the blog of Jerry Bolton
Theology
Posts that touch on issues surrounding theology.
Concerning the Will of God: Simple Moves
02 years ago
by Jerry
in Bible Study
Currently listening to: “Hall of Justice” by Deepspace5
A fun rap romp through classic comic-book superheroes, this track graces the very old-school DS5 EP – which is probably impossible to find an original print of, but can be listened to here: The Beginning, Is The Start Of Everything. “Who you think is the guy writin’ with the fat marker / Spreadin’ rhyme webs on walls, it’s no-one else but Peter Parker” It’s great to hear DS5 circa 1997 – they all sound so much younger… but man, did they ever bring the fire.
As I mentioned a couple days ago, I’m in a phase of life (called “job hunting”) where finances and economics are on my mind a lot. Money stuff. With that in mind, I’ve been doing a survey of what the Bible says about money… and it’s many synonyms – wealth, riches, resources, etc. I like to call it “THE MONEYS”.
That being said, I’m sitting on a mostly-finished “part 2″ to this series. Before I drop that – in a couple days, Lord willing – I felt inspiration hit tonight and so I decided I’d hit inspiration back with a brief tangent. Consider this post #0 if you like. See, when I started this series I neglected to preface it. I’ve realized lately that it’s often prudent to preface any serious study – particularly if it’s topical – with some of the roots beneath the topic. In the case of this study of finances and fiscal responsibility and “THE MONEYS”, a closely-related and very root-ish issue that I believe needs to be addressed in tandem is something we usually refer to as “the will of God”.
Why the will of God? The easiest explanation is actually my own circumstances. My reason for studying the scriptures concerning “THE MONEYS” is that I’m at a point in my life-journey where there’s a lot up in the air, particularly in the area of work and providing for my family. Of course, this means that studying the principles laid out by Scripture concerning such providence and work and, well, economics… is paramount. With that in my mind, while I was at a meeting tonight someone shared briefly some scripture from 1 Thesselonians which served as a reminder to me that even more deep and vital for me to understand right now (amidst all my many concerns about finding a job and being a responsible post-grad employable individual) is what God’s will for me is. If I have a solid grasp on God’s will, that will both inform and reform my understanding of finances. Thus, we’re going to consider God’s will tonight.
Christians are much in the habit of making “The Will of God” something mysterious and unknowable and far-off and complex and convoluted and so on, ad nauseum. Sure, when we study it theologically in its fullness, there are many facets and components we must necessarily take into account – such as the idea that God has two wills (one revealed, one hidden/secret – etc) and so on.
For the purposes of what I’d like to address tonight – in terms of what I hope both challenges and encourages you – we’re going to be talking about God’s practical will. That is, we’re talking about “God’s will” as it relates to the everyday, mundane decisions and the overarching, significant decisions we make as we journey through life. In my case, right now, that involves things such as “How can I spend today fruitfully and productively?” and “Do I take this job or not?”. Further, we’re talking about “God’s will” as it relates to the many forces that exert themselves upon us throughout life… upon which we have no control or recourse. In my case, right now, that involves things such as… well… some random company offering me a job, or the unlikely event of severe sickness coming upon me. Does that make sense? We’re talking about “God’s will” in the sense that people often say “I’m just trying to figure out what God’s will is for me right now”.
1 Thesselonians 4:3a ESV
For this is the will of God, your sanctification.
Well hey, that was easy!
Come back tomorrow when we’ll start to explore the implications of this profound, explicit truth. All I ask is that you ruminate on this a bit. What does it mean practically to know that God’s will for me is that I be sanctified – that I become more like Jesus every day, in each decision, and in all my faculties? Ponder and consider, friends.
(If you’re skeptical, I already have the next post written – no jokes!)
…concerning riches
02 years ago
by Jerry
in Bible Study
Current Tunage: Fee – Rise and Sing
Blew my mind.
Along with my friend Noah, I’ve been intentionally studying Scripture lately with the purpose of applying its truth to my life. For me, that means that I’ve been studying finances and economics. For some, this might seem strange – what on earth could the Bible have to say about my money? If you’re asking such a question, the answer might surprise you: quite a lot. Everything, even.
As I mentioned yesterday, I’ve found myself at one of life’s crossroads. Namely, I’m a recent grad on the hunt for meaningful, full-time employ. As is the case with any life-phase, I thought I knew what to expect heading into it, and I’ve discovered otherwise. Just like I thought I knew all about marriage before getting married only to find I had barely scraped the surface and that much of what’s to be learned can only be learned through practice and, well, living it. So, these past few months I’ve been overwhelmed by the grace of God as he has provided far beyond all I could have asked or imagined. Besides continuing the on-call position I’ve held for 7 years supporting people with developmental disabilities, I’ve also had the opportunity to work with two businesses doing freelance writing work throughout the summer and into the fall. This has provided many interesting opportunities to accumulate experience and “resume revenue”, and I’m very thankful.
With that in mind, though, I’ve realized that although I know a lot of the basics about finances (debt is bad, savings are good, assets vs liabilities, etc), I can’t think of a time that I’ve seriously studied Scripture to see what God has to say about wealth and riches. So, while my dear friend Noah is working his way through another topic, I’m working my way through finances.
This all started with what is best described as a word study. Being able to search-engine the Bible (thanks to e-Sword and various web-based tools) is a blessing and a curse. It allows us to quickly find that verse in our head (or find related verses easily) but takes away a lot of the impetus to memorize not just words but locations – which are still very important. In any case, my word study turned up a lot of hits on words like “money” and “wealth” and “riches” and “rich” and so on. I felt it most prudent to check all the significant synonyms.
The purpose of this word study was to isolate the most useful and applicable passages (while understanding that all the passages are useful and applicable). As a result, I ended up with a small handful of passages that I will be working my way through over the course of the next few days. Each one bears a significant set of implications on how we view money, finances, economics… and hammers on important characteristics that we as believers are to strive toward. Things like generosity, stewardship, wisdom, sacrificial love, and trusting God.
So, won’t you join me as I work my way through one of Jesus’ parables:
Luke 16:1-8 ESV
He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’ And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
Ok, so – first things first, Jesus is hanging out with his disciples and the Pharisees. He decides to bust a parable on them. Parables usually have one “main point”, and we’ll get to that a bit later. First, let’s check out the story itself. There’s a manager and his boss – the rich man. The manager is kind of like a CEO is to a Board of Directors – he’s the one who does the daily ins-and-outs of the business; the one who’s actually got his hands in stuff. He makes the decisions on the rich man’s behalf, for the sake of his estate. He’s the guy the rich man has to take care of collecting from those who owe him stuff – he’s the guy who “takes care of business”. Basically, he’s been blowing his boss’ cash like no tomorrow, he realizes his boss has found him out, and forgives some of his boss’ debtors before he gets fired so he’ll be on their good side.
Luke 16:8-9 ESV
The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
The boss congratulates him for being such a sly, clever larcenist. Of course, it goes without saying he wasn’t happy with the guy, and it’s probably safe to say the ‘commendation’ was sarcasm at it’s finest. I’m envisioning it coming across like this: “I commend you for your shrewdness… and I hope you enjoy how shrewdly I drop your shrewd posterior into Hebrew Penitentiary”.
Which brings us to the highly applicable “parablic commentary” (as I’m fond of calling it). First, Jesus says that ‘sons of the world’ are more shrewd than ‘sons of light’ in ‘dealing with their own generation’. Then, Jesus says that it’s good to make friends with ‘unrighteous wealth’. So what does that mean? Well, I’m inclined to agree with the ESVSB‘s observations:
Jesus applies the parable both as a comparison and as a contrast. In contrast to the manager, Jesus’ disciples must not use their money unrighteously, but like the manager they must use their money in such a way that they prepare for their future life. The “sons of this world” often show more concern and skill in taking care of their earthly well-being than do the “sons of light” in taking care of eternal matters.
This brings up a couple important principles for those of us who belong to Christ – we who are “called by his name”, who are ‘sons of light’:
1. We are to strive to show far greater care, concern, and stewardship of our resources (financial or otherwise) than unbelievers.
2. We are to strive in this way not for our earthly well-being, but for eternal matters; primarily for the building of God’s kingdom and not our own.
Luke 16:10-13 ESV
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
At this point, Christ begins to speak of faithfulness. Isn’t it remarkable that in the midst of a parable about finances and wealth, Jesus talks about fidelity? I think so.
I think it’s amazing that the measure of our economics and our financial dealings isn’t numbers, but faithfulness. If it were purely numeric, we’d all be toast; our ‘unrighteous wealth’ (that is – money that is so easily and quickly either unrighteously acquired or used or made an idol of) would forever be ‘too much’ or ‘not enough’. If poverty were the measure of our righteousness in wealth, all us rich folks in the West (and that’s all of us, arguably) would be condemned. Likewise if luxury were the measure of righteousness in wealth, all the poor people in third world countries would be condemned. Praise God! His standard is not one of “you must make this much to pass!” or “you must not make more than this much to pass!”, but “you must be faithful with what you have!”.
The measure of our financial dealings (and all the numbers that represent it) is not how much or how little we have, but our faithfulness with what we do have. Think about the parable of the widow at the temple. Some rich dude drops in a couple big moneybags for show, then she waddles up and drops in two coins:
Mark 12:42-44 ESV
And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Jesus praises her for what she gave. Why? Because generosity toward God looks very different when you’re rich compared to when you’re poor. It’s percentage-oriented, not numeric-value-oriented. “Aha!”, you might say, “percentages can be turned into numbers!”. You’re right, but you’re missing the point. The point is, the widow gave all she had to God and that action reflected the fact that her heart was trusting Him in faith. The rich dude gave a tiny fraction of his horde of coin – and that reflected the fact that he was still trusting in his cash to save the day (or… alternately, his life, his health, his dignity, etc) – and that’s beside the fact he was making a show of it.
So, what are the principles we can pull from this as ‘sons of light’?
1. When it comes to giving, think in terms of faithfulness – not in terms of bank balance. “What does faithfulness look like in my context?”
2. Be faithful with little (most of us, if you’re like me, have ‘little’). Be generous to God – everything you have is on loan from Him anyway.
3. What faithfulness looks like in your heart and in your bank balance never changes, no matter whether you have much or little.
4. Financial faithfulness is rooted in trusting God to provide:
Matthew 6:31-33 ESV
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Throughout Scripture, God delights in being the one who ultimately meets our needs and sustains us. When we focus on meeting our needs and sustaining ourselves (regardless of the method), that is an act of idolatry – we’ve removed God from one of his self-declared functions and replaced him with a Saviour of our own making. In the context of what we’re talking about, this means we must strive not to allow ourselves to be anxious about our finances, but to entrust them to the God who provides and sustains us as we strive to be faithful and “seek his kingdom” above our own. It doesn’t mean that we be foolish/lax in earning or handling our resources (Proverbs has much to say about that), only that we entrust them to God and live that out in faithful, trusting serenity. God PROMISES to take care of us when we trust him to. Test that promise!
This brings us to the close of our passage:
Luke 16:14-15 ESV
The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
Let us be mindful of the fact that living out the principles of this parable will appear utterly worthy of ridicule to ubelievers (and to ourselves in our unbelief!). Particularly if we are among those who have made a god of money – to whom it is a (dys)functional saviour, all of the above is utter nonsense. Remember that what the unbelieving world exalts (debt lifestyle, getting rich quick, extravagant living, unnecessary poverty, laziness, workoholism, loving money and using people rather than using money to love people) is an abomination in God’s sight.
With that in mind, let those of us who are ‘sons of light’, who belong to Christ Jesus and are “called by his Name” be those who entrust ourselves to God, wholly and faithfully handling what we have (little or great) and leveraging it for His Kingdom, for His Honour, and for His Glory.
Let’s close with an admonition from Paul:
2 Corinthians 9:6-11 ESV
The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.
Amen.
…sounds like something about welding
12 years ago
by Jerry
in Bible Study
Current Tunage: Stavesacre – Fear And Love
Stavesacre have found themselves on rotation lately following the release of their possible swan song, their EP “Against The Silence”.
I’ve been working my way through learning a really helpful study method (that I discovered through yesterday’s post on John Piper) called “Arcing”. So far, it’s nothing revolutionary in terms of the concepts, but having it all systematized and segmented into steps (and having all the tools provided in-browser) is in fact quite revolutionary. So far I’m finding it quite helpful despite not being done the Arcing 101 curriculum.
Check it out if you’re into Bible Study:
Bible Arc – Graphical Exegesis
…the difference between knowing and knowing
02 years ago
Current Tunage: Plankeye – The Meaning Of It All
I’m among the few who really prefer the second iteration of Plankeye. That probably says a lot about my tastes, I guess. I also like Fanmail better than the first Plankeye. Go figure.
Preaching isn’t something I’ve done in a few years. Back when I lived in Peterborough, I had the opportunity on a handful of occasions to preach on a Sunday morning from the pulpit of my local church. I don’t think I understood at the time just how unusual that was – a young guy, not particularly qualified (no fancy degree or ordination… or pastorate) – preaching a Sunday morning message. Some of the “blame” can be attributed to the tradition I was a part of at the time (and still respect), but ultimately I’ll chalk it up to God’s grace.
There’s something spectacular about taking Scripture to people – and not just blathering at them for 45 minutes. There’s something amazing about really conveying truth through exposition… and watching as God makes his words powerful in people’s lives. It’s humbling how much he accomplishes. More humbling, of course, when in the process he has made his word powerful in the preacher’s own life as well.
This morning a new post by James MacDonald hit my RSS Reader. I recommend you check it out here. It’s a post passing down advice from his many years in preaching ministry, primarily concerned with how to communicate better.
With that as background, James’ basic advice to young preachers concerning how to better communicate as they preach… is this:
The simple move I made, and commend to you, is setting up the word before you need it. By making the word significant in the hearers’ mind before you want to use it, you accelerate your move from explanation to application.
He illustrates his point with this video – in which “know” is the significant word:
(Note: The video didn’t make the transition here. Check it out here: http://blog.harvestbiblefellowship.org/?p=3180 )
As I’ve found myself at one of life’s many crossroads following graduation, I’ve been considering deeply how and where God would have me serve him. I’d love to say I have some answers to that important question, but for now I’m still searching through his words, spending time wrestling with him… falling down and getting back up again. In the last couple days I’ve been reconsidering pursuing a Masters degree at a good Seminary, not out of some bondage to schooling (ha!), but because there is in me a strange, growing glimmer of desire to pursue it.
This morning I’ve been thinking more about the short clip that James posted (and that I’ve reposted above). He makes a brilliant point – Jesus doesn’t just know in a fact-based, sensory, empirical-data, observation-oriented way… he knows experientially, and that’s a whole new echelon of ‘knowing’.
Hearing it made me recall my pastor’s message this past week from Jeremiah 15, in which he highlighted Jeremiah 15:15a… which says “O LORD, you know“.
As I considered these two messages – one brief and provided as an illustration, the other a straightforward reminder… my mind was drawn to Philippians 3:
Philippians 3:8-11 ESV
Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ (9) and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith– (10) that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, (11) that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Here’s what occurred to me: Both of the messages that I heard ruminated on the fact that God knows – not just factually and logically, but experientially… empathetically.
Here’s my response-thought: We are called to know God in the same way that He knows us. Experientially and empathetically; intimately – not just factually and empirically. The Apostle Paul nails this in Philippians 3 when he talks about knowing Christ in the same breath as he yearns to ‘share in his sufferings’, and to become ‘like him in his death’. The grammar in English is a little tricky, but it is still clear that Paul isn’t talking about some kind of abstract, purely schoolbook knowledge… he’s talking about a knowledge characterized by intimacy of relationship. He’s talking about sharing in Jesus’ sufferings and becoming like Jesus in his death… right after saying he wants to know Jesus and his power.
Hopefully nobody’s surprised when I say that there’s a difference between knowing Jesus and truly knowing Jesus. Lots of people know Jesus factually or theologically or empirically… but so few know him experientially the way Paul talks about. So few even want to know him that way – it comes at a great cost.
It will cost you your hobbies, your time-wasters, your habits, your lust, your selfishness, your self-sufficiency, your fears, your lies, your leisure, your friends, your family, your comfort, your poverty, your wealth, your mental illness, your mental wholeness, your certainty… it will cost you everything if you choose to follow Jesus. In Luke 9:23, he called it your cross.
Lets take them up… let’s know him and follow him, not just with a head-full of factoids and memory verses we can’t remember the location of, but with hearts inclined toward him, with a sacrificial way of living that trusts him to provide and spares nothing that would get in the way of our being closer to him.
Someone asked me this week: “If God seems far away… who moved?”. By implication or otherwise, the answer is always “me”. Let’s do everything we can this week to close the gap – let’s be people who are willing to kill our hobbies, to kill our habits, to kill our entertainment… and to build defenses against their return… as we seek to truly know Jesus through scripture, through prayer, through obedience, and through all the ‘sharing’ and ‘becoming’ that will surely come out of being faithful in those ways. Let’s stop just ‘knowing’, and start really ‘knowing’.
…thirty years of bad hair that nobody cares about
1Current Tunage: Fee – Glory to God Forever
It’s strange to me to hear a recorded song that up until now I’ve only heard in church. Usually it’s the other way around.
I was introduced to Dr. John Piper when I was in Bible College and his manifesto on Christian Hedonism (“Desiring God”) was our text for Spiritual Life Emphasis week. The book for me was a turning point, speaking of my long-held faith in terms I’d seldom heard used in association with it, and suggesting a worldview far larger and more encompassing (and satisfying) than what I, in my childish understanding of Scripture, could have fathomed prior.
I recall with some fondness that back in my second and third years of University, I would often listen to JP (as I sometimes affectionately refer to him) on the city bus as it took me to Trent’s Symons campus, headphones square on my head… with Bible in my lap. Amidst all the plethora of delicious hyphenated adjectives (ie. “Gospel-soaked”), I found my heart caught hold of just a small glimmer of the power that the faithful preaching of scripture can exert.
This morning I had the privilege (and I mean that) of reading an account by Justin Taylor of how God called Dr. John Piper into the pastorate thirty years ago today. Something in me surged as I read this. Have a look, you might just find that your response is quite the same: 30 Years Ago Today: How God Called John Piper to Become a Pastor.
…how we praise
02 years ago
Current Tunage: Deepspace5 – We In Here
Mighty Deepspace5 released a surprise mixtape yesterday. You can cop it at deepspace5.com for all the “goodness gracious lava raps of flaming amazing”.
I was having some email-type correspondence with a friend today on the subject of worship. We were talking about how praise and worship are things that are so much more than songs and Sunday mornings.
Here’s an excerpt:
Romans 12:1-2 ESV
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
We present ourselves a living sacrifice – in a holy and acceptable way – which IS spiritual worship. In other words, worship isn’t just singing with our spirits and minds, but how we live and act and think and behave. It’s how we transform into the image of God by renewing our minds with His Word and using it to discern good from evil and acceptable from unacceptable and perfect from imperfect… all of it is worship.
Ephesians 1:11-12 ESV
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.
When we’re in Christ, the “praise of his glory” is something we can be.
Philippians 1:9-11 ESV
And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
We grow in love, knowledge, and discernment – learning to determine excellence, to be pure, to be blameless… to be filled with the fruit of the Spirit – filled with righteousness… and it’s all ultimately praise and glory to God.
Of course, praise is also something we speak and sing -
1 Corinthians 14:15b ESV
I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.
When we praise, we don’t sing empty words (or it ain’t praise!); we sing and speak things to and of God that honour him as God – primarily for what he is, but (underneath that) also for what he has done in and around us. He took dead things (us) and made them alive. He saves some of us from our just damnation because of his glorious grace and mercy. He makes stone hearts beat. He holds the universe in order and cosmic control. Yet, he’s personal and makes himself known. He does the impossible endlessly.
Praise…
It’s not just coldplay-lite rock or organ/piano tagteams, it’s all the raps and metal and slam poetry and apoligetics and deep conversations and quiet moments and handwritten notes and anything else that communicates the truth about Him, honours Him, glorifies Him.
It’s what we were designed for.
When we’re not communicating, we praise him by loving, forgiving, and serving others, by crucifying the flesh, by sacrificing ourselves for our wife, children, family, church, friends, leaders, followers, acquaintances, enemies, and nobodies.
We praise him by spending time pouring through His Word gleaning the truth and the heart-transforming that it does, by depending on him in prayer, by sharing his goodness and blessings with others through hospitality and friendship and generosity.
We praise him by living with his people and with those who are still his enemies – always in a way that honours him and gives him the glory for the rebellious, sin-destroying, servant-hearted, self-sacrificing lives we live before both sets of people.
We praise him by loving his Church and his churches (…his Bride).
We praise him by fullfilling the Great Commission in the spirit of the Great Commandment.
When we’re in him, we praise him with everything but our sin – yet we praise him by the way we respond to it… with forgiveness and grace (to ourselves, to others), but without mercy (crucify the flesh).
…habitual sin and holy ostracism
02 years ago
Current Tunage: Oh, Sleeper – Son Of The Morning
New record out, sporting an inverted, “horns cut off” broken pentagram on the cover. Heavy material. Apparently it’s a concept album, where all but the last song on the record is voiced by Satan – and the last song (“The Finisher”) is God’s response. Check out an interview here that will explain it a bit better. All in all, it’s a pretty amazing record. The guest spot with Cody Bonnette of As Cities Burn on track 3 is wondrous to behold (or rather, to be heard). Either way, compelling stuff. I’ll share some lyrics soon.
This morning on Facebook, I posted a video of Dr. John Piper responding to the question “How should Christian friends respond to a friend who has entered a homosexual relationship and moved to a church that accepts it?”. During the discussion that followed, I realized there’s something much deeper at stake, namely, “How should Christian friends respond to a friend who claims to know and follow Christ but has made a truce with their sin?”. Ultimately, “Holy Ostracism” isn’t about homosexuality in particular, it’s about any mode of sin that we might make habit and be unrepentant of.
1 Corinthians 5:9-13 ESV
I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people– not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler–not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
The answer? It depends on the person, and what they claim. In both cases, we love them.
If they don’t claim to be a Christian – to know and follow Jesus – we love them. In this case, loving them means that we (among other things) seek to propose (not impose) the Gospel; that God became Man, lived a perfect life, and was crucified by his enemies (namely, us) to save and deliver and redeem them… and arose again 3 days later to prove all of the above.
If they claim to be a Christian – to know and follow Jesus – we love them. In this case, loving them means that we do many things (worship together, “do life” together, bear each other’s burdens, serve Christ together, etc). It also means that, rather than sharing the Gospel with them, we hold them accountable to their claim OF it.
What does this accountability look like? Well, obviously, it’s rooted in relationship. If someone claims Christ and avoids his body (the Church), that’s a separate problem (equally grievous, but separate). So, assuming they’re in relationship with other believers – in this case, you – what does holding them accountable look like?
Simply, it looks like loving them enough to challenge them, question them, confront them, and rebuke them for their sin. Always gently, always in love, always with Truth (ie. the Word of God), always patiently and helpfully. It also looks like committing what Piper calls “holy ostracism” eventually.
Titus 3:10-11 ESV
As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.
Holy ostracism is something that, prayerfully, we do when someone refuses to deal with their sin (or acknowledge it as such despite the clear teaching of Scripture). It’s not something that happens overnight, it happens in response to a pattern of stubborn and selfish love for sin – a love for sin that eclipses love for Saviour and His Name & Glory. It looks like a severance of relationship because it is – it sounds like this: “We can’t be friends anymore until you either stop claiming to be a Christian, or repent and begin the process of making war with the sin you prize.”
Quite frankly, I have some friends who – because of the way they live – need to stop claiming they know and follow Jesus. They are hypocrites to the n’th degree and, much more than that, their “peace” and “truce” with their sin declares to the world that the Saviour doesn’t save. For this reason and others, “ostracism” is what scripture prescribes for that kind of circumstance.
Of course, I also have many other friends who claim to know and follow Jesus and their lives show it. Not in perfection, but in constantly moving forward and dealing with their sinfulness.
2 Thessalonians 3:14-15 ESV
If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
If someone habitually and stubbornly refuses to deal with – for example – their pride (aka self-idolatry), they need to be held accountable and consider how, and IF, that is acceptable for a follower of Jesus. We present them with loving rebuke and correction – as brothers, not enemies – and if they consistently refuse to see the problem or to move forward against it, we break fellowship (and lovingly give them the ultimatum above). The rebuke is always loving, always geared toward restoration and reconciliation with God.
To refuse to help others in this way (I believe) weakens churches, weakens believers, and gives plenty of weight to outsider’s charges of meaningful hypocrisy amongst Christians. There is nothing to be gained by refusing to break fellowship with the unrepentant, and much to be gained from “handing them over to Satan”.
1 Timothy 1:18-20 ESV
This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
Obviously, one must be in a place in this person’s life to know about their habits and their patterns of living – this of course means that to be in a position to do ‘holy ostracism’, you must be in a place from which to ostracize. Of course, this is complicated by the way that things like Facebook and Twitter make friends who, in past ages, would have been more “stranger” and “acquaintance” than “friend” something much more. From the wonders of social networking, people’s lives are on display, and their attitudes and sinfulness with it. We don’t have to look far anymore to see “friends” who are pregnant (or have impregnated) outside of wedlock, or living with someone they’re not married to, or carrying on with a lifestyle of drunkenness and debauchery… all while claiming to be “Christian”. The trick with this is that although we might have the data, we don’t have the relationship and thus, holy ostracism’s goal (restoration to God) is unnattainable in such loose contexts – not to mention we aren’t close enough to them to know if they’re dealing with their sin, repentant and putting themselves under spiritual discipline. It is this which leads me to believe that holy ostracism is something reserved for honest-to-goodness real life contexts where not only will it actually have meaning, but where its purpose can actually be worked out through the division of relationship. This hints at something at the heart – holy ostracism isn’t something done entirely for the sake of the person being ostracized. Why? Simply because holy ostracism isn’t always helpful for the person being ostracized. If it were, we could say that was the reason behind it. Really though, doing ‘holy ostracism’ is about God – it is always helpful for the name of Christ and for the collective integrity of those who claim His Name.
Matthew 18:15-17 ESV
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.
We don’t cut off lightly, but we must do it when someone claims to follow Jesus but lives habitually in a “backslidden” state of habitually not battling the flesh, not battling pride, not battling selfishness, not battling their natural, sinful impulses. Believers are marked by war – against sin, against self, against the flesh, against pride, against lust, against everything that arrays itself against our God and Saviour. Those who claim to believe but live in contradiction need to be confronted with the witness their life gives and called to repentance – and if they refuse to agree with God and turn from their wicked ways – they need to either stop claiming to believe, or they need to be subjected to holy ostracism.
…piper on macarthur/driscoll
1Just a quick post. I just got a hold of the unedited audio from John Piper’s recent Q&A (which he never does) at the Basics conference last week. The version that was up on their site was edited and pruned for time and stuff, and was missing the question I was most interested in (and many others with me) – namely, the MacArthur/Driscoll question.
Check out Piper’s response around the 37 minute mark of this audio:
John Piper – We Are Workers With You For Your Joy.
My initial thoughts: I couldn’t agree more. I’m encouraged by everything John had to say about the issue. Check it out.
…a gracious response to criticism
12Current Tunage: Braille – Heart of God
“Why should you listen to me, when I don’t listen to the Holy Spirit?”
Braille brings some heavy but important words in commentary on the juxtaposition of art and faith.
A lot of the Evangelical (particularly Reformed) blogosphere has been abuzz lately about the various attacks upon the preaching and character of one Mark Driscoll. I’ve never really hidden my love of Mark – his sermons have been used of God consistently to bring me to repentance, greater understanding, and faith. He has been unashamed to take the Gospel to numerous dark places and on top of it all, he’s a really fun guy. I met Mark briefly at the recent Gospel Coalition National Conference 2009 and was struck by his friendliness and grace in being willing to meet random people (such as myself and my friends) despite being very obviously exhausted. Consequently, it’s been interesting to follow the firestorm that seems to follow him wherever he goes – attacked on one side by Liberals who are horrifically offended by the Gospel that he preaches (and rightly so – the true Gospel IS an offense!), and on the other side by extreme right-wingers who can’t deal with the methodology he employs in his preaching and teaching.
I’m not really intending to weigh in here, only to say that there’s plenty of story to read up on if you’re interested in what it looks like when brothers attack brothers.
The reason this “matters” is because recently, an extremely influential and respected pastor and scholar (whom I myself have benefitted greatly from) by the name of John MacArthur posted a four-part series which, essentially, is an attack on Mark Driscoll. You can read them here: 1, 2, 3, 4. What I found troubling about this is primarily that MacArthur has, on the record, said that Driscoll’s “soteriology is exactly right”(source here). In other words, they agree completely on the means, basis, and outcomes of Salvation and the Gospel. Correct me if I’m wrong, but that sounds like a good working definition of Christian brotherhood (or at very least, grounds for treating each other with civility). What doesn’t make sense to me is the outright assault – certainly, since it’s MacArthur, it’s biblically informed… but the tone is more akin to a heresy takedown than the admonishment of a fellow believer. Please understand that I’m not necessarily trying to defend or endorse Mark’s choice of words and approach to dealing with sexual issues from the pulpit – those are objects for another discussion as far as I’m concerned (an important one, but a separate one!).
Let me be clear – I look up to both of them as godly examples and as skilled preachers and pastors – sinners as I am, but beloved brothers. I’m concerned about why guys like MacArthur and Phil Johnson (and many more, though most of the rest are inconsequential in terms of their influence by comparison) feel as though their concerns about Driscoll’s preaching merit lambasting him publicly.
Two things that I’ve come across in the last day or so have really been encouraging to me in light of this. First off is Steve Camp’s recent post. Please check it out: here.
Second is this video – as far as I know, it’s the only existing instance of Mark responding to a critic directly. I think you’ll understand why I appreciate it once you’ve seen it. Check it out, drop a comment, whatever you like:
…lest we drift away
13 years ago
Current Tunage: Jars of Clay – Faith Enough
“Poor enough to gain the treasure / Enough a cynic to believe.”
I’ve started my way through Hebrews, in part spurred on by Josh Harris’ workshop last week at The Gospel Coalition 2009 National Conference.
One of Josh’s main points was that ‘loving the local church’ is a matter of obedience – or, in other words, it’s not optional for followers of Jesus. His texts for this were mostly in Hebrews and hearing the passages coupled with his exposition and thoughts was something God really used to bring clarity to me on something I’ve really been disobedient in for much of my life as a believer.
Let me explain that a bit -
I was saved at a very young age. By saved, I mean that I realized and accepted that there was no hope for me in this life outside of Jesus and his atoning sacrifice on the cross to pay the penalty for my sins. I made him boss, God, and saviour and have never really looked back (other than the very human doubts and cynicism that plague myself and most others). This happened so early in life because I grew up in a Christian home, with loving and godly Christian parents who really wanted me to know what’s truly important in life – Jesus.
Consequently, I grew up in the local church. Particularly, in what most would term a ‘fundamentalist, theologically and practically conservative, local-church-oriented denomination’. If it sounds like I’m deriding it there, please disregard – I still have a lot of respect and love for where I’m from, it’s just that those who have been inside something tend to see its problems most clearly – the challenge is often how to apply your vision of those issues.
Anyhow, all of my life I’ve struggled with ‘loving’ the local church. This is despite the ones I attended being populated by godly, loving Christian brothers and sisters who really loved me and, as best as they were able, strove to be like Jesus and live lives that please Him, conduct church in a way that pleased Him, and so on.
So why was it a struggle? It’s pretty simple actually – I realized as I was listening to Josh that for all of my life, with very few and momentary exceptions, my attachment to the local church has generally been one of mere “obedience” (read: doing it because its ‘the right thing to do’ and because ‘the Bible tells me so’) – not of “love”. Which, if I’m reading Hebrews correctly, and if I understood Josh correctly, means that I wasn’t really being obedient with regard to the local church. What God calls us to is to passionately love and serve the local church – to love and serve His people and His body. I haven’t really done that a whole lot. It’s not that I was wrong to go out of ‘obedience’, it’s that I didn’t understand what ‘obedience’ entailed – a passionate love for, servanthood to, and focus upon my fellow believers in the local church.
Check out one of Josh’s primary texts:
Hebrews 10:19-27 ESV
Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.
Isn’t it remarkable how the writer to the Hebrews talks about our individual right to enter the ‘holy places’ by the merit of our saviour’s blood, and about how that right, that way, is open to us via the torn and murdered body of our great high priest Jesus? Isn’t it amazing how we can enter such a solemn and holy place with a ‘true heart’, ‘full assurance of faith’, and ‘a heart sprinkled clean”? Doesn’t it just make the writer’s admonition to “hold fast hope” hit home?
How is it, then, that for so many years I missed the connection between all of the above, and the command to “consider how to stir up [fellow believers] to love and good works … encouraging one another” as well as “not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some”? How is it that I’ve managed to make a disconnect for so long between the obedience of “holding fast hope” and the obedience of the habit of meeting together with other believers? The two seem to be inextricably interconnected.
Josh put it this way (what follows are some point form notes I took from his workshop):
- Holding fast is vitally connected to being committed in a local congregation.
- To hold fast, we need fellow Christians to spur us on, stir us up, and love us.
- To hold fast, we need to ourselves be spurring other believers on, stirring them up, and loving them.
- We will not be faithful without connecting the Gospel to the local church – it’s the only way to hold fast hope.
- The local church is vital for so many areas of obedience and growth: Giving, acquiring counsel, worship, teaching and input, service, accountability, and the regular giving and receiving of testimony. Others help you grow and obey, you help others grow and obey.
- 1 Thesselonians 5:14 – Admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all. Another passage that requires obedience of us, to love the local church.
- God works through a people to put his glory on display – Jesus came to save a church.
- 1 Peter 2:9 – All the language is pluralized. We are a ‘chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that [we] may proclaim the excellencies of him who called [us] out of the darkness into his marvelous light”. It’s a group plan!
- If you can’t get excited about Christ’s bride here on earth, you won’t enjoy heaven.
- Hebrews 3:12,13 – We are called to ‘exhort one another every day‘ so that ‘none of [us] may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin’.
- We are called to counsel one another with truth.
- Something irreplaceable happens when we gather and worship, serve, and give together.
- It is through the church that the Gospel is proclaimed and demonstrated, and disciples are made.
- Do I know and feel my need for the Body of Christ (and express it in my actions)?
- We can’t hold fast to the gospel without the local church.
Today, as I was studying in Hebrews 2, I was really struck by the first four verses, which read as follows:
Hebrews 2:1-4 ESV
Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
For so long, I haven’t been paying “much closer attention” to what I have heard in God’s word my whole life – that the church is vital for growth and obedience, and that I must learn to love it. My connection to the church cannot be simply one of cold “obedience” and habitual involvement, but it must be genuine obedience that flows out of a passionate love for the local church – for the people of God, believers, that I meet with regularly. I know from experience that when I haven’t been paying this kind of closer attention to God’s Word in this area, I do drift away. Much of the past 24 years has been spent drifting away from Him and His people. Clearly and unmistakably, I see so much of His gentle (and at times, forceful and strikingly corrective) hand of discipline over especially the past decade.
So, what I’m considering this morning, and this week, and this life… is how I can better love, serve, and give myself to the local church. I know how fleeting my hope in Christ can be, and I know how quietly drifting my love for Him is. The question inevitably must be this: “Do I love the local church?”
Hebrews 10:23-27 ESV (emphasis mine).
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.
