Theogical Term of the Week

 

Let’s do some “im” words.

 

immutability
Unchangeability. Used of God, it refers to “that perfection of God by which He does not change in His being, perfections, purposes, or promises.” (Louis Berkhof’s Systematic Theology)

• From the Bible:

  Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,
  and the heavens are the work of your hands.
  They will perish, but you will remain;
  they will all wear out like a garment.
  You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
  but you are the same, and your years have no end. (Psalm 102:25-27, ESV)

  So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul…. (Hebrews 6:17-19, ESV)

• From The Belgic Confession, Article 1:

  Article I - There is Only One God
  
  We all believe with the heart and confess with the mouth that there is one only simple and spiritual Being, which we call God; and that He is eternal, incomprehensible, invisible, immutable, infinite, almighty, perfectly wise, just, good, and the overflowing fountain of all good.

• From Knowing God by J. I. Packer, page 77:

  Created things have a beginning and an ending, but not so their Creator. The answer to the child’s question “Who Made God?” is simply that God did not need to be made, for he was always there. He exists forever, and he is always the same. He does not grow older. His life does not wax or wane. He does not gain new powers nor lose those that he once had. He does not mature or develop. He does not get stronger, or weaker, or wiser, as time goes by. “He cannot change for the better,” wrote A. W. Pink, “for he is already perfect; and being perfect, he cannot change for the worse.”
  
  The first and fundamental difference between the Creator and his creatures is that they are mutable and their nature admits of change, whereas God is immutable and can never cease to be what he is.

Learn more:

1. Arthur Pink: The Immutability of God
   
2. Rev. D. H. Kuiper: The Immutability of God
3. Robert Reymond: God’s Immutability (mp3)
4. From my Attributes of God posts: God’s Immutability
   

Have you come across a theological term that you’d like to see featured here as a Theological Term of the Week? If you email it to me, I’ll seriously consider using it, giving you credit for the suggestion and linking back to your blog when I do.

 

Clicking on the Theological Term graphic at the top of this post will take you to a list of all the previous theological terms in alphabetical order.

Born to the Purple

Next up in our Yukon wildflower tour is a dark lavender or blue-purple flower that’s blooming right now—the mountain larkspur if you’re Canadian, or sierra larkspur if you’re American, or delphinium glaucum if you want to show off your Latin. And those who know Latin might also  know that the name delphinium comes from the resemblance each flower has to a little leaping and swimming purple dolphin.

This particular type of larkspur (and there are many types of wild larkspur) is native in western North America from Alaska down through California and eastward as far as Alberta.  Yes, they dwell in the Rocky Mountains, and hence, you see, their common name.

 

Mountain larkspur is also found in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, but there it is an introduced species, not an  not  indigenous one. And it’s a pity that some traveler carried it to the prairies, because this plant does a nasty number on cattle who eat too much of it. Unfortunately, in the spring on the grasslands, larkspur reaches grazing height before the surrounding natural grasses and a few cattle will be lost due to larkspur poisoning. This wildflower is toxic to other animals, like horses and sheep, but for reasons not well-understood, it is not as deadly for them as it is for cattle.

It’s because of it’s pernicious effect on grazing cattle that delphinium glaucum has been declared a prohibited noxious weed in both the U.S. and Canada. That means no one can import the seeds, although I’m not sure what the seed import ban accomplishes, since these are native plants in both countries. But if you are crossing the border, you’ll want to check your pockets for any stray delphinium seeds, just in case. You wouldn’t want to be charged with smuggling a prohibited weed, would you?

So are mountain larkspur good for anything besides looking tall and stately and deep purple? As you might imagine, that noxious label limits their use as food or medicine, but their flower juice can be mixed with alum to make  a pretty blue ink. I’m not sure ink in delphinium blue is indelible, but it’d certainly be inedible.

 

 

The photo directly above is of another Yukon wildflower, one that, along with the mountain larkspur, is from the buttercup or crowfoot family. There’s a close family resemblance, isn’t there? The best way to tell these two flowers apart is by the fifth petal on this second one. See how it forms a hood over the bottom four petals? That mini head covering is what gives  this bloom one of its common names—monkshood.

 

In Latin, it’s aconitum dephinifolium. Better yet is another of it’s common names—wolfbane—given because the juice from this flower has been used for poisoning wolves. Like it’s larkspur cousin, monkshood is highly toxic. There’s a poem by  John Keats called Ode on Melancholy that has this line:

No, no, go not to Lethe, neither twist Wolf’s bane, tight-rooted, for its poisonous wine….

That’s good advice. Three years ago, there was a young Canadian actor who died after he ate monkshood sap. He was a vegetarian known for his love of nature, but evidently not so much for his knowledge of it.

 

Where I grew up, every child learned this dittified warning, which saved me a few rounds of cortisone pills:

Leaves of three, 

Let them be! 

As a public service, I’m composing another little verse for those who live in monkshood territory.

Petals five and one’s a hood?

You must leave it in the wood!

It’s not exactly Keats, is it?

 

Previous wildflower posts: 

• Lavender Charm
• Into the Wild Blue
• The Blue Belles
• Stopping on Yellow
• Waving the White Flag
• Hot Pink

 Both photos are by Andrew Stark. You can click for a better view of the little leaping dolphins or stylish purple hoods.

Sunday's Hymn

Yikes! We sang not one hymn in church this morning. That makes posting a hymn we sang in our Sunday service a bit difficult, so here’s what I’ll do. I’ll post another hymn the choir sang this spring.

My Jesus, I Love Thee

My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine;
For Thee all the follies of sin I resign.
My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

I love Thee because Thou has first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree.
I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

I’ll love Thee in life, I will love Thee in death,
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath;
And say when the death dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I’ll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

—-Will­iam R. Fea­ther­ston

Download the Riverdale Baptist Church choir singing this hymn. (The flautist is Serena McHone.)

 Other hymns, worship songs, etc. posted today:

• The Eighth Sunday after Trinity at Magic Statistics
  
• O Sacred Head, Now Wounded at Hiraeth
  
• God is the Refuge of His Saints at Seasoning of the Heart
• Praise the Savior at Field Stone Cottage
• Lord’s Day 28, 2008 at The Thirsty Theologian
• Far From My Thoughts at joythruChrist
• A Mighty Fortress at Practicing Theology
• Lift Us High to Resolve at Conjubilant with Song
• Beneath the Cross of Jesus at Whatever Things…
• Spirit of Holiness, Descend at The Happy Wonderer
• In Sweet Communion, Lord at Fish and Cans
• And Can It Be? at Driveway Blogger
  

Have you posted a hymn today and I missed it? Let me know by leaving a link in the comments or by emailing me at the address in the sidebar and I’ll add your post to the list.