones He came to save killed Jesus, and the disciples saw Him buried in a tomb (death). God raised Jesus from the dead, and the disciples performed great miracles until the gospel had spread through all the world (Life / fulfillment).

** by Os Hillman


I have pain, but I have hope. I have sorrow, but I have joy at the same time. When I am in hopeless circumstances, I have great hope because I have the God of the universe who can bring life out of death. He is my hope and my portion and my future. If life does not come in this life, that's all right. He will raise me up later anyway. So in life or death, there is hope; thus, even in the midst of suffering, I rejoice.



"The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live?"
I said, "O Sovereign LORD, you alone know."


"Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath [a] enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.' "


"So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them."


"Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.' " So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army."


"Then he said to me: "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.' Therefore prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.' "

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Luther said...

“Unless I am persuaded by the testimony of scripture or by clear reason, then I will not recant because it is neither safe nor wise to act against conscience. Here I stand. I can do nothing else. God help me.”--Luther


Kwoool

Pascal said...

Those who believe without having read the Testaments, do so because they have an inward disposition entirely holy, and all that they hear of our religion conforms to it. They feel that a God has made them; they desire only to love God; they desire to hate themselves only. They feel that they have no strength in themselves; that they are incapable of coming to God; and that if God does not come to them, they can have no communion with Him. And they hear our religion say that men must love God only, and hate self only; but that, all being corrupt and unworthy of God, God made Himself man to unite Himself to us. No more is required to persuade men who have this disposition in their heart, and who have this knowledge of their duty and of their inefficiency.

Pencees 4.286

Martin Luther 1

"Katherina and Martin's courtship was brief, the engagement briefer still. He did not believe in long engagements: 'By delay Hannibal lost Rome, by delay Esau forfeited his birthright. Christ said, "You shall seek me, and ye shall not find." Scripture, experience and all creation testify that the gifts of God must be taken on the wing.'"

P. 50 "Martin Luther" by Stephen J. Nichols

Martin Luther is funny.

Woo Hoo!

I am so excited! This place is my new play ground! Yay!

Hello again, my American friends!
The purpose of this blog is to share my thoughts on theology and the things that I study at my seminary.

I LOVE theology because I love God. I hope you will enjoy my sophisticated comments that might change the world. Ha ha!