The Evaluated Life

I have been teaching on Matthew 7.21-23 for the past two weeks in Sunday School. One of the issues we spent a lot of time on is the fact that both those who enter the Kingdom of Heaven and those that are surprised when they say “Lord, Lord did we not…”, both these groups of people do something. It apperars with the list of things the surprised group lists shuld be classified as doing the will of the Father – since these are the very things done by the Apostles. However, there is an aspect of their acitons that is missing to make them disqualified in doing the will of the Father.

Those that are surprised are essentially not in Christ. My question of the text probed a little deeper than this statement of fact. How do we know whether we are “in Christ.” One of the ways we know is by evaluating our motivations for why we do what we do. In a world that is constantly moving and changing we do not take the time that is necessary to think through why we do what we do. If we get to the answer of this question, then, I believe, we will get at the larger question of whether we are “in Christ” or not.

Here is a list of questions I posed to the Sunday School to help in this exercise:

Self-Evaluation

1. What do I get excited about when I come to church?

2. Do my conversations include testimonies of God’s grace in my life?

3. In what ways does God’s grace seem sweeter to me now than a year ago?

4. When I pray, speak in front of others, serve others, would I be content if no one applauded or noticed that I was serving?

5. If you were to enter the Kingdom of Heaven and God were the only one there, would you still want to enter? That is, you aren’t primarily excited about heaven because you will be reunited with loved ones.

6. Do your conversations allow others to see your flaws or do you feel the need to micro-manage how others will perceive you?

7. Do I understand that all of my obedience will be tainted with sin? If so, is it easy to accept as fact?

8. What have I done in the past three months out of love for Jesus?

9. What have I stopped doing in the past three months out of love for Jesus?

NoiseTrade Widget

Why I Love My Church [9]

I have been posting on this topic as various reasons have come to mind. While I have thought of many things, I just haven’t posted on it in a while (before this recent burst of posts I hadn’t posted on anything for that matter).

One of the things I love about Third Avenue is that it is predominantly filled with seminary students, but the pastor does not have a MDiv. Why would this be a characteristic that I love about my church? The tendency among seminarians (and the average congregant) is that the pastor needs to have the biggest title (or at least something equivalent to the majority of the congregation). 

By the pastor not having an MDiv, it reminds all of us that a title does not anoint a man to preach. It does not even mean that the bearer of the degree loves Jesus. It reminds us that God has called men to preach. 

Getting a degree is a very good thing (I firmly believe in getting a solid education). What I fear is that too many equate competency with formal education. Knowledge can puff up, but love builds up. The first question we should ask an ordination candidate is, “Do you love Jesus? Do you love people?” Not, “Where did you go to school?” The latter should be on the list of questions, no doubt. Good doctrine is critical to appropriate worship. But do not think that PhD means that you are qualified. Christ Jesus has made us competent, not the diploma.

It is striking that the list of qualifications for elders is about character. Doctrine undergirds it all, but in many congregations it appears that learning alone has replaced the shepherd aspect of the pastor.

Religious Lethargy #4

I case you didn’t catch it in my last post, the reason I used the adjective “lethargy” has to do with the relationship between knowledge and emotion. Religious experience that is founded upon the affections without content not only will result in lethargy, but it begins with lethargy. 

There is a fear of many that learning kills any kind of emotion. Jesus said that he delighted to do the will of the Father. His delight was contingent upon his knowing the will of the Father. How could he delight in something he did not know? We mustn’t be lax in our search for truth. We must dig deep as for a treasure. We mustn’t become naive ascetics who long for the spiritual slop of fervor. Rather we are to long for the pure spiritual milk of the word of God (= information about and from God). 

Such fervor leads to lethargy in that the congregation will merely wait for the next innovator to come to their conference or meeting to stir them up. Getting up in the morning and having their mind conformed will seem dry if the only kind of Christianity they experience is an experience.

Religious Lethargy #3

We want to make Christianity relevant to our culture. We cannot continue to speak in the King’s English and expect people to understand and exegete their culture when no one speaks it. For example, if I told you to watch out for the poodle-klumps, you would look at me cross. But if I told you to watch out for the rebellious, you would understand. We need to contextualize our message in words people will understand. 

There are a few things wrong with this video (which is a symptom of a greater problem in modern Christianity):

1) We cannot merely tack the name of Jesus onto a popular concept and believe that we have sanctified it. We must also re-define what it means to “spin me right round.”

2) Mere emotionalism saves no one. Jonathan Edwards wrote an excellent work Religious Affections that I commend to all of you – especially this section. 

3) We implicitly teach folk that fervor is the goal of the conference. Emotional response is definitely necessary when the sinner is confronted with the truth of sin and grace. This emotional response is part and parcel of the content that is shared. Music can work people to tears and trembling, but it is the one who trembles at God’s word whom he will countenance.

4) When the folk return from the conference and the youth leader does not work them up in a similar frenzy, they will grow bored with the group and with Christ. 

5) Similar to #3 above, Christianity is starkly different than other religions in that it seeks to fill the person with transforming knowledge. Not mere knowledge, which is the heresy of gnosticism. It is knowledge that necessarily transforms. It is knowledge, nonetheless. We are to present our bodies as living sacrifices through the non-conformation of our minds to this world’s worldview. Granted, I have not heard the speakers at the conference, and am not aware of the content of the messages. I venture to say that they revolved around confessing sin and encountering God in a powerful way. 

This is good. But when it comes to the music and what is communicated by vain repetition and the stirring up of frenzy is that the mind should not be engaged. This fellow is talented, no doubt about this. But what will this kind of fervor do in the longview? Perhaps you were present at this conference. Please comment and shed light on what else was done there. These posts are limited to this video that stirred so many emotions and reactions in me. 

Let’s continue to make Christianity relevant and fun and…real. So many youth at this conference will be contemplating suicide in the next year I am sure. I was there and almost did it. What we must give our people is teaching that is solid and will keep these kids from tottering in the sands of relativity in our culture.

Religious Lethargy #2

I mentioned earlier that I was at first angry when I viewed this video. Perhaps the first emotion was disbelief. A friend of mine told me about this and pulled it up on youtube. I have been in seminary (or the equivalent of it) for about six years now and have been a little disconnected from pop Christianity. I quickly became angry (good thing I am reading and posting on this topic to keep me from acting out on it too much!). That anger quickly subsided to pity and fear. Pity because these youth do not know any more of the depth of the riches of Christ than some excited expectancy for the next fervent expression of devotion the clanging of cymbals. Fear because the depth of this kind of Christianity will evaporate when the heat of the sun of persecution or the cares of this life burn up its thin veil of religion.

I felt compassion for these folk because I know that their desire is to make Christianity relevant and fun. But will this kind of Christianity last for these youth? Mountains have geographical boundaries. You climb them and that is it. Our desire for youth (and every age) is to set them on a path. After all this is Jesus’ metaphor. His disciples went with him up the mountain. And was it this mountain of glory they longed for as they ran away from Gethsemane?

Multi-Faceted Blessings

Godliness, while not guaranteed to change the original situation, often had an effect for good on the world. . . . The possibilities for the many-sided blessings of God are endless. Instead of my day being ruined, God has extricated me from sin and misery, and this is perhaps one of the most significant days in my life from the standpoint of growing into the image of Christ. I’ve learned how life works in God’s world. I’ve learned how the gospel works. I’ve learned profound lessons in a very tiny corner of life.

- David Powlison, Anger, 25.

Question #8 Answer

What are the consequences of faith and obedience? We’ve already mentioned some of the subjective benefits. More objectively, maybe a dented fender or even a killing was prevented. Somebody else was kept from stumbling into sinful anger or murder on my account. And in the half dozen cars around me, maybe my courtesy and relaxed response prove catching.

-David Powlison, Anger: Escaping the Maze, 25.

This point Powlison hit me hard because I too often merely consider my sanctification as indicative of my relationship with God. Here we see that our exercise of self-control entails others in our wake. If I am able to put to death the deeds of the flesh by the power of the Holy Spirit, then, perhaps, someone else may be enticed to pursue such holy living. Perhaps, my willingness to intentionally walk by the Spirit will keep someone else to go down the road to perdition.

Religious Lethargy

Some may see this video and think “lethargy” is the wrong word. You may see this and think fervor, ecstasy, ridiculousnous, stupidity, or hedonism is the correct word. About the end of this video I began crying in the middle of a Starbucks – nothing too crazy, but my anger turned to pity and fear.

I am so glad that there are people who desire to make encounters with God emotionally-charged. I wish there were more churches that sought to affect the emotions at least a little bit. So many congregations will view this video and have an allergic reaction so that they will never have any kind of excitement in their services. I will post later as to what are some problems with this, that I see. For now, just view it and leave your impressions in the comments section:

You Spin Me Right Round Jesus

Question #7 Answer

How should I respond in this situation to glorify God? Do it. Repentance and faith lead to concrete changes in behavior, emotion, thoughts. Righteousness is just as specific as the sins described in question #2. At the simplest level, I may simply take a deep breath and relax, trusting that God is indeed in control. But God has other fruits in mind, too. I become a charitable, courteous driver. What does it matter if I’m two more car lengths behind? I’ll let a couple of cars in. God has set me free of both the hostile and competitive aspects of sinful anger. The traffic jam is no longer a dog-eat-dog battle. I offer thanks to God. I plan what I will say to the person I’ve stood up: not anxious excuse-making or blustering irritation, but the simple facts, an apology, and a concern for his welfare.

- David Powlison, Anger: Escaping the Maze (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2000) 24

Question #6 Answer

As I mentioned earlier, I just finished reading the “Anger” booklet through CCEF. I am going to post a few excerpts that I found especially helpful.

How can I turn to God for help? Do it. Question #5 laid out the worldview in which problems now make sense. Mere analysis, however, won’t change me. Question #6 gets me moving. God wants me to seek him, to interact with him. I need to apply the truths of question #5, for example, by distinguishing between righteous and sinful anger. It’s not hard to tell that my anger fails the test of righteous anger: this traffic jam is not a moral evil! My anger has arisen because I served the false gods identified in question #3.

- David Powlison, Anger: Escaping the Maze (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2000) 23.

No Good Thing (i.e. Speeding Ticket) Does He Withhold

I was cruising along yesterday not thinking about my post and varied comments on driving the speed limit when I see a police car make a u-turn. I was on the phone with a good friend, told him I was getting ready to be pulled over, turned off the radio, and waited. The cop gave me my citation and I drove off. What happened the next hour is something I will not soon forget.

Usually I would be fuming and reeling from such a blatant encroachment on my freedom. This time, however, instead of turning the radio back on and going about my commute home I kept it turned off and began to reflect on the fact that this divine appointment was meant for my good. I began to enumerate the myriad blessings I have in my life and how paying this fine is and will be good for me. Too many times have I thought such activity was a hindrance to life – a citation, a phone call, stuck in traffic, coffee too hot to drink, supper not ready on time. This time, however, I dove into a deeper understanding of how all these inconveniences must be part of my daily commute in life. 

Instead of getting angry at the officer who was doing his job, I thanked God for putting authorities over me and my neighbors to keep us from violating other people’s freedoms. Instead of griping about the ticket, I thanked God the officer was kind – additionally he knocked 9 miles off the offense. Instead of yelling about having to spend the money I had just made that day at work, which was going to pay now for this ticket, I thanked God that I had made money at work and that I didn’t goose-egg in my sales that day.

I chose to rejoice in all circumstances. My sinful abuse of freedom had led me to be (rightly) pulled over. The law of the land says I should not drive over a certain speed limit. I did. I broke that law. Again, let’s not be legalistic about it (as I have been in the past) that if I were to go one mile over I would have to repent in sackcloth and ashes. But let’s not exercise undue license. We must not scoff at the speeding limit as though it were a suggestion for other motorists. 

God was kind to me to pull me over yesterday. What would happen if I continued to pompously cruise at my own discretion? Might my speeding increase even more to the point of uncontrolled driving? What a gift to not be pulled over so many other times – how many times have I sped!?! What a gift from God to keep me from being a fatal crash. What a gift from God that I have a job to drive to, a car to drive in, two eyes to see, two legs to accelerate, two hands to steer, air conditioning to regulate the temperature in my car, windows that I can roll down to enjoy the fresh air, music I can listen to, a Bluetooth I can play the sermons on my BlackBerry through…so many blessings. I get home, I open my trunk and there are well over a $1000 in library books that I was able to check out and enjoy without paying for them. Another couple books I got from the Band of Bloggers meeting at The Gospel Coalition.

I was reminded of my prideful scoffing at people I have passed on the road who had been pulled over. “Serves them right for driving like banshees.” “Ha ha. That’ll teach him.” 

In all of this, we must number our blessings by name so that we are not consumed with irreverent hatred; so that we do not grumble with the monotonous manna we receive every day. Breath is a gift. Family. Friends. Possessions. Do not forget.

Training Pastors…and Laying on of Hands

As I wrote in my May 14 post, many classes in the seminary need to be re-located. Classes that are by nature reliant upon practice need to be moved. You CANNOT teach preaching in a classroom. It comes by doing it. One of my mentors told me this when I was at Bethlehem. I agree entirely. My preaching has improved as I have given Sunday night devotions at Third Avenue.

You CANNOT teach evangelism. You can teach the content and varied methods of proclaiming the evangel. But this is not sufficient in “teaching” evangelism. That takes place when someone welcomes visitors at church, gets visitor cards from the elders, and calls folk up and meets them for coffee to talk about spiritual matters.

You CANNOT teach leadership. It is learned by following closely behind a leader and then leading yourself. Sure, you can teach methods and theory. This is what the seminary can do.

The problem enters when a congregation believes Sam Seminarian is equipped to lead their church merely because he has a degree. The congregation should be concerned whether Sam is well-trained (able to rightly divide the word of truth). However, they should be even more concerned as to whether the elders at the last church he was a member of have laid their hands on him and blessed him to go.

Anger

I am reading one of CCEF’s booklets on anger by David Powlison. This is an area that I have struggled in for the last four years and am trying to tackle head-on. For any that know me, they know that I am a pretty forceful personality that presses forward. Anger comes in when I fail to remember God’s control and sanctifying work in my life through everyday situations. That is, when obstacles come in my way and keep me from accomplishing my goal, I boil. 

I want to post a few excerpts from Powlison’s book that have been helpful for me – and I pray they are helpful to you.

Questions to Alleviate and Kill Anger:

1. What is my situation?
2. How do I react?
3. What are my motives?
4. What are the consequences?
5. What is true?
6. How can I turn to God for help?
7. How should I respond in this situation?
8. What are the consequences of faith and obedience?

Training Pastors…and the Church

I was just encouraged by someone I respect very much to clarify what I am talking about in reference to my last post. It may appear to some that I am saying, “Away with the seminary!” I have heard people say this because of their desire to bring education back into the local church. But such a statement is hogwash. To denigrate the seminary for the sake of church-based education is to pit two necessary entities that God uses to build the Church.

As most of you already know, I am working on a PhD in Systematic Theology. It would be ridiculous for me to say the seminary is unnecessary. Unfortunately some have used such rhetoric in an effort to win applause – and not appear as competitors with the local church.

The seminary is an institution meant to serve the Church. When the seminary is used as a replacement for training that needs to take place in the church, it should be corrected. Too many of the students at seminary are disconnected from the local church. As a result, these folk become myopic in their vision of what ministry is. They substitute right parsing for right loving. Even those that are members of local churches are not pursuing opportunities to serve others in the church. In a sense they are biding their time until they are ready. When is that? The witness of the NT seems to be that those who are “ready” are those who have already been exercising gifts of ministry, not because they got a passing grade in syntax and grammar.

What I am arguing for is a tighter wedding between the seminary and the church. There need to be ways for the seminary to hold accountable those who are not members of local churches, and those who are not ministering in the local church.

What is more, many of the “classes” that are taken in seminary need to be re-located under the roof of the local church.