Bad Theology Leads to Bad Practice

“I know who made the environment and he’s coming back and going to burn it all up. So yes, I drive an SUV." - Mark Driscoll

Prime example of why bad theology leads to bad practice. Also, great example of why he is such a polarizing figure and why we should be on the frustrated/dissatisfied side of that polarization.

The part that frustrates me most about this is that even the founder of his own tradition (John Calvin) totally disagrees with this interpretation of the Petrine theology. This is a dispensationalist rendering of 2 Peter 3, not a Calvinist or Wesleyan view.

2 Peter 3:10 & 12 says, "the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed... because of which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire?"

Calvin says, "What afterwards follows, respecting the burning of heaven and earth, requires no long explanation, if indeed we duly consider what is intended. For it was not his purpose to speak refinedly of fire and storm, and other things, but only that he might introduce an exhortation, which he immediately adds, even that we ought to strive after newness of life. For he thus reasons, that as heaven and earth are to be purged by fire, that they may correspond with the kingdom of Christ, hence the renovation of men is much more necessary. Mischievous, then, are those interpreters who consume much labor on refined speculations, since the Apostle applies his doctrine to godly exhortations.

"Heaven and earth, he says, shall pass away for our sakes; is it meet, then, for us to be engrossed with the things of earth, and not, on the contrary, to attend to a holy and godly life? The corruptions of heaven and earth will be purged by fire, while yet as the creatures of God they are pure; what then ought to be done by us who are full of so many pollutions? As to the word godlinesses (pietatibus,) the plural number is used for the singular, except you take it as meaning the duties of godliness. Of the elements of the world I shall only say this one thing, that they are to be consumed, only that they may be renovated, their substance still remaining the same, as it may be easily gathered from Romans 8:21, and from other passages."

Let me paraphrase...

• Calvin wants to use the word "purge" not "burn it all up."
• Calvin says that this passage's main point is exhortation or encouragement to godly living. It is not speculation about the end times and people who use it to make grand speculations he deems "mischievous."
• "Of the elements of the world I shall only say this one thing, that they are to be consumed, only that they may be renovated, their substance still remaining the same..." It will not be burned up, it will be redeemed, restored, re-created, re-purposed - in effect, it will be new creation, new heaven and new earth.

That is the theology, now for practice. Peter writes so that we will live proleptically. That means we live in such a way as to anticipate the future coming of the Lord and his actions. We live the future now because Christ has been raised and we too will be raised. Christ is the first-fruits, the sign of the coming Kingdom.  What are Christ's actions? New creation. What does St. Paul tell us about new creation? "So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ..." (2 Corinthians 5).

Christ is making all things new. He has given us this responsibility, this ministry, reconciliation and new creation. Therefore, we live in such a way as to anticipate this. We make things new. We protect, steward, and facilitate people and creation towards new creation. We redeem broken and discarded things. We bring resurrection to everything we touch. We do not discard for all creation is very good and all of creation will be reconciled and made new. There will be a refining of creation. Evil, injustice, death, disease, and sin will be rooted out (those things not of God). But Christ is in the business of redeeming what he made. It was deemed very good and it will be good again.

SPU's Vision Statement - "Engaging the Culture, Changing the World"

The University I attend held a vision clarifying contest. Students could submit their ideas for how to interpret the school's vision statement. Here is my submission - submitted hastily (sorry the flow is not obvious). This essay was awarded somewhere in the top 8 - but not 1st, 2nd, or 3rd :)

It has been long believed that engaging the culture and changing the world meant taking on power and influence. This has been recently labeled "the captains of industry" model and it suggests that if only enough Christians were equipped to leadership positions in the realm of politics and business, Christians would be able to leverage enough pull for the kingdom of God to shape the culture.

The allure of this idea is that it is at least partially true. If Christians become the majority deciders and main policy makers, the world will be changed. The goal, then, is to have followers of Christ become CEO’s, legislators, school board members, governors, mayors, teachers, and administrators. This model has been used throughout the centuries, from the Moral Majority to Constantine’s conversion of the empire.

But SPU’s theological tradition does not believe that such a model is the best way to foster the Kingdom of God. John Wesley writes:

“I have been long convinced, from the whole tenor of ancient history, that this very event, Constantine’s calling himself a Christian, and pouring in that flood of wealth and honour on the Christian Church… was productive of more evil to the Church than all the ten persecutions put together. From the time that power, riches, and honour of all kinds were heaped upon the Christians, vice of all kinds came in like a flood, both on the Clergy and laity. From the time that the Church and State, the kingdoms of Christ and of the world, were so strangely and unnaturally blended together, Christianity and Heathenism were so thoroughly incorporated with each other, that they will hardly ever be divided till Christ comes to reign upon earth.”[1]

A church or institution that seeks after power, wealth, and honor, no matter how noble the cause or pure the intentions, will grow lukewarm and only hold to the outward form of godliness but lose its power.

No, the Kingdom of God comes without being observed.[2] It is an undiscovered valuable pearl. It is a secret treasure buried in a field.[3] And the whole counsel of God’s word reveals this too us. God takes on the flesh of a baby. The prophet hears the voice in a whisper. The barren woman becomes the mother of promise. The judge conquers thousands with an army of 300.

In Acts 17 St. Paul stands over the city of Athens looking at its need for Christ and lamenting its idolatry. Through his normal routine he is shockingly invited to speak at the Areopagus. This council represents the epitome of conventional wisdom, religious truth, and culture. And Paul preaches the sermon of his life, being culturally sensitive, appealing to his audience, quoting relevant poetry, and laying out the Gospel of Christ’s resurrection and ascension. This sermon is so good it is often pointed to as a “how to” guide in engaging the culture. What is often missed is that Paul utterly fails. The council is not converted. Their idolatry is not removed. Christ is not accepted.

But are we really surprised? The prophets almost always fail to bring about repentance. Christ stands over Jerusalem weeping and wishing that she would gather to him. But she won’t. The world never does. The conventional powers are never converted. Christ and the prophets are killed. No, we aren’t surprised because Acts 17 foreshadows this very outcome. Paul’s enemies rally a mob and some thugs in Thessalonica to fabricate a charge against him. This lie becomes one of the greatest professions of faith and truth in the whole of scripture, “These people… have been turning the world upside down… saying that there is another king named Jesus.”

The Kingdom of God is upside down. It is antithesis to the world. It resists power, and honor, and wealth. Presented here is a two-fold way of engaging the culture and changing the world tha comports better with the call of Christ: a citizen of the Kingdom engages the culture and changes the world by dying to self, denouncing wealth, and resisting the powers.[4]

So how does a Christian university prepare its faithful students to engage the culture and change the world?

First, that university would have to recognize the age-old paradox that it finds itself in. Among the expected outcomes of a university degree coupled with a Christian ethic is that the recipients are able to succeed and excel in their field of study and business. If a degree is unable to help do this, it has betrayed its exact purpose. But it is precisely this function of the combination of Christianity and education that raises the greatest issue. The paradox presents itself in that the success derived from these two are inversely proportional to a Christian’s growth in grace. Wesley laments this exact paradox when he writes, “For wherever true Christianity spreads, it must cause diligence and frugality, which, in the natural course of things, must beget riches! And riches naturally beget pride, love of the world, and every temper that is destructive of Christianity.”[5] And even though this sermon is primarily about the giving up of as much money as possible, it also carries with it the audacious ideal to take Christ’s command of daily dying to our selves very seriously. This, for Wesley, is the only solution to the paradox. Where Christianity and education lead to wealth, power and honor, which ultimately lead to spiritual decay, true discipleship leads to the death of one’s self.

And if spiritual decay were not the result of wealth, honor and power in the life of the Church and individuals ninety-nine times out of a hundred, or even nine times out of ten, then mortification of the flesh would not be the only cure. But we need only look into the lives of the successful by the world’s standard and see that her prayer closet is dusty, the wife of his youth preferred the poorer version of her husband, and the appointment book used to be full of doing good, but now it can only reflect doing well. And Jesus told us this would happen when he described wealth, honor and power as seeds sown among thorns, saying, “but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing.”[6]

So it would seem, that the first way for the university to engage the culture and change the world would be to train its students to embrace the call of Christ seriously, in the measure of costly grace and not that of cheap. This would call us to a life of sacrifice, in all areas of life, which would counteract any besetting sin of avarice that might entangle us. Bonhoeffer confronts the matter this way, “We gave away the word and sacraments wholesale, we baptized, confirmed, and absolved a whole nation unasked and without condition... We poured forth unending streams of grace. But the call to follow Jesus in the narrow way was hardly ever heard... Was there ever a more terrible or disastrous instance of the Christianizing the world than this? ...Cheap grace has turned out to be utterly merciless to our Evangelical Church.”[7]

Ultimately, this first step would help the individual negotiate the trajectory of their lives. Instead of trying to climb the latter of success and figure out where Jesus fits in, the cross of discipleship helps us have “…the same mind …that was in Christ Jesus” when he modeled downward mobility from Heaven to the servant of all, even to death, still more, death on a cross. After all, it is the slave of all who is the greatest in the Kingdom of God.

Secondly, the university must emphasize and encourage the student to embrace the larger community of faith working for the realization of the Kingdom of God. Placing an emphasis on the community and the kingdom will train students to navigate the murky waters of individualism and call. Whatever our call in life, from business, to arts, education and ministry, grounding our work in Kingdom purposes will keep our lives on track for Christian success. John Mott, the well-known advocate for Missions and Ecumenism, taught similarly when advocating for medical missionaries, “This is true where the pervading and controlling aim in all the work is, as it should be, evangelistic.”[8] Training students to see their work with a Kingdom directive and perspective will, without a doubt, change the culture and maybe even the entire world in this generation, as Mott was fond of saying.

But the Kingdom, as we know, resists temptations to worldly power, not least because Christ’s kingdom is not from or of the Empires of this world.[9] The Kingdom reinforces the lessons of individual discipleship, and calls both Church and person to pursue downward mobility. This may be most demonstrated in Christ’s parable of the Kingdom as a mustard seed.

Jesus says, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade." Jesus would have been a very popular preacher if he had preached that the Kingdom of God was one of the great Cedars of Lebanon or some other victorious, conquering symbol, but instead, as Chris Shaw and Shane Claiborne point out, Jesus describes the Kingdom as a wild bush – a weed.[10]

No one expects Jesus to compare the ultimate work of God to a weed. And though mustard seeds are very small - they grow into a menace very quickly. In Canada, the world’s top supplier of mustard seed,[11] the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture warns farmers of this dangerous plant by writing[12]:

• “Wild Mustard is an aggressive weed… and now occurs throughout all Canadian provinces.”
• “Wild mustard can represent a serious weed problem…”
• “Wild mustard is common in cultivated fields, gardens, pastures, riverbanks, roadsides and waste places.”
• When asked how to control this weed, the government of Canada says that getting control of “infested land is often impossible”

The Kingdom that Jesus ushers in is like a weed that is so aggressive it is all over the place from ordinary gardens and farmlands to roadsides and even waste places.  It represents a serious problem because it is so pervasive. Our Kingdom is a weed, small and unassuming from a small and unassuming seed, but it finds its way into the toughest cracks, breaking the toughest concrete foundation, through darkest places and isn’t uprooted. It stands forever impossible to control. And Jesus calls his people to live into that Kingdom wherever it goes, whether in common gardens or waste places, with ordinary people and with the disenfranchised.

But even more surprising is that the birds of the air, sometimes associated with being unclean, make their home in this kingdom tree. This Kingdom of God does not grow like the empire does, and it certainly does not contain the same economy. Rather, this Kingdom spreads everywhere and thrives in the waste places, the unclean, the marginalized, and the poor. After all, the founder of Free Methodism and SPU believed ardently in a Kingdom of God that was a mustard seed. It was vital for the Free Methodists to associate themselves with the poor and marginalized and this idea even became the official guiding vision for the church where, in her discipline, these goals were written, “to maintain the Bible standard of Christianity, and to preach the Gospel to the poor.”[13] It is this very phenomenon that led Jesus to exclaim, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.”[14]

It should be noted that I love Seattle Pacific University and Seminary. I chose it over the myriad of other schools because of its tradition, pedagogy, and ethos. Not only did I want to come here, I perceived it to be God’s will for my family and I through prayer and even a dream. The Lord is doing an amazing work in and through this school and I am glad to be involved. The above is not a criticism of the current vision or direction of the school, but hopefully it can lend itself as one theological voice along side the university’s other perspectives.

Ultimately, the best and most lasting way to engage the culture and change the world needs to be done at the lowest level. Students, faculty and staff need training to embrace the sacrificial call of discipleship as embodied in Kingdom ethics and lived out in the Church. Any model that involves worldly concepts of power and wealth, betrays both the ethic of a disciple and the model of the Christ. Any model that emphasizes Christ’s sacrifice and proclaims, “that though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty we might become rich” gets to boast in suffering as the Apostle did, saying that “as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way: through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships… in honor and dishonor… unknown, and yet are well known… as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” This is the way to engage the culture. Surely this is the way to change the world.

 

---

[1] Wesley, John. “Of Former Times” in Sermons on Several Occasions.   

[2] Luke 17.

[3] Matthew 13.

[4] Luke 14.

[5] Causes of the Inefficacy of Christianity, para. 17.

[6] Matthew 13.

[7] Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. The Cost of Discipleship. (New York: Macmillan, 1979), 58. Bottom of Form

[8] Mott, John R. The Evangelization of the World in This Generation. (New York: Student Volunteer Movement for 

      Foreign Missions, 1905), .

[9] John 18:36

[10] Claiborne, Shane, and Chris Haw. Jesus for President: Politics for Ordinary Radicals. (Grand Rapids, Mich:     

         Zondervan, 2008), 103.

[11]  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustard_seed#Production

[12] http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/facts/03-043.htm

[13] The Doctrines and Discipline of the Free Methodist Church (Rochester, N.Y.: General Conference, 1870), p. ix.

[14] Matthew 21.

The Resurrection - If I could change one thing about American Evangelicalism...

I wrote the below for a friend and have been really chewing on it ever since. I think if I could have any theology balance our/my American evangelicalism, it would be this smattering - with its hints of Christus Victor atonement theory, death as God's enemy, and a reclaiming of the resurrection of the body as the ultimate hope for Christianity.

"I believe in the ...resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen" (Apostles' Creed).

"We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come" (The Nicene Creed).

My understanding has only recently been developed. American Christianity tends to emphasize Jesus as the perfect sacrifice/atonement for the sin and evil in the world. But an overemphasis on this, though right, sometimes leaves out too much. This focuses too much on Jesus as divine and leaves out that Jesus is also human. A divine death and resurrection is sad, yet understandable. But Jesus as human shapes our theology, and therefore our practice, in so many other ways.

There is a more ancient understanding of what could be happening on the cross. The greatest enemy of God is not sin, humanity, or even Satan, but death. Death is not seen only as an event, but as a power, almost like an entity. So when St. Paul writes in Philippians 2, "Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death — even death on a cross" - he was talking about death as a power. For to whom does Jesus become obedient?

Being born in human likeness means Jesus took human flesh. When he did this, he was marked for death along with the rest of humanity. But, as the Greek orthodox prayer says, "Christ is risen from the dead, Trampling down death by death..." This is why St. Paul quotes the prophet Hosea saying, "‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’ ‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15).

In dying Christ destroys death. In being resurrected he paves the way for our eventual resurrection. Though we still die, death does not have the final victory. If we understand Paul again in 1 Corinthians 15, then we will have a better understanding of the cross, death, resurrection, and Christ's work therein, "But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being; for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death."

It should, finally, be noted that this area of theology is called atonement theory (how Jesus makes us at one with God). The Church universal has never settled on one theory. There have been many different ones throughout history, each containing a good (partial) understanding.The problem with death isn't its existence but with death's ruling. "If, because of the one man’s [Adam's] trespass, death exercised dominion through that one, much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ" (Romans 5).

Salvation, creation/new creation, and defeating of enemies is more about restoring creation that has gone awry than a huge cosmic game of chess to who is going to win.

Christ, who is God through whom all things were made, takes on the flesh of that created stuff, so that in dying God destroys the powers and principalities that enslave humanity/creation (i.e. sin, death, addiction, satan, etc.). Christ retains his human resurrected flesh, drawing creation back into the life of God through the ascension. Salvation is an earth renewal movement - not a "these people go to hell and these go to heaven." That is platonic dualism. These are the final words of God at the end of time recorded in Revelation 21, "See, I am making all things new." Salvation is about new creation of the whole earth, including and especially humans. We see this both in 2 Corinthians 5 and Romans 8:

"So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us."

"For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labour pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved."

This is why Jesus, at the end of the Gospel of Mark, commands us "Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation." All of creation is being restored. Death has been brought down from its position as tyrant. Now it no longer has sting or victory - it no longer has the final say. Jesus rising from the dead is our ultimate proof and hope in faith.

How this shapes my faith: 

• My hope is not heaven. Though the departed may be in heaven, the ultimate goal of our faith and of God's work is resurrection - literal resurrected bodies like Jesus. 
• This shapes what it means to pray for God's kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven. 
• This shapes what eternity means. 
• This shapes how we read the OT promises of physical blessings. 
• This shapes how and why I work -  and to what ends. It is not about "saving souls" but about seeing people move from old creation to new creation, old humanity (Adam and Eve) to new humanity (Christ).
• This shapes how I view the physical realm - how I view the earth and our bodies.
• This shapes the totality of my end-times belief. Again, there is no rapture. That is a made up doctrine from the 1800's. I don't mean to be harsh, but rapture is a false doctrine. There is only resurrection. 

  

Edit: or just watch this - http://youtu.be/RlPIz8J8dVk

Palm Sunday Makes Sense....

Much ink has been spilled to talk about the the crowds who, on Palm Sunday, laud Jesus as savior and on the next Friday call for his crucifixion. Suggestions have been put forward: maybe the Greek interpretation of "crowd" will show that the crowds are different on those days, or the people are just fickle, or even that it was God's will and so the people had to do this to fulfill scripture/will.

For me, Palm Sunday makes sense. Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey. The moment is pregnant with meaning. He simultaneously mocks the current political system, calls into question humanity's reliance on power, politics, and violence, and points to himself as the true king.

Anyone can understand this. There are a million stories just like it. It is a powerful archetype. The newest prequel to The Wizard of Oz called Oz: the Great and Powerful is based on this exact premise. A nobody from no-where shows up, seemingly fulfills the long-awaited prophecy, challenges the existing reign of the wicked witch, and is heralded as the savior of the people. And all that within the first 20 minutes. We get it, it resonates deep within us, and we love it.

And to be sure, Jesus does this. Jesus defeats the powers and principalities, sets up his own kingdom of peace, and gives the people freedom. This freedom is from the powers that oppress - outside and inside of us - the ones that destroy us and keep us from the potential we have as beings created in the image of God.

So what's the issue?

It is easy to see that the people wanted a leader of a rebellion against the current empire. It has to be in at least some of the people's mind who were waving palms in a Maccabean style and shouting for a savior when Jesus rides into town. We see this most specifically in the Barabbas episode:

Then they all shouted out together, ‘Away with this fellow [Jesus]! Release Barabbas for us!’ (This was a man who had been put in prison for an insurrection that had taken place in the city, and for murder.) Pilate, wanting to release Jesus, addressed them again; but they kept shouting, ‘Crucify, crucify him!’ A third time he said to them, ‘Why, what evil has he done? I have found in him no ground for the sentence of death; I will therefore have him flogged and then release him.’ But they kept urgently demanding with loud shouts that he should be crucified; and their voices prevailed. So Pilate gave his verdict that their demand should be granted. He released the man they asked for, the one who had been put in prison for insurrection and murder, and he handed Jesus over as they wished" (Luke 23:18-25, NRSV).

The people ask for the release of Barabbas in the place of Jesus. Not only is this story designed to plead for Jesus' innocence, but also show what the people wanted: a person who could start a rebellion and see it through with violence. Twice Luke tells us that Barabbas was in prison for insurrection and murder. He is willing to fight "the man" and back it up in a way that Jesus won't.

And this is precisely why Palm Sunday makes sense to us and Good Friday doesn't: Jesus defeats the powers, installs his kingdom, and sets us free - not in spite of his death - but through his death. For too long, and in too many churches, the cross of Christ has been seen as merely a catalyst for killing a sinless Messiah so that our sinfulness could be placed on him and his righteousness could be placed on us (double imputation). And to be fair, there is an element of truth in that. But the cross of Christ, the laying down of lives and sacrificing, is the way victory is won. Therefore, we read that Jesus "emptied himself, [took] the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him..." (Philippians 2). And by dying "He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it" (Colossians 2).

Palm Sunday makes sense because we want a hero, humble, handsome, and honorable (huge? hairy?), to fight our enemies. Jesus' way of fighting is rejected because the bad guys are destroyed through self-sacrifice. It is the cruciform life, the cross-shaped life, that Christ calls us too as the only ethic for discipleship and kingdom citizens. It is here we hear our savior say, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it." (Luke 9 - see also chapter 14). True life is gained by living cross-shaped and doing so daily. It is how we find real salvation. It is how we follow Jesus.

The final question remains, what does sacrificial living look like for my everyday life? In discerning this process for yourself, I would steer you 3 ways. First, I would point to Jesus' general example. St. Peter writes, "Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps. ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.’When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness..." (1 Peter 2).

Second, I would encourage you to read, absorb, and live Christ's teaching in his Sermon on the Mount/Plain found generally in Matthew chapters 5-7 and Luke 6. Jesus ends his Sermon on the Mount by saying, "‘Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock" (Matthew 7).

Finally, I would point out that self-sacrificing cruciformity does not necessarily mean that we let people walk all over us or we never expect any thing or help from anyone else, though it could mean that. It is more important to see this less as "doing more" while silently suffering and more as a giving of one's self wholly over to advancing the Kingdom of God on earth. 

Christians and Guns

Here are a few things Christians should consider before taking a stance on the gun control issue, in my opinion:

Does God care if you have a gun if you are responsible?
Probably not. Use it responsibly. Keep it locked up. Go hunting and be respectful in your hunts toward creation. Shoot clay pigeons all day (though Jesus might have something to say about how we spend our money here). You should be fine.

Does God really care about your rights, constitutional or otherwise?
It just seems to me that Jesus has a much bigger agenda, which expects something of his followers. Our job is to extend the Kingdom of God by being, first and foremost, good citizens of *that* Kingdom. "Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.’ Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice’"  (John 18).

If our culture is stumbling over violence and guns, should we at least consider some control to help our fellow people?
St. Paul makes a good case for this. In Romans 14 he says, "Let us then pursue what makes for peace and for mutual edification. Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for you to make others fall by what you eat; it is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that makes your brother or sister stumble. The faith that you have, have as your own conviction before God. Blessed are those who have no reason to condemn themselves because of what they approve."

"Everything is indeed clean" means that things are not good or bad in and of themselves. Food, guns, wine, cars, etc. are not bad or good - it is all a matter of how one uses or abuses them. HOWEVER, people stumble. Our nation has a problem with violence and murder - plain and simple. We should put away the things that are causing people to stumble.  For instance, my faith tradition was very in favor of prohibition, not because the Bible spoke against alcohol, but because so many people were abusing it. The nation needed a break, and the mature refused to partake in something that caused people to stumble. Don't condemn yourself by approving something, which might be morally neutral, but causes people to stumble.

Do you need a semi-automatic, automatic, and/or an assault rifle?
Let's be honest - you don't. Now, the best argument being made for assault rifles, etc., is that the intent of the Second Amendment is to keep a citizenry armed in the case that the government grows tyrannical and needs to be overthrown. There are two problems with this, one practical and one theological: (1) the government's weapons are too advanced to be met fire for fire and (2) you can't kill human beings.

Please hear this. You are a Christian. You don't get to kill people, even if they are apart of a tyrannical government. Christ was clear: we love our enemies. Christ tells us to pray for those who persecute us. Paul tells us to overcome evil with good. Peter cuts off the ear of the man arresting Jesus, and Jesus chastises Peter and then heals the ear. You don't get to shoot anyone. We have no stories of the apostles raising up violence or arms against any of the tyrannical governments in their day, and their governments were some of the worst in history.

People will want to argue about military, police officers, and defending oneself against attacks whenever someone says that Jesus removes violence as an option for Christians. Ultimately someone will bring up Hitler and the conversation will end. For now, just know, as a Christian, you can't kill another human being. Not over the constitution, not over laws, not over political tyrannies. Nothing. There is not one expressed reason in the New Testament for killing another person.


Furthermore, there are a few scripture passages that speak about Christians and their expected attitudes towards governments - tyrannical or otherwise. The ever popular Romans 13, "Therefore one must be subject, not only because of wrath but also because of conscience. For the same reason you also pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, busy with this very thing. Pay to all what is due to them—taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due." Now of course this scripture can be abused, but just because a scripture can be abused doesn't mean we don't have to observe its basic meaning - which is be obedient so the government will leave you alone to follow Christ.

Likewise, we see a similar passage in the Epistles from Peter, "For the Lord’s sake accept the authority of every human institution, whether of the emperor as supreme, or of governors, as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing right you should silence the ignorance of the foolish. As servants of God, live as free people, yet do not use your freedom as a pretext for evil. Honor everyone. Love the family of believers. Fear God. Honor the emperor" (1 Peter 2). You are free by Christ and in Christ alone, no matter the tyranny or democracy above you. Do not use your freedom to be rebellious, to fight, to start revolutions. The greatest revolution is the coming of Christ with his Kingdom in line. You, as a Christian, don't get to rebel. You are rebellious enough by claiming another King than what the world offers you. At the very least, play the game to keep peace for the saints.

If Christian history teaches us anything it is that Christians choose martyrdom over violence every time. We fed ourselves to lions for 300 years and the Church grew like wildfire. Be a pacifist or hold to Just War theory, but don't be a rebel - for if you follow Christ, you don't get to kill. 

Half-Handed Cloud with "Plant a little Fir Tree"

Half-Handed Cloud with "Plant a little Fir Tree"
Stationed out of Berkeley, CA.

http://youtu.be/1e1tBJ-HtWA

Lyrics:
"If you plant a little fir tree
then we'll all be gifts beneath it
If you want to know you're special,
now there's proof cause you've got the gift of Jesus.

????? came them from the east,
those wise guys how did they know
that it would snow

If you plant a little fir tree
then we'll all be gifts beneath it
If you want to know you're special,
now there's proof cause you've got the gift of Jesus.

Wise men were sent from the east
from China, Korea, Japan,
each sent a wise man.

He landed on the earth all wrapped in skin
they're the only ones to find him.
Shepherds got there first to worship him
then later came the wise men

???? for swaddling what we rise from
spice that was meant to preserve
Gold, Frankincense, Myrrh.

If you plant a little fir tree
then we'll all be gifts beneath it"

DNC 9/6/12 - Obama, Jill and Joe Biden, Kerry

Some thoughts on the DNC tonight as I watched the speeches...

John Kerry

Kerry gets right to business but in a very accusative and argumentative tone. He seems rushed. Not a good start.

“Despite what you heard in Tampa, an exceptional country does care about the rise of the oceans and the future of the planet. That is a responsibility from the Scriptures—and that too is a responsibility of the leader of the free world.”

THANK YOU!!! This is important and Romney got it wrong.

“It took President Obama to restore our moral authority—and to ban torture.” – This is very important. A lot of Christians talk about what Christians should care about… this is definitely one of those issues and unfortunately we don’t.

“Ask Osama bin Laden if he is better off now than he was four years ago.” – Tacky and unnecessary. I don’t like this at all.

Something about which I am VERY proud of our country and President - “President Obama promised to work with Russia to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons and signed an historic treaty that does just that.”

Kerry spends a lot of time making fun of Romney. Most of the issues he brings up need addressing but this is just not a good way to do it.

Dr. Jill Biden

If that isn’t Gospel then I don’t know what is - “THE WAR IN IRAQ IS OVER!” 

I absolutely love that the VPOTUS’s wife is an active teacher at a community college.

Joe Biden is from Scranton, PA? He kind of reminds me of Michael Scott. That explains a lot. :)

A LOT of people make fun of Biden but I think, as a human being, I like him. He seems like a really good guy. Here’s his biopic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=su2E2pEEkJI&list=UU6ZFN9Tx6xh-skXCuRHCDpQ&index=19&feature=plcp

Joe Biden

Candid and sincere… I absolutely love his shout to his wife and kids.

The first 10 minutes were anecdotes. They were good but no policy.

Moving more into policy but still anecdotally. This speech is good but the purpose of the speech isn’t to talk policy (so it seems) but to let Biden do what he does best: connect with the people and promote Obama.

THIS is high point of the speech. Biden reinforces the humanity of Romney instead of demonizes him and corrects those who he leads. He shows that he is able to disagree without denigration… so good!  ------- “Mitt Romney grew up in Detroit. My dad managed, his dad owned — well, his dad ran an entire automobile company, American Motors. Yes, what I don't understand is in spite of that, he was willing to let Detroit go bankrupt.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Boo!

VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN: No, don't. I don't think he's a bad guy. No, no. I don't think he's a bad guy. I'm sure he grew up loving cars as much as I did. But what I don't understand, what I don't think he understood, I don't think he understood that saving the automobile worker, saving the industry, what it meant to all of America, not just autoworkers. I think he saw it the Bain way. Now, I mean this sincerely. I think he saw it in terms of balance sheets and write-offs.

Folks, the Bain way may bring your firm the highest profits. But it's not the way to lead our country from the highest office.”

President Barak Obama

Slow start…

This is something I think we can all believe in and something I don’t hear much from the GOP: “that everyone gets a fair shot and everyone does their fair share and everyone plays by the same rules, from Main Street to Wall Street to Washington, D.C.”

Probably the boldest thing I have heard a politician say. Honest assessment about the current economic times. No promise of quick fix. And bucking democratic notion that government isn’t the only solution: “Now, I won't pretend the path I'm offering is quick or easy. I never have. You didn't elect me to tell you what you wanted to hear. You elected me to tell you the truth.

And the truth is, it will take more than a few years for us to solve challenges that have built up over decades. It'll require common effort, shared responsibility, and the kind of bold, persistent experimentation that Franklin Roosevelt pursued during the only crisis worse than this one.

And by the way, those of us who carry on his party's legacy should remember that not every problem can be remedied with another government program or dictate from Washington.”

This is very important to me: “And yes, my plan will continue to reduce the carbon pollution that is heating our planet, because climate change is not a hoax. More droughts and floods and wildfires are not a joke. They are a threat to our children's future.”

YEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!! I pray to the Lord above that, whoever is president, this happens. In your mercy… – “And while my opponent would spend more money on military hardware that our Joint Chiefs don't even want, I will use the money we're no longer spending on war to pay down our debt and put more people back to work rebuilding roads and bridges and schools and runways, because after two wars that have cost us thousands of lives and over a trillion dollars, it's time to do some nation building right here at home.”

What exactly is so wrong with this, my conservative friends? Is this the great evil you want to fight against?: “I want to reform the tax code so that it's simple, fair and asks the wealthiest households to pay higher taxes on incomes over $250,000 - the same rate we had when Bill Clinton was president, the same rate we had when our economy created nearly 23 million new jobs, the biggest surplus in history and a whole lot of millionaires to boot.”

Many of my Republican friends stumble on this issue and the president seems to be addressing it here: “We know that churches and charities can often make more of a difference than a poverty program alone. We don't want handouts for people who refuse to help themselves, and we certainly don't want bailouts for banks that break the rules.” I would ask… if we really think that the Church should be the one leading the way on charity, then why aren’t our churches doing it? We can’t help the poor, and do God’s will, by words alone. Following Jesus actually means using our feet not just our mouth.

I hope you watched. This is our President and this is a good outline of his plan for the future if re-elected.

In my next post I will end this political coverage of the RNC and DNC with how I think this all fits into the Kingdom discipleship of following Jesus.

DNC 9/5/12

Just my thoughts on some of the speeches at the DNC today. Sometimes I just listed quotes I found interesting and worthy of more thought.

Summary:
~Rep. Cleaver's speech is a must see for Christians, even if you disagree, just to hear some preaching at the DNC.

~Sister Simone Cambell, a nun: it was good to hear a pro-life, person of faith take the stage. She ended her speech with a call to kindness... how Nun-like of her :) It was actually good.

~ Not a fan of Elizabeth Warren's speech. I probably just offended all my Dem. friends, but you probably deserve it :). Too sentimental and way too many cliches. Not polished enough for her time slot and too aggressive and accusative.

~Clinton was simple and really well-done. It is a must see. My Dem. friends watched the RNC, I hope my Rep. friends will at least watch this speech, if only to hear the heart of their neighbors around them who genuinely feel this way.

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver

The speaker’s opener is less like “speeching” and more like preaching.

“This must change, because just as bees cannot sting and make honey at the same time, members of Congress cannot simultaneously make passionate enemies and expect political progress.” -- A great call to civility required of both sides. Lord, let these be not words alone.

“And we have, in many instances, been hit. ‘You know, ‘they are a liberal, they are progressive.’ Look! If being liberal and progressive means that I care for children and whether they go hungry; COLOR ME LIBERAL, COLOR ME DEMOCRAT!”

“Yes, Mr. President, hope on! Continue to hope, Mr. President. No matter what, Mr. President, you keep on hoping. When everything is gone, you continue to hope. As long as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob sits on the throne of grace, Mr. President, hope on! Hope on! Hope on! We are people of hope!... Continue to speak of hope to the American people, because it is impossible for hope to overdraw its account in God's bank.” – I cannot over exaggerate how much I relate to this.

If you are a Christian, I strongly recommend you watch this speech. I am not asking you to agree with everything in it, but the man’s heart and faith are sincere and he has no shame: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRlfBKGC-3Q

Sister Simone Campbell (“One of the Nuns on the Bus”)

“Paul Ryan claims his budget reflects the principles of our shared Catholic faith. But the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops stated that the Ryan budget failed a basic moral test, because it would harm families living in poverty. We agree with our bishops…”

In case you don’t know, Paul Ryan is a practicing Catholic. His own church leaders of claimed that his budget bastardizes their faith claims and goes too far.

“First, Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are correct when they say that each individual should be responsible. But their budget goes astray in not acknowledging that we are responsible not only for ourselves and our immediate families. Rather, our faith strongly affirms that we are all responsible for one another. I am my sister's keeper. I am my brother's keeper.”

Good exegesis of Genesis 4.

“We all share responsibility to ensure that this vital health care reform law is properly implemented and that all governors expand Medicaid coverage so no more Margarets die from lack of care. This is part of my pro-life stance and the right thing to do.”

Pro-life speaker at the DNC and the RNC had Condoleezza, a pro-choice Republican. Just an interesting observation. I am more interested in how our words are so divisive on this issue, so polarizing as if “Republican” and “Democrat” were solely identified with pro-life and pro-choice, yet, in actuality, the platform speakers reveal a much different story.

Warren

I was not a fan of this speech. Maybe I have been hearing too many of them lately but it just had too many clichés and too much sentimentality. This was the warm up act for Clinton and I just think it could have been better.

Warren raises some interesting questions about Romney’s hiding money in other countries to avoid paying taxes. Is that right? The first few verses of Romans 13 might have something to say about this. Likewise, she brings up good points about Billionaires with lower tax rates than “their secretaries.” She talks about how the system is “rigged” against the lower class. This is more than true. These are questions we all should be asking ourselves.

Warren also noted her work in the “Methodist” church where she taught Sunday school. She quoted one of her favorite bible verses (Matthew 25) and even gave a few lines of a devotional on how this relates to God, us, and her political stance. There has been a lot of preaching in these speeches and it is definitely different than what I think the normal American would have thought was going to happen at the DNC.

President Clinton

Somewhere President Bush is astonished that ex-Presidents are allowed at these national conventions. In all seriousness, I have never heard one person’s name more obviously avoided than Bush’s was at the RNC. Even Voldemort was like, “I can’t believe how bad they’re treating him.” Bush’s own brother, Jeb, didn’t say George’s name, even when talking about how proud he was of him. 

Maybe hitting on Michelle Obama is not the best way to start your speech, William.

“You see, we believe that `’We're all in this together'’ is a far better philosophy than ‘You're on your own.’”

“Well, since 1961, for 52 years now, the Republicans have held the White House 28 years, the Democrats 24.  In those 52 years, our private economy has produced 66 million private- sector jobs.  So what's the job score? Republicans:  twenty-four million.  Democrats:  forty-two.”

At least one respected political fact-checking site supports this statement: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/sep/06/bill-clinton/bill-clinton-says-democratic-presidents-top-republ/

Bill Clinton talking about working with Reagan and the Bushes. Pointing out that the far right has vitriol for Obama that is unlike any other time. What is this in the far right? This is not like Jesus. Clinton is talking a lot about cooperation and it is a lesson we could all stand to learn.

“President Obama started with a much weaker economy than I did.  Listen to me now.  No president, no president -- not me, not any of my predecessors -- no one could have fully repaired all the damage that he found in just four years. Now -- but he has -- he has laid the foundations for a new, modern, successful economy of shared prosperity.  And if you will renew the president's contract, you will feel it. You will feel it. Folks, whether the American people believe what I just said or not may be the whole election.  I just want you to know that I believe it.  With all my heart, I believe it.”

Honest assessment of the economic times both past and present. Good to hear Clinton’s heart.

“You need to tell every voter where you live about this.  It lowers the cost of federal student loans.  And even more important, it gives students the right to repay those loans as a clear, fixed, low percentage of their income for up to 20 years… Their debt obligation will be determined by their salary.  This will change the future for young Americans.”

You better believe it!!!!!!!!!

/////

This speech is too long and too good to live tweet through. This post would become more of a long and jumbled mess than it already is. Many of my Democrat friends watched the RNC. I would hope the same of my GoP friends. If you haven’t, watch this speech: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzDhk3BHi6Q

If you would rather read it, here you go: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/09/05/transcript-bill-clinton-speech-at-dnc/

It is issues based. It isn’t full of clichés and anecdotes. You may not agree with it but you will get a great idea about what Democratic politics are about and some fair rebuttals to Republican claims. If you listen honestly, and not with your guard up, you will hear the hearts of many of your neighbors and friends who honestly believe this.

I think the thing that is most sticking with me are Clinton’s claims about the Romney-Ryan plan. If you are voting for Romney and are complaining about the economy and debt, you HAVE to address these accusations. How does Romney plan to give trillions more in tax cuts to billionaires, increase defense budget spending by trillions, and still reduce the deficit and debt? It would seem to me that he would have to gut vital social services, education, etc. to even get close to the debt he would be ADDING from the tax cuts. It really doesn’t add up and I am afraid the talk about balanced budgets and debt reduction is smoke and mirrors. “Don't you ever forget, when you hear them talking about this, that Republican economic policies quadrupled the national debt before I took office, in the 12 years before I took office and doubled the debt in the eight years after I left, because it defied arithmetic.”

This coming from the only president to balance the budget in the last 30 years. Is he wrong? How so?