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| A Call for Perseverance in DiscernmentIn trying to sort through the issues of the day, it's so tempting to just throw up one's hands and say, "None of this matters," or, "There's no way to understand it." I've found that in attempting to research ideas and points of view (like on the Emerging Church, Postmodernism, and any of the other buzzwords of the day), trying to boil down the issues and truly understand each side of the debate can be difficult. (Understatement, I know.)
I hate referring to "shades of gray," because it makes me sound like I don't believe in or advocate absolute truth, but when it comes to issues of culture and people, there seem to be as many sides and shades as there are people in the culture. It's especially tricky when the people in the culture are talking about theological matters...which, by their nature, do not encourage shades of gray. (Ideas matter. Ideas have consequences. Anyone who would argue against the consequences of ideas needs to visit any country affected by Communism. Its founder was a thinker who spent a significant portion of his time in libraries.)
Am I advocating that we just give up trying to understand things? No - that would be agnostic. What I am saying is that we should persevere first in foremost in the knowledge of Christ as revealed in the Scripture. He has spoken through His Word and through the aid of the Holy Spirit and wise counsel, we can understand it. Have you noticed how often Christ and the Scripture describe themselves as "light?" Light means clarity. Light means understanding. Light means vision. Light means that we can know the Truth and that we can comprehend it. By basking ourselves in the light of Christ's mind as revealed in the Scriptures, we can expose the darkness - in any form - for what it is. And then we will be able to persevere in discernment through the issues of our day.
Lord, destroy the darkness. Dispel the confusion. Put to rest the uncertainty.
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| "Prosperity Preaching" is not something newMany preachers and pastors today fall into the "prosperity" category: they emphasize the abundant life found in Christ (using texts like John 10:10) and the victory that we have in Christ (Romans 8:37), but for the wrong reasons. They emphasize it for the purpose of exalting and pampering and catering to the self, producing a breed of narcissistic believers who think that God exists just to give them a good parking space or a short wait in a restaurant. I shamefully say that I used to think these things, but thank the Lord that He has rescued me out of that kind of thinking and lifted my gaze off of myself and onto Christ - for Whom alone I exist.
Anyway, I stumbled upon an essay written at the beginning of the 20th century addressing this type of preaching. It was written by J. Greshem Machen, a brilliant defender of the truth and upholder of the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. He writes:
"Again, men tell us that our preaching should be positive and not negative, that we can preach the truth without attacking error. But if we follow that advice we shall have to close our Bible and desert its teachings. The New Testament is a polemic book almost from beginning to end. Some years ago I was in a company of teachers of the Bible in the colleges and other educational institutions of America. One of the most eminent theological professors in the country made an address. In it he admitted that there are unfortunate controversies about doctrine in the Epistles of Paul; but, said he in effect, the real essence of Paul's teaching is found in the hymn to Christian love in the thirteenth chapter of 1. Corinthians: and we can avoid controversy to-day, if we will only devote the chief attention to that inspiring hymn. In reply, I am bound to say that the example was singularly ill-chosen. That hymn to Christian love is in the midst of a great polemic passage: it would never have been written if Paul had been opposed to controversy with error in the Church. It was because his soul was stirred within him by a wrong use of the spiritual gifts that he was able to write that glorious hymn. So it is always in the Church. Every really great Christian utterance, it may almost be said, is born in controversy. It is when men have felt compelled to take a stand against error, that they have risen to the really great heights in the celebration of truth." (from "The Importance of Christiand Scholarship"
Paul predicted these prosperity teachers would come:
"For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." (2 Timothy 4:3-4)
May we, as upholders of truth, carefully guard that which has been entrusted to us and courageously but graciously defend it with our lives. | | |
| Blogging "The Cedarville Situation": Gossip in Disguise?I realize that I take a risk in saying this, but be careful about sources on the internet concerning the recent media upheaval surrounding our beloved alma mater. I am not weighing in either way about the validity of either view involved in this. I am just saying this: be careful. Much of the buzz is going on in blogs. Blogs can be wonderful things (I obviously think this, since I have one and am now typing in one!), but they can also be destructive things. Why? Because they all involve words, and Scripture teaches us that words hold the incredible power of both death and life (Proverbs 18:21).
What I am saying is this: ever played the game telephone? A friend of a friend of a friend tells so and so such-and-such and they pass it on, and "John likes hot dogs" turns into "Do you have $20 I can borrow?". I think the same effect takes place on the internet...only it turns into a massive online multiplayer game of telephone...and blogs are the entry point. The farther away you go from the original source (especially if the issue is "juicy" and emotionally-charged) and the more people you involve, the chances of actually understanding both sides accurately diminish significantly. And because blogs cost $0 to create, and when everyone in the world can read them and even contribute to them (through comments), what you have is a potential gossip tinder box waiting to be ignited by zealous parties.
So be careful out there. If you're in no place to accurately weigh in on either point of view, don't say or type anything about it.
Please, pray for a God-honoring closure to this, for everyone concerned, and for the glory of God.
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| Everything Important I Learned About Life......I learned in Kindergarten, right? I know it's an old cliche, but I'm convinced more than ever that it's true. Mainly because I've spent the last week and a half teaching pre-school and kindergarten. I've noticed that the lessons and situations learned in kindergarten do not go away as we go older - they merely change form. Here is one observation:
Learn to play well with others.
This is a fundamental principle of friendship. I've had so many students come up to me and tell me that so-and-so won't play with them. To which I reply, "Well, maybe if you play what they want to play, then they'll play what you want to play." Isn't this our nature? We want to play our way, or we don't want to play at all. I've noticed this tendency in myself even as a grown man. Like I said, the tendencies don't ever really go away, they just morph as we age. Doesn't this apply to disputes in churches over a certain type of music or a certain color of the carpet or a certain way of doing things? It seems that people want it their way, or they'll just take their ball and go home. (I'm obviously applying this to negotiable things, like the color of the carpet, rather than our non-negotiables, like the Deity of Christ) How sad.
I'll add more as I remember them... | | |
| 50/50 in Marriages: Destined for FailureOur culture tells us that in relationships, 50/50 is the rule. This is popularized by the phrases, "Just meet me halfway," or, "I scratch your back, you scratch mine." It can take the form of a favor given only with the anticipation that the favor will be returned, like the title character so often does in The Godfather. If you give, you should get, right? Better yet, if you give, you are ENTITLED to get, and should kick and scream until you do. What could be wrong with this type of thinking?
In marriage, everything.
Our society so impounds this thinking in our heads, it's little wonder that it can infiltrate our marriages so easily. And does so with devastating effects.
The 50/50 formula for marriages doesn't work simply because it is not a proper reflection of Christ's relationship with the Church, which is what the Christian husband or wife looks to first, and not Oprah or Dr. Phil. It's bad theology - and it leads to bad practice. Can you imagine if Christ had dealt with us in a 50/50 way? Can you imagine Christ only giving 50% of His life, love, and sacrifice for us? It's unthinkable, isn't it? Christ gave 100%. And He gave it when we gave 0% in return. Romans 5:8 describes the 100/0 principle:
"God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
This truth sends a hammer through the plate glass of 50/50 thinking. Christ gave all when we gave none. Christ gave all when our sins sent Him to the cross. Christ gave all even when we spit, scorned, and mocked Him. And He held nothing back. This is amazing. And this is the type of love we as His followers are expected to imitate.
Feeling insufficient?
It's not that Christ expects us to give 0% in return. No, He woos us to Himself and also asks for our 100%. But we don't. And He continues to give 100% of Himself to us and for us, holding nothing back. He doesn't wait for us to get better in order to love us - He loves us in order to make us better. And all that He asks of us, He also gives us the grace, love, and mercy to persevere in doing what He asks of us. He cheers us as we run His race. He lifts up our heads when our enemy trips us and shoves them in the dirt. He cleans us off, lifts us up, and gives us our second and third and fourth and five hundredth winds.
I have everything to learn from Christ.
Too often I wait for others to get better so that I can love them. Too often I make demands on those I love and leave them to themselves to fulfill those demands, offering little encouragement and little affirmation along the way. In no way is that a reflection of Christ-love.
God, forgive me for not showing Christ's love. Forgive me for not loving as you have loved me. Forgive me for loving according to worldly principles rather than Your principles.
May we look to You as our ultimate example and our ultimate encouragement, and may Your love compel us to demonstrate the same for others. | | |
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