Vocabulary of Faith

The thought occurred to me the other day that part of the reason Christianity isn't as compelling as it should be has a lot to do with our language. The words of our faith no longer work without careful explanation. They have been soiled with layers of cultural garbage. Words like sin, salvation, grace, justice and mission have lost their true meaning and also their glory. So I will attempt the presumptuous task of creating a vocabulary of faith, doing my best to stay true to the teaching and traditions of the church. I will make them brief, imagining that I must tweet each definition. Here it goes:

Creation--a sign and symbol of God's extravagant love. God needs nothing or no one to be happy or content. He exists in a communion of three--Father, Son, and Spirit. Since he needs nothing, he created for no other reason but to share his beauty and love with us.

Sin--"to be curved in on oneself" (Martin Luther), refusing to let God be God. Which means rebellion against God's truth and beauty, refusing to respond to God because we're distracted by the cares of this world, and even religious activity for the wrong reason are all forms of God-avoidance.

Grace--receiving what you did not and cannot ever deserve or earn. At the foundation of our faith is what God has done in Christ. Even our ability to respond to Christ's calls comes from God's prior work. It's all due to God's faithful and unmerited love; he does not treat us as our sins deserve.

Salvation--to be rescued from our self-centered autonomy through Christ's work and his Spirit so that we can serve God by following Jesus with others, while actively waiting for the redemption of all that is.

Faith--an absolute trust and dependence in God's wisdom and truth revealed in Christ, to have a new orientating concern producing a new way of life--the obedience that comes from faith (Romans 1.5).

Church--a community set apart by God to show the world what God envisions for the entire world. We're called to be a new social order shaped by the sacrificial love of the lamb, embodying the faith, hope and truth of Christ's gracious reign.

Mission--what God is doing to reclaim the world. God is at work in creation, Christ, and the church. To embrace God's mission is to live out the hope and love of his reign by sharing and giving in countless ways.

I hope this helps. If you would like to know more about my approach here, you'll have to treat me to coffee. If you would like scriptural references, you'll have to take me to lunch. Peace!

New Creation

I will try to share some loosely connected thoughts on the phrase, New Creation (Galatians 6). I only have twenty minutes, so wish me luck.

I will start with a quote from Richard Hays:

"The church embodies the power of the resurrection in the midst of a not-yet-redeemed world. Paul's image of "new creation" stands here as shorthand signifier for the dialectal eschatology that runs throughout the New Testament. In the present time, the new creation already appears, but only proleptically; consequently, we live in suspense between Jesus' resurrection and parousia: 'The whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies'" (Rom. 8:22-23). (Hays, 198)

Hays goes on to elaborate that in Christ we know that the powers of the old age are doomed, and the new creation is already appearing. This creates the tension he mentioned above: On the one hand, any notion that anyone or any movement is a perfect representation of God's kingdom is mistaken; for the kingdom is not yet. On the other hand, we still celebrate that there is something significant happening right here and right now, for God's reign has dawned in the ministry of Jesus.

But the question remains, where? Where is this new creation? According to Paul's writings, and reading between the lines a bit, the new creation is found in Christ, in the Spirit, and in the church. We experience Christ's love and forgiveness by becoming new creatures in him. The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God--Romans 8:16. The spirit is also the first fruits (Romans 8:23), which means there's more to come; God is not done yet: All of creation is groaning, waiting for redemption. Last but not least, we experience God's new creation when we encounter a community that lives out God's sacrificial love.

My time is up. I must now go and talk about "Violence in Defense of Justice." I'm sure I'll be crucified. Peace!

The Family, The Nation, The City Within a City

This week I will cite two quotes, both of which deal with the notion that we are set free for love, specifically sharing together in God's love.

"The gospel is never for individuals but always for a people. Sin fragments us, separates us, and sentences us to solitary confinement. Gospel restores us, unites us, and sets us in community. The life of faith revealed and nurtured in the biblical narratives is highly personal but never merely individual: always there is a family, a tribe, a nation--church . . . A believing community is the context for the life of faith . . . Love cannot exist in isolation: away from others, love bloats into pride. Grace cannot be received privately: cut off from others, it is perverted into greed. Hope cannot develop in solitude: separated from the community, it goes to seed in the form of fantasies."

Outdo one another in showing honor (Rom. 12.10)

Live in harmony with one another (Rom. 12.16)

Welcome one another (Rom. 15.7)

Admonish one another (Rom. 15.14)

Greet one another with a holy kiss (Rom. 16.16)

Wait for one another (1 Cor. 11.33)

Have the same care for one another (1 Cor. 12.25)

Be servants of one another (Gal. 5.13)

Bear one another's burdens (Gal. 6.2)

Comfort one another (1 Thess. 5.11)

Build one another up (1 Thess. 5.11)

Be at peace with one another (1 Thess. 5.13)

Do good to one another (1 Thess. 5.15)

Bear with one another lovingly (Eph. 5.2)

Be kind and compassionate to one another (Eph. 4.32)

Be subject to one another (Eph. 5.21)

Forgive one another (Col. 3.13)

Confess your sins to one another (James 5.16)

Pray for one another (James 5.16)

Love one another from the heart (1 Pet. 1.22)

Be hospitable to one another (1 Pet. 4.9)

Meet one another with humility (1 Pet. 5.5)

Have fellowship with one another (1 John 1.7)

(List take from Lohfink's, Jesus and Community, 101)

Need I say more?

Peace.

Resisting the Powers

Last week's sermon represented many years of reflection. Over the past few years, I've been thinking about this strange language in the New Testament of powers, rulers, authorities, and elemental substances.

Here's where I stand right now on the subject matter. There are forces at work in the world that manifest themselves through human institutions, ways of thinking, philosophy, and culture. These forces or powers were created as good, created by God in Christ (Col. 1:15-16). After all, we can't live without any any of the things mentioned above.

However, these powers or forces have been infected with evil, and therefore they often take on a life of their own and assume a god-like role for us; this explains why Jesus had to disarm these powers (Col. 2:15) and why the rulers crucified Christ (1 Cor. 2.8). With that in mind, we can now understand the problem--humans submit to these other powers and forces, and they become enslaved to them (Galatians 4.1-11).

The examples are legion. Sex is good, created by God to be enjoyed between two people in a marriage relationship. However, sexual freedom has taken on a life of its own; it's in the air. It's as if the worst thing imaginable is to deny your sexual desires, no matter how base they might be, creating another problem in our culture--sexual addiction. Government is necessary, but most governments demand our allegiance, which can easily separate us from Christ and his kingdom. Philosophy is good and worthwhile, but it often sets up ways of looking at the world that separate us from the ways that God wants us to live. On and on the list could go. The point being, there are many enslaving forces in our world.

The answer to this dilemma is, of course, God's work on the cross in Christ. Christ disarmed the powers and redeemed us from the enslaving forces. Now we know who the true Lord is. For we also know how evil the powers have become; they would rather kill God's son than assume their rightful place. Therefore, we should be done with them, we should die to them, and live for Christ.

After all, why live for idols? They will only increase your sorrows (Ps. 16.4).

Peace

Refusing to Let God Be God

"The greatest mistake we can make, spiritually speaking, is to remain at a distance from God, content to engage in a few routine exercises of piety and to avoid sin as a matter of moral duty. We respect God as our maker, but our hearts do not belong wholly to him. We are still absorbed in our own ambitions, troubles, comforts, anxieties, interests, and fears. When we do turn to God, it is usually because we want him to sort out our difficulties or dispense rewards, but the thought of passionate, committed love embarrasses us." (Susan Muto, Pathways of Spiritual Living, 143-144).

This little quote might very well be a good summary of the apathy that infects the church from time to time. The problem, if we take Muto's thoughts seriously, is certainly not God. Nor is the problem the world per se. It's not busyness or moral complexity. The problem is our own failure to let God really be God in our lives. I worry that many people like the idea of God--just in case it might be true. Many others are interested in God because they believe that if they give him just enough obedience God will reward them with comfort. Very few simply want God for who he is. Many bristle at the thought of surrendering their lives to him in our commitment adverse culture; they want to keep their options open.

All of this reveals a much deeper problem--a failure to comprehend the gospel. If we truly know, deep down inside, the extent of God's love--the love which motivated this same God to give up his son for our freedom, then giving our entire selves to God is not strange at all. Paul gave up his commitment to the law once he met Christ. Having come to terms with the Son of God who loved him and gave himself up him, Paul willingly--joyfully--gave up his old way of looking at the world in order to be found in Christ. Simply put, the gospel should change us into people who want live for God and His love.

Peace.

Embodied Salvation

I've recently read Bryan Stone's book, Evangelism after Christendom, for the third time (yes, it's that good). He's arguing that the church must be a foretaste to what God envisions for the entire world. God's reign of peace has been inaugurated in the death and resurrection of Jesus. As the church waits for the fulness of that reign the church is called show the world what God envisions for the entire world. To articulate this fuller, Bryan Stone mentions three signs of the church (not exhaustive but illustrative) for consideration:

First, joy. "According to Luke, the church's response to rejection and persecution was that 'the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit' (Acts 13.52)." Furthermore, throughout the New Testament, the word joy is repeatedly used to describe new life (read Philippians as one example).

Second, unity. Two texts come to mind--John 17 and Acts 4:32-34. The former text depicts Jesus praying for the church, and high on his list is unity. The latter describes what life looks like when the Spirit takes up residence in a community.

Third, resistance. This last sign of the church is the most challenging. " . . . if Jesus is Lord, then resistance was due to any power that would attempt to exercise rival lordship in the life of the believer, either by determining that person's identity or by requiring the believer to do things contrary to the reality of God's reign" (105). He continues to recount the early Christians refusal to be placed in service to the state. Then he states: "This latter point about resisting the powers is central to the apostolic narrative of the birth of the church but is frequently overlooked in the present church's retelling, probably because we do not represent anything like a threat to the status quo (whether that be the state, the military, the market, or civil society. Jesus, as we know, was executed on charges of crimes against both the temple and the state . . ." After reminding us of this sobering truth, Stone reminds us how often the earliest Christians found themselves in trouble for being the church (cf. Acts). The point being, we can't give our souls to Jesus and then surrender our bodies to the state or the market, that is, if Jesus is truly Lord. For if he's Lord, it all belongs to him--our bodies, souls, and minds.

This latter paragraph is very powerful and maybe even troubling to us. Something to think about.

I'm Back

It's been a while since I've blogged. I'll try to do better. What to say today? I don't really know. I'll turn to some thoughts from the sermon (7-25).

Yesterday, we looked at the main issue in Galatians--how quickly the Galatians defected from the God who called them in grace.

The Galatians were swayed by another gospel, by another version of the good news--the gospel of the law. Many believed that is what everyone needed; they believed the law is and should remain the main thing. It's what will ultimately save.

For Paul, the gospel is nothing more or less than the good news of God's kingdom. The phrase he uses in Galatians is New Creation: "For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything!" (Galatians 6.15). This New Creation/Kingdom has begun and it will come in its fullness. Between these two advents, the church is called to witness to what God intends for the entire world. This is the gospel; there is no other.

The question remains, what does it mean to be a community of this gospel? What other gospels might we be tempted to live for that keep us from representing what God envisions for the world? For the Galatians it was the law, but for us it might be something else. Thoughts?

Peace.