I recently had the privilege of spending the day listening to Dr. Don Carson speak in Seattle. He is one of the world’s leading New Testament scholars and it’s not very often that I have the opportunity to sit under the teaching of such a distinguished theologian. During the course of the sessions, he devoted an entire hour to examining John 11 and the the miracle of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. It’s not my aim at this time to discuss all the implications that are involved in this passage, however, Dr. Don did expose something in the text that I had never heard before.
To give a brief background of this passage, Jesus and his disciples were some distance away from Judea when they received word that Lazarus was ill. Jesus decides to wait a full two days before leaving to make the journey to Lazarus. At first thought, this may seem strange, but it would prove strategic on the part of Christ. He knew that Lazarus was to die, but in the historical context, it was not uncommon for individuals to be mistaken as dead only to be discovered otherwise in the process of burial. So, according to Jewish customs, a person had to be dead for four days before they were “officially” dead. Even if Jesus had left immediately, Lazarus would have still been dead upon his arrival. Furthermore, we know that in precedence Christ had healed the centurion’s servant from a distance and it was not beyond his ability or custom to do so on occasion. Ultimately, Jesus wanted the people who were to witness this miracle to know beyond a doubt that it was from God. By delaying two days, he would arrive after Lazarus was dead, and no one would be able to claim that he was merely sleeping. Summarily, Jesus’ delay was intentional and would attest that Lazarus’ resurrection was an act that would vindicate and validate his deity.
This would also prove to be Jesus’ last journey to Judea. He would ultimately be arrested and crucified during the course of this journey. That said, Jesus arrives and meets Martha outside the village. Mary is given word of his arrival and goes out to meet him. It is at this point, in the midst of her weeping, that she says: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” The text then states that “when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled”...and again upon arrival at the tomb he was “deeply moved” yet again. Dr. Carson pointed out that this term literally means that Christ was “OUTRAGED”. He wasn’t merely moved in the sentimental, emotional, sadness of the situation; he was OUTRAGED, indeed, even furious. But why? He knew he was going to raise Lazarus. Why the OUTRAGE? Death, at its very core, is a result of sin and the fall. Every time Jesus sees death, he is reminded of the effects of sin. He is OUTRAGED, because sin is the ultimate cause of all suffering and death in the world. We were not created this way. Every person bears the image of God and every time someone suffers or dies, it vindicates the reality of SIN. Jesus is holy and cannot merely look at sin, suffering, and death and feel anything other than RIGHTEOUS HATRED. This is why he was OUTRAGED, FURIOUS, and LIVID. Lazarus death once again points to the core of all of humanity’s problems--SIN. And Jesus is OUTRAGED!
What amazes me most, in meditating on this OUTRAGE, is that in a very short time, Jesus was to become what he hated most. He would literally become SIN and the OUTRAGE that he was experiencing would be directed at HIM by the Father, the full wrath of God would be poured out on him to the very dregs and he would be crushed for our iniquities and our SIN. Jesus became what He hated most and died as a substitute in your place, thus paying the penalty for mine and your SIN.
What are the implications of this? How should we respond? Every time we see pain, suffering, and death, we should feel this same OUTRAGE. Murder, rape, genocide, slavery, human trafficking, all the social-ills, AIDS, cancer, and war, to name but a few attest to the reality that SIN still exists in this world--it is a travesty. In light of the person and work of Christ, we should feel the same OUTRAGE that he felt regardless of our future glorification. There is such a thing as righteous anger. Have you experienced this OUTRAGE?
In light of the Gospel, the only thing powerful enough to have any potential for positive change is that we embrace the full Gospel and allow it to define our identity and purpose in this world. We must address the reality of SIN and treat the disease. The only cure is the cross of Christ. All else is merely a futile attempt to treat the symptoms by some means of spiritual morphine. It may lessen the pain, but the reality is that the disease is still present and worse yet, people do not even know they’re contaminated.
As believers, we should feel OUTRAGED when we see the effects of SIN in the form of pain, suffering, and death. At the same time, this should motivate us to share this very Gospel that is “the POWER” of God to salvation to all who accept Christ and his work on their behalf on the cross. Body of Christ, I pray that this very OUTRAGE motivates you to reflect all the more on the person and work of Christ and in turn devote your life to proclaiming the cross to all who are dead and lost in their SIN! The cost of this Gospel we have been entrusted with is infinite and is something more valuable than anything else on this planet--material or spiritual. Don’t waste your life!
solus Christus
m.
12.07.2008
11.20.2008
11.16.2008
contend: an exhortation
What is the cost of following Christ? I believe inevitably it is the cost of your life. As you know it. On this earth. True grace understands that it cost the the Son of God his very life. This grace is infinitely valuable. To embrace true grace is to truly die to yourself and your desires in every area of life. Sure, it may not cost you martyrdom in the physical sense, but alas, I can assure you that you will face martyrdom. Christ is clear when he says that the world hated him and they will hate you as well. The Christian is an enigma. He is not at home in this world. He is a pilgrim, a sojourner, a nomad, a vagabond. We cherish the time that we have been given to embrace the full Gospel of Christ and the costly grace that has been bestowed upon us.
But oh how much we abuse this grace. We treat it as if it were purchased at a thrift store for the price of pennies on the dollar. Because it was freely given it must have been freely purchased. What blasphemy! What arrogance! What an abomination! To claim to have been bought by the very blood of the Son of God and to in turn spit in his face and represent him in this world as if he is a hill of dung! If it weren’t for Christ, we would all be damned at this very moment! We would still be dead in our sin and at enmity with God. Corpses. Even our good deeds amounting to bloody tampons and menstrual rags. Apart from Christ, we are NOTHING! In Christ, we have our redemption. In Christ, we have been reconciled to God! In Christ, we have been justified and declared righteous! In Christ, we have our adoption! In Christ, is our propitiation, satisfying the very wrath of God that we deserved to have poured out on us to the dregs! In Christ we have victory over the enemy and death! In Christ our salvation is secure! This is true grace! Grace that demands a person to leave all for the sake of his Master! Grace that constrains us to know nothing but Christ and him crucified! Grace that preaches the gospel as the very power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes! Grace that counts everything as loss for the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord! Grace that for his sake we suffer the loss of all things and count them as dung, in order that we may gain Christ! Indeed, this very grace that requires us to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints!
We have been entrusted with something infinitely more valuable than anything on this earth can even come close to in comparison. This Gospel, is the only thing that will reconcile fallen man to God. As believers, we are in an all out WAR! And this war is for the very souls of men. That’s how valuable the Gospel is. And oh how it is profaned and spoken of so flippantly! Body of Christ, its high time we contend for the faith that we have been entrusted with. At the very least I can guarantee that it will cost you something. You will be martyred in some way. Count it all joy, brethren! May the love of Christ control us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, we regard no one according to the the flesh. Even though we one regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from GOD, who through CHRIST reconciled us to himself and gave US the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in CHRIST God was reconciling the world to himself not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We IMPLORE you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that IN HIM we might become the righteousness of God.
Oh, if we would truly embrace the full Gospel and allow it to transform our life! I pray that God will allow our lives as believers to be defined by this very Gospel he has entrusted us with to represent him to the unbelieving world. May we repent of our cheap, flippant ways in which Christ is so grossly misrepresenting to the unbelieving world. May the love of God that cost Christ his very life compel you to proclaim and live this Gospel, even if the cost is infinite!
solus Christus
m.
But oh how much we abuse this grace. We treat it as if it were purchased at a thrift store for the price of pennies on the dollar. Because it was freely given it must have been freely purchased. What blasphemy! What arrogance! What an abomination! To claim to have been bought by the very blood of the Son of God and to in turn spit in his face and represent him in this world as if he is a hill of dung! If it weren’t for Christ, we would all be damned at this very moment! We would still be dead in our sin and at enmity with God. Corpses. Even our good deeds amounting to bloody tampons and menstrual rags. Apart from Christ, we are NOTHING! In Christ, we have our redemption. In Christ, we have been reconciled to God! In Christ, we have been justified and declared righteous! In Christ, we have our adoption! In Christ, is our propitiation, satisfying the very wrath of God that we deserved to have poured out on us to the dregs! In Christ we have victory over the enemy and death! In Christ our salvation is secure! This is true grace! Grace that demands a person to leave all for the sake of his Master! Grace that constrains us to know nothing but Christ and him crucified! Grace that preaches the gospel as the very power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes! Grace that counts everything as loss for the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord! Grace that for his sake we suffer the loss of all things and count them as dung, in order that we may gain Christ! Indeed, this very grace that requires us to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints!
We have been entrusted with something infinitely more valuable than anything on this earth can even come close to in comparison. This Gospel, is the only thing that will reconcile fallen man to God. As believers, we are in an all out WAR! And this war is for the very souls of men. That’s how valuable the Gospel is. And oh how it is profaned and spoken of so flippantly! Body of Christ, its high time we contend for the faith that we have been entrusted with. At the very least I can guarantee that it will cost you something. You will be martyred in some way. Count it all joy, brethren! May the love of Christ control us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, we regard no one according to the the flesh. Even though we one regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from GOD, who through CHRIST reconciled us to himself and gave US the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in CHRIST God was reconciling the world to himself not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We IMPLORE you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that IN HIM we might become the righteousness of God.
Oh, if we would truly embrace the full Gospel and allow it to transform our life! I pray that God will allow our lives as believers to be defined by this very Gospel he has entrusted us with to represent him to the unbelieving world. May we repent of our cheap, flippant ways in which Christ is so grossly misrepresenting to the unbelieving world. May the love of God that cost Christ his very life compel you to proclaim and live this Gospel, even if the cost is infinite!
solus Christus
m.
11.06.2008
the day after: a reflecion
In light of the conclusion of yesterday’s election, I could not help but be amazed by the response of people on both sides. I don’t want to come off as being a cynic or rain on anyone’s party, but I’m somewhat grieved. Primarily, the grief has nothing to do with President Elect Obama. When it comes to politics, I’m a moderate and I’ll give anyone a fair shake. Ultimately, I believe that God is in control and Romans 13 is clear, ...”Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.” So, I submit myself and honor Obama as my President as I have Bush. I have no qualms and I’m at absolute peace and understand that God is and has been in control of every election.
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, one of my dead mentors I often read, says that there are two things that never change; God and man. When I look at world history, I cannot help but see that “peace” is not the default mode of society, rather it’s war. Times of peace are actually an abnormality as far as world history is concerned. Look at the history of our nation alone. We have seen far more years of war than peace. Every empire eventually falls and the world is a “jacked” up place. Always has been, always will be. That is, until Christ returns and makes things right. What grieves me is that so many people, Christians included, place so much faith in one man as if he is the savior and is going to set everything right and we’re going to live in this utopia for time immemorial. This is not the first time I’ve observed this in my short life. It happens every four years. A president is elected, hopes are high, hopes are dashed, the parties “war” blaming each other. No one takes responsibility or acknowledges that they could have possibly been wrong on a “matter”. I can’t help but see depravity everywhere. People are longing for a Savior. Someone to rescue them from their dire condition and make things right. They want Jesus, but they don’t know it and don’t want to know it. All men have the desire to be rescued and worship something bigger and beyond themselves. That’s the way God created us. Anything short of Christ will only result in apathetic let downs and dashed hopes and dreams.
So, how bad is this world? It’s worse than you think it is. How lost are you? More lost than you believe you are, myself included. How much does God love you? More than you ever dared hope for. So much that he personally came to this earth and took on human flesh and gave his own life on your behalf. That’s where true “change” occurs. By Christ rescuing us from our fallen state. If we would only fall more passionately in love with the Gospel of Christ and embrace it and allow it to define our lives. It wouldn’t matter who was in office. There is nothing more powerful on the face of this earth than the true power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the “power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.” That my friends is where the change has to occur. By all means, politics has its place. It was instituted by God. But it is primarily a negative force to somewhat manage and slow the decay of this utterly rotten world in which we live. The only positive change that occurs in this world through lives being rescued out this darkness and brought into the light of the Gospel.
So, I conclude by making this appeal. If you’re a believer in Christ, I urge you to embrace the full Gospel and allow it to take hold of your life. If your not a believer, I want you to know that I love you and I’m praying for you and I’m here for you! I understand what its like to not believe. I understand what its like to not like Christians. But please, this is something that goes far beyond this life. I love you too much not to give you this truth. If you truly desire to be rescued, please turn to Christ and he will receive you with open arms just as you are, baggage included. I love you!
10.31.2008
The Prodigal God
When it comes to understanding the Gospel in opposition not only to irreligion, but also religion, Tim Keller is among the best. In his latest book, The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith, Keller beautifully deconstructs the parable of the Prodigal Son and mines all the precious gems that are often looked over. I would recommend this book to every believer, especially those that have grown up in religious Christianity and struggle with religious baggage. Also, listen here for the sermon that inspired the book!
10.30.2008
Losing the Gospel in the Fog of Politics and Social Justice
[Recently, I’ve been making my way through a book by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones entitled The Assurance of Our Salvation: Exploring the Depths of Jesus’ Prayer for His Own. The book consists of around fifty sermons that he preached on Sunday mornings from 1952 to 1953. It has been tremendously rewarding and sobering. This week, while making my way through the middle section of Christ’s prayer, a few things have stood out. Subsequently, the wheels have been turning and I’m going to attempt to relate some of my thoughts on some issues I’ve been wrestling with of late.]
In John 17:11, Jesus says:
...”I am no longer in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and no one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.”
These words were uttered literally hours before Jesus would proceed to the cross. The hour had finally arrived and he was about to fulfill what he had ultimately been sent by the Father to do. It’s interesting that he uttered this prayer out loud and that it was obviously intended for the disciples to hear. Fortunately, this prayer was not limited to his disciples, but intended for all believers in all times, ourselves included. In verse twenty, Jesus says, “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word...”. I cannot help but be amazed that during this hour of utmost emotional and spiritual distress, Christ took the time to pray for his own, myself included. A sobering thought. Furthermore, I cannot help but intrigued that he asked the Father not to take them out of world, but that you keep them from the evil one. Why did he pray this? I cannot help but wonder at times why God leaves his people in such a wicked, polluted, dark, and fallen world? Why not instantly take us out of this world and directly into his presence? These are questions I have wrestled with multiple times throughout my life as a believer. To further complicate matters, he says that we are not of the world, but it’s obvious that we exist in the world. Then he proceeds to ask the Father to sanctify them in truth; your word is truth. Finally, Jesus says he has sent us into the world.
In light of this passage, among many others, I struggle to find a balance between existence in the world and not being of the world. When I look around, I cannot help but see a huge pendulum swing in two opposing directions. There are those who believe it is the role of believers to transform the world through political means and by simply voting for the correct candidate they have fulfilled their role. Change occurs by political means and as long as we vote and elect the right individuals, then we can rest assured that we have done our job. Once abortion is “illegal” and gay marriage is not “recognized”, then we have achieved what God has left us here to do. I agree with the Dr. when he says by way of a blunt assertion: “...with regard to the relationship of the church and the individual Christian to such matters...is that the Christian’s interest in such things is not direct but indirect. Let me put it this way: all these matters are part of the function of the state and not of the church as church, nor of the Christian as Christian--of the Christian as a citizen of the state, certainly, but not of the Christian qua Christian...The functions of the state are of necessity good because the state has been appointed by God; let us never forget that. It is therefore a good thing to point out things which are wrong...all these things [concerns for political issues, social justice, etc.] are perfectly all right and we should be glad of them and pay due attention to them. Teaching about morality, in and of itself, is right. It is good to warn people against the consequences and the dangers of wrong actions, and it is right that the law of the land should be enforced. It is wrong to break the law, and it should be the business of all citizens to see that the law of the land and the statute of the book is enforced...I want to go further: it is right that the state should enforce God’s law, because the state derives its own being from God...The state is not a human contrivance, it is not man who conceived the idea of the state and of law, it is God who ordained it...and one of the duties of the state is, therefore, to see that God’s name is honored and glorified...It is the business of the citizen to see that the state functions in the best way and one of the functions of the state is to remind men of God, and to see that the rulers are God-fearing people.”
Along with the Dr., I do not have a problem with the role and function of government, or even desiring to elect God-fearing candidates, but I do think this mentality falls short when we view government and politics as a means to an end in and of itself. Government and politics function primarily in a negative sense. The Dr. concludes with the following: “...you will see at once that the purpose of all this is simply to set a limit to sin and to the results of sin and wrongdoing. All that I have been describing can do nothing more than control sin and keep it within bounds. I think that it is obvious that it is an entirely negative work...all these things can never make anybody a Christian. It is a very great sin to confuse law and grace. These movements are really only concerned with law, and it is their function to keep people under the law until they come under grace...It is because of this this, then, that I go on to say that really laws and regulations and various other things have nothing to do with the Christian as such, and that is why I said earlier on that these things are not primarily the business of the church...it is the business of the church to preach the gospel and to show what I would call, with Paul, ‘a more excellent way’. That is why the church must always be careful to ensure that nothing she does or says should ever detract from or her compromise her message and her gospel. The church derives her power entirely and solely from God and in no sense from the sate, or from the law. If there is one thing about which we should be more jealous than anything else it is that within the church we recognize no law, no leader, no ultimate king save the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the sole head of the church--no state, no man, no monarch, no one else but the Lord himself...The church ,in other words, must never hide herself behind the law of the land and she must never try to enforce her message by using the law of the land, for that is to compromise her gospel. It is to make the unbeliever in the world say, ‘Ah these people are trying to force this upon us, they are using the law in order to get it done.’ No, at all costs the church must keep her message pure and clean, and she must take her stand upon the purity of the gospel and upon that alone. Indeed I do not hesitate to go so far as to say that the church, claiming as she does that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, must be prepared to say that her gospel will work in spite of the world whatever its state, whatever its condition; that even if hell be let loose on the face of the earth, her gospel is still powerful...As a preacher of the gospel...I must stand on the basis that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church; that as the power of the church is the Holy Spirit, it matters not what the world may be like, for this gospel is the power of God unto salvation, and in order to get right down into the dregs and do its own work, it need no help from the state. It does not need to hide behind the law, because it can stand on its own feet and trust in the power of the living God.”
Not only do I see the pendulum swing in the direction of a political gospel but I also believe that it swings in the opposite direction of a social gospel in which God leaves us here to merely act on issues of social justice and change will occur. Feeding the poor, embracing culture, etc. are seen as a means to an end. Unfortunately, I feel we’re looking at two sides of the same coin. Both sides fall tragically short of proclaiming and giving the people the truth of the gospel. They merely treat symptoms without getting to the root and treating the disease of indwelling sin and separation from God. Both sides view either themselves or others as a victim of the system, as opposed to sinners opposed to a holy God who has given believers the task of proclaiming this truth through the power of the gospel. I’m grieved as I look at both sides spending so much time shooting their bullets at each other and not at the true enemy who has blinded those to the truth of the gospel. Change does not occur in those ways, but in a much more positive way: the gospel way. The Dr. furthers this argument by pleading with us to “rely upon God’s work, and of course this work of God in the soul is regeneration; it is the making of a new man, the creating of a new being, the giving of a new life. So the gospel way of attacking this problem is not negative...but positive....The gospel and the church are not so much interested in less sin, as in more and positive holiness. All the other movements...are interested in avoiding sin, but the Christian life is about sanctification. Though a man may never drink, though he may never, even, do any of the things which are wrong in and of themselves, yet, if he does not see himself as a vile, hopeless sinner who is saved only by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, he is as lost and damned as the most profligate sinner in the world. The church and the Christian should not be interested only, or even primarily, in the general social effects of salvation, but in the fact that men and women should be brought nearer to God, and should live for his glory. When the church gives the world the impression that she interested in revival only in order to heal certain moral sores, she is denying her own message. I am not primarily interested in revival in order that the streets may be cleansed; I am interested in it because I believe that for any man not to glorify God is an insult to God. I know that such a man is held bound, and my desire is that he may come to know God and glorify him in his daily life. The church is not interested primarily in the social consequences of irreligion...[that results in] becoming so interested in social conditions that we forget primary truth...that is morality, and not Christianity.”
So where does this bring us? How is the Christian to be in the world but not of the world? In the Jesus’ manifesto given in the Sermon on the Mount, he states emphatically that Christians are the salt of the earth and the light to the world. He has just finished describing the character and identity of the Christian, given in the Beatitudes. This naturally leaders to the function and conduct of the believer. Salt represents preservation. The Christian is first off to be a preserving force in a world that is rotting and subject to putrefaction. Secondly, he is an illuminating force pointing and proclaiming unbelievers to the truth of the Gospel. In regards to preservation the Dr. adds...“the Christian and the gospel, are not so much concerned about removing occasions for sin, as in removing from man the desire to sin. ‘I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one...Sanctify them.’ Our Lord is saying in effect, ‘I am not so concerned that you should take the occasion for sin away but that you should take out of man the desire to take advantage of the occasion.’ You see the difference? The gospel of Jesus Christ does not so much take the Christian out of the world, as take the world out of the Christian. That is the point. ‘Sanctify them’: whatever the world is like around and about them, if the world is not in them, the world outside them will not be able to affect them. That is the glory of the gospel; it makes a man free in the midst of hell...Or again...the gospel is not so much concerned about changing the conditions as about changing the man...You need not change the man’s conditions before you change the man--thank God, the gospel can change the man in spite of the conditions.”
I don’t want people to think I’m against politics or social justice. In fact I believe that both are right if done correctly. I’ve actually written at length recently about religious oppression of social justice. I believe the Dr. once again sums it up best: “...our main concern should not be so much to limit the power of evil as to increase the power of godliness within us. Let me give an illustration at this point. The gospel is not primarily concerned to remove the sores of infection, or to put us out of the danger of infection; what the gospel does is to build up our resistance to infection to such a point that it renders us immune to it. The [believer] is not concerned with trying to destroy the infection. Until our Lord returns again the infection will be there; until Satan is cast into the lake burning with fire, the infection will continue. You cannot stop it! It will be there in spite of our [political and social] efforts. The Christian is not primarily concerned about that. The business of the Christian, and the church, and the gospel is to see that you and I take so much of the pure milk of the word and strong meat of the word that our resistance is built up to such an extent that we can, as it were, stay in a house of infectious disease, and be absolutely immune. The germs are there, yes, but we are filled with anti-bodies that destroy them the moment they attack us...’Sanctify them’--that is sanctification, and its whole approach is not negative, but entirely positive. Sanctification means that we become more like the Lord Jesus Christ. He was so immune that he could sit with publicans and sinners and not be contaminated by them. People could not understand it. Pharisees could not understand it. ‘This man is a friend of publicans and sinners,’ they said. But because of his resistance, our Lord could sit there without danger at all; and what our Lord prays is that we may be made like him. He says, ‘As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.’ ‘Sanctify them.’ Make them like me, render them immune from assaults of temptation that whenever attack comes they will be guarded against it. ‘I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one’. And that is the ultimate way we are kept...Though in it, we shall not be of it; we shall be walking through it in the light with God.”
I have to confess that I have been convicted and know that I swing from time to time in each direction, typically in regards to trying to treat the symptoms without giving people the solution to the disease by way of the power of the gospel. I pray that God will continue to keep you, my brothers and sisters, from swinging too far in either direction, but that we may all keep our eyes focused on Christ as he continues to sanctify us and form us more into the image of Jesus. Amen!
In John 17:11, Jesus says:
...”I am no longer in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and no one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.”
These words were uttered literally hours before Jesus would proceed to the cross. The hour had finally arrived and he was about to fulfill what he had ultimately been sent by the Father to do. It’s interesting that he uttered this prayer out loud and that it was obviously intended for the disciples to hear. Fortunately, this prayer was not limited to his disciples, but intended for all believers in all times, ourselves included. In verse twenty, Jesus says, “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word...”. I cannot help but be amazed that during this hour of utmost emotional and spiritual distress, Christ took the time to pray for his own, myself included. A sobering thought. Furthermore, I cannot help but intrigued that he asked the Father not to take them out of world, but that you keep them from the evil one. Why did he pray this? I cannot help but wonder at times why God leaves his people in such a wicked, polluted, dark, and fallen world? Why not instantly take us out of this world and directly into his presence? These are questions I have wrestled with multiple times throughout my life as a believer. To further complicate matters, he says that we are not of the world, but it’s obvious that we exist in the world. Then he proceeds to ask the Father to sanctify them in truth; your word is truth. Finally, Jesus says he has sent us into the world.
In light of this passage, among many others, I struggle to find a balance between existence in the world and not being of the world. When I look around, I cannot help but see a huge pendulum swing in two opposing directions. There are those who believe it is the role of believers to transform the world through political means and by simply voting for the correct candidate they have fulfilled their role. Change occurs by political means and as long as we vote and elect the right individuals, then we can rest assured that we have done our job. Once abortion is “illegal” and gay marriage is not “recognized”, then we have achieved what God has left us here to do. I agree with the Dr. when he says by way of a blunt assertion: “...with regard to the relationship of the church and the individual Christian to such matters...is that the Christian’s interest in such things is not direct but indirect. Let me put it this way: all these matters are part of the function of the state and not of the church as church, nor of the Christian as Christian--of the Christian as a citizen of the state, certainly, but not of the Christian qua Christian...The functions of the state are of necessity good because the state has been appointed by God; let us never forget that. It is therefore a good thing to point out things which are wrong...all these things [concerns for political issues, social justice, etc.] are perfectly all right and we should be glad of them and pay due attention to them. Teaching about morality, in and of itself, is right. It is good to warn people against the consequences and the dangers of wrong actions, and it is right that the law of the land should be enforced. It is wrong to break the law, and it should be the business of all citizens to see that the law of the land and the statute of the book is enforced...I want to go further: it is right that the state should enforce God’s law, because the state derives its own being from God...The state is not a human contrivance, it is not man who conceived the idea of the state and of law, it is God who ordained it...and one of the duties of the state is, therefore, to see that God’s name is honored and glorified...It is the business of the citizen to see that the state functions in the best way and one of the functions of the state is to remind men of God, and to see that the rulers are God-fearing people.”
Along with the Dr., I do not have a problem with the role and function of government, or even desiring to elect God-fearing candidates, but I do think this mentality falls short when we view government and politics as a means to an end in and of itself. Government and politics function primarily in a negative sense. The Dr. concludes with the following: “...you will see at once that the purpose of all this is simply to set a limit to sin and to the results of sin and wrongdoing. All that I have been describing can do nothing more than control sin and keep it within bounds. I think that it is obvious that it is an entirely negative work...all these things can never make anybody a Christian. It is a very great sin to confuse law and grace. These movements are really only concerned with law, and it is their function to keep people under the law until they come under grace...It is because of this this, then, that I go on to say that really laws and regulations and various other things have nothing to do with the Christian as such, and that is why I said earlier on that these things are not primarily the business of the church...it is the business of the church to preach the gospel and to show what I would call, with Paul, ‘a more excellent way’. That is why the church must always be careful to ensure that nothing she does or says should ever detract from or her compromise her message and her gospel. The church derives her power entirely and solely from God and in no sense from the sate, or from the law. If there is one thing about which we should be more jealous than anything else it is that within the church we recognize no law, no leader, no ultimate king save the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the sole head of the church--no state, no man, no monarch, no one else but the Lord himself...The church ,in other words, must never hide herself behind the law of the land and she must never try to enforce her message by using the law of the land, for that is to compromise her gospel. It is to make the unbeliever in the world say, ‘Ah these people are trying to force this upon us, they are using the law in order to get it done.’ No, at all costs the church must keep her message pure and clean, and she must take her stand upon the purity of the gospel and upon that alone. Indeed I do not hesitate to go so far as to say that the church, claiming as she does that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, must be prepared to say that her gospel will work in spite of the world whatever its state, whatever its condition; that even if hell be let loose on the face of the earth, her gospel is still powerful...As a preacher of the gospel...I must stand on the basis that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church; that as the power of the church is the Holy Spirit, it matters not what the world may be like, for this gospel is the power of God unto salvation, and in order to get right down into the dregs and do its own work, it need no help from the state. It does not need to hide behind the law, because it can stand on its own feet and trust in the power of the living God.”
Not only do I see the pendulum swing in the direction of a political gospel but I also believe that it swings in the opposite direction of a social gospel in which God leaves us here to merely act on issues of social justice and change will occur. Feeding the poor, embracing culture, etc. are seen as a means to an end. Unfortunately, I feel we’re looking at two sides of the same coin. Both sides fall tragically short of proclaiming and giving the people the truth of the gospel. They merely treat symptoms without getting to the root and treating the disease of indwelling sin and separation from God. Both sides view either themselves or others as a victim of the system, as opposed to sinners opposed to a holy God who has given believers the task of proclaiming this truth through the power of the gospel. I’m grieved as I look at both sides spending so much time shooting their bullets at each other and not at the true enemy who has blinded those to the truth of the gospel. Change does not occur in those ways, but in a much more positive way: the gospel way. The Dr. furthers this argument by pleading with us to “rely upon God’s work, and of course this work of God in the soul is regeneration; it is the making of a new man, the creating of a new being, the giving of a new life. So the gospel way of attacking this problem is not negative...but positive....The gospel and the church are not so much interested in less sin, as in more and positive holiness. All the other movements...are interested in avoiding sin, but the Christian life is about sanctification. Though a man may never drink, though he may never, even, do any of the things which are wrong in and of themselves, yet, if he does not see himself as a vile, hopeless sinner who is saved only by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, he is as lost and damned as the most profligate sinner in the world. The church and the Christian should not be interested only, or even primarily, in the general social effects of salvation, but in the fact that men and women should be brought nearer to God, and should live for his glory. When the church gives the world the impression that she interested in revival only in order to heal certain moral sores, she is denying her own message. I am not primarily interested in revival in order that the streets may be cleansed; I am interested in it because I believe that for any man not to glorify God is an insult to God. I know that such a man is held bound, and my desire is that he may come to know God and glorify him in his daily life. The church is not interested primarily in the social consequences of irreligion...[that results in] becoming so interested in social conditions that we forget primary truth...that is morality, and not Christianity.”
So where does this bring us? How is the Christian to be in the world but not of the world? In the Jesus’ manifesto given in the Sermon on the Mount, he states emphatically that Christians are the salt of the earth and the light to the world. He has just finished describing the character and identity of the Christian, given in the Beatitudes. This naturally leaders to the function and conduct of the believer. Salt represents preservation. The Christian is first off to be a preserving force in a world that is rotting and subject to putrefaction. Secondly, he is an illuminating force pointing and proclaiming unbelievers to the truth of the Gospel. In regards to preservation the Dr. adds...“the Christian and the gospel, are not so much concerned about removing occasions for sin, as in removing from man the desire to sin. ‘I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one...Sanctify them.’ Our Lord is saying in effect, ‘I am not so concerned that you should take the occasion for sin away but that you should take out of man the desire to take advantage of the occasion.’ You see the difference? The gospel of Jesus Christ does not so much take the Christian out of the world, as take the world out of the Christian. That is the point. ‘Sanctify them’: whatever the world is like around and about them, if the world is not in them, the world outside them will not be able to affect them. That is the glory of the gospel; it makes a man free in the midst of hell...Or again...the gospel is not so much concerned about changing the conditions as about changing the man...You need not change the man’s conditions before you change the man--thank God, the gospel can change the man in spite of the conditions.”
I don’t want people to think I’m against politics or social justice. In fact I believe that both are right if done correctly. I’ve actually written at length recently about religious oppression of social justice. I believe the Dr. once again sums it up best: “...our main concern should not be so much to limit the power of evil as to increase the power of godliness within us. Let me give an illustration at this point. The gospel is not primarily concerned to remove the sores of infection, or to put us out of the danger of infection; what the gospel does is to build up our resistance to infection to such a point that it renders us immune to it. The [believer] is not concerned with trying to destroy the infection. Until our Lord returns again the infection will be there; until Satan is cast into the lake burning with fire, the infection will continue. You cannot stop it! It will be there in spite of our [political and social] efforts. The Christian is not primarily concerned about that. The business of the Christian, and the church, and the gospel is to see that you and I take so much of the pure milk of the word and strong meat of the word that our resistance is built up to such an extent that we can, as it were, stay in a house of infectious disease, and be absolutely immune. The germs are there, yes, but we are filled with anti-bodies that destroy them the moment they attack us...’Sanctify them’--that is sanctification, and its whole approach is not negative, but entirely positive. Sanctification means that we become more like the Lord Jesus Christ. He was so immune that he could sit with publicans and sinners and not be contaminated by them. People could not understand it. Pharisees could not understand it. ‘This man is a friend of publicans and sinners,’ they said. But because of his resistance, our Lord could sit there without danger at all; and what our Lord prays is that we may be made like him. He says, ‘As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.’ ‘Sanctify them.’ Make them like me, render them immune from assaults of temptation that whenever attack comes they will be guarded against it. ‘I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one’. And that is the ultimate way we are kept...Though in it, we shall not be of it; we shall be walking through it in the light with God.”
I have to confess that I have been convicted and know that I swing from time to time in each direction, typically in regards to trying to treat the symptoms without giving people the solution to the disease by way of the power of the gospel. I pray that God will continue to keep you, my brothers and sisters, from swinging too far in either direction, but that we may all keep our eyes focused on Christ as he continues to sanctify us and form us more into the image of Jesus. Amen!
10.05.2008
religious oppression of social justice
“The tendency of religious people...is to use spiritual and ethical observance as a lever to gain power over others and over God, appeasing him through their good works. This leads to both an emphasis on external religious forms as well as greed, materialism, and oppression in social arrangements. Those who believe they have pleased God by the quality of their devotion and moral goodness naturally feel that they and their group deserve deference and power over others...In Jesus’ and the prophets’ critique, self-righteous religion is always marked by insensitivity to issues of social justice, while true faith is marked by profound concern for the poor and marginalized.” - Tim Keller, The Reason for God, 59-60.
The more I understand the true, holistic nature of the Gospel, the more I abhor religion. The essence of religion requires man to observe ritualistic traditions and/or work to maintain his righteousness in order to appease a holy God. Religion says in effect if I obey God He will love me. It is man-centered and by religion you are attempting in your own strength to achieve the impossible. Because religion forces you to compare yourself to others rather than Christ, those whom are poor and marginalized become a simple and easy target. There is no grace offered or given, because in religion one has not truly accepted or received true grace as experienced in the Gospel.
Tim Keller, in his book The Reason for God, offers some very interesting insight into this issue. He says, “Extremism and fanaticism, which lead to injustice and oppression, are a constant danger within the body of religious believers. For Christians, however, the antidote is not to tone down and moderate their faith, but rather to grasp a fuller and truer faith in Christ. The scholar Merold Westphal documents how Marx’s analysis of religion as an instrument of oppression was anticipated by the Hebrew prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, and even by the message of the New Testament gospels. Marx, according to Westphal, was unoriginal in his critique of religion--the Bible beat him to it.”
Jesus, in his manifesto recorded in Matthew 5-7, directs his criticism to the “religious” people of his day. “It’s interesting that the very people he criticizes pray, give to the poor, and seek to live a life according to the “law”, but they do so in order to get recognition and power for themselves. They believe they will get leverage over others and even over God because of their spiritual performance (Mt 6:7). This makes them judgmental, and condemning, quick to give criticism, and unwilling to take it. They are fanatics...In his teaching, Jesus continually says to the respectable and upright, “The tax collectors and the prostitutes enter the kingdom before you (Mt. 21:31). He continuously condemns in white-hot language their legalism, self-righteousness, bigotry, and love of wealth and power (You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness...You neglect justice and the love of God...You load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them...[You] devour widows’ houses and for a show make long prayers (Lk 11:39-46; 20:47)
Jesus followed the example of the prophets such as Isaiah, who said to the people of his day:
“Day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They seem eager for God to come near them. ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers...Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice...to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter--when you see the naked, to clothe him...?” (Is 58:2-7)
Jesus and the prophets were not against prayer, fasting, and obedience to Biblical directions for life. They were opposed to the tendency of religious people to use these means as a lever to gain power...The God of Jesus and the prophets, however, saves completely by grace. He cannot be manipulated by religious and moral performance--he can only be reached through repentance, through the giving up of power. If we are saved by sheer grace we can only become grateful, willing servants of God and of everyone around us...The Swiss theologian John Calvin, in his commentaries on the Hebrew prophets, says that God so identifies with the poor that their cries express divine pain. The Bible teaches us that our treatment of them equals our treatment of God.
So, what do make in light of all this religiosity that uses the very things we’re commanded to do as levers for oppression and power? Tim Keller paints a beautiful picture of the true Gospel in light of all this in chapter fourteen of his book as follows:
“The story of the gospel makes sense of moral obligation and our belief in the reality of justice, so Christians do restorative and redistributive justice wherever they can. The story of the gospel makes sense of our indelible religiousness, so Christians do evangelism, pointing the way to forgiveness and reconciliation with God through Jesus. The gospel makes sense of our profoundly relational character, so Christians work sacrificially to strengthen human communities around them as well as the Christian community the church. The gospel story makes sense of our delight in the presence of beauty, so Christians become stewards of the material world, from those who cultivate the natural creation through science and gardening to those who give themselves to artistic endeavers, all knowing why these things are necessary for human flourishing. The skies and trees ‘sing’ of the glory of God, and by caring for them and celebrating them we free their voices to praise him and delight us. In short, the Christian life means not only building up the Christian community through encouraging people to faith in Christ, but building up the human community through deeds of justice and service...Christians then are the true ‘revolutionaries’ who work for justice and truth, and we labor in expectation of a perfect world in which: He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things is passed away (Re 21:4)...And when we get there, we will say, I’ve come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I’ve been looking for all my life, though I never knew it!” (Keller, 225-6)
Please join me in making this my life’s passion and desire by living out a true Christ-centered, Gospel-driven life of a true “revolutionary”!
[The majority of this post is adapted from Tim Keller in his book, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism. I’ve attempted to synthesize the main points and majority of the argument as laid out. I highly recommend reading the entire book at some point. I am by no means attempting to take credit for this post. This section appears in chapter four of his book under the heading “The Biblical Critique of Religion”, 58-60.]
The more I understand the true, holistic nature of the Gospel, the more I abhor religion. The essence of religion requires man to observe ritualistic traditions and/or work to maintain his righteousness in order to appease a holy God. Religion says in effect if I obey God He will love me. It is man-centered and by religion you are attempting in your own strength to achieve the impossible. Because religion forces you to compare yourself to others rather than Christ, those whom are poor and marginalized become a simple and easy target. There is no grace offered or given, because in religion one has not truly accepted or received true grace as experienced in the Gospel.
Tim Keller, in his book The Reason for God, offers some very interesting insight into this issue. He says, “Extremism and fanaticism, which lead to injustice and oppression, are a constant danger within the body of religious believers. For Christians, however, the antidote is not to tone down and moderate their faith, but rather to grasp a fuller and truer faith in Christ. The scholar Merold Westphal documents how Marx’s analysis of religion as an instrument of oppression was anticipated by the Hebrew prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, and even by the message of the New Testament gospels. Marx, according to Westphal, was unoriginal in his critique of religion--the Bible beat him to it.”
Jesus, in his manifesto recorded in Matthew 5-7, directs his criticism to the “religious” people of his day. “It’s interesting that the very people he criticizes pray, give to the poor, and seek to live a life according to the “law”, but they do so in order to get recognition and power for themselves. They believe they will get leverage over others and even over God because of their spiritual performance (Mt 6:7). This makes them judgmental, and condemning, quick to give criticism, and unwilling to take it. They are fanatics...In his teaching, Jesus continually says to the respectable and upright, “The tax collectors and the prostitutes enter the kingdom before you (Mt. 21:31). He continuously condemns in white-hot language their legalism, self-righteousness, bigotry, and love of wealth and power (You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness...You neglect justice and the love of God...You load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them...[You] devour widows’ houses and for a show make long prayers (Lk 11:39-46; 20:47)
Jesus followed the example of the prophets such as Isaiah, who said to the people of his day:
“Day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They seem eager for God to come near them. ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers...Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice...to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter--when you see the naked, to clothe him...?” (Is 58:2-7)
Jesus and the prophets were not against prayer, fasting, and obedience to Biblical directions for life. They were opposed to the tendency of religious people to use these means as a lever to gain power...The God of Jesus and the prophets, however, saves completely by grace. He cannot be manipulated by religious and moral performance--he can only be reached through repentance, through the giving up of power. If we are saved by sheer grace we can only become grateful, willing servants of God and of everyone around us...The Swiss theologian John Calvin, in his commentaries on the Hebrew prophets, says that God so identifies with the poor that their cries express divine pain. The Bible teaches us that our treatment of them equals our treatment of God.
So, what do make in light of all this religiosity that uses the very things we’re commanded to do as levers for oppression and power? Tim Keller paints a beautiful picture of the true Gospel in light of all this in chapter fourteen of his book as follows:
“The story of the gospel makes sense of moral obligation and our belief in the reality of justice, so Christians do restorative and redistributive justice wherever they can. The story of the gospel makes sense of our indelible religiousness, so Christians do evangelism, pointing the way to forgiveness and reconciliation with God through Jesus. The gospel makes sense of our profoundly relational character, so Christians work sacrificially to strengthen human communities around them as well as the Christian community the church. The gospel story makes sense of our delight in the presence of beauty, so Christians become stewards of the material world, from those who cultivate the natural creation through science and gardening to those who give themselves to artistic endeavers, all knowing why these things are necessary for human flourishing. The skies and trees ‘sing’ of the glory of God, and by caring for them and celebrating them we free their voices to praise him and delight us. In short, the Christian life means not only building up the Christian community through encouraging people to faith in Christ, but building up the human community through deeds of justice and service...Christians then are the true ‘revolutionaries’ who work for justice and truth, and we labor in expectation of a perfect world in which: He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things is passed away (Re 21:4)...And when we get there, we will say, I’ve come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I’ve been looking for all my life, though I never knew it!” (Keller, 225-6)
Please join me in making this my life’s passion and desire by living out a true Christ-centered, Gospel-driven life of a true “revolutionary”!
[The majority of this post is adapted from Tim Keller in his book, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism. I’ve attempted to synthesize the main points and majority of the argument as laid out. I highly recommend reading the entire book at some point. I am by no means attempting to take credit for this post. This section appears in chapter four of his book under the heading “The Biblical Critique of Religion”, 58-60.]
9.30.2008
reflection
The last two years have been a journey of EPIC proportions to say the least. I’ve experienced ups and downs, joy and heartache, grace and bitterness, arrogance and humility, and just about every other emotional/spiritual attribute under the sun. Wondering around like a vagabond, I’ve lived in four states ranging from CO, WV, NC, and now OR. Arriving here in Portland, I can look back and honestly say that it is by God’s providence that I’m here.
Growing up in southern WV, like anywhere, had its advantages and disadvantages. I grew up in a middle/lower working class family. My dad worked a blue-collar job managing the produce department at a local grocery store. Mom, she stayed at home, raising my two sisters and I in what I would consider an average childhood. Both parents sacrificed significantly to send my sisters and I to a private Christian school. I never knew how much they gave, but looking back, I know it’s more than they let on. By mom staying at home, they chose to sacrifice such things as a nice house, opting instead to raise my sisters and I in a mobile home. Instead of driving two cars, we always had one vehicle which was responsible for all our logistical transportation. I never went without, and unlike many other poor, southern Appalachia children, I never went to bed hungry. I never went without clothes. I never went without love. I actually look back and thank God and cherish the loving sacrifices that my parents made.
I was raised in what I would describe a typical, independent, fundamental, cookie-cutter baptist church. I honestly don’t know the first time I heard the “message” of salvation or how many times I prayed the prayer to “ask Jesus to come into my heart” (whatever that’s supposed to mean). I grew up in what I would describe as religious Christianity. You know, the kind that drives you to a constant sense of guilt and condemnation. And when you don’t feel guilty about anything, you feel guilty about not feeling guilty. God isn’t viewed as a father. Sure, you’re saved by grace, but when it comes to your sanctification, you better work for it. If I work hard enough and follow every rule, then God will love me. The whole Santa Claus is Coming to Town theology........God’s makin’ a list and checkin’ it twice/Gonna find out who’s naughty and nice/He sees me when I’m sleepin’ and knows when I’m awake/so let’s just be good for “goodness” sake. God is a distant figure way up in some spiritual north pole and my list of prayers may reach Him if I my good deeds outweigh the bad. You always hear this talk about “personal” relationship, but it’s a journey that is way too hard and nothing you ever do is ever good enough to make any significant headway. So, eventually, you just throw in the towel and say to hell with it. I can’t do this! Apathy sets in...
High school graduation rolls around. I’m young and going to conquer the world. I have it all planned out. I’m going into Biology with the end goal of being a pediatrician. I’ll make money, have the big house I never had growing up, drive the nice car, and of course give my measly 10% of my six figure income to whatever church I join where I can write it off on my taxes. God will finally be pleased and smile on all I’ve done and accomplished. I will have finally earned his favor! Then I can rest assured in his salvation. After one semester, I slip further down this slippery waterfall of apathy that eventually pours into a pool of spiritual stagnation. Direction is lost and soon this gives way to the stench of festering bitterness that pollutes and fogs every possible direction of escape. Everything that was once so ethereal has succumbed to this intangible madness. Panic sets in.....
I decide to play my spiritual “get out of jail free” card and apply for Bible college. God will definitely not be able to overlook my piece of paper that I paid a bunch of money for which says I’m now a credible person and know everything there is to know about the Bible. Ask me anything.......I’ve been told everything I need to believe now. You don’t even have to know why you believe it. God has to love me.......I know that my good things are tipping this spiritual scale for the first time in my life. The lady of Justice is taking her blindfold off and giving me a wink! You’re home free now..........I can go ahead and ride this train straight into heaven, all the way to the throne where I can load up all my crowns and awards and chug right on around the New Jerusalem tootin’ my own horn the whole time......
Summer 2006
Colorado. Second season guiding in the San Juan range of the Rocky Mts. I can’t really put a finger on the exact time it started, but God began shining the true light of the Gospel into my life. Could it be that there is more to the Gospel than the “message of salvation”......It actually is “Good News” and not just “Good Advice”?
For the first time in my life I began to personally experience the love and grace of God in the person and work of Jesus Christ through the power of the Spirit. It all began to make sense. I experienced regeneration and the Gospel actually began to make sense in the bigger scheme of things. This whole time I was opposed to a God who is Holy and Just. I was at enmity with Him, under His wrath. There was a barrier, a separation, a gap that existed between His holiness and my sin. I began to look at the cross and what Christ accomplished. Not only did He die the death that I deserved, but He also lived the life I cannot live. He didn’t come here to just to simply be a good example or a coach or a therapist. No, He came here to be my Savior. He went to the cross and willingly laid down His life and the full wrath of God was poured out upon Him in my place. This “great exchange” has taken place in which He became sin and credits His righteousness to me. Done. It is Finished!
Life takes on whole new meaning.........
I don’t know exactly what God has in store, but I do know this. Life is no longer about trying to climb this spiritual ladder of earning God’s favor. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Although there is plenty of religious baggage to work through, I can now say that the Gospel is enough. I have yet to get beyond the Gospel and the Cross. I pray I never do!
Growing up in southern WV, like anywhere, had its advantages and disadvantages. I grew up in a middle/lower working class family. My dad worked a blue-collar job managing the produce department at a local grocery store. Mom, she stayed at home, raising my two sisters and I in what I would consider an average childhood. Both parents sacrificed significantly to send my sisters and I to a private Christian school. I never knew how much they gave, but looking back, I know it’s more than they let on. By mom staying at home, they chose to sacrifice such things as a nice house, opting instead to raise my sisters and I in a mobile home. Instead of driving two cars, we always had one vehicle which was responsible for all our logistical transportation. I never went without, and unlike many other poor, southern Appalachia children, I never went to bed hungry. I never went without clothes. I never went without love. I actually look back and thank God and cherish the loving sacrifices that my parents made.
I was raised in what I would describe a typical, independent, fundamental, cookie-cutter baptist church. I honestly don’t know the first time I heard the “message” of salvation or how many times I prayed the prayer to “ask Jesus to come into my heart” (whatever that’s supposed to mean). I grew up in what I would describe as religious Christianity. You know, the kind that drives you to a constant sense of guilt and condemnation. And when you don’t feel guilty about anything, you feel guilty about not feeling guilty. God isn’t viewed as a father. Sure, you’re saved by grace, but when it comes to your sanctification, you better work for it. If I work hard enough and follow every rule, then God will love me. The whole Santa Claus is Coming to Town theology........God’s makin’ a list and checkin’ it twice/Gonna find out who’s naughty and nice/He sees me when I’m sleepin’ and knows when I’m awake/so let’s just be good for “goodness” sake. God is a distant figure way up in some spiritual north pole and my list of prayers may reach Him if I my good deeds outweigh the bad. You always hear this talk about “personal” relationship, but it’s a journey that is way too hard and nothing you ever do is ever good enough to make any significant headway. So, eventually, you just throw in the towel and say to hell with it. I can’t do this! Apathy sets in...
High school graduation rolls around. I’m young and going to conquer the world. I have it all planned out. I’m going into Biology with the end goal of being a pediatrician. I’ll make money, have the big house I never had growing up, drive the nice car, and of course give my measly 10% of my six figure income to whatever church I join where I can write it off on my taxes. God will finally be pleased and smile on all I’ve done and accomplished. I will have finally earned his favor! Then I can rest assured in his salvation. After one semester, I slip further down this slippery waterfall of apathy that eventually pours into a pool of spiritual stagnation. Direction is lost and soon this gives way to the stench of festering bitterness that pollutes and fogs every possible direction of escape. Everything that was once so ethereal has succumbed to this intangible madness. Panic sets in.....
I decide to play my spiritual “get out of jail free” card and apply for Bible college. God will definitely not be able to overlook my piece of paper that I paid a bunch of money for which says I’m now a credible person and know everything there is to know about the Bible. Ask me anything.......I’ve been told everything I need to believe now. You don’t even have to know why you believe it. God has to love me.......I know that my good things are tipping this spiritual scale for the first time in my life. The lady of Justice is taking her blindfold off and giving me a wink! You’re home free now..........I can go ahead and ride this train straight into heaven, all the way to the throne where I can load up all my crowns and awards and chug right on around the New Jerusalem tootin’ my own horn the whole time......
Summer 2006
Colorado. Second season guiding in the San Juan range of the Rocky Mts. I can’t really put a finger on the exact time it started, but God began shining the true light of the Gospel into my life. Could it be that there is more to the Gospel than the “message of salvation”......It actually is “Good News” and not just “Good Advice”?
For the first time in my life I began to personally experience the love and grace of God in the person and work of Jesus Christ through the power of the Spirit. It all began to make sense. I experienced regeneration and the Gospel actually began to make sense in the bigger scheme of things. This whole time I was opposed to a God who is Holy and Just. I was at enmity with Him, under His wrath. There was a barrier, a separation, a gap that existed between His holiness and my sin. I began to look at the cross and what Christ accomplished. Not only did He die the death that I deserved, but He also lived the life I cannot live. He didn’t come here to just to simply be a good example or a coach or a therapist. No, He came here to be my Savior. He went to the cross and willingly laid down His life and the full wrath of God was poured out upon Him in my place. This “great exchange” has taken place in which He became sin and credits His righteousness to me. Done. It is Finished!
Life takes on whole new meaning.........
I don’t know exactly what God has in store, but I do know this. Life is no longer about trying to climb this spiritual ladder of earning God’s favor. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Although there is plenty of religious baggage to work through, I can now say that the Gospel is enough. I have yet to get beyond the Gospel and the Cross. I pray I never do!
26 and single...
t all started around three weeks ago. I had no inclination whatsoever to dwell and meditate on the topic at hand. But, God in His sovereign ways, has seen fit to make me face it, despite my stubborn ways. I’m taking a course in Homiletics (Preaching) here at seminary. We’re required to preach for fifteen minutes on a passage assigned by the professor. The professor announced that we would be paired with a partner in which we’re required to meet with at least once a week for the next twelve weeks. I received the e-mail with the assigned passages which were dispersed in alphabetical order. I scan the list and my name is no where to be found. I inform the professor, he updates the list and places me at the very end. The passage assigned--Ephesians 5:22-33: Husbands and Wives! Now at first glance, you may be asking yourself, what’s the big deal here? Well, to begin with, I’m twenty-six years old and single. What in Hades can I or do I possibly know about marriage! Beyond that, how am I supposed to stand before married people and preach about “marriage”! I felt like I’d been asked to represent a country in far east asia, speaking a language I’ve never spoken. This is ludicrous! Insane! Ridiculous! But, at the same time, looking back, was it really just an “oversight” that I was left off the list the first time around? Or is there something that God is trying to teach me and show me through this! The Calvinist in me tends to lean toward the latter.
I was in my first wedding back in 2002. Best man, actually! Good times. Get to hang out with several close friends that you don’t see on an everyday basis, good food, etc. This would the be the first of nine weddings to come over the next six years. I’ve now had the privilege of being a groomsmen in nine weddings! Insane! I consider it an honor, but honestly, it’s hard not to get “burned” out. I can now say that almost all of my closest friends are now married. Friendships are changed, children are born, life goes on.....Even my twin sister is married now and my older sister got married last year. I became an uncle for the first time two months ago. Moving out here, I have yet to meet my nephew. I feel as if I exist as an enigma in a world of married 20 somethings. Then I reflect on my life and can’t help but ask the question, Why am I not married? It seems so easy for everyone else. They meet someone, go out for a cup of coffee, maybe upgrade to an occasional dinner or movie, man buys a diamond, gives it to girl, have a little ceremony, and bam! they live happily ever after. Why is it that I feel so misunderstood on so many different levels. Is it because my idea of a family vacation is a romp in the woods? Maybe it’s because I love bluegrass and mountain music from my native Appalachia? Maybe it’s the beard! Maybe it’s because I actually enjoy reading Calvin’s Institutes, Augustine’s Confessions, and many of the Puritans--for fun! Who knows. But is it spiritual? I cannot help but get lost in my own thoughts and live in a pseudo-reality in which I try to grasp and understand this concept of marriage and how it relates to my faith in Christ and what He has planned. Am I the only one who struggles with this? I mean, if I’m going to be a pastor and plant a church someday, it would make sense to have a wife who is sold out to Jesus and lives and breathes the Words of life found in Scripture expressed in a life of devotion to reaching the lost and helping the poor and living out the Gospel in every facet of life, including marriage. Even God says that “for this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” So, why is it so hard to find the “right” one. What does that even mean? I feel like a song by my one of my favorite bands, the Avett Brothers. The lyrics go as follows:
o you want to be in love like the movies
But in the movies they're not in love at all
And with a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
So we can't be in love like the movies
Now in the movies they make it look so perfect
And in the background they're always playing the right song
And in the ending there's always a resolution
But real life is more than just two hours long
So you want to be in love like the movies
But in the movies they're not in love at all
And with a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
So we can't be in love like the movies
Well you can freeze frame any moment from a movie
Or run the whole damn thing backwards from reel to reel
But I don't see one single solitary light technician
Or one single camera in this moonlit field
I don't want to be in love like the movies
Cause in the movies they're not in love at all
With a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
So we can't be in love like the movies.
And with a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
And so we can't be in love like the movies.
Nooooooo
We can't be in love like movies.
Is it really like that? I look around and wonder, how many people really are just putting on show! Is marriage really always like the movies! There’s a sneaking suspicion in my that its not always that way!
I know I’m rambling here, but I have to get this all out! Feel free to tune me out.........
Back to what started all this! I started reading the passage and meditating on the verses. Paul begins in verse 21 by telling everyone to submit to one another in the fear of Christ. Then he goes on to apply this principle in several relationships, beginning with wives and husbands. He tells wives to submit to their husband as to Christ. He then tells husbands to love their wives as Christ loves the church. This whole issue of submission can get really nasty, but going back to verse 21, if they are both truly submitted to Christ, then there should be no disconnect between this submission/loving relationship. If the husband truly loves his wife as Christ loves the church, then he will simply want what is best for her and she should have no problem submitting because they are both submitted to Christ. Then Paul throws out this monster curve-ball! He says, by the way, this whole marriage thing, it’s the clearest picture we have of Christ’s relationship to His body, the church! Whoa! Wait a minute. Paul, you’re saying that Christian marriage is the clearest model we have of Christ and the church. This is crazy! Could it be that marriage is first off spiritual and not merely finding a “soul mate” who is physically attractive! I believe that there has to be some connection on all levels, but how many people do you know accept the fact that Christian marriage is first and foremost a privilege to be embraced because you actually are experiencing and modeling what the relationship looks like between Christ’s love for his bride the church. This whole submission/love relationship should be a privilege to be embraced! Christ after all modeled for us to perfection what it is like to submit to His Father, despite them being equal in essence and deity. Nevertheless, He humbly submitted Himself to the Father, even to death!
So, in conclusion, I guess I have a whole new perspective on marriage. I’ve sort of toyed around with these principles and concepts before, but not to this extent! To my married friends, please think and meditate about what a privilege you have of modeling this relationship to the world. To my fellow singles out there, don’t give up! More than likely, God hasn’t called us all to be monks or nuns. Trust in His providence and sovereignty. Even though it may seem that no one truly understands you and every date you go on turns to shallow, narcissistic, meanderings, it may just be God’s way of affirming that they’re NOT the “right” one and that you will be so much more blessed and thankful once you are given the privilege and honor of entering into that covenant relationship before God to model Christ’s love for His church. So, I’m going to go listen to some Avett Brothers now and maybe go for a run or a hike..............
I was in my first wedding back in 2002. Best man, actually! Good times. Get to hang out with several close friends that you don’t see on an everyday basis, good food, etc. This would the be the first of nine weddings to come over the next six years. I’ve now had the privilege of being a groomsmen in nine weddings! Insane! I consider it an honor, but honestly, it’s hard not to get “burned” out. I can now say that almost all of my closest friends are now married. Friendships are changed, children are born, life goes on.....Even my twin sister is married now and my older sister got married last year. I became an uncle for the first time two months ago. Moving out here, I have yet to meet my nephew. I feel as if I exist as an enigma in a world of married 20 somethings. Then I reflect on my life and can’t help but ask the question, Why am I not married? It seems so easy for everyone else. They meet someone, go out for a cup of coffee, maybe upgrade to an occasional dinner or movie, man buys a diamond, gives it to girl, have a little ceremony, and bam! they live happily ever after. Why is it that I feel so misunderstood on so many different levels. Is it because my idea of a family vacation is a romp in the woods? Maybe it’s because I love bluegrass and mountain music from my native Appalachia? Maybe it’s the beard! Maybe it’s because I actually enjoy reading Calvin’s Institutes, Augustine’s Confessions, and many of the Puritans--for fun! Who knows. But is it spiritual? I cannot help but get lost in my own thoughts and live in a pseudo-reality in which I try to grasp and understand this concept of marriage and how it relates to my faith in Christ and what He has planned. Am I the only one who struggles with this? I mean, if I’m going to be a pastor and plant a church someday, it would make sense to have a wife who is sold out to Jesus and lives and breathes the Words of life found in Scripture expressed in a life of devotion to reaching the lost and helping the poor and living out the Gospel in every facet of life, including marriage. Even God says that “for this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” So, why is it so hard to find the “right” one. What does that even mean? I feel like a song by my one of my favorite bands, the Avett Brothers. The lyrics go as follows:
o you want to be in love like the movies
But in the movies they're not in love at all
And with a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
So we can't be in love like the movies
Now in the movies they make it look so perfect
And in the background they're always playing the right song
And in the ending there's always a resolution
But real life is more than just two hours long
So you want to be in love like the movies
But in the movies they're not in love at all
And with a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
So we can't be in love like the movies
Well you can freeze frame any moment from a movie
Or run the whole damn thing backwards from reel to reel
But I don't see one single solitary light technician
Or one single camera in this moonlit field
I don't want to be in love like the movies
Cause in the movies they're not in love at all
With a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
So we can't be in love like the movies.
And with a twinkle in their eyes
They're just saying their lines
And so we can't be in love like the movies.
Nooooooo
We can't be in love like movies.
Is it really like that? I look around and wonder, how many people really are just putting on show! Is marriage really always like the movies! There’s a sneaking suspicion in my that its not always that way!
I know I’m rambling here, but I have to get this all out! Feel free to tune me out.........
Back to what started all this! I started reading the passage and meditating on the verses. Paul begins in verse 21 by telling everyone to submit to one another in the fear of Christ. Then he goes on to apply this principle in several relationships, beginning with wives and husbands. He tells wives to submit to their husband as to Christ. He then tells husbands to love their wives as Christ loves the church. This whole issue of submission can get really nasty, but going back to verse 21, if they are both truly submitted to Christ, then there should be no disconnect between this submission/loving relationship. If the husband truly loves his wife as Christ loves the church, then he will simply want what is best for her and she should have no problem submitting because they are both submitted to Christ. Then Paul throws out this monster curve-ball! He says, by the way, this whole marriage thing, it’s the clearest picture we have of Christ’s relationship to His body, the church! Whoa! Wait a minute. Paul, you’re saying that Christian marriage is the clearest model we have of Christ and the church. This is crazy! Could it be that marriage is first off spiritual and not merely finding a “soul mate” who is physically attractive! I believe that there has to be some connection on all levels, but how many people do you know accept the fact that Christian marriage is first and foremost a privilege to be embraced because you actually are experiencing and modeling what the relationship looks like between Christ’s love for his bride the church. This whole submission/love relationship should be a privilege to be embraced! Christ after all modeled for us to perfection what it is like to submit to His Father, despite them being equal in essence and deity. Nevertheless, He humbly submitted Himself to the Father, even to death!
So, in conclusion, I guess I have a whole new perspective on marriage. I’ve sort of toyed around with these principles and concepts before, but not to this extent! To my married friends, please think and meditate about what a privilege you have of modeling this relationship to the world. To my fellow singles out there, don’t give up! More than likely, God hasn’t called us all to be monks or nuns. Trust in His providence and sovereignty. Even though it may seem that no one truly understands you and every date you go on turns to shallow, narcissistic, meanderings, it may just be God’s way of affirming that they’re NOT the “right” one and that you will be so much more blessed and thankful once you are given the privilege and honor of entering into that covenant relationship before God to model Christ’s love for His church. So, I’m going to go listen to some Avett Brothers now and maybe go for a run or a hike..............
6.30.2008
Piper on the Prosperity Gospel
I concur with Piper!!! That crap makes me throw up in my mouth. Christ is enough!
2.23.2008
Keller in Newsweek
Tim Keller was recently featured in a Newsweek article this week. You can check it out here. It's also worth checking out his response to a few errors written in the article. You can view that here. Keller has had a tremendous impact on my understanding of the gospel in relation to religion and irreligion. His new book, The Reason for God: Belief in the Age of Skepticism, was released this past week. I have a copy in the mail, so, I'll post a review as soon as I read it!
2.06.2008
my state of the emerging church address
[The following is a synopsis the emerging church as whole as I've observed the past two years. Some of this is redundant, and material that I've stated in the past. After this article, I am taking a moratorium on the topic for a bit to focus more on how I can be more like my Lord and Savior, King Jesus. I will continue to stand for what I feel to be the truth, but I'm not looking for an argument. May Jesus be lifted High!]The emerging church is one those topics that seems to always find its way onto the table of discussions in bloggerdum and the likes of any good seminarian lunch table. It’s one of those subjects in which everyone thinks they know “something” which usually ends up with a synopsis that is based either entirely on hearsay or a secondary source in which one has already nailed their coffin shut with biases. I’m not claiming to be an expert on the topic at hand; however, I have been involved in a church plant this past year that would be considered emerging. It was part of the Acts 29 Church Planting Network which is considered to be the premier network that would be deemed emerging. I’ve personally attended two of their boot camps, one in
The term emerging was originally coined by Dan Kimball, who published a book on the topic a few years back. When you hear the word “emerging”, in the basic sense, it typically refers to a church that employs a philosophy of ministry and/or methodology that calls for the church to be constantly emerging in and with the culture it has been placed. In a general sense the term encompasses a very broad umbrella of movements within movements. The first mistake anyone can make is to assume that all “emerging” churches consists of far left, post-modern, beer-drinking, square-glasses, goatee sporting, pastors who sit in a circle, light candles, and question and discuss the validity and value of such topics as the virgin birth, penal substitutionary atonement, the Trinity, the deity of Christ and anything that the majority of the Christian faith would adhere to as orthodoxy. Although such things do exist in some circles, you cannot assume that all emerging churches adhere to the same practices and beliefs. For example, there are many churches that would consider themselves independent, fundamental, and Baptist and adhere to a King James only philosophy. That doesn’t mean that all independent, fundamental, Baptist churches are King James only in the least. So, when viewing the emerging church or any movement for that matter, you must be wary of reductionism which will result in a view that is reduced based on the assessment of only one or two books or a lecture from a favorite theologian or pastor.
Another mistake I’ve observed is assuming “emerging” and “emergent” are synonymous and interchangeable. There is a HUGE difference that must be differentiated between the two. Most churches and individuals that would consider themselves “emergent” would be considered an emerging church. However, there is a huge stream within the emerging church which is not “emergent”. The term “emergent” represents a theological framework which employs a post-modern epistemology and a trajectory theology. To the “emergent”, they view theology as something that is dynamic and changing with time and culture. God knew that culture and times would change, so he set it in motion or on a trajectory theology giving man the ability to dictate what message best suits the times. So, basically, human reasoning, evolution, and even integrated spirituality (aka neo-paganism and new age) are all fair game in building our theological framework. What it amounts to is a man-centered, culture driven theology in which a post-modern epistemology is employed to be the lens through which the entirety of life is to be viewed and filtered.
Many individuals view emergent theology as a danger and rightfully so. However, I do not believe that it is a movement that will last simply because the whole foundation is built on speculation which results in relativism and fear of taking a stand for any thing absolute. I’ve written at greater length in the past about how the “emergent” movement is eerily similar to the Gnostics of early Christianity in which they attempted to elevate Christian theology and doctrine to that of pagan philosophy. I believe Tertullian was right when he shouted that heresy is prompted by philosophy. He would go on to say that “we have no need of curiosity reaching beyond Christ Jesus. When we believe, we need nothing further than to believe. Search that you may believe; then stop!” There are certain facets of Christianity that must simply be accepted by faith. We cannot know everything there is to know about God. It is nothing more than self-righteous pride and arrogance to place human reasoning/philosophy on the same level of an omnipotent, omniscient, and omni-present God. When God speaks, you listen! One need only to go back to the garden to see that what would ultimately lead to the fall began with a conversation and questioning what God had said. There is nothing good that can come out of questioning whether or not God meant what He said. He has spoken and revealed Himself in and through Jesus, whose life is recorded in the Bible. We need only to look to Jesus to see God.
I was privileged to be a part of an emerging church that boldly proclaimed the Gospel, stood for the authority of Scripture, preached through the Bible expositorily, but at the same time saw a need for contextualization to a culture and city in which we had been called. Thus, the term “missional” comes into play. What does it mean to be a “missional” church? Being missional basically means being intentional about proclaiming and living the Gospel out within the culture/city the church exists. A missional church would operate from a Jesus-centered, Gospel driven theology in which the Bible is the lens through which the entirety of life is to be viewed and filtered including culture. It operates from the premise that God is a sending God, a missional God who has always set apart individuals (e.g. Abraham/disciples) and entities (e.g. Israel/Church) to be salt (preservation) and light (illumination) to the unbelieving world. It acknowledges that the Gospel is a timeless message, but requires timely methods to use the tools of culture to contextualize the truth of the Gospel (c.f. Acts 17). It operates under the tension of remaining biblically faithful but being culturally fruitful.
What concerns me about the church at large is that most believers do not embrace the Gospel as a lifestyle in which we truly heed calling as ambassadors of Christ. Most churches are guilty of reductionism in which evangelism is merely another program or department. I agree with John Armstrong when he says that “the place we must begin to counteract this reductionism is in seeing that our mission is not merely an activity of the Church, but rather that the Church exists for mission. Mission is the result of God's activity within the world and that mission is to restore and heal creation. The Church is a community of the redeemed and exists to serve that mission. This is the meaning of John 20:21. God is a missionary God and we, as his people, are a sent people. The Church is not the purpose of the gospel, or even the goal of the gospel. The Church is the instrument and witness of the gospel. Only when we get this right will be begin to be the community that God intended for us to be.” ( “How Reductionism Impacts Evangelism” http://www.theresurgence.com/john_armstrong_2007_how_reductionism_impacts_evangelism [Accessed on 10 November 2007])
If the church is to truly heed the call to be missional, believers must realize their calling and what they’ve been commissioned to do. Christ gave us a commission to go into all the world and make disciples. If you are a believer, this is your duty this side of eternity. It encompasses every area of your life and you are responsible to represent Christ in such a way that is conducive to making disciples. Being missional is a lifestyle. It’s allowing those around you to take a peek into the life of someone who is committed to something bigger and greater than anything anyone could ever imagine on this earth. Only when you recognize this can you truly take every opportunity and seek to transform these moments into something that will last an eternity. This ultimately requires commitment. But let’s face it! You choose to be committed to something/someone you believe in. If you really love someone, you will choose to sacrifice and take risks that you would not typically take. I believe that you can only be “missional” if you first truly recognize your calling and commission, then ultimately fall in love with what God has given you to do. In this sense I do believe that the church should be emerging to contextualize the Gospel to the cultures within which we are placed and called without compromising the truth or the character of the Gospel.
Are you passionate about the Gospel? When you are passionate about something or someone people will take notice. When people take notice, they will see that there is something different about the way in which you live. They will begin to dig and dive into your life to see where this vitality is coming from. This is what living a missional life is all about. Taking those opportunities and sharing Christ with those who would never dream about picking up a Bible or walking into a church building. When you have an assembly of believers that recognize their calling, accept their commission, and make a commitment to truly sacrifice and live passionately for the person they want to become (Jesus) by yielding to the Spirit, God can and will use His church to reach far more people than we ever dreamed imaginable.
In conclusion, I don’t believe that every stream within the emerging church is biblical or effective. At the same time, I do believe that there are many churches within the movement that are biblically faithful, culturally fruitful, resulting in many converts who have embraced the Gospel and are now our brothers and sisters in Christ. As a result, I hope that we can at least rejoice on this point. So, I don’t expect you to agree with me on every aspect, but as one who has seen the good, the bad; experienced from within and stood as an observer outside; I thank God that there are passionate people within the emerging church who are living a life that is Jesus-centered and Gospel-driven. Nothing more, nothing less. May Jesus be lifted High!
1.27.2008
continuous ourpourers of worship
[The following is a review of a work I recently completed by Harold Best. I highly recommend it if you ever have the opportunity to work through it]It is rare these days that one is challenged on an intellectual and spiritual level that Harold Best exudes in this work. At 78 years old, I'm not sure of any author that has the life experience to contribute to such an undertaking. Unceasing Worship is by far the most challenging, yet rewarding book I have read on worship to date. Best even goes a step further by dealing with Biblical perspectives on the arts and relates worship to current culture in which there exists much of the experiential spectrum resulting in idolatry in which we are guilty of worshiping our methods and styles as opposed to living and relating to culture as a result of our continuous outpouring of ourself/selves as living sacrifices and going forth as a sweet aroma to spread the gospel of our Lord and Christ Jesus. If you want to gain new insight and renew what it means to live a life of continuous outpouring of worship, read this book. Be prepared to be challenged and have a dictionary at hand to clarify many of the big yet powerful and descriptive words employed by Best to paint a beautiful picture of what it means to live a life of "Unceasing Worship".
1.23.2008
1.21.2008
"emergent": gnosticism revisited
[The following is a reply to my friend Josh Glidden's blog. I've been meaning to write on the subject at hand, but wrote the gist of the subject matter in response to a post he authored. Here's the link to the origianl post: http://joshuaglidden.blogspot.com/2008/01/ranting-raving-and-blaming-worlds.html]
I heard Ravi Zacharias say once that when the tide is low every shrimp has his own puddle. When it comes to "emergent" theology I think you must see the movement as a whole and not focus in on one comment. In light of the observations I've made, I'm probably going to take this a step further and say that I do not agree with questioning the "message" of the Gospel in any form. The "message" I've received is from the Bible and in my opinion there is nothing to question in regards to what we've received. Paul says clearly in 1 Corinthians 15:3 the following: "For I delivered to you of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures...". Now, we know from Acts and Paul confirms in Galatians that he "received" his message directly from Christ himself. To be confirm what he received he went to Jerusalem and compared his message with that of the apostles and it was clear they received the same message. The entire book of Galatians Paul is spending time defending and proclaiming the Gospel. In fact he uses the harshest language that he uses in any epistle to rebuke the Judaizers for adding to the Gospel that he had origianlly laid out for them. He said he wishes they would "emasculate" them selves or "castrate" themselves. One of the largest pagan religions during this time was the worship of Isis in which the priests were all eunuchs and practiced self-castration. I believe Paul was saying if your going to teach the Gospel as Jesus plus circumcision, step it up big boy and go ahead and snip away and cut it all off. You are no different than the pagan priests of Isis! Now, apparently someone had "questioned" the Gospel that Paul had preached and infiltrated the believers to the point where they were abandoning the Gospel. In pop-culture we are experiencing the very same thing. Think about the DaVinci Code, the Jesus Seminar, etc. and they are ultimately questioning the "message" of the Gospel, not just methods. Jones makes a scary comment when he says, "This is about whole new ways of thinking. This is about epistemology...How do we reconsider the gospel and everything that goes along with it?" I don't know Jones' background or what "message" he received but I know that several people within the emergent church are questioning things such as homosexuality. Brian McClaren just decided to take a five year moratorium on the topic to see if we still feel the same way about it then. To me, the movement as a whole doesn't know what the hell they believe. I don't see how any good can come out of questioning the message of the "Gospel", at least the one I know to be true and receieved from the Scripture. Now, it is obvious that the emergent movement operates from a post-modern epistemology in which truth is relative and many operate from a trajectory theology in which theology is dynamic and changing with time and culture. So, rather than questioning our methods in light of the unchanging "message" and truth of the Gospel to contexualize and reach the post-moderns, they have reversed this and began questioning the message itself. It's Gnosticism all over again. It's taking a pagan world view and trying to reconsider the message we've received and just like the Gnostics, they will pass and the true Gospel will stand the test of time and eternity. Rodney Stark wrote the following in "Cities of God" in regards to Valentinus: "Valentinus was very much the academic intellectual, and his movement had the charcteristic of a philosophical school...What he and his students aspired to achieve was to 'raise Christian theology to the level of pagan philosophical studies; in fact, 'the very purpose of the school was speculation...many scholars 'see in Valentinus' teachings the apex of gnosticism, the greatest and most influential of the gnostic schools...What made Valentinus so successful, and such a threat to conventional Christianity, was his effort to reconcile the New Testament with classic elements of Gnosticism by applying 'a peculiar allegorical interpretation of those commonly accepted texts, thereby discovering hidden and deeper levels of meaning consistent with those revealed to Gnostic visionaries." Two leading emergent leaders, Brian McClaren and Rob Bell, have both referenced a book entitled "A Brief History of Everythig" by Ken Wilbur. Ken Wilbur is an evolutionary integrated spiritualist and his book can be found in the "New Age" section of any book store. They both credit this man for having a large influence on their interpretation of the Christian faith. Brian McClaren has recently published a book called, "The Secret Message of Jesus". Apparently there is a secret message that we've missed the last two thousand years.To quote Rodney Stark once again: "...Moritz Friedlander traced the origins of Gnosticism to Jewish roots and claimed that Christianity and Gnosticism were parallel off-shoots of first-century Hellenic Judaism...As for the intense anti-Judaism of much of this literature, it was said to reflect the antagonism of bitterly ex-Jews against the faith of their fathers." It appears to me that much of the "emergent" camp are the disgruntled children of legalism and fundamentalism. I know I've expressed a ton of info here, but I do believe that anytime you borrow from a pagan/secular world view and try to interpret any Scripture or "message" that you're treading on dangerous waters. If you're going to question things, go to the source of the Word! Paul commends the Bereans in Acts 17:11 for the following: "Now these Jews were more noble minded than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so." So please, if you're going to ask questions, go to the Scriptures. Don't drink from the toilet of pagan/secular philosophy. Now more than ever, I feel that we as believers need to fight for the truth of the Gospel and not allow these philosophies to toss us to and fro like a wave in the storm of a very unstable ocean. I love you guys and I am truly sharing my heart here. So, please, don't be a stranded shrimp while the tide is low! May Jesus be lifted high!
I heard Ravi Zacharias say once that when the tide is low every shrimp has his own puddle. When it comes to "emergent" theology I think you must see the movement as a whole and not focus in on one comment. In light of the observations I've made, I'm probably going to take this a step further and say that I do not agree with questioning the "message" of the Gospel in any form. The "message" I've received is from the Bible and in my opinion there is nothing to question in regards to what we've received. Paul says clearly in 1 Corinthians 15:3 the following: "For I delivered to you of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures...". Now, we know from Acts and Paul confirms in Galatians that he "received" his message directly from Christ himself. To be confirm what he received he went to Jerusalem and compared his message with that of the apostles and it was clear they received the same message. The entire book of Galatians Paul is spending time defending and proclaiming the Gospel. In fact he uses the harshest language that he uses in any epistle to rebuke the Judaizers for adding to the Gospel that he had origianlly laid out for them. He said he wishes they would "emasculate" them selves or "castrate" themselves. One of the largest pagan religions during this time was the worship of Isis in which the priests were all eunuchs and practiced self-castration. I believe Paul was saying if your going to teach the Gospel as Jesus plus circumcision, step it up big boy and go ahead and snip away and cut it all off. You are no different than the pagan priests of Isis! Now, apparently someone had "questioned" the Gospel that Paul had preached and infiltrated the believers to the point where they were abandoning the Gospel. In pop-culture we are experiencing the very same thing. Think about the DaVinci Code, the Jesus Seminar, etc. and they are ultimately questioning the "message" of the Gospel, not just methods. Jones makes a scary comment when he says, "This is about whole new ways of thinking. This is about epistemology...How do we reconsider the gospel and everything that goes along with it?" I don't know Jones' background or what "message" he received but I know that several people within the emergent church are questioning things such as homosexuality. Brian McClaren just decided to take a five year moratorium on the topic to see if we still feel the same way about it then. To me, the movement as a whole doesn't know what the hell they believe. I don't see how any good can come out of questioning the message of the "Gospel", at least the one I know to be true and receieved from the Scripture. Now, it is obvious that the emergent movement operates from a post-modern epistemology in which truth is relative and many operate from a trajectory theology in which theology is dynamic and changing with time and culture. So, rather than questioning our methods in light of the unchanging "message" and truth of the Gospel to contexualize and reach the post-moderns, they have reversed this and began questioning the message itself. It's Gnosticism all over again. It's taking a pagan world view and trying to reconsider the message we've received and just like the Gnostics, they will pass and the true Gospel will stand the test of time and eternity. Rodney Stark wrote the following in "Cities of God" in regards to Valentinus: "Valentinus was very much the academic intellectual, and his movement had the charcteristic of a philosophical school...What he and his students aspired to achieve was to 'raise Christian theology to the level of pagan philosophical studies; in fact, 'the very purpose of the school was speculation...many scholars 'see in Valentinus' teachings the apex of gnosticism, the greatest and most influential of the gnostic schools...What made Valentinus so successful, and such a threat to conventional Christianity, was his effort to reconcile the New Testament with classic elements of Gnosticism by applying 'a peculiar allegorical interpretation of those commonly accepted texts, thereby discovering hidden and deeper levels of meaning consistent with those revealed to Gnostic visionaries." Two leading emergent leaders, Brian McClaren and Rob Bell, have both referenced a book entitled "A Brief History of Everythig" by Ken Wilbur. Ken Wilbur is an evolutionary integrated spiritualist and his book can be found in the "New Age" section of any book store. They both credit this man for having a large influence on their interpretation of the Christian faith. Brian McClaren has recently published a book called, "The Secret Message of Jesus". Apparently there is a secret message that we've missed the last two thousand years.To quote Rodney Stark once again: "...Moritz Friedlander traced the origins of Gnosticism to Jewish roots and claimed that Christianity and Gnosticism were parallel off-shoots of first-century Hellenic Judaism...As for the intense anti-Judaism of much of this literature, it was said to reflect the antagonism of bitterly ex-Jews against the faith of their fathers." It appears to me that much of the "emergent" camp are the disgruntled children of legalism and fundamentalism. I know I've expressed a ton of info here, but I do believe that anytime you borrow from a pagan/secular world view and try to interpret any Scripture or "message" that you're treading on dangerous waters. If you're going to question things, go to the source of the Word! Paul commends the Bereans in Acts 17:11 for the following: "Now these Jews were more noble minded than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so." So please, if you're going to ask questions, go to the Scriptures. Don't drink from the toilet of pagan/secular philosophy. Now more than ever, I feel that we as believers need to fight for the truth of the Gospel and not allow these philosophies to toss us to and fro like a wave in the storm of a very unstable ocean. I love you guys and I am truly sharing my heart here. So, please, don't be a stranded shrimp while the tide is low! May Jesus be lifted high!
1.04.2008
of hermits and fast donkeys...
Recently I've been making my way through a very interesting book entitled Discovering God: The Origins of the Great Religions and the Evolution of Belief by Rodney Stark. The general premise of the book is that of comparative religion. Stark is a professing Christian, but writes from the perspective of a sociologist. To get to the gist of this post, I was reading a section today on the Chinese religion of Taoism. Apparently Taoism celebrates "Eight Immortals", also known as ordinary people whose virtues were rewarded by the Queen Mother Goddess, who gave them peaches of everlasting life to eat. I want you take notice of why these individuals are immortalized. Without further ado, I now present to you the "Eight Immortals of Taoism" or the "Heroes of the Tao Faith":
1. Chang-Kuo Lao was a hermit with a donkey that could reach incredible speeds.
2. Chung-Li Ch'uan was a smiling, ascetic old man.
3. Han Hsiang-Tzu chose to study magic rather than cram for civil service exams.
4. Ho Hsien-Ku was a girl who became immortal by eating mother of pearl.
5. Lan Ts'ai-Ho was an inspired flute player.
6. Li Tieh-Kuai was a begger who sold wonderful drugs that could revive the dead.
7. Lu Tung-Pin was a hero of early Chinese story-telling who slew dragons with a magic sword.
8. Ts'ao Kuo-Chiu tried to reform his brother, the emperor.
(Taken from Discovering God by Rodney Stark, Pg. 261)
Sound like the type of people you would want to model your life after? As much as I enjoy eating peaches and aspire to be a hermit and ride an incredibly fast donkey, I can't really picture myself following in the footsteps of these eight "immortals".
After meditating on this non-sense for a bit, I was reminded of my own faith in Jesus Christ and a list that is found in the Bible in Hebrews 11. I'm sure that most of you are familiar with this chapter that lists our own "Heroes of the Faith". Hebrews 11:33-40 concludes a list of several heroes in this way:
"...who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated--of whom the world was not worthy--wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, thought commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect."
Now, I'm not saying that the lives of these heroes were any easier or glamorous than the "Eight", but I take solace in the fact that by God's grace through Christ my life is not in vain. I love the fact that the "heroes" of our faith spent the majority of their lives fighting for the truth, most suffering death in brutal ways, but through death gaining victory in the fullest and they didn't even have to learn to smile or study magic or eat mother of pearl. Their mission was straight forward and they were willing to give all for the cost of the Gospel. Jesus is the ultimate hero and He ultimately lived the life we couldn't live and died the death we should have died in our place. It's by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone that we can continue the legacy of all those that have gone before us as spiritual vagabonds who "died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But, as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city." (Hebrews 11:13-16)
So, the next time you aspire to be an accomplished flute player or try to reform your brother who is emperor, just remember to drive to Georgia to find some of those good peaches, Amen?
1. Chang-Kuo Lao was a hermit with a donkey that could reach incredible speeds.
2. Chung-Li Ch'uan was a smiling, ascetic old man.
3. Han Hsiang-Tzu chose to study magic rather than cram for civil service exams.
4. Ho Hsien-Ku was a girl who became immortal by eating mother of pearl.
5. Lan Ts'ai-Ho was an inspired flute player.
6. Li Tieh-Kuai was a begger who sold wonderful drugs that could revive the dead.
7. Lu Tung-Pin was a hero of early Chinese story-telling who slew dragons with a magic sword.
8. Ts'ao Kuo-Chiu tried to reform his brother, the emperor.
(Taken from Discovering God by Rodney Stark, Pg. 261)
Sound like the type of people you would want to model your life after? As much as I enjoy eating peaches and aspire to be a hermit and ride an incredibly fast donkey, I can't really picture myself following in the footsteps of these eight "immortals".
After meditating on this non-sense for a bit, I was reminded of my own faith in Jesus Christ and a list that is found in the Bible in Hebrews 11. I'm sure that most of you are familiar with this chapter that lists our own "Heroes of the Faith". Hebrews 11:33-40 concludes a list of several heroes in this way:
"...who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated--of whom the world was not worthy--wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, thought commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect."
Now, I'm not saying that the lives of these heroes were any easier or glamorous than the "Eight", but I take solace in the fact that by God's grace through Christ my life is not in vain. I love the fact that the "heroes" of our faith spent the majority of their lives fighting for the truth, most suffering death in brutal ways, but through death gaining victory in the fullest and they didn't even have to learn to smile or study magic or eat mother of pearl. Their mission was straight forward and they were willing to give all for the cost of the Gospel. Jesus is the ultimate hero and He ultimately lived the life we couldn't live and died the death we should have died in our place. It's by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone that we can continue the legacy of all those that have gone before us as spiritual vagabonds who "died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But, as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city." (Hebrews 11:13-16)
So, the next time you aspire to be an accomplished flute player or try to reform your brother who is emperor, just remember to drive to Georgia to find some of those good peaches, Amen?
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