Spider-Man 3

Okay, so much for trying to post every day to get caught up. It's amazing how easily your time gets eaten up when you have less to do. I'll have to work on that this summer...but for now, I'm going to post something that was not even on my list of upcoming posts: a review of Spider-Man 3 that I had written back on opening weekend and then never posted so that I didn't spoil it for anyone. I guess the statute of limitations has run out by now, so here's the big post (as written on May 4).

Last night I went out with my coworkers and watched the midnight showing of Spider-Man 3. However, it would not be fair for me to give a bunch of spoilers to everyone else who did not go to the midnight showing, so I'm not going to actually post this article for several weeks to give people a chance to see it. So here's my disclaimer again: The following review contains major spoilers and expects familiarity with all parts of the plot, including the ending, so don't read it if you don't want the movie spoiled.

First, my critical review: I enjoyed the movie. I don't feel like it met the high standards set by the first two, but it was an overall enjoyable movie. I had three major concerns with it: first, it felt like they were trying too hard in this film. The first two films were known for their "more is less" mentality, but this one went all-out to try and wow and impress. The best example of this is that there are four major villains in this film, which just feels like too many. The special effects were great (especially on Sandman), and the backstories were good, but not fleshed out because there was too much going on. Second, the editing felt poorly done. So many times I felt whipped around, like they were trying to fit too many things in, so they just had to show me this--and then that--and then this because we were running out of done.

Third, much of the humor felt very campy and out of place in this film. Both of the earlier films had moments of humor, but this one played up the jokes significantly, especially during the time when Peter is under the influence of the black suit. For example, he breaks out into a whole dance sequence at one point, which personally left me thinking, "What on earth?" It seemed like the audience was constantly being led to laugh at times when a laugh felt out of place (part of this was because of some very melodramatic moments that came between Harry and MJ). However, the French waiter did not feel out of place (at least to me), and I quite enjoyed it (it felt very John Cleese-esque...in fact, at first I thought it was John Cleese).

So those were my critical comments, but I also found some great thinking moments I wanted to comment on. Overall I thought that the alien symbiote that first took over Peter and then Eddie Brock made some great points about the nature of sin (although not perfect by any means). It was a sort of Jekyll/Hyde adventure, where Peter loves the power rush that putting on the black suit gives him, but soon finds that it is possessing him and turning him into something terrible. When he finally tries to free himself from it, it is intensely difficult. When it takes over Eddie, turning him into Venom, he loves the way it makes him feel angry, and at the very end, when Peter gives him the opportunity to escape from its clutches, he runs back in and embraces it as it is destroyed, taking him with it. He is so attached to the anger that he is willing to be destroyed rather than part with it. It is sad, but it's a great picture of how sin grabs onto our lives, makes us feel good, but eventually destroys us.

So it was an imperfect film and could have been much better, but I did enjoy it. If you want to see a great superhero film, though, watch the first two and Batman Begins. Those are the cream of the crop.

Odds and Ends XI

Whew, it's been almost a month since my last Odds and Ends post, and I have a lot of great links to share with you guys.

Serious:

• Nathan Williams at Pulpit examines the concept of God's "foreknowledge", which is very applicable to the post I will soon be writing in response to Karyn about predestination.
• I linked to the Wilson-Hitchens debate taking place over on Christianity Today last time, but now the debate is over and someone has compiled all the arguments into one PDF. Wilson tore him apart nicely, I think.
• Joe Thorn explains why it is good for Christians to go to the movies, an argument I have been trying to make for years.
• Al Mohler reviews The Dangerous Book for Boys, which sounds like just what our effeminate culture really needs.
• Centuri0n points to a statement from a top NASA official that makes one of the most critical arguments against the whole global warming controversy: how do we know that the current temperature of the earth is the best?
• John MacArthur spent a week evaluating the Roman Catholic Church's claim to authority in interpreting the Scriptures.

Funny:

• This right here is the story of my life.
• Despair, Inc., the brilliant minds behind the Demotivators, have introduced something new: DespairWear. I want this one, please. Or maybe this one.
• This should be required viewing for all men: how to give a perfect man-hug.
• Marvel and DC superheroes gather after hours to discuss life...
• Google shows the benefits of Gmail...with puppets. (If you don't have Gmail, repent immediately and sign up. You won't regret it. I promise.)

Interesting:

• If you're like me and let your emails pile up on you, this article will be invaluable: how to clean out your Gmail inbox and keep it clean. I'm planning on implementing some of these suggestions today as I clean out the 300 emails in my inbox.
• A fellow Na attendee posted this video recap of the conference...I almost walked in on him interviewing someone in an elevator while I was there.
• C.S. Lewis explains why it is we enjoy reading...to which I give a hearty "Amen!"
• Steven Speilburg and Peter Jackson are producing a trilogy of Tintin films! I grew up on those books, so I can't wait to see what they do with them.
• I want one of these tables...will Bill Gates never stop?

Quotes:

One of my favorite humorists is Patrick McManus, who writes about hunting, fishing, camping, and all things outdoors. Reading one of his stories, no matter how many times I've read it before, never fails to bring a smile to my face. In one of his stories, "The Worry Box," he talks about an old man with whom he goes fishing, and they have the following exchange:

"Why are you always so cheerful?" I growled. "Must be because you have so few worries."

"Nope," he said. "It's because every morning this incredibly wonderful thing happens to me."

"I'm not so sure I want to hear this," I said, "but what's the incredibly wonderful thing?"

"I wake up again! Dad-gum if that don't make my day!"

If only we all had that view of life, I think we would all be a lot happier.

Graduated!

Well, my high school graduation was last Saturday, and what an event it was. I was the the senior in charge of administrating everything (I was under Mrs. Hoover and the other moms, of course), and I'll be honest: I'm glad it's over. There are a lot of details that go into an event like that which I had no idea where even issues. But thankfully, everything went wonderfully, and the worst mishap was when one of the moms knocked off one of the graduate's caps when they hugged.

Bob Donahue spoke, and gave a nice exhortation from Psalm 90:12, which was our theme verse: "Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Bryce and Emily, the 10:31 winners for our class, eloquently thanked our parents for all their work over the years. And I got to give the charge as the unofficial valedictorian (it's hard to figure that out objectively in a homeschool class, but they chose me since I was a National Merit Scholar...of course, all that really means is that I do well on standarized tests, but they insisted). Here's the text of what I said:

Friends, after 13 years, we finally made it. We've been invested in by our parents and by our church, and we have been entrusted with the single most important gift we will ever recieve: the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now, as we go forth into the world as adults, let us be faithful to live that gospel for a watching world to see. Let us seize every moment as an opportunity to glorify God, and let us pursue wisdom and maturity all the days of our lives.

Then my good friend Robby Sawyer (a fellow member of the PC crew) led the class in flipping the tassels on our caps, and then we ran down the aisle to the sounds of James Bond. What a wonderful feeling to run down the back hallway screaming at the top of our lungs. So exhilarating.

(Oh yeah, we also gave our senior pastor, Josh Harris, an honorary membership in our class, since he once mentioned that he has never graduated from anything...i.e. his parents forgot to graduate him from high school. So we gave him a cap and gown, filmed him walking down the aisle, and gave him a diploma. It was great fun, and now I can say that I graduated with a bestselling author, not to mention a prominent pastor and one of the men I greatly respect.)

Now that my life has cleared up a little bit (although not that much), I have a whole line-up of posts I've been working on that should be making an appearance in the next couple of weeks. A foretaste:

• A meditation on Romans 3:26, inspired by John Piper's message at Na
• A defense of the just war theory, inspired by Sergeant York
• A critique of the "God is love" mindset
• A fun browsing of different Narnia book covers
• A response to Karyn's post about predestination (a continuation of this debate a few months ago)
• A massive Odds and Ends post that has been piling up for weeks!
• And of course the long-awaited Harry Potter post! (don't worry, I didn't forget)

So the next few weeks should be interesting as I head out on several vacations and other miscellaneous events. Tonight is my first new caregroup meeting, which I am very excited about. I'll let you all know how that goes. Hopefully this blog gets out of the personal life rut soon and back into some real meaty posts.

I'm Back!

Those were some of the best days of my life. Seriously. I am in awe of God's grace shown to us on the cross, and feel so much better prepared to live out humble orthodoxy. Well...I need help with the humble part, but I feel like I've been helped in that too. Let me explain:

On Saturday morning, the first day of the conference, I was reading in Deuteronomy, and as I read Mark Dever's commentary, I came across this passage:

When you begin to grasp the great truth of this book--that God chooses his people--you begin to realize that our fundamental posture as Christians should never be anxiety or pride, but gratitude and hope. Anxiety may look more humble than pride, but it's really just pride with no make-up on. More than anything else, a confident knowledge of God and his Word will kill our pride and fuel our hope. It was true for God's people back in Moses' time, and it's true for God's people today. If you want to kill pride and fuel hope, study and learn God's Word. Grow in your confidence in him. (The Message of the Old Testament, p. 162)

As I read that, I realized that the area in which I really wanted to grow was in humility. I'm very good at knowing what I believe (orthodoxy), but I'm a very proud person who loves to share his own opinions instead of listening to others.

During one of the times of worship, the speakers all read meditations on the cross from different church fathers, and CJ read a quote from Charles Spurgeon that pierced me to the heart:

I received some years ago orders from my Master to stand at the foot of the cross until he came. He has not come yet, but I mean to stand there till he does. Here, then, I stand at the foot of the cross and tell out the old, old story, stale though it sound to itching ears, and worn threadbare as critics may deem it. It is of Christ I love to speak, of Christ who loved, and lived, and died, the substitute for sinners, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God.

That's what I need to do! I need to spend every day at the foot of the cross, because only there do I realize my own insignificance and unworthiness. In the shadow of the cross, what reason do I have for pride? As we continued to sing about the cross, I was moved to tears to think that Christ would come to die for me, an arrogant sinner shaking my fist in the face of my Creator.

Am I humble now? Nope. But hopefully I have been humbled just a little more, and a little bit more of my pride is gone. Because that's how sanctification works: slowly but surely, God is faithful to bring my life into conformity with his character. As long as I dwell in the shadow of the cross, I will be humbled.

So that was one of my key takeaway points from the weekend. But for a general recap: the sermons were amazing, all eight of them (and are available for free from Sovereign Grace), the fellowship was incredible, and I had a great time in my first "singles" event without supervision. It was so much fun, I can't even begin to describe it. However, over the next few days I plan to write up an account of my experiences over on my Xanga, so feel free to check it out. And if you want to read some other detailed accounts, there were liveblogs everywhere, including Tim Challies, The Rebelution, Boundless, Kevin, and of course New Attitude itself. (Did I mention that I met Tim, Alex, and Brett? That was pretty cool, let me tell you.) So have fun reading about it, and start making plans to come next year!

Endings...and Beginnings

Today I woke up and went to Bible class. Five hours later I walked out of my Latin final, and just like that, high school was over. Oh sure, I still have to graduate, but as of today I no longer have any assignments due for a high school class...ever again. Oh, it's a wonderful feeling, let me tell you. I've always enjoyed school, but the last week has been torture as I've suddenly been hit by a belated case of senioritis. And now that it's over, I'm free as a bird! Except for...

Ah yes, the day after school ends, I drive for 11 hours to join thousands of other singles in Louisville, KY, for four days of fun, fellowship, and growth in godliness. How cool is that? This is something I've been looking forward to all year, and it's finally happening. Things I'm most excited about:

1. The most amazing line-up of speakers: Josh Harris, C.J. Mahaney, Al Mohler, Eric Simmons, John Piper, and Mark Dever
2. The chance to fellowship with so many of my great friends from CovLife
3. The chance to reconnect with many friends who live in other parts of the country (from places as diverse as California, Philadelphia, Ontario, and Oregon)
4. The opportunity to meet many new people
5. Most importantly, I am excited about how God is going to use this conference to strengthen me as a Christian

So please do me a favor: if you're not going, pray for those of us who are. There are so many opportunities for God to work mightily, please pray that he will. Pray for safety, and most importantly that God would be glorified.

I'm bringing my laptop, so I may be posting periodic updates...but we'll see. I'm thinking life will be pretty packed over the next five days.

Books I'm Reading

Well, Karyn has tagged me about what I'm reading, so here goes:

Just finished: A Brief History of the Western World. This textbook was pretty amazing in that it condensed all of Western civilization into 600 pages, and did it very well. I'll admit that I skimmed the last thirty years of history, which I'm already familiar with, although I did read the sections on philosophy and culture. I haven't actually finished a real book in quite a while.

Just beginning: Well, not having just finished something besides textbooks, it's hard to say I've just begun anything either. I guess I have recently begun The Gift of Prophecy by Wayne Grudem, because I wanted to understand how prophecy as practiced in my church could be considered biblical. My Bible reading did not seem to support the view, but after getting about halfway through the book, I can see the solid biblical foundations for non-authoritative prophecy. My theology now lines up with my practice, which I'm very happy about.

In the middle of: The Divine Comedy by Dante. Well, I've been trying to get through it for quite a while, but have not had much time. I'm almost finished with Inferno, and I may just stop there, which would be a real shame, but I'd rather read a lot of books this summer than be stuck in one semi-interesting one. However, I am enjoying it quite a bit, I just find it hard to pick up.

Planning to read next: The Count of Monte Cristo. It became my favorite book a few years ago when I read it, and I just want to read it again to refresh myself.

Now I tag Peter, Brielle, and Liz, plus anyone else who wants to do it.

A busy week

Yes, I have been a very bad blogger. School's wrapping up, I had two AP tests last week (English Language and Economics) and a Latin final this week, plus preparing for New Attitude...basically I'm swamped. So I haven't posted all week, and don't expect anything profound until after graduation on June 2. While you're waiting, however, read Deuteronomy. That's where I've been parked in my devotions, and it has been cutting me straight to the heart. Here is one of the passagesthat has really stuck out to me, enjoy:

"For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations." Deut. 7:6-9

Happy Mother's Day!

Dear Mom,

On this Mother's Day, I want to take the opportunity to honor you. You are a wonderful example of a Proverbs 31 woman. You love your family with your whole heart, and you love us sacrificially. You give all of your time, energy, and effort to raising us and training us in righteousness.

You are one of the greatest servants I know. Day in and day out you clean the house, do the dishes, drive us to classes, and I never hear a word of complaint. On the contrary, all I am aware of is your joy in serving.

I am so aware of your love for me. You feel my joy and my pain (often you feel it more than I do), and you're always there to walk me through trials, whether that is counseling me or just listening. You take me out for lunch at random times, and I can just talk to you about life and know that you actually care. I've observed the same actions with the other kids, and I know they feel your love too.

You have a passion to see all of your children walking with the Lord, and you disciple and discipline us with that end in mind. I catch a glimpse of your heart for us when we talk about prayer, and you tell me how much you've been praying for me and for the other kids. I appreciate that so much.

You are an amazing model of a woman who loves her husband and submits to him. I know that the biblical model of manhood and womanhood is the right one because I have seen it lived out at home. You are not the inferior half of the marriage, but you offer advice and counsel and then submit to whatever decision Dad makes. It's like the mom in My Big Fat Greek Wedding said: "The man is the head, but the woman is the neck, and she can turn the head however she wants." You are like that a lot of the time, in the best possible way.

I have inherited so much from you, from my love of history to my love of reading to many of my musical tastes, and we are able to have fun together in so many ways. I treasure our memories of late night movies, hikes in the woods, and reading next to you on the couch. Life's simple pleasures mean so much.

One day I will be married, and Mom, I can only hope that the woman I find is half the woman you are. Thank you for being my mom. I love you.

Imagine

I just was listening to the classic song "Imagine" by John Lennon, and I was struck by the lyrics. Here's what he says:

Imagine there's no Heaven

It's easy if you try

No hell below us

Above us only sky

Imagine all the people

Living for today

Imagine there's no countries

It isn't hard to do

Nothing to kill or die for

And no religion too

Imagine all the people

Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer

But I'm not the only one

I hope someday you'll join us

And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions

I wonder if you can

No need for greed or hunger

A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people

Sharing all the world

Now, obviously there are some pretty stark statements in that song. No heaven, no hell, no wars, no possessions, no religion, and everybody living for today. Sounds nice, doesn't it?

Honestly, no. That world, that "utopia according to John Lennon," strikes me as a terrible place. And really, it's not completely because I'm a Christian and know the value of religion (although that's part of my reason). No, the primary reason why this utopia sounds miserable is because it's a world with no purpose, no direction, nothing to live for, nothing to die for. I mean, what does "living for today" really mean? Not much besides instant gratification, which can turn into something terrible. If we're truly just focused on getting what we want when we want it, it's a very short step to widespread theft, rape, and murder.

"Imagine...nothing to live and die for"...who wants that? If you don't have anything worth living or dying for, what's the point? Existence becomes useless. We might as well be dead, because we have nothing that makes our lives important while we're alive. People can't function that way. We're hard-wired to find something that we care about. And that's not on accident; we were created that way. God created us to be passionate about things. Sin comes when we misdirect our passion to the wrong things, but that doesn't mean that we need to abolish passion. We just need to redirect it back to the only being worthy of all our passion: Jesus Christ.

So what am I imagining? I'm imagining a day when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. What a day that will be. That's when the world will be as one. And I'll die for that.

Odds and Ends X

Serious:

• Douglas Wilson responded to Christopher Hitchens' new book God Is Not Great with a very presuppositional post. Now they are engaged in an online debate hosted by Christianity Today that I have found very informative. Check them both out, and be further convinced in the effectiveness of presuppositionalism.
• Tim Challies asks the question "Is error in doctrine always sin?"
• William Saletan writes about the impact of ultrasound to the abortion debate.
• Pulpit makes a brief but convincing argument for the Lord's Day Observance view of the Sabbath, which goes along with this discussion here at HoldFast from a few months ago.
• Tim Challies also addresses the atheists who try to condemn themselves to Hell by blaspheming the Holy Spirit and contemplates the nature of the Unpardonable Sin (see key quote below).

Funny:

• This is for my fellow Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fans: go to Google Calculator, type in "answer to life the universe and everything," and what do you get?
• One of Joel Osteen's sermons gets a commentary track that is extremely revealing...this guy scares me.

Interesting:

• People often ask me what "RSS" means. I tell them it's the best invention since the Internet. But if you actually want to know how it works, Challies gives a helpful overview. I use the built-in feeder in IE7, but Bloglines is also a great option.
• I've been following this intriguing project from the Washington Post: onBeing, a series of interviews with all different sorts of people. This week's video was a boy with Down's Syndrome, and is well worth watching (it's short, only a few minutes long).
• Pride and Prejudice condensed into ten minutes by two very talented NCFCA performers. John and I almost did one of these from The Hobbit, but had to drop out (remember my reference in my challenge to "having to back out of many other activities"? Yeah...).
• This game is addicting. I've made it to 16.5 seconds.

Quotes:

"Admittedly there is some level of disagreement about what exactly constitutes [the unforgiveable sin]. But the vast consensus is this: that the blasphemy against the Spirit involves ascribing the work of the Holy Spirit, accomplished through Jesus Christ, to Satan. To commit this sin you must know that Jesus Christ is God and, despite that knowledge, ascribe the Spirit's work through Him to the devil.

"Reverend Richard Phillips, pastor at First Presbyterian Church Coral Springs, Margate, Florida, says 'There is no sin so great that the precious blood of the Son of God -- of infinite value before God -- is not sufficient to pay for it. The issue is that forgiveness comes only to those who believe on the Lord Jesus. And someone who knows who Jesus is -- who realizes that his work is by the Holy Spirit -- and yet so refuses to believe that he actually ascribes the Spirit's work to the devil, cannot possibly be saved. Why? Because that person is not just ignorant, but they willfully, knowingly, reject Jesus as Messiah, as proved by the Holy Spirit. So this passage describes not someone who in a fit of anger or temptation commits blasphemy, but someone who refuses to believe on Jesus as the Messiah, even when he recognizes the Holy Spirit at work.'

"So the great irony, based on what the Bible teaches, is that this sin cannot be committed by one who considers himself an atheist! This sin presupposes seeing and acknowledging the work of God, but then attributing it to Satan." --Tim Challies, "Challenging the Blasphemy Challenge"