Road Map?

This morning I heard a radio preacher say that if you follow Jesus your problems don't go away but you receive a map or a compass for life. That might well be true to a certain extent but that is not the good news of the gospel; even with a map people sometimes get lost. Followers of Jesus don't get a map, they get a Christ. This means that His life of obedience becomes their life of obedience, His resurrection and exaltation is credited to them and His future victory is their future victory. As followers of Christ the life we live is not one of following directions but of living by faith in the only one capable of following directions. Paul beautifully summarizes the Christian life in Galatians 2:20 by saying:

"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."

Election Perspective

I have observed that evangelicals tend to overreact to world events (a man in Israel gets a cold and someone will write a book showing how it's proof that the anti-Christ will soon be revealed). While I have purposely avoided subjecting myself to the evangelical reaction to the recent election, I have read and heard enough to know that hyperbole is alive and well in the evangelical community. For some the outcome of the recent election proves that all is right in the world or at least that things are finally going in the right direction. With that being said I want to put forth three important biblical truths that I believe ought to temper and guide our reaction not only to this election but to all of the events that transpire in this world.

1. Remember the fall – it seems to me that around election time many in the evangelical church seem to forget the utter depravity of man. No politician or political party is going to save America. This even begs the question as to whether or not as Christians we ought to be concerned with “saving” the American way (this is fodder for another post).

2. Remember the curse – after the fall God cursed Satan and established two kingdoms—the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman, or if you prefer the city of God and the city of man. As a consequence we (the church of Christ) did not win or lose anything in this election. The election represented two parties fighting for control over one of the kingdoms of this world; nothing more.

3. Remember God’s providence – many have made bold claims about what this election means. But ultimately we have no idea what this election means since God puts people in power according to the secret counsel of His own will. This means that this election could bring a blessing but it is just as likely that this election is a form of God’s judgment; we simply do not know.

Finally I think we would do well to remember the simple admonition from John 16:33

"These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."

Mockingbird: In Law We Trust

Great article from Mockingbird, go check it out.

Mockingbird: In Law We Trust

Leerestademoda.com - Did you know the BOOK? English subtitles

The End of Christianity

Very thought provoking article published recently in Christianity Today.

The End of Christianity as We Know It

Church Stuff

This week I came across two posts that powerfully address a couple of issues challenging the church today.

The first is a video from John Piper and addresses the question of church membership:

The other post is from R. Scott Clark, Professor of Church History and Historical Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary. In this post he analyzes the recent controversy surrounding Ergun Caner and Liberty University (if you are unfamiliar with the controversy you can find the details here). What is important about this post is not what he says about the particulars of this case but his analysis of what this issue says about the state of the modern evangelical church. You can find R. Scott Clark's post here.

Giving Oneself

One of the books I am currently reading is "The Church and the Surprising Offense of God's Love: Reintroducing the Doctrines of Church Membership and Discipline" by Jonathan Leeman. It is formatted in an unusual way and is as a consequence somewhat difficult to read but the content is outstanding. One of the points he makes throughout the book, as he discusses the Christian's relationship to the church, is that as members of a local church we are not called to give of ourselves but rather we are called to give ourselves to one another. He says this:

"...uniting to a local church is not just a matter of "joining" something like a civic society, a country club, of a chess team. It's not about contracting as a self-sovereign with some organization, paying dues and receiving the due benefits in turn. No, such ideas completely miss the connectedness implied in the biblical metaphors for the church such as family, citizenship, temple, vine, or body...joining a church is not about giving of yourself as you might do with another organization; it's about giving yourself, which is an act of submission. It is about identifying your name with all those who belong to the church. It's about being united in heart, mind, and mission. It is, in sum, to submit your discipleship to Christ to a geographically bound, numerically concrete group. It is to submit, it is to be ruled, and it is to rule."

I believe that to our modern ears this sounds somewhat strange, maybe even difficult to digest but I believe that his understanding of the church is soundly biblical. If he is correct in his assessment, and I believe that he is, then I think we would do well to contemplate what this actually means for us as members of Christ's church; here are just a few thoughts.

1. Every decision we make not only impacts us and our children but it will impact our church as well. I would guess that most people don't take their church membership into account when they make life decisions.

2. The consequences of our sin will reverberate throughout the church of which we are a part.

3. We must not look out for our own interests but rather we must humbly, graciously and lovingly put aside our own desires and wants for the good of Christ's body.

4. Membership is important.

5. Church discipline is an act of love.

These are just a few thoughts and I am sure that there are many other ways in which we could apply these principles.

I would encourage you to read the book because I believe that you will be humbled and challenged by it.