“Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs" explores the figures who guided ancient Egypt more than 3,000 years ago. The exhibition focuses on the 18th Dynasty, a 100-year period when Egypt was at the height of its power and the "golden age" of Egyptian artistry. This was the era when Tutankhamun and his ancestors reigned. The extensive array of more than 130 extraordinary artifacts from the tomb of Tutankhamun and other ancient Egyptian sites features 50 of Tutankhamun's burial objects, including his royal diadem and one of the four gold and precious stone inlaid canopic coffinettes that contained his mummified internal organs.

For the Christian, this exhibit provides a once in a lifetime opportunity to interact with Egyptian artifacts from the Mosaic era. These artifacts will help illuminate the Egyptian focus on the afterlife and therefore help frame and explain the biblical perspective. From this exhibit, the Christian should better understand why Egypt, the land of slavery, is called the iron smelting furnace.

Schedule: Saturday, July 10, from 10:00AM to 1:00PM will consist of a lecture, a question and answer session and a light lunch. At 1:00PM, groups will depart for the exhibit in Times Square for a self guided tour.

Location: Redeemer Offices, Main Conference Room (1359 Broadway, 4th Floor, btw. 36 & 37).

Registration is open. There is a $40 fee for this seminar that includes admittance to the King Tut exhibit.

Please click this link to download the class slides

Please click here to register.

If you have any questions, please contact: foundations@redeemer.com.

Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs (July 10)
Date/Time	Class	Description
Jul 10 10:00AM - 1:00PM	Session 1	Please see the above information for details.
Location: Redeemer Church Offices (directions) Main Conference Room
Instructor: Marty Young Marty Young and his wife Sandy joined Redeemer after moving to New York from Boston where they met and attended Park Street Church. Marty works in NYC as a financial restructuring and turnaround professional. He is currently a Presbytery Intern pursuing ordination towards military chaplaincy, having graduated from Gordon Conwell with an MDIV (Urban Ministry) and ThM (Biblical Theology). A graduate of West Point, Marty serves in the NY ARNG as a Chaplain Candidate and is currently developing counseling programs for the military. In addition to his theological degrees, Marty earned an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business and MS (Operations Research) from Georgia Tech. Marty and his wife Sandy have two young children, James and Amanda, and reside in Hoboken, NJ. They are expecting their third child in September.

The Gospel of John (April 18-May 9)

For the seeker or new believer, the Gospel of John is probably the best starting point to learn about Jesus Christ. John's Gospel provides a brilliant overview of doctrinal truths concerning Jesus through a cohesive, easy to understand narrative. This class will provide a broad overview of the book using some of John’s powerful thematic streams related to Jesus' identity, such as the Word, the Light of the World, the Lamb of God, the Son of God, the Christ, the Prophet, the Teacher, and the Son of Man (amongst others). While examining John’s Gospel through these various lenses, we will also attempt to frame the Good News by focusing on three concepts:

1. Being Born Again
2. Death and Resurrection
3. The Church of God.

We will use Scripture to analyze itself, so we will examine passages in John through the writings of various biblical authors. A more literal translation of the bible [RSV, ASV, or ESV] is recommended, but by no means required. The instructor will also post handouts here.

Schedule: Sundays, April 18 through May 9 from 12:10PM to 1:30PM.

Location: Hunter College, West Building (Southwest Corner of 68 & Lexington).

Childcare: Childcare is provided by RSVP only for children 3 and under. To make arrangements for childcare, please email Bethany at bethany.griffith@redeemer.com at least 4 days prior to the start of the class (Wednesday).

Registration is open. Limited enrollment. There is no fee for this course.

Please click here to register.

If you have any questions, please contact: foundations@redeemer.com

The Gospel of John (April 18-May 9)
Date/Time	Class	Description
Apr 18 12:10PM - 1:30PM	Who is Jesus?	Son of God, a prophet, a good man, a great teacher – over time, people have described Jesus in many ways. While all of these descriptors are true, they are woefully incomplete. In fact, without a full picture of Jesus Christ, these individual truths may become stumbling blocks that portray idolatrous views of Jesus Christ, and these idols are useless to save. In this class, we will survey the various ways in which John witnessed the Person of Jesus Christ and why it is so important to believe in the Jesus Christ of the Gospels which the entirety of Scripture proclaims.
Apr 25 12:10PM - 1:30PM	Born Again	In John 3, Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night and engages Him to understand how it is possible that Jesus, a teacher, should be able to perform such amazing miracles and signs. Jesus explains to Nicodemus that the reason that he cannot understand the significance of these miracles is that he cannot see the Kingdom of God because he has not been born again. What does it mean to be born again? And, why must one be born again to be saved? In this class, we will discuss this critical Christian doctrine using the background of John 3.
May 2 12:10PM - 1:30PM	Lazarus	In John 11 and 12, we read the Lazarus narratives. This lengthy narrative in John’s Gospel is likely meant to give additional color to the Lazarus story found in Luke’s Gospel (Luke 16), but clearly stands on its own merits. The resurrection of Lazarus is the lynchpin event which incites the Sanhedrin to put Jesus to death. In this class, we will explore this rich narrative towards developing a death and resurrection theology.
May 9 12:10PM - 1:30PM	I am the Vine	In John 15, Jesus proclaims that “He is the Vine,” shedding perfect light on the diachronic biblical metaphor of the tree as the people of God. In this class, we will undertake a deep examination of John 15 to equip the Christian in understanding the theology of the Church, using both Old and New Testament material.
Location: Hunter College - West Building (directions) 507
Instructor: Marty Young Marty Young and his wife Sandy joined Redeemer after moving to New York from Boston where they met and attended Park Street Church. Marty works in NYC as a financial restructuring and turnaround professional. He is currently pursuing ordination towards military chaplaincy, having recently graduated from Gordon Conwell with an MDIV (Urban Ministry) and ThM (Biblical Theology). A graduate of West Point, Marty serves in the NY ARNG as a Chaplain Candidate and is currently developing an ethics training program for the military. In addition to his theological degrees, Marty earned an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business and MS (Operations Research) from Georgia Tech. Marty and his wife Sandy have two young children, James and Amanda, and reside in Jersey City, NJ.

Genesis: Pre-History (March 7-28)

This course provides a broad overview of Genesis 1-11 (alsocalled the Pre-History), paced over four classes. This class will beslightly different than previous versions because it will focus on the5 primary covenants founds in the Genesis pre-History: The CreationCovenant, Marriage Covenant, Adamic Covenant, Covenant of Brotherhood,and Noahic Covenant. The intentions of the class are as follows:

1. to increase the student’s biblical literacy
2. to help establish a framework for understanding reformed theology
3. to review and understand the pre-history covenants which continue to operate today

Please click these links to download the class slides:

Class #1 Slides
Class #2 Slides
Class #3 Slides
Class #4 Slides

Schedule: Sundays, March 7 through 28 from 12:10PM to 1:30PM.

Location: Hunter College, West Building (Southwest Corner of 68 & Lexington).

Childcare: Childcare is provided by RSVP only forchildren 3 and under. To make arrangements for childcare, please emailBethany at bethany.griffith@redeemer.com at least 4 days prior to thestart of the class (Wednesday).

If you have any questions, please contact: foundations@redeemer.com

Genesis: Pre-History (March 7-28)
Date/Time	Class	Description
Mar 7 12:10PM - 1:30PM	Creation, Covenant and Controversy	Not only is Genesis 1:1, the starting point of the entire Bible, but it is also the starting point in the public debate of Biblical authority. If the Bible is true, how does it reconcile with important scientific discoveries and theories in the 19th and 20th centuries? Although this class will not provide an exhaustive overview of the many views on this intense debate, it will examine critical biblical passages to understand how and why God made the Universe.
Mar 14 12:10PM - 1:30PM	The Marriage Covenant and the Image of God	The idea that Humanity is made in the image of God is absolutely foundational to Christianity and any sound biblical theology, so we will attempt to understand Adam’s (and Eve’s) significance and role in the Universe, as image bearers of God.
Mar 21 12:10PM - 1:30PM	The Adamic Covenant and the Fall	Genesis 3 introduces Satan. In addition to researching the Scriptures about Satan, this session will be an intense analysis of the Fall narrative, specifically the events leading up to the Fall, the moment of the Fall, and the consequences of the Fall.
Mar 28 12:10PM - 1:30PM	Anti-Christ Crisis and the Noahic Covenant	Versions of the biblical Flood Narrative may be found throughout many ancient cultures, particularly in the ancient near east. We will examine some of these pagan flood traditions to better understand the biblical flood narrative. By comparing and contrasting the various traditions, we hope to create a basic theology of condemnation, judgment and salvation. After we quickly trace the progress of human repopulation of the earth in the post-deluge era, we will spend time studying Noah’s sons, the Tower of Babel, and the Messianic lineage to Terah. We will then finish the class with a study of the structure of the Noahic covenant towards building a foundation for a covenantal worldview.
Location: Hunter College - West Building (directions) Room 507
Instructor: Marty Young Marty Young and his wife Sandy joined Redeemer after moving to New York from Boston where they met and attended Park Street Church. Marty works in NYC as a financial restructuring and turnaround professional. He is currently pursuing ordination towards military chaplaincy, having recently graduated from Gordon Conwell with an MDIV (Urban Ministry) and ThM (Biblical Theology). A graduate of West Point, Marty serves in the NY ARNG as a Chaplain Candidate and is currently developing an ethics training program for the military. In addition to his theological degrees, Marty earned an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business and MS (Operations Research) from Georgia Tech. Marty and his wife Sandy have two young children, James and Amanda, and reside in Hoboken, NJ.

Question:

What is Love?

Response:

As a follow-up to the discussion regarding the concept of biblical love, I thought it would be helpful to post a document that outlines the argument that Paul uses to define love in his epistles.  The Greek words commonly used at the time of the Apostolic writings to define the biblical concept of love (in Hebrew - chesed) were somewhat loaded terms because they came out of pagan traditions that did not comprehend what true love was at all.  So Paul works to convey the meaning of love through his exhortation that we should "love one another" [Romans 12:10 - notice the placement in Paul's argument in Romans].

If you look at all Paul's commandments concerning how we should "______ one another" then the concept of love becomes clear.  A summary of this is as follows:

F - Forgive - "forgive one another"
A - Accept - "accept one another"
C - Care - "care for one another"
E - Encourage - 'encourage one another"
S - Support - "support one another"

and

S - Submit - "submit to one another as to the Lord"

In short, think *FACES-S." So, Biblically, one can think of a loving person as a forgiving,accepting, caring, encouraging, and supporting person who submits him or herself to God's commandments.  Hate is simply the antithesis: being an unforgiving, unaccepting, uncaring, unencouraging, and unsupporting person living in rebellion to God's commandments.

For those of you who are interested in doing the research yourselves, please use the following document to hopefully help you get started:

Click here to download the materials

In Christ, Marty

Class,

Some of you asked for discussion questions to faciliate small group dialogue.  I put together a few questions, which admittedly, are designed to tackle the issues of modern dating and courtship, as I think this best meets the pastoral needs evidenced in the questions raised in class.  I welcome any and all feedback.

Please click here to download the Ruth discussion questions

In Christ, Marty

Question:  What is Marriage?  Why is it wrong to have sex outside of Marriage?  When is divorce permissable?  Why were people stoned for sexual offenses in the Old Testament? Is it wrong for a believer to marry an unbeliever?  Etc.

Response:  After teaching the class on Ruth, I was a bit surprised about these sorts of questions.  I have a very strong, albeit potentially controversial view on the whole topic Marriage.  I wrote a summary of my views in a paper a couple of years ago for Dr. Walter Kaiser, who disagreed with my conclusion: God made Marriage in His Image.  However, through this conclusion, I think I can explain all the biblical data concerning marriage, divorce, and sexual ethics, as well as their theological underpinnings.  I have decided to post the marked-up paper here so that you can have a credible counter view to my proposal.

Please click this link to download the paper

In Christ, Marty 

Question: In Ruth 3:1-5, it seems like Naomi's plan is dangerous at best, but also manipulative, as it looks like she is urging Ruth to use her sexuality to "capture" Boaz.  What is going on?

Response: I think that the right way to understand this is in terms of call.  So, let me walk you through some general guidelines in discerning call and perhaps this will help you discern what both Naomi and Ruth were thinking and why.

1.  Do the Scriptures prohibit it?  No, in fact they actually commend it.

Deuteronomy 25:5 "If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her. ⁶ And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. ⁷ And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, 'My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband's brother to me.' ⁸ Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, 'I do not wish to take her,' ⁹ then his brother's wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, 'So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother's house.' ¹⁰ And the name of his house shall be called in Israel, 'The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.

The entire premise of Naomi's plan is this:  Boaz is a kinsman-redeemer.  According to the Law, Naomi has every right to invoke the Law to acquire a suitable husband for Ruth.

2.  Can she do it in good conscience?  Yes.

According to Ruth 3:3, Naomi instructs Ruth: "Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak."  In Hebrew, the almost exact same language is used of David when he ends his mourning for his first born son by Bathsheba.  I think that commentators are correct in that these actions are less about Ruth making herself desirable, and more about announcing that her time of mourning is at an end.  In other words, the reason that Naomi and Ruth had not earlier sued for a husband under the Law is simply that they were still in their mourning and were not ready to do it.  So, now Ruth is ready for remarriage and her time of mourning is at an end.  In other words, she can now remarry in good conscience.

3.  How does this relate to God's covenants?  It deeply relates to the Marriage and Sinai covenants.

a. Under the Marriage Covenant, both Boaz and Ruth understand that sex outside of marriage is wrong.  Although Ruth 3 is charged with sexual innuendos, it's clear that Boaz does not violate the covenant but rather will now seek to enter into it.  This is of course "dangerous" but Naomi has taken a calculated risk that Boaz is truly a man of God, not based on his mere words but in his actions.  It is also clear, that Ruth is suing for marriage.  In other words, her marriage proposal is absolutely unmistakable.  Boaz doesn't reject it nor her, but will now work diligently to respond to it and her. 

Ok, you may say, but still it seems really dangerous.  It is, but think about it like this:  Naomi's life was essentially destroyed because she married a man that seemed like a believer, but wasn't.  Naomi and Ruth are going to quickly find out whether or not Boaz is a genuine believer.  If he is, he will do what is right.  If he isn't, he will succumb to temptation and do wrong.  In other words, this is very much a test.  And, as it was then, it is today.  God is constantly testing us to see if we will obey Him or not, both individually as well as the Church collectively.  From time to time, we fail, but God is still faithful.  In this case, because of God's faithfulness, both Boaz and Ruth are able to endure the test.  I could speak about this much more within the text of the Book of Ruth, but needless to say, it is a test and like all tests, there is the possibility of failure, but Naomi can do it in good conscience because it is a marriage proposal under the guidelines of God's law.

b.  Under the Sinai Covenant, Boaz quickly realizes that someone else is before him, although now it is clear that he desires Ruth.  He diligently works to satisfy the requirements of the Law, yet in grace, going far beyond its requirements.  Boaz and Ruth are obedient to God's Law, despite whatever the outcome may be.  In so doing, they honor God and His covenants.

4.  What group of people are they to minister to?  In short, Ruth and Boaz are called to minister to one another, as well as Naomi.  Through them, God will ultimately minister to all His people through Jesus Christ.

5.  Has God equipped them with the necessary spiritual gifts?  Yes! 

It is remarkable that the word "love" doesn't show up in the book of Ruth at all.  However, what does show up are the expressions of the spiritual gift of love:  forgiveness, acceptance, care, encouragement, support, and submission.  So, take notice that both Ruth and Boaz demonstrate love in action to one another, the dead, Naomi, and others.  But most importantly, they show their love of God in their firm obedience to His commandments, under His covenants.

6.  What does the Church have to say?  The Church approves in this case, overwhelmingly. 

Where 2-3 are gathered in His name, Christ is with them.  Ruth and Naomi think that the marriage is a good idea and within God's will according to the commandments.  Boaz does too, and eventually so do all the elders of their town.

7.  How will God shape their character?  God shapes Ruth and Naomi through out the book.  Ruth and Naomi go from being idolators living in disobedience to becoming children of God redeemed through the Seed of Ruth and now living under obedience to God's commandments. 

In Christ, Marty

Question: 

C.S. Lewis writes that there are four kinds of love and that the greatest of the four types is Agape.  Do you think that C.S. Lewis is right or wrong?

Response:

First of all, I should say upfront that I have not read Lewis' book: The Four Loves.  My feeling is that Lewis' thesis is flawed, if used to define biblical love.  Let's jump to the Bible and begin with a quick examination of John 21:15-17:

John 21:15-17 ¹⁵  When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love [agape] me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love [phileo] you." He said to him, "Feed my lambs." ¹⁶ He said to him a second time, "Simon, son of John, do you love [agape] me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love [phileo] you." He said to him, "Tend my sheep." ¹⁷ He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love [phileo] me?" Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, "Do you love [phileo] me?" and he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love [phileo] you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep.

Ok, so I inserted the Greek root into the passage above.  Notice that Jesus asks, do you agape [love] me two times and Peter answers him both times that he phileo [loves] him. However, the third time, Jesus asks Peter this question, Jesus asks do you  phileo [love] me and Peter is heartbroken because Jesus has asked him now three times if he loves [phileo] him and responds, "you know that I phileo [love] you. 

If you believe that Agape love is somehow greater than Phileo love, then John 21-15-17 doesn't make any sense.  Sadly, I have heard way too many sermons that simply pervert the text and insist that the last round of questioning uses the word agape instead of phileo when it simply does not, in order to support this heretical argument that there are four types of biblical love.  The fact of the matter is that in New Testament usage, agape and phileo are interchangeable words for the Hebrew concept of "steadfast love" or "chesed," which is true, biblical love.

As for the other forms of love that Lewis presents, eros and storge, eros is a vice  and storge is used neither in the Greek Old Testament, nor the Greek New Testament.  In other words, storge is not used in the Bible at all, although it does show up in extra biblical writings like Maccabees, but to use it to define Biblical love is an error.

So, let's go back to John 21:15-17.  Why did the writer, John, use agape and phileo so interchangeably?  I think the simple answer is this:  the original conversation did not happen in Greek but likely in Aramaic and John did not want the reader to think that the common Greek usage of  agape and phileo defined the nature of biblical love.  So, he used both words to show there was something greater at stake than the pagan understanding of love.

So, is C.S. Lewis wrong?  I don't know because I haven't read his book, but it sounds like he may have explained how the pagans understood love.  Christians should not accept the same understanding, as the Apostles go through great pains to define love in the epistles.  So,  what is Biblical Love or "chesed?"  I will take a shot at doing this in another posting using the epistles.

In Christ, Marty

Class Description: In this class, we will learn about the courtship between Ruth the Moabite and Boaz the seed of Judah. Not only is it a fantastic book towards understanding Israelite life in the Judges period, but it has a highly relevant message today as we meditate on Jesus Christ our Kinsman-Redeemer. Also, of great value, are the tremendous insights into Christian courtship and why it’s so blessedly different than the common worldly view of dating, particularly when contrasted here with New York City.

Schedule: Sunday, February 28 from 12:15PM to 2:15PM.

Location: Hunter College, West Building (Southwest Corner of 68 & Lexington).

Please click here to download the slides

Class,

Please find attached the slides which I used as a class supplement today.  We can discuss in further detail in the next class.

Please click this link to download the slides

In Christ, Marty