Quote

Quote from my devotions today just continues to remind me of the great hope that we have a disciples of Christ!

"You and I are characters in God's story, handmade by him. Every character serves a purpose. God loves a great story, and all of us who know him will recall and celebrate and continue to live in that story for all eternity. Before we fault him for the plot twists we don't like, we should remember that Jesus has written this story in his own blood." Randy Alcorn ~ Ninety Days of God's Goodness

Unleashing Potential in God

Luke 1:37

New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

³⁷ For nothing is impossible with God.

When I seek to do God's work through my energy, strength, knowledge and effort it limits the potential I have in Christ to live for God's Glory and expand His kingdom.  I get nowhere, really!  But when I allow God to work in me and through me by His Spirit, in His power, in His strength, in His knowledge, God will bring Himself Glory through my life, not because of my efforts but because of His grace and will!  The potential my life has in God working in me and through me is limitless.  God can expand His Kingdom through me, even though I face impossibilities around me, nothing is impossible.

God I pray that you will work in me, use me, despite my sinfulness.  Please, bring yourself Glory in and through me.  Please do the impossible things through me, change people by your spirit, lead people to understand the Good News of Jesus Christ!  Please do the impossible!  Unleash great potential through my life for Your Glory!  Amen.

Getting Closer to the Last Days

Getting Closer to the Last Days

Acts 2:14-21

¹⁴ But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. ¹⁵ For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. ¹⁶ But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:

¹⁷    And in the last days it shall be, God declares,

       that  I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,

       and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

and your young men shall see visions,

and your old men shall dream dreams;

¹⁸    even on my male servants and female servants

in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.

¹⁹    And I will show wonders in the heavens above

and signs on the earth below,

blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;

²⁰    the sun shall be turned to darkness

and the moon to blood,

before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.

²¹    And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

Comment:  Many of those who had gathered to hear and see this phenomenal sight of the disciples (Galileans who were unlearned) speaking in different languages were convinced that the disciples were drunk.  Yet Peter stand up among the people and address them saying that it is basically too early to be drunk but that actually there was something greater going on!  He quotes the prophet Joel from the Old Testament sharing that a new day, a new era was being ushered in that was a partial fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy which will be like that of the last days, God would pour out His Spirit on people.  Peter was telling his people that it was time to wake up, that the Day of the Lord is coming, and as he finishes in verse 21, “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved!”

Application:  God is working out His sovereign plan for this world.  He sent Christ who is now alive and risen, awaiting the go-ahead from God to come back and gather the elect (those who believe in Christ as Saviour and Lord).  It is a reminder to me that God is preparing His final judgment for all of humankind.  We must be busy doing the work that God has called us to, to reach out and share Christ, or as Christ says, “make disciples of all nations.”  I am reminded that I go in God’s power, through the Holy Spirit and not on my own strength because it is actually God who saves people and not me!  He is our salvation from beginning to end.  Otherwise, we could boast in our own salvation. 

Thank you God for your grace and salvation.  For finding me and saving my life from sin, giving me purpose and hope that far exceeds anything that this world can offer!

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

Acts 2:1–13 (ESV)

2 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. ² And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. ³ And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

⁵ Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. ⁶ And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. ⁷ And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? ⁹ Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, ¹¹ both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” ¹² And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” ¹³ But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”

COMMENT:  In this passage Luke, the writer of Acts shares many of the immediate details of this marvellous event.  He shares that it is the time of the celebration called “The Day of Pentecost” which was a Jewish celebration that occurred 50 days after Passover and was one of the 3 celebrations throughout the year that the people of Israel were to come to Jerusalem.  The word “Pentecost” means “fiftieth.”  What is beautiful in this story is to see the hand of God at work, working His sovereign plan.  He chose to launch the beginnings of the church, the new covenant, at this event when faithful Jews from almost all parts of the world were present.  Here, after the disciples were praying, God pours out His Holy Spirit on the disciples.  The signs of God working was that at this moment the disciples started talking in different languages that were understandable.  There was a loud sound of rushing wind that caught the attention of those in the area who were visiting from all over the world.  They came to see what was going on and when they came they heard the disciples (whom they were surprise were speaking as they noted they were Galileans!)  God was preparing them for something big, something amazing that would change the known world and has affected us today!  In v. 12 it says, “And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”  The anticipation for the reader is clear, something awesome is going to take place!

APPLICATION:  There are a few reminders that I have learned from this passage.  1) Again, prayer, is so vital and important to our lives.  If we want God to work, if we want God to be glorified, then we must pray.  The disciples did not know what was going to happen, so they did not turn to their television, to their playstation, to the newspaper (or cultural equivalent entertaining themselves to burn time through frivolous means), but they turned to God in prayer.  When I am going through periods of time that I need answers, when I am uncertain of what is next, the reminder again is to pray.  2) When God invades our lives, by His Holy Spirit, our lives change.  The disciples did not know, nor understand how much of a tremendous impact that the Holy Spirit would have on the life of the church from the point and into the future.  Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would come (John 14:25-27) and teach them and remind them.  Here the Holy Spirit comes into the life of the church, changes the disciples and changes cultures for all generations to follow!  May God continue to change our culture through His Holy Spirit today as He did at Pentecost!  3)  God used simple people, Galileans.  They were not aristocrats, philosophers, people of nobility, hence the shock among the people in v. 12 to note that they were Galileans.  The reminder for me, is that God uses simple, humble people.  God can use me, and others who are just normal people.  He is the one that picks us up and uses us.  What an awesome God we serve that he would take “the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:27).

Genealogical Hope!

Matthew 1:1-17   The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

1 The historical record of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:

2 Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered Jacob, Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers, 3 Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez fathered Hezron, Hezron fathered Aram, 4 Aram fathered Aminadab, Aminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, 5 Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse, 6 and Jesse fathered King David. Then David fathered Solomon by Uriah's wife,

7 Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, Abijah fathered Asa, 8 Asa fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered Joram, Joram fathered Uzziah, 9 Uzziah fathered Jotham, Jotham fathered Ahaz, Ahaz fathered Hezekiah, 10 Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh fathered Amon, Amon fathered Josiah, 11 and Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.

12 Then after the exile to Babylon Jechoniah fathered Salathiel, Salathiel fathered Zerubbabel,13 Zerubbabel fathered Abiud, Abiud fathered Eliakim, Eliakim fathered Azor, 14 Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, Achim fathered Eliud, 15 Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, Matthan fathered Jacob, 16 and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David were 14 generations; and from David until the exile to Babylon, 14 generations; and from the exile to Babylon until the Messiah, 14 generations.

Comment:  Sometimes we look at genealogical lists in the Bible and think, oh, dull, boring!  However, I was amazed and actually overwhelmed again by this list of names in the book of Matthew.  There is so much Biblical history oozing out of this passage with reminders that God is always, faithfully working out His sovereign plan! 

Take for instance verse 3.  If you go back to into Genesis you can read about Judah who did not take care of Tamar his daughter in law the way that was custom, so she prostituted herself unknowingly to get what she wanted.  What a mess!  Then born to their offspring was Boaz whose mother was, get this ... the prostitute that changed her life to follow God after saving the lives of two spies in Jericho before God destroyed the city.  God saved her and her family!  We see hope in this story! 

Then to add to this story was the fact that Boaz married Ruth, who was not a Hebrew but a Moabite, who... get this... turned from her pagan life to follow God and to them was born Obed who was the granddad of King David!  We must remember that King David was promised (The Davidic Covenant) that his house would be established forever!  How can this happen???  We will see in a minute...

Then, there was the BIG mess!  David, after sinfully lusting after Bathsheba, kills her husband.  This was a big mess, and David was punished, the first child born to them died.  What a tragedy!   But, we are not without hope...  eventually, as Matthew records in this genealogical list, eventually, the promise to David (The David Covenant) is fulfilled through a Mary who conceived not through human means but by the Holy Spirit, her son Jesus Christ who as Matthew states is “called the Messiah,” the Anointed One, the GREAT HIGH PRIEST Jesus Christ!!!! 

Application:  What this text indicates is that throughout the mistakes and messes we see and experience in life.  The messes and sin of the past, God works through all of this His sovereign plan of redemption to use these people who had checkered pasts to show His mercy, grace and love! 

This gives me and all of us hope that though at times we intentionally or not mess up, sin and run amuck that God can work through us to accomplish His sovereign will.  This is not an excuse to mess up, to sin or make intentional mistakes, but is an encouragement that even through all this God is at work and will use us to redeem this world by serving and proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ in this world.  One day he will redeem us all from this mess!  What a beautiful picture of God’s grace and mercy we see in this passage by show us that our Saviour came into this world through such a checkered history by his ancestors. 

Eight Reasons Why I Believe That Jesus Rose from the Dead ~ John Piper

1. Jesus himself testified to his coming resurrection from the dead.

Jesus spoke openly about what would happen to him: crucifixion and then resurrection from the dead. “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again” (Mark 8:31; see also Matthew 17:22; Luke 9:22). Those who consider the resurrection of Christ unbelievable will probably say that Jesus was deluded or (more likely) that the early church put these statements in his mouth to make him teach the falsehood that they themselves conceived. But those who read the Gospels and come to the considered conviction that the one who speaks so compellingly through these witnesses is not the figment of foolish imagination will be unsatisfied with this effort to explain away Jesus’ own testimony to his resurrection from the dead.

This is especially true in view of the fact that the words which predict the resurrection are not only the simple straightforward words quoted above, but also the very oblique and indirect words which are far less likely to be the simple invention of deluded disciples. For example, two separate witnesses testify in two very different ways to Jesus’ statement during his lifetime that if his enemies destroyed the temple (of his body), he would build it again in three days (John 2:19; Mark 14:58; cf. Matthew 26:61). He also spoke illusively of the “sign of Jonah”—three days in the heart of the earth (Matthew 12:39; 16:4). And he hinted at it again in Matthew 21:42—“The very stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner.” On top of his own witness to the coming resurrection, his accusers said that this was part of Jesus’ claim: “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise’” (Matthew 27:63).

Our first evidence of the resurrection, therefore, is that Jesus himself spoke of it. The breadth and nature of the sayings make it unlikely that a deluded church made these up. And the character of Jesus himself, revealed in these witnesses, has not been judged by most people to be a lunatic or a deceiver.

2. The tomb was empty on Easter.

The earliest documents claim this: “When they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus” (Luke 24:3). And the enemies of Jesus confirmed it by claiming that the disciples had stolen the body (Matthew 28:13). The dead body of Jesus could not be found. There are four possible ways to account for this.

2.1 His foes stole the body. If they did (and they never claimed to have done so), they surely would have produced the body to stop the successful spread of the Christian faith in the very city where the crucifixion occurred. But they could not produce it.

2.2 His friends stole the body. This was an early rumor (Matthew 28:11-15). Is it probable? Could they have overcome the guards at the tomb? More important, would they have begun to preach with such authority that Jesus was raised, knowing that he was not? Would they have risked their lives and accepted beatings for something they knew was a fraud?

2.3 Jesus was not dead, but only unconscious when they laid him in the tomb. He awoke, removed the stone, overcame the soldiers, and vanished from history after a few meetings with his disciples in which he convinced them he was risen from the dead. Even the foes of Jesus did not try this line. He was obviously dead. The Romans saw to that. The stone could not be moved by one man from within who had just been stabbed in the side by a spear and spent six hours nailed to a cross.

2.4 God raised Jesus from the dead. This is what he said would happen. It is what the disciples said did happen. But as long as there is a remote possibility of explaining the resurrection naturalistically, modern people say we should not jump to a supernatural explanation. Is this reasonable? I don’t think so. Of course, we don’t want to be gullible. But neither do we want to reject the truth just because it’s strange. We need to be aware that our commitments at this point are much affected by our preferences—either for the state of affairs that would arise from the truth of the resurrection, or for the state of affairs that would arise from the falsehood of the resurrection. If the message of Jesus has opened you to the reality of God and the need of forgiveness, for example, then anti-supernatural dogma might lose its power over your mind. Could it be that this openness is not prejudice for the resurrection, but freedom from prejudice against it?

3. The disciples were almost immediately transformed from men who were hopeless and fearful after the crucifixion (Luke 24:21, John 20:19) into men who were confident and bold witnesses of the resurrection (Acts 2:24, 3:15, 4:2).

Their explanation of this change was that they had seen the risen Christ and had been authorized to be his witnesses (Acts 2:32). The most popular competing explanation is that their confidence was owing to hallucinations. There are numerous problems with such a notion. The disciples were not gullible, but level-headed skeptics both before and after the resurrection. (Mark 9:32, Luke 24:11, John 20:8-9, 25). Moreover, is the deep and noble teaching of those who witnessed the risen Christ the stuff of which hallucinations are made? What about Paul’s great letter to the Romans? I personally find it hard to think of this giant intellect and deeply transparent soul as deluded or deceptive, and he claimed to have seen the risen Christ.

4. Paul claimed that, not only had he seen the risen Christ, but that 500 others had seen him also, and many were still alive when he made this public claim.

“Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep” (1 Corinthians 15:6). What makes this so relevant is that this was written to Greeks who were skeptical of such claims when many of these witnesses were still alive. So it was a risky claim if it could be disproved by a little firsthand research.

5. The sheer existence of a thriving, empire-conquering early Christian church supports the truth of the resurrection claim.

The church spread on the power of the testimony that Jesus was raised from the dead and that God had thus made him both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36). The Lordship of Christ over all nations is based on his victory over death. This is the message that spread all over the world. Its power to cross cultures and create one new people of God was a strong testimony of its truth.

6. The Apostle Paul’s conversion supports the truth of the resurrection.

He argues to a partially unsympathetic audience in Galatians 1:11-17 that his gospel comes from the risen Jesus Christ, not from men. His argument is that before his Damascus Road experience when he saw the risen Jesus, he was violently opposed to the Christian faith (Acts 9:1). But now, to everyone’s astonishment, he is risking his life for the gospel (Acts 9:24-25). His explanation: The risen Jesus appeared to him and authorized him to spearhead the Gentile mission (Acts 26:15-18). Can we credit such a testimony? This leads to the next argument.

7. The New Testament witnesses do not bear the stamp of dupes or deceivers.

How do you credit a witness? How do you decide whether to believe a person’s testimony? The decision to give credence to a person’s testimony is not the same as completing a mathematical equation. The certainty is of a different kind, yet can be just as firm (I trust my wife’s testimony that she is faithful). When a witness is dead, we can base our judgment of him only on the content of his writings and the testimonies of others about him. How do Peter and John and Matthew and Paul stack up?

In my judgment (and at this point we can live authentically only by our own judgment—Luke 12:57), these men’s writings do not read like the works of gullible, easily deceived or deceiving men. Their insights into human nature are profound. Their personal commitment is sober and carefully stated. Their teachings are coherent and do not look like the invention of unstable men. The moral and spiritual standard is high. And the lives of these men are totally devoted to the truth and to the honor of God.

8. There is a self-authenticating glory in the gospel of Christ’s death and resurrection as narrated by the biblical witnesses.

The New Testament teaches that God sent the Holy Spirit to glorify Jesus as the Son of God. Jesus said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth.... He will glorify me” (John 16:13). The Holy Spirit does not do this by telling us that Jesus rose from the dead. He does it by opening our eyes to see the self-authenticating glory of Christ in the narrative of his life and death and resurrection. He enables us to see Jesus as he really was, so that he is irresistibly true and beautiful. The apostle stated the problem of our blindness and the solution like this: “The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.... For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:4, 6).

A saving knowledge of Christ crucified and risen is not the mere result of right reasoning about historical facts. It is the result of spiritual illumination to see those facts for what they really are: a revelation of the truth and glory of God in the face of Christ—who is the same yesterday today and forever.

Pastor John

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Book Review: Augustine as Mentor by Dr. Edward Smither

Augustine as Mentor: A Model for Preparing Spiritual Leaders By Edward L. Smither's Nashville, Tennessee: B&H Academic, 2008, 264 pp, $ 17.99

softcover.

Dr. Edward L. Smither is an assistant professor of Church History and Intercultural Studies at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary in Lynchburg, Virginia.  He has written a helpful book for those in Christian leadership today on mentoring focusing mainly on the early church bishop Augustine of Hippo (354 -430) entitled Augustine as Mentor:Model for Preparing Spiritual Leaders.

Today, people are often in such a hurry to get from one appointment to another, shopping, work, children, church and more.  The busyness of life leaves people with little time to focus on learning from others and teaching others themselves.  This is especially true in many churches today.  Smither points out through many early church fathers that this, historically speaking, has not always been the case in the Christian Church and does not have to be the status quo for today.  The main thesis in Smither’s book is, “That Augustine effectively mentored spiritual leaders and set them apart for needed ministries in the church and that many aspects of his mentoring will serve as instructive for the modern mentor.”[1]

Smither starts by describing discipleship and mentorship as not something that was exclusive to Jesus and the disciples but was common before Christ in the sect called the Pharisees.[2]  The main practice of Jesus was to disciple through a group.  He had twelve men whom he discipled.  These men shared in the tasks of eating, visiting, traveling, and living with Jesus.  These disciples also were committed to the teaching of Jesus.  They learned from his life.  Smith says that “The apostles and evangelists who came after Jesus also seemed to follow this pattern of teaching.”[3]  Mentoring and discipleship were continued on after Christ by such men as Barnabus who mentoring Paul and Paul mentoring Timothy.

The main themes that run throughout the book seem to answer the question of the “How” of mentoring.  What was passed on?  How was it accomplished?  Smither points out that the pattern of mentoring from Christ to Cyprian, Basil, Ambrose, and finally climaxing with Augustine was found in these five general areas.

First, mentoring was accomplished through groups.  The groups functioned for mutual prayer, encouragement, study, and support.  As Christianity continued to spread and develop monasteries were developed to focus on this idea of group and peer mentoring.  The groups and monasteries were overseen by a theologian, teacher, or bishop.  Also, an outworking of group mentoring came the idea and focus on church councils which started with Cyprian.  He organized the councils to “deal with church matters.”[4]  These councils were a way to teach other bishops and also to defend against increasing heresy in the church.  After Cyprian, Pachomius developed houses or monasteries to train, mentor, and grow monks and clergy.  These were further developed as full-fledge training institutions by Augustine in the spiritual disciplines and clerical life. 

Second, was the mentor as disciple initiative.  Among all the main church leaders Smither writes about, they all were mentored and some mentoring for many years into their ministry.   Cyprian was mentored by Caecilian.  Augustine was mainly mentored by Monica his mother, Simplicianus and Valerius.  Mentoring is not just a giving process but also learning from others. 

Third, was the use of dialogue.  Augustine used this greatly and was also enhanced by the monastic community and was even encouraged among the many councils also.  Dialoguing over spiritual issues, prayer, theological and Scriptural issues was very important in these times. 

Fourth, was the issue of writing letters and books.  Smither points out that from Apostle Paul to Augustine, that communicating through writing for the purposes of mentoring and teaching was very popular.  These gave the writers the opportunity to deal with false teaching, encouragement, theological issues, doctrinal issues, and proper interpretation of Scripture as was seen in the continued dialogue of letters between Jerome and Augustine.  Smither’s also stated that “Ambrose believed that letters to fellow clergy were a means of making his presence know though he was personally distant.”[5]  This would have been a very important way to communicate in those times as they would not have had internet and phone systems along with the fact that travel would have taken a great amount of time and effort.  Writing was one of the best forms of communication with such distances. 

Lastly, Smither points out that there is a heritage from Jesus to Augustine of the commitment to the importance of Scriptures and sound teaching.  An example from Augustine’s life is pointed out by Smith, “He believed that as soon as he learned something in the Scriptures, he should quickly pass it on for the edification of the church.”[6]  The Scripture was real and was meant to teach the mentor and the mentored.  Within the context of the monasteries, Scripture reading, teaching and memorization were a foundation to the education of all who attended.  The monasteries ended up producing many clergy over time because of the quality of education.  Smither also mentions that they, “spent time each day reading the Scriptures and other spiritually oriented books from their library.[7] 

The life of Augustine is truly an amazing study.  His passion for mentoring is seen in all that he accomplished.  Smither’s says, “His most significant legacy was ‘numerous clergy.’”[8]  Because of the numerous monasteries that Augustine organized this helped the church and there were many people ordained to the ministry for years to come.  This proves Smither’s thesis that Augustine was an effective mentor.

Overall, this book is a very informative book on mentorship.  Many of the disciplines that helped the church grow and continue even up until this century have been based on these principles.  Discipleship and mentorship are just as important today as they were in Augustine’s time.  Unfortunately, mentorship is becoming a lost art in Western Church culture today because of the hectic and busy lives people lead.  The church must recapture the importance of mentorship today.  Church today has many books and writings today, some having no value, others more.  However, this book helps the Christian to look into Church history and see what worked before and causes rethinking approaches to mentoring.  Such as the mentor, being mentored.  Group discipleship and encouragement.  Real, honest dialogue in the Christian community.  The great importance of the Christian community.  Finally, the awesome responsibility of Christians is to live and breathe the word of God. 

Finally, though the preceding chapters leading up to Augustine’s life were helpful, it can be somewhat disappointing to the reader who is expecting to learn from Augustine to have to wait till halfway through the book to start to learn from his life.  However, the material about mentoring from such men as Cyprian, Basil, and Ambrose is valuable for the reader and leader today.  This will require taking some time out of a busy schedule.

---

[1] Edward L. Smither, Augustine as Mentor (Nashville Tennessee: B&H Academic, 2008),  2.

[2] Ibid, 5.

[3] Ibid, 9.

[4] Ibid, 28.

[5] Ibid, 77.

[6] Ibid, 128.

[7] Ibid, 149.

[8] Ibid, 156.