We've Fenced Ourselves In! Part III

I want to wrap this series up by quoting something that John Oswalt (the guy in the picture) said in his commentary on Isaiah about this idea of a "remnant." By the way, his commentary is excellent--I recommend it to anyone desiring to do a study on the book of Isaiah.

"The concept of the remnant tends to go in and out of fashion, depending on the state of the church at a given time. When the church has been strong and moving forward, the emphasis has tended to be on the idea of participating in the coming kingdom of God. But when the church has felt persecuted and was in a state of little or no growth, the 'remnant' theology has tended to be more popular. Some of both emphases are probably needed in every time. In a time of growth and seeming power, we need to ask whether we are producing more chaff than wheat and whether there is fruit here that will stand a blasting drought. At the same time, when the situation is difficult, the 'remnant' must remember that they are the reprsentatives of a kingdom that cannot fail."

Oswalt continues:

"There are two great dangers in a 'remnant mentality,' closely related to each other. (1) One may be called 'ghett0-ization.' That is, those who believe themselves to be the righteous remnant will withdraw into a protective cocoon secure in their own righteousness and so cease to have the effect of salt and light in the world that Jesus commanded us to have (Matt. 5:13-16). (2) the other danger is self-pity. Here we take on a kind of 'hang-dog' mentality, where we are always feeling sorry for ourselves as the last vestiges of whatever God is trying to do. But if we are secure in the promises of God and rely on God and not on human power, our own or that of the state, we can dare to live in the open with quiet confidence and humble joy."*

Where do we begin? How do we pull ourselves out of our reformed ruts? It begins with prayer. But we must not stop there. We must be intentional about this--we must plan. We must implement the plan we make (of course, always being open to new directions that the Spirit may lead us in). Do not delay. Let us rise above the paralyzing fears of being influenced by the world. Act upon this before it becomes mere theory.

*John Oswalt, The NIV Application Commentary: Isaiah. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003), 183.

We've Fenced Ourselves In! Part II

I think it would be helpful, in our discussion about Christianity's responsibility to be salt and light in the midst of the world, to discuss the idea of a "remnant." In the Old testament much is said about a remnant within the nation of Israel. What is a remnant? Well, the nation of Israel was the national people of God. On the whole, Israel was a disobedient, hard-hearted nation. However, there was a small group of obedient, God-fearing Israelites tucked within the larger group of disobedient, hard-hearted Israelites. This small group of people was called the remnant.

We see the same thing today: there is a large group of people who profess to be the people of God; we call this the professing church of Jesus Christ. The majority within this large group do not know God nor do they take obedience to His word seriously. Tucked within this large group of professing Christians we find a small group of people who are truly following Christ. This smaller group of obedient Christians can correctly be seen as the New Testament counterpart of the Old Testament remnant.

Because the larger group (professing Christianity) tends to care so little about obedience to Christ and His demands, they often times follow the ways of our culture more than they do the ways of Christ. The remnant looks on with a heavy heart knowing that things are wrong. The tendency for the remnant is to go overboard in their rejection of those parts of Christianity which give full fledge allegiance to the culture. As the remnant sees this, she immediately has the urge to flee culture so as not to be infiltrated by the world. She sees the danger of it all. She has seen how the influences of the world have caused the greater part of Christianity to completely neglect Christ and his word. To avoid this she separates herself completely.

I believe this is what we have going on in reformed circles today. Out of a fear of being infiltrated by the world, we have fled. We have seen the negative influences of the culture upon Christianity and so we have high tailed it to a safe, comfortable place untouched by the world.

The only problem is that we have put ourselves in a position to not do what we were made to do--light up the darkness. We have created an evangelistic strategy out of fear rather than out of faith and obedience.

I will put up at least one more post on this subject. I know, you will be waiting with baited breath.

We've Fenced Ourselves In!

As of late, I have been terribly burdened by an evident withdrawal from the world among my reformed brethren. By withdrawal from the world I am not referring to a refusal to buy into the world's world view or standard of righteousness. Rather I am referring to a tendency to hide from the world out of a fear of being influenced by her. There is a tendency to be so afraid of the world that we run to our little barricaded, fenced-in forts to hide from her influence.

This is a safe way of playing Christianity.

However, it is hard to be a light in the darkness when we never engage the darkness. There is a prevailing tendency in reformed churches to act as if the main purpose of the church was to "hold the fort down." No, the main purpose of the church is to expand the kingdom of God.

The problem is that we have, out of a fear of being influenced by the world, built towering walls to keep the world out of our doors. The reason this is so bad is because the walls that we have built to protect ourselves are actually blocking us from infiltrating the world.

This is not something you see with Christ: He did not gather his disciples and run off to the hills to be free from influence. No! He hit the world head on. He went out among them like a fish in water.

He hung out with the sinners, prosititutes, and tax collectors.

The slogan I am hearing from reformed people these days is, "Retreat." But this was not the slogan of Christ. The slogan of Christ was, "Pursue! Overcome!"

For some reason we forget the promise given in 1 John 5 that the evil one cannot touch us. This is not license for Christians to go out and indulge. We must be discerning. However, this is a call for reformed folk to stop neglecting the command of the great commission out of a debilitating fear of being influenced by the world. The fact is that the light will overcome the darkness.

I am not sure if it will be tomorrow or the day after, but I will add another post to this topic.

Are You Happy Today?

How optimistic are you right now about the world? Is it getting better? Is it getting worse? Do you have doubts in your mind about the state of Christianity in the world right now? Is Christianity on the brink of being snuffed out? Are we losing the battle?

The great tendency for the church is to be pessimistic about the expansion of the Kingdom of God. As we look around ourselves we see rampant sin and hard-hearted rejection of Jesus. Abortion, drunkenness, gossip, homosexuality, adultery, homicide--things seem to be looking down for Christianity. It appears as if we are losing the battle.

Are you tempted with such pessimism? Now I do not want to pull the wool over my eyes and pretend as if things are not as bad as they actually are. However, Christians must never have a pessimistic attitude about the expansion of Christ's kingdom. Often times we forget the parable of the mustard seed given by Jesus.

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

Often times we Christians forget that we are on the winning team. Our pessismism usually comes from a misunderstanding which places America at the center and heart of God's activity in the world. The fact is that Christ's Kingdom is rapidly growing outside of America.

Take encouragement my friends! We are not on the losing team. Our efforts are not in vain. Right now, Christ is winning the battle--His kingdom is expanding. Not only this, but we know that the victory is sure. Do not lament over the gross rebellion evidenced throughout our land as if we were not winning the battle.

Take the victorious message of the cross to a lost world without fear. Advance with a song in your heart and a smile on your face knowing that the state of our nation is no threat to the victory of our King. March forward triumphantly with the Good News, knowing that their rebellion will not thwart God and His purposes. Don't get so bogged down by all the needs in the world that you lose sight of whose team you are on.

Because the message of the cross is sovereignly "revealed" by "my father who is in heaven," we know that the "gates of death cannot overpower it" (by the way, this is how Matthew 16 should be read).

Christian, stop your moping and groaning in prayer and advance with the message that cannot be stopped or thwarted! There is a place for grief, but it must never smolder the flame of victory.

Has God Cast You Out?

Technically, my semester/quarter has not yet started. However, I have been studying for both of my classes for a few weeks now. I have already posted quite a lot on my class in Isaiah, but haven't shared anything I have learned from my Missions course. Well, thats about to change.

For my Missions class, I get to read "Introducing World Missions: A Biblical, Historical, and Practical Survery" by A. Scott Moreau, Gary R. Corwin, and Gary B. McGee. I am only 50 pages into it and am already hooked.

In Chapter 3, the authors discuss what the Gospels (specifically) have to say about missions. As would be expected, a good chunk of the chapter was dedicated to Matthew 9:35-38.

"Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

This is what the authors had to say about this passage:

"Christ's command has an urgency not usually captured in today's translations. First, the harvest often was a metaphor for the end times, and every framer knew the importance of getting a harvest in once it was ready. Second, the Greek word translated as "send out" means to thrust violently (it is also used for expelling demons from people). A farmer who hired laborers to harvest the crop, knowing the importance of gathering in the harvest before it rots, might not be gentle in getting lackadaisical workers out into the field. The fact that two thousand years have intervened since this event took place does not lessen the urgency" (pg 41-42).

On Christianity, Modernism, and Postmodernism

I read one of the most simple and concise articles on a Christian view of Modernism and Postmodernism. I do not think that it is imperative that all Christians have a super-developed understanding of modernism and postmodernism, however I highly suggest all Christians to have atleast an idea of modernism and postmodernism. This article was written by Don Closson and is entitled "How Do You Spell Truth." I want to warn you before going there that some of the the concepts are a bit difficult, however I believe that taking the effort to learn the cultural climate is invaluable in our evangelistic task. Click here to access the article. Clossons dealing with the issues is one of the most simplified I have found.

The only thing I would have done differently than Closson is spend more time showing the strengths of both modernism and postmodernism. I understand that Closson probably had limited room, but one of the main reasons our culture is so fed up with Christianity is because of a refusal to give credit where credit is due. Of course Christianity is the very source of truth, however we have benefited from both modernism and postmodernism in many ways, and when we don't acknowledge this the world correctly labels us as arrogant. Anyway, that is a freebie.

TOOTH PICKS AND TELEPHONE POLES

This is for my reformed brethren (and I am reformed).

The toothpick (splinter) in the eye of Rick Warren, Adrian Rogers, Charles Stanley, the majority of the Southern Baptist Convention, and many other contemporary evangelicals:

-Their methods of evangelism are more often than not misleading and not conformed to the Scriptures.

The telephone pole (log) in the eye of a great part of my Calvinistic brethren:

-We completely neglect the command to evangelize.

I am not saying that some of the abuses and excesses in the seeker movement are mere splinters. Many of their approaches are unbelievably dangerous and need to be addressed (see my posts on 1 John and 1 John Part II). However, unless you are doing the work of evangelism yourself, you have no business picking the evangelistic toothpick out of your brother’s eye.

As one fine preacher once told me, “I like how they are evangelizing wrongly better than how you are not evangelizing at all!”

The greatest thing I learned from Jim Elliff (in KC, MO) was how to not merely knit pick the evangelistic short comings of contemporary Christianity, but how to better and reform the short comings of contemporary Christianity. Unless you have tested and tried practical alternatives to the crooked ways of evangelism in our present situation (and neglecting evangelism is not a viable alternative) then you ought not speak as an authority on it.

This is a rebuke to myself as much as it is to anyone else.

The Lord is Flexing His Muscles

The Lord has been very gracious to us today. Baby James seems to be moving along. Since he cannot swallow the nurse has to suction his throat a couple times an hour. The nurses have been concerned because he does not gag when they put the tub down his throat. Well, this afternoon when the nurse put the tube down his throat he began to gag. So far he has gagged numerous times today. This news although sounding sort of strange, is excellent. Gagging is the body's natural way of protecting the air way. Without a gag reflex food and fluid can flow into the lungs. Gagging in a sense stops too much stuff from going down our throats at one time. The nurse told us that he is swallowing, but still needs to be able to swallow more. Please be praying that James' gag reflex continues to get better and better. Also be praying that he would be more consistent with his swallowing. A physical therapist came by and had James do some exercises to see how well he used his muscles. At first he had a hard time tracking with his eyes, and he also had a hard time grasping anything with his hands. She worked with him for about an hour and by the end of her time with him he was grasping onto our fingers and looking at us when we talked to him. Everything seems to at this point be progressing quite well. Kristal and I are super excited. Right now the main thing that is keeping him here is his inability to swallow and gag, but he is progressing. Thank you so much for your prayers. It is very encouraging to Kristal and I when you leave comments on the blog. Continue to pray for baby James. The Lord is so mighty. He is so kind to us. Words cannot express how wonderful it is to hold little James in my arms. He is a super cool and studly object of God's glory. One of the ways the Lord likes to flex his muscles the most is by showing off his ability to create and sustain life. It is really exciting to see Baby James start having normal baby movements. He is also now starting to make normal baby sounds.

Please also be praying for Kristal and I that we would get opportunities to share our faith with the doctors.Please be praying that the Lord would grant us boldness of speech. The Lord has put us in the company of many doctors and nurses. The Lord works all things according to the counsel of his will. We really believe that one of the reasons we are in the position we are is so that we might be in a position to share the message of Christ with those who are taking care of our child. Those who are taking care of our sick child are most likely in a far worse condition than he is. Jesus once said that only the sick need a doctor. When he said this he was in no way saying that there are healthy people and there are sick people. Rather he was saying that everyone is sick and only those who know they are sick will seek a doctor. Jesus said this to the pharisees--those who felt that they were good enough to maketheir way to heaven on their own. They felt that they did not need a savior. They felt that they were healthy. They didn't know they were sick. You may be in that same boat today. Well, "At least I don't do drugs and at least I am not like those dirty porn stars. Surely I lie sometimes and surely I make myself look better than the next man, but atleast I am not a murderer or a rapist." I am sure that there are many who are reading this blog right now who have not fully thrown themselves upon Christ as their ONLY hope of salvation. In your mind you think that Jesus is great and all if you want to be religious, but you think that you really don't need him. The only reason you don't think that you need him is because you do not realize how sick you are. You are what could be called sin sick. If you do not see your sickness, if you do not see how sinful and defiled you are before a holy God you will see no need for a savior. I emplore you this evening to throw yourself on Christ as your only hope. Your good works, as good as they may be, do nothing for you. You need someone to literally give you new life. If you are not trusting upon Christ as your only hope of salvation then you are in a worse predicament than my sick child. You are far sicker and far more in need of a doctor. Seek for Him while he may be found. If you say to yourself, "Wow Jimmy, I am not that bad. Surely I mess up sometimes, but I am not that bad." If you are saying this to yourself now them be assured that you are about as sick as you possibly can be. You are so sick that you cannot even detect your own sickness. You are like a man with boils all over his body who cannot even detect that he has a skin irritation. Apart from Christ you may find hope, but it is a false hope. Christ is the your only hope of being saved from the wrath of our Infinitely good, loving, and just Father in Heaven. Please o Please seek the only doctor there is for your sin sickness--Jesus Christ. Cry out to him that he may save your soul and heal you. Cry out to him that he may give you new life. Cry out to him that he may forgive your sin sickness. Cry out to the great physican, for He is the only physican.

"Jesus: The Message and Model of Mission;" An Article Review

We live in the midst of a Christianity that, for the most part, is biblically illiterate. Many wrongly assume that this neglect of the Bible only affects our doctrine. Not so! Bad doctrine produces (for the most part) bad methods. In fact, many modern day missionary organizations have hindered the spread of Christianity more than they have helped. Ajith Fernando, in his article "Jesus: The Message and Model of Mission," attempts to provide missionaries with a more biblical view of mission. This article is broken up into two sections: 1. Jesus: The Message of Mission, and 2. Jesus the Model of Mission. Fernando spends much less time on the first section than he does on the second, therefore less attention will be given to the first section.

Without the message of Jesus there would be no mission. Christian mission is based upon the unique teachings of Christianity, and especially the doctrine of Christ and His work. Without doctrines like justification by faith alone, the exclusivity of the Gospel, the rejection of universalism, and the unique nature of Christ, there would be no Christian mission.

The knowledge of what Christ has done for sinners is not just informative, but also prescriptive. Doing mission in a biblical way means imitating Christ, which is not always easy. American missionaries often find it hard to imitate Christ because they have been conditioned to living in a convenient and comfortable environment. The examples of Christ in the New Testament are radically taxing on every level. In fact, the majority of Christ’s examples have to do with meekness, humility, suffering, service, and forgiveness. Each and every one of these involve discomfort on one level or another.

Often times missionaries do not follow Christ’s example of meekness, and end up hindering the work of the gospel. There is need to be bold for the sake of Christ, but some confuse being bold with being rude. Christ was bold, not rude. Surely he did offer some pointed rebukes to the Pharisees, but he also dealt with the prostitutes and tax collectors with an amazing amount of patience and love. Missionaries are not commanded to choose between uncontrolled passion and apathetic pleas, rather they are to imitate Christ in his temperance and wisdom.

The greatest hindrance facing Christianity today is a negative view of conversion. This negative view is exhibited in the extremes of both pluralism (in its rejection of proselitizing) and extreme forms of fundamentalism (and it’s refusal to allow others a chance to speak). Christians must rise above these two extremes if they are to faithfully follow the example of Christ.

Response

What a challenging essay! Saying the things that Christ said is different than doing the things that Christ did. Loving with more than just head and heart, forgiving, suffering, laying aside personal rights and freedoms. What a daunting task. No! What an impossible task! The scriptures discussed in this essay force the reader to the place of dependence.

This is the type of essay that makes the "Footprints in the Sand" poster look so ridiculous. The "Footprints in the Sand" poster communicates that Christian maturity is best evidenced when the believer is strong enough to walk by him/herself. True Christian maturity however, is evidenced in a knowledge of our need of the Spirit of God and our actively seeking His help. Maturity is found in weakness and dependence, not in strength and independence.

How can a believer love and forgive as Christ if they are walking on their own? How can a believer be selflessly committed to a community of faith while receiving unjust reproach and abuse if they are not being carried along by the Holy Spirit? Did Paul, in his own strength, work up such a love and compassion for the messed up Romans that he could say, "I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers" (Rom. 9:3)?

Preachers are afraid to preach the ethics of Scripture because the demands of Scripture primarily have to do with giving up rights. When Christ was ridiculed He gave no reply. Being God, He had the power to call down legions of angels to come to his defense when they nailed him to the cross, but rather than retaliating, He prayed, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:24). Christian mission, at it’s most fundamental level, is loving God, people, and the truth of the Gospel so much that you are willing to throw your individual rights to the curb. Those who give money, time, and talents to ministries, missionaries, or the poor are considered to be super spiritual one even in the church.

This review, even now, is so easy to type, but what will happen after it is written. This review is so easy to read, but what will happen after it is read. This essay was especially challenging to me right now, because I am in the process of church shopping. My question to myself is, "Am I going to be unsettled until I find a church without problems? Am I going to be unsure until I find a church without sinful people?"

What a challenge! But I don’t want to be a part of a church where people are picky, rude, and
difficult. I want to be part of a perfect church. I want to be a part of a church that will not cause any inconvenience. A church that will not cause my spirit any troubles. In the same way, I want to evangelize, but I do not want to evangelize to someone who is needy, hungry, dirty, stinky, annoying, and poor. I want to evangelize to those who can follow my carefully put together gospel message. I don’t want to evangelize those who talk too much and cut me off.

Everyone claims to be a missionary or evangelist, but very few strive for the character of Christ. What does the world think as it looks on? We all claim to be followers of Christ, but very few seek the radical ethic of Christ. The sad thing is that there is no Christian mission apart from the ethic of Christ. We have acted much like the Pharisees in the Sermon on the Mount–we have dumbed down the radical demands of the gospel so that they are attainable. It is very difficult to find a pastor whose ministry is built on service. Many, like James and John, have wrongly assumed that the way to greatness is paved by power, knowledge, and prestige.

Today we build emotional fences around ourselves so that we might be protected from the inconveniences brought about by intimate relationships with other people and families in the church. Christians surely do give of themselves, but only when it can be done without great cost. Granted, some people are awful, and some situations are down right preposterous, but for the most part, people pack their bags as soon as they see anything that might potentially put them in a situation requiring radical Christ-likeness. Our approach to Christian mission is diametrically opposed to Jesus’ approach to mission. Everything He emphasized is considered radical today. Today, the ethic of Christ is a mere option for those who "really love God." But this is not the way the example of Christ is treated in the Scriptures. The Bible presents the example of Christ as the divine mandate for Christian mission.

One of the biggest evidences of a missionary or evangelist that has not built their evangelistic method on the Scripture is one who is militant about their evangelism. The power of their evangelism is bound up in the delivery of their message, rather than in the sovereign Spirit who supernaturally reveals the message to the heart. Therefore the success of the encounter is dependent upon the evangelist and his ability to either sell or force the message.

Without a complete depedence upon the Spirit in Christian mission it is impossible to follow the example of Christ, because even Christ, being God, was dependent upon His Father. How much more should we mere humans look to the Father for the strength and ability to fully carry out the demands of Christian mission. The call of Christian mission is the call of dependence.

Putting the "Hell" Back into Christmas

We have heard it time and time again–"Lets put the Christ back in Christmas." But what does this mean? How do you put the Christ back in Christmas? What does this look like? How does this change the way we celebrate? How does this change the way we open presents? For many people, putting Christ back into Christmas merely means mentioning His name and reading about His birth in the first few chapters of the Gospel of Matthew before opening presents.

Let me tell you what I mean when I say, "I am putting the Christ back in Christmas." The whole purpose of the Christmas holiday is not merely to remember Christ, rather it is to celebrate who Christ is and what Christ has done. What has Christ done that is so worthy of celebration? Most would say, "Well, He became a man! At Christmas we celebrate His birth!"

I have tried this approach for many years and have nearly exhausted myself trying to get excited about the birth of Christ. Don’t get me wrong, the birth of Christ is very exciting. But throughout the years I have always known that there is something more to Christmas than the Birth of Jesus.

About two years ago I got honest with myself (something that people need to do more often). I expressed my thoughts to myself about Christmas and how I really just didn’t have much excitement left when it came to thinking about the birth of Christ. So I said to myself, "OK, Jesus is born! What else is there."

Then I began to ask myself questions (something else that most people need to do more often). I just knew that there had to be something more. So I asked myself one simple question, "What makes the birth of Christ so exciting?"

Did Jesus come and live among us because he just wanted to hang out? Why did God become a man? Did he want to be shorter than the trees? Or was it because he wanted to know what it was like to be a human? Was it some kind of Divine experiment? Of course not!

Why then did God become a man? Because man was in need of salvation–a salvation that could only be accomplished by God. The reason God became a man was to die in the place of man.

I hate to ruin the Christmas holiday by bring up a naughty word, but I must. HELL!

"What? Are you morbid or something? The thought of Hell is what brought life back to Christmas for you?"

Yep!

If you leave Hell out of Christmas, then you have left Christ out of Christmas. Without Hell there would be no Christmas. Christ became a man to save us from Hell. Christmas is a time of celebration. It is a time to celebrate the victory we have in Jesus.

Check out what the author of the Letter to the Hebrews has to say about Christ becoming a man:

"Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people" (Hebrews 2:14-17).

Christmas is my way of celebrating the fact that Christ became a man in order to take hell in my place.

Christmas is also a time of mourning. We mourn for those who have not come to know Christ and His saving grace. In America we want everything to be nice and happy. We want Christmas to be happy and fun, but if we want to put the Christ back in Christmas there must be a sad element to Christmas. We must not only think of a cute little baby in a manger, we must also think of a bloody savior on a cross. Christmas is one of the biggest reminders, for those who have placed their faith in Christ, that men are in need of a savior. Most people in the world have not repented of their sins and turned to the Lord Jesus Christ. Most people in this world are going to Hell. Christmas is a time to celebrate what Christ has done, but it is also to be a sobering reminder that putting the Christ back in Christmas is not a mere desire. It is a grave necessity.

It is not wrong to have fun on Christmas, but it is wrong, for the sake of fun and presents, to take Christ out of Christmas. Christ was not born for nothing. Christ was born to die–to die for sinners. Christ did not die for nothing–He died to save men from Hell.

Ignorance is bliss, but intentional ignorance for the sake of uninterrupted fun and presents is morbid.

Rejoice this Christmas that Christ is mighty to save. Mourn over those who have not yet experienced His saving power.

If you are not a believer, if you have not repented of your sins and thrown yourself on Christ as your only hope of heaven, let the thought of Christ being born convince you that you are on your way to Hell. Trust Him! Trust Him! God became a man to save you from an eternal Hell. He is mighty to save! Put the Christ back into Christmas!

Sola Scriptura--The Prey of Cultural Influence

As said before, these next few entries will be aimed at exposing those things that most often hinder our ability to read the Bible in context. They will hopefully shed much light on how we often force the Bible to say what it is not saying.

The first barrier to correct interpretation that I want to talk about is cultural influence. This may take two or three entries. Christianity has been effected in a great way by the culture in which it exists. Some of it's effects have been wonderful and some of it's effects have been awful. Each culture brings both good and bad to the table.

One of the great new movements that is sweeping across the country is the Emergent Church movement. This movement is way too large and diverse to make any general characterizations, but a few things can be said for sure. The Emergent type churches see the need for Christians to engage their culture in greater and more profound ways. The culture has changed much over the past few decades, and therefore our approach to the people in our culture ought to be different than it was before. For example, you would approach evangelism much different if you were in China than you would in America, because China's culture is much different than America's.

I am not part of an Emergent Church, but I do see the value of much of what they are pushing for. I also see many (at least) potential problems with this movement. I recently read Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell and was not overly impressed (Not all Emergent types are like Bell). Bell had many positive things to say, but many of His statements were informed more by culture than by Scripture. In fact, it appeared that his view of Christianity has been shaped, in a great way, by culture.

It appears that culture has so influenced Bell that he looks more to what culture is saying, than he does to Scripture, to judge what is best and most important for 21st Cent Christianity.
For example, on pg 167 Bell informs us that if we have an agenda, when talking to non-believers, then we cannot truly love them. He says, "we have to surrender our agendas." Bell could not be further from Biblical truth. The 21st Cent culture teaches that love (go ahead and give it [love] your own definition) is to be the only agenda. The Bible teaches that the Gospel is to be the agenda. The Gospel then produces love. Paul, in Col 4 tells us to "make the most of every opportunity." We are to let our speech be seasoned with salt and grace so that we might be able to know how to answer every man. You are disobedient if you are agendaless. Culture has so shaped Bell's ideals and practices that he has missed the primary role of the community of faith, which is intentional evangelism.

Bell's problem is much like the RCC's (Roman Catholic Church). The RCC interpreted the Bible in light of Church tradition. Bell interprets scripture in light of 21st Century Postmodern Cultural influences.

This Catholic tendency in much of the Emergent Church has caused them to go so far that many (not all) of them question whether or not Homosexuality is a sin. Mclaren even questions the Penal Substitutionary Atonement, which is the heart of the Gospel. Why does he reject the Biblical view of the atonement? Well, why do the Catholics believe in purgatory (something that cannot be found in scripture)? Because they are not heeding the call of Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone).

Now,

Christians of all sorts: Doctrinal types, Practical types, Charismatic types, Arminian types, Calvinst types, Denominational types, Introspective types, Emergent types, Emerging types, Democratic types, and yes even Republican types, see the need for change to occur in modern day Christianity. All agree that Christianity is in need of change. What we cannot find agreement on is what needs to be changed, and how that change needs to be brought about.

One obvious question is raised in light of this observation; How are we going to discern that which is most in need of change for Christianity here and now? In answering this question it is most important to start with what the Word of God has to say. Only after the Bible has been consulted can we then look elsewhere to find help. Our search for what needs to be changed must begin with the Word of God so that we may have a sufficient rule by which to discern those changes which would be helpful for Christianity, and those which would be destructive.

For example, suppose we were to seek to change the face of Christianity for the sake of reaching those in a culture which hated absolute truth (which is true of much of our radical postmodern culture). If we were to start our search for change by first consulting the culture, which says that absolute truth is bad, then the Bible would become useless (since it is full of absolute truths). Is there a problem in this? Of course there is. Why? Because the Bible is the very Word of God given to us by God and is profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteous (1 Tim 3:16). And because the Word of God is the revelation of who God is and what He expects of us. God’s will is revealed in the Bible, not in the culture. Therefore, if one were to set out to change Christianity to better reach a certain culture, it must first start with the Bible so that it may discern those aspects of the culture which are not right.

What would be the purpose of reaching the culture in the first place but to change that which is bad about the people and make it good. But if we use the culture, which has many areas of weakness, of discerning what is bad in the culture, will we be able to discern what is in need of change? Of course not, because we will be using the flawed culture as a standard to decide what is flawed about the culture so that it can be changed. The reason why the Bible must be the starting point is because it is the only perfect standard. The Bible does not need to be changed, but the culture does. If the standard we use to decide if something is flawed is flawed in and of itself then we can have no assurance that our standard will be able to accurately detect that which is flawed in the thing being tested. If a perfect standard is used however then anything that does not agree with that perfect standard can immediately be seen for what it is–a flaw that needs to be changed. The reason the Bible is the standard is because the Bible is not in need of change, therefore the agenda’s set forth by the Bible (i.e. intentional evangelism, seeing homosexuality as a sin, upholding Penal Subsubstitutionary Atonement etc.) are to be that which we use to discern what is good and bad about culture.

All changes, therefore, must be grounded first and foremost on the Bible. The problem with much of the American church is that it does not begin with the word of God, but rather with the culture. Therefore it morphs Christianity to look just like the culture since the rule and standard is not the Word of God, but the culture itself. Christianity then begins to be tested by the truth claims of the culture and there you have it, Christians begin to speak more about the changes that need to take place within the church than they do about the changes that need to take place within the culture. I do not deny that Churches are always in need of becoming more conformed to the Bible. But the NT emphasizes the fact that Christians are to go out and effect and change the culture more than the culture is to come in and effect the church. The goal of the church becomes to look more like the culture rather than more like the NT church. Much of the church therefore adopts the agenda’s of postmodern culture rather than the agenda’s of scripture, which are to be what informs us of what agenda’s are most important. Culture cannot inform us of what is most important, only the Bible can do that.

These misunderstanding of how to assess the problems of Christianity, at the outset, may not seem like all that big of a deal. Many conservative fundamentalist Christians find it hard to speak out against the average church in America because they have not completely rejected the Bible. No, the majority of churches have not rejected the Bible, but they have distorted the Bible, because they force the Bible to cater to the agenda’s and slogans of
post modern culture, in much the same way that the RCC has distorted the Bible because they force it to cater to the agenda's and slogans of Church Tradition.

It is of utmost importance that Christians do what they can to find ways to cater to the needs of the culture in which they are presenting the Gospel, but it is also of utmost importance that these same Christians do not learn more from their culture than they do from the Word of God. Christians are to inform the culture of what is most important, the culture is not to inform Christian’s as to what is most important. Christians are to go forth and do what they can to meet the felt needs of their culture, but this is never to take precedence over what is most important. Meeting the felt needs of a certain culture is to be the platform upon which the Christian works to meet that cultures true needs–those needs which are revealed in the Bible.

I have much more to say about cultural influence. The next post will be more geared toward how culture influence hinders even non-emergent types to not heed the call of Sola Scriptura.