Christian Charity

From The Reformed Pastor, by Richard Baxter

Note: As JI Packer wisely points out, "reformed" in the title means something more akin to "renewed."

And if we by faith did indeed look upon them as within a step of hell, it would more effectively untie our tongues. He that will let a sinner go to hell for lack of a word to him has not the concern for souls that the Redeemer of souls had...For such a one may look every hour for the execution that will throw him into the infernal fires, and what will you say if you have done nothing to prevent it? O call upon the impenitent one and work hard at this great work of converting his soul, whatever else you may have to leave undone!

No relational evangelist he.

Here's Mike's post on the subject.

First Place, idlest threat contest

When driving though sparsely inhabited parts of the country, the following sign is often seen:

Speed monitored by aircraft

This is apparently meant to stop people from speeding, or something. But does anyone actually think that the government is dispatching aircraft simply to monitor our speed on the highway? And that if they do catch us speeding in from their aircraft that they are going to do something about it? Like maybe bomb my car?

First Place, worst simile contest

From a Star Wars book by Aaron Alliston--

The sound of the rocks falling was like the galaxy's largest giant eating a bowl of boulders.

So much agitation could be solved if everyone thought historically. Read the Reformers and the Puritans, and then tell me if you think their gospel is "just about personal salvation." Tell me if you think their comprehensive view of life in God is "too small." The gospel of Finney and Moody might be too small, but don't conflate that with the gospel of Owen, Edwards, Luther, Calvin, et al.

For my Nav staff readers

Jim Leube is a man who loves and delights in the sovereignty of God. In other words, he is a man of faith. We are in good hands with him! Hearing him speak to the new EDGErs this last week gave me a great confidence in the direction he will take the Collegiate work we are a part of.

So, all my Nav staff readers, let's commit to praying for him, for Doug Nuenke, and for the general direction that the Navigators takes over the course of the next few crucial years. This is Biblical, and also a sign of our love for them.

The Gospel

First with Israel, then with the church, God has animated a people to enact his saving way of life as a prophetic witness against, and a hopeful alternative to, the destructive narratives of the surrounding world.

Right? Makes sense.

This is an excerpt from a blog on the Christianity Today website. The question is "Is our gospel too small?"

These elements weave together, the parts of this new gospel. First, that the gospel is about more than personal salvation. Second, that the cross is about more than purchasing that salvation; it instead declares God's final victory over evil. Third, that the primary problem with the world is that it has veered off in the wrong direction, that its "narratives" are flawed. My question for my readers would be, is this Biblical? What is the meaning of the atonement? What is the focus of the gospel? What is the problem with the world?

Question

Why should we build church buildings, if they are often expensive, if they are not necessary, and if no Scripture commends the practice?

Representative Example

Here is an example of this new gospel:

So through the extraordinary faithfulness of Jesus Israel was redeemed from its sins, rescued from folly, divisiveness, complacency, isolation and irrelevance, and made a new creation. And that possibility of new creation – worked out painstakingly in community – has become good news for the world.

Oh man, if I could only explain it piece by piece to you so that you could understand the radical shifts that underpin these seemingly harmless words.

Painful

This is the most belabored way of redescribing the exact same church service. Why the need to be different?

Each week in our time together expect to worship through various expressions such as singing, writing, stillness, etc. You can expect the reading and teaching of the Scriptures. You can expect the reception of the Eucharist and to eat together at the conclusion of the first gathering of each month. Most weeks we are intentional to create a space for collective learning where those present may share what exactly God is doing in them that may be of help to the entire community. Our hope is that these elements allow our time together to be participatory as we experience what it means to be the church.

So they sing together, there is a sermon, and oh by the way, if you want, you can ask questions, and there will probably be an awkward time where you gather into groups of four and "discuss" a question like "What does the incarnational aspect of Jesus's missional living invade the dominant paradigms of the Religious order?"

Understanding the Times

There is a blog series I have discovered in the last few days, put together by JR Woodward, who calls himself a "dream awakener."

Mr. Woodward asked a whole slew of people, I think around forty in all, to "summarize their understanding of the Good News in 300 to 500 words." The Good News, meaning, the gospel, more or less.

All these bloggers claim Christ to varying degrees, many are pastors or work somehow in Christian ministry. It should give you a representative view of where exactly the American church is moving. The group is geographically diverse. Not all would likely describe themselves as "emergents," but they should probably be classified as such.

Here is the link, I urge you to check it out and read a few.

Good News series

Here are a few observations:

1. There is a great deal of emphasis on one verse in Ephesians: "that he might bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, namely Christ." This short excerpt from a larger thought is made to do some heavy lifting.

2. A key idea is that the gospel is about more than just "personal salvation." The Good News is not just about the security of our future, but about the hear and now.

3. With this in mind, we see that as we go out into the world, the good news, or gospel, instructs us to be renewing the whole of creation.

These ideas are very common today, and are gaining ground in the Christian schools. I have heard these ideas from friends at Fuller, Biola, and Wheaton. These ideas inform a lot of Rob Bell's thinking. Increasingly we are moving away from a gospel which speaks a specific message to man as he is, and to a seemingly larger, narrative gospel that is about us fitting into God's plan for all of creation. Sin in this case is not a legal matter that bars us from God's presence and makes us liable to punishment, but rather a evil force that is hindering God's plan for his creation.

Some of this is similar to Orthodox thought. But I think the real intellectual force behind all of this is NT Wright.

From him we see the first great attack on justification and substitutiary atonement (first, in the sense that it claimed to be made within the context of solid Biblical interpretation). Then, a shift in focus from the gospel as something that largely respects our future hope, into something that is "larger than the individual's salvation." Lately, a great emphasis on the renewal of creation being gospel work.

Read for yourself. Here are some thoughts from me:

1. The gospel is about the provision for sin...it is about Christ "redeeming us from the curse of the Law." The statement "the gospel is about more than personal salvation" is true in only a very limited sense. Every time I read that statement it frustrates me because it sounds so right, without actually being right. The gospel is about more than personal salvation in the sense that it does not exalt me, the end of it was not to glorify me. There is a grand scope to what God is doing, and what he will do.

But if the gospel is not about me, then what do I care? If it does not deal with my deepest need, that is, the punishment that is due me because of my sin and alienation from God, then what good does it do me? The gospel is first and foremost about one thing...the problem of human sin introduced in the garden of Eden.

How is that not blindingly, glaringly obvious? Answer: it is!

2. The gospel does not tell us to care for creation, nor does it have anything to do with environmentalism. The message of the gospel deals with human sin.

3. The gospel is not about this life. It is not about living in "the best way." The gospel offers you things you will never get until you die. If you did get them before you died, then you would no longer hope for them. They would be things you have.

There is a big emphasis on how the gospel has to be about this life, about bringing the kingdom to earth, etc. This is, simply put, the voice of wealth and privilege. What does a gospel that primarily speaks into this life say to a starving child? If we offer hope in the gospel, we don't offer it in this short and miserable life.

I have more thoughts, but it is very late and I need to go to bed.

An emergent, self-described

From the bio of a blogger:

As a Vine and Fig Tree Planter, he plants “signs” on military bases that draw the connections between God’s kingdom, militarism, and climate change.


My comment:

People who don't know Jesus will perish in their sins and be punished for all eternity.

Ready for a laugh?

Obama said that he will appoint an "independent" to replace David Souter.

Sure you will, Mr. President.

Giving the UAW control of Chrysler is like...

...giving sharks control of the fisheries?

Struggling to find a good metaphor here. Labor costs is what has destroyed the competitive ability of Detroit!

Let's say you owned a house. But the house had termites. You couldn't afford to make your payments on the house because you constantly had to pay for termite damage. You also couldn't kill the termites, because the termites were making massive political donations and had aggressive lobbyists. So eventually your house was given over to a consortium consisting of one of your neighbors, and the council of termites.

Why is this happening? Oh yeah, because Obama thinks that being a professor of constitutional law gives him the expertise to personally control every part of the economy.