O Little Town of Bethlehem . . . how sad we see thee ????
OK guys, you want to engage society? You want to do it in the Middle East as Christians, yet respecting other cultures. What about where Jesus was born? No city in the world is facing more difficulty than Bethlehem. It’s the place where the wall is being built and it is that wall, not the extremist Muslims, which is causing Christians to leave because of economic difficulty. What would it look like to love the people where Jesus was born? Does God love Bethlehem? Should we help not only people of different faiths but our brothers in Christ who are trying to be a witness? So, Joe, let’s build some stuff. David, let’s publish some stuff? Why don’t you?
I’m with Chris Seiple and his new son, Liam, is awesome. He’s a hoot. We’ve been hanging out at his place talking a lot. Later today, we head into a lot of meetings. Chris and I were talking and he said something very profound. “The protestant reformation has about finished its course.” This doesn’t mean we ignore it, are not grateful for it, do not build upon it. It just means we acknowledge all the good it brought and now move in a different world. As Chris is fond of saying, “Aslan is on the move.” What does it mean to be a reformer in the world today? Back then, it was “sola scriptura.” What it is today is “worlda engaga?” From Paul, to Calvin & Luther, to Kuyper. As Chris would also say, we need to live in the crosshairs of the cross. The vertical is our relationship to God, and horizontal to man, but the question is, how do we engage both?
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Sep 6, 2007 at 09:02 AM
How do we engage both? We look to the Head (Christ)l; we be His body in the world; and allow His Fullness to dwell through us (Eph. 1:22-23). This sounds simple but we know it works. Our group did this 4 years ago in North Africa and we are still watching Him work. It all started with just serving in this area; hands and feet with love.
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Sep 6, 2007 at 02:51 PM
Paul wrote that the mystery of the gospel is "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27). When Peter and John were arrested (Acts 4), the Jewish leaders "were amazed and knew that they had been with Jesus" (v. 13). That's "Christ in you." When our lives are filled with Christ, He "leaks" out and everyone knows. That changes everything. Publish something, huh? OK, is anyone there publishing the reflections, the stories, the heartcries of the people in Bethlehem (no matter what their faith tradition) who are watching that wall going up every day? Would that be a powerful word to the culture? Would that be a way for a diverse people to find commonality? Would a publisher who is a follower of Christ be able to allow Christ to leak out while he works with those who have something to say?
Sep 6, 2007 at 06:02 PM
The Reformation has "run its course" in the sense that so much of protestantism has abandoned the explicit preaching of the death and resurrection of Christ (the focus of the Reformation) in favor of ethical speeches... Like Dr. Phil's in every way, except perhaps with more mentions of Jesus (who serves as an ethical authority, not as a Savior. After all, what is there to us from, when the full weight of the Law is emasculated so as to become "5 steps to a Healthy Marriage", or "Achieving You Potential"?). Make no mistake, the Reformation is more relevant for the age of Joel Osteen than it was for the age of a corrupt Papacy.
Sep 7, 2007 at 06:22 PM
Now, now, now Mark- I think Paul gave some directions on family life - Proverbs, lots of other books - I know Luther did - read the post - we build on what they did to go to new levels of changing the world.
Sep 7, 2007 at 08:06 PM
Nah, I meant that the term "run its course" is ALSO valid in the way I mentioned. I get what he meant, which is a fine point he's making (I didn't mean to imply otherwise... I just mean that its doctrinal foundations are certainly waning as much today as they were in the 16th century). Also, one could argue (depending on how sympathetic to the Ecumenical Movement one is) that the Reformation has partially "run its course" in that perhaps on the topic of justification, we're not so far apart after all (though a cursory reading of the Council of Trent will have many up-in-arms at that suggestion)!
Sep 8, 2007 at 01:33 PM
Hey all. Let's not forget that Paul when confronting ethical issues heaps tons of theology (of the cross and resurrection type) before he gives them the ethical injunctions. The core that the reformation brought needs to stand as a bedrock and it that sense it shan't run its course. The new views of atonement that are being put out in works such as Recovering the Scandal of the Cross, can be added as perspectives of the Cross event, but should not seek to replace subsitutionary atonement, try as they may to dissolve the depth of sin's affect. The substitutionary atonement fuels all Christian ethics anyway (though that is another discussion for another time).
You wouldn't have proper "worlda engaga" without the Cross, and Luther, Calvin and others shed a good light on that work that we shouldn't let slip away in this day of mainline do-goodism (just visit my relatives' churches) and anchorless spiritualism (just watch Oprah). I don't think humanitarian work changes the world ultimately. Let's invent a new word...you always like doing that. "Christitarian" work that engages deep physical need and the true spiritual need of the atoning work that Christ does. True, we should not use the humanitarian work to be a carrot for the spiritual conversion as many have done in the past.... AND we should not
seek spiritual conversion whilst leaving them in a state of physical depravity as that smacks of Hinduism, Buddhism, and rabid Christian Fundamentalism (a strange trifecta) . When I read the gospels, it is interesting that when Jesus does his miracles to transform peoples sick-states/physical settings, most of his recipients are not believers and don't have any faith (take that TBN). After their situation is transformed they also have NO DOUBT about who the transformer was...Jesus. After the resurrection, I'll just bet they weren't a hard sell when they heard Peter's (or other apostle's) message of substitutionary atonement. And I'll be they didn't think, "Well, dang, Jesus just healed me so I would respond to this message. I'm gonna show that punk." I'll bet they thought, "Wow, he genuinely met my physical needs so now surely he is geniunely meeting my salvation need." Should be the same with us, shouldn't it? CHRISTITARIAN work...not PC but a good word anyway.
As to Mark, let's not forget he is one step from falling over the cliff into Catholicism himself...right Pope Cuthbertson???
Sep 8, 2007 at 09:02 PM
Beatiful, Jordan (except for that last part... Scooter Libby!)
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