Blog Update

If you are a faithful reader of this blog (yes, there are a few of you out there), you have probably noticed that I haven’t posted anything new lately. I’m afraid I haven’t found the necessary solitude to write any substantial posts with a two-month-old baby in the house. Although I have not entirely given up on blogging, I feel I must take an indefinite hiatus from this endeavor. I trust my previous posts will still prove to be valuable and relevant to current readers. Of course, if I should discover a spare moment or two, I may post additional comments.

Thanks for your understanding,

Michael

The Church’s Response to Suffering

Here is a great quote from Alejandro Garcia-Rivera on the need for the church to identify with and respond to the suffering found in the world. The point is, as Christ followers, we are called to an active faith that will not yield to despair.

Postmodernism thrives precisely because it sees the suffering of this world as having reached horrendous and senseless proportions. A church that is methodologically indifferent to senseless suffering is at odds with the methods of Jesus himself. Only a Jesus who belongs to the church that is not afraid to identify itself with the suffering of this world can have any rational claim on the world itself. In other words, the normative character of the truth of the church’s faith is protected, defended and nurtured by a praxis that will not regard as normative the senseless suffering of billions.

Garcia-Rivera, Alejandro. ”What Are Theologians Saying About Christology? Faith and the Poor.” America 197, no. 7 (September 17, 2007): 11-13.

On Congregationalism

The Separatists firmly maintained the following principles, which they believed were the basis for the New Testament church: 1) the church is composed of committed Christians only, 2) the community of gathered believers have the right of self-government in order to freely follow Christ who is the only legitimate head of the church, and 3) the priesthood of all believers. The core Congregational polity, defended by the “Dissenting Brethren” at the Westminster Assembly, was defined by a conference of ministers in the Savoy Declaration of 1658. In short, Congregationalism maintains the scriptural right of every local church to govern and administer its own particular affairs as directed by the Holy Spirit.

In his book, The Congregational Way of Life (Oak Creek, WI: The Congregational Press/Hammond Publishing  Co., 1972), Arthur Rouner, Jr. points out that the early Congregationalists struggled not for “freedom from God’s Word, but for that Word. It was only that they might submit themselves to this higher obedience that they claimed the right to be free” (9). However, the problem with much of North American Congregationalism according to Rouner is that it has “stood for freedom not so that Christ could tell us what to do, but so that no one could tell us what to do” (9). Needless to say, I concur with his assessment that the Congregational Way is only faithful to the New Testament in as much as it is a Spirit-filled, believing church that is gathered around Christ.

Pastors NOT Puppets

The Body of Christ needs pastors not puppets (persons whose actions are controlled by another). Tragically, too many in the church today have a distorted or warped sense of the pastoral office, due, I think, to a misguided ecclesiastical democritization. That is, congregations are not democracies! They do not possess the biblical authority to vote to remove pastors – except in cases of moral failure, financial impropriety, heretical teaching, and uncontrolled anger. Nor do churches have the right to dictate how their pastors minister or what programs they implement – so long as these are being done within biblical parameters. In short, I believe we need to gain a godly perspective on our own time by considering a couple insights on the issue of pastoral leadership from church history.

First, here are two short selections from the Didache (early Christian teaching manual dated to the late 1st century) on how pastors are to be treated with honor and respect:

My child, day and night “you should remember him who preaches God’s word to you,” and honor him as you would the Lord. For where the Lord’s nature is discussed, there the Lord is. Every day you should seek the company of saints to enjoy their refreshing conversation. You must not start a schism, but reconcile those at strife.

Now, you should welcome anyone who comes your way and teaches you all we [the apostles] have been saying. . . if his teaching furthers the Lord’s righteousness and knowledge, welcome him as the Lord.

Second, this section from The Schleitheim Confession (an Anabaptist confession composed in 1527), which draws on the apostle Paul’s teaching in 1 Timothy 3:2-7, 5:17-20, is especially instructive:

We are agreed as follows on pastors in the church of God: The pastor in the church of God shall, as Paul has prescribed, be one who out-and-out has a good report of those who are outside the faith. This office shall be to read, to admonish and teach, to warn, to discipline, to ban in the church, to lead out in prayer for the advancement of all the brethren and sisters, to lift up the bread when it is to be broken, and in all things to see to the care of the body of Christ, in order that it may be built up and developed, and the mouth of the slanderer be stopped.

This one moreover shall be supported of the church which has chosen him, wherein he may be in need, so that he who serves the gospel may live of the gospel as the Lord has ordained. But if a pastor should do something requiring discipline, he shall not be dealt with except [on the testimony of] two or three witnesses. And when they sin they shall be disciplined before all in order that the others may fear.

In sum, woe to any congregation that attempts to control their pastor(s) by withholding support (spiritual and financial), by intimidation and manipulation, and/or by gossip and slander. For this the wrath of God is coming. Pastors are to be overseers led by the Spirit of God, not guided by their parishoners or recent religious trends. To reverse this order is to cause the name of Christ to fall into disrepute.

A Healthy Response to Suffering

Although I do not think it is healthy to want to suffer, I do think that as Christians we must be willing to suffer for the sake of righteousness. Good will triumph over evil, but the price of victory often seems to require suffering. A healthy response to suffering, then, includes at least the following three things:

1. Persistently praying and petitioning God for deliverance and vindication.
2. Obediently submitting to God’s way of overcoming evil with good-waiting faithfully and patiently for his redemption (allowing God room to avenge the wrongs done to you as Romans 12:19 advises).
3. Resolutely maintaining hope.

The author to the Hebrews said it this way:

“During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek” (5:7-10).

“God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised” (6:10-12).

Unjust Suffering and the Coming Kingdom

In response to my querie about life’s tough questions, one loyal reader raised the issue of God’s justice in the present world. That is, given the “already/not yet” tension that exists with respect to the establishment of the Kingdom of God, what should our expectations be regarding the administration of justice on behalf of Kingdom activities. This also raises the question of our role in spiritual warfare.

The tension is plainly stated in Hebrews 2:8. For, in this battleground we inhabit between God and his holy angels and the adversary and his evil minions, it is clear that God has “already” attained the victory and placed Christ over all things. Nevertheless, it is likewise evident that we do “not yet” see all things subjected to him. It is here, during this unfolding of the new order of things, that we find ourselves submitting to the reign of King Jesus by faith while his enemies are still in the process of being abolished (1 Cor. 15:25-26). So, What ought citizens of the Kingdom to expect as they continue to live out their lives in this present evil age that is passing away?

First, having aligned ourselves with Christ, we should expect to be vindicated on the final day of judgment. Next, having received his Spirit, we should expect miraculous signs and wonders to occur as the Kingdom advances. Finally, we should expect resistence and unjust suffering. Although the final outcome is now certain, the battle continues to rage until the last enemy-death-is done away with.

However, it should be noted that expecting unjust suffering is not the same as resigning oneself to it. Indeed, patiently enduring such suffering-like Christ did-is the form resistence takes in the new order (1 Peter 2:18-25). Rather than retaliate, then, we courageously restrain ourselves as we wait for God’s redemption.

Blogging Break

Although I intend to wrestle with some of life’s tough questions in forthcoming posts, I may not get to it for a few weeks. My wife and I are expecting our first child, so things are going to get pretty hectic. However, please keep checking this site because I hope to resume regular posts soon.

Thanks for your patience,

Michael

Another Anthropological Argument

Here is another anthropological style argument for the existence of God:

1. Humans are personal beings who are rational, loving, and free.
2. Either ultimate reality is like or unlike us.
3. If ultimate reality is unlike us, then we are out of sync (we are an inexplicable anomaly of less sophisticated, more basic, natural processes).
4. Humans are not out of sync.
5. Therefore, ultimate reality must likewise be a personal being who is rational, loving, and free.

The Argument from Desire

Here is a brief argument for God’s existence from human desire:

1. Every natural, innate desire in human beings corresponds to a real object in nature that can satisfy it.
2. But there exists in us a desire for something beyond this world, which cannot be satisfied by any contingent thing or finite object.
3. Therefore, something beyond this world must exist, which can satisfy this desire.
4. This satisfying something is God.

C.S. Lewis, in his book Mere Christianity (Book III, Chapter 10, “Hope”), summarized the argument this way:

Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for these desires exists. A baby feels hunger; well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim; well, there is such a thing as water. Men feel sexual desire; well, there is such a thing as sex. If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.

For a more detailed treatment of the argument see Peter Kreeft and Ronald K. Tacelli, Handbook of Christian Apologetics (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1994), 78-81.

Tough Questions

One of the main purposes of apologetics–defending or making a case for the truth of the Christian faith–is to bolster the faith of believers by providing reasons or evidence for the Christian worldview. This is important because even mature believers wrestle with doubts from time to time (at least I do). I don’t think there is an answer to every question (sometimes we are simply asking the wrong ones); however, I am convinced that we grow intellectually and spiritually by investigating our doubts. In brief, it is my contention that there is much to be gained from probing life’s toughest questions.

For my part, I struggle most with questions pertaining to life’s origins, to God’s providence and the existence of evil, to the inspiration and reliability of Scripture, as well as to religious pluralism and the fate of the unevangelized (as I type this I realize that even my “short” list covers quite a bit–I’ve been told I tend to globalize things). I hope to delve into these issues in future posts; however, I would first like to know what questions you wrestle with. What obstacles hinder your faith? What issues keep you up at night? Are there some answers you once held that now seem inadequate?

“I do believe; help my unbelief.” (Mark 9:24)