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Awaken to the Advocacy Role in a Church’s Discipleship

8/31/2015

Mark's Gospel narrative is not merely informational in nature; it is meant to move an audience to respond. Mark expected his readers/listeners, that is, the community of believers, to respond to his Gospel—to hear and be affected by the stories and teachings and events that shape his narrative. This is equally true regarding the Mark 12 scene under discussion, the poor widow vs. the duplicitous scribes. The “greater condemnation” (12:40)[1] of the temple establishment and the end of the temple (i.e., its destruction, 13:2) should not be dismissed as mere historical information or relevant only to the Israel of old. Mark crafts his narrative in such a way that pulls his readers/listeners into the story so they would hear that their end can have a similar outcome if they are likewise unprepared, for they, too, do not know when the master of the house is coming (Mark 13:35).[2]

The warning to beware of duplicitous scribes is soon followed by Jesus’ disciples pointing out the “wonderful stones” and “wonderful buildings” of the temple (13:1). It is to this which Jesus replies, “Not one stone will be left upon another” (13:2). This is ironic and disappointing. The disciples didn’t get it; they had missed the point. They have not been listening—a dangerous place to be, for this is the OT charge against Israel’s unprepared leadership. Yet all readers/listeners are to guard against their own unpreparedness at the (re)appearance of the Master of the house.

[1] Mark uses krima here, which means judgment and is most likely drawn from the Malachi reference (Mal 3:5).

[2] The drawing in of the readers/listeners can also be seen in the “hardening” texts directed at the disciples (Mark 6:51–52; 8:14–21).

*From “Widows in Our Courts (Mark 12:38–44): The Public Advocacy Role of Local Congregations as Discipleship,” chapter one of Wasted Evangelism.

Dangerous Sunday morning devotions: James 5:1-6, horrified by the poor rich readers' response to this text

8/30/2015

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and put to death the righteous man; he does not resist you (James 5:1-6).

While attending an early morning men’s prayer and devotional time (as a guest of the one leading the study component), I was horrified by some of the strained thoughts on the passage. The study leader actually tried to stick to the James text; it was the poor rich readers that made comments to lessen the impact of what God was saying through James' words in chapter 5 of his letter. Here are some of my thoughts as the poor rich readers of the Bible commented on James’ words:

Let’s be cautious that we don’t interpret this passage in such a way so we may remain as comfortable as we are.
Strange how we rationalize the severe words God has for those with wealth so we can be comfortable with ourselves and say with our conservative Christian tongues, from an economic, demographic, and geographic distance from those living in poverty, “it’s all a matter of the heart—I saw how happy those dirt-poor people are living in those shanties there.” (Someone actually said this. Horrified, I was.)
Why do we pray that God will teach us something new from his Word? Shouldn’t we be praying that God will teach us something old?
The wealthy tend to move away from the very places that could use their capacity, knowledge, and human capital . . . retreating to the sidewalk-less places of comfort rather than to sidewalks, concrete, and blight.
Interesting that James calls our neglect of the poor “murder.” (Not my words, but a great, scary thought).
My mind went to the global water crisis: 1 out of every 7 people on this planet this morning will not have clean, useable water today—as they will not every day. Two (2) of 7 will not have a meal. Is it okay that this and other issues of poverty happen as we live as comfortable suburban Christians? (See the list of more local effects of poverty that I posted here on Waste Evangelism—one doesn’t need to think globally on this, just next door.)
We cannot excuse ourselves that most of the world’s poverty is “out there” beyond our reach; we have no excuse.
Wealthy doesn’t mean really rich; in light of the fact that the bottom billion will hardly make a $2 today means we are wealthy.

Some might not think it, but I was being charitable here. My thoughts were a bit more harsh and even more direct than what I penned above. I will grant that it took me eighteen years after becoming a Christian to begin to see how suburban, affluent, and political I had been reading the Bible--all the while thinking I was interpreting rightly. We need to stop taking the poor out of the texts that actually call us to judgment for not doing something for the poor--neutrality, distance, time, politics will not be allowed as excuses on that day God judges all of our hearts. For on "that day" our riches will have rotten and our garments will have become moth-eaten. Our gold and our silver will have rusted; and their rust, on that day, will be a witness against us and will consume our flesh like fire.

Domesticating Church Growth (Eph 5:18-6:9), an introduction to my upcoming ETS paper

8/29/2015

For those interested, I like to post drafts of my current research and writing. Here is the introduction to my up-coming paper that I will present at the November (2016) annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society in Atlanta, GA.

The full title of the paper: Domesticating Church Growth (Eph 5:18-6:9): The Spirit-Filled Church-Temple Architecture (Wives-Husbands, Children-Fathers, Slaves-Masters) and Outcomes of Personhood

Church growth is completely dependent on what one means by “growth.” Typically, a church’s growth is measured by defining growth as numbers of people either in attendance or on a membership role. Conversely, a definition can lead a congregation to church growth goals that promote outcomes that are actually contrary to the nature of the gospel. However, does the concept of biblical church growth offer other classifications to measure successful church growth? Other potential outcomes that would indicate church growth that reflects the very implications of redemption that initiated by the cross of Jesus, the Messiah?

Our focus on numbers as church growth, that is the average tallied attendance in one room on a Sunday or totaled at congregational annual meeting’s reading of a membership roll, creates a social reality for a congregation that promotes “church” attitudes and resulting habits that are hostile to the gospel of Jesus the Messiah, potentially creating space that can dehumanize individuals, foster inequality among populations and demographics, and envision people as consumers to be targeted and the gospel as a product to be marketed. Church growth outcomes related solely to numbers of people in relationship to a building-centered church experience limits potential outcomes that reflect the imagery and trajectories presented in Scripture, particularly as imagined through the text of Ephesians. Paul’s reference to the “filling in the Spirit” (5:18) and the following Haustafel creates space to think biblically, even exegetically, about “church growth,” for the sacred space(s) currently in place (i.e., the typical building-centered church experience and business-centered bureaucratic church models) can be barriers for reimagining from the text a different narrative for church and church growth.

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians presents the local congregation as God’s expanding (growing) household-temple in the Spirit (Eph 2:21-22), making the filling in the Spirit command (5:18) related to (local) church growth, not misapplied toward privatized spiritual growth. Commentators note that the household code (the Haustafel) that follows in Eph 5:21-6:9 is related in some way to the command to be “filled in the Spirit.” This paper takes into consideration that the household code, or domestic relations in the Lord, following the filling command is the expanding structure of God’s Spirit-filled church-temple. The re-oriented domestic relationships in Paul’s Haustafel (Eph 5:21-6:9) are the church-temple’s architecture: the expanding sacred space created by the filling is the household code of wives-husbands, children-fathers, and slaves-masters. This suggests potential church growth outcomes related to “personhood.” The paper will develop this thesis through (I) showing how “sacred space” impacts our concept of personhood; (II) connecting the “filling in the Spirit” to the church-temple imagery in Ephesians; (III) developing a contextual reading of the “filling of the Spirit” command (5:15-6:9); and, (IV) demonstrating how the Haustafel suggests a trajectory of church growth outcomes beyond mere numbers.

Connect to poverty Fridays: A global glance at those affected by poverty

8/28/2015

As Christians, we need to ask: does it matter to us that people live in poverty and in conditions that prevent healthy stable, safe lives and a more positive and fruitful future?

Nearly 1/2 of the world’s population—more than 3 billion people—live on less than $2.50 a day.
More than 1.3 billion live in extreme poverty—less than $1.25 a day.
At least 80% of humanity (or 5.5 billion) lives on less than $10 a day.

Number of children in the world: 2.2 billion; number of children living in poverty: 1 billion (almost every other child).
According to UNICEF, 22,000 children die each day due one or more issues of poverty.
805 million people worldwide do not have enough food to eat.
Close to 1 billion people on the planet lack adequate access to clean drinking water.
Diarrhea caused by inadequate drinking water, sanitation, and hand hygiene kills an estimated 842,000 people every year globally, or approximately 2,300 people per day.
In 2011, 165 million children under age 5 were stunted (reduced rate of growth and development) due to chronic malnutrition.
Preventable diseases like diarrhea and pneumonia take the lives of 2 million children a year who live with families too poor to afford proper treatment.
As of 2013, 21.8 million children under 1 year of age worldwide had not received the three recommended doses of vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis.
One forth (1/4) of all humans live without electricity—approximately 1.8 billion people.
Approximately half the world’s population now live in cities and towns. In 2005, one out of three urban dwellers (approximately 1 billion people) was living in slum conditions.
Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names

Overwhelmed? You should be. Poverty stats stare us right in the face. These stats (and far many more) can be found on almost any poverty website, NGO website, or among the number anti-poverty agency websites here in the USoA or around the globe. A quick Google search will hunt them down for you.

What I am most concerned with here, however, is not just simply connecting you with issues of poverty, but that you understand these statistics are not numbers but real, living human beings--our neighbors, locally and globally. One should recall as you are reading these stats what Jesus referred to as the command like unto the first, Love your neighbor as yourself.

What is most overwhelming is the BIG picture. What can I do? My suggestion is pick one, choose a focus, adopt a neighborhood, do something within your potential sphere of influence, neighborhood, or passion. Harness either your time, your talent or your treasure (or all three) and do something to ameliorate the causes of poverty. Do one thing. My suggested resource: Mae Elise Cannon's book Social Justice Handbook: Small Steps for a Better World, is a great place to start, for she lists many resources and organizations, ministries, and non-profits by issue or activity. I suggest you read through this volume.

Open your mouth for the mute,
For the rights of all the unfortunate.
Open your mouth, judge righteously,
And defend the rights of the afflicted and needy (Proverbs 31:8–9).

Resolve: To live with all our might (Philippians 2:19-30), the call to discipleship

8/27/2015

An old album cover to Keith Green's "No Comprise."

“Resolved: To live with all my might, while I yet live. ”

~Jonathan Edwards, written in New Haven while a Yale divinity student in 1722

But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition. For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus. But you know of his proven worth, that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father. Therefore I hope to send him immediately, as soon as I see how things go with me; and I trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly. But I thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my need; because he was longing for you all and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick. For indeed he was sick to the point of death, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I have sent him all the more eagerly so that when you see him again you may rejoice and I may be less concerned about you. Receive him then in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard; because he came close to death for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was deficient in your service to me (Philippians 2:19-30).

We do not lack for sermons and books on the topic of discipleship. Some Christians speak about discipleship as if it is something to be into—like being into politics or running or weight loss. But such a view of discipleship betrays some faulty assumptions.

First, we tend to formulate the call to discipleship as an option for Christians to consider. And second, there is a tendency (especially in today’s consumer oriented churches) to make discipleship attractive. The fact is, there is nothing attractive about discipleship. It calls for an undivided loyalty to the gospel. It calls people to place themselves at the disposal of the Church and Christ's work through it. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said it best: “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”

Both Timothy and Epaphroditus exemplify what J.B. Phillips remarked about the early Church:

Perhaps because of their very simplicity, perhaps because of the readiness to believe, to obey, to give, to suffer and if need be to die, the Spirit of God found what He must always be seeking—a fellowship of men and women so united in faith and love that He can work in them and through them with the minimum of… hindrance.

What Paul implies in his descriptions of these two men indicates what the true Christian life is. The deeper Christian life is a call to discipleship, a call to authentic Christian living. Whereas sanctification is the process (and progress) of becoming more like Christ, discipleship is the discipline, the lifestyle of the one who is becoming more like Christ.

Making one's way through 2:19-30, we discover the marks of the true disciple of Jesus Christ. Paul certainly is informing his friends and church plant back in Philippi about his situation. But in doing so, he uses special words to describe Timothy and Epaphroditus. He wants the Philippians to know these two men are models of the Christ hymn Paul earlier cited (2:6 11). The narrative implies instruction. We should resolve to give the God's church, the local church, and the gospel priority (2:1 4, 12 18).

Biographies, autobiographies, and the diaries of great Christian men and women fascinate me. Giants such as John Wesley, George Whitefield, David Brainerd and Jonathan Edwards captivate me. I am convicted, motivated, and humbled by the accounts of those whom God has greatly used to promote His cause and increase His kingdom. In eternity I am sure we will learn of countless others unmentioned in the history books and unnoticed by the general public.

Jonathan Edwards, born in 1703, enrolled at Yale at age thirteen. (Thirteen, people!) He was a key instrument through whom God brought a great spiritual awakening to early colonies that had become careless about the faith of their forefathers. His influence was felt in much of New England, New York and New Jersey. Eventually Edwards was asked to become president of Princeton College, a school then devoted to training church leaders. The life of this incredible man of God ended one month after he arrived at his new post. Ah, but what a life!

Jonathan Edwards has been the subject of many biographies. All seek to discover what motivated him, what drove him, what fed his passion. For answers, we must return to Yale College and note the aspirations of this young student. Edwards was convinced he must make some resolutions in the presence of his God. The list numbered 70 items, all of which he committed to memory. I am particularly interested in "Resolve 6," which certainly summarizes the passion of Edwards’ heart: “Resolved to live with all my might while I yet live.”

In pondering that resolution we must keep two things in context. First, life to young Edwards was a gracious gift from God. Second, all of his resolves were made in the consciousness that God was looking on. His first resolution, in fact, was to “do whatsoever I think to be most to the glory of God.” Since God’s honor and glory were at stake in his life, Edwards further resolved “to find out fit objects of liberty and charity.” Further, he would “live so as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.” This is a reflection of biblical discipleship, most rare in today's modern, consumer-oreiented church.

This is a short excerpt from my book, Destroying Our Private Cities, Building Our Spiritual Life, a lay commentary on Paul’s letter to the Philippians. Here’s a sample chapter, “Putting Jesus Back into Our Potential.” Of course you can click through to Amazon to purchase the book, too!

The way to reach the man on the street

8/26/2015

“The way to reach the man on the street is to meet the man on the street” (Peter Maurin).

Mark's Gospel introduction hints at the poor (a programmatic summary)

8/24/2015

R.T. France concludes that the “Mark has declared his hand” in the opening verses of his Gospel [1:1-3], setting the framework in which we are to understand his whole story. We accept that Mark has drawn into his Gospel the motifs of God’s dominion, the Exodus, exile, the Spirit, and idolatry. What is undervalued, overlooked, or even ignored is that the same context that contains these obvious correspondences [from OT contexts in Exodus 23, Malachi 3, and Isaiah 40], likewise, includes direct references regarding socio-economic relationships and community responsibilities toward the poor and vulnerable.

[From the chapter on Mark 4, "Wasted Evangelism: Social Action Outcomes and the Church’s Task of Evangelism" in my book, Wasted Evangelism.]

Dangerous Sunday Morning Devotions: Loving one another, a remedy for status and celebrity superiority

8/23/2015

We know that Jesus left his disciplesus with a “new commandment,” which we read and hear in John 13:

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).

We are familiar with this "new command, yet at more so the sentimental level. We, however, need allow the context of the story surrounding this command to “love one another to fill the content of this love--the purpose of this love. There are plenteous commands regarding love and loving one's neighbor; so, why is this one particularly a "new" command?

When Jesus was bidding his disciples farewell, for his time, that is his demise, was approaching—the time when the King of kings would be betrayed by a close friend; the time when the promised Messiah would face a rigged and illegal trail by those threatened by his very presence; the time when the Messiah-Rabbi-Discipler would be abandoned by the very ones he had trained; and, the time when the Prince of life would be hung on a Roman cross as a traitor and criminal--he gave some final instructions. Have you noticed that this new command to love one another is given within the context of betrayal.

“During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him” (v. 2).

“For He knew the one who was betraying Him; for this reason He said, “‘Not all of you are clean’” (v. 11).

We know (yet, probably do not practice) of the foot-washing instructions. Nevertheless, what is overlooked is the framing of the foot-washing in the narrative, that is, the prediction and affirmation of Judas’s betrayal (vv. 2, 11). Jesus’ final hour had arrived and during the last supper (vv. 1-2) we learn, as John informs us, that Judas would “betray [Jesus] (v. 2c). Then, at the end of the foot-washing scene, this is repeated, “For He knew the one who was betraying Him” (v. 11a). So, when Jesus says, “I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you” (v. 15), perhaps the example is the implication, the washing amid the betrayal.

Reading through Acts, the Luke's inspired volume of the early days of the apostles, we don’t see a whole lot of foot-washing and, as well, no such instruction is addressed in the Epistles to the churches. So what are we to make of following Jesus’ example? Why, then, is Jesus' final instructions important to the early church and for us now? The example seems instructive for a community with now leverage and no platform for its message. Perhaps the instruction is an ironic means of survival and endurance--a preventative measure and an embedded community habit against alignment with those who would be betrayers of Messiah and the brethren, inside and out.

. . . when Jesus says, “I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you” (v. 15), perhaps the example is the implication, the washing amid the betrayal.

The following episode, the conversation between Jesus and Peter, is the first “test case.” Typically the focus is on Peter’s misplaced sense of humility, that is, his desire to prohibit Jesus from washing his feet. This foil links Peter to the betrayal framing (noted above), for we read, after Peter’s “wash all of me” over-reach (v. 9), Jesus immediately refocuses on Judas’ betrayal (vv. 10-11). The ensuing exchange between Jesus and Peter solidifies this “betrayal” direction (cf. v. 11). The table fellowship around the final meal where Jesus is the host puts Judas in the place of honor, sitting to Jesus’ side (i.e., his immediate left or right depending on the side of the table Jesus actually sat on and as Jewish tradition informs us). We are, then, in a sense (at least figuratively) sitting in that place of honor (because that's where we seek to be, is it not?). We seek to sit in the place of honor, only to be reseated elsewhere after the host arrives and the meal has begun; the place where Peter and John’s mother wanted them seated next to Jesus, but alas it was reserved for someone else: Judas, the betrayer.

Then, after Jesus reveals the betrayer to John and Peter (vv. 21-29) and prior to the “new command,” we hear Jesus explain:

“Therefore when he had gone out, Jesus said, ‘Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him; if God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and will glorify Him immediately. Little children, I am with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’” (vv. 31-33).

Then, Jesus immediately launches into what fulfills the example of the foot washing:

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (vv. 34-35).

Pause long here enough to note, Peter does not hear the “new commandment.” What did the brazen, self-righteous future pillar of the church hear? The glory. Jesus mentions “glory” fives times in the space of two verses (vv. 31-32). Peter and the apostles focused on the grand movement of glory associated with Jesus, the promised Messiah and King. And, what? We can’t go with you? This is exactly what Peter hears and responds to:

“Simon Peter said to Him, “‘Lord, where are You going?’” (v. 36).

Peter does not hear, “Love one another.” He hears “glory.” He wants the “glory.” Judas’ place of honor at the table as it were. Jesus reveals that, even, Peter can be aligned with the betrayer. For, in fact this is exactly what Jesus implies when he challenged Peter's rash, bravado.

What do you mean we can’t go where you are going? Instead, Jesus tells Peter that he would indeed betray his Messiah-King:

“Jesus answered, ‘Will you lay down your life for Me? Truly, truly, I say to you, a rooster will not crow until you deny Me three times’” (v. 38).

“Peter said to Him, ‘Lord, why can I not follow You right now? I will lay down my life for You’” (v. 37)

We should stand before this story challenged, at the place of our own arrogance and desire to have the glory—the status of Jesus’ glory. Our potential for betrayal is exposed and laid bare for all to see. We will deny Jesus, too, before the rooster signals a new day. What we need to hear is that “loving one another” is, despite betrayal of close friends (and despite the grandness of self-claimed glory), is the remedy for aligning with those who seek to eliminate the Messiah and his gospel (and replacing it with their glory). “Loving one another” is the pathway for surviving false trials and cruel crosses. “Loving one another” is the answer to the problem of status and competition, that false sense of ecclesiological superiority, false spirituality, and Christian celebrity.