Praying For Bad Things to Happen To Bad People

When was the last time you were mad at someone? I mean really mad? Mad enough to pray that God would do something terrible to them? As I read my news feeder this morning articles about the trial of an abortionist in Philadelphia occupied the bandwidth of my iPad. From exposure, to trial details, to commentary on the issues at hand the Gosnell murder trial was front and center. As I read the details of the trial a very sinister and unsanitized thought entered my head. "Maybe they will find him guilty and snip his spine at the base of his neck like he did to all those babies... or worse!" As soon as it was tracking through my frontal lobe though, I felt guilt. How awful that I would think some sort of thought like that towards this man. My Christian upbringing has taught me to reject thoughts like that as vengeful, angry, and wrong. I deserve wrath just as much as Gosnell does. I deserve death for my sin just as deeply as he does. Thinking like that has no place in the mind of a Christian. Or does it? Psalm 137 has long been an intriguing and difficult passage for me to handle. What place does a song that ends with "dash their babies heads against the rocks" have in the Bible? It sounds so vengeful, so vitriol, so wrong. How did a song that elevates the death and vengeance of another people come to be in the Bible, be considered "Christian," or even inspired Scripture? Maybe the problem isn't with the Bible. Maybe the problem is with our view of justice and the place of praying prayers that ask for God to pummel our enemies into dust.

The Imprecatory Category

Within the Psalms themselves we find more than just one example of expressions like Psalm 137. Some have categorized these unique Psalms into a category of prayer labeled "imprecatory Psalms." As C.S. Lewis states in, Reflections on the Psalms: "In some of the Psalms the spirit of hatred which strikes us in the face is like the heat from a furnace mouth." These Psalms are ones in which an appeal to God is made to curse, destroy, or remove an enemy of the writer. They are pleas for vengeance, justice, and equity for the downtrodden.

The problem with this category of Psalm is that it doesn't seem to fit with the other parts of Scripture. How can we pray things like Psalm 109 prays?

 Let his years be few; let someone else take his position. May his children become fatherless, and his wife a widow. May his children wander as beggars and be driven from their ruined homes. May creditors seize his entire estate, and strangers take all he has earned. Let no one be kind to him; let no one pity his fatherless children. - Psalm 109:8-12, NLT.

If we’re humble to the Scriptures then, functionally we have to put this category of imprecatory prayers within our Christian lives. If we are going to submit ourselves to the Scripture in every part and believe what the Bible says, then we have to figure out how this kind of prayer fits our lives. The Psalms themselves were collected and used as a worship songbook for the nation of Israel. Psalm 137, as one of the songs of Ascents, was probably recited as the Jews went up to Jerusalem for the annual festivals. Jesus himself most likely recited this Psalm on his way to Jerusalem for one of the Passover Feasts he observed. But can you even imagine the words "Blessed be the one who dashes their babies heads against the rocks" coming out of Jesus' mouth?

A Tolerant Unimprecatory World

It may sound trite to say that our world has stripped the Biblical notions of justice, vengeance and righteous anger from just about anywhere. To look at a person who has deeply sinned against us and pray to God "Let no one be kind to him" is categorically mean. Our tolerance of people who would even pray like this even further diminished. Didn't Jesus himself say, "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44)? Praying that they have a very difficult time of things in life however doesn't seem to equate with loving your enemy.

Let's face it, the only people our world allows us to be intolerant with are intolerant people. It doesn't fit with the cultural Zeitgeist of our times. Even at its core praying that God strikes down people opposed to us doesn't feel loving. It doesn't feel Christian. Functionally many Christians have just removed these sorts of passages from their Bibles altogether. Worse yet is that we have ignored and forgotten this sort of thing is even in the Bible. The question is are we listening to culture more than we are listening to our Bibles on this issue? Is there room for prayers and songs such as these?

One of the reasons we struggle to pray things like this is because we struggle, culturally, with the concept of justice. More specifically, we have lost the categories of right and wrong. And yet, we all know it is there. The families of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting categorically understand “right” and “wrong”. The recent Boston Marathon bombing and aftermath spoke to us, collectively, as a “wrong” event. Immediately after the capture of the suspected bomber the Boston police department tweeted “justice has won.” Yet without a category of right and wrong, good and evil, the concept of justice falls down everywhere. Justice in its essence means good for the righteous and evil for the wicked. If there is no real rights and no real wrongs in this world, and everything is left as a cultural preference in our society, then justice itself is a construct we can also do away with. Hitler, Stalin, Gosnell, bin Laden, and every rapist, murderer, pedophile, and terrorist should go free and be left alone to their own devices.

Our hearts, internally, don’t leave us with that option. In our hearts, regardless of how relative and tolerant we are, we desire justice. We want right to be right, and the wrong to be wrong. Especially if we are wronged. We want justice.

For this very reason God’s justice comes to us as a welcome relief. God’s justice tells us that he will do the right thing, for the right people, in the right way, at the right time. Justice for God speaks of all his perfections coming to bear on his creation in beautiful exactness. The Scriptures so clearly affirm that God is just, and will always be just. As Abraham attempted to negotiate with God for the safety of the city of Sodom on behalf of the righteous inhabitants there he called forth God’s justice and stated, “Surely you wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, you would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely you wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?” (Genesis 18:25, NLT). The tension for us is that we often wonder where God’s justice is. We want justice now. We want blood today. We want punishment and vengeance to fall upon the guilty against us at this very moment. Wrong must be punished; right must be honored.

Entrusting The Means To God

One of the reasons that I appreciate the imprecatory Psalms so much is that they give me a legitimate means by which to express frustration with God about the injustice of this world. They give me a category and an outlet to help me deal with both persons and circumstances of injustice, immorality. They put me in my place and give God the rightful place he has as Lord over all.

When we look at the Imprecatory Psalms we see that the Psalmist isn't just praying ill will on others, and then going out and carrying that ill will out himself. The Psalmist is expressing himself to God in need. He is saying, "God things are so bad here right now because of this, will you enact vengeance upon them because of their wickedness." There is an air of release in praying these things. In appealing to God to act in this way the Psalmist is giving themselves and the outcome over to God. They are entrusting themselves to a faithful Creator. This doesn't mean God, at that moment will do as the person has prayed. It means that the responsibility of setting things straight is put into the hands of the rightful authority.

For many the idea of praying about vengeance and justice is a foreign notion, because we don't want to be mean about it to others. However, God gives us that means as a matter of faith. When I pray about the difficult situations or people in my sphere of life, or the world at large, I am asking God to take control. I am relinquishing my right to stand as judge, jury and executioner and giving that mantle to God.

Vengeance Is Mine, Says the Lord

Often times I think I don't allow myself to pray in these ways because I doubt God will deal with it. I doubt that he will actually act justly, and so I hope that someone else will do it. As soon as I had my thought about Kermit Gosnell I despaired. In my mind I played out the thoughts that the judge would go lenient on him, that he'd get off on a technicality, and that he'd walk free, even lauded, in our society. My despair was brought on by the fact that I had forgotten about the justice of God. I was hoping that someone, somewhere would give this "monster" his due.

Only God can do that rightly. Only God can bring vengeance down upon us because of our sins. With the imprecatory category I can now pray "let his years be few" and stop worrying about whether God will do it full justice. He is fully just. His action will be right and adequate. The end of the Scripture story is very clear, God will bring full, precise, wise justice upon all those who oppose God and his ways. The angels sing “Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was, for you brought these judgments. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve!” (Revelation 16:5–6, ESV). God will give to everyone what they deserve. Justice will be served.

However, for some this justice has already been served. This makes our prayer for justice a tension filled one. For in praying these sorts of things it might so happen in a different manner. The vengeance that God might pour out against wickedness might have already been secured. On the cross Jesus bore the full weight of God's justice and wrath for those who believe. In Jesus violent murder, an unjust and evil act in itself, the righteous justice of God was performed. Jesus as our substitute stood in our place and took our penalty, God’s wrath, for our sins. As I pray for vengeance upon my enemies and wicked people God’s answer might result in the person hearing and receiving the gospel news and believing fully in Jesus. In that case justice has been served. Christ has stood in their place, he has taken their penalty, he has absorbed the full weight of the wrath of God and the vengeance of God has been applied. The offending sinner has been given a clean slate. The question is am I okay with God's mercy and justice in this situation? Will I entrust myself to him to do what he deems best with each and every individual?

Maybe the real problem with our prayers for justice is that we are afraid of God being just, and answering with mercy towards the sinner. It is in the case that we need to repent of our arrogance and self-righteousness. Were we not the ones that were rebellious and wicked and offensive to God as well? Did we not deserve death for our sins? Did not Christ take our punishment himself? Maybe we don’t understand God’s justice.

Pray Boldly

Maybe our faith and prayers are too weak. We don't pray boldly enough for both the justice and mercy of God. Maybe we are missing a means of gospel transformation in our own lives by not taking up the Psalms and praying those words to God. This includes the feelgood "The Lord is my shepherd" (Psalm 23) type Psalms as well as the "may they perish at the rebuke of your face" (Psalm 80) imprecatory prayers.

We ought to pray the entire Psalter, both highs and lows and in so doing let the actions of justice, grace, vengeance, mercy and hope be given over to God, who is faithful and true. Let's pray boldly and let's entrust ourselves to God who pours out his perfect justice at the cross, and will do so again at the Final Judgement. It will make us more compassionate, more bold, and better equipped to deal with hard statements in the Scriptures.

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Jeremy Writebol is the Executive Director of GCD. He is the husband of Stephanie and father of Allison and Ethan. He serves as the lead campus pastor of Woodside Bible Church in Plymouth, MI. He is also an author and contributor to several GCD Books including everPresent and Make, Mature, Multiply. He writes personally at jwritebol.net. You can read all of Jeremy’s articles for GCD here.

I Am Holy

Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord. - Hebrews 12:14

God’s word says that we cannot see God unless we are holy. Seriously. It’s right there for everyone to see. Not only is it blatant, but it’s damning. Webster’s reminds us that to be holy is to be “exalted or worthy of complete devotion as one perfect in goodness and righteousness.” (emphasis mine)

That’s just great. I am in deep trouble.

I am not holy. Not even close. I often have the market cornered on being arrogant. I really struggle with keeping my mouth under control. I am regularly lazy. I would love to tell you more about my weakness, but my pride would get offended if I did. My pride is so strong that I even mess up my attempts to grow in humility. Unbelievable. When I try to grow in humility, there is always an underlying desire to gain something from that humility. Maybe my humility will gain me respect, or maybe God will grant me some blessing, and so on. Good grief. I can’t even get humility right because my pride thumps its chest and gets in the way. This underlying pride undergirds all of our collective attempts to pursue humility.

On top of all this, the Bible tells me I cannot see God unless I am holy. It would seem that there is no more crushing truth in scripture than that. I fall short. Horribly, horribly short.

And yet there is hope. The truth is, I am holy; I am righteous. Even in the face of my unrighteousness. Once again, I’m serious. Because of my faith in Christ, the progression of my new life in him looks like this.

I am declared holy.

I am being made holy.

I am actually holy.

If there is a more powerful truth in scripture than the truth that God deeply loves me and is making me holy, I don’t know what it is.

I am declared holy. 

“He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” - 2 Corinthians 5:21

Imagine learning about a banquet. Not just a banquet, but banquet that will end all banquets. The banquet that will redefine what a banquet should be. Unbelievably, there is an open invitation to said banquet. Anyone who responds is welcome to attend the banquet. There is a catch, however. In order to gain admission into the banquet, you must be dressed exquisitely. This is a problem because you are poor and have nothing to offer as a means of acquiring the kind of apparel necessary for entrance into the banquet. At just the right moment, however, another person walks up to you and offers to trade your filthy rags for their Armani tuxedo. This is great news! It makes no logical sense, but you are thrilled nonetheless. This kind and generous stranger disrobes and covers you with their luxury apparel, while taking on your filthy rags. The truth is, you know that the luxury garments aren’t yours. You didn’t buy them - you couldn’t buy them - and you feel a bit like a pretender, but you gain access into the banquet, not because of your fine taste in fashion and closet full of fine apparel, but because a gracious stranger took on your filthy rags so that you might assume their grandeur. In theological circles, we would call this “imputed righteousness.” In Jesus’ perfect life and then death on the cross, he made his holiness available to me. As I bowed the knee to King Jesus, he covered me in the cloak of his righteousness. When God looks at me, he no longer sees Micah in all my filthy rags, but instead sees the glory of Jesus' holiness covering me. In response to the covering of Jesus’ holiness I am declared righteous. The truth is that I am still, in a very real sense, the guy who is covered in filthiness, but because Jesus’ holiness covers my filth, God gladly slams the gavel down on the heavenly judicial bench and declares that I am, in fact, not guilty. I am declared holy.

I am being made holy.

The bible reminds us that long before the world was set into place God had a plan for us. The prophet Jeremiah points out to us in Jeremiah 29:11 that his plan is one to “prosper us” and “not to harm us.” Too often we miss the fact that this isn’t a declaration of coming financial prosperity or avoidance of pain. This is a reminder that, in God’s great plan and because of Jesus, God is making us like himself; he is making us holy.

“For those He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.” - Romans 8:29

This passage reminds us that God’s plan for us is to make us like Jesus. God is not satisfied to merely declare us to be holy (though that is certainly no small thing in itself), but has decided in his providence to work in us to mold us into an entirely different image - to actually make us holy. This, then, should be the natural progression of any who claim faith in Jesus.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.” - 2 Corinthians 5:17

In Christ we are covered by Christ’s righteousness, and made into something entirely different than we were. This is true for everyone who claims faith in Jesus.

I am being made holy.

I am actually holy.

“So it is with the resurrection of the dead:Sown in corruption, raised in incorruption; sown in dishonor, raised in glory; sown in weakness, raised in power; sown a natural body, raised a spiritual body.” - 1 Corinthians 15:42-44

Of course I don’t mean that, right now, I am actually holy. I am arrogant at times, but I would hole that I’m a bit more self-aware than that. I am definitely not actually holy - or completely holy - yet. That’s the great thing, however. I may not be actually holy today, but I will be someday.

In God’s eternal kingdom, as all competitors to that kingdom have been destroyed, God will make his children into perfect reflections of himself. This is kind of a big deal. Arrogant Micah, bitter Micah, jealous Micah and all the other unsavory versions of Micah will be no more. For those of you who have believed in Jesus, this is your certain future as well. It seems a bit unbelievable, I know. It would be understandable if you felt the need to pinch yourself in response.

I am holy.

What is the Gospel?

When you think about words that are used, abused and highly misunderstood in our culture today, one word in particular rises to the top. It is the word love. We use the word love in our culture to describe our thoughts and feelings for just about anything and everything.

A person wakes up in the morning and quickly jumps into the shower. As the warm water runs over their head, they say to themselves, “I love warm showers.” Then they make their way into the kitchen for a cup of coffee and as they sip the coffee, they say out loud with a smile, “I love coffee in the morning.” They leave their house saying to their spouse and children, “I love you, have a great day.” They pray on their way to work and end the prayer by saying, “I love you God.” When they get in the office, they scan their Facebook account, because the night before they posted a new status update. They wonder how many people liked their post. Today, was a good day. Several people from all across the country not only liked their post, but made multiple comments. As they reclined in their chair they look over at a co-worker and say, “I love facebook.”

If you put all this together, in less than 2 hours this person has declared their love for warm showers, coffee in the morning, their spouse and children, God himself, and facebook.  And so it is not wonder when it comes to the subject of love, we are often confused, using it carelessly with little thought.

I would submit to you that what has happened in our culture when it comes to the word love has also happened in our local churches and in the larger landscape of Christianity when it comes to the word gospel. Just like the word love, we use the word gospel at times freely and careless, rarely asking and answering the question, “what is the gospel?”

I can still remember, three years ago sitting at my desk, reflecting on my life and leadership, successes and failures and asking myself this question, “Shawn, do you really understand the gospel?” It is a strange and vulnerable question for a person to ask who has a been a follower of  Jesus for twenty years, has a graduate degree in theology, teaches at a Christian college and pastors a growing church. Yet, I am convinced it is easy, as a followers of Jesus, to let our hearts and minds drift on autopilot and think we understand the gospel, but do we really? Can we communicate the gospel to friends and family with confidence and clarity? Can those in our immediate family and church family communicate the gospel with confidence and clarity?

It was on that day that I started a journey to absorb everything I could on the subject of the gospel. I approached the question, “what is the gospel?” with fresh eyes and an open heart. I wanted to be awakened again to the radical scandalous grace of God and refreshed by his ferocious love. All of this happened and more.

THE GOSPEL IN SCRIPTURE

In the New Testament, the word gospel first appears in Mark. It is here, inspired by the Holy Spirit, that Mark shares his overall purpose and point of writing: “The beginning of the good news (which in Greek is the word gospel) about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God”  (Mark 1:1).

Then thirteen verses later, we find Jesus preaching and proclaiming to those in Galilee. What does he proclaim? He proclaims the gospel.

After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news! -  Mark 1:14-15.

At the end of the Matthew, we find Jesus saying this gospel, will be proclaimed to the entire world.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. - Matthew 24:14

When you exit out of the gospel writers and enter into the writings of Paul, we find that he is unashamed of the gospel and believes it has life changing power.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. - Romans 1:16

Not only does Paul believe this gospel has life changing power, but he also encourages those in the church of Corinth to stand in the truth of the gospel.

Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand. - 1 Corinthians 15:1 ESV

Then Paul goes on to say that the gospel is active and growing, not something that is passive and stagnant.

Because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth. - Colossians 1:5-6

THE GOSPEL IN HISTORY

As you can see the word gospel is mentioned throughout scripture in various ways and in various settings. Yet, the question still remains, “What is the gospel?”

The word gospel in english find it roots in the greek word, “euangélion.”  The word euangélion literally mean “news that brings great joy.” When we hear the word gospel in today’s Christian culture our minds and hearts immediately run to the spiritual implications, but in the first century most minds and hearts would race to the political and historical implications. For those living in the time of Jesus, the word gospel was used to refer to life altering, history making, world shaping news.

BATTLE OF MARATHON

An example of this can be seen in the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C. when Greece was invaded by Persia. The Persians thought this would be an easy and effortless victory, but the Greeks would prove them wrong. They would not only fight back, but successful defeated the Persians. After the battle was won, Greece sent heralds or evangelists out to proclaim the good news or gospel of their victory to the surrounding cities.

Gerhard Kittel, the German protestant professor who wrote a well known and widely used book titled, “The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament” writes the following description of the Battle of Marathon.

“The messenger appears, raises a big right hand in greeting and calls out with a loud voice… By his appearance it is known already that he brings good news. His face shines, his spear is decked with laurel, his head is crowned, he swings a branch of palms and joy fills the city.” Kittel, Theological Dictionary of the NT, Vol. 2, p. 722)

Kittel describes a scene of someone bringing life altering, history making, world shaping news of great joy. It is not something that is happening, it is something that has happened.

CAESAR AUGUSTUS AND GOSPEL

If we continue this historical plight, we find that the very word of Mark would have connected in the minds of his readers in profound ways. For what Mark says about Jesus is the exact phrase attributed to Caesar Augustus. An inscription that was discovered from the first century reads, “The beginning of the gospel of Caesar Augustus” (Priene 105.40).

When it was first inscribed it carried with it the message of life altering, history making, world changing news that Caesar Augustus was on the throne. The point that is being made and reinforced that this is good news, joyful news worth celebrating and rejoicing over. At least from  the perspective of the Romans.

When the word gospel is being used in the New Testament it is clearly referring to the life altering, history making, world shaping news about Jesus and his Kingdom. It communicates something has happened in history and as a result the world will never be the same. The gospel of Jesus is good news about a conquering king and battle won.

WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT THE GOSPEL

As I continued on my journey, I took the time to research how other pastors and theologians answered the question, “what is the gospel?” Here are some of the answers that stood out to me.

Tim Keller in his book, “The King and The Cross” writes: “A gospel is an announcement of something that has happened in history, something that has been done for you, that changes your status forever. It is not good advice, it is good news.”

Martin Luther in his book, “Basic Theology” writes: “The gospel is a story about Christ, God’s and David’s son, who died and was raised, and is established as Lord. This is the gospel in a nutshell.”

Alistair Begg in his book, “Keep Me Near the Cross” writes: “Here’s the gospel in a phrase. Because Christ died for us, those who trust in him may know that their guilt has been pardoned once and for all. What will we have to say before the bar of God’s judgment? Only one thing. Christ died in my place. That’s the gospel.”

N.T. Wright in an article for Christianity Today writes: “The gospel is the royal announcement that the crucified and risen Jesus, who died for our sins and rose again according to the Scriptures, has been enthroned as the true Lord of the world. When this gospel is preached, God calls people to salvation, out of sheer grace, leading them to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ as the risen Lord.”

Scot McKnight in his book, “Embracing Grace” writes: “The gospel is the work of God to restore humans to union with God and communion with others, in the context of a community, for the good of others and the world.”

John Piper in an interview on the gospel states: “The Gospel is the news that Jesus Christ, the Righteous One, died for our sins and rose again, eternally triumphant over all his enemies, so that there is now no condemnation for those who believe, but only everlasting joy.”

THE GOSPEL IN MY OWN WORDS

After tracing the word gospel through scripture, looking at if from a historical perspective and then learning from pastors and theologians, I would like to share with you how I define the gospel. In one sentence, I would define the gospel as the good news of Jesus and His Kingdom. If you gave me three sentences, I would define the gospel in this way:

The gospel is the good news that God who is holy and just, looked with grace and mercy on our sin, and in His great love sent His Son to proclaim and establish His Kingdom. Jesus came to sacrificially and selflessly die for us so that, by His death, resurrection and power, we could receive new and eternal life. It is through Jesus that sin is forgiven, people are reconciled to God, and the world will one day be made new.

If you had three sentences, how would you define the gospel?

As I reflect on my journey, I have learned that the gospel is never something you outgrow or grow beyond. Instead as a follower of Jesus you continue to grow each year into a richer, deeper, fuller understanding of the gospel. It fuels our faith, shapes our prayers, directs our ministry and reminds us of our worth and God’s spectacular glory!

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Shawn Kennedy is a part of the Lead Pastoral Team at Existence Church. He is the co-author of  Kingdom Come: A Gospel-Centered Guide to Discipleship.You can follow him on Twitter or Facebook or visit Kingdom Come Discipleship. Shawn has a passion for helping people become gospel-centered followers of Jesus who love God, love others and make disciples to the glory of God.

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What happens when we forget the meaning and power of the gospel? Luma Simms explores in Gospel Amnesia.

Partnering with Parents as You Mentor Teenagers

Aaron Colyer and his wife Krista have been married since 2006 and have three amazing kids. He has a passion for shepherding young people and their families. He serves as Student Pastor at MacArthur Blvd. Baptist Church in Irving, TX. Born and raised in Texas, he earned a B.S. in Communication Studies from The University of Texas in Austin, and an M.Div. from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. ___

Many of us have not grown in our faith without the help of a mentor. While Christ accomplished everything necessary for our faith at the cross and the Holy Spirit does all the work of sanctification, one of the means that the Spirit uses in our sanctification are the men and women that come alongside to mature us in the faith. Examples of mentoring from the very beginning of the church are numerous, such as Paul’s relationship to Timothy and Peter’s relationship to Mark. One of the greatest joys a Christian can experience is the ability to pour your life into a younger believer and echo the words of Paul, "Follow me as I follow Christ."

In recent years, there many church leaders and authors have rightly emphasized the theology and practice of mentoring and discipleship. One popular work that has been particularly helpful in reference to this model of multiplication is The Master Plan of Evangelism by Robert Coleman. Yet with all of the available resources on mentoring and discipleship, I have seen very little written about the importance of a spiritual mentor partnering with parents in mentoring teenagers. In fact, I often have heard negative sentiments expressed by some who suggest that parents can actually get in the way of the things the spiritual mentor wants to accomplish.

Developing Relationships

In ten years of student ministry, the Lord has taught me so much about mentoring. It’s been an adventure filled with spiritual fruit and rebellion, victories and failures, celebrations and sorrow, laughter and tears. Much time has been spent in mentoring relationships with students in prayer, with open Bibles, doing evangelism, hanging out, memorizing Scripture, sharing family meals, talking relationships, confessing sin, attending events, and reading books. One area of student ministry that I have come to value more now than when I started is the importance of establishing relationships with the teenager’s parents.

At first, it was intimidating to ask a dad out to coffee, lunch, or have both parents come by the house for dessert. I was a young student pastor in my twenties and was just starting my family. Yet I was reminded that my authority did not come from my experience, but from the Word of God and the calling that He had placed on my life. As these meetings became more frequent, not only did they become less intimidating, I actually started to look forward to them. I began to understand the potential that these conversations carried for the spiritual growth of both the student that I was mentoring and their parents.

Many Christian parents understand that they are the primary spiritual leaders in the home. If not, developing a relationship with the parents gives me the opportunity to encourage them to accept their Scriptural responsibilities as parents.

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” Deuteronomy 6:4-7

“He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers 
to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments…” Psalm 78:5-7

Walking with Parents

As a student pastor, my desire is to partner with parents and supplement the ministry that they are already accomplishing in the home—namely the process of keeping Christ at the center of their home by praying, reading the Scriptures together, setting spiritual goals with their children, keeping them accountable for those goals, and talking about how their teenager is experiencing the Lord as they walk through the adventure of adolescence. As I walk this path with parents, I’ve found several things to be helpful.

1. Ask for the parents’ permission to be involved in the mentoring relationship with their children. This builds a relationship of trust between you and the parents.
2. As the relationship continues, keep an open line of communication with the parents. This will encourage them as they lead, pray, and fight to stay connected to the heart of their teenagers. It also gives me the opportunity to see how my student is doing from the perspective of someone who spends seven days a week with them. It’s rare that I have the opportunity to see how my student ‘honors’ their mother and father throughout the week, or if they are interacting with their siblings in a loving way, etc. So teaming up with parents is a win for everybody involved.
3. If the student has unbelieving parents, you still can partner with them and have an open line of communication about the spiritual goals that have been set for their student. You also will have the opportunity to share the good news of Christ with the parents themselves. They have a vested interest in the growth of their student and you can talk about Jesus as you discuss that growth. Conversations with parents about their students often allows opportunities to discuss the parents’ spiritual need to respond to the Gospel with repentance and faith.

For the last several years my wife and I have been mentoring teenagers with an emphasis on relationship with the parents. We have also trained leaders to do this. It has opened several opportunities for missional living with unbelieving parents and sparked many conversations with Christian parents as they are continually encouraged and equipped to fulfill the leadership role in their child’s life. It is often the case that the parents call the spiritual mentor asking for prayer and wisdom to handle a situation in their home. Emphasizing relationship with the parents increases the potential impact from one teenager and those he or she will influence to whole families influencing those around them for Christ. May it never be said again that the work of connecting with the parents of those we mentor is distracting or too hard.

Fighting Satan through the Character of Christ

Paul’s story is well documented. He was a killer of Christians and an adamant opponent their faith (Acts 8:1-3). Later, as a man saved by God’s grace, he constantly urged believers to turn away from their old lives and to press into their new natures in Christ. He did not harp on rules and regulations, but rather exhorted them to look to Christ for their reason for living. As a hate-monger transformed into a humble servant, Paul knew the benefit of receiving and offering Christ’s compassion. Few passages in the New Testament describe the character of Christ as a weapon against Satan’s work as clearly as Ephesians 4:25-32. In this passage, Paul makes a very clear assertion to believers: Christians are freed through the sacrifice of Christ, by the power of the Spirit, to reflect him and deflect Satan.

Speak Truth (v. 25)

Paul states, “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, forwe are members one of another.” In short, he is telling his audience to be honest with one another. He does not issue this warning against lying in order to be seen as righteous to outsiders or to prevent themselves from consequences later on; rather, Paul says that Christians should speak the truth because they are one body.

The word for “members” in the Greek, mele, literally means “a bodily organ or limb,” giving the metaphor that Christians are plainly, not just figuratively, connected as flesh and bone members of a body. It is indispensable for believers to understand that, in a sense, they should treat each other how they themselves want to be treated. If a believer lies to a brother, he is simply sinning against every other Christian and, essentially, himself. Paul carries this thought from verse 24 in which he tells believers to “put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” Although Christians will always struggle with Satan’s temptation to speak falsely until the moment of death, they become new creations in Christ with the ability to walk in a manner that reflects the likeness of God himself.

Control Anger (vv. 26-27)

The passage continues expanding on the statements made in previous verses, saying, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, andgive no opportunity to the devil.” These two verses combine to explain that such characteristics belong to the devil and not to God. Anger in and of itself is not a sin when exercised appropriately. Even Christ, who did not sin (2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15), was angry (without sinning) as he rebuked the “money-changers” in the temple (Matt. 21:12-13). When Christians act in such a way that they are representing Satan’s lies and not Christ’s model, they are in danger of, or already participating in, sin. Francis Foulkes clarifies, “The Christian must be sure that his anger is that of righteous indignation, and not just an expression of personal provocation or wounded pride. It must have no sinful motives, nor be allowed to lead to sin in any way.”

Christians are a new creation with a new attitude and a new power to overcome the traps of Satan. Given the opportunity to hold a grudge, the Christian must turn away from their anger and forgive immediately. If “the sun goes down” on a person’s anger, it will continually eat them alive, just as Satan has planned. Satan is a powerful trickster, looking for and providing any avenue for a person to give into temptation and give him a place to work. The gospel affords the opportunity to escape such traps.

Be Generous (v. 28)

For the Christian, there is a new outlook on the idea of giving and receiving: “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, sothat he may have something to share with anyone in need.” Once given this new life in Christ, a person is called to view their possessions differently. Once a thief, the new believer must work honestly for their income and turn it into a gift.

One only needs to look at the life and ministry of Jesus to see that servanthood is the paramount trait of a holy person. Christ was and is God who stepped into human history and lived a perfect, sinless life. As an eternal king, he had no true reason to be humble or to serve anyone, but he did. He gave all of himself in order that Christians might have a life more than they ever imagined (John 10:10-11). Though Satan makes selfishness appealing, the humble character of Christ cannot be overlooked by anyone seeking to model themselves after him. Dishonest gain may often be the easy route to travel, but believers are commissioned to take the road less traveled.

Show Grace (v. 29)

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” Here, believers are told not to speak in such a way that someone will be hurt or pushed away by their words. Satan will use biting words to attempt to destroy not only the body of Christ, but relationships they have with others.

It is often the case that society judges Christians based upon their actions. The world is not merely looking for a show, but an authentic lifestyle that promotes goodness. While it is rather easy for the Christian to settle into moralistic behavior modification in order to attempt at pleasing Christ and appearing righteous to the around him, the new man cannot stop there; he must act in sincere concern for those looking to him for answers on Christ.

Any person can modify behavior, but a true disciple of Christ lives with a transformed heart that sees other human beings as lost souls in need of Christ’s redemption. Satan will try to distract believers from the Great Commission, but this must be fought against. There is no escaping the call to love others as Christ does.

Do Not Grieve the Spirit (v. 30)

Paul advises Christians: “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day ofredemption.” This is a simple caution with huge implications. When sinning, one must remember that their sin is not only damaging to others; it’s an affront to God.

The Holy Spirit is God, the third person of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit may sometimes be under appreciated and overlooked by many Christians, but the he is the actual person of God dwelling within the Christian. As the Holy Spirit dwells in the believer, he is rightly and justly saddened and angered by the direct disregard for his holy standard. When the Christian sins, it is not to be forgotten that the holy and righteous God of the universe takes full notice. God is not a distant being, floating in the outskirts of creation; God is an active and living being dwelling in and standing beside each person every day of their existence with full knowledge of their transgressions against him. John Calvin once exhorted Christians to “endeavor that the Holy Spirit may dwell cheerfully within you, as in a pleasant and joyful dwelling, and give him no occasion for grief.”

Christians should give thanks for the seal of redemption (Eph. 1:13-14) given to them by God through Christ on the Roman cross. It is in him and him alone that the old man dies and the new man is raised to new life. This new life holds the promise of eternal liberation, while Satan only offers bondage and destruction.

Attitude Matters (v. 31)

Paul collects all wrong attitudes together in one verse, telling his audience to “let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.” Though surely a problem in the church that Paul is writing to, any and all Christians can attest to struggling with these very things. As a Christian, this desire does not simply disappear on the day of new life. There is still constant battle within the soul of a Christian to do what is right and holy when Satan’s temptation seems to be the correct – or at least easier – way to handle the negative situation.

The simple response for the Christian is to ignore a person who wrongs them by “turning the other cheek.” This is true and virtuous. However, with the power of the Holy Spirit within the believer, there is far more power over sin than merely walking away or pretending that an offense didn’t occur. A new creation in Christ has every resource imaginable to actively pursue radical forgiveness and grace. The act of loving an enemy is far and above the call of mere forgiveness. After all, even a non-believer with no supernatural power at all can turn away from a person who insults, attacks, or demeans them. God promises something better; he promises “a way of escape” for believers (1 Cor. 10:13).

Be Kind and Forgiving (v. 32)

Paul concludes the passage with this statement: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Believers are called to such a lifestyle because they are new creations with a new heart, first forgiven by God so that they may show grace to the world. The selfish Christian is a contradiction; no one set free from sin can simultaneously be a captive to it. Paul is entirely clear in verse 24 that there is no such thing as a Christian that lives as he once did.

A major facet of the gospel is that having the inclination to continue sinning does not grant a person the excuse to maintain the same pattern of living. In describing a new creation in Christ, Paul uses the adjectives “kind,” “tenderhearted,” and “forgiving.” These are not natural dispositions of the natural human being; these are supernatural reactions to the broken mess of creation.

Saved For a Purpose

Paul says in Romans 5:14 that Christianity is foundationally void and useless if Christ did not resurrect from the dead after his crucifixion. For the Christian, this has massive connotations. If Christ did not rise, he did not conquer death and in turn conquered death on behalf of anyone else. If Christ was not raised, his forgiveness would mean absolutely nothing. Believers cannot understate the grace that must be shown to others in response to the magnificent and unbelievable power exemplified in Jesus Christ. The final words of a risen Savior are not comforting promises of eternity, but an insistence on being light in the midst of darkness (Matt. 28:18-20).

Surely, God’s will is not aimed entirely at the Christian going to Heaven, but rather for his people to represent him well and live according to his immutable standard. Christians have an obligation to love God and love others well precisely because of the cross. The character of Christ is at the forefront of the Christian witness to a lost world. Satan cannot match this weapon because, as Jesus proclaims, not even the Gates of Hell can stop his Church (Matt. 16:18).

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Brandon Smith is Editor of Project TGM, Pastoral Resident at CityView Church, and a freelance writer. He lives in Grapevine, Texas where he and his wife Christa are expecting their first little bundle of joy. Connect with him on Twitter: @BrandonSmith85.

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Read more on this topic in the e-book, Proclaiming Jesus, by Tony Merida.

What Is the Imago Dei?

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.  And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’” Genesis 1:26-28

The question of imago dei has puzzled theologians and laymen for centuries. What does it mean to be made in the image of God? Answers to this question have included things like reason, relationality, the ability to walk upright, etc. I want to suggest three different ways of thinking about the imago dei:

1. Think about the imago dei in the context of a kingdom.

In the ancient world, kings would mark the boundaries of their kingdom by putting images or statues of themselves at their territorial borders. Images of a king marked out the extent of the reign of a king. When God sets up mankind as His image-bearers and commands them to fill the earth, He is sending them out to be markers of His reign to the four corners of the earth. Being an image-bearer of God means that you demonstrate to creation that the earth is the realm over which He reigns as king.

As bearers of the image of Jesus, in particular, we are to carry the message of Christ’s kingdom to the far ends of the earth. We are called to bring the truth to bear that “the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof” (Ps. 24:1) and this ownership of creation is expressed clearly in Christ’s rule over all things. For “all things have been created through Him and for Him” (Col. 1:16).

2. Think about the imago dei in the context of a temple.

When temples were built in the ancient world, they were built with specificity. They were meticulously constructed with care, creativity, and beauty. The last item to go into a newly-built temple was an idol or image of the god for whom the temple was built. It’s interesting that God creates earth with meticulous care and specificity, not in a manner unlike that of a temple. Furthermore, earth is seen not only as a place for humans to dwell, but a place for God’s presence to be manifest. The earth was created to be a type of temple in which God’s presence would be felt on earth and mankind’s praise would be reflected back to Him. If you fast-forward to the picture of New Creation in Revelation 21-22, it is explicitly stated that the new earth is God’s temple. If we are to picture the creation scene as a kind of temple-building act, than it only makes sense that God’s last creative act is to place mankind in the center of this temple as His image-bearer. God’s dwelling place has at its center an image of Himself through the people He has created, so that, as priests, we represent His image to creation and reflect creation’s praise back to Him.

3. Think about the imago dei in its own literary/textual context.

Though theologians have stretched their the limits of their imagination in trying to articulate a creative description of the imago dei, a more sound approach to understanding what it means to be an image-bearer of God is looking at the text of Genesis 1:26-28 itself. Right after declaring that He was going to make mankind in His image, God states that man will have dominion over the earth. It seems as if the functional aspect of being image-bearers is that we are to reign over creation as vice-regents, of sorts, under the headship of God the King.

This all fits very nicely with the call of Israel to be a kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:6) and later for the church to fulfill its calling as a royal (kingly) priesthood (1 Peter 2:9). If we are to be priests and kings, than bearing the image of God means simply that as kings, we mark out His reign by ruling over creation and as priests, we image Him forth (represent Him) to creation and reflect creation’s praise back to Him.

The Takeaway

More than anything, the imago dei is a very practical doctrine. Specifically, there are three “takeaways” for image-bearers:

1. Rule. The charge to have dominion over the earth fills the word vocatio with meaning. It means that regardless of your profession, there is dignity in your work as a means of exercising dominion over creation. There is a way to write a song, paint a picture, and film a movie for God’s glory. In every achievement and advance of mankind, there is evidence of the image of God in man. We bear His image well when we pursue the arts, politics, business, and law for His glory. This is what caused Martin Luther to say:

All our work in the field, in the garden, in the city, in the home, in struggle, in government-to what does it all amount before God except child's play, by means of which God is pleased to give his gifts in the field, at home, and everywhere? These are the masks of our Lord God, behind which he wants to be hidden and to do all things . . . The works of monks and priests, however holy and arduous they may be, do not differ one whit in the sight of God from the works of the rustic laborer in the field or the woman going about her household tasks.

2. Represent. As “imagers” of God, we represent Him to creation. For believers, we are called “ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20). As God’s ambassadors, we image Him well when we represent Him in a way that points others to find their sufficiency and satisfaction in Christ alone. This is a calling for every follower of Christ and is part of our created purpose as humans.

3.Respect. As image-bearers of God, humans have inherent worth and dignity. One practical implication of the imago dei is that we must respect and value life, from conception to natural death. This, obviously, is a case for the pro-life argument. Yet beyond this, there is a very real call for us to treat one another with kindness and respect because as humans, we are special. The co-worker you don’t like, the person in your church you have a hard time getting along with, the annoying kid down the street – all bear the image of God and deserve to be treated in a way that is worthy of one who is created in God’s image.

Don’t view the doctrine of the imago dei with theological perplexity. Rather, embrace the task and identity of being an image-bearer. As you do, you will find satisfaction in “ordinary” life and fulfillment in accomplishing the purpose for which you were created.

Walking Through Doubt

I met with a Christian-turned-skeptic friend recently who asked, “Does anyone ever really believe?” After listening to more of the questions and the struggles he faced in the Christian life, I understood why he would ask this question. A few weeks later, I began to doubt God more acutely than I ever had before. I felt as if there was no end to my fight against sin. I was running the race of faith in circles rather than progressing toward the finish line. I felt as if my search for a job was becoming futile. Dead ends were everywhere I turned. I began to feel as if my education was a waste of time, energy, and money. Had I misinterpreted God’s call on my life a long time ago? I felt as if God had set me up to fail. What if he did set me up to fail? What if God set everyone up to fail, beginning with Adam and Eve?

This is the place my doubt took root. Like Adam after eating the forbidden fruit, I shifted the blame to God. I said in my heart: “If you had not created this world, I would not be in such a mess.” I simply did not want to believe in a god who would create a world with people made in his image, knowing beforehand they would rebel against him. I did not want to believe in a god who would want me and everyone else in this world to suffer or at least to struggle in some degree or another. I didn’t want to believe in this kind of god. This is the heart of atheism, or any other -ism which essentially rejects the God of the Bible.

Kinds of Doubt

People experience various kinds of doubt. One is neutral, when someone temporarily suspends their presently held beliefs, for serious, careful, and honest re-examination. Another kind of doubt is caused by shock or surprise, ending either in joy, mockery, or desire for further consideration (Matt. 28:17; Acts 17:32-34). Yet, a third kind of doubt is caused by suffering or disappointment. It can either lead someone toward God or away from God. I was experiencing this third kind of doubt.

When we speak of doubt, we often unconsciously place doubt in the intellectual category, and unbelief in the spiritual category. For example, during my doubt, I questioned God's purpose for creating the world he knew would go bad. At the same time, I was dealing with unbelief. I struggled to believe God’s promise that he was working everything out for my good (Rom. 8:28).

We often equate doubt with issues of the head and unbelief with issues of the heart. Or, doubt is provoked by intellectual questions while unbelief is provoked by personal questions. My doubts originated from a personal struggle not an intellectual struggle. Yet my personal struggle influenced my intellectual struggle.

Lessons from Doubt

During the days of my doubt, many things were happening inside of me. I felt as if someone had hijacked my head and my heart. Dead to the God I once loved and believed in. However, through this season of doubt I learned the following:

Doubt never (or rarely) arrives at your doorstep carrying only intellectual baggage. We are complex holistic creatures, whose faith and doubt are shaped by various influences: personal (emotional, intellectual, physical, circumstantial, spiritual, familial), cultural, and social. My doubt was largely influenced by the burnout I was feeling after six years in seminary. “Part of burnout is losing track of your purpose. Now you’re working harder and harder, faster and faster for that which is seemingly more and more meaningless,” says Jeff Van Duzer. Somewhere along the way I lost track of my purpose. I lost sight of my identity first of all as a follower of Christ, second as a husband, and third as a seminary student. My seminary studies were becoming "seemingly more and more meaningless," as I was not working out what I was learning on a regular, consistent basis. I found that just as life without Christ is meaningless, the Christian life without discipleship is absurd.

Doubt is often necessary to experience and healthy to face during certain seasons of life. An unexamined faith is not worth believing. And during this season of life, I felt as if the Lord was bringing my wife and me through a certain wilderness. What was God's purpose for his doubting people when he brought them through the wilderness? No less than to humble them, test them to know what was in their heart, whether they would keep his commandments or not, make them know they must not live by bread alone but also by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord, provide for their every need, discipline them, and do them good in the end (Deut. 8). And just as the waning faith of God's people was being tested on their journey toward the promised land, so also I was pressed to examine the holes in my faith.

Satan is against God, me, and all my relationships. He knows that if he can destroy my faith, he will certainly undermine most everything else God is doing in me and through me, affecting everyone I know. Since I believe there are various kinds of doubt, I do not believe Satan is necessarily a direct cause of some. However, we should not extract him from the equation too quickly. In my case of doubt, I believe Satan played an essential part. Just as Satan planted a deceitful question in the ear of Eve (Gen. 3:1), so also he provoked my heart to ask: "What if God set me up to fail?" This is a deeply personal question, affecting my faith both emotionally and intellectually.

God was using these doubts to awaken my soul in the following ways:

1. To check the pulse of my own personal-existential faith. Have I been attempting to drop meaning into my life and faith through a variety of means other than Christ, or is Christ the substance and reason for my existence?
2. To ask why my faith doesn’t feel as it should (yes, spiritually and emotionally). How is my life not in accord with the gospel and the life Jesus calls me to live?
3. To ask what I am not seeing and/or hearing as I read and reflect on God’s word, in order that I would obey him. Along with this, what idols am I clinging to that are keeping me from following Jesus wholeheartedly?

I had to confess. I had to open my heart of unbelief to my community and invite them to listen well and lovingly speak truth to me. I told my friend, Ian, these questions I was asking along with my acknowledgments. But I then added, “This is the closest I have ever been to walking away from the Lord. Please pray for me, so that I don’t continue in this unbelief--that as the writer to the Hebrews says, will lead me to fall away from the living God.” If Satan was attempting to lead my doubting heart away from the Lord, I knew that prayer on my behalf was probably the most important thing I could ask for.

I knew that if anyone could ultimately help me walk through my doubt, Jesus could. I knew I must confess my doubts, disagreements, and unbelief to him. “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief” (Mark 9:24). Although faith and doubt live together in this statement, they should not stay together. Yet, this simple confession itself evidences a flicker of faith, a sign of hope. Jesus is a friend of doubters. Indeed, he ate and drank with them. Jesus died and rose from the dead for doubters like you and me.

Athenian Skepticism

Yet, I still attempted to search out passages of Scripture to back up my case against God. The first that came to mind was Acts 17:26, from Paul’s address to the Athenians: “And [God] made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and boundaries of their dwelling place...”

“See, Lord," I thought, "You placed me where I am. In this world, this nation, this state, this city, this situation...”

Then I continued reading the passage: “...that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us” (17:27).

And I stopped in my tracks. I had read this passage countless times before, but probably not with such Athenian skepticism. Then God, through Paul’s message hit me with hope. God’s own hope.

I thought, "God, you placed me right where I am right now, in this situation, this city, this state, this nation, and this world, so that I would seek you and find you...even in the midst of my doubt. This is unbelievably good news."

As I walked through my valley of doubt, I acknowledged Tim Keller’s recommendation to “doubt your doubts.” Yet, I realized it was much easier to doubt my affirmations than it was to doubt my doubts. I learned that in order to doubt my doubts, I had to double over in humility and confess that God is God and I am not.

And while thinking through my question of “Why would God create a world with future rebellion and suffering in mind?”, I finally acknowledged that:

1. I am not God.
2. God can do whatever he wants.
3. All that God does is good, even those things I don’t understand or agree with.
4. God also had a solution in mind--the sacrifice of his own beloved Son.
5. His Son rose from the dead to defeat such rebellion, and to finally make all things new--even me and you.
6. Jesus sent me and you to tell fellow rebels and sufferers of his incomparable love.
7. Unless we tell them and demonstrate such love with our lives, they will continue to live a perfectly rebellious life, suffering alone without God.

Seeing Through Doubt

During previous periods of doubt, I had taken up the banner of “I believe in order that I may understand” (originating from Augustine and Hebrews 11:3). Simply put, this confession has not merely relieved my doubts, but has helped me work in faith through doubt unto a more robust, reasonable faith.

This time around, I had to explore more deeply. What sort of belief is it through which I understand? Is it a “blind faith”? No. Rather, the only faith through which we understand is a seeing faith. Not with the eyes of the head, but with the eyes of the heart. We see examples of this sort of faith all throughout Scripture. For example:

Now in putting everything in subjection to [the Son], [God] left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone (Heb. 2:8-9).

What do you see during times of doubt, anxiety, or depression? Do you only see your circumstances as if they are in constant disarray? Or, looking through your circumstances, do you see the suffering Son, who by God's grace tasted death on your behalf? Looking through your doubt, do you see King Jesus who righteously orders all things for your good both now and in the end?

Contrary to the lies I was believing, God was not playing games with me. God's story of creation, fall, redemption, renewal, is no game.

Returning to my friend’s question: “Does anyone ever really believe?” I answered, “Everyone always believes in something.” If I turn from believing in the Lord, I simultaneously turn in faith toward something or someone else.

Yes, but does anyone ever really believe the gospel--that Jesus Christ died and rose from the dead to defeat sin, death, and evil, and is making all things new, even us? The question is whether or not anyone's life is 100% consistent with his or her confession. The answer is no. If our lives exemplified perfect consistency with our faith, we wouldn't need Jesus. We do need Jesus. In both the depths of our doubts and the shallowness of our faith, we look to Jesus, who alone is the founder and perfecter of our faith (Heb. 12:2).

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JT Caldwell is a disciple, husband, writer, editor, and student. JT helped start www.GospelCenteredDiscipleship.com. He lives in Austin, Texas and is part of City Life Church. Follow on Twitter: @JT_Caldwell.

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For more articles on doubts, read Jonathan Dodson's article: Questioning the Gospel.

Reactionary Christianity: Step Off the Pendulum

I’ve recently started watching The West Wing on Netflix, which I think should be required watching for everyone, but especially every church staff. I’m one of those Netflix viewers who binge on TV shows watching back to back to back…to back episodes and not being able to stop. In season 3, one of the episodes involves a character named Joey Lucas who is hired as a polling consultant for the State of the Union address as President Bartlett prepares for a re-election campaign. In the episode, White House staffer Josh Lyman is reviewing the polls as way of responding to the people and choosing whether or not to push gun control in certain counties based upon crowd reaction.

Josh receives the polls that say it’s not popular in the counties and is deciding to not push gun control there, but Joey Lucas objects to his conclusions from the poll. She tells Josh that he is asking like the French radical who watches his people run by and says, “There go my people, I must figure out where they are going so I can lead them.”

As I watched that episode and heard that statement, it seems clear to me that the church is that rebel leader stuck in a pattern of reactionary Christianity leaving it unable to really lead anyone anywhere.

Following Church Trends vs. Holy Spirit Guidance

Every week of the year you could attend a church conference with a cool name and theme that will try to convince you to follow the latest church trends, doing it just like every speaker has done it in your context (where every speaker does not live, mind you). Our culture is hungry for success, and unfortunately a church culture hungry for success looks to models and methods over the Holy Spirit and God’s revealed will in the Scriptures.

The results are that churches react to not being “missional” enough and embrace a method without thinking it through. Then someone reacts and criticizes the missional movement without fleshing out what missional actually means. Every day people are posting articles, blogs, and sending out thoughts about the way to “do church.”

One example of this idea is with missional living. Anthony Bradley provocatively wrote recently that it is the “new legalism” in Christianity. This was, even according to his article, a reaction to a small number of interactions he had, primarily with Millennials. Instead of embracing reactionary Christianity in response to missional living, we could seek the clear call of the Scriptures that to love God and love others is to embrace a missionary mindset for every area of life. The Scriptures lay out a clear understanding of God's mission and His invitation to join it. Reactionary Christianity causes a stir, but doesn't inspire to action beyond debate. Biblical Christianity cultivates a sustained expectancy as we pursue scriptural living.

Twitter, Feedly, and our favorite writers become battering rams for our arguments about the current state of the church and what should be done about it. This is good only to an extent because while the current must be discussed, God’s plan for the church has not changed dramatically over the last few centuries. Our man-made models and methods have clouded that purpose, and we’ve painted it in our image instead of God’s. It is time that we stepped off this man-made pendulum of reaction.

God builds His church, grows His church, and provides grace to grow a thousand different churches in a few hundred different ways. The wisdom and knowledge needed for leading the church is not a hidden secret only discovered by the leading church growth experts, but has been clearly provided by God in His Scriptures and we as His children have been given the Holy Spirit to open our eyes and teach us what is true (John 14:26).

Bringing the Ancient Truth to a Modern Culture

The invitation to the leadership of each church is to pursue God in prayer and study of the Scriptures to simplify church in an over-programmed and ever-changing culture. The culture changes often, but the gospel of Jesus Christ never changes. The ways to engage the culture have historically been most effective through everyday lives of ordinary people who are transformed by the gospel. These people gather to express their faith in worship and celebrate the preaching of the Word of God.

We are in a reactionary culture and unfortunately Christianity has followed its ways, but God’s call to love Him most and lovingly challenge our societal norms with His ancient truth has not evolved or changed. Modern culture will be different in a decade, but the truth of the gospel will not be. The Scriptures lay out a clear and simple direction for church that will not be different either.

Will we choose to continue the pendulum swing, reacting to culture and church trends, or step off the pendulum to pursue the purposes of God revealed in His Scriptures? The future of the church in our culture may be determined by our answer.

Your Language Matters

We believe in a God who “spoke” the world into existence (Genesis 1:3). This truth is a constant reminder that words and language have power to create. James compared the tongue to a rudder that steers ships, a bit that guides a horse, and even a spark that can start a fire (James 3:3-6). Clearly, God is serious about our words. Scripture is consistent in its call to us to encourage and build up with our words, praise the Lord with our words, and let truth be what our words form. There is much to write and talk about when it comes to glorifying God with our words. But for this post I want to focus on how our words can create a culture and, sometimes, unintentionally create one that is the exact opposite of that which we are trying.

How Language Hurts Missional Culture

For instance, the phrase “go to church” seems so harmless, and anytime we are corrected that we don’t go to church, we are the church, it can be easy to brush it off as nitpicky or prideful. And sometimes it is! But the reality is that this little phrase can be a big deal if used over time. The phrase insinuates that church is an event to attend rather than the adopted family of God. This little phrase can and has helped create generations of Christians that are sitting on the sidelines just viewing Christianity instead of being catalyzed to get in the game and be the church. If I am the church, that changes everything. I am a living being that is a part of a living thing that God created – the church. Now I have to figure out how this living thing is to live and participate in its life. Language is not the only culprit or the only answer, but it can assist us in creating a people who see the church as God’s people not as God’s event. This difference is worth humbly and consistently fighting for, and our language can help this.

Another issue consistently coming up in the church is getting God’s people to see there smaller church community as a day-to-day, life-on-life community instead of something on the mid-week calendar. People are always saying things like, “How was your community group?” or “Which community do you go to?” Not bad questions. But if our goal is to have our smaller community be a family of God’s servants doing life and mission together, then we want to use language that constantly reminds people of that truth. If you talk as if your communities only exist once a week, your community will believe it only exists once a week.

In addition, we love to use acronyms for everything. Unfortunately, you get new people wondering, “What in the world is the MC? Or GG? And why it is conflicting with Sarah’s DNA?” And it just makes everyone wonder WWJD in this situation. If you have insider and outsider languages, you will have insiders and outsiders. If joining your church requires a glossary, you’re using poor language.

Our language can easily isolate or train people to believe God is calling them to set aside one day or evening instead of setting aside their entire lives. We don’t want to confuse those two!

Correcting Language

There are a few ways to combat our poor language. One is to constantly explain your church’s language - what it is and what it isn’t. Try to minimize acronyms, and if you use them be ready to explain them. Constantly be sharing what God created this community to be and have explanations in your announcements, literature, and website.

For instance, instead of announcing that your church’s missional communities meet on Wednesday night, announce that you have missional communities and explain what those are. You might say something like, “We believe the church is a big family made up of smaller families, and these smaller families meet throughout the week as missional communities. A missional community, or MC, is a small family of God that is participating with God to bring the good news of Jesus to our city. You can meet with so-and-so about joining a family for a meal this Wednesday night.” Yes, it will make announcements a bit longer, but it is a teaching moment for new people and a reminder for others that MC’s are not meant to simply be a weekly potluck. It is worth restating this over and over as we are so prone to forget!

Never assume that people know what you are talking about or what your church’s language means but always explain everything. If you are calling your whole church to be “missionaries,” explain that you mean all of God’s people are missionaries in all of life and that you don’t mean to imply that the whole church should move into a hut in Papua New Guinea this next week – unless you want them to all move to a hut in Papua New Guinea, then have them do that. I don’t even know if Papua New Guinea has huts, but I digress. Minimalize church lingo. Inevitably you will have some, so go out of your way to explain it as often as possible. This goes a long way in making outsiders, newcomers, and unbelievers feel like they belong.

Another helpful language tool is to begin referring to the community as just that and the meeting as a “community meeting.” This way people will begin asking, “How was your MCM or missional community meeting?” They might ask, “How was your small group’s dinner?” This helps reiterate that your small groups eat dinner together but are much more than just that one meal. Constantly differentiate between what your community is and what it does by using different language for both. We are a “community group,” and we have “weekly community outings.” This will take time to create, but it will catch on. People will recognize the difference, and visitors and unbelievers will begin to sense that something is different too!

Think through what you are trying to accomplish on Sunday’s and what to call that. There is a difference between a service and a gathering. A Sunday service conveys that this is something here to serve you and for you to consume, which isn’t bad if this is what you are going for. A gathering, though, creates a posture that this is something in which you participate. In the Soma family, we try to be very intentional about inviting God’s people to participate in God’s work. We use the term “gathering” to help create this culture. A gathering can help facilitate the belief that we are the church, and we are gathering together on a Sunday, rather than the church being a service that we attend.

We expect God’s people to gather together to serve, worship, and build up one another so they can then be sent out to do the same in the world.

Preachers and teachers should be especially considerate with the language they use. It can be very easy to slip into using a bunch of doctrinal terms, Greek words, and bible character references as if everyone knows who or what you are talking about.  I remember growing up with a leader named Paul, and he was always saying, “Paul said this” or “Paul wrote that.” I always thought he was talking about himself in the first person, and I was very confused. Telling people who Paul is, even briefly, adds so much to his writing. You could say something like, “This dude, Paul, was essentially a terrorist who killed Christians until he met Jesus.” One quick sentence can end a lot of confusion and allow the listener to engage more with the content of the message rather than trying to figure out the characters or writers.

Many doctrinal terms can be explained with a mere sentence or two, allowing the listener to learn and understand this doctrinal language rather than being lost with every term. Try to never use Greek or Hebrew words, unless absolutely necessary, as we want to teach in the language of our listeners. We don’t need to preach our homework but rather the good news message that God has given us. Being sloppy by thinking that everyone knows what we are talking about is assuming too much and will isolate the unbeliever or new believer, creating missed opportunities to share the gospel with the lost or help the new believer grow in maturity. Let us be considerate and take the extra time to explain every doctrinal term and use language that is common to our context and culture. This is the very art of teaching, is it not?

Lazy Language with the Gospel

I have caught myself often being sloppy with the gospel. Even we gospel-centered disciple makers can be lazy and hear of people’s sins and issues and toss out a quick, “You just need to believe the gospel.” We can take this precious word and toss it around, abuse, overuse, and mishandle it until it loses its meaning. This has already happened as many think “gospel” is simply a genre of music and others a denomination or theological camp. The gospel is not just a word; it is good news. Don’t just tell people to believe the gospel but tell them what this “good news” is. Pray through what aspect of the gospel they may need to hear. Do they need a reminder of the good news of the forgiveness won for them on the cross? Do they need a reminder of the good news that Jesus is alive and will return one day to make all things new? Maybe they feel hopeless to beat sin and need to hear the good news that Jesus sent the Spirit to dwell in us. Explaining the good news of the gospel is powerful for everyone who speaks and hears it!

Additionally, use God’s Word to show these truths. God’s Word is rich with explanations of the good news and is our best tool for revealing all that Christ accomplished for us on the cross. Use God’s Word to explain the gospel, and others will start looking to God’s Word on their own to understand the gospel!

For instance, if someone is struggling with guilt and shame and scared to confess their sins, I might take them to John 3 to illustrate how Jesus came not to condemn the world but to save it. God’s Word says we were condemned already. I would explain the good news that Jesus knows their sin, came to rescue them, and that his blood washes their sin away. I would encourage them be sharing that Christ died for them while they were still sinners, so they are free to confess their sin and walk away from it. A conversation like this, with prayer and scripture, is more powerful than simply saying, “You just need to believe the gospel.”

Language is a gift. Let us use it wisely and intentionally to create a culture that encourages and builds up generations to love and serve Jesus as his church!

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Jake Chambers (@JakeJayChambers) is a member of Jesus’ bride - the church. He is the husband to his beautiful bride Lindsey, and a daddy to his boy Ezra. Jake is passionate about seeing the gospel both transform lives and create communities that love Jesus, the city, and the lost. He currently serves Red Door Church through leading, preaching, equipping, and pastoring. You can read more of his writing at reddoorlife.tv.

Let Your Students See the World Through God’s Eyes

Scott Douglas serves as Student Pastor at Westside Baptist Church in Murray, Kentucky. He is married to Carrie Beth, and they have a son, Samuel. He is also a Ph.D. candidate in Leadership at Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.

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Our student ministry center has a collection of flags hanging from the rafters. Each one represents a place our students have visited on mission trips. We have several from around our area, one from Boston, and some global flags. Each flag represents a life-long memory for students and adults, but more importantly, an opportunity to be a part of God’s work among the nations and our neighbors. They remind us of the words of John Piper in Let the Nations Be Glad when he declares that worship is the ultimate act, and missions is secondary - that one day we will gather with all the nations and praise the Savior, and there will be no more need for missionaries or missions offerings or awkward yard sales to raise money for short-term trips. All will be set before the throne of God in worship. This is the great motivation for mission work.

I am often asked the question, “Why take students on mission trips?” Here are four important reasons that has caused our church to be committed to student missions:

1. To teach them what it means to love God. We often think of love as merely a sentiment or a feeling towards someone, but love is always an action. The feelings are there of course, but the act of love is what truly matters. Jesus makes this very point when he says that the evidence for faith will be the love His followers have for one another. As the band DC Talk once put it, “Love is a verb.” Paul describes love as active in 1 Corinthians, James describes love in terms of obedience (doing the Word), and Jesus defines the greatest love as active (laying down His life). Love for God is always intersected with love/service to others. At its core, mission trips are about love. Love for God means holding the hand of a homeless man with a drug addiction who needs to hear about how Jesus is the only one who can give him the freedom he craves. Love for God means picking up trash in a lower-income neighborhood for the sake sharing the gospel with those who live there. Love for God means serving others with humility - scrubbing toilets, serving meals, and coloring with a child to show her that not all adults will yell at her and that Jesus loves her

2. To give them a heart for the nations and their neighbors. When we think about missions most of us naturally think about international work, as we should. There are over 6,000 unreached people groups, and countless billions around the world who will die and spend eternity in hell. This heartbreaking reality should spur us to care deeply about international missions. Yet, there is another heartbreaking reality the church faces: the United States is 40% unengaged with the gospel. The United States is the 4th largest unreached nation on the planet, and other nations are sending their foreign missionaries to us! We need to be careful not to separate our call to the nations and our call to the neighborhood. We have a responsibility to the ends of the earth and at the same time to our local context. It means little if we’re willing to board a plane to share the gospel overseas if we won’t serve in the food pantry in our hometown. We push missions, have missionary testimonies, support missionaries, and make it a central part of our student ministry for the simple fact that all around us are countless people who do not know Christ.

3. To give them a burden for their school & friends. Sometimes getting away from the distractions of everyday life can be a catalyst for God to work. One of the things we always do on mission trips with our students is set aside some time when we talk about how things will be different once we return home. I’ll ask them to identify people, projects, and opportunities where they can apply what they have learned while on the short-term trip. Short-term mission trips are an eye-opening experience for many students. When they see the great needs out there, it shows them how great the needs are here. By narrowing the distance between students and the overseas mission field, short-term trips become the starting place for students to recognize that the “mission field” begins in the context where God has placed them.

4. To show them how they can be a part of God’s work. The final goal and aim of taking students on mission trips is to expose them to what God is doing to reconcile people to Himself through Jesus. Our goal in every mission trip is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the missio Dei in our students’ lives. This can be seen in every activity of the mission trip – whether knocking on doors, cleaning a park, hosting a block party, or serving a homeless. Most of our students aren’t called to be vocational missionaries, but these short-term trips and projects help give them a vision to see themselves as missionaries even if they serve in another profession. Each trip has the potential to be a catalyst for a lifetime of service in the kingdom of God, regardless of the vocation our students pursue. My prayer for each short-term mission trip has been simple: God, show them what it is you have for them and how this can be the beginning of a life lived for your glory.

Seminarian: Take Your Time!

Andy Hynes serves as the Director of Admissions and Dean of Men at Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary where he is also a Ph.D. candidate. He is married with two boys, Samuel and Nathan. Connect with him on Twitter: @ABHYNES.  

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I am currently in my seventh year of seminary education. I plan to finish writing my dissertation within the year and move on to what God has in store for my family and me. I suppose many of you are or were in the same situation. I can remember the beginning of my master’s work. We moved to Memphis in July 2006 and I was eager to get started. We had been serving at a local church in southwest Georgia before we moved. While serving there I spent a lot of time “doing” ministry. I had a B.A. in Theology, and I was learning something new every day.

When we arrived in Memphis, I knew that was going to be the time God was going to prepare us for my delusions of grandeur. I was going to speed through the 96 hours of the M.Div. and then consider earning a Ph.D. I wanted to get done quickly; the sooner the better. Investing in my education was not a concern.

Those were some of the most foolish things I have ever thought.

It was not until I neared the end of my third year that I could look back and see God had been poking and prodding me. All along now I see where God was providentially carrying me while I was quickly washing away into a sea of “knowledge.” I was learning a lot of book knowledge, and even being allowed to apply some of that knowledge in the venues where I was serving, but I was wasting years of time of intimate communication with the Father. I was learning much about the Father, but I was not growing more intimate with the Father. At a time when “growth,” specifically “spiritual growth,” should be at its highest, it was actually at its lowest.

So What Happened?

I lost sight of the purpose. My education became about getting a degree and not about doing as unto the Lord. While Paul teaches about doing everything unto the Lord (1 Cor. 10:31), I saw my education as unto my preparation for moving forward.

I allowed my reading and studying to be sufficient for my intimacy with Christ. As we see the life of Christ, there are various times when he goes to be alone, to get away from the hustle and bustle of life. He needed those times to connect with the Father. In ministry, and even in school, the same necessary times are there to find a regular time to seclude and silence oneself.

Following Christ can become a chore while in seminary. It becomes just something that you do, and not a representation of who you are. Chores are those menial tasks you are asked to do by a parent or spouse like taking out the trash, washing dishes, or folding laundry. They become a routine and mandatory.

How to Avoid Complacency

1. Remain in awe of who God is! Allow yourself to be wrapped up in the attributes of God on a daily basis. J.I. Packer in Knowing God talks about letting the study of God move beyond knowledge. His main point is to allow your study to be a time of meditation that results in action. So why couldn’t this same principle be applied to all our studies while in seminary? I think it could. Everything from History of Christianity to preaching, missions, and beyond could if we’d only grasp the depths of the glory of God through all our studies.

2. Never become satisfied with where you are. Paul was never satisfied with his holiness before Christ. He constantly pushed himself and others toward a deeper more intimate fellowship with Christ. When we get to school we may think that we have arrived at a place of relaxing and learning. When in fact what we are doing is taking in information and growing in knowledge. If we are not careful and purposeful it never gets beyond that. If we were to move beyond the informative idea of school and into a practical sanctifying work, I think we would avoid the trend of men and women laying aside their growth in Christ while in school.

3. Practically apply what you are learning and put forth the maximum effort in all you do. Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. We can get into such a fast-paced mentality and never stop to put into practice what we are learning at the time. I have seen student after student (myself included) finish a master’s degree having spent very little time investing in their education. I rushed through my degrees and finished all the classes, but I had grown so little.

Take Your Time

It was not until the Father faithfully destroyed and wrecked my heart and exposed ALL the gross infirmities that I had no idea were there, that I began to realize how much of my “education” was poorly poured into. Now I look back and long to do it over. I wish I could go back and invest in learning and growing, not for the sake of getting some degree or a notch on the ministerial belt, but to GROW in wisdom and knowledge of the depths of the love of Christ, as Paul prays for the Church at Ephesus.

Maybe you have been there, or are there right now. In my current role at Mid-America, I have the privilege of speaking to many of our prospective students. One of the main things I emphasize is TAKE YOUR TIME. Invest in learning and growing in your intimacy with Christ while in school. Let your classes be a part of your growth, not a means to an end. It is the greatest time to study the things of God and allow them to saturate and permeate your life. Do not try to expedite this time of your life.

Not Only Spirit Filled, But Also Spirit Controlled

Why are Christians so unkind to one another and the world? Why do we criticize, degrade, and dismiss? Why do we act like jerks? I have experienced the sting of Christian criticism many times as I’ve posted Scripture or encouragements online. I’m sure you’ve experienced this, too. Christians critique my use of the Bible and correct my theological positions. This happens so frequently on Twitter, there is now a hashtag, #JesusJuked, for Christians who use Scripture as a correction-weapon to tell others how they are wrong. This isn't cool and this isn't classy. Nowhere in the Bible has God given us license to treat each other like jerks.

If we continue to pridefully announce our objections to everything, we will soon lose credibility to speak the truth of the gospel. We will be known for our desire to be right and prove others wrong, instead of being known for our love for one another. The world will not believe our points about God's love when they are delivered with disrespect and pride. Some Christians have been so busy trying to make their argumentative points, they have lost the opportunity to make a difference. It’s that kind of non-Spirit-led, fleshly preaching that turns people from the gospel everyday.

Again, why do we act with such pride and arrogance toward one another?

At the root, we are relying on our own intellect, ego, and proven arguments instead of Christ. We are prideful and think we can get people to see the truth in our own strength. We trust our smarts and wit more than Christ. With our eyes on our selves, we miss others and the gospel.

A Matter of Control

Today, we have access to the Holy Spirit's power to control our lives. The Holy Spirit empowers us to live with “gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15) and be “the aroma of Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:15) to the world around us. God has commanded us to walk and live by the Spirit.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. - Galatians 5:22-23

Scripture tells us "when the Holy Spirit controls our lives," we will have certain characteristics that demonstrate his character. Through our words and actions people should see certain aspects of God’s character: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. If we are speaking out of bitterness, anger, frustration, fear, we are not being controlled by the Spirit. The fruits of the Spirit are the picture of what it looks like to follow Jesus. If our actions do not display these fruits, we aren’t being controlled by the Spirit.

We often get confused into thinking our frustrations and bitterness are actually righteous obedience. The reality is, however, the righteous acts are those of peace, patience, and kindness.When we aren't patient with our unbelieving neighbor and his journey with faith, we are not living by the Spirit. When we lose our temper when our co-worker asks another hard question, we are not living by the Spirit. However, when pursue peace among those quarreling in the office, we are living by the Spirit. When we sacrifice our Saturday to help our neighbor with their yard-work, we are living by the Spirit. As the Spirit controls our lives, we become a better picture of God's character and the gospel.

We not only need to live Spirit-filled lives, but also Spirit-controlled lives. If you don't know if your actions or words are from the Spirit, ask: Is this statement done out of joy? Done out of love? Done out of gentleness? Done out of kindness? If the answers are no, it’s not of the Spirit.

A Better Way called Grace

Make no mistake. We are called, as Christians, to persuade others towards the gospel. It is one of our main responsibilities. Paul says: “Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this too” (2 Corinthians 5:11). We are to share the message of grace.

I’ve been asking myself a question lately, and it has been wrecking my heart: “How is the world supposed to see the grace of God if the people of God are not gracious?”

The wise in heart are called discerning, and gracious words promote instruction. - Proverbs 16:21

The writer of the proverb is saying: "Gracious words make a person persuasive." It is not our arguments or our tight-doctrine that make us persuasive to people, it is the graciousness, love, and joy that only comes from a Christ-filled and Spirit-controlled life. If we walk in step with the Spirit and exhibit these characteristics to a world thirsty for grace, who wouldn’t want to be around us?

When we are gracious, we introduce a little more of the character of God to the world. God, more than anyone, has the right to banish us, to speak ill of us, to expose our heart’s motives, to reveal how wrong we are, and yet God is gracious. He doesn’t critique, jab, or JesusJuke his children.

The gospel shows us that God is not running after us to smite us, but to save us. "God so loved the world,” and “God did not come to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” (John 3:16-17). God lavishes us with grace.

The gospel is not our work, our rules, or our religious structure. It’s the news that Christ has come, died, and rose again for the sake of us sinners. God wants to reconcile people to himself and he’s given everything in His Son to reconcile people to himself. God has done it all for us and that is grace. That’s the gospel the world needs to hear. It’s this simple proclamation and the hearing of this good news that transforms the human heart.

This gospel preached graciously does something profound to the human heart. When we talk about who Jesus was, and what He did, and His great love and gracious covering for our sin - God takes it and drives it supernaturally into the human heart, and the Holy Spirit draws people into faith in Christ. As we graciously share this story of Jesus, the graciousness of God is evident and draws people to the grace of Christ that can save them. When we pridefully argue our points, the message of grace is lost.

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Matt and Michelle Brown are evangelists and founders of Think Eternity, an evangelistic nonprofit. Matt is the author of several books, including Revolutionaries: Men and Women in Every Century Who Advanced Christianity and a frequent blogger. You can connect with them on twitter@evangelistmatt and @Thinke. Matt also wrote the article: Evangelism Has Become a Dirty Word.

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Read more on making sharing the gospel with grace in Jonathan Dodson's book, Unbelievable Gospel: How to Share a Gospel Worth Believing

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.

Be a Storyteller

What do you do when you get together with friends? You start with story. What do you do when you return from vacation? Do you pull out the agenda from the cruise and walk them through a list of what you did? No, you share story. How do you explain your childhood to your kids? Story. It is almost impossible to separate storytelling from the fabric of relationship. We like to tell stories and hear stories. Sharing them is the foundation of relationship. And yet, we often fail to share the story of the scriptures in the same natural way. If story is the way we share  how our day went, why is it not the form in which we clarify the gospel? If story is the way we instruct our children in the way they should live, why don't we become storytellers to instruct disciples in the way of obedience. We like stories as illustrations in sermons to clarify meaning but fail to see the story of Scripture as the place to find meaning. I want to call us back to narrative. I invite us to become gospel storytellers. The Bible is nearly two-thirds narrative. It is the story of God. We ought to share it.

Stories are Where We Go for Meaning

"What is the meaning of life?" is the timeless question. It is the question asked in Micah 6:8: "What is required of man?" It is Aristotle’s question: "How should a man lead his life?" Historically, humanity has answered this question through philosophy, science, religion, and art. The first three have failed us or been disregarded. No one reads Plato outside of homework and cramming for exams. We are tired of science’s polished but empty answers. Religion is a place of hypocrisy, ritual, and superstition. The world of cynics has rejected all but the art and story is the dominant art form:

The world now consumes films, novels, theatre, and television in such quantities and such ravenous hunger that the story arts have become humanity’s prime source for inspiration. Robert McKee, Story.

Many of the stories we hear and tell fall short of the meaning of life. As a society, we are beyond the myth of progressive human progress. We have far too many evils to remind us we aren’t getting better. The depravity of the world is our base assumption and our human hunch is that life was not supposed to be this way. Stories try to explain the way forward through this mess. However, void of the gospel story, our neighbors hears some variation of this plot: you can fix your problems, if we are creative, courageous, and smart enough. The meaning of life in contemporary stories is: you are the center of the problem and the solution. The story, or life, is about you. However, the gospel is the story of God for you, for your life. The story of a gracious and just God who goes to great lengths to save and redeem those who don't deserve it. The story of God gives humanity a new identity, meaning, and purpose.

Stories are Where We Turn for Guidance

Kenneth Burke said, “Stories are equipment for living.” We model our own life choices on the stories we believe are best or the stories we wish to avoid. We hear how things worked and didn’t work in the years before and make adjustments. We learn from how our older siblings stories and model our own lives after them. Not only do my parents and teachers have major impact on forming the way I wanted to live, but so did Huck Finn, Bill Huxtable, the Box Car Children, and the group from Saved by the Bell. These stories and characters instructed and formed my proper view of living. They taught me how to live adventurously, with integrity, and even how to ask a girl out on a date. They do so, because we connect with the characters. We witness what they witness, we experience what they do. Stories are shaped in the reality of the world. They reflect what is true of us and our surroundings. As we listen to a story, it informs how we live. How does the story of the Bible inform how you live? What would it look like to have life shaped by the gospel story and bring others into that story?

Stories are the Glue of Community

Stories form and hold groups of people together. They are the folklore shared, the background , and the history of our greatest triumphs over our most challenging days. The inside jokes, the shared experiences turned lifelong memories, and anything that follows “remember that one time” binds communities together. The stories a community shares are the stories that define it. If the story is one of independence and self-reliance, the community will be shaped by this. If the common story is one of pleasure and riches, it will be defined by this, too. If the community's story is one of hope, grace, and love, it will be characterized by hope, grace, and love.

The Good Story

Robert McKee, the self proclaimed story guru of the 21st century, writes that "a good story tells the world something it wants to hear and it's the artists job to figure out what it wants to hear." The gospel is that good story. It is the story of what the world needed but didn't deserve being given by God through Christ. It is the story of true acceptance, adoption, belonging, gifts, overcoming the destruction and devastation of this world. Eugene Peterson explains this well:

Stories are the most prominent biblical way of helping us see ourselves in ‘the God story,’ which always gets around to the story of God making and saving us. Stories, in contrast to abstract statements of truth, tease us into becoming participants in what is being said. We find ourselves involved in the action. We may start as spectators or critics, but if the story is good (and the biblical stories are very good!), we find ourselves no longer just listening to but inhabiting the story.

The gospel is a story not a list of facts. It is the story about God redeeming, rescuing, and recreating his creation. The story of God taking it upon himself to save us from death and bring us to life. The gospel is the true story and only trustworthy account for what has been done to redeem the world. The story is good news. The gospel is the compelling story that doesn’t fall flat on meaning. The story that satisfies our longings for purpose and joy. It is the greatest story because it instructs us in how to live with faith and in close relationship with God. Furthermore, it creates a community. The story of God makes a new people characterized by grace, because the story is about grace. The community is centered around God because the story is about God. This is a story the world wants and needs to hear.

Sheryl's Story

Her family tree mostly produced problems. Its fruit wasn't peppered with convicts or crazies, just disappointments: neglected homes, broken promises, and abandoned children. The residue of family pain was silent relationships. She knew at an early age that everything would be uphill for her and no one was going to carry her. Whatever she gained would be by her sweat. Whatever the costs, she would pay. She was raised religiously in what to do and how to do it. She knew the right things to do but was never told the story.

One evening, she came to our home for our community's weekly meal and story time. We shared and engaged the story of the early church (Acts 2). We shared the story of God's adoption of us and the creation of the church. It was story-time. In the middle, Sheryl asked, "I've never heard this story, but is the church a family? All I've heard is God wants us to do stuff for him and live right, this story sounds like God loves us like children." My wife explained, "Church is family. We are a family. Even when we are not together we are the family. But all good families get together, catch up, share stories, and live life together."

Sheryl was raised to know the right things to do and the bullet points of theology. She was never told the story of the Gospel. The story she had believed was one of self-reliance and moral behavior. She found meaning in it and had accepted this story for her life. But it wasn't the true story. We had the blessing of sharing the story of God with her. Unfortunately, most of the people we live around and work with don't know the gospel story, either. They may know some of the points, or some of the characters, but they haven't heard the story. Like Sheryl, they need to hear it and engage. Be a storyteller to them!

Become a Storyteller

How do you become a gospel storyteller?

• Begin by knowing it as a story. Read it, listen to it, and engage it in conversation with us. Place yourself in the narrative, not as the hero but as the everyman. 
• Ask of the story? If this were true, how would it change my life, community, city?
• Participate in the Story-Formed Way created by Soma Communities.
• Speak it. The best way to learn is to share it and try!
• Share your life story and how it is really part of God's story.

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Brad Watson serves as a pastor of Bread&Wine Communities in Portland, Oregon. He is also the director of GospelCenteredDiscipleship.com. Brad is the co-author of Raised? Doubting the Resurrection. His greatest passion is to encourage and equip leaders for the mission of making disciples. He is Mirela’s husband and Norah’s dad. Twitter: @BradsStories

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Read more on story-formed discipleship: A Story of Gospel Community by Seth Mcbee.

Avoiding the Pain of Boston

Tim Briggs is the Creative Media Pastor at Church at Charlotte in Charlotte, NC. He blogs regularly at Church Sports Outreach.  He also regularly writes about ministry, the church, technology, culture, and creative stuff. He is married with two children and is currently pursuing a M.A. in Biblical Studies from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. You can find Tim on Twitter: @timbriggshere. ___

You can learn a lot about yourself in how you react to a tragedy like the Boston bombings.

Ask yourself, what did you first feel when you heard the news? What did you do when you saw the first images?

For many, emotions like this began to fester: anger, frustration, sadness, hopelessness, fear... the list goes on. Not me though. Like many, I read the news on Twitter but I didn't initially feel any of the above emotions. Rather, I met the news with a cold indifference. I brushed it off. No sympathy, no prayer, just emotional lethargy.

Sound calloused? Cold-hearted? On the surface, you could chalk it up to that, but it goes much deeper than the initial reaction. Later in the day, I began to ask myself the all-important question: Why? Why did I react so blankly to the news? Why was I so indifferent? After wrestling with that for an evening, I came to this conclusion: It was for my protection.

Mercy in Pain

If I internalized the pain and suffering in Boston, it could lead to fear, anger, sadness, etc. and I didn't want to feel that. I didn't want to let what happened in Boston affect my little world and make me uncomfortable, so I moved on with my day as if nothing happened. You see, indifference has become an acquired skill over the years that provides a refuge from pain (or so I believe). This realization, which took me hours to discover after the fact, took only seconds to happen in the moment. It's amazing how quickly we can emotionally render a situation.

Of course, it's all a lie. This coping mechanism can't go on forever. After all, pain will always be a reality this side of Heaven. In the midst of that somber reality, there is hope. Not only is Jesus making all things new, but he understands my pain. "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses … Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:15-16). Yes, I need mercy and I need grace. And so do the people of Boston.

My belief in indifference will never deliver on its promise of keeping the pain away. At best, it will only delay it. What Christ offers in the midst of suffering, though, is "peace which transcends all understanding" (Philippians 4:7). The truth that needs to soak into my soul is that Jesus tenderly awaits to deliver it to me. It's a counterintuitive truth that says that I should lean into the pain, not run from it. And Jesus promises that he will meet me there.

I pray that whatever you felt while hearing the news of the bombings in Boston, you won't run from it. Embrace it, lean into it, and experience the mercy of God.

The Burden of Shepherding

It's an understatement to say that the Apostle Paul faced challenges. In 2 Corinthians 11, he rattled off a list of some of the difficulties he encountered as an apostolic church planter. He was beaten, imprisoned, whipped, and shipwrecked. He experienced sleeplessness, hunger, nakedness, rejection, false accusation, and persecution. His work was literally dangerous. He used the word “danger” eight times to describe it. This list de-romanticizes the apostolic gifting and calling, doesn’t it? And yet, at the end of his vivid description of the suffering he had faced, he makes a very telling statement: “Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my anxiety for all the churches” (2 Corinthians 11:28). Everything else refers to his being shipwrecked, beaten, homeless, hungry, etc. There was something  beyond these struggles. What could be more difficult to endure than all of that “everything else?” Evidently, of all the challenges Paul faced, the burden of caring for the churches was the most difficult. Paul’s concern for the church caused him anxiety. This is the very same word used in 1 Peter 5:6-7: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”  Anyone who has ever answered the phone at 3 am to the sound of someone weeping can relate to Paul. Anyone who has sat with a woman after she’s learned her husband has cheated on her can understand what he’s feeling.  Anyone who has driven around town in the dark looking for the guy from their missional community who is strung out on meth can begin to comprehend what Paul is saying. Caring for people is extremely difficult work that has the potential to cause great anxiety.

I am frequently asked: “How to you handle the burden of shepherding people? How do you avoid making people’s problems your own? Where do you find the strength to continue caring for them, even when it’s extremely difficult?” Often, the person asking these questions are being crushed under this burden.

I think there is something healthy about Paul’s anxiety. He continues his thought by saying, “Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?” (2 Corinthians 11:29). We are actually commanded to “weep with those who weep.” (Romans 12:15). The word “compassion” literally means “to be moved in one’s intestines.” When other people are hurting, we should feel it deeply, too. On the other hand (and I have no idea if this was the case for Paul), I think there is often something unhealthy about the anxiety we feel.

Two False Beliefs that Lead to Unhealth

While there may be many factors that contribute to unhealthy anxiety, in my own life I see two primary reasons I end up feeling the burden of shepherding.

1. I think it’s my responsibility to “save” people.

It’s my job to “fix” them. I need to save this couple’s marriage, I need to ensure that this man overcomes his porn addiction, I need to heal this woman from her sexual abuse. Those statements sound ridiculous because they are never stated that explicitly but are buried under a pile of good intentions and pious justification. Justifications such as: “We are called to bear one another’s burdens,” “We are the hands and feet of Jesus,”and “this is the work I’m called to do.”

What I’m truly saying when I take ultimate responsibility for the well-being of others is: “If they crash, it’s on me. My worth and value is at stake. If this doesn’t end well, it will reflect negatively on me, and I don’t want to look like an idiot.”

The good news, however, is Jesus Christ is the person responsible for the shepherding and care of every person in our church family! He is the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep (John 10). He is the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5), which means he’s the Senior Pastor. He’s the one who indwells people with his Spirit; the same Spirit that raised him from the dead. He is the one who brings about transformation. Let that sink in for moment:  It’s the Spirit’s job to care for people and to change people. The amazing thing is that he asks us to join him in that work-not to own that work, but to join that work.

2. I think I can do my part with my power.

The Chief Shepherd is responsible for everyone, but he asks me to shepherd his flock, too. The weight is on his shoulders, while I am given the opportunity to serve him by serving others. Even when I’m clear on this, however, I sometimes end up feeling the burden of shepherding because I attempt to do “my” part in the power of my own strength.

Here are some indicators that I may have slipped into this faulty thinking/belief:

• I am concerned about saying the wrong thing.
• I am uncomfortable with silence.
• I get nervous about heart level conversations.
• Shepherding leaves me completely exhausted.
• I find myself worrying about the people I'm caring for
• I get frustrated (rather than grieved) by a lack of progress

Jesus has, in fact, asked us to join him in his work of caring for his people. But he has also given us every resource needed to do that work. Every resource! He’s given us his Spirit, who supernaturally empowers us for ministry (Ephesians 1:19-20, Colossians 1:29). The Spirit is the wisdom and the power of God, so we lack neither the necessary wisdom or the necessary power to care for others. The challenge for me is to “serve by the strength that God provides” (1 Peter 4:11) rather than “leaning on my own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). Self-reliance is a sure path to shepherding burnout.

Three Helpful Practices in Shepherding

How can we actively engage in the care of people’s hearts without getting completely overwhelmed in the process? How do we avoid unhealthy anxiety, and consider the health of our own hearts as we shepherd others? I’ve found these three practices to be helpful:

1. Repent of my desire to save people in order to make myself significant. This is nothing short of idolatry, and a flat-out denial of the work of Jesus. He alone defines me. I am one with him, and my life is hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3). Additional efforts to prove my worth are an insult to the One True Savior. We must repent of this idolatry and return to worship of the only savior.

2. Affirm that it is the Spirit’s responsibility to change people. Repeatedly entrust people to his care. They belong to him! (Psalm 24:1). I often lift my hands in the air as I’m praying early in the morning for a hurting person, reminding myself that they belong to him, and that they are ultimately in his hands. I can trust him to do all of the things Jesus said he would do: convict, teach, comfort, remind, and glorify Jesus.

At the end of a hard meeting or a heavy phone call, pray and entrust the person into the Spirit’s ongoing care. Make it clear to God, yourself, and the other person that you are trusting the Holy Spirit to be the one to bring about transformation in the person’s life.

Worry and anxiety are often a sign that we believe our identity is in question. “If this doesn't work out well, it will impact my worth and value.” Casting all of your anxieties upon him means affirming that the outcome of any shepherding situations we find ourselves in will have no impact on our identity. I find this prayer helps me affirm the Spirit’s work and my identity. I pray:

This is your responsibility, not mine. This is in your hands. I trust you to work. Regardless of what happens, I will entrust this person to you, and I will entrust myself to you. I will not be anxious, feeling that I must perform in order to be significant or worthy. My worth and value comes exclusively from the work of Jesus and through my connection to him. I cast my anxieties upon you, because you care for me, and because you are responsible for them and for me. This is your job and I trust you to do it!

3. Pray and ask the Spirit to speak to you concerning the people you shepherd. “What do I need to say? What questions do I need to ask? What scriptures might be relevant?” Then, pray and ask the Spirit to fill, empower, and speak through you. My flesh (Romans 13:14), my “old self” (Ephesians 4:22) hates to depend on the Spirit. It is filled with pride and desperately wants me to look smart, to appear as if I have it all together.  Total dependence on the Spirit puts me in a place of humility, and gives me greater energy and clarity for the task at hand.

Peter’s words to elders should serve as a fitting closing word to anyone involved in the shepherding and care of others. May the Spirit fill us for the task at hand!

I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. - 1 Peter 5:1-5

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Abe Meysenburg serves as a pastor and elder with Soma Communities in Tacoma, WA. After living in the Midwest for most of their lives, he and his wife, Jennifer, moved to Tacoma in the summer of 1999. In 2001, after working as a Starbucks manager for a few years, Abe helped start The Sound Community Church, which then became a part of Soma Communities in May 2007. Twitter: @AbeMeysenburg.

Other articles by Abe Meysenburg: Grief and the Gospel and The Gospel and the Great Commandment.

Staying for the Best Things

I can't shake the scene of that little room where Passion and Patience sit waiting. The boys' sitter instructed them to stay still, to rest side by side, to hold out for what's best. What we come to find is a quest for pleasure so intense we're compelled to take note. John Bunyan is telling that kind of story in The Pilgrim's Progress. He brings us along with Christian every step of the way and at this particular point Interpreter is our guide.

Interpreter leads Christian into a small room to observe two kids seated in parallel chairs. Passion is the restless one. He is discontent, perhaps huffing and puffing, frowning and squirming. Beside him is Patience. He's the one who keeps quiet. Bunyan implies his posture: feet straight in front of him, neatly squared up in the middle of the chair, hands folded in his lap (i.e., not the way my kids sit at the dinner table). The boys were plainly told they had to wait for the best things. The best things were coming to them, but wouldn't get there until early the next year. Passion can't stand this. We can tell by how he acts. He just wants it all now. Then someone walks in the room and dumps a bag of treasure at his feet. Aha! Passion jumps down from his chair and happily scoops up the goodies. Grinning, he looks over at Patience, still sitting quietly, and he laughs him to scorn.

But Christian continues to watch. He sees that Passion “quickly lavishe[s] all away” until he "had presently nothing left him but rags." Interpreter explains:

These two lads are figures: Passion, of the men of this world; and Patience, of the men of that which is to come; for as here thou seest, Passion will have all now this year, that is to say, in this world; so are the men of this world, they must have all their good things now, they cannot stay till next year, that is until the next world, for their portion of good. . . . But as thou sawest that he had quickly lavished all away, and had presently left him nothing but rags; so will it be with all such men at the end of this world.

Christian replies,

Now I see that Patience has the best wisdom, and that upon many accounts. First, because he stays for the best things. Second, and also because he will have the glory of his, when the other has nothing but rags.

How'd He Do That?

Bunyan leaves us to wonder how Patience's waiting actually looked. Sure, we understand the end. We get that he has the best wisdom. But how exactly did he wait? What did he think about while sitting in that chair? Watching Passion indulge in the treasure? Remembering the sitter's words? How was Patience, well, patient?

Answer: he was a Christian hedonist.

Now to be sure, it doesn't sound very hedonistic at first. Denying himself the bag of "treasure" tossed in front of him resembles more the tune of self-denial. But self-denial, for the Christian Hedonist, is not for the sake of self-denial.

Patience saw Passion dive into the mass of goodies, and he denied his impulse to do the same. He held back. And this is biblical, of course. The apostle Paul writes in Titus 2:11–12a, "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions." Paul says there are things in this world we're supposed to renounce, that is, deny. And the "self" in self-denial is composed of these things. That self is the old self, the one that was crucified with Jesus (Romans 6:6), the one in whom we no longer exist (Galatians 2:20). That is the self Patience denied, the self of ungodliness, worldly passions, and inferior pleasures.

"For the Best Things"

You see, this doesn’t end up as a negative enterprise. Remember how Bunyan says it. Patience sat quietly in his chair "because he stays for the best things." It appears that Patience realized he sat in that room with pleasures for which that bag of treasure could not satisfy. Denying the treasure didn't shrivel up his appetite. It was that his appetite was so big it shriveled up the treasure. Patience didn't bury his head in the sand either. He wasn't frantically shouting "No!" over and over. He simply kept his eyes on next year. He trusted what he was told. Passion could have done the same had he not been far too easily pleased.

We learn that Patience’s self-denial came from a craving for the superior pleasure. This is the self-denial of the Christian Hedonist. Patience wasn't merely holding back, he was looking forward. His resistance from that bag of transient treasure was actually his feasting in eternal joy. As Paul continues in Titus 2:12b–13, "training us. . . to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ."

What Bunyan means is that Patience halted the world's empty promises because he had something better ahead (namely, our Savior Jesus Christ).

Different and the Same

So we're different from Patience, and we're the same. We're different in that we're in a much sweeter spot than he was. He sat in that chair with the promise of better things (convincing enough) while we sit here, in the room of this world, with not only a promise, but also God's very Spirit living inside us. We have the active communication of himself through his word. We have the experience of being "in Christ" now, of being seated with him now in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). Our lives are hidden in him now (Colossians 3:3). We are brought to God now and enjoy his fellowship (1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 1:3).

But there is still more to come. Like Patience, what's better remains out in front. Learning again from Paul, we've not yet obtained the fullness of our portion. We're not yet perfect (Philippians 3:12). We are waiting, too. We are waiting for the consummation of God's great work, the revealing of our Lord Jesus and the final redemption of our bodies (1 Corinthians 1:7; Romans 8:23). So as wondrous at it is now, the "far better" is yet next year (Philippians 1:23).

And waiting like this is staying for the best things.

Editor’s Note: This is a repost of “Staying for the Best Things“ from the Desiring God blog. It appears here with the author’s permission.

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Jonathan Parnell is a content strategist at Desiring God. He lives in the Twin Cities with his wife, Melissa, and their three children: Elizabeth, Hannah, and Micah. Twitter: @jonathanparnell

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For more free articles, read: Five Lies that Kill Obedience by Brad Watson and Patience and Discipleship by Jeremy Writebol.

What Would Jesus Say About That?

“I DO DRUGS. WHAT WOULD JESUS SAY ABOUT THAT?”

How would you respond to this question? Here’s the context: you’re a night security guard and the only Christian in your workplace. Another guard suddenly sticks his head into your office. Pointing his finger he almost accuses, “You’re one of those ‘Christians,’ right?” You get a little nervous. Nothing good ever follows that question. No one gives you a high five, says “good job,” and goes about their business. They only want to debate, challenge, or stump you. You respond with regretful hesitation, “Yeah…”

He crosses his arms, looks you square in the eye and then brings the challenge: “I do drugs. What would Jesus say about that?” How would you respond? More pointedly, how could you respond in a way that might actually resonate with the asker?

THREE INSUFFICIENT RESPONSES

I’ve posed this scenario, which actually happened to a leader I was coaching, in trainings around the country. No matter where I am, I hear these responses:

1. “Um, I Don’t Know Exactly”

For some followers of Jesus, our gut response would be to look down, stammer a bit, and ashamedly admit we don’t know what Jesus would say. Maybe, we give in to the pressure of the unexpected question, the outlandish honesty, or the shock of a challenge at 2 a.m. Perhaps we have a general sense of what Jesus might say, but have a hard time putting it into words. It could be that our “people-pleaser” kicks in and we simply can’t tell him the core of what we believe. Sometimes, we are afraid. A common response to this question is a blank stare. Put yourself in the shoes of the asker: “I don’t know” looks like ignorance. This simply isn’t a sufficient answer, the asker really wants to know what you and Jesus think.

2. “He’d tell you to stop.”

For other Christians, the answer would stem from the moralistic, humanist culture we grew up in. Our answer is some form of Bob Newhart’s MadTV sketch: a counselee admits a number of struggles, while Newhart, the counselor answers each with a blunt “Stop it!” Even if we intellectually know Jesus is our savior, we function as if he is simply a good guy with ethical advice. When asked about any sin issue – by anyone, Christian or not – we espouse surface-level fixes. Instead of addressing the true sin, we merely address the outflows or consequences of sin. Maybe we look for five easy steps to end a struggle; advise a few “good works”. Perhaps we appeal to legality (“you’ll get arrested”), personal welfare (“it might kill you”), heartstrings (“if you get arrested or die, can you imagine how your family will feel?”), or moralism (“you know it’s wrong”). It could be that we even quote a verse: “He’d say ‘you shall have no other gods before me’ – that’s the first commandment.” Put yourself in his shoes again“He’d say, ‘Stop it’” fits a view of God they’re most likely assuming of a no-fun, rule-giving, demanding, and impersonal deity. This too doesn't get to the heart of the matter.

3. “He died for your sin so you can be with him in heaven”

A final common response acknowledges their need for the gospel. Maybe you’ve been praying for this guard. Perhaps, you’ve intentionally spoken of faith before to “peak his interest.” It could be that in this moment of boldness, you’re elated that God finally opened the door. So, you share the gospel many of us know well. You gush out some form of, “He’d tell you that God is perfect and heaven is perfect, but because of sin, you’re not perfect. God sent Jesus to die for your sin so you can be reconciled to God and live eternal life with him. If you accept Jesus he’ll forgive your sin of drugs!” This is all true – and praise God it is! But, if he’s ignoring God, he doesn’t care about heaven. If he’s like much of the world, he doesn’t believe he’s too bad a person. If he’s a common American, it’s likely he doesn’t fully understand sin or his need for Jesus. There’s a strong possibility he doesn’t believe in God – or at least, a God who makes any difference in his daily life. Even the objective, big-picture gospel is not a sufficient answer!

CHILDREN, TOSSED TO AND FRO

These three responses fail because they don’t get to the heart of our faith! The first answer is empty, the second is moralistic, the third is futuristic: it sees the gospel as merely a past event that greatly benefits my future but has nothing to do with today. Many who question the gospel need to know how it applies to them in their current situation. Behind the challenging question is a heart in need of applicable truth.

Futile and failed attempts like these, for growing or explaining faith, are not unique to our culture. Writing to first-century Ephesus, Paul explains the goal of Christian life is maturity in Christ. How do we attain maturity? Paul gives three ways we cannot grow: “[by] every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” (Eph 4:14). Following new doctrinal trends, teachers, or even gaining more head-knowledge of the Bible isn’t enough. We will always be let down by relying on our own power and “cunning,” to make new rules and fix ourselves or each other. Some are deceived by false teachers, with false hope, and false ways to solve real issues. This is how we often answer any question, not just the 2 a.m. drug challenge. Difficult questions like:

• “How can God redeem my broken marriage?”
• “I’m so angry at my boss, what do I do?”
• “We just want a baby!”
• “How do these verses or commands apply to me?”
• “Where is God in this (recent tragedy)?”

Our answers are some mixture of:

• “I don’t know” (and if you’re really good, you’ll add “but I’ll pray for you.”)
• “Let me give you a great book on that.”
• “Let’s meet every week for accountability.”
• “Do these three things or steps.”
• “You just need to trust Jesus.”
• “One day, all this will be better.”

None of these, Paul would say, are sufficient for faith or maturity. He even claims answers like this likens us to “children, tossed to and fro by the waves” (v.14). These answers fall short because they don't come from belief in the gospel. Pointing people to books, programs, and renewed moralism to receive blessings and solve problems demonstrates a lack of belief that Jesus is sufficient for our struggles, doubts, hopes, and frustrations. We are saying, "that's a tough question, let me point you to some human cunning or the latest in pop-psychology.

APPLYING AN OBJECTIVE GOSPEL TO SUBJECTIVE SITUATIONS

In conversations like these, we miss a great blessing of the gospel. It is a past event, both historically and personally for every Christian. It does give future hope, for personal reconciliation and the renewal of all things. But it also impacts every moment of our present lives! Paul writes in Romans, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” (Romans 1:16-17). Verse 16 shows the past reality of the gospel; in the verses following these, Paul explains coming wrath and eternal power: the future reality of the gospel.

But verse 17 says our faith doesn’t just “save us,” and “give us eternal life.” Faith is the very power by which we live. The gospel does mean something: to everyone, everyday and for every situation. We just don’t seem to know how to apply it! To the Romans, Paul says we learn to “live [now!] by faith.” To the Ephesians, he says that while those other ways will fail, the way to “grow up in every way into him who is the head” is to “speak the truth in love” (Eph 4:15). Jesus himself, the greatest proclaimer and very embodiment of the gospel, gives us an example of what it looks like to apply the objective truth of the gospel to the specific, subjective need.

When Jesus meets a Samaritan woman in John 4, she challenged him with a question of race and gender roles, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (v.9). Jesus doesn’t ignore her first question; he doesn’t tell her to stop worrying about her situation; he doesn’t answer that he’ll die soon to reconcile the broken socio-economic status, so she should believe in him for eternal life. Instead, he starts by addressing her obvious need, thirst: “there is greater water than this well can give,” he says – “living water” will forever quench your thirst (v.10, 13).

Here’s what is often missed in this passage: Jesus speaks to something deeper than thirst. He speaks to the woman’s lack of satisfaction. We see this in her desire to be filled, never having to drink again: “Sir, give me that is water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water” (v.15). We see this as they discuss her string of spouses: “You’ve had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband” (v.18). In her unfilled desire to worship: “[Jews] say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship” (v.20). At every point, Jesus shows himself and God’s truth to be more satisfying than any of her lesser pursuits: water, good husband or fulfillment in a man, or worship location. Finally, she declares her need for a Messiah as he reveals, “I who you speak to am he” (v.26).

Jesus spoke “truth in love.” He met her on her turf. He showed her how faith matters for her present life. Jesus spoke the objective gospel: “There is a Messiah, coming to free you to worship God in spirit and truth, and I am he!” But he spoke that objective gospel in a way that addressed her subjective situation. He started with her felt needs, then pointed to her greater, heart-level need: “God will satisfy you more than this!” It’s a poignant picture of Jesus, truth incarnate, speaking truth to her in a way that she can immediately resonate with and understand.

HOW WOULD YOU RESPOND?

Back to the original scenario and challenge: “I do drugs. What would Jesus say about that?” How do you answer that question? What deeper need is the asker really addressing? What true struggle is he admitting? Put yourself in his shoes: how can the objective truth of the gospel apply to their subjective situation?

Here’s how my friend responded to the challenge, and I couldn’t be prouder of him. After thinking for a moment, he said, “I think Jesus would tell you that you’re looking for hope in a place that’s going to let you down. You know it lets you down because you have to take a hit three times a day. So I think Jesus would tell you that he’s a better place to put your hope, because he promises he’ll never let you down.” Jesus spoke the gospel truth as it addressed satisfaction; my friend spoke the gospel truth as it addresses personal hope. He exalted Jesus as the objective answer to the guard’s subjective question. God has thousands of years of history, 66 written books, and millions of lives throughout history to prove that Jesus is man’s greatest hope.

No, the guard didn’t fall on his knees weeping that night. God didn’t redeem his soul in that office. But he uncrossed his arms, shook his head, smiled and told my friend: “No one has ever told me that before. That actually makes a lot of sense. We should talk more about that sometime.” That night, the guard walked away from my friend, having heard the gospel spoken to him in a way that resonated with him in his present life.

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Ben Connelly lives in Fort Worth with his wife and daughters. He started The City Church in 2010 and lives on mission by teaching public speaking at TCU. Ben sits on the board of a few city-focused organizations, trains occasionally across the country, and writes in spurts at benconnelly.net. Twitter:@connellyben

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Related articles:  Questioning the Gospel by Jonathan Dodson and What is the Purpose of the Bible? by Jeremy Carr

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.

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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.

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

What is the purpose of the Bible?

I was recently taking a walk with my family through our neighborhood. We ran into some neighbor friends and in the midst of conversation began discussing the recent History Channel series, “The Bible.” The neighbor asked my thoughts on the program’s accuracy, both historically and theologically. This opened the door for the question: What is the purpose of the Bible? This is a great question that is not always answered well. There are several misconceptions about the Bible’s purpose. For some, the Bible is seen as a collection of mythical stories about heroes whose point is to convey a moral lesson. For others, the Bible is seen as a book of lessons and rules by which we live good lives. In the over-churched yet under-gospeled South, the Bible has even been misapplied to justify preferences, lifestyles, and, at times, foolishness, that Scripture itself does not mandate.

Often, this stems from limiting the Bible to information that a person should learn – mere knowledge to acquire but never practice. Likewise, the Bible can be limited to mere practical steps for living. While both of these features are important and have a role in discipleship, they miss the full purpose of Scripture. Scripture is a grand story of redemption in which we find our story. It is the authoritative word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, revealing the person and work of Jesus. When we listen to Scripture in discipleship, we will be transformed to become more like Jesus together.

Listening Well

As a music major in college, I studied classical guitar. I also played in a local band that kept busy playing shows, recording albums, and pursuing the rockstar dream. This often  kept me from a disciplined practice of classical guitar. Once in a group meeting of all the classical guitar majors, our instructor advised, “Be sure you’re listening to good music. Don’t listen to junk that’ll just ruin your ears. Listen well and strive to create something good.” He urged us to focus on both music theory and practice.

Around that time I attended a concert in Atlanta featuring Christopher Parkening, one of the greatest classical guitarists of our time. Parkening played solo guitar in a way I never thought possible. His dynamic style featured fast, technical melodies as well as lush, peaceful tones. The concert was nothing less than inspirational. In that moment, I witnessed the beauty of both the technical theory of music and its performance. I was transformed and encouraged to study the technique of classical guitar as well as to strive to excel as a performing musician. This affected not only me, personally, but also my fellow classmates, as we cheered each other on toward better performance.

Similarly, our discipleship is a marriage of theory and practice – the information of gospel truth as well as the practical application of that good news. In this way, Scripture becomes the tune to which we are to listen – a beautiful symphony composed and performed by God.

The “information” of Scripture is the grand story of redemption, revealing the identity, character, and nature of our God. This story’s hero is Christ himself. In teaching his disciples, Jesus states, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44).

Likewise, the “practice” of Scripture is the application of this truth. James 1:22 says to “be doers of the word, and not hearers only.” Other examples include the instruction to love one another (John 13:34-35; 1 Peter 1:22, 4:8; 1 John 3:11), fellowship with one another (1 John 1:3-7, Acts 2:42-47), forgive one another (Ephesians 4:25-32), accept one another (Romans 15:7), serve one another (Galations 5:13-14), teach one another (Colossians 3:16), be patient with one another (1 Thessalonians 5:14), pray for one another (James 5:13-16), submit to one another (Ephesians 5:1-21), and encourage one another (1Thessalonians 5:11-15). Since our new identity is found in the person and work of Christ, new actions and a new way of living follow.

As we listen, we take in not only the information of gospel truth but also the practical application of this good news, thereby being transformed to become more like Christ together. Acts 2:42-47 is a great example:

And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

The disciples’ devotion to the teaching affected their personal lives as well as their shared community. Through worship and obedient action together, their hearts were “glad and generous.” They did not merely do generous things, they had an inner transformation together. This is summed up in the word “fellowship,” which describes a community of active participation.

Rhythmic Participation

Heeding the wisdom of our guitar instructor, we music majors devoted ourselves to classical guitar together. We would listen well and practice often; culminating in performing recitals and concerts, both as soloists and together in ensembles. There’s a drastic difference between being being a mere listener of music and being a musician. And although many can appreciate the sound of good music, its creation comes from those who not only listen but who also devote to practice and performance. So it is with discipleship in listening to Scripture.

In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus says, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” In this gospel commission, Jesus charges the disciples to make disciples by bringing to bear both the “information” and “application” of the good news together for transformation.

First, we see that “teaching” is sharing the information of the gospel. Jesus states that all Scripture bears witness about him (John 5:39) and that Scripture written about him in the law of Moses, Psalms, and Prophets would be fulfilled in him (Luke 24:44). Since all Scripture is about Christ, this is what we are to teach. This is the information of the gospel.

Second, we see the application of the gospel in the instruction “to observe all that I have commanded you.” Teaching is not a one-time passing of information but the ongoing action of kneading the gospel into the hearts and minds of disciples through observing what has been taught. When questioned by the religious elite of the day, Jesus replies, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” In quoting Scripture from Deuteronomy 6, Jesus displays his authority over the Old Testament as well as the continuity of God’s redemptive plan in gospel discipleship.

Third, we see transformation in Christian discipleship. Discipleship begins with Christ (“all that I have commanded you”) and involves both a teaching disciple (“teaching”) and a learning disciple (“to observe”). Yet teaching information alone is not sufficient in becoming a disciple. Likewise, merely adhering to what is taught or commanded does not truly encompass discipleship. True discipleship in light of the gospel gives disciples of Christ a new identity that results in new action. This transformation is a work of the Holy Spirit that includes both instant and ongoing action.

As we listen to Scripture, the Holy Spirit works to transform us, empower us, and mature us together.

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Jeremy Carr (ThM, MDiv) is lead teaching pastor and co-founding elder of Redemption Church in Augusta, GA. He has been a member of the Acts 29 network since 2007 and has written for the Resurgence. Jeremy is husband to Melody and father to Emaline, Jude, Sadie, and Nora. His book, Sound Words: Listening to the Scriptures, will be released by GCD books in May. Twitter: @pastorjcarr.

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