Luma Simms 6/12/13 Luma Simms 6/12/13

Glimpses of Grace: Treasuring the Gospel in Your Home

In Gospel Amnesia, I discuss one of my biggest idols: the desire to be a godly parent. I know it may sound paradoxical. After all, which Christian parent doesn’t want to be a “godly parent.” And besides, aren’t we commanded in the Scriptures to be godly parents? First, anything can be an idol. Second, we are not commanded to be godly parents. We are commanded to love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, and strength and to teach this love of God to our children (Deut. 6:4–9). That is a huge philosophical shift from “be a godly parent.” These are two different religions! The first is Jesus’ direct command and has as its object God. We are to point our hearts to God and to teach our children how to point their hearts to God. The second has as its object ourselves and our children, seasoned with the adjective, “godly.” The object becomes how to rightly be a parent with the drive behind it as the welfare of our children, spiritual and otherwise. I spent years and years reading books and blog posts on how to be a more godly mom and parent. I can’t do it anymore. As a matter of fact, I had no intention of buying one more book on motherhood. The inspired Word of God which I open up every single day has been telling me for years what I need to do: Love Jesus and love my neighbor (hint: my family are my closest neighbors). The issue is: Will my heart obey these commands from the Lord himself?

Those were my thoughts until I read my friend Gloria Furman's book Glimpses of Grace: Treasuring the Gospel in Your Home. This book changed my mind; I have already given away many copies of it and continue recommending it to women I know. Because of my previous idolatries in this area, I would like to encourage pastors to recommend it to the women in their congregation. Pastors, if you want the women in your congregation to keep their focus on Christ while still caring about motherhood, I humbly ask you to look into this book. This book will help women see the value of being a wife and mother without shifting their identity to it. Glimpses of Grace presses in the truth of the gospel so that Jesus is firmly established at the center, and all parenting orbits him. Gloria

In The Loveliness of Christ, Samuel Rutherford writes:

Take no heavier lift of your children, than your Lord alloweth; give them room beside your heart, but not in the yolk of your heart, where Christ should be; for then they are your idols, not your bairns.

Gloria accomplishes this beautifully in Glimpses of Grace. She doesn't say, “forget all your responsibilities and calling, just go after Christ.” Nor does she encourage women to focus on a different center: children, career, ministry, etc. She succeeds in showing the tension in a woman's life—illustrating the wonder of a life lived in the grace of Christ now, with hope in his promise of future grace. She does all of this without denying the real and tangible realities and hardships of everyday life. Although I am recommending it for mothers in the hopes that I can prevent some from falling into the idolatries I had fallen into, it is actually a book that can be read by any woman, married or not. I see the applicability to all women in some of Gloria's insights by the types of questions she asks and answers:

The questions I ought to be asking are these: How does believing in Jesus change the way I face the monotonous daily grind? Or how does believing take an interrupted nap in stride? How does faith in God rescue me from a restless heart? How can I experience the peace of Christ when I am so prone to failure because of my sin? How does the gospel make me into a woman who rests in the peace of God in the midst of the chaos in my heart?

Gloria Furman is a cross–cultural worker in ministry with her husband, Dave Furman, church planter and pastor in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. I talked with Gloria about her new book:

Would you define Glimpses of Grace as a "how to be a better mom" book? If not, why not?

I'm so glad you asked this question! Glimpses of Grace is decidedly not a book focused on motherhood. It’s about treasuring the gospel in your home, a subject that is applicable to women regardless of whether they have children. I address this book to women who need to take refuge in the Lord and taste and see that he is good, which would include all of us! On the subject of motherhood and the gospel, I’ve written Treasuring Christ When Your Hands Are Full: Gospel Meditations for Busy Moms (Crossway, 2014).

Glimpses of Grace is also decidedly not a “how to” book. I love how Lauren Chandler answers that question in the foreword:

We do well to seek advice. This is wisdom. But there something to being at your wit’s end that begs for more than instruction. Psalm 107 illustrates a season in the storm. Men in ships doing business on great waters are literally struck by a tempest. Scripture says, ‘They reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits’ end’ (v. 27). Their response to being completely helpless was to cry out to the Lord. No how-tos, no cute preservers, but just an honest and urgent plea to be delivered from a situation that was more than they could navigate. What did the Lord do on their behalf? He showed them his steadfast love. He calmed the waters, hushed the seas, and brought them to their desired haven. This is sustaining grace, this is the desired haven: to know his steadfast love that saves and keeps us. Glimpses of Grace is not a how-to. It is a true friend’s invitations to see and know the Lord’s steadfast love displayed in every wave, big and small.

Indeed, there is a need for how-to, time-tested wisdom regarding keeping a home. But Glimpses of Grace does not address the need for table setting skills (incidentally, a skill in which I am sorely deficient). Glimpses of Grace describes how God, in his word, lays out a spread for us that addresses our heart’s deepest, most comprehensive need—to learn to feast on Jesus, the Bread of Life.

What were the circumstances and the heart issues that drove you to write this book?

For far too long the mundane loomed larger than eternal life for me. I wrote this book because I wanted to remind myself (and others) that every mundane moment of the day contains the potential to plunge our hearts into worship of the Living God whose matchless kindness leads us to repentance. For far too long I’d bought the lie that “this, too, shall pass” was the hope that I needed to cling to. The hope that I need to cling to is that God’s faithfulness will never pass, and because of the person and work of Jesus Christ, I am constantly running headlong into his future grace. Learning to cherish the gospel became key for me in beginning to understand this, and living in my home is the primary place I need to work out these heart-anchoring truths.

Why should pastors encourage the women in their church to read your book?

Although how-to manuals for homemaking are vignettes of wisdom and experience worth sharing, Glimpses of Grace is about something else. It’s a reflection on the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Pastors want the women in their church to be rooted and grounded in Christ’s love, which is the same prayer that I have for the women who read this book. My goal in writing this book is that it would serve as a creative and repetitive reminder of the good news, pointing women to worship our Savior in the midst of their lives in the home.

I'm grateful for Gloria's friendship. Many times as I've discussed struggles with her she has helped me turn my gaze away from the situation to see Christ above it all and to grasp how the gospel applies to my heart issues in that moment. In my discipleship relationships right now, I say this to the women I have handed this book to: It's a book that shows you who Jesus is and how much he loves you. You don't need a book that tries to tell you how to be a better mother. If you want to be a better mother, or a better anything, look to Jesus and cling to him and refuse to let go.

Gloria has given me hope that God can use a book like Glimpses of Grace, to help other women treasure the gospel, no matter the circumstances:

Whatever the “this” that you desperately feel you can't do anymore is ultimately not about your circumstances. It's about peace with God. And God has provided a way for you to have that peace that dominates any and all circumstances, regardless of how difficult they are.

God is using this book to bring a peace between me and him about many things I have been saying “I can't do anymore.” Including reading this type of book.

—

Luma Simms (@lumasimms) is a wife and mother of five delightful children between the ages of 1 and 18. She studied physics and law before Christ led her to become a writer, blogger, and Bible study teacher. She is the author of Gospel Amnesia: Forgetting the Goodness of the News. She blogs regularly at Gospel Grace.

Alvin Reid 5/3/13 Alvin Reid 5/3/13

Avoid Making Disciples of Yourself

Those of us who take seriously the Great Commission recognize how Christ’s charge compels us not to make converts on a superficial level but Christ followers in every area of life. This rightfully includes a healthy obedience to Jesus Christ, the head of the church, and a deep love for Christ’s body, the local church. We cannot create missionaries without making disciples. But we who make disciples must remember our own fallen state. Though pure in motive, without great care we may—in the name of disciple making — focus on making those we disciple like us rather than like Jesus. True, Paul told those he discipled to follow him as he followed Christ, and there is a sense in which one of the best ways to show a disciple how to follow Christ is by demonstrating such a life. But we must be aware of our own biases as we lead others.

As we make disciples, we need to take care to be balanced and holistic in our training. All of us have personalities and passions that make us unique, but our goal in disciple making is less to note our uniqueness and more to spotlight Christ. If we are not careful, we will inadvertently push those we follow to pursue our personal passions more than Jesus. The goal is to make Christ followers not us followers.

Three areas represent how to balance the heart of our disciple making and mentoring:

Orthodoxy, or right belief — we must affirm and guard fundamental teaching of Scripture.
Orthopathy, or right affections — we must have a deep love for God and for others.
Orthopraxy, or right actions — we must demonstrate our faith effectively in how we live.

In other words, we should be discipling others (and ourselves) to give glory to God through our head, our heart, and our hands. This is hinted at in Luke 2:52 where we read our Lord grew in wisdom, stature, and favor with God and man. We see this in the earliest description of life in the church in Acts 2:42-47:

Orthodoxy: They gave themselves to the apostles’ doctrine.
Orthopathy: They were praising God and having favor with the people.
Orthopraxy: They sold their possessions and distributed to those in need.

Here is how we must take care not to make followers of us rather than followers of Christ. We all have a tendency to favor one of these areas — doctrine, affection, or action — more than the others.

You probably know some believers who love to study doctrine or some subset of theology, from apologetics to a specific theological trend (eschatology, for instance). Sometimes folks given to such interests display a less-than-gracious capacity to relate to others or to practice their faith in the real world. And, sometimes they would rather argue their theological convictions than take time to hear yours.

Others have a great heart for people and really love God, but the idea of a doctrinal study gives them chills. They have affection but do not adequately value truth.

Then again, some just want to know how to “do” the Christian life. These are the activists, jumping from one cause to another, sometimes running over people who do not share their fondness for said cause, and often not able to articulate biblically why they have such an activist bent.

You may be given to one of these three tendencies more than others, but take care: If you focus on one in your disciple making to the neglect of the others, you are not making followers of Jesus. You are making followers of you.

Consider these unbalanced approaches:

Orthodoxy + Orthopraxy – Orthopathy = legalism.

The Pharisees were keen on preserving the truth and on doing their religious duties. But they did not love people. Modern-day Pharisees still don’t.

Orthopraxy + Orthopathy – Orthodoxy = liberalism.

You have heard the expression a “bleeding-heart liberal.” Liberals love to talk about their love for people and causes, but loathe to talk about doctrine and changeless truth.

Orthodoxy + Orthopathy – Orthopraxy = monasticism.

Monasteries seek to preserve a pure faith. They love those inside their safe walls. But their focus is on what goes on inside their sanctuary far more than what happens in the surrounding culture. I know many churches who function this way, gathering together regularly, loving their fellowship, standing on the promises while they sit on the premises of their church facility, but who do so little in their communities that if they vanished no one would notice.

We must be aware how we as individuals and churches focus on one of these to the exclusion of the others. We need balance. Not a milque-toast, generic version of each, but a bold, unashamed passion for truth, for God and people, and a burden to live out our doctrine and our affection effectively. Students need to see where they are strong and where they are weak in these areas, and student ministries must as well. Most student ministries focus primarily on affections, and then to some degree activism, but give far too little focus to doctrine. I want to dig deeply into the riches of God’s Word, have a heart for my Savior and the people for whom He died that is apparent to all, and be able to live the faith in this culture in such a way that believers and unbelievers alike see there is no better way to live. Or to think. Or to love.

Understanding this not only helps us disciple those who have come to follow Christ, it can help us evangelize as well. Some people need to be shown theologically the truth of the gospel. But some also need to see and sense the great love of God for them in addition to the propositions of the gospel. Further, some need to see how our faith actually works in the real world, how following Christ affects our daily lives and decisions. The effective gospel bearer will learn to explain the gospel in such a way that one sees its truth, senses its heart, and realizes its practicality in a broken world.

Be busy making disciples. Just be busy making disciples of Jesus, with all of our hearts, minds, and activity. Such disciples may make people take notice. They did in the early church. And they will today.

The following is an excerpt from Alvin Reid's new book, As You Go: Creating a Missional Culture of Gospel-Centered Students (Navpress). Continue reading As You Go.

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Alvin L. Reid is husband to Michelle and father to Josh and Hannah. He is a professor of evangelism and student ministry at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary as well as a popular speaker and author. He has written numerous books on student ministry, evangelism, missional Christianity, and spiritual awakenings. Follow on twitter: @AlvinReid.

Justin Holcomb 4/19/13 Justin Holcomb 4/19/13

It’s Grace All the Way

This is an excerpt taken from On the Grace of God by Justin Holcomb copyright ©2013. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org. ---

From Jesus Christ “we have all received grace upon grace” (John 1:16). We are saved solely through faith in Jesus Christ because of God’s grace and Christ’s merit alone. We are neither saved by our merits nor declared righteous by our good works. We do not deserve grace, or else it wouldn’t be grace. This means that God grants salvation not because of the good things we do or even because of our faith— and despite our sin. This is the ring of liberation in the Christian proclamation. If it is not grace all the way, then we will spend our lifetime wondering if we have done enough to get that total acceptance for which we desperately long. “I said the prayer, but did I say it passionately enough?” “I repented, but was it sincere enough?” Election puts salvation in the only place that it can possibly exist: God’s hands. God’s election is the unconditional and unmerited nature of his grace.

Ephesians 2:4–5 proclaims Gods grace clearly: “God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace have you been saved.” Regeneration (being made spiritually alive) takes place when we as spiritually dead people are made alive in Christ. Dead people do not cooperate with grace. Unless regeneration takes place first, there is no possibility of faith. Paul got this from Jesus, who told Nicodemus: “Unless a man is born again first, he cannot possibly see or enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).

Ephesians 2 is filled with the high-octane gospel of grace for both our justification and sanctification. It begins with how believers were dead in their sins, then moves to how God loved us and rescued us from this death by his grace, bringing salvation to all in Christ, uniting Jews and Gentiles as one people in which the Spirit of God dwells. The first half of the chapter focuses on God’s rescue operation for his people, which delivered us from our sin and God’s wrath, and ends with the verse 10, which centers on how God’s deliverance means we are created anew for lives of righteousness. As one commentator notes, salvation has already been described by Paul as “a resurrection from the dead, a liberation from slavery, and a rescue from condemnation”; he moves now to the idea of a new creation.

The theme of Ephesians 2:8-9 is clear: grace. This theme was already mentioned in Ephesians 2:5, but what was then more of an “undercurrent” now becomes the main point.

We are saved by grace, not anything we have done. The passage is a traditional one used to support the idea that justification before God is by grace alone, and not anything we do.

And for good reason. The verses strike with great emphasis the note of salvation as a complete “gift of God.” We have done nothing to bring it about that could lead us to boast about it. And yet it is nearly impossible not to boast in the radical love of God when we grasp this reality.

We now move to Ephesians 2:10 with its focus on “good works.” It is tempting at first glance to think that verses 8-9 are about grace and verse 10 is about works. But this would be to miss something very important that we easily neglect: everything is grace. Or, as one scholar puts it, “It is grace all the way.”

But what does that mean exactly?

Notice how God-centered Ephesians 2:10 is. In the Greek, the first word in the sentence is “his,” which is an unusual placement and puts the emphasis squarely on God. We are “his workmanship.” We “are created [by God] in Christ Jesus” for good works. These good works were those “that God prepared beforehand.” Clearly works are important to Paul, but his emphasis here is on God bringing them about within us.

Notice that this verse does three important things.

First, it gives the reason why Paul can say in verses 8-9 that salvation is a complete gift of God: because we are his workmanship, re-created in Jesus Christ.

Second, it points forward to other places the new creation idea is found in Ephesians.

Third, it completes the section of Ephesians 2:1-10 in a fitting way by using again the idea of “walking,” which contrasts with Ephesians 2:2 where Paul talks about how we used to “walk” in sin, following the “course of the world.” Now we “walk” in good works God has set before us.

Ephesians 2:10 continues that we have been created in Christ Jesus “for good works.” So we are saved for the purpose of walking in good works. Good works are never the ground or cause of our salvation. They can’t be, they just don’t work like that. They are not the cause but the “goal of the new creation.”

And God has already prepared them for us ahead of time.

We must always hold Ephesians 2:10 together with 2:8-9. The Bible paints a holistic picture of the believer as one whose life is continually lived in grace that bears fruit, fruit that is used by God to bless others.

How do we then live? If our works are “prepared beforehand,” what do we do? Paul says we “walk in them.” We show up. We abide in the vine of Jesus (John 15:4). We walk by the Spirit (Gal 5:16-25). We do our best not to muck it up. But we will; and when we do, grace picks us up again. It’s like the old Rich Mullins lyric: “If I stand, let me stand on the promise that you will see me through, and if I can’t, let me fall on the grace that first brought me to you.” There is a damaging idea floating around that says, “God saved you, now what are you going to do for him?” This is a recipe for failure. If you come to the table believing you can do anything for God in your own strength or repay him on any level, you have already lost. You are back to confessing your self-dependent spiritual death from which Jesus saved you.

Above all else and before any discussion of what we should do, we must understand deeply in our bones who we are: the workmanship of God. You are his project. So, you are invited to be who you are. Your life is not your own; it was bought with a price. Live with the gratitude, humility, joy, and peace that come from knowing it does not all depend on you. You are loved and accepted in Christ, so you don’t have to focus on what you do or don’t do for God. Now you can focus on what Jesus has done for you, and that will cause you to love God more. Then you can’t help but walk in grace, realizing how costly God’s grace was.

Justin Holcomb is a pastor at Mars Hill Church, where he serves as executive director of the Resurgence. He is also adjunct professor of theology and philosophy at Reformed Theological Seminary and previously taught at the University of Virginia. Justin holds two masters degrees from Reformed Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. from Emory University.

Read Gospel Amnesia: Forgetting the Goodness of the News by Luma Simms

Rebekah Lyons 4/12/13 Rebekah Lyons 4/12/13

When We Stop Dreaming

The following is an excerpt of Freefall to Fly by Rebekah Lyons, used by permission. Purchase the entire book on Amazon. ---

My head snapped up from the pillow at the sound of my daughter calling my name from downstairs. Good Luck Charlie had ended, and my job needed to start again. More than fifteen years removed from my napkin dreams, I was running fast. I’d been given a front-row seat on a rickety wooden roller coaster motoring on a never-ending loop. Twisting, turn- ing, backward, forward. Straining to find my bearings, but never slowing enough to compose myself. Going in circles, but never finding my dreams.

If we ignore the yearnings of our souls, we atrophy, and our dreams die. Sadly, many of us choose this descent because we believe it’s safer. If we don’t hope, we won’t be let down. If we don’t imagine, reality won’t disappoint. Either way, we avoid pain.

These destructive tendencies seem to afflict women in particular. Since 1988, the use of antidepressant drugs has soared nearly 400 percent, and women are 2.5 times more likely than men to take them. Twenty-three percent of women ages forty to fifty-nine regularly take these drugs, more than in any other demographic. Nearly one in four. A devastating statistic. Why the struggle? Why the heaviness?

As for me, I wondered: Is this just seasonal depression? Or will it linger? My faith was flailing. The gloom lifted by spring, but the lurking shadow reminded me that January would come again. I think perhaps the antici- pation of the darkness returning was as precarious as when it settled.

A friend recently confessed through tears that she struggles with bitterness. Her life doesn’t look the way she’d hoped it would. She couldn’t reconcile how her life—looking so successful on the surface—disguised the aching void that brings her tears the moment she opens her balled fists.

Are we grieving because our lives don’t look the way we imagined in our youth?

Do we pressure our children to reach their potential because we aren’t living up to our own?

Are we spending every moment cultivating the lives of everyone . . . but ourselves?

Women are stars fading behind the dark shadow of those we care for, and we often look a little worse for wear. Our light is dimmer than it used to be as we find ourselves unable to dream beyond our current reality.

So we compromise. My childhood dreams were just that—dreams. I should let them go. We push down any hope when we sense it emerging. The desire for change uncovers what terrifies us most: failure.

Then we go numb. We tell ourselves a quick fix will do just fine. Whatever will keep our heads above water—whatever will allow us to keep making lunches, paying the bills, getting through sex, doing the kids’ carpool, working out, pursuing that career, and so on—will just have to do. We don’t want to become the crazy lady at the bus stop, so we think to our- selves, Just give me the shortcut. Then I’ll be okay.

Perhaps most alarming are the many women who don’t see past their manicured lives—grasping for society’s definition of being “put together.” We have pretty ways of masking our lack of meaning, using all kinds of beauty products and retail therapy. We have homes to furnish and decorate, then redecorate once we tire of what we have. We keep up with fashion styles, throw and attend parties, and maintain a rigorous pace. While these are all delightful and beautiful and often worthy goals, using them to conceal our unfulfilled lives is dangerous.

Some women uncover their talents before having kids and then shelve them while raising their children. They’ve experienced a sense of fulfill- ment in living out their purpose but believe they must set aside their pursuits for the sake of motherhood. They’ve bought into the belief that their gifts and child rearing are disparate parts, unable to coexist. Instead of fighting to figure out the balance, they stuff their dreams in a box marked “Motherhood.”

Other women never identify their purpose before having children. Parenthood sets in and can unknowingly become the excuse to stop cultivating their dreams. Instead, they place their quest for significance on the lives of their children (as we see played out on Facebook every day). But this suffocating pressure is too much for anyone to bear, much less a five-year-old.

In either case, the displacement of a mother’s purpose (beyond child rearing) becomes a huge loss to our communities. If women aren’t empowered to cultivate their uniqueness, we all suffer the loss of beauty, creativity, and resourcefulness they were meant to inject into the world.

Can a mother chase the dreams that stir her heart and simultaneously raise her children?

Can a woman chase the dreams that stir her heart when life gets in the way?

The masks need not remain. The fading is teaching us to turn from try- ing to prove to each other that we have everything together to letting our wounds show. We speak words that ring out in the air and just sit there. Moments of sharing and pain and desperation. Desperation to be heard, to be understood, and to know we are still in this life together. The years give us new perspective and freedom to be honest. In these settings, an echo keeps surfacing. Struggle, responsibility, pain, and in the midst of it all, faith.

Aging is paradoxical: the older we get, the less we are sure of. All we hope for is the courage to keep walking. And our understanding of God’s grace takes new shape for us. Our hearts stumble into unknown territory as our lives twist and turn. Yet we aren’t sure how to respond.

We thought we had faith figured out before, when life was a negative in black and white. But now that we see in full color, the image has faded. Clarity left long ago when we were held in the tension between seeing how things ought to be in contrast with how they really are. We freefall because we never figured out what makes us fly.

We stopped dreaming.

I’m riveted by the scene in The King’s Speech when Prince Albert, Duke of York, delivers a discourse to a large crowd on a dreary London day in 1930. He stutters conspicuously, and the crowd squirms in their seats. Out of desperation to defend her husband’s reputation, the Duchess of York travels to a dilapidated part of town to locate Lionel Logue, a speech therapist. He has Bertie (his affectionate nickname for Albert) wear headphones and listen to blaring classical music while reading Shakespeare’s well-known soliloquy from Hamlet. Lionel records Bertie’s voice as he stutters through the famous first phrase—“To be or not to be”—but Bertie’s final frustration drives him out of the room, recording in hand, shouting, “What’s the use?”

Bertie hides the vinyl recording in his desk drawer. Just out of reach. But he knows it’s still there. After a week passes, Bertie pulls out the record and listens. As his smooth, liberated speech echoes out of the speaker, he is dumbfounded, amazed by the gift he possesses. He hears words of conviction soaring without stutter. Beautiful like music. His wife bears witness. An epiphany. They promptly return to Lionel in secret to continue working. Too often we live with our talents hidden in the desk drawer. Just out of reach. We’ve tucked them away. Refusing to listen. It hurts too much to hope. So we go on with our lives, not allowing ourselves to go near that drawer.

“We arrive in this world with birthright gifts—then we spend the first half of our lives abandoning them or letting others disabuse us of them,” Parker Palmer writes in Let Your Life Speak. “Then—if we are awake, aware, and able to admit our loss—we spend the second half trying to recover and reclaim the gift we once possessed.”

This was an excerpt from Freefall to Fly by Rebekah Lyons. Purchase the entire book on Amazon.

Rebekah Lyons is a mother of three, wife of one, and dog walker of two living in New York City. She's an old soul with a contemporary, honest voice who puts a new face on the struggles women face as they seek to live a life of meaning. As a self-confessed mess, Rebekah wears her heart on her sleeve, a benefit to friends, and readers alike. She serves alongside her husband, Gabe, as cofounder of QIdeas, an organization that helps leaders winsomely engage culture.

Alvin Reid 4/5/13 Alvin Reid 4/5/13

The Missional Shift in Student Ministry

Alvin Reid is a great partner and friend of GCD. This last week he released his new book, As You Go: Creating a Missional Culture of Gospel-Centered Students. In this great read, Alvin hopes to help students and leaders to have their entire lives defined by the mission. This is a much needed resource for the church in America and we are happy to share this excerpt of As You Go with our readers. ---

On the east coast of North Carolina a windy spot named Kitty Hawk faces the Atlantic Ocean. On that site over one hundred years ago two brothers named Orville and Wilbur Wright made a discovery that has radically changed my life and most likely yours as well. On a cold December day in 1903, these brothers tested what became the first fixed-wing flying machine in history. Their efforts marked the tipping point of a movement leading to global air travel, which has become a staple of culture now. A century later, in Atlanta alone, numbers equivalent to a small city pass through a single airport, traveling literally all over the world in a matter of hours.

Airplanes have not changed travel – the movement of people from one place to another -- in its essence. But the means and speed of travel have changed dramatically.

We have an unchanging Word from God (the Bible) and a unique message (the gospel), but the world in which we teach and live and share the truth of a relationship with God has changed significantly in recent years. Today, we have the largest number of youth ever in history, and by far the most unreached.

From the earliest days of the church in Acts until now, the Great Commission has not changed in its essence. But the approach to the missionary enterprise of taking the gospel to the world has changed dramatically. Peter and Paul had ink to pen their writings, but no blogs or Twitter feeds. The United States has become the fourth-largest mission field in the world. This means a fundamental shift must take place: Student ministers must recognize more students today are lost without Christ than ever in history, and the “market share” of students active in church is shrinking. In other words, student ministry needs a revolution. We live in a time when much is at stake and much is changing, as revolutionary as the Renaissance and Reformation, a time when the stakes will not allow status quo Christianity to continue unchallenged, if any season ever did. Where do we begin if we hope to see a movement of God create a missional revolution among students?

1. God.

We need a new vision of God: His vastness, His involvement in all things, His love and His justice. If your students have a lot better grasp of you as the student pastor than God -- who sustains the world by the word of His power -- you have a problem. If your students understand the latest stats on sexuality in America more than they know the attributes of God and how He is King over all of life, you have a serious problem. We need student pastors and who are better at theology than at new ideas. Years ago the founders of one student ministry said it is a sin to make Christianity boring. Agreed. And it is a greater sin to make Christianity silly, which is what has happened far too often. We must exalt a great God and give focus to His Word.

2. The gospel.

A movement of gospel recovery is happening today. Read Gospel by J. D. Greear or The Unbelievable Gospel by Jonathan Dodson. Or better, read Romans or John. We have shrink-wrapped the gospel, paring it down to the most bare of propositions. We must recover the great drama of redemption in Scripture, and see the gospel reflected in culture from movie plotlines to the wonder of creation. The one thing that is constantly newsworthy in your ministry is not an Ipad giveaway. It is Jesus. We need a radical, Christocentric transformation, understanding the gospel is for salvation and sanctification, for saved and unsaved alike. Jesus is the answer to all of life—not the superficial, subcultural Jesus, but the Jesus who cares for the broken and rebukes the self-righteous: the children-loving, disciple-calling, leper-healing, Pharisee-rebuking, humbly born, and ultimately reigning Lord Jesus.

3. The goal

Every ministry exists to glorify God. The goal of student ministry is to glorify God by developing disciples who learn both to see the world as missionaries and live as missionaries—to live focused on the mission of God. This means focusing less on discipleship aimed toward the lowest common denominator, which is a failed paradigm. It means you score success in long-term discipleship, equipping students for a life of service to Christ. It means helping students grow and develop their own plan for gospel impact now.

4. The gathering.

Connect to the whole church, across generations. Today’s teens are not only the most numerous; they are also the most fatherless. We must connect students to the larger church and not function as a parachurch ministry within a church building. We need a Titus 2 revolution where older men teach younger guys and older women teach younger ladies. We have spent so much time on the imperative that I fear we have lost the indicative, the “why” of all we do with, for, and through students. Once a person meets Christ he or she goes on a journey to further understand the message of God and live out the mission of God, to build a gospel-centered life with a missional posture toward everything: career, family, church, economics, fitness, morality — everything. Gabe Lyons in The Next Christians observes via research what I see consistently in my frequent interactions with leaders. Leaders seek a “new way forward;” they “want to be a force for restoration in a broken world even as we proclaim the Christian Gospel.” I, and others, call this way forward missional. Being missional means to think like a missionary, and missionaries travel: geographically to far lands, or sometimes they simply take a journey into their own communities to share Christ more effectively and intentionally. Geography does not define a missionary; the mission does.

Continue reading As You Go.

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Related Resources

U nbelievable Gospel by Jonathan Dodson

How to Disciple Urban Youth by Eliot Velasquez

Replacing the Center of Youth Ministry by Josh Cousineau

Jonathan Dodson and Brad Watson 3/22/13 Jonathan Dodson and Brad Watson 3/22/13

Living the Resurrection?

This is an excerpt of the book Raised? Doubting the Resurrection. Get the entire e-book for free at www.raisedbook.com. --

Once we make our way through doubt, come to understand the gospel story and saving faith in the risen Christ, these questions arise: How do we practice the resurrection? What difference does it make in you and me? How do we live this new, or raised, life?

The last lines of Matthew’s Gospel belong to Jesus himself. Believers in the resurrection cherish them because the final words of their Savior explain how to live the resurrected life. After his resurrection, and just before his ascension to the Father, Jesus tells his disciples how to be fruitful and multiply with their new, abundant life. He describes a life characterized by a new authority, a new identity, and a new mission.

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. - Matthew 28:16-20

A New Authority: Follow Me

Jesus has all authority on heaven and earth. His authority eclipses the kings of Israel and the leaders of nations. All other kings die; Jesus vanquished death. All rulers are made, but all things were made by and for Jesus. His rule extends beyond the earth into the heavens, where he deposes powers and will bring all who are in opposition to surrender, establishing never-ending peace. Paul poetically describes his lordship:

[Jesus] is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. - Colossians 1:15-20

In short, the risen Jesus has all the authority in the universe. Christ is profoundly great and good. He deserves our worship and obedience. Those who possess resurrected life joyfully acknowledge that Jesus is in charge and follow him. We listen to what he says, by reading his teachings, and we follow what he says, by lining our lives up with his teaching. A disciple learns to submit to Jesus in every facet of life. From waking up to going to bed, everything falls under his authority. Short-term plans and long-term investments are decided by his instruction. Living the resurrected life means placing yourself under Christ’s rule. He is in charge and he is good at it. So know this—Jesus is no tyrant. He does not abuse his power. Rather, he is a loving and serving master. He is the master who washes his disciples feet. He is the king who lays down his life for his friends and, yes, even for those who doubt him. You are not cheated. You can run the cost-benefit analysis a million times, but it always comes out the same. The cost of submitting to Jesus pales in comparison to the rich relationship and future you have in Christ.

Four Ways to Follow Jesus

In Community. Following Jesus is communal. You need others and they need you. You share in struggle and daily remind each other of the abundant life and precious savior you have in common. Christians gather on Sunday to sing not only to God but each other: “Jesus rose from the dead!”

In Prayer. Have you ever wondered why Christians pray? They pray because they know how dependent they are on God. Prayer is an invitation to know God and join his grace agenda for our lives.

In Repentance & Faith. Repentance and faith are integral to the Christian life. Repentance is not feeling sorry to get on God’s good side. It is turning from the fleeting promises of sin to the superior promises of the Savior. It is seeing that, by grace, we are already on God’s good side and nothing else can compare to him.

In the Story. Despite its age and apparent obscurity, the Bible is the story and inspired texts of God. It teaches us how to follow Jesus. We read it not to learn about extinct cultures, but to know and follow our Savior who was raised.

New Identity: In Christ

Resurrection life is nothing short of an entirely new identity. An identity is formed by what defines you. In American culture, your sexual orientation, your political party, your race, your religion, or your home state may define you. You can find identity in your occupation, your alma mater, your hobbies, and even your clothes. You can locate your identity by filling in the blank with “I am ____” statements.

I am an accountant
I am a Buddhist
I am an alcoholic
I am a vegetarian
I am a Longhorn
I am a skater
I am white
I am a democrat
I am gay
I am beautiful
I am a hipster
I am a disciple
I am a Christian

Sometimes our identities are a composite. However, there some are typically stronger than others. How do you know which is strongest? Think about the one you just couldn’t live without. If you can’t imagine life living without it, you may have found your deepest identity. Each identity has a hidden mantra that goes something like: I am what I eat, who I sleep with, how I make money, what I wear, what I look like, or where I came from. Others are defined by their addictions and failures.

The interesting thing about many identities is that they come from what we do. The resurrected life is different. Instead of being named by the things we have done, we are named “in the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” We no longer have to be defined by our rise and fall in success and failure. Instead, our identity is defined by God’s utter success over our sinful failures and his gift of new life. We have a new identity. The New Testament describes our newfound identity in various ways:

Child of God
Friend of God
Servant
Sent one or missionary
Disciple
Blessed
New Creation
Saint (Holy One)

This list only scratches the surface of our new identity in Christ. This is God’s grace in the resurrected life. We don’t deserve these wonderful identities. Yet, Christ’s work is to give them to us. They all spring from grace—what he has done for us, not what we have done for him. He is Father to the child, Friend to the friend, Master to the servant, Ultimate Missionary to the sent one, Savior to the disciple, Resurrection to the new creation, Holy to the saint.

Empowered by the Presence of God

Jesus’ final words make it clear; we will not be abandoned: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” The resurrected Jesus is not in a distant universe or looking down from the clouds to see how well we are doing. He is with us and will be forever. The resurrected life is a continually restored relationship with God. We will not be exiled. We will not be alone. This is the ultimate benefit of following Jesus: Jesus himself. We can enjoy him daily. Like Adam and Eve before their rebellion, we can always walk the garden with God.

The promise of God’s presence isn’t a fleeting greeting on the inside of hallmark card. It is real comfort and power. As Jesus was preparing his disciples, he told them he would send them the Holy Spirit. In the Bible, the Book of Acts tells the story of how the Holy Spirit empowers normal disciples to follow Jesus. We see the Spirit empower ordinary people like you and me to speak the gospel boldly, obey Jesus commands, heal the sick, make disciples, give generously, and care for the poor. The Holy Spirit is the power of the resurrection for Jesus and for us: “And the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11). The power of the resurrection is in us through the Spirit!

Now, we could easily read this think, “Okay, let’s get to work...maybe I can do this.” But if you set off in your own resolve, you will fall flat. I do. When Im not living out of resurrection power (depending on the Spirit through prayer), I end up relying on emotional power. If I feel good that day, I’ll attempt to live out of my new identity and follow Jesus. If I don’t feel good, I’ll struggle to follow him. Either way, I miss the vibrancy of the Spirit. I quickly tire out, snap at others, or silently take credit for good things. I amass self-righteousness through self-dependence. However, when I begin the day with utter dependence upon the Spirit, drawing near to God in prayer, asking for his power and guidance throughout the day, it changes things entirely. Instead of tiring out, I’m filled up. Instead of snapping at others, I find a hesitating nudge from the Spirit to love and forbear. Instead of taking credit, I’m quick to give glory to God. The Holy Spirit enables you to live the resurrected life. He bears the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control, even in difficult circumstances. You don’t have to muster up the strength to follow Jesus. Instead, you get to rely on the strength of the Holy Spirit.

New Mission: Make Disciples

Matthew 28:18-20 is what Christians call the Great Commission, the dominant marching orders for all who have faith in Christ. It can sound a bit militant: “Take God’s authority and make disciples.” But remember, these orders are from the one who lays down his life. Ironically, our orders are to invite through imitation. The mission is to make disciples through our words and actions. Or, as Jesus said, “teach and obey.” In fact, it is when we experience the riches of renewal through Christ that we become, as Eugene Peterson says, “God’s advertisement to the world.” We make disciples by living resurrected lives and telling people about the resurrected Christ.

There’s not a hint of coercion here. It’s a life of love. Jesus wants us to spread the gospel throughout the world by spending our lives intentionally with others. Resurrection doesn’t stop with us but travels through us. The commission is to invite. We get to invite others to join his redemptive agenda for human flourishing and the remaking of the world. We are sent to share the good news that Jesus has defeated sin, death, and evil through his own death and resurrection and is making all things new, even us. Jesus calls his followers to participate in his work of renewing the world.

Distinctive Discipleship

Part of what makes this command great is its scope—all nations. When Jesus spoke these words, he was orienting a primarily Jewish audience to a distinctly multi-ethnic mission. We get the word, “ethnic” from the Greek word for nations, which doesn’t refer to modernist geo-political states, but to non-Jewish ethnic groups (Gentiles). The commission is not calling disciples’ to Christianize nation-states, but to share the good news of what Jesus has done with all ethnic groups. Christ does not advocate Christendom, a top-down political Christianity. Instead, he calls his followers to transmit a bottom-up, indigenous Christianity, to all peoples in all cultures. The command is to make disciples of all nations not from all nations. So, we aren’t meant to exchange our rich culture for a cheap, consumer, Christian knock-off culture. Andrew Walls puts it well:

Conversion to Christ does not produce a bland universal citizenship: it produces distinctive discipleship, as diverse and variegated as human life itself. Christ in redeeming humanity brings, by the process of discipleship, all the richness of humanity’s infinitude of cultures and subcultures into the variegated splendor of the Full Grown Humanity to which the apostolic literature points Eph 4.8-13.

What we should strive for is distinctive discipleship, discipleship that uniquely expresses personal faith in our cultural context. Disciples in urban Manhattan will look different than disciples in rural Maehongson. These differences allow for a flourishing of the gospel that contributes to the many-splendored new humanity of Christ. Simply put, the message of Jesus is for the flourishing of all humanity in all cultures.

The Call of Resurrection

Jesus tells those who follow to leave all they have behind, to give their lives to the poor, to love their enemies, and be a blessing to the world. The resurrection enables us to follow Jesus. In this we risk for the sake of humanity and out of belief in the gospel. We do not hold back because we live with the certainty that death and sin have been defeated. His death and resurrection has become our death and resurrection. We have a new authority, identity, and mission.

This is an excerpt of the book Raised? Doubting the Resurrection. Get this eBook for free at www.raisedbook.com.

Jonathan K. Dodson (MDiv; ThM) serves as a pastor of City Life Church in Austin, Texas. He is the author of Gospel-Centered Discipleship and Unbelievable Gospel. He has discipled men and women abroad and at home for almost two decades, taking great delight in communicating the gospel and seeing Christ formed in others.

Brad Watson serves as a pastor of Bread&Wine Communities in Portland, Oregon. He is also the director of GospelCenteredDiscipleship.com. His greatest passion is to encourage and equip leaders for the mission of making disciples.

Brad Watson 3/20/13 Brad Watson 3/20/13

Raised? Doubting the Resurrection

We wrote this book out of our love for skeptics and respect for the questions they help us ask. We also write as believers who oscillate in real belief in the resurrected Christ. We hope it proves to be an insightful, stirring reflection on the resurrection.

We are giving this book away in the hope that churches will make the eBook or hardcopy available to their people, especially to all their visitors on Easter. We are praying God would use it to spark gospel conversations, equip believers, and help people meet the risen Jesus.

Download artwork, slides, and the book at: www.raisedbook.com

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One in five Americans don’t believe in a deity. The “none” category in religious polls has doubled over the past ten years. Less than half of the population attends religious services on a regular basis. As statistics rise on the decline of Christian faith in America, you may find yourself wondering if Christianity is really worth believing? After all, the Christian faith makes some audacious claims.

Audacious Claims of the Gospel

Some of the most audacious claims are made right at the center of the Christian faith—in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Though some particulars may vary, the gospel is something all Christians agree on: “that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Now, there are some big assumptions made in this verse: that we sin; that Christ was strong enough to deal with sin, and that he was stronger than death—he was raised from the dead!

If this is all true, Jesus calls us to respond by faith in him to receive forgiveness of sin and the gift of eternal life (John 3:16; Romans 6:23). Here we have four big concepts—sin, faith, Christ, and eternal life. Followers of Christ have, at times, communicated these concepts terribly. As a result, there is a general misunderstanding, even among some Christians, as to what these terms mean. For instance, eternal life (or resurrection life) is often mistaken as an escape from life in order to get into a cloudy eternity. How boring! While we address this error throughout the book, it gets particular attention in chapter four. In chapter three, we examine the meaning of sin, faith, and Christ. These are misconstrued to mean bad behavior, wishful thinking, and great teacher. Way off target. All of these concepts lack deep appeal apart from a greater narrative to fit into. In chapter two, we trace the bigger story of Scripture to see if it resonates with human longing. In this chapter, we hone in on an audacious gospel claim—that Jesus was raised from the dead.

At first glance, the death of Jesus is easy enough to embrace. It is well documented and the Roman authorities crucified people regularly. The god-sized claim beneath his self-sacrifice is what ruffles feathers. The claim that his sacrifice was on behalf of all humanity troubles both our pride and our intellect. Jesus, represented all of us? What gives him the right? Who says we need a representative or sacrifice anyway? The gospel gets crazier. The bull’s eye of the gospel is the death and resurrection of Jesus. We don’t have to dive deep to surface doubt with the resurrection. Its surface value is, well, incredible. The notion that a first century Jewish man, crucified between two common thieves, was actually God and rose from the dead is unbelievable. To the modern mind, resurrection is utterly implausible. People don’t beat death, especially after being in the grave three days. In light of recent horror trends, we might be more inclined to believe in a zombie emerging from the dead than a resurrected and fully restored person. Yet, at the center of historic Christian faith is the belief that a Jewish man named Jesus was “raised.”

If you doubt the resurrection, I’m glad. Anything worth believing has to be worth questioning, but don’t let your questions slip away unanswered. Don’t reduce your doubts to a state of unsettled cynicism. Wrestle with your doubts. Find answers.

If you call yourself a believer and a skeptic, don’t settle for pat proofs, emotional experiences, or duty-driven religion. Keep asking questions. Those who haven’t questioned their faith can easily become doctrinaire, even detached from the everyday struggle of faith. Whether you are a skeptic, believer, or somewhere in between, press into your faith or push into your doubt. Question your faith and question your doubts. Determine good reasons for believing or not believing in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. If he really did defeat death, it changes everything. Doubt well and you can walk away from skepticism, cynicism, or blind faith into perceptive belief, intellectual security, and deeper commitment. You can know that you have honestly questioned the resurrection.

Others Who Struggle to Believe

You aren’t the only one to struggle with belief in the resurrection. The story of the resurrection includes many doubters. The resurrection story is rooted in an historical account of events in first century Palestine (modern day Israel). The Gospels (written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) report these events from four different vantage points, narrating the life, ministry, death, and alleged resurrection of Jesus. The Gospel authors tell us that Jesus predicted his death and resurrection years before it occurred (John 2:22). He knew what was coming and went along with it. He didn’t run. One evening, Jesus met his disciples in a garden to pray. Suddenly, he was interrupted by clanging armor and flaming torches. Roman soldiers appeared to arrest him at the behest of the religious right (the Pharisees). The Pharisees charged Jesus with sedition, a charge most unsettling to the Roman Empire. As his disciples scattered, Jesus was left to face trial alone. He was quickly tried in the wee hours of Friday morning and crucified that afternoon. He was buried that night. On Sunday, grief stricken women went to visit Jesus’ tomb. As devoted disciples, they were shocked to find his tomb uncovered. Other disciples joined them, entered the tomb, and found his body gone, with his grave clothes lying there. This is where doubt begins to creep in.

Some claim the body was stolen. Mary thought the same thing, until Jesus appeared to her. Other disciples disbelieved her resurrection report, even after Jesus appeared to them (Luke 24:36-43). They mistook him for a ghost, so Jesus took it upon himself to prove his physical existence. He ate a piece of fish before their very eyes and they all believed, except doubting Thomas. Thomas saw all of this and remained incredulous. He heard the news, saw the man, and even watched Jesus perform an experiment proving he was real. Now, if God really is Jesus, and he’s risen from the dead standing right in front of you, proves he’s not a spirit, and you still doubt, how do you think Jesus should respond? You’d think Jesus would smack him down for doubt, rebuke Thomas on the spot, and call him to fall in line with his now believing friends. But he didn’t. Instead, Jesus entertains his doubts. He invites Thomas to press his hands to his tender crucifixion wounds, charging him: “Do not disbelieve, but believe” (John 20:27).

If you doubt the resurrection, you’re in good company. To the solidly skeptical and those struggling with doubt, Jesus remains ready to receive our questions. Jesus entertains doubts. He also implores belief. (Wouldn’t you if you died and rose from the dead, appearing to your disbelieving family and friends?) And to those who do not see the resurrected Christ, and still believe, Jesus confers a particular blessing (John 20:29). Though a blessing from God sounds nice, it can still be hard to get past the implausibility of someone rising from the dead. Many believe in the historical Jesus, but fewer believe in the resurrected Jesus.

The resurrection is like a river that parts a road. People are on the road approaching the river. Arriving at the river of the resurrection, you look across it to where the road continues, and see quite a few cars are parked there. In your doubt, you can’t imagine how people got to the other side. How did they get across the river? How can rational people come to the belief that Jesus died and rose from the dead?

The Global Perspective

Truth be told, the parking lot on the other side of the resurrection is overflowing. Resurrection-believing Christians are all over the world. Today there are approximately 2.2 billion Christians in the world, almost a billion more Christians than Muslims (who adhere to the second largest world religion, Islam). Christians around the world claim a personal encounter with Christ and a relationship with a resurrected Jesus. Many of them are so devout they have suffered for their belief in the resurrected Christ. These believers are from a broad array of cultures and ethnic backgrounds. What are we to conclude from this?

Because Christianity is the world’s largest (and incredibly diverse) religion, should you jump ship on your unbelief or switch religions? The sheer number of believing, praying, suffering Christians does not make the resurrection true, but it should make it possible. It is possible that Islam is also true; however, Muslims do not put hope in a resurrected messiah. Allah is not a God who suffers for humanity and conquers death. In Jesus, however, we find God crucified and raised to life. According to the Bible, the resurrection is also a preview of things to come (1 Corinthians 15). Resurrection isn’t restricted to Jesus. All who have faith in him will eventually gain a resurrected body to enjoy a “resurrected” world. This certainly is hopeful. If billions of people and thousands of cultures have found hope in the resurrection, then perhaps there is something to it? How did all those ethnic groups come to believe a claim as implausible as the resurrection of Jesus?

The majority of the Christian population has shifted away from the West to the South and the East.The current statistical-geographical center of global Christianity is, quite literally, Timbuktu, Mali. That’s Africa. The largest Christian nation is China. Now, the interesting thing about the current center of global Christianity is that it is in cultures that affirm the supernatural. In fact, the global south encounters inexplicable, supernatural events on a regular basis. Not so in the West, we have ruled out the supernatural. We rarely see such extraordinary things. We begin with the assumption that the supernatural is not possible. Is this position critical or biased? To be sure, some Americans are willing to believe in the supernatural the teachings of Buddha, Vishnu, and Eckhart Tolle, but are we willing to believe in Jesus, risen from the dead? If we are to consider the plausibility of the resurrection, we must begin with its possibility. Critical of our default cultural position, this is the only intellectually honest place to begin. Is it true, as the Apostle Paul summarized: “that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)? Let’s consider this central tenant of a historic world faith. We will begin by asking other skeptics who were alive at the time of Jesus’ alleged resurrection. Did they find the resurrection plausible? How did some of them get across the river of doubt?