Sunday's Hymn: Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah

Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty;
Hold me with thy pow’rful hand;
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
Feed me till I want no more.

Open now the crystal fountain,
Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through;
Strong Deliverer, strong Deliverer,
Be thou still my Strength and Shield.

When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death, and hell’s Destruction,
Land me safe on Canaan’s side;
Songs of praises, songs of praises
I will ever give to thee.

—Will­iam Will­iams

 Other hymns, worship songs, or quotes for this Sunday:

• Wellspring of the Joy of Living at The Outspoken Tulip
• Hallelujah! What a Savior at The Happy Wonderer
• Trust in his holy name at Tried With Fire
• Lord’s Day 19, 2019 at The Thirsty Theologian

Selected Reading

I read (or watched) these recently and recommend them to you.

Theology

Could Jesus Have Sinned?
Watch Prof. Blair Smith tackle this tricky question. 

Church History

God’s Timeline
This is an introduction to church history written for children 6-12 years old, but I enjoyed it, too. The timelines are a great resource for anyone.

An Overview of the Nineteenth Century
A bit of history from Dr. Nicholas Needham, whose 2000 Years of Christ’s Power church history books I recommended last week.

Scripture

What the Bible Says About Itself - Book by Book
Or what “God’s word says about God’s words.” (I love lists like this.)

English

What Is a Schwa?
An essay wherein a scene from my favorite movie illustrates my favorite vowel sound.  

Theological Term of the Week: Accommodation

 

accommodation 
“God’s appropriation of humanly intelligible means to communicate real knowledge of himself.”1 God speaking to us in a form that is suited to our human capacity.

• From Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin, 1.17.13:

Because our weakness cannot reach his height, any description which we receive of him must be lowered to our capacity in order to be intelligible. And the mode of lowering is to represent him not as he really is, but as we conceive of him.

• From None Greater by Matthew Barrett:

After forming humankind in his image, God then spoke. That’s right, the infinite, transcendent incomprehensible God used words, and these words revealed not only who he is but what duty God requires of humans. His word established a covenantal relationship between God and his people. 

Theologians have a word for this: “accomodation.” The parent talking to his two-year-old, speaking “inarticulately because of the child” since it is impossible for the parent to be understood by the child apart from “condescending to their mode of speech.” John Calvin compared God to a nurse caring for an infant. The nurse bends low to speak a language that the infant can understand.

Learn more:

1. Tom Ascol: The Biblical Doctrine of Divine Accommodation (audio)
2. Hans Madueme: Inerrance and Divine Accommodation
3. Vern S. Poythress: Rethinking Accomodation in Revelation

Related terms:

• anthropomorphism
• anthropopathism
• covenant
• general revelation
• special revelation

Filed under God’s Nature and His Work

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