As a bible student with just 1 year left to go to graduate with a degree, I look back at the past three years when I tried (and probably am still failing miserably) to balance a business with studies and other responsibilities in life, I often think about the notion whereby Christian ministry seems to be unique in that many things we do in lay capacity are not remunerable. Many a service is done "unto the Lord" which is all good and nice, but when the realities of school fees, bills and textbooks (and commentaries and other books) come into the equation, it really eats into you. When two of your classmates have all their school fees and textbooks paid for by their church, even having a monthly allowance, but most importantly, are given the blessing by their leadership to attempt to apply whatever they have studied, one cannot but think about why do I make so many sacrifices just to complete a theological degree.
I personally have been the recipient of the grace and love of many lay leaders in church, most significant of a full time staff member of another church, who mentored and journeyed with me through the days I was anti-Christian, until today when I am about to venture into ministry for my beloved Jesus Christ. If the tithes and offerings of his church did not allow him to provide for his family, I do not know if I still would be still not too different from the angry and bitter teenager I was.
I guess that if God has truly called a minister, then he would be gracious to provide the means necessary to carry out the call, be it in family blessing, finances or opportunity for ministry. It is the working out toward the end goal (in my case, a church plant) that requires faith from on high to keep the workman going.
As I reflect on Tripp's short discourse, I would like to add that some churches have large full time staff because their members somehow do not minister to one another, so they pay others to take care of them. But if a person has truly been taught and captured the heart of the gospel, all followers of Jesus by nature would minister informally, whether or not they are paid by the church.
I often point out the dilemma why the sunday school teacher or the cell group leader is not paid, whereas the air con or the elevator repair man is. If we want to use a ministry of helps as a basis of comparison, we can consider whether the sound, light, money counters, security volunteers should be paid. I do recognise that when a church starts paying her congregation for certain tasks, like for editing an announcement video, that would be precedent for every other ministry volunteer to receive pay. That would not be an issue for a church which has a culture of giving generously (in terms of tithes/offering and to one another), but for a church that is barely balancing the accounts, that would not be possible.
So to go back on topic, in reflection to Tripp's stance, a church possibly should ask itself whether is its paid staff equipping its lay leaders to minister informally to one another or if they spend most of their time ministering to its congregation.
From Pages 19-20 of Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands
"The only metaphor that captures God's plan for the church is the metaphor of a body. Christ has given his church leaders, not to bear the full ministry load of the body of Christ, but to equip each member to join in God's work of personal transformation. Remember: no local church could hire enough staff to meet all the ministry needs of a given week! In the biblical model, much more informal, personal ministry goes on than formal ministry. The times of formal, public ministry are meant to train God's people for the personal ministry that is the lifestyle of the body of Christ. Reflect on your own life. Isn't it true that change has not come only through the formal ministry of the Word? Hasn't God also used ordinary people to change your heart and transform your life?"
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Thursday, December 10, 2015
Blanchard's careful preparation for public reading of Scripture
In the two decades or so of attending church, I have rarely seen many people read Scripture with much passion, reverence and definitely such extensive preparation. Blanchard has challenged me to reconsider who we should choose to read the Holy Word aloud in service, and also the importance of the posturing of one's heart for this precious privilege.
From pages 190-191 of Worship by the Book
British evangelist and Bible teacher John Blanchard describes how he has prepared for the public reading of God's Word and the powerful results:
From pages 190-191 of Worship by the Book
British evangelist and Bible teacher John Blanchard describes how he has prepared for the public reading of God's Word and the powerful results:
There are times when I have felt that the Bible was being read less preparation than the notices—and with considerably less understanding. I hesitate to use the following illustrations because of my part in it, but I do so as a reminder to my own heart of the seriousness of the issue. A year or two after my conversion I was appointed as a Lay Reader in the Church of England, to Holy Trinity Church, Guernsey. There were two other, more senior, Lay Readers on the staff, with the result that on most Sundays the responsibilities could be evenly shared out. As it happened, the Vicar almost always asked me to read the Lessons, following a Lectionary which listed the passages appointed to be read on each Sunday of the year. My wife and I lived in a small flat at the time, but I can vividly remember my Sunday morning routine. Immediately after breakfast I would go into the bedroom, lock the door, and begin to prepare for reading the Lesson that morning. After a word of prayer I would look up the Lesson in the Lectionary, and read it carefully in the Authorized Version, which we were using in the church. Then I would read it through in every other version I had in my possession, in order to get thoroughly familiar with the whole drift and sense of the passage. Next I would turn to the commentaries. I did not have many in those days, but those I had I used. I would pay particular attention to word meanings and doctrinal implications. When I had finished studying the passage in detail, I would go to the mantelpiece, which was roughly the same height as the lectern in the church, and prop up the largest copy of the Authorized Version I possessed. Having done that, I would walk very slowly up to it from the other side of the room, and begin to speak, aloud: 'Here beginneth the first verse of the tenth chapter of the gospel according to St. John' (or whatever the passage was). Then I would begin to read aloud the portion appointed. If I made so much as a single slip of the tongue, a single mispronunciation, I would stop, walk back across the room, and start again, until I had read the whole passage word perfect, perhaps two or three times. My wife would tell you that there were times when I emerged from the bedroom with that day's clean white shirt stained with perspiration drawn from the effort of preparing one Lesson to be read in the church. Does that sound like carrying things too far? Then let me add this: I was told that there were times when after the reading of the Lesson people wanted to leave the senäce there and then and go quietly home to think over the implications of what God has said to them in his Word.
Clowney on Paul's Christ-centered marriage advice
Clowney comments on the the oft quoted yet often not very well understood passage from Ephesians. Probably the common interpretation would be that the husband demands that the wife submits to him and because she does not, then he does not have to give up his life for her. And the vicious downward spiral ensues.
The simplicity and profoundness of Clowney's exposition makes me want to study the text more, and perhaps meditate on what other commentators have to share with us...
From pages 99-102 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Paul starts with the supremacy of Christ, and the reality of his presence in the Spirit. From this, he speaks of Christ and his church, then makes that reality the master model for our roles in the families that are "in the Lord." Does it seem that the role of the husband is exalted too much, that he should be likened to Christ? Ah, but that likeness offers no autocratic rule like that of the kings of the Gentiles. Christ is no dictator, but he is the Head of his body the church—in organic union with her. He is the Savior of the church. He loved the church and gave himself up for her. His purpose is "to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless" (Eph. 5:26-27).
Marriage counselors ... prefer to start with specific sources of irritation mentioned by a typical couple. Why did the new husband get so upset to see his wife looking through his wallet? Why does she find total lack of sensitivity in a husband who bangs out his toothbrush without rinsing the basin?
To be sure, men—and women, too—have seized on the idea of submission with no understanding of the transformation brought through Jesus. They miss the sun in the solar system of Paul's commandments. Submission is a meaningless concept in a Christian marriage if the one to whom we are all submitting is left out of the picture. The center is our being "in Christ." Paul's words could not be clearer. "In the Lord" determines everything. Making the husband the head of the house will not yield a Christian marriage or a Christian home. Some poor wives are painfully aware of this, as they try to live peaceably with husbands who take Paul's words, distort them, and impose their own selfish demands on their wives in the guise of Christian submission. Likewise, women can misuse their expectations of husbands by refusing obedience to them until they have "shaped up" and are looking like Paul's ideal model of selflessness. Such women forget that their submission is not ultimately to their husbands, but to Christ, who strengthens them and enables them to submit to a sinner in honor of Christ.
Are Paul's words too theological to be of practical help? Paul certainly knew and understood the teaching of the wisdom books of the Old Testament, which are full of practical applications of godly wisdom. He taught that wisdom, while coming from the Spirit, must be tested and sharpened in experience. But Paul understood why our being joined to Christ through the Spirit is the secret of Christ's union with his body the church. "This is a profound mystery," he says, "but I am talking about Christ and the church" (Eph. 5:32). Paul seems to realize that one might take his words off into a realm of bodiless theology and speculation. Immediately after recognizing the mystery of which he writes, he brings his readers back down to earth with a thump. "However," he adds, as a final word on the issue of marriage, "each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband" (Eph. 5:33). There is no room here for someone who wants to spiritualize away the responsibilities incumbent on husbands or wives.
The husband who imitates the Lord by giving his life for his wife; who has before him Christ's perfecting of the church as his holy bride; who claims her not as his possession, but as belonging to the Lord—that husband will show his wife something of the love of Christ, who calls them to be one flesh. They will together show the world something of the family of God. And the wife who gladly follows her husband; who seeks only his honor and his good; who seeks to bring all things under the headship of Christ by bringing the elements of her own world under the headship of her husband; who longs to accomplish the desires of her husband's heart and to apply those desires to all areas of her authority—that wife will show something of the full submission with which the Son honored his Father.
Such a couple will indeed experience no sense of loss, but the gain of glory. For the wife is the glory of the husband as she submits to him, and the man is glorified and lifted up by the wife who honors him. Both are glorified by the Father and the Son, just as the Son himself is glorified at the last day by theFather to whom he has submitted. Such Christian submission may seem humiliating. But it is the way of Christ, the way of the cross, and the only way to true glory and satisfaction.
The simplicity and profoundness of Clowney's exposition makes me want to study the text more, and perhaps meditate on what other commentators have to share with us...
From pages 99-102 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Paul starts with the supremacy of Christ, and the reality of his presence in the Spirit. From this, he speaks of Christ and his church, then makes that reality the master model for our roles in the families that are "in the Lord." Does it seem that the role of the husband is exalted too much, that he should be likened to Christ? Ah, but that likeness offers no autocratic rule like that of the kings of the Gentiles. Christ is no dictator, but he is the Head of his body the church—in organic union with her. He is the Savior of the church. He loved the church and gave himself up for her. His purpose is "to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless" (Eph. 5:26-27).
Marriage counselors ... prefer to start with specific sources of irritation mentioned by a typical couple. Why did the new husband get so upset to see his wife looking through his wallet? Why does she find total lack of sensitivity in a husband who bangs out his toothbrush without rinsing the basin?
To be sure, men—and women, too—have seized on the idea of submission with no understanding of the transformation brought through Jesus. They miss the sun in the solar system of Paul's commandments. Submission is a meaningless concept in a Christian marriage if the one to whom we are all submitting is left out of the picture. The center is our being "in Christ." Paul's words could not be clearer. "In the Lord" determines everything. Making the husband the head of the house will not yield a Christian marriage or a Christian home. Some poor wives are painfully aware of this, as they try to live peaceably with husbands who take Paul's words, distort them, and impose their own selfish demands on their wives in the guise of Christian submission. Likewise, women can misuse their expectations of husbands by refusing obedience to them until they have "shaped up" and are looking like Paul's ideal model of selflessness. Such women forget that their submission is not ultimately to their husbands, but to Christ, who strengthens them and enables them to submit to a sinner in honor of Christ.
Are Paul's words too theological to be of practical help? Paul certainly knew and understood the teaching of the wisdom books of the Old Testament, which are full of practical applications of godly wisdom. He taught that wisdom, while coming from the Spirit, must be tested and sharpened in experience. But Paul understood why our being joined to Christ through the Spirit is the secret of Christ's union with his body the church. "This is a profound mystery," he says, "but I am talking about Christ and the church" (Eph. 5:32). Paul seems to realize that one might take his words off into a realm of bodiless theology and speculation. Immediately after recognizing the mystery of which he writes, he brings his readers back down to earth with a thump. "However," he adds, as a final word on the issue of marriage, "each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband" (Eph. 5:33). There is no room here for someone who wants to spiritualize away the responsibilities incumbent on husbands or wives.
The husband who imitates the Lord by giving his life for his wife; who has before him Christ's perfecting of the church as his holy bride; who claims her not as his possession, but as belonging to the Lord—that husband will show his wife something of the love of Christ, who calls them to be one flesh. They will together show the world something of the family of God. And the wife who gladly follows her husband; who seeks only his honor and his good; who seeks to bring all things under the headship of Christ by bringing the elements of her own world under the headship of her husband; who longs to accomplish the desires of her husband's heart and to apply those desires to all areas of her authority—that wife will show something of the full submission with which the Son honored his Father.
Such a couple will indeed experience no sense of loss, but the gain of glory. For the wife is the glory of the husband as she submits to him, and the man is glorified and lifted up by the wife who honors him. Both are glorified by the Father and the Son, just as the Son himself is glorified at the last day by theFather to whom he has submitted. Such Christian submission may seem humiliating. But it is the way of Christ, the way of the cross, and the only way to true glory and satisfaction.
Thursday, November 26, 2015
Norman on dogma, doctrine and belief
I was just joking with the my girlfriend the other day about an angry comment I received. I was chided for thinking that I had studied too much until my head grew too big. Well, we bible school students would constantly receive such scoldings when we differ from the church's commonly held doctrine or belief (or as my professor calls it, opinion). Allow me to indulge in two hypothetical scenarios.
You have a piece of hardened skin on your sole that does not go away for a couple of months. You go to your doctor who tells you not to worry about it because it is just a corn, perhaps even giving you a cream for pain relief. You then bump into your friend who is in medical school, whose favourite subject happens to be dermatology. Instinctively you show your friend the corn and she tells you that it is unmistakably a wart and to go have it removed. Will you respond in anger and tell her off, "YOU STUDY TOO MUCH ALREADY, YOUR HEAD GREW TOO BIG?!"
Of course not! You would get a second opinion from perhaps a practicing dermatologist at the specialist clinic.
Perhaps you want to venture into investing in stocks and consult your friend who had been investing for a couple of decades. He did not receive any formal training and regards himself to be an average investor who just manages to make ends meet, thankfully because his wife holds a full time job. He tells you to buy a certain share. You then decide to look up your nephew who has been scoring close to a perfect GPA in finance for a second opinion. You then find out that he disagrees with your friend's insider tip. Do you get mad and tell him off, "WHY ARE YOU SO PROUD TO THINK THAT YOU KNOW BETTER THAN A PERSON WHO HAS BEEN DOING THIS FOR TWENTY YEARS?!"
I don't so. Thankfully I have come to a point whereby I know how very little we know about interpreting the ancient text of Scripture and applying it to today's contemporary context. It is okay if others think I am wrong. What we young bible school students will continually face when we differ with conventional thinking, is that the older generation thinks that we are rebelling or trying to show up the older guard of preachers. Many of them have never gone to seminary, and have been faithfully but perhaps not too successfully shepherding the people and preaching hermeneutically sound sermons.
I love the church, especially one that is not preaching the full counsel of God. My heart is broken when violence is done to Scripture and methodologies of leadership would make any postmodern person cringe. I would be crazy to spend 4 years of my life studying in bible school just to prove that I am smart. Studying in a local university would earn me much more money and provide another galaxy of job security. I went because I could no longer resist the call and the prompting to do so.
With one year left to graduate, and with no guaranteed job (let alone a decent paying one) in sight, it takes so much faith to keep going and trying our very best to do our very best in our studies. We have no choice but to trust that God will take care of our monetary needs and perhaps even material wants. I just do not get fed by the esigetical preaching in pentecostal churches, and find it a challenge to focus if the worship or sermon is a tad too serious. Where would I feel 100% at home? A church that reveres God's Word that the preachers and teachers do their utmost not to put their own meaning into Holy Scripture, and yet relies on and welcomes the Holy Spirit to minister in the service and meetings. I hope that eventually I can find it in Singapore!
From Perspectives on Church Government:
Following the insights of other theologians, I have adopted a threefold scheme for the categorization of valid doctrines.' These categories are: "dogma," "doctrine," and "belief." The category "dogma" encompasses those tenets that make us "Christian." "Dogma" consists of concepts that are absolutely nonnegotiable for the Christian faith. To deny a tenet within the "dogma" category would be to deny a tenet of orthodox Christianity. Students typically and rightfully place such concepts as the Trinity and the per-son and work of Jesus Christ in this grouping. The second category, "doctrine," includes those concepts that shape our understanding of the nature and ministry of the church. Differences of under-standing for concepts within this classification would not necessarily constitute a denial of the Christian faith, but differing perspectives on concepts within "doctrine" would determine differences in denominational identity, nature of ministry, and such. My students (primarily Southern Baptists) typically place beliefs such as a regenerate church membership, believer's baptism, or a memorial view of the Lord's Supper in this category. The final category, "belief," encompasses those ideas that are important but can be matters of difference of opinion. Concepts within the "belief" category are matters on which Christians can "agree to disagree" without disruption or breach of fellowship. Differences of theological understanding for tenets within the "belief" grouping neither constitute a denial of the Christian faith nor separation into differing denominations or churches. Students often place within this third category eschatological concepts such as the sequence of events and the timing of the second coming of Christ.
You have a piece of hardened skin on your sole that does not go away for a couple of months. You go to your doctor who tells you not to worry about it because it is just a corn, perhaps even giving you a cream for pain relief. You then bump into your friend who is in medical school, whose favourite subject happens to be dermatology. Instinctively you show your friend the corn and she tells you that it is unmistakably a wart and to go have it removed. Will you respond in anger and tell her off, "YOU STUDY TOO MUCH ALREADY, YOUR HEAD GREW TOO BIG?!"
Of course not! You would get a second opinion from perhaps a practicing dermatologist at the specialist clinic.
Perhaps you want to venture into investing in stocks and consult your friend who had been investing for a couple of decades. He did not receive any formal training and regards himself to be an average investor who just manages to make ends meet, thankfully because his wife holds a full time job. He tells you to buy a certain share. You then decide to look up your nephew who has been scoring close to a perfect GPA in finance for a second opinion. You then find out that he disagrees with your friend's insider tip. Do you get mad and tell him off, "WHY ARE YOU SO PROUD TO THINK THAT YOU KNOW BETTER THAN A PERSON WHO HAS BEEN DOING THIS FOR TWENTY YEARS?!"
I don't so. Thankfully I have come to a point whereby I know how very little we know about interpreting the ancient text of Scripture and applying it to today's contemporary context. It is okay if others think I am wrong. What we young bible school students will continually face when we differ with conventional thinking, is that the older generation thinks that we are rebelling or trying to show up the older guard of preachers. Many of them have never gone to seminary, and have been faithfully but perhaps not too successfully shepherding the people and preaching hermeneutically sound sermons.
I love the church, especially one that is not preaching the full counsel of God. My heart is broken when violence is done to Scripture and methodologies of leadership would make any postmodern person cringe. I would be crazy to spend 4 years of my life studying in bible school just to prove that I am smart. Studying in a local university would earn me much more money and provide another galaxy of job security. I went because I could no longer resist the call and the prompting to do so.
With one year left to graduate, and with no guaranteed job (let alone a decent paying one) in sight, it takes so much faith to keep going and trying our very best to do our very best in our studies. We have no choice but to trust that God will take care of our monetary needs and perhaps even material wants. I just do not get fed by the esigetical preaching in pentecostal churches, and find it a challenge to focus if the worship or sermon is a tad too serious. Where would I feel 100% at home? A church that reveres God's Word that the preachers and teachers do their utmost not to put their own meaning into Holy Scripture, and yet relies on and welcomes the Holy Spirit to minister in the service and meetings. I hope that eventually I can find it in Singapore!
From Perspectives on Church Government:
Following the insights of other theologians, I have adopted a threefold scheme for the categorization of valid doctrines.' These categories are: "dogma," "doctrine," and "belief." The category "dogma" encompasses those tenets that make us "Christian." "Dogma" consists of concepts that are absolutely nonnegotiable for the Christian faith. To deny a tenet within the "dogma" category would be to deny a tenet of orthodox Christianity. Students typically and rightfully place such concepts as the Trinity and the per-son and work of Jesus Christ in this grouping. The second category, "doctrine," includes those concepts that shape our understanding of the nature and ministry of the church. Differences of under-standing for concepts within this classification would not necessarily constitute a denial of the Christian faith, but differing perspectives on concepts within "doctrine" would determine differences in denominational identity, nature of ministry, and such. My students (primarily Southern Baptists) typically place beliefs such as a regenerate church membership, believer's baptism, or a memorial view of the Lord's Supper in this category. The final category, "belief," encompasses those ideas that are important but can be matters of difference of opinion. Concepts within the "belief" category are matters on which Christians can "agree to disagree" without disruption or breach of fellowship. Differences of theological understanding for tenets within the "belief" grouping neither constitute a denial of the Christian faith nor separation into differing denominations or churches. Students often place within this third category eschatological concepts such as the sequence of events and the timing of the second coming of Christ.
Friday, November 20, 2015
Longman III and Allender on how our relationships reveal our selfishness
Without the gospel, we would use even the people closest to us for selfish purposes; "even our good relationships... become a prime breeding ground for anger and frustration, lust and violence and even idolatry." I reckon that most of the time, the reason people leave jobs and churches or even the faith is because of relating to another person. Indeed I recognise that I am not much different from the corrupt tax collectors who "love those who love them" (Matt. 5:46; cf. Luke 6:32). I don't think I even desire to love with an other-centered love, yet that is what Christ calls me to. Sure it will help if there are godly people around me who model how to do that...
From pages 56-58 of Breaking the Idols of Your Heart
When we are honest, we realize that even our good relationships cant fulfill our needs for intimacy. Other people let us down. They use us, as the Teacher recognized in Ecclesiastes 5: 11: "The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it." And we do the same thing to them. If we take a close look at ourselves, we realize we can't fulfill the needs of others. So our relationships become a prime breeding ground for anger and frustration, lust and violence and even idolatry...
When we sinners come together in relationship, the problems intensify; they don't go away. We feel not only the frustration created by the inadequacy of another person but also the guilt of our failures as a spouse, a relative or a friend.
Perhaps no other area in our life raises more questions than our relationships. Perhaps no other area in our life causes more anger, jealousy, disappointment and stress than other people. The Teacher, though he had positive things to say about relationships, recognized this frustration:
"This is my conclusion," says the Teacher. "I discovered this after looking at the matter from every possible angle. Though I have searched repeatedly, I have not found what I was looking for. Only one out of every thousand men is virtuous, but not one woman! But I did find this: God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path." (Ecclesiastes 7:27-29)
Don't be distracted by the Teacher's attitude toward women here. His words are not meant to be a definite statement of what is right. They are being quoted by the second wise man, who uses them as an example to teach his son. Remember, too, that the Teacher reflects life under the sun and that he prizes men only a tad better than women. If the Teacher were a woman, she would probably say the same thing about men.
The main point is that relationships are unsatisfactory. And even when they are good, as the Teacher ruthlessly points out, they all end in death: "Whatever they did in their lifetime—loving, hating, envying—is all long gone. They no longer play a part in anything here on earth" (Ecclesiastes 9:6).
Our under-the-sun relationships can't supply us with ultimate meaning or purpose in life. Disappointments, rejections, betrayals, bereavements make this clear.
So what do we do? Should we adopt the devil-may-care attitude to which the Teacher resigns himself? "So go ahead. Eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a happy heart, for God approves of this! Wear fine clothes, with a splash of cologne!" (Ecclesiastes 9:7). Or is there something more? Can we move from relational frustration under the sun to something better above the sun?
The answer is yes. But to understand how this works, we have to look beyond the Teachers cynical proclamations or even the wise mans admonition to obey God's commands. We have to look to the gospel—and the amazing love of God himself.
Why is it so hard to live in love and intimacy with God and others? The Bibles answer to that question is that deep down we love only ourselves. Love of self conflicts with loving another person. We want to be loved, but it hard to give love to another unless we get something in return. Indeed often give only as a way of filling our own needs. How often have we withdrawn from people to whom we have been close because we were getting nothing out of a relationship. How often have we wanted to be with another person because that person was making us feel good and was serving our own needs?
That kind of selfish love comes naturally to us. Its the ultimate source of the lust and violence that afflicts our relationships. But there's another to live and to love, as the apostle Paul points out in the thirteenth Chapter of 1 Corinthians. We often think of this chapter in the context of marriage, and indeed it is appropriately applied in that most intimate of human relationships. But Paul is really talking about attitudes and actions that should characterize all healthy loving relationships.
After asserting the importance of this alternative kind of love (1 Corinthians 12:31—13:3), Paul describes a heart that loves with passion and depth. First, the apostle tells us that love is patient and kind. It waits for the other, and it does so with concern, not irritability. It waits. It hopes. It loves beauty and justice and does not give in to the petty pleasure of seeing the one who hurt us stumble. Love is the Atlas of the soul; it keeps holding us up. It does not quit; it does not lose the memory of connection; it does not kill the dreams of reconciliation.
On the other hand, love wants nothing to do with jealousy or pride, which seek their own good at the expense of the other Instead, love cares for the other, not for the self. Love does not keep accounts, weighing the advantages of a particular relationship. It is not based on what we can get out of a connection, but on what we can put into it. Instead it sacrifices safety ("I wont let myself be hurt again") and deals a death blow to self-righteousness (After all I've done for them, I deserve better"). Love seeks the good of the other without denying the hunger of our heart or demanding that desire be satisfied.
It is this high call to other-centered love that strips us of any pretense that we love well.
From pages 56-58 of Breaking the Idols of Your Heart
When we are honest, we realize that even our good relationships cant fulfill our needs for intimacy. Other people let us down. They use us, as the Teacher recognized in Ecclesiastes 5: 11: "The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it." And we do the same thing to them. If we take a close look at ourselves, we realize we can't fulfill the needs of others. So our relationships become a prime breeding ground for anger and frustration, lust and violence and even idolatry...
When we sinners come together in relationship, the problems intensify; they don't go away. We feel not only the frustration created by the inadequacy of another person but also the guilt of our failures as a spouse, a relative or a friend.
Perhaps no other area in our life raises more questions than our relationships. Perhaps no other area in our life causes more anger, jealousy, disappointment and stress than other people. The Teacher, though he had positive things to say about relationships, recognized this frustration:
"This is my conclusion," says the Teacher. "I discovered this after looking at the matter from every possible angle. Though I have searched repeatedly, I have not found what I was looking for. Only one out of every thousand men is virtuous, but not one woman! But I did find this: God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path." (Ecclesiastes 7:27-29)
Don't be distracted by the Teacher's attitude toward women here. His words are not meant to be a definite statement of what is right. They are being quoted by the second wise man, who uses them as an example to teach his son. Remember, too, that the Teacher reflects life under the sun and that he prizes men only a tad better than women. If the Teacher were a woman, she would probably say the same thing about men.
The main point is that relationships are unsatisfactory. And even when they are good, as the Teacher ruthlessly points out, they all end in death: "Whatever they did in their lifetime—loving, hating, envying—is all long gone. They no longer play a part in anything here on earth" (Ecclesiastes 9:6).
Our under-the-sun relationships can't supply us with ultimate meaning or purpose in life. Disappointments, rejections, betrayals, bereavements make this clear.
So what do we do? Should we adopt the devil-may-care attitude to which the Teacher resigns himself? "So go ahead. Eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a happy heart, for God approves of this! Wear fine clothes, with a splash of cologne!" (Ecclesiastes 9:7). Or is there something more? Can we move from relational frustration under the sun to something better above the sun?
The answer is yes. But to understand how this works, we have to look beyond the Teachers cynical proclamations or even the wise mans admonition to obey God's commands. We have to look to the gospel—and the amazing love of God himself.
Why is it so hard to live in love and intimacy with God and others? The Bibles answer to that question is that deep down we love only ourselves. Love of self conflicts with loving another person. We want to be loved, but it hard to give love to another unless we get something in return. Indeed often give only as a way of filling our own needs. How often have we withdrawn from people to whom we have been close because we were getting nothing out of a relationship. How often have we wanted to be with another person because that person was making us feel good and was serving our own needs?
That kind of selfish love comes naturally to us. Its the ultimate source of the lust and violence that afflicts our relationships. But there's another to live and to love, as the apostle Paul points out in the thirteenth Chapter of 1 Corinthians. We often think of this chapter in the context of marriage, and indeed it is appropriately applied in that most intimate of human relationships. But Paul is really talking about attitudes and actions that should characterize all healthy loving relationships.
After asserting the importance of this alternative kind of love (1 Corinthians 12:31—13:3), Paul describes a heart that loves with passion and depth. First, the apostle tells us that love is patient and kind. It waits for the other, and it does so with concern, not irritability. It waits. It hopes. It loves beauty and justice and does not give in to the petty pleasure of seeing the one who hurt us stumble. Love is the Atlas of the soul; it keeps holding us up. It does not quit; it does not lose the memory of connection; it does not kill the dreams of reconciliation.
On the other hand, love wants nothing to do with jealousy or pride, which seek their own good at the expense of the other Instead, love cares for the other, not for the self. Love does not keep accounts, weighing the advantages of a particular relationship. It is not based on what we can get out of a connection, but on what we can put into it. Instead it sacrifices safety ("I wont let myself be hurt again") and deals a death blow to self-righteousness (After all I've done for them, I deserve better"). Love seeks the good of the other without denying the hunger of our heart or demanding that desire be satisfied.
It is this high call to other-centered love that strips us of any pretense that we love well.
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Thomas on the life-giving love in a marriage
In the context of a marriage, Gary Thomas comments on Matt. 6:33 "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need."
The first paragraph sounds like a fulfilling marriage to me! Bet it is going to be built upon super alot of hard work of dying to self and giving of Christ-like love to one another. Too bad it doesnt just happen magically...
How can we as sinful, selfish people do as such? Only when in surrender to the moulding of our hearts and wills by you Holy Spirit. We confess we are so prone to sinning again you and one another Lord, help us, if we so choose to be married, to do so with a kingdom framework - that we would seek to put our spouse as more important than ourselves, that a giving of ourselves would be the hallmark of our married lives. Give us a greater glimpse and understanding of how you love your church so that we can do likewise! Amen.
From page 17-18 of The Sacred Search:
The first paragraph sounds like a fulfilling marriage to me! Bet it is going to be built upon super alot of hard work of dying to self and giving of Christ-like love to one another. Too bad it doesnt just happen magically...
How can we as sinful, selfish people do as such? Only when in surrender to the moulding of our hearts and wills by you Holy Spirit. We confess we are so prone to sinning again you and one another Lord, help us, if we so choose to be married, to do so with a kingdom framework - that we would seek to put our spouse as more important than ourselves, that a giving of ourselves would be the hallmark of our married lives. Give us a greater glimpse and understanding of how you love your church so that we can do likewise! Amen.
From page 17-18 of The Sacred Search:
When husband and wife are committed in Christ, growing together in the Lord, supporting each other in their spiritual walks, raising children in the fear of the Lord, loving each other out of reverence for God, joy abounds and miracles happen. Selfish people become servants. Self-centered children grow up to become workers in God’s kingdom. Strangers become intimate friends. Daily life is filled with the drama of kingdom building. There are plenty of mistakes, lots of repenting, times of frustration, sickness, and even doubts. But in the end, God’s presence prevails, people are transformed, kingdom work is accomplished, and trials are overcome. If two people join themselves around this mission—if they make their marital choice based on the best person with whom they can accomplish this mission—they are far more likely to have a fulfilling and soul-building marriage.
On the other hand, I’ve witnessed how miserable people can make each other when they live for themselves. Though their initial sexual attraction might have been off the charts, it is usually only a matter of months until they are saying and doing awful, awful things to each other, so awful that they will call a pastor on the phone, someone they don’t even know, because they are so desperate to find another way to live. There was a time when they couldn’t live without each other; every second, they had to be together. They couldn’t keep their hands off each other. Now they can’t bear to live together. When they’re in the same room, or in the same car, or on the same telephone call, they can’t stop fighting.
It’s made me realize that the old cliché is all too true: a good marriage is the closest two people will ever come to heaven this side of eternity; a bad marriage is the closest two people in an affluent society will ever come to hell.
Such problems usually erupt from trying to build a life together without purpose, without mission, without something that not only establishes a connection but keeps you caring about each other for the next fifty to sixty years.
Wilkinson on searching for your audience's needs
Here's my attempt to highlight and summarise the ten primary vehicles for searching for your audience’s needs from Pages 312 to 321 of The Seven Laws of the Learner
Overview
A. Direct methods to find the need
1. Direct questions
2. Low-key interviews
3. Anonymous questionnaire
4. Interaction with family members
5. Personal visits to the student's home or work
6. Personal observation
B. Indirect methods to find the need
1. Books.
2. Magazines and newspapers.
3. Research studies and polls.
4. Individuals interacting with the public.
A. Direct methods to find the need
Use those best fitted to your personality, class and circumstances.
1. Direct questions. When the situation is casual and relaxed, ask your need-seeking questions directly. Here are a few ideas.
“Betty, I value your wisdom and insight and wonder if you could help me be a more effective teacher by telling what you think the three biggest problems are that people like you face today."
"John, I'm concerned that our class meet the needs of its members. Could you help me by giving two or three areas in your life that you wish we would address in the future?"
"Mr. Smith, what topics would you like to see taught during next quarter's classes?
Open-ended questions allow the student to be as personal as he wishes. People will respond to a sincerely asked question, especially when the teacher asks for help. Remove the threat and fear factor. Develop the regular habit of asking good questions and you'll be amazed how soon you have the right answers!
2. Low-key interviews. This method is less difficult than the first in that you don't ask questions directly or personally, but instead ask about general class needs:
"Martha, I noticed that our class seems to be feeling pressure lately. What do you think some of the reasons may be?"
"Frank, your kids are really growing up! How old are they now? What are the struggles kids their age seem to be facing these days?"
"Mr. and Mrs. Smith, did you happen to see the article on the front page of Sunday's paper reporting that Americans have never had more personal debt that today? How do you think debt is creating hardships for families in their midforties?"
Low key interviews can capture significant and practical insights that will give your content timeliness and personal interest.
3. Anonymous questionnaire. This is a most effective vehicle. A questionnaire can be controlled, involves more people that you could personally talk to, and asks questions on a variety of subjects. The key to its effectiveness hinges on three conditions.
First, the audience must know both the purpose and its ultimate use. It is for teacher's eyes only, or will the results be announced and discussed? Be aware that the latter purpose may reduce honesty.
Second, the audience must be convinced of the anonymity of the questionnaire. Any hint that they could be found out will tilt the response.
Third, the questions must be carefully constructed so that the responses present a true picture. The questions are as important as the answer. Frequently I'll distribute blank three-by-five cards with teh following open-ended questions and instruct the class to answer anonymously:
Overview
A. Direct methods to find the need
1. Direct questions
2. Low-key interviews
3. Anonymous questionnaire
4. Interaction with family members
5. Personal visits to the student's home or work
6. Personal observation
B. Indirect methods to find the need
1. Books.
2. Magazines and newspapers.
3. Research studies and polls.
4. Individuals interacting with the public.
A. Direct methods to find the need
Use those best fitted to your personality, class and circumstances.
1. Direct questions. When the situation is casual and relaxed, ask your need-seeking questions directly. Here are a few ideas.
“Betty, I value your wisdom and insight and wonder if you could help me be a more effective teacher by telling what you think the three biggest problems are that people like you face today."
"John, I'm concerned that our class meet the needs of its members. Could you help me by giving two or three areas in your life that you wish we would address in the future?"
"Mr. Smith, what topics would you like to see taught during next quarter's classes?
Open-ended questions allow the student to be as personal as he wishes. People will respond to a sincerely asked question, especially when the teacher asks for help. Remove the threat and fear factor. Develop the regular habit of asking good questions and you'll be amazed how soon you have the right answers!
2. Low-key interviews. This method is less difficult than the first in that you don't ask questions directly or personally, but instead ask about general class needs:
"Martha, I noticed that our class seems to be feeling pressure lately. What do you think some of the reasons may be?"
"Frank, your kids are really growing up! How old are they now? What are the struggles kids their age seem to be facing these days?"
"Mr. and Mrs. Smith, did you happen to see the article on the front page of Sunday's paper reporting that Americans have never had more personal debt that today? How do you think debt is creating hardships for families in their midforties?"
Low key interviews can capture significant and practical insights that will give your content timeliness and personal interest.
3. Anonymous questionnaire. This is a most effective vehicle. A questionnaire can be controlled, involves more people that you could personally talk to, and asks questions on a variety of subjects. The key to its effectiveness hinges on three conditions.
First, the audience must know both the purpose and its ultimate use. It is for teacher's eyes only, or will the results be announced and discussed? Be aware that the latter purpose may reduce honesty.
Second, the audience must be convinced of the anonymity of the questionnaire. Any hint that they could be found out will tilt the response.
Third, the questions must be carefully constructed so that the responses present a true picture. The questions are as important as the answer. Frequently I'll distribute blank three-by-five cards with teh following open-ended questions and instruct the class to answer anonymously:
- The biggest problem I struggle with work is...
- Whenever my spouse and I get into arguments, it's usually about...
- My biggest personal disappointment during the past few years was...
- My greatest triumph as a person is...
- When I get angry with God, it's usually because...
- When I get to heaven, my biggest insight about what I should have been doing will be...
- If somebody could give me one good piece of advice about how to raise my kids, it would be about...
- Probably the area of my spiritual life that causes me the most problems is...
- Rate your Christian walk on a scale of 1-10. The one area in my Christian life where I stumble the most is...
- The sin I seem to wrestle with and rarely have the victory over is...
- On a scale of 1-10, how honest were you in answering these questions?
Spend a few hours with those cards-they represent a gold mine of need. Quickly you will be able to identify the top ten needs in areas such as your students' work, family, and spiritual growth... Aim each class at one of the top three felt needs. Never again will you have to wonder if a lesson will hit the mark.
4. Interaction with family members. There are two ways to approach this: (1) comments by the student about his family; and (2) comments by the family about the student. Vague, general, and open-ended questions about a student's family can reveal volumes to the discerning listener.
5. Personal visits to the student's home or work. The best insights are frequently obtained through a brief, personal visit to a person's home or place of employment. It's the only real way to walk in someone else's shoes. Today's classrooms are so unnatural and structured that students seldom reveal their true selves. We have to look elsewhere for glimpses of reality. Home is where our masks crumble and where needs lie right on the surface. Attitudes, atmosphere, frame of mind, harmony or disharmony, order or disorder, all are apparent to those who care enough to look.
You cant cant meet a need if you don't know what is. If you want to know your students, look behind the doors of their homes and offices.
6. Personal observation. This method focuses upon those clues which are available during all of life.
First, the questions people ask in and after class reflect areas of inner interest and need.
Second, body language speaks so loudly it often can be heard above spoken words. Arms folded, hands over mouth, body slouched, torso leaning aggressively forward-all carry loud messages.
Third, class attendance is probably the most direct indicator of how well you meet the needs of your audience. People's presence or absence clearly denotes what they think of your class. The more helpful the class, the more people will come for help!
Fourth, class discussions reflect needs which require further consideration. Whenever students try to keep the ball rolling on a given subject, you know you've hit oil.
Fifth, after-class activities and conversations mirror the true interests and concerns of your class because they are neither required nor structured.
Those are the major direct methods of find the needs of your students.
B. Indirect methods to find the need
Unlike the direct approach, which puts you face to face with your audience, the indirect approach offers valuable information through other people's research and experience. Although the information will frequently give you solid and dependable insights, it must be evaluated carefully as it does not deal specifically with your class.
Collect information around two basic frameworks: (i) topics that you know most interest your class; and (ii) characteristics of the age group of your class members, noting their problems and trends. There are many available sources for this information, but here are a few of the primary ones:
1. Books. Regularly browsing the shelves in your Christian and secular bookstores gives a snapshot of the bestselling books, and therefore conveys where the current interests and needs lie. Ask the store manager what trends he's seeing and what types of books people in your class' age bracket are purchasing. At the time I was writing this book the top four bestsellers were about money, business, sex, and health. When is the last time you taught on money, business, sex, or health?
2. Magazines and newspapers. Because the magazine industry is so consumer-oriented and must meet the ever-changing interests of the American public, it frequently presents a panorama of the needs of your targeted audiences. Pay close attention to the types of articles they feature as well as the types of books they review and advertise.
Magazines include valuable articles, surveys, and Q&A columns. Remember, people only read what they are interested in. And whether or not you agree with advice columnists, keep a close eye on the subjects they repeat or for which they receive overwhelming responses. They're not the most-read journalists in America by accident.
Want a real eye-opener? Take any well-known magazine and look at the Q&A section. Those are the questions people are really asking. Next Sunday, teach God's answer to those questions. I guarantee you nobody will move.
3. Research studies and polls. George Gallup and George Barna frequently conduct polls to establish the true feelings and positions of the public on myriad subjects.
4. Individuals interacting with the public. Doctors, dentists, barbers and beauticians, counselors, psychologists, guidance counselors, police, teachers, principals, and a host of others have their fingers on the public pulse and can be interviewed about the trends they see. I make it a practice to ask such "pulse people" about the problems they see on the rise.
Magazines include valuable articles, surveys, and Q&A columns. Remember, people only read what they are interested in. And whether or not you agree with advice columnists, keep a close eye on the subjects they repeat or for which they receive overwhelming responses. They're not the most-read journalists in America by accident.
Want a real eye-opener? Take any well-known magazine and look at the Q&A section. Those are the questions people are really asking. Next Sunday, teach God's answer to those questions. I guarantee you nobody will move.
3. Research studies and polls. George Gallup and George Barna frequently conduct polls to establish the true feelings and positions of the public on myriad subjects.
4. Individuals interacting with the public. Doctors, dentists, barbers and beauticians, counselors, psychologists, guidance counselors, police, teachers, principals, and a host of others have their fingers on the public pulse and can be interviewed about the trends they see. I make it a practice to ask such "pulse people" about the problems they see on the rise.
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Clowney on marriage as a reflection of covenant
I guess I have been guilty in letting the Hollywood portrayal of marriage shape my worldview more than the Bible's. We think of the romantic times spent together, of the lovely adventures and of the beautiful places in the world to travel to together etc, of the amazing material things we can purchase and the wonderful home we can build up together. Well all of these things are not bad in themselves, but they do not encapsulate the rich theological metaphor of marriage!
When we reflect on how God used marriage as a reflection of his covenantal love for his people (both ancient Israel and us today), how would that change the way we look at marriage? Do we bail out when things go sour? How often would we insist on having our own way? What then can do to honour our spouse given the beautiful metaphor that God has modelled for us?
From pages 93-5 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
The prophet Ezekiel uses the figure of marriage to describe God's covenant relation to Israel. He speaks of marriage in its legal force as a figure for God's covenant made at Sinai. Yet it is not left as one contract among others. No, the Lord holds his people with jealous love. He cannot permit other gods to share his claim of love. The worship of other gods is the greatest offence against the Lord, whom the people of Israel must love with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.
The prophets describe the love of God for his people as the love of a father leading his son Israel through the desert. "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son . . . It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them" (Hos. 11:1, 3). More often, the prophets speak of God as a loving husband. The time when God led Israel through the wilderness was a tryst with them. The Lord was wooing his people and leading them home to the house where he would dwell with them. When Israel turned aside in spiritual adultery, the Lord cried, "How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? . . . My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused" (Hos. 11:8).
The Lord, the Creator, uses the image of a husband's love to show the love he has for Israel:
The Lord gives his people tender names of love, the way a husband would proudly claim and perhaps even tease his wife, loving her for just the person she is. "You will be called Hephzibah [my delight is in her], and your land Beulah [married]; for the LORD will take delight in you, and your land will be married . . . As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you" (Isa. 62:4b-5).
Ezekiel 16 compares the Lord's love to that of a young man who discovers an abandoned baby girl, kicking in her blood by the side of the road. He finds the girl, washes and clothes her, and provides for her as she grows into a beautiful young woman. He then marries her, spreading his robe over her in protection and claiming her as his beloved bride. God says that he has taken to himself his bride, his people Israel. But the bride, wedded to the Lord in his covenant, becomes a prostitute, and offers up the children of the Lord to heathen gods. The Lord will judge her, but at last restore her and establish his covenant with her.
There will come a great and final day when the covenant is fulfilled, not by the faithfulness of the bride, but by the steadfast love of the Bridegroom. That day will bring the sealing of the love of the Lord for his people. " 'In that day,' declares the LORD, 'you will call me "my husband"; you will no longer call me my master" [Baal]' " (Hos. 2:16). In that day, the Daughter of Zion will sing, for "The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing" (Zeph. 3:17). The prophet speaks of the Lord's deepest love, to be revealed with the coming of the Lord. Then at last, the Lord, the Bridegroom, will come to claim his own.
When we reflect on how God used marriage as a reflection of his covenantal love for his people (both ancient Israel and us today), how would that change the way we look at marriage? Do we bail out when things go sour? How often would we insist on having our own way? What then can do to honour our spouse given the beautiful metaphor that God has modelled for us?
From pages 93-5 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
The prophet Ezekiel uses the figure of marriage to describe God's covenant relation to Israel. He speaks of marriage in its legal force as a figure for God's covenant made at Sinai. Yet it is not left as one contract among others. No, the Lord holds his people with jealous love. He cannot permit other gods to share his claim of love. The worship of other gods is the greatest offence against the Lord, whom the people of Israel must love with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.
The prophets describe the love of God for his people as the love of a father leading his son Israel through the desert. "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son . . . It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them" (Hos. 11:1, 3). More often, the prophets speak of God as a loving husband. The time when God led Israel through the wilderness was a tryst with them. The Lord was wooing his people and leading them home to the house where he would dwell with them. When Israel turned aside in spiritual adultery, the Lord cried, "How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? . . . My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused" (Hos. 11:8).
The Lord, the Creator, uses the image of a husband's love to show the love he has for Israel:
For your Maker is your husband—the LORD Almighty is his name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer... The LORD will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit—a wife who married young, only to be rejected. For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. (Isa. 54:5-7)
The Lord gives his people tender names of love, the way a husband would proudly claim and perhaps even tease his wife, loving her for just the person she is. "You will be called Hephzibah [my delight is in her], and your land Beulah [married]; for the LORD will take delight in you, and your land will be married . . . As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you" (Isa. 62:4b-5).
Ezekiel 16 compares the Lord's love to that of a young man who discovers an abandoned baby girl, kicking in her blood by the side of the road. He finds the girl, washes and clothes her, and provides for her as she grows into a beautiful young woman. He then marries her, spreading his robe over her in protection and claiming her as his beloved bride. God says that he has taken to himself his bride, his people Israel. But the bride, wedded to the Lord in his covenant, becomes a prostitute, and offers up the children of the Lord to heathen gods. The Lord will judge her, but at last restore her and establish his covenant with her.
There will come a great and final day when the covenant is fulfilled, not by the faithfulness of the bride, but by the steadfast love of the Bridegroom. That day will bring the sealing of the love of the Lord for his people. " 'In that day,' declares the LORD, 'you will call me "my husband"; you will no longer call me my master" [Baal]' " (Hos. 2:16). In that day, the Daughter of Zion will sing, for "The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing" (Zeph. 3:17). The prophet speaks of the Lord's deepest love, to be revealed with the coming of the Lord. Then at last, the Lord, the Bridegroom, will come to claim his own.
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Clowney on how Christ transforms Israel's need for table separation
The term "Christian" is overrated. So many people calls themselves Christians and yet some I feel are some of the most horrible people I have ever come across. I do not know what to make out of that. I have no desire to love these enemies. No way do I regard them to be my "brother!" Perhaps if we are all being persecuted, there would be weeding out of the "nominal" followers. And yet I reflect on this attitude of mine and recognise that my heart desires to disobey a direct command of Scripture.
I thus gain a better appreciation of what it was like for the Jews in the early church to warm up to and come to accept the Gentiles. It really was not an easy thing to do! Perhaps the only manner it could have been done was by the empowering of the Spirit (interacting with their free wills). O Lord, I recognise the hate and disdain in my heart for certain groups of people. I admit that I do not want to love them or show them mercy, but help me confirm my heart to become more like yours. Let the change be less out of fear of judgment day, and more of a willingness to please you and bring joy to your heart. Amen.
From page 87 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
The physical distinctiveness of Israel no longer marks the new Israel. For that reason the kosher diet no longer applies, and the separation of Israel from table fellowship with Gentiles is ended. The mark of the new Israel is love toward God and toward the people we meet—and the people we would rather not meet. This love, as we have seen, is the infinitely deepened love that Jesus showed to his Father and to us. The love of Christ draws and drives us to talk to people, to surprise others by seeing what they need.
I thus gain a better appreciation of what it was like for the Jews in the early church to warm up to and come to accept the Gentiles. It really was not an easy thing to do! Perhaps the only manner it could have been done was by the empowering of the Spirit (interacting with their free wills). O Lord, I recognise the hate and disdain in my heart for certain groups of people. I admit that I do not want to love them or show them mercy, but help me confirm my heart to become more like yours. Let the change be less out of fear of judgment day, and more of a willingness to please you and bring joy to your heart. Amen.
From page 87 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
The physical distinctiveness of Israel no longer marks the new Israel. For that reason the kosher diet no longer applies, and the separation of Israel from table fellowship with Gentiles is ended. The mark of the new Israel is love toward God and toward the people we meet—and the people we would rather not meet. This love, as we have seen, is the infinitely deepened love that Jesus showed to his Father and to us. The love of Christ draws and drives us to talk to people, to surprise others by seeing what they need.
Clowney on the true freedom of being enslaved to Christ our Saviour
I relate with the desire to live life "my way." Anybody, especially authority figures who have yet to win my respect, would find that I would do the opposite of whatever they try to force me to do. Because then I felt that I am the master of my own destiny and nobody can make me do what I do not want to do. It almost seemed that rebelling would be the most energising of endavours!
Oh boy, what a journey I have been on since then! While I still do not "show face" to authority figures who try to "pull rank" on me, I guess in many areas (previously zero areas) of my life I am periodically seeking to bring in line with God's will (as best as I can discern it).
A quote by C S Lewis (from his book The Great Divorce) comes to mind:
From pages 74-75; 98 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Sinners lambaste God's structures and portray them as restrictive and tyrannical. But the "yoke" that Christ took on himself and the one he asks us to take up is the obedience that brings freedom, peace, joy, and honor...
True freedom is not that shown by the man possessed by a legion of devils in Mark chapter 5. He was free—free of home responsibilities. He did not have to care for a wife or children. He could leave them and do his own thing. He resented the confinement of clothing. He took it all off. He could live where he wanted, so he lived in caves and howled all night. He disliked people. When they came through his haunts, he beat them up. When he was seized and chained, he had the preternatural strength to rip off the bonds and break the chains. Young people who resent the restraints of life at home need to reflect on the total freedom that Satan offers. The freedom of the demoniac was total bondage to a legion of devils. Satan is a destroyer, not a creator...
Apart from Christ, no true freedom exists. Submission to him delivers us from bondage to our pride, our evil desires, and our service to the devil. When we pray, "Deliver us from the Evil One, " we pray for freedom by enslaving ourselves to the will of our Savior, Christ...
To submit for Christ's sake is to submit to Christ where he has placed us. No other is master of our hearts. The submissive Christian is an odd combination. The world does not understand such a position. There is a strange power and independence to a man or woman who is not "for sale." How many times has a boss fired or refused to hire a Christian, when he realized that his heart was not for hire! On the other hand, submission to others for Christ's sake calls for service with dedicated dignity, "like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men" (Eph. 6:6-7). As Christians submit to the obedience to which God calls them, in the place of service where he has put them, they are strengthened by the Spirit to submit. In that strength. they serve with full hearts, and it is the Lord himself who will honor such service.
Oh boy, what a journey I have been on since then! While I still do not "show face" to authority figures who try to "pull rank" on me, I guess in many areas (previously zero areas) of my life I am periodically seeking to bring in line with God's will (as best as I can discern it).
A quote by C S Lewis (from his book The Great Divorce) comes to mind:
There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." All that are in Hell, choose it.I recall how obsessed I was with earning money, because my self-worth and self-identity depended on my grades and bank account. Materialism, alongside laziness, will be a continual temptation, and I have to continually remind myself of what the Jesus has done on the cross for me, and what that demands of me.
From pages 74-75; 98 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Sinners lambaste God's structures and portray them as restrictive and tyrannical. But the "yoke" that Christ took on himself and the one he asks us to take up is the obedience that brings freedom, peace, joy, and honor...
True freedom is not that shown by the man possessed by a legion of devils in Mark chapter 5. He was free—free of home responsibilities. He did not have to care for a wife or children. He could leave them and do his own thing. He resented the confinement of clothing. He took it all off. He could live where he wanted, so he lived in caves and howled all night. He disliked people. When they came through his haunts, he beat them up. When he was seized and chained, he had the preternatural strength to rip off the bonds and break the chains. Young people who resent the restraints of life at home need to reflect on the total freedom that Satan offers. The freedom of the demoniac was total bondage to a legion of devils. Satan is a destroyer, not a creator...
Apart from Christ, no true freedom exists. Submission to him delivers us from bondage to our pride, our evil desires, and our service to the devil. When we pray, "Deliver us from the Evil One, " we pray for freedom by enslaving ourselves to the will of our Savior, Christ...
To submit for Christ's sake is to submit to Christ where he has placed us. No other is master of our hearts. The submissive Christian is an odd combination. The world does not understand such a position. There is a strange power and independence to a man or woman who is not "for sale." How many times has a boss fired or refused to hire a Christian, when he realized that his heart was not for hire! On the other hand, submission to others for Christ's sake calls for service with dedicated dignity, "like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men" (Eph. 6:6-7). As Christians submit to the obedience to which God calls them, in the place of service where he has put them, they are strengthened by the Spirit to submit. In that strength. they serve with full hearts, and it is the Lord himself who will honor such service.
Longman III and Allender on how life "under the sun" is subjected to frustration
I am once again reminded of how futile life is if we only focus on life on this earth. I remember reading a recent trending post of advise that was supposedly given Steve Jobs - the gist is in the face of impending death, he would not be able to take the wealth he had accumulated, and that what he would bring along would probably be the memories of the good relationships he had had. He called the readers to invest more time and energy into meaningful friendships/relationships.
Do we as Christians subconsciously attribute pain and suffering to the devil, and pray or hope earnestly that God would defeat the enemy and deliver us? I can relate strongly when things do not go the way I hope it would. I am deeply saddened by the amount of violence to Scripture that is going on from the preacher's pulpit and from the cell leader's notes. I am grieved that church leaders pick and choose Scripture to justify the church's methodological demand of unquestioned submission to leaders. I am troubled that many Christians are unable to intellectually defend Scripture or a Christian worldview against the onslaught of the average postmodern young adult's worldview. I do not know what to do when I see worship leaders draw attention to themselves or just feed the crowd's desire to be entertained. I am frustrated that I do not yet know how to reconcile how blessed I was to receive the ministry of wonderful women cell leaders and teachers, and yet it seems that the reformed theologians make a better case for Complementarianism. I am conflicted as to whether the church should remunerate for services rendered. I am confused as to whether I should speak up of my deeply held convictions or keep silent so as not to come across as a brash smart alec out to show how smart he is.
Indeed it seems that my life is out of control, and the temptation is to seek to systematically bring everything under my power, in my little bubble of influence. O Lord help me see things from an eternal perspective, that I may live life having discovered, surrendered and accomplished your will.
From pages 34-36 of Breaking the Idols of Your Heart
Christians often ignore God's disruptions, attributing them either to Satan's assault or just to the way life is. We too quickly mask our frustration, saying something like, "Well, I may not know what is going on, but at least God does!"
We assume God will take care of those who pursue him. We find ourselves attracted to sayings like "the LORD does not let the righteous go hungry" (Proverbs 10:3 NIV) rather than to sad—but accurate—observation like the Teacher's:
People today spend a lot of physical, emotional and spiritual energy trying to control their schedules, jobs and relationships. We assume that the solution to our lack of control is to find new systems, new rules, new methods, new "laws" for doing things. We think that if only we have the right systems, we can control the chaos.
Our experience and the Teacher's observations deny this assumption. We need to turn from frenetically chasing control to something better. Under the sun, we chase control, but we discover it is as difficult to grasp as the wind. However, we can choose to move from an "under the sun" perspective to an "above the sun" one.
Let's take some time to explain this terminology, which will play such an important role in this book. We have already observed that the Teacher uses the phrase "under the sun" to describe life and
God. The Teacher himself never uses the opposite phrase. We are coining it to explain the opposite perspective. In other words, while the Teacher kept his search for meaning and truth utterly earthbound, we want to look at life from Gods perspective as he reveals it to us in his Word.
How do we move from an "under the sun" perspective to an "above the sun" viewpoint? The answer ... is simply this: "fear God and obey his commands" (12:13). Put God first in your life. If you want to find meaning and purpose in life, look at reality from God's perspective, not your own limited view.
Do we as Christians subconsciously attribute pain and suffering to the devil, and pray or hope earnestly that God would defeat the enemy and deliver us? I can relate strongly when things do not go the way I hope it would. I am deeply saddened by the amount of violence to Scripture that is going on from the preacher's pulpit and from the cell leader's notes. I am grieved that church leaders pick and choose Scripture to justify the church's methodological demand of unquestioned submission to leaders. I am troubled that many Christians are unable to intellectually defend Scripture or a Christian worldview against the onslaught of the average postmodern young adult's worldview. I do not know what to do when I see worship leaders draw attention to themselves or just feed the crowd's desire to be entertained. I am frustrated that I do not yet know how to reconcile how blessed I was to receive the ministry of wonderful women cell leaders and teachers, and yet it seems that the reformed theologians make a better case for Complementarianism. I am conflicted as to whether the church should remunerate for services rendered. I am confused as to whether I should speak up of my deeply held convictions or keep silent so as not to come across as a brash smart alec out to show how smart he is.
Indeed it seems that my life is out of control, and the temptation is to seek to systematically bring everything under my power, in my little bubble of influence. O Lord help me see things from an eternal perspective, that I may live life having discovered, surrendered and accomplished your will.
From pages 34-36 of Breaking the Idols of Your Heart
Christians often ignore God's disruptions, attributing them either to Satan's assault or just to the way life is. We too quickly mask our frustration, saying something like, "Well, I may not know what is going on, but at least God does!"
We assume God will take care of those who pursue him. We find ourselves attracted to sayings like "the LORD does not let the righteous go hungry" (Proverbs 10:3 NIV) rather than to sad—but accurate—observation like the Teacher's:
The fastest runner doesn't always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn't always win the battle. People can never predict when hard times might come. Like fish in a net or birds in a trap, people are caught by sudden tragedy (Ecclesiastes 9:11-12).The Teacher does not even find comfort in the idea of an afterlife where God puts everything right. As he looks into the future, he cries out:
This, too, 1 carefully explored: Even though the actions of godly and wise people are in God's hands, no one knows whether God will show them favor. The same destiny ultimately awaits everyone, whether righteous or wicked, good or bad, ceremonially clean or unclean, religious or irreligious. Good people receive the same treatment as sinners, and people who make promises to God are treated like people who don't (9:1-2).No wonder the Teacher concludes, again and again, that life is "like chasing the wind" (1:14 and many other verses). If we pay attention, we easily conclude the same. Even though we try hard, we can still feel we are groping in the darkness with no ultimate success.
People today spend a lot of physical, emotional and spiritual energy trying to control their schedules, jobs and relationships. We assume that the solution to our lack of control is to find new systems, new rules, new methods, new "laws" for doing things. We think that if only we have the right systems, we can control the chaos.
Our experience and the Teacher's observations deny this assumption. We need to turn from frenetically chasing control to something better. Under the sun, we chase control, but we discover it is as difficult to grasp as the wind. However, we can choose to move from an "under the sun" perspective to an "above the sun" one.
Let's take some time to explain this terminology, which will play such an important role in this book. We have already observed that the Teacher uses the phrase "under the sun" to describe life and
God. The Teacher himself never uses the opposite phrase. We are coining it to explain the opposite perspective. In other words, while the Teacher kept his search for meaning and truth utterly earthbound, we want to look at life from Gods perspective as he reveals it to us in his Word.
How do we move from an "under the sun" perspective to an "above the sun" viewpoint? The answer ... is simply this: "fear God and obey his commands" (12:13). Put God first in your life. If you want to find meaning and purpose in life, look at reality from God's perspective, not your own limited view.
Friday, November 13, 2015
Congregations get the preachers they deserve
Mark Ashton and C. J. Davis reflect on Archbishop Thomas Cranmer's impactful contribution of the "Book of Common Prayer," and how the Anglican church today should apply the principles which sanctioned its writing.
We are often taught that we are to search the scriptures like the the people of Berea "day after day to see if our teachers/pastors were teaching the truth" (Acts 17:11). The question we have to ask ourselves as teachers and preachers of God's Holy Scripture: are we guilty of responding with anger if our preaching/teaching is pointed out to be not in line with Scripture? Do we, in our defence, spiritualise matters and hide behind "God told me so?"
How do we inspire others to love or value authority of God's Scripture? Only when we ourselves have a deep reverence when we approach the text, and seek to impart this love for wholesome spiritual food.
O Lord, grant us a desire to meditate upon and preach your words as sensitively to the ancient and contemporary contexts. Help us rely and submit to you Holy Spirit, so that we will not add or subtract to the words of your Holy Word. We ask you to empower us to point others to surrender their wills to yours and to enjoy you forever. For Jesus sake, Amen.
From Pages 99-100 of Worship by the Book
...the experience of listening to the Word of God being taught ... will be a participatory experience. This is not to say that there must always be questions or discussion groups, but Bible preaching is not like an academic lecture or a performance. The Bible's own imagery suggests that the meal table is a better analogy for the sermon than the school lesson as we sit listening to the Word of God and "feed" on it together. That is why it is so important that, if at all possible, the members of the congregation have the Bible text open before them. It is why the most encouraging sight to see, while listening to a sermon, is not the preacher passionately gesticulating in the pulpit, but other members of the congregation listening attentively and poring over their Bibles to see "whether these things [are] so" (Acts 17:11 NRSV). It is why the preacher must make it clear to his congregation from time to time that his role is to teach the Bible faithfully and that it is their responsibility to check that he is doing so, "weigh[ing] carefully what is said" (1 Cor 14:29). It is why a preacher needs to be prepared to apologize to the congregation when further attention to a passage leads him to the conclusion that he has misrepresented Bible truth in some way in a previous sermon.
There are few more encouraging noises for the preacher than the rustle of Bible pages among the congregation when he announces his text. He should draw comfort from that, more than from sounds of approval for what he is saying during the sermon. A faithful congregation will draw faithful preaching out of their pastor. Conversely, it is very hard to persevere as a faithful teacher of the Word of God to a congregation that does not want to have it taught to them. To some extent congregations get the preachers they deserve, because preaching is a two-way process: the attitudes of preacher and congregation must unite in a humble hunger for God's Word... What matters is that Jesus Christ should be present—and he will be if his Word is being heard and obeyed.
We are often taught that we are to search the scriptures like the the people of Berea "day after day to see if our teachers/pastors were teaching the truth" (Acts 17:11). The question we have to ask ourselves as teachers and preachers of God's Holy Scripture: are we guilty of responding with anger if our preaching/teaching is pointed out to be not in line with Scripture? Do we, in our defence, spiritualise matters and hide behind "God told me so?"
How do we inspire others to love or value authority of God's Scripture? Only when we ourselves have a deep reverence when we approach the text, and seek to impart this love for wholesome spiritual food.
O Lord, grant us a desire to meditate upon and preach your words as sensitively to the ancient and contemporary contexts. Help us rely and submit to you Holy Spirit, so that we will not add or subtract to the words of your Holy Word. We ask you to empower us to point others to surrender their wills to yours and to enjoy you forever. For Jesus sake, Amen.
From Pages 99-100 of Worship by the Book
...the experience of listening to the Word of God being taught ... will be a participatory experience. This is not to say that there must always be questions or discussion groups, but Bible preaching is not like an academic lecture or a performance. The Bible's own imagery suggests that the meal table is a better analogy for the sermon than the school lesson as we sit listening to the Word of God and "feed" on it together. That is why it is so important that, if at all possible, the members of the congregation have the Bible text open before them. It is why the most encouraging sight to see, while listening to a sermon, is not the preacher passionately gesticulating in the pulpit, but other members of the congregation listening attentively and poring over their Bibles to see "whether these things [are] so" (Acts 17:11 NRSV). It is why the preacher must make it clear to his congregation from time to time that his role is to teach the Bible faithfully and that it is their responsibility to check that he is doing so, "weigh[ing] carefully what is said" (1 Cor 14:29). It is why a preacher needs to be prepared to apologize to the congregation when further attention to a passage leads him to the conclusion that he has misrepresented Bible truth in some way in a previous sermon.
There are few more encouraging noises for the preacher than the rustle of Bible pages among the congregation when he announces his text. He should draw comfort from that, more than from sounds of approval for what he is saying during the sermon. A faithful congregation will draw faithful preaching out of their pastor. Conversely, it is very hard to persevere as a faithful teacher of the Word of God to a congregation that does not want to have it taught to them. To some extent congregations get the preachers they deserve, because preaching is a two-way process: the attitudes of preacher and congregation must unite in a humble hunger for God's Word... What matters is that Jesus Christ should be present—and he will be if his Word is being heard and obeyed.
Practical Advice for Service Leading and Annoucements
Mark Ashton and C. J. Davis reflect on Archbishop Thomas Cranmer's impactful contribution of the "Book of Common Prayer," and how the Anglican church today should apply the principles which sanctioned its writing.
Their helpful advise is applicable beyond their denomination (Anglian), as their heart of service unto the Lord and their fellow believers is something we all can learn from.
Ashton and Davis highlight the importance of planning for the service leader. That person would have to, as an offering unto the Lord, spend effort and time deliberating how to strike a balance between "gripping the interest and attention of the congregation, and communicating the seriousness of what is happening." The affirm the helpfulness of involving new individuals into the role, so as not to fall into having the role "restricted to some priestly caste." For them, training of new service leaders would require a balance of "encouragement and criticism."
With regard to announcements, they reiterate the importance of planning. They affirm that saints are not to be so involved within the church activities that they are unable to interact with the social world "outside," and that guilt should not be the main motivator to force congregants to attend activities/events. The authors suggest notice sheets and information desks as ways to further improve the communicating of announcements.
From Pages 95-8 of Worship by the Book
Leading the Service
The role of the service leader becomes more significant as more careful planning goes into the service itself. Well-prepared leading can make the difference between outsiders feeling welcome or not. It can help the congregation to grasp the theme of the service. But over-preparation can lead to dullness, and there is a place for spontaneity, impromptu humor, and off-the-cuff remarks as well.
The person leading the service must seek to achieve a balance between gripping the interest and attention of the congregation, and communicating the seriousness of what is happening. Some service leading is good at holding attention but communicates a sense of superficiality. It may be characterized by humor and quick wit but convey the flippancy of a TV chat show. Another style of leading is minimalist (often the refuge of the person who has spent little or no time in preparation). It may be justified on grounds of "not drawing attention to the personality of the leader," but it misses a valuable opportunity to edify the congregation. The bare announcement of a hymn or song number with no reference to the meaning of the words we are about to sing usually indicates that this is one part of the service that the service leader has not bothered to prepare. Recall David's "I will not offer to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing" (2 Sam 24:24). All too often Anglican church services have amounted to "sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving" that cost very little, certainly in terms of time spent in preparation by the person who leads them. No wonder they have been so ineffective for edification and evangelism and so monstrously dull for those who come (or prefer, perhaps wisely, not to come)!
If service leading is kept mainly in the hands of one person, it has the advantages of continuity, familiarity, and (so long as that person is suitably gifted) a uniformly high standard of leading. If the service leader is also the main Bible teacher in the church, the service leading will be another way he is able to teach doctrine to the congregation.
On the other hand, where service leading is a team ministry, the individuals involved may be able to prepare their own (smaller) part of the service in greater detail, with closer attention to its different aspects. A team ministry also publicly displays the corporate nature of the church's ministry and provides an opportunity for new individuals to be drawn into the role. Wherever possible, we should avoid giving the impression that Christian ministry is a one-man show.
In this matter it is probably best to try to have our cake and eat it, hard though that may be to achieve! We need the example of strong, theologically astute service leading to set the standard, but we also need to make clear that this role is not restricted to some priestly caste. It is healthy to see a new face and to hear a new voice fulfilling this ministry from time to time. But it must be done as well as possible, and that will mean training people to draw the best out of them by encouragement and criticism. Good leading draws less attention to the personality of the leader and focuses more attention on the purpose of the service.
The Notices (or "Announcements" in much of the English-speaking world)
These are often one of the dullest parts of a church service. But while the weekly services are the hub of the church's structured life, there will be other meetings radiating out like spokes from that hub, and the life of a church fellowship during the rest of the week is important. Ideally the church leadership will be checking very carefully that church activities do not grow and grow so as to invade and monopolize the leisure time of the congregation members and thus remove them from all normal social intercourse with the non-Christian world. But there will be some midweek meetings of the church that need to be advertised in the notices on Sundays.
So we should not be ashamed of the notices or try to stick them away in some corner of the service where they will do least damage. But neither should we let them become the opportunity for the minister to "have a go" at the congregation, heaping guilt onto them for past and possible future sins of omission, like failing to book for the Parish Weekend. No church should run on guilt, and the notice about an important meeting (like a monthly prayer meeting) must be carefully worded.
Once again, preparation is the key. The notices must be carefully prepared. They will not be well delivered if they are drawn from scraps of paper hastily assembled in the vestry just before the service begins. Careful preparation enables us to convey important information in the most efficient and concise way. Notices have a notorious tendency to fill more and more time. They need to be pruned of all excess verbiage. Where a notice sheet can be provided, it will save valuable service time. Or attention may be directed to a notice board, where further details of an event are available for those interested. Larger churches will sooner or later discover the value of an Information Desk, where inquiries of all sorts can be dealt with individually and sensitively, and where publicity handouts and fliers can be available in quantity.
Their helpful advise is applicable beyond their denomination (Anglian), as their heart of service unto the Lord and their fellow believers is something we all can learn from.
Ashton and Davis highlight the importance of planning for the service leader. That person would have to, as an offering unto the Lord, spend effort and time deliberating how to strike a balance between "gripping the interest and attention of the congregation, and communicating the seriousness of what is happening." The affirm the helpfulness of involving new individuals into the role, so as not to fall into having the role "restricted to some priestly caste." For them, training of new service leaders would require a balance of "encouragement and criticism."
With regard to announcements, they reiterate the importance of planning. They affirm that saints are not to be so involved within the church activities that they are unable to interact with the social world "outside," and that guilt should not be the main motivator to force congregants to attend activities/events. The authors suggest notice sheets and information desks as ways to further improve the communicating of announcements.
From Pages 95-8 of Worship by the Book
Leading the Service
The role of the service leader becomes more significant as more careful planning goes into the service itself. Well-prepared leading can make the difference between outsiders feeling welcome or not. It can help the congregation to grasp the theme of the service. But over-preparation can lead to dullness, and there is a place for spontaneity, impromptu humor, and off-the-cuff remarks as well.
The person leading the service must seek to achieve a balance between gripping the interest and attention of the congregation, and communicating the seriousness of what is happening. Some service leading is good at holding attention but communicates a sense of superficiality. It may be characterized by humor and quick wit but convey the flippancy of a TV chat show. Another style of leading is minimalist (often the refuge of the person who has spent little or no time in preparation). It may be justified on grounds of "not drawing attention to the personality of the leader," but it misses a valuable opportunity to edify the congregation. The bare announcement of a hymn or song number with no reference to the meaning of the words we are about to sing usually indicates that this is one part of the service that the service leader has not bothered to prepare. Recall David's "I will not offer to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing" (2 Sam 24:24). All too often Anglican church services have amounted to "sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving" that cost very little, certainly in terms of time spent in preparation by the person who leads them. No wonder they have been so ineffective for edification and evangelism and so monstrously dull for those who come (or prefer, perhaps wisely, not to come)!
If service leading is kept mainly in the hands of one person, it has the advantages of continuity, familiarity, and (so long as that person is suitably gifted) a uniformly high standard of leading. If the service leader is also the main Bible teacher in the church, the service leading will be another way he is able to teach doctrine to the congregation.
On the other hand, where service leading is a team ministry, the individuals involved may be able to prepare their own (smaller) part of the service in greater detail, with closer attention to its different aspects. A team ministry also publicly displays the corporate nature of the church's ministry and provides an opportunity for new individuals to be drawn into the role. Wherever possible, we should avoid giving the impression that Christian ministry is a one-man show.
In this matter it is probably best to try to have our cake and eat it, hard though that may be to achieve! We need the example of strong, theologically astute service leading to set the standard, but we also need to make clear that this role is not restricted to some priestly caste. It is healthy to see a new face and to hear a new voice fulfilling this ministry from time to time. But it must be done as well as possible, and that will mean training people to draw the best out of them by encouragement and criticism. Good leading draws less attention to the personality of the leader and focuses more attention on the purpose of the service.
The Notices (or "Announcements" in much of the English-speaking world)
These are often one of the dullest parts of a church service. But while the weekly services are the hub of the church's structured life, there will be other meetings radiating out like spokes from that hub, and the life of a church fellowship during the rest of the week is important. Ideally the church leadership will be checking very carefully that church activities do not grow and grow so as to invade and monopolize the leisure time of the congregation members and thus remove them from all normal social intercourse with the non-Christian world. But there will be some midweek meetings of the church that need to be advertised in the notices on Sundays.
So we should not be ashamed of the notices or try to stick them away in some corner of the service where they will do least damage. But neither should we let them become the opportunity for the minister to "have a go" at the congregation, heaping guilt onto them for past and possible future sins of omission, like failing to book for the Parish Weekend. No church should run on guilt, and the notice about an important meeting (like a monthly prayer meeting) must be carefully worded.
Once again, preparation is the key. The notices must be carefully prepared. They will not be well delivered if they are drawn from scraps of paper hastily assembled in the vestry just before the service begins. Careful preparation enables us to convey important information in the most efficient and concise way. Notices have a notorious tendency to fill more and more time. They need to be pruned of all excess verbiage. Where a notice sheet can be provided, it will save valuable service time. Or attention may be directed to a notice board, where further details of an event are available for those interested. Larger churches will sooner or later discover the value of an Information Desk, where inquiries of all sorts can be dealt with individually and sensitively, and where publicity handouts and fliers can be available in quantity.
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Clowney on Jesus' transformation of the Sabbath to bring rest to others
Jesus' disciples and the early church did not observe Sabbath in sleep and slumber. Taking heed of Jesus' transformation of the commandment into a commission, their zeal for Yahweh was exhibited in their endeavors to bring an early rest to others. Evangelism was not separated from social ministry. How many of us believers today are compelled by the gospel to move from consuming to sowing? It is indeed a difficult response if we have allowed work and ministry (to fellow-believers) to wear us thin. O Lord forgive us of our idlesness, send us spiritual mentors to model for us what it means to have compassion for others, because we are clueless in moving beyond our self-centered lifestyles.
From pages 63-64 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Jesus' disciples spent the very first "first day of the week" together, rejoicing in the resurrection of the Lord. On that first resurrection Sunday the disciples seemed hesitant to announce Christ's triumph to the outside world, so stunned and amazed were they. Later, however, they used the first day of the week to announce the good news of the gospel and to exercise acts of mercy and compassion, as Jesus had taught them to do by his own observance of the Sabbath. In our Christian worship, we come together as a gathered body of Christ to honor him, to remind ourselves and the world that we belong to him, and to announce the resurrection of the Lord of the Sabbath, who offers true rest to those who receive him. As we call one day "the Lord's," we must be careful to show the love of Christ in New Covenant service to others, as well as coming together for worship, rest, and refreshment.
The Sabbath cannot sanction idleness. The Lord's covenant does not call us to spend the first day of the week uniquely on Sunday-afternoon naps. Though physical rest is surely a part of the first-day observance, the Lord's Day is also a day of activity, to be celebrated by fulfilling the commission that the Lord has given us. The promise of rest is transformed by the fact that the seventh-day observance becomes a first day observance. The celebration on the seventh day has been transformed by Jesus' resurrection. Christ's victory over the powers of darkness in his resurrection glory accounts for the shift in the New Testament from the seventh day of the week to the first day of the week.
To follow Jesus on the first day of the week is not only to keep the first day as the Old Covenant people of God were required to keep the seventh day. It is to consider the first day as united to Jesus Christ, our Savior, and to look for opportunities to show devotion to him in activity that we know pleases him in the work of the kingdom. Christians have, through the centuries, used the first day of the week in caring for the sick and the poor, the oppressed and afflicted, and those whom we may reach with the message and the healing comfort of the gospel. In particular, those who are elders of Christ's church or deacons ministering in Christ's name have the responsibility of enlisting the service of the church to care for those in need.
The shadow of the Old Covenant has become the reality in the fulfillment of Christ's compassion and the calling of the Great Commission. Jesus transforms the Sabbath to make the whole world see the fruit of the gospel in the company of believers. The world must see in the life of the church the compassion of Jesus Christ in social ministry and evangelism. We sometimes forget the impact that Christian service has made in the midst of the agonies of this world. As the world watches us fulfill God's commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy, they will see the resurrection power of Christ and get a taste of the rest into which God is calling his own.
From pages 63-64 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Jesus' disciples spent the very first "first day of the week" together, rejoicing in the resurrection of the Lord. On that first resurrection Sunday the disciples seemed hesitant to announce Christ's triumph to the outside world, so stunned and amazed were they. Later, however, they used the first day of the week to announce the good news of the gospel and to exercise acts of mercy and compassion, as Jesus had taught them to do by his own observance of the Sabbath. In our Christian worship, we come together as a gathered body of Christ to honor him, to remind ourselves and the world that we belong to him, and to announce the resurrection of the Lord of the Sabbath, who offers true rest to those who receive him. As we call one day "the Lord's," we must be careful to show the love of Christ in New Covenant service to others, as well as coming together for worship, rest, and refreshment.
The Sabbath cannot sanction idleness. The Lord's covenant does not call us to spend the first day of the week uniquely on Sunday-afternoon naps. Though physical rest is surely a part of the first-day observance, the Lord's Day is also a day of activity, to be celebrated by fulfilling the commission that the Lord has given us. The promise of rest is transformed by the fact that the seventh-day observance becomes a first day observance. The celebration on the seventh day has been transformed by Jesus' resurrection. Christ's victory over the powers of darkness in his resurrection glory accounts for the shift in the New Testament from the seventh day of the week to the first day of the week.
To follow Jesus on the first day of the week is not only to keep the first day as the Old Covenant people of God were required to keep the seventh day. It is to consider the first day as united to Jesus Christ, our Savior, and to look for opportunities to show devotion to him in activity that we know pleases him in the work of the kingdom. Christians have, through the centuries, used the first day of the week in caring for the sick and the poor, the oppressed and afflicted, and those whom we may reach with the message and the healing comfort of the gospel. In particular, those who are elders of Christ's church or deacons ministering in Christ's name have the responsibility of enlisting the service of the church to care for those in need.
The shadow of the Old Covenant has become the reality in the fulfillment of Christ's compassion and the calling of the Great Commission. Jesus transforms the Sabbath to make the whole world see the fruit of the gospel in the company of believers. The world must see in the life of the church the compassion of Jesus Christ in social ministry and evangelism. We sometimes forget the impact that Christian service has made in the midst of the agonies of this world. As the world watches us fulfill God's commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy, they will see the resurrection power of Christ and get a taste of the rest into which God is calling his own.
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Clowney on how the work of the kingdom is rest
From pages 61-62 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Christ brings spiritual rest. He calls to the weary and burdened to come to him for rest. Yet even in that invitation, Jesus showed the heavenly nature of his rest. The Lord's Day doesn't yet offer us the satisfaction and joy we will know in our final rest. Jesus promised rest to those who took his yoke. How can a yoke bring rest to the burdened? Christ's yoke is an image of his lordship. We labor under his authority and in his power. Because we are laboring for him and by his strength, we have his peace even though we have not reached our final rest. Jesus blessed his disciples with the peace that he alone can give. Jesus gives peace with God, and peace in living for him, not for ourselves. We may cast all our cares upon him, for he cares for us. This peace might seem illusory, however, were it not for the promise of final rest.
The author of Hebrews describes the future rest that awaits the people of God: the perfect rest of God that has no ending. That hope of heaven awaits us. It is the place where we will enter into the rest of God the Creator: a rest in which perfect love will cast out all our fears; a resting place prepared ahead of us by our older brother, who will wipe away every tear; and a resting place where there will be no more sin or suffering or pain or separation or loneliness.
In Christ, we taste already the rest and peace found in his presence. To go and be with Christ is far better, but through the Spirit we already know the gift of Christ's rest. God, who rested from his work of creation, still works in providence and redemption. Jesus, the Son of God, has entered his rest, but he now carries forward his saving work until the final heavenly rest is ushered in.
Christ brings spiritual rest. He calls to the weary and burdened to come to him for rest. Yet even in that invitation, Jesus showed the heavenly nature of his rest. The Lord's Day doesn't yet offer us the satisfaction and joy we will know in our final rest. Jesus promised rest to those who took his yoke. How can a yoke bring rest to the burdened? Christ's yoke is an image of his lordship. We labor under his authority and in his power. Because we are laboring for him and by his strength, we have his peace even though we have not reached our final rest. Jesus blessed his disciples with the peace that he alone can give. Jesus gives peace with God, and peace in living for him, not for ourselves. We may cast all our cares upon him, for he cares for us. This peace might seem illusory, however, were it not for the promise of final rest.
The author of Hebrews describes the future rest that awaits the people of God: the perfect rest of God that has no ending. That hope of heaven awaits us. It is the place where we will enter into the rest of God the Creator: a rest in which perfect love will cast out all our fears; a resting place prepared ahead of us by our older brother, who will wipe away every tear; and a resting place where there will be no more sin or suffering or pain or separation or loneliness.
In Christ, we taste already the rest and peace found in his presence. To go and be with Christ is far better, but through the Spirit we already know the gift of Christ's rest. God, who rested from his work of creation, still works in providence and redemption. Jesus, the Son of God, has entered his rest, but he now carries forward his saving work until the final heavenly rest is ushered in.
Clowney on Paul's call to unity on differing views of the Sabbath
I often ponder about how Sundays are sometimes the busiest day of the week, when a day back with services and church activity is the perfect recipe for a tired believer (rather than a rested one). This is probably one of the most compelling reasons that has spurred a special interest in me to study whether we are bound to a Sabbath in today's modern context. Various Christian circles would inevitably have differing views on this... And in the dissimilarities, we are reminded to be united as one body in Christ who has fulfilled the commandment!
I guess I relate a little with the "man who wishes that he could be with God's people every day of the week," albeit for a differ reason. It is probably more "carnal" than "holy", more socio-emotional rather than theological. As an extreme extrovert, I long for a Christian community like that of Acts 2. When we gather together more often than the weekly Sunday service, because we want to rather than have to, what I envision is a rested loving covenant community: Modelling a surrendered will to the Holy Spirit, continually studying and applying Scripture; a deep love for Christ is exhibited in their encouragment and sharpening of fellow family members (1 Thess. 5:11; Prov. 27:17).
From pages 60-61 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Paul had to deal with the question of Sabbath observance in churches with Jewish and Gentile believers. He instructed them not to judge one another on the matter of Sabbath observance. The Old Testament observances of feast days, New Moon celebrations, and the Sabbath day were all shadows of things to come in Christ. "The reality, however, is found in Christ" (Col. 2:17). Paul counsels those who understand this reality to show love and understanding to those who are weaker in the faith, and have not yet realized the change that Christ has brought (Rom. 13:8). "One man, " writes Paul, "considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord" (Rom. 14:5-6a).
Yet we must not assume that the man "who considers every day alike" will show no interest in attending the gathering of the saints on the first day of the week. That man has reached a level of maturity at which he realizes that the service of Christ must be carried on just as intensively on Wednesday and Friday as on Sunday. He is the man who wishes that he could be with God's people every day of the week! The early church did meet together regularly on the first day of the week, and Paul elsewhere admonishes believers not to neglect these worship assemblies. The apostolic church met for worship on the Lord's Day, the day of Jesus' resurrection (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2), and we learn from the book of Revelation that John was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day (Rev. 1:10). In this sense the Sabbath rest is still celebrated: on the Lord's Day we find rest and refreshment in Christ and the richness of the eternal rest in which the Son of God is one with his people in the heavenly rest of his glory.
I guess I relate a little with the "man who wishes that he could be with God's people every day of the week," albeit for a differ reason. It is probably more "carnal" than "holy", more socio-emotional rather than theological. As an extreme extrovert, I long for a Christian community like that of Acts 2. When we gather together more often than the weekly Sunday service, because we want to rather than have to, what I envision is a rested loving covenant community: Modelling a surrendered will to the Holy Spirit, continually studying and applying Scripture; a deep love for Christ is exhibited in their encouragment and sharpening of fellow family members (1 Thess. 5:11; Prov. 27:17).
From pages 60-61 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Paul had to deal with the question of Sabbath observance in churches with Jewish and Gentile believers. He instructed them not to judge one another on the matter of Sabbath observance. The Old Testament observances of feast days, New Moon celebrations, and the Sabbath day were all shadows of things to come in Christ. "The reality, however, is found in Christ" (Col. 2:17). Paul counsels those who understand this reality to show love and understanding to those who are weaker in the faith, and have not yet realized the change that Christ has brought (Rom. 13:8). "One man, " writes Paul, "considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord" (Rom. 14:5-6a).
Yet we must not assume that the man "who considers every day alike" will show no interest in attending the gathering of the saints on the first day of the week. That man has reached a level of maturity at which he realizes that the service of Christ must be carried on just as intensively on Wednesday and Friday as on Sunday. He is the man who wishes that he could be with God's people every day of the week! The early church did meet together regularly on the first day of the week, and Paul elsewhere admonishes believers not to neglect these worship assemblies. The apostolic church met for worship on the Lord's Day, the day of Jesus' resurrection (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2), and we learn from the book of Revelation that John was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day (Rev. 1:10). In this sense the Sabbath rest is still celebrated: on the Lord's Day we find rest and refreshment in Christ and the richness of the eternal rest in which the Son of God is one with his people in the heavenly rest of his glory.
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Grudem on why we should study theology with helps for others
From page 35 of Systematic Theology
We need to be thankful that God has put teachers in the church ("And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers . . ." [1 Cor. 12:28]. We should allow those with gifts of teaching to help us understand Scripture. This means that we should make use of systematic theologies and other books that have been written by some of the teachers that God has given to the church over the course of its history. It also means that our study of theology should include talking with other Christians about the things we study. Among those with whom we talk will often be some with gifts of teaching who can explain biblical teachings clearly and help us to understand more easily. In fact, some of the most effective learning in systematic theology courses in colleges and seminaries often occurs outside the classroom in informal conversations among students who are attempting to understand Bible doctrines for themselves.
We need to be thankful that God has put teachers in the church ("And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers . . ." [1 Cor. 12:28]. We should allow those with gifts of teaching to help us understand Scripture. This means that we should make use of systematic theologies and other books that have been written by some of the teachers that God has given to the church over the course of its history. It also means that our study of theology should include talking with other Christians about the things we study. Among those with whom we talk will often be some with gifts of teaching who can explain biblical teachings clearly and help us to understand more easily. In fact, some of the most effective learning in systematic theology courses in colleges and seminaries often occurs outside the classroom in informal conversations among students who are attempting to understand Bible doctrines for themselves.
Grudem on why we should study theology with humility
From page 33 of Systematic Theology
Peter tells us, "Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for 'God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble"' (1 Peter 5:5). Those who study systematic theology will learn many things about the teachings of Scripture that are perhaps not known or not known well by other Christians in their churches or by relatives who are older in the Lord than they are. They may also find that they understand things about Scripture that some of their church officers do not understand, and that even their pastor has perhaps forgotten or never learned well.
In all of these situations it would be very easy to adopt an attitude of pride or superiority toward others who have not made such a study. But how ugly it would be if anyone were to use this knowledge of God's Word simply to win arguments or to put down a fellow Christian in conversation, or to make another believer feel insignificant in the Lord's work. James' counsel is good for us at this point: "Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, for the anger of man does not work the righteousness of God" (James l: 19—20). He tells us that one's understanding of Scripture is to be imparted in humility and love:
Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good life let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. . . . But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, hill of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity. And the harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. (James 3:13, 17—18)
Systematic theology rightly studied will not lead to the knowledge that "puffs up" (1 Cor. 8: l) but to humility and love for others.
Peter tells us, "Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for 'God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble"' (1 Peter 5:5). Those who study systematic theology will learn many things about the teachings of Scripture that are perhaps not known or not known well by other Christians in their churches or by relatives who are older in the Lord than they are. They may also find that they understand things about Scripture that some of their church officers do not understand, and that even their pastor has perhaps forgotten or never learned well.
In all of these situations it would be very easy to adopt an attitude of pride or superiority toward others who have not made such a study. But how ugly it would be if anyone were to use this knowledge of God's Word simply to win arguments or to put down a fellow Christian in conversation, or to make another believer feel insignificant in the Lord's work. James' counsel is good for us at this point: "Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, for the anger of man does not work the righteousness of God" (James l: 19—20). He tells us that one's understanding of Scripture is to be imparted in humility and love:
Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good life let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. . . . But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, hill of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity. And the harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. (James 3:13, 17—18)
Systematic theology rightly studied will not lead to the knowledge that "puffs up" (1 Cor. 8: l) but to humility and love for others.
Grudem on why we should study theology with prayer
From pages 32-33 of Systematic Theology
Paul tells in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that "the unspiritual man does not receive the gifts of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned." Studying theology is therefore a spiritual activity in which we need the help of the Holy Spirit.
No matter how intelligent, if the student does not continue to pray for God to give him or her an understanding mind and a believing and humble heart, and the student does not maintain a personal walk with the Lord, then the teachings of Scripture will be misunderstood and disbelieved, doctrinal error will result, and the mind and heart of the student will not be changed for the better but for the worse. Students of systematic theology should resolve at the beginning to keep their lives free from any disobedience to God or any known sin that would disrupt their relationship with him. They should resolve to maintain with great regularity their own personal devotional lives. They should continually pray for wisdom and understanding of Scripture.
Since it is the Holy Spirit who gives us the ability rightly to understand Scripture, we need to realize that the proper thing to do, particularly when we are unable to understand some passage or some doctrine of Scripture, is to pray for God's help. Often what we need is not more data but more insight into the data we already have available. This insight is given only by the Holy Spirit (cf. I Cor. 2:14; Eph. 1:17-19).
Paul tells in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that "the unspiritual man does not receive the gifts of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned." Studying theology is therefore a spiritual activity in which we need the help of the Holy Spirit.
No matter how intelligent, if the student does not continue to pray for God to give him or her an understanding mind and a believing and humble heart, and the student does not maintain a personal walk with the Lord, then the teachings of Scripture will be misunderstood and disbelieved, doctrinal error will result, and the mind and heart of the student will not be changed for the better but for the worse. Students of systematic theology should resolve at the beginning to keep their lives free from any disobedience to God or any known sin that would disrupt their relationship with him. They should resolve to maintain with great regularity their own personal devotional lives. They should continually pray for wisdom and understanding of Scripture.
Since it is the Holy Spirit who gives us the ability rightly to understand Scripture, we need to realize that the proper thing to do, particularly when we are unable to understand some passage or some doctrine of Scripture, is to pray for God's help. Often what we need is not more data but more insight into the data we already have available. This insight is given only by the Holy Spirit (cf. I Cor. 2:14; Eph. 1:17-19).
Tuesday, November 3, 2015
Clowney on what the law of the Sabbath pointed to
From pages 55-57 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
A SIGN OF REDEMPTION
God's creation rest and the Sabbath that marks it point to another rest—the rest of redemption. The Sabbath is the ordinance that expresses God's covenant with his people. It is a sign not only of creation, but of redemption. The Israelites keep the Sabbath as a memorial of their redemption from slavery in Egypt and of their being brought to rest in the land God promised them. The Sabbath looks forward to a complete and final rest in perfect communion with God. By marking out that day, God's children are reminded that they belong to God as physical creatures and depend on him for their very breath. They are also reminded that their purpose is not the labor itself so much as it is their communion with the God who made them.
A PEOPLE SET IN PLACE AND TIME
The Sabbath serves yet another purpose for Israel. It marks God's claim on the Israelites as his own people. They are a Sabbath-keeping nation. Their regular observance of their weekly holy day marked them out as belonging to God, in distinction from the pagan nations that surrounded them. This claim on them will one day be extended as God lays claim to many other people and nations. In this sense. the Sabbath is a sign not only for Israel, but also for the other nations whom God will incorporate in his rest. Isaiah tells of a day when God will say, "Blessed be my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance" (Isa. 19:25). The beginning of the accomplishment of this promise is God's faithfulness in rescuing his people and in showing his grace and his power to bring them into God's Sabbath rest.
In the land God gave them, there was to be a holy place, the temple, where God would set his name, but there was also a holy time. We are perhaps more familiar with the idea that God set apart a particular place where his people would come to worship him when they came to the Promised Land. The temple pictured God's dwelling among his people as the holy place of his presence. God dwells in Zion. We are less familiar with the idea of a holy time. The pattern of seven was applied to the holy times of God's law. The seventh day is joined with the seventh (sabbatical) year, since the land was to lie fallow on the seventh year. After seven sevens of years came the year of Jubilee, the fiftieth year, which was the climax of the sabbatical system. As we examine Christ's fulfillment of the commandment to keep the Sabbath holy, we will see that he accomplished all the times of the Sabbath, the Sabbath year, and the final Jubilee freeing all those enslaved by sin.
We see how rich the Sabbath principle is. It provided the people physical rest, which was a reminder of their created nature. It provided them with a reminder that God's presence offers them true rest. It reminded them of their redemption from slavery, and it held out a hope for them of a permanent rest to come, in the Promised Land. As the writer of Hebrews points out, however, "there remains . . . a Sabbath rest for the people of God" (Heb. 4:9). As history moves on, it becomes obvious that the physical land of Israel is not the final rest.
THE SIGN OF A GREATER REST
There is a deep spiritual meaning to the Sabbath. True rest can be found only in the presence of God. In the Old Testament, God leads his people from captivity through the desert to the land of rest. In that land, the people meet with him in his temple and find peace and protection in his presence. Even this rest remains a symbol of the final rest that comes with Jesus Christ. The Sabbath, then, not only looks back to God's rest after he had completed his work of creation (Gen. 2:2-3) but also looks forward to the final peace given through Jesus Christ.
A SIGN OF REDEMPTION
God's creation rest and the Sabbath that marks it point to another rest—the rest of redemption. The Sabbath is the ordinance that expresses God's covenant with his people. It is a sign not only of creation, but of redemption. The Israelites keep the Sabbath as a memorial of their redemption from slavery in Egypt and of their being brought to rest in the land God promised them. The Sabbath looks forward to a complete and final rest in perfect communion with God. By marking out that day, God's children are reminded that they belong to God as physical creatures and depend on him for their very breath. They are also reminded that their purpose is not the labor itself so much as it is their communion with the God who made them.
A PEOPLE SET IN PLACE AND TIME
The Sabbath serves yet another purpose for Israel. It marks God's claim on the Israelites as his own people. They are a Sabbath-keeping nation. Their regular observance of their weekly holy day marked them out as belonging to God, in distinction from the pagan nations that surrounded them. This claim on them will one day be extended as God lays claim to many other people and nations. In this sense. the Sabbath is a sign not only for Israel, but also for the other nations whom God will incorporate in his rest. Isaiah tells of a day when God will say, "Blessed be my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance" (Isa. 19:25). The beginning of the accomplishment of this promise is God's faithfulness in rescuing his people and in showing his grace and his power to bring them into God's Sabbath rest.
In the land God gave them, there was to be a holy place, the temple, where God would set his name, but there was also a holy time. We are perhaps more familiar with the idea that God set apart a particular place where his people would come to worship him when they came to the Promised Land. The temple pictured God's dwelling among his people as the holy place of his presence. God dwells in Zion. We are less familiar with the idea of a holy time. The pattern of seven was applied to the holy times of God's law. The seventh day is joined with the seventh (sabbatical) year, since the land was to lie fallow on the seventh year. After seven sevens of years came the year of Jubilee, the fiftieth year, which was the climax of the sabbatical system. As we examine Christ's fulfillment of the commandment to keep the Sabbath holy, we will see that he accomplished all the times of the Sabbath, the Sabbath year, and the final Jubilee freeing all those enslaved by sin.
We see how rich the Sabbath principle is. It provided the people physical rest, which was a reminder of their created nature. It provided them with a reminder that God's presence offers them true rest. It reminded them of their redemption from slavery, and it held out a hope for them of a permanent rest to come, in the Promised Land. As the writer of Hebrews points out, however, "there remains . . . a Sabbath rest for the people of God" (Heb. 4:9). As history moves on, it becomes obvious that the physical land of Israel is not the final rest.
THE SIGN OF A GREATER REST
There is a deep spiritual meaning to the Sabbath. True rest can be found only in the presence of God. In the Old Testament, God leads his people from captivity through the desert to the land of rest. In that land, the people meet with him in his temple and find peace and protection in his presence. Even this rest remains a symbol of the final rest that comes with Jesus Christ. The Sabbath, then, not only looks back to God's rest after he had completed his work of creation (Gen. 2:2-3) but also looks forward to the final peace given through Jesus Christ.
Friday, October 30, 2015
Practical advice for service planning
Mark Ashton and C. J. Davis reflect on Archbishop Thomas Cranmer's impactful contribution of the "Book of Common Prayer," and how the Anglican church today should apply the principles which sanctioned its writing.
The authors helpfully provide a framework that both reformed and pentecostal church leaders should find useful in planning for the worship service.
The preacher and worship leader/team should not be working independently if the church is to be pointed to a unified direction - to that of Christ, God's redemptive plan and what is demanded of his adopted sons, etc. These meetings should focus on prayer rather than on administrative "arrowing" of responsibilities. Hopefully, the lead preacher is not be too afraid/proud to have his exegesis (or eisegesis) preparation examined (be it prior to or after the sermon). The preacher who takes on the stance that he is infallible and can preach no false message is treading in extremely murky waters.
From Pages 80-82 of Worship by the Book
It is helpful to have a meeting to plan and review services in order to learn from mistakes and to develop good practice. Obviously some churches do not have this opportunity, but where the person responsible for the Bible teaching and the person responsible for the music can confer and pray together, it will raise the quality of the services. If such a meeting can be weekly and can include one or two others, with draft outlines of the service prepared and circulated in advance, it will be better still. It is particularly important to assess the sermon and to consider how the rest of the service relates to it. Sermons should not be divorced from the context in which they are delivered. Every preacher benefits from hearing his sermons reviewed, and every service benefits from the preacher playing a part in its preparation.
Careful preparation need not rule out spontaneity. Open prayer, impromptu testimony, a "flow" of singing, and other forms of unscheduled congregational participation may be appropriate according to the culture of the congregation. It was to regulate rather than exclude such activity that Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 14. The planning group will want to weigh how such participation fits with the collective temperament of their congregation and how outsider-friendly it will be. The preacher will be able to suggest what will be the best congregational response to his next sermon: a time of silence, a time of open prayer, a time for repentance, discussion groups, questions to the preacher, an after meeting for those in need of an opportunity to respond to the gospel, or a time of counseling or prayer. Then the service leader need to have the freedom to change what has been planned when the time comes, within whatever prearranged guidelines are appropriate.
Together with planning, prayer is an important purpose of this meeting. If we believe that we are involved in planning something God has ordained (the gathering of Christians), for God's purposes (winning and building up disciples), and that this is his work (in which we are simply co-workers), we will make prayer a priority as we plan. It is a way of acknowledging the importance of church services and our dependence on God as the One who alone can build his church.
Every occasion when believers gather in the name of Christ is too precious an opportunity to be allowed to go by without care being taken over it. For those in isolated ministry positions with no colleagues to pray or plan with, it is a high priority to find someone who will share in this task. The best services are normally team efforts, demonstrating the corporateness of the Christian life. But a mistake we often make is to draw others in to help with the execution of the service rather than with the planning and preparation of the service. The isolated vicar will be more helped by hearing someone else's assessment of his last sermon and service than by someone leading next week's intercessions for him. It is the difference between asking someone to do something for us and to do something with us. Some ministers never manage to establish teams because they never allow anyone alongside them to become a genuine yoke-fellow, sharing both encouragement and criticism. It will be much easier to prevent services from being doctrinally off-beam or dull if we draw in others to help.
The authors helpfully provide a framework that both reformed and pentecostal church leaders should find useful in planning for the worship service.
The preacher and worship leader/team should not be working independently if the church is to be pointed to a unified direction - to that of Christ, God's redemptive plan and what is demanded of his adopted sons, etc. These meetings should focus on prayer rather than on administrative "arrowing" of responsibilities. Hopefully, the lead preacher is not be too afraid/proud to have his exegesis (or eisegesis) preparation examined (be it prior to or after the sermon). The preacher who takes on the stance that he is infallible and can preach no false message is treading in extremely murky waters.
From Pages 80-82 of Worship by the Book
It is helpful to have a meeting to plan and review services in order to learn from mistakes and to develop good practice. Obviously some churches do not have this opportunity, but where the person responsible for the Bible teaching and the person responsible for the music can confer and pray together, it will raise the quality of the services. If such a meeting can be weekly and can include one or two others, with draft outlines of the service prepared and circulated in advance, it will be better still. It is particularly important to assess the sermon and to consider how the rest of the service relates to it. Sermons should not be divorced from the context in which they are delivered. Every preacher benefits from hearing his sermons reviewed, and every service benefits from the preacher playing a part in its preparation.
Careful preparation need not rule out spontaneity. Open prayer, impromptu testimony, a "flow" of singing, and other forms of unscheduled congregational participation may be appropriate according to the culture of the congregation. It was to regulate rather than exclude such activity that Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 14. The planning group will want to weigh how such participation fits with the collective temperament of their congregation and how outsider-friendly it will be. The preacher will be able to suggest what will be the best congregational response to his next sermon: a time of silence, a time of open prayer, a time for repentance, discussion groups, questions to the preacher, an after meeting for those in need of an opportunity to respond to the gospel, or a time of counseling or prayer. Then the service leader need to have the freedom to change what has been planned when the time comes, within whatever prearranged guidelines are appropriate.
Together with planning, prayer is an important purpose of this meeting. If we believe that we are involved in planning something God has ordained (the gathering of Christians), for God's purposes (winning and building up disciples), and that this is his work (in which we are simply co-workers), we will make prayer a priority as we plan. It is a way of acknowledging the importance of church services and our dependence on God as the One who alone can build his church.
Every occasion when believers gather in the name of Christ is too precious an opportunity to be allowed to go by without care being taken over it. For those in isolated ministry positions with no colleagues to pray or plan with, it is a high priority to find someone who will share in this task. The best services are normally team efforts, demonstrating the corporateness of the Christian life. But a mistake we often make is to draw others in to help with the execution of the service rather than with the planning and preparation of the service. The isolated vicar will be more helped by hearing someone else's assessment of his last sermon and service than by someone leading next week's intercessions for him. It is the difference between asking someone to do something for us and to do something with us. Some ministers never manage to establish teams because they never allow anyone alongside them to become a genuine yoke-fellow, sharing both encouragement and criticism. It will be much easier to prevent services from being doctrinally off-beam or dull if we draw in others to help.
Clowney on Jesus transforming the second commandment
I have never seen this passage quite this way before. Jesus asks us, who do we belong to and whose image we bear. If it is God's, then the only appropriate response would be to give him our lives.
From pages 27 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
A true understanding of the second commandment must come as we look at Jesus, who transformed it. Jesus shows us the richness and depth of this commandment when he answers the hypocrites who ask him, "Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" In response, Jesus asks to be shown a denarius, a coin used in paying Roman taxes. "Whose portrait is this?" he asks his opponents. "And whose inscription?" They were forced to reply, "Caesar's." As he always did in his responses to their provocation, Jesus avoids the trap and forces them to deal with the true meaning of God's law: "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's" is his stunning answer (Matt. 22:17-21).
In recognizing the authority of Rome, Jesus makes an enormous transition from Old Testament theocracy to a new notion of kingdom. But he goes much further in this simple
statement about a Roman coin. It becomes obvious that he is teaching us to give back to God what bears his image, just as people had to give back to Caesar the coins that bore his image. If Caesar gets a coin, what does God get? We give God back his image by giving him ourselves.
From pages 27 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
A true understanding of the second commandment must come as we look at Jesus, who transformed it. Jesus shows us the richness and depth of this commandment when he answers the hypocrites who ask him, "Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" In response, Jesus asks to be shown a denarius, a coin used in paying Roman taxes. "Whose portrait is this?" he asks his opponents. "And whose inscription?" They were forced to reply, "Caesar's." As he always did in his responses to their provocation, Jesus avoids the trap and forces them to deal with the true meaning of God's law: "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's" is his stunning answer (Matt. 22:17-21).
In recognizing the authority of Rome, Jesus makes an enormous transition from Old Testament theocracy to a new notion of kingdom. But he goes much further in this simple
statement about a Roman coin. It becomes obvious that he is teaching us to give back to God what bears his image, just as people had to give back to Caesar the coins that bore his image. If Caesar gets a coin, what does God get? We give God back his image by giving him ourselves.
Clowney on the Soul and the Body
From pages 24-25 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
Explanations of man's qualities as being the "image of God" are insufficient if they focus uniquely on the physical or intellectual aspects of our human nature. The New Testament makes clear that it is the soul of man, not his reasoning ability or his physical features, that makes him a person in the image of God. Scripture distinguishes between the soul and the body. Jesus said to the thief on the cross, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). Surely this has to mean that Jesus and the thief would be together apart from their bodies, since Jesus' body would remain three days in the grave. But is the soul the only part of man that is in God's image? Jesus rose from the dead in his body. He left the tomb and greeted Mary Magdalene on Easter morning. To demonstrate that his risen body was real, he ate a piece of fish, smiling, perhaps, as he chewed it. All of this seems to emphasize the importance of the body as a part of God's image. Can it be possible that the body is a part of the divine image in man?
This body—soul union and distinction is puzzling. Our souls or spirits may rejoice with the Lord apart from the body. Paul said, "I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body" (Phil. 1:23-24). Yet Paul also says, "We do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life" (2 Cor. 5:4). The Lord does provide a form in the intermediate state for his redeemed in heaven before the resurrection. We were not created as disembodied spirits. After God had said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness" (Gen. 1:26), he formed Adam "from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life" (Gen. 2:7). We are made body
and soul, and our redemption cannot be complete until the resurrection of the dead, when we receive our resurrection bodies (2 Cor. 5:4). Man in his body—soul created state is made in God's image. God chose to reflect himself in human beings, both male and female.
Explanations of man's qualities as being the "image of God" are insufficient if they focus uniquely on the physical or intellectual aspects of our human nature. The New Testament makes clear that it is the soul of man, not his reasoning ability or his physical features, that makes him a person in the image of God. Scripture distinguishes between the soul and the body. Jesus said to the thief on the cross, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). Surely this has to mean that Jesus and the thief would be together apart from their bodies, since Jesus' body would remain three days in the grave. But is the soul the only part of man that is in God's image? Jesus rose from the dead in his body. He left the tomb and greeted Mary Magdalene on Easter morning. To demonstrate that his risen body was real, he ate a piece of fish, smiling, perhaps, as he chewed it. All of this seems to emphasize the importance of the body as a part of God's image. Can it be possible that the body is a part of the divine image in man?
This body—soul union and distinction is puzzling. Our souls or spirits may rejoice with the Lord apart from the body. Paul said, "I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body" (Phil. 1:23-24). Yet Paul also says, "We do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life" (2 Cor. 5:4). The Lord does provide a form in the intermediate state for his redeemed in heaven before the resurrection. We were not created as disembodied spirits. After God had said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness" (Gen. 1:26), he formed Adam "from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life" (Gen. 2:7). We are made body
and soul, and our redemption cannot be complete until the resurrection of the dead, when we receive our resurrection bodies (2 Cor. 5:4). Man in his body—soul created state is made in God's image. God chose to reflect himself in human beings, both male and female.
Clowney on Jesus as the perfect sacrificial lamb of God
From pages 19-20 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
To do his redeeming work, Christ must be true God and true man. Jesus was therefore born of the Spirit in the womb of Mary. But incarnation is insufficient to redeem. When the Ten Commandments were given as the seal of the covenant agreement between God and his people at Sinai, the blood of sacrifice was sprinkled on the altar, on the law, and on the people. We have seen that the altar sacrifice was at the heart of the covenant. Israel's worship centered on the sacrifice as the substitute for the sinner. Isaiah picks up the theme of sacrifice in his prophecy, emphasizing especially the work of the suffering Servant, who takes the punishment for our sins. By his wounds we are healed, and he must pay the cost of redemption. Abraham was able to spare his son Isaac from the altar, since God provided a substitute, in the form of a ram caught in the bushes. Ultimately, however, there could be no substitute animal when the Father dealt with our sin. He could not spare his own Son, but had to deliver him up for us all. Jesus, God the Son in his human nature, can alone pay the infinite price of our redemption. Jesus is the Lamb of God: the Lamb given by the Father (Gen. 22:8; John 1:29; 1 Peter 1:19).
To do his redeeming work, Christ must be true God and true man. Jesus was therefore born of the Spirit in the womb of Mary. But incarnation is insufficient to redeem. When the Ten Commandments were given as the seal of the covenant agreement between God and his people at Sinai, the blood of sacrifice was sprinkled on the altar, on the law, and on the people. We have seen that the altar sacrifice was at the heart of the covenant. Israel's worship centered on the sacrifice as the substitute for the sinner. Isaiah picks up the theme of sacrifice in his prophecy, emphasizing especially the work of the suffering Servant, who takes the punishment for our sins. By his wounds we are healed, and he must pay the cost of redemption. Abraham was able to spare his son Isaac from the altar, since God provided a substitute, in the form of a ram caught in the bushes. Ultimately, however, there could be no substitute animal when the Father dealt with our sin. He could not spare his own Son, but had to deliver him up for us all. Jesus, God the Son in his human nature, can alone pay the infinite price of our redemption. Jesus is the Lamb of God: the Lamb given by the Father (Gen. 22:8; John 1:29; 1 Peter 1:19).
Clowney on God's two mountaintop revelations to mankind
Yahweh issued ten commandments in a terrifying revelation of himself on Mount Sinai, many years later on another mountain, he gives us only one commandment - to listen to his beloved son!
From pages 11-12 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
We have biblical background for the phrase "mountaintop experience." The Bible often speaks of mountains, and God marks his glorious presence by drawing his people's eyes upward to the mountains. Two mountaintop experiences frame God's revelation of himself to his people. The thunder and lightning of the Old Testament experience at Mount Sinai have been depicted in many a piece of art and in many a film. God's terrifying presence, the threat of death, the fearful quaking of the people—all these are physical signs of the importance of what happened on the mountain in the Sinai peninsula. God spoke, and declared his law to his people, revealing his person, his presence, and his commands.
Many years later on another mountain, in an incident recorded in the New Testament, God spoke again. The terrible, glorious, frightening, exhilarating cloud of the glory of God's presence once again overshadowed those on the mountain. Three disciples stood transfixed as they saw Moses, the scribe of the law, and Elijah, the representative of the prophets, speaking with Jesus. Moses, who had not been allowed to enter the Promised Land, found himself once again on the mountain with God. But this time, he was allowed to see the fulfillments of all that he had first on Mount Sinai. Instead often commandments, written on tablets of stone, and shattered at the foot of the mountain because of the people's sin, God uttered only one commandment—the true summary of the Law and the Prophets: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" (Mark 9:7).
Jesus reveals the I AM God in the fullest possible way. The law is only a pale reflection in comparison. The Ten Commandments, God's first specific, verbal revelation of his nature to his people, help us to understand him and to understand Son, who is the fulfilment of that law.
From pages 11-12 of: How Jesus Transforms The Ten Commandments
We have biblical background for the phrase "mountaintop experience." The Bible often speaks of mountains, and God marks his glorious presence by drawing his people's eyes upward to the mountains. Two mountaintop experiences frame God's revelation of himself to his people. The thunder and lightning of the Old Testament experience at Mount Sinai have been depicted in many a piece of art and in many a film. God's terrifying presence, the threat of death, the fearful quaking of the people—all these are physical signs of the importance of what happened on the mountain in the Sinai peninsula. God spoke, and declared his law to his people, revealing his person, his presence, and his commands.
Many years later on another mountain, in an incident recorded in the New Testament, God spoke again. The terrible, glorious, frightening, exhilarating cloud of the glory of God's presence once again overshadowed those on the mountain. Three disciples stood transfixed as they saw Moses, the scribe of the law, and Elijah, the representative of the prophets, speaking with Jesus. Moses, who had not been allowed to enter the Promised Land, found himself once again on the mountain with God. But this time, he was allowed to see the fulfillments of all that he had first on Mount Sinai. Instead often commandments, written on tablets of stone, and shattered at the foot of the mountain because of the people's sin, God uttered only one commandment—the true summary of the Law and the Prophets: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" (Mark 9:7).
Jesus reveals the I AM God in the fullest possible way. The law is only a pale reflection in comparison. The Ten Commandments, God's first specific, verbal revelation of his nature to his people, help us to understand him and to understand Son, who is the fulfilment of that law.
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Waltke on how Pagans look for signs
Waltke highlights some ways pagan people determine the mind of God:
Selected text from Pages 48-58 of Finding the Will of God
Pagans devised all sorts of special tasks to help them determine the mind of God. Each of these tasks included searching for some special sign given by the gods. The most popular was hepatoscopy, the study of the liver. Pagans believed that memory and intelligence resided in the liver, not the brain, and they created an entire course of study to read livers. The liver was the heaviest organ, and therefore if God was going to reveal His mind to man He would do so through the heaviest and supposedly most important organ. This may not be as incredible as it first sounds. Earlier in this century we had phrenologists, who studied the brain's wrinkles and protuberances to determine the character of the individual. Likewise the ancient priests studied the liver and intestines to determine the mind of the gods. They would sacrifice a sheep, and "read" the liver's shape to see what God had to say to them, much as a carnival gypsy might read your palm at the fair. One of the greatest kings of Assyria, Ashurbanapol, spent much of his life studying livers in order to divine the will of God. Most of the ancient texts offer explanations for reading the liver of a sacrificed animal, and they include special notations for encountering unique situations.
The ancients saw hepatoscopy as being particularly important, especially in times of war or famine. It was not unusual for a team of priests to slaughter a dozen sheep and study their livers, hoping to find similar signs in several animals. They felt that the use of many livers, with the work being done by a number of different priests, assured them of a measure of certainty in their work.
As silly as this may seem to us now, this was common practice and the people put much faith in it because they all recognized that there is a God, and they all wanted to communicate with Him. Since the shedding of blood and the very thought of life was wrapped up in a sacrifice, they thought this would offer them a sign from God. It was certainly more bloody, but theoretically not much different from a modern man or woman who asks God for a sign to guide them. Both are methods of divination that require God to work in a miraculous way to reveal His will.
Another method of looking for a sign was that of rhabdomancy, the use of arrows as a sign from the Lord. An example of this occurs in Ezekiel 21:21: "For the king of Babylon will stop at the fork in the road, at the junction of two roads, to seek an omen. He will cast lots with arrows, he will consult his idols, he will examine the liver." The king, unsure of which road his armies must take to conquer the holy land, uses three different forms of divination to make up his mind. There were various ways to use arrows in determining the will of God. The could be cast, or tossed, to see which way they pointed. This may seem like nothing more than an ancient equivalent of spinning a lottery wheel, and that would be a valid analogy. But the people of that day believed in the superintendence of the gods in all matters, so even the direction of dropped arrows could not be chalked up to mere chance. As a matter of fact, at least once in history a king turned his soldiers around and refused to attack the enemy because even though he had superior forces, the arrow's strongly suggested a retreat.
Teraphim, the use of idol images, is one other method of looking for a sign from God. Making sacrifices to idols was a common practice, and the people hoped to intercede for themselves and gain the favor of the gods. Scripture is very clear about how God's people are to respond to idols: "Do not turn to idols or make gods of cast metal for yourselves. I am the Lord your God" (Leviticus 19:4). We have a jealous God who does not want His people involved with any sort of idol worship. "All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they ignorant, to their own shame. Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing?" (Isaiah 44:9—10). Idols were usually statues of a god, sometimes in the form of an animal or other being, although Scripture makes clear that anything which inspires our devotion can be an idol. After trying to please the idol, questions would be asked of it and the people would await the idol's reply.
God's people are never to be involved with idols. The prophet Hosea criticized the people of his day by saying, "They consult a wooden idol, and are answered by a stick of wood. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God (Hosea 4:12), and Jonah adds, 'those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs' (Jonah 2:8). That's why the people of Israel were so reviled. Rather than worshiping the various gods of the pagan cultures, they held to their belief in the one true God. And when the nation turned away from worshiping God and began chasing after pagan deities, the country's problems began. "What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said, 'I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people'" (2 Corinthians 6:16).
The Bible tells us that when people bow down to worship an idol, they are actually worshiping a demon. "They sacrificed to demons," we read in Deuteronomy 32: 17, "which are not God—gods they had not known, gods that recently appeared, gods your fathers did not know." Paul, writing to the church at Corinth, teaches us that "the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons" (l Corinthians 10:20). Satan is behind all idol worship, since it is a means of turning people away from the true God. So any time an individual worships at an Idol, he is actually worshiping Satan. That's why Paul commends the Thessalonians for being people who "turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God" (1 Thessalonians 1:9), and why the apostle John warns his flock to "guard yourselves from idols" (1 John 5:21).
Any time a believer gets into a behavior pattern where they perform some activity to gain God's pleasure, then await His word through some obscure sign, I believe they are in very treacherous waters. Certainly Christians who use their Bible like a magic book, letting it fall open to a page and randomly pointing to a verse, come dangerously close to idol worship. And those who use a promise box, with various Scripture verses written on cards that are pulled out at random to speak to the need of the moment, behave like those involved teraphim. We should stay away from that sort of divination. We are no longer pagans, and we should have nothing to do with these pagan behaviors.
(text omitted)
Priests and other learned men believed they could determine the divine mind by reading the stars, and they created elaborate systems for doing so. The prophet Isaiah, writing to comfort the exiles in Babylon, mocks the astrologists in Isaiah 47:33: "Let your astrologers come forward, those star gazers who make predictions month by month." The premise behind astrology was originally that the stars, as the celestial home of God, would reveal His mind. Later the harmony of science led astrologists to believe that the eternal purposes of God would be evident in the message of the heavens.
Based upon the observations and the traditions of the centuries, astrologers claim that certain heavenly phenomena are synchronous with earthly circumstances. The movements of the planets are believed to influence the events of mankind. The heavens are divided into twelve sections, called "houses," and as the planets pass through each section they form geometrical patterns, known as "aspects," which exert a beneficial or troublesome influence. By plotting the signs under which a person was born, an astrologer creates a horoscope that summarizes the individual's personalities and tendencies. When this information is applied to a particular date, the astrologer claims to offer specific predictions regarding success, failure, warnings, opportunities, and the like.
Astrology gained much favor during the Hellenistic age, offering a supposedly more precise method of determining the will of God. The introduction of the Julian calendar made astrological computations easy, and people from all walks of life began to depend upon horoscopes. Emperor Tiberius made decisions in accordance with his horoscope, and intellectuals through the centuries have found astrology's claim of universal harmony appealing. However modern astronomy, in revealing the vastness of the universe, has shown the lack of information available to those drawing up astrological charts and the implausibility of anyone relying on them for important decisions.
Having said that, two York University professors have found that 45 percent of first year university students studying the liberal arts believe there is something to astrology, and that 20 percent have made at least one decision in the past year based on their horoscope. Even more astonishing is that 37 percent of those studying in the hard sciences at university hold some belief in astroloor, telling the researchers that astrologers can "predict one's character and future by studying the heavens." Michael De Robertis, who along with Paul Delaney conducted the study, said the survey reveals how science and mathematics courses in public high schools have failed. "In education we should be teaching students what real life is all about... They don't know that statistically there is nothing to (astrology) and there never has been anything to it."
(text omitted)
Scripture clearly warns against depending on astrologers and any other diviner. 2 Kings 17:16 warns of people who "forsook all the commands of the Lord their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole. The bowed down to the starry host and they worshipped Baal." Later in that same book we read of King Josiah ordering the high priest "to remove from the temple of the Lord all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts" and to do away with the pagan priests, "those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts" (2 Kings 23:4-5). The prophet Jeremiah warns us, This is what the Lord says, do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by signs in the sky, though the nations are terrified by them, for the customs of the peoples are worthless" (Jeremiah 10:2-3).
One of the oldest forms of determining the will of God for an individual's future was by hydromancy, or using water to tell fortunes. If you remember the story of Joseph having a steward hide his cup in his brother Benjamin's sack, the cup itself was noteworthy. In Genesis 44:5 we read, "Is this the cup my master drinks from and also uses for divination?" His statement is sarcastic. The cup could not even reveal who stole it! The ancients, however, believed they could read the liquid left in a bowl, and that it would predict the future of the person who used it. It is the same principle as reading tea leaves or mixing tarot cards, believing that a person's "karma" somehow significantly influences all that he touches.
(text omitted)
Much of our modern new age religion is based upon this principle of divine influence in everyday articles. People who worship the earth, those who believe in reincarnation, and the growing interest in universal harmony all stem from this same idea that there is a mixing of the spiritual and the physical that can be attained by those who study it. Nearly all of the new age movement is focused on trying to attain some hidden knowledge of God, with the hope that the knowledge will change both the individual and the world. Books, tapes, and seminars preach a pantheistic message of finding supernatural power that fills the spiritual void of the individual.
(text omitted)
Those writing books on seeking the will of God by meditation or hallucinogenic drugs are getting rich. And the fable that man can somehow tell the future continues to intrigue the gullible.
Talking with spirits
God laid down the law with Israel:
"Do not practice divination or sorcery... Do not turn to mediums or seek out spirits, for you will be defiled by them" (Leviticus 19:26,31)
"Let no one be found among you who... practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord" (Deuteronomy 18:10-12).
"They practiced divination and sorcery and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, provoking him to anger" (2 Kings 17:17).
"When men tell you to consult mediums and spirits, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?" (Isaiah 8:19).
The Bible rejects these pagan forms of divination because they imply some other spiritual power rules the universe than Israel's good, wise, and just God. He rules along the lines of justice, ultimately rewarding the good and punishing the evil. For Christians, Christ's active obedience satisfies God's demands of justice and the Holy Spirit enables them to live righteously and for Christ to live in them.
Throughout history men have turned to prophets, oracles, and seers to help interpret the signs of God. In our own day we have witnessed the rise in phony messiahs and spiritual charlatans who deceive many people, usually getting extremely wealthy in the process.
(text omitted)
With all of this interest in the supernatural, with all of this activity aimed at getting in touch with the will of God, it is amazing how few people seem at peace with the Almighty. The fact is all of this divination activity has done little more than confuse people. Meanwhile, a loving and patient God waits for His people to turn to Him in obedience.
- by studying the liver of sacrificed animals (hepatoscopy)
- by studying the direction of arrows (rhabdomancy)
- by making sacrifices to idols (teraphim)
- by watching the stars (astrology)
- by fortune telling (hydromancy)
- by talking to spirits
Selected text from Pages 48-58 of Finding the Will of God
Pagans devised all sorts of special tasks to help them determine the mind of God. Each of these tasks included searching for some special sign given by the gods. The most popular was hepatoscopy, the study of the liver. Pagans believed that memory and intelligence resided in the liver, not the brain, and they created an entire course of study to read livers. The liver was the heaviest organ, and therefore if God was going to reveal His mind to man He would do so through the heaviest and supposedly most important organ. This may not be as incredible as it first sounds. Earlier in this century we had phrenologists, who studied the brain's wrinkles and protuberances to determine the character of the individual. Likewise the ancient priests studied the liver and intestines to determine the mind of the gods. They would sacrifice a sheep, and "read" the liver's shape to see what God had to say to them, much as a carnival gypsy might read your palm at the fair. One of the greatest kings of Assyria, Ashurbanapol, spent much of his life studying livers in order to divine the will of God. Most of the ancient texts offer explanations for reading the liver of a sacrificed animal, and they include special notations for encountering unique situations.
The ancients saw hepatoscopy as being particularly important, especially in times of war or famine. It was not unusual for a team of priests to slaughter a dozen sheep and study their livers, hoping to find similar signs in several animals. They felt that the use of many livers, with the work being done by a number of different priests, assured them of a measure of certainty in their work.
As silly as this may seem to us now, this was common practice and the people put much faith in it because they all recognized that there is a God, and they all wanted to communicate with Him. Since the shedding of blood and the very thought of life was wrapped up in a sacrifice, they thought this would offer them a sign from God. It was certainly more bloody, but theoretically not much different from a modern man or woman who asks God for a sign to guide them. Both are methods of divination that require God to work in a miraculous way to reveal His will.
Another method of looking for a sign was that of rhabdomancy, the use of arrows as a sign from the Lord. An example of this occurs in Ezekiel 21:21: "For the king of Babylon will stop at the fork in the road, at the junction of two roads, to seek an omen. He will cast lots with arrows, he will consult his idols, he will examine the liver." The king, unsure of which road his armies must take to conquer the holy land, uses three different forms of divination to make up his mind. There were various ways to use arrows in determining the will of God. The could be cast, or tossed, to see which way they pointed. This may seem like nothing more than an ancient equivalent of spinning a lottery wheel, and that would be a valid analogy. But the people of that day believed in the superintendence of the gods in all matters, so even the direction of dropped arrows could not be chalked up to mere chance. As a matter of fact, at least once in history a king turned his soldiers around and refused to attack the enemy because even though he had superior forces, the arrow's strongly suggested a retreat.
Teraphim, the use of idol images, is one other method of looking for a sign from God. Making sacrifices to idols was a common practice, and the people hoped to intercede for themselves and gain the favor of the gods. Scripture is very clear about how God's people are to respond to idols: "Do not turn to idols or make gods of cast metal for yourselves. I am the Lord your God" (Leviticus 19:4). We have a jealous God who does not want His people involved with any sort of idol worship. "All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they ignorant, to their own shame. Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing?" (Isaiah 44:9—10). Idols were usually statues of a god, sometimes in the form of an animal or other being, although Scripture makes clear that anything which inspires our devotion can be an idol. After trying to please the idol, questions would be asked of it and the people would await the idol's reply.
God's people are never to be involved with idols. The prophet Hosea criticized the people of his day by saying, "They consult a wooden idol, and are answered by a stick of wood. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God (Hosea 4:12), and Jonah adds, 'those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs' (Jonah 2:8). That's why the people of Israel were so reviled. Rather than worshiping the various gods of the pagan cultures, they held to their belief in the one true God. And when the nation turned away from worshiping God and began chasing after pagan deities, the country's problems began. "What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said, 'I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people'" (2 Corinthians 6:16).
The Bible tells us that when people bow down to worship an idol, they are actually worshiping a demon. "They sacrificed to demons," we read in Deuteronomy 32: 17, "which are not God—gods they had not known, gods that recently appeared, gods your fathers did not know." Paul, writing to the church at Corinth, teaches us that "the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons" (l Corinthians 10:20). Satan is behind all idol worship, since it is a means of turning people away from the true God. So any time an individual worships at an Idol, he is actually worshiping Satan. That's why Paul commends the Thessalonians for being people who "turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God" (1 Thessalonians 1:9), and why the apostle John warns his flock to "guard yourselves from idols" (1 John 5:21).
Any time a believer gets into a behavior pattern where they perform some activity to gain God's pleasure, then await His word through some obscure sign, I believe they are in very treacherous waters. Certainly Christians who use their Bible like a magic book, letting it fall open to a page and randomly pointing to a verse, come dangerously close to idol worship. And those who use a promise box, with various Scripture verses written on cards that are pulled out at random to speak to the need of the moment, behave like those involved teraphim. We should stay away from that sort of divination. We are no longer pagans, and we should have nothing to do with these pagan behaviors.
(text omitted)
Priests and other learned men believed they could determine the divine mind by reading the stars, and they created elaborate systems for doing so. The prophet Isaiah, writing to comfort the exiles in Babylon, mocks the astrologists in Isaiah 47:33: "Let your astrologers come forward, those star gazers who make predictions month by month." The premise behind astrology was originally that the stars, as the celestial home of God, would reveal His mind. Later the harmony of science led astrologists to believe that the eternal purposes of God would be evident in the message of the heavens.
Based upon the observations and the traditions of the centuries, astrologers claim that certain heavenly phenomena are synchronous with earthly circumstances. The movements of the planets are believed to influence the events of mankind. The heavens are divided into twelve sections, called "houses," and as the planets pass through each section they form geometrical patterns, known as "aspects," which exert a beneficial or troublesome influence. By plotting the signs under which a person was born, an astrologer creates a horoscope that summarizes the individual's personalities and tendencies. When this information is applied to a particular date, the astrologer claims to offer specific predictions regarding success, failure, warnings, opportunities, and the like.
Astrology gained much favor during the Hellenistic age, offering a supposedly more precise method of determining the will of God. The introduction of the Julian calendar made astrological computations easy, and people from all walks of life began to depend upon horoscopes. Emperor Tiberius made decisions in accordance with his horoscope, and intellectuals through the centuries have found astrology's claim of universal harmony appealing. However modern astronomy, in revealing the vastness of the universe, has shown the lack of information available to those drawing up astrological charts and the implausibility of anyone relying on them for important decisions.
Having said that, two York University professors have found that 45 percent of first year university students studying the liberal arts believe there is something to astrology, and that 20 percent have made at least one decision in the past year based on their horoscope. Even more astonishing is that 37 percent of those studying in the hard sciences at university hold some belief in astroloor, telling the researchers that astrologers can "predict one's character and future by studying the heavens." Michael De Robertis, who along with Paul Delaney conducted the study, said the survey reveals how science and mathematics courses in public high schools have failed. "In education we should be teaching students what real life is all about... They don't know that statistically there is nothing to (astrology) and there never has been anything to it."
(text omitted)
Scripture clearly warns against depending on astrologers and any other diviner. 2 Kings 17:16 warns of people who "forsook all the commands of the Lord their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole. The bowed down to the starry host and they worshipped Baal." Later in that same book we read of King Josiah ordering the high priest "to remove from the temple of the Lord all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts" and to do away with the pagan priests, "those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts" (2 Kings 23:4-5). The prophet Jeremiah warns us, This is what the Lord says, do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by signs in the sky, though the nations are terrified by them, for the customs of the peoples are worthless" (Jeremiah 10:2-3).
One of the oldest forms of determining the will of God for an individual's future was by hydromancy, or using water to tell fortunes. If you remember the story of Joseph having a steward hide his cup in his brother Benjamin's sack, the cup itself was noteworthy. In Genesis 44:5 we read, "Is this the cup my master drinks from and also uses for divination?" His statement is sarcastic. The cup could not even reveal who stole it! The ancients, however, believed they could read the liquid left in a bowl, and that it would predict the future of the person who used it. It is the same principle as reading tea leaves or mixing tarot cards, believing that a person's "karma" somehow significantly influences all that he touches.
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Much of our modern new age religion is based upon this principle of divine influence in everyday articles. People who worship the earth, those who believe in reincarnation, and the growing interest in universal harmony all stem from this same idea that there is a mixing of the spiritual and the physical that can be attained by those who study it. Nearly all of the new age movement is focused on trying to attain some hidden knowledge of God, with the hope that the knowledge will change both the individual and the world. Books, tapes, and seminars preach a pantheistic message of finding supernatural power that fills the spiritual void of the individual.
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Those writing books on seeking the will of God by meditation or hallucinogenic drugs are getting rich. And the fable that man can somehow tell the future continues to intrigue the gullible.
Talking with spirits
God laid down the law with Israel:
"Do not practice divination or sorcery... Do not turn to mediums or seek out spirits, for you will be defiled by them" (Leviticus 19:26,31)
"Let no one be found among you who... practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord" (Deuteronomy 18:10-12).
"They practiced divination and sorcery and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, provoking him to anger" (2 Kings 17:17).
"When men tell you to consult mediums and spirits, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?" (Isaiah 8:19).
The Bible rejects these pagan forms of divination because they imply some other spiritual power rules the universe than Israel's good, wise, and just God. He rules along the lines of justice, ultimately rewarding the good and punishing the evil. For Christians, Christ's active obedience satisfies God's demands of justice and the Holy Spirit enables them to live righteously and for Christ to live in them.
Throughout history men have turned to prophets, oracles, and seers to help interpret the signs of God. In our own day we have witnessed the rise in phony messiahs and spiritual charlatans who deceive many people, usually getting extremely wealthy in the process.
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With all of this interest in the supernatural, with all of this activity aimed at getting in touch with the will of God, it is amazing how few people seem at peace with the Almighty. The fact is all of this divination activity has done little more than confuse people. Meanwhile, a loving and patient God waits for His people to turn to Him in obedience.
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