Who’s the Boss?

I read an interesting article on the Ethics Daily (Baptist Center for Ethics site).    Visit this link and read the article:

http://www.ethicsdaily.com/article_detail.cfm?AID=10675

Read this article and let me know what you think.  I personally believe that much of the troubles in life are arguing about who is the boss and who is to have power.  Relationships that get into that lead to trouble.  Why can’t husbands and wives work together as partners before God?  Ephesians has that famous passage about women’s submitting but it begins with 5:21, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”  I believe that sets the tone for that whole passage.  Paul goes on to talk about how this mutual submission/partnership works.  He describes ways the man can do this and the ways the woman can.  Blaming women for sin isn’t helpful or true (Adam was there-read Genesis-he was silent partner but a partner none the less).  We can pull scripture out of the text and argue for lots of things (slavery, etc) but the entire scope of the Bible must work together and for me that means family is about giving and taking, working together, and being partners before the Lord.  When I start puffing my chest out and arguing that I’m the king of the castle and my wife needs to do what I say well that isn’t very Christian to me.

So let’s work together to serve a risen Savior and help our kids (if we have them) know Christ as well.  Let’s learn to listen to one another, love one another, and partner as God’s children in a fallen world.

 

Another Example- The Trinity

I’ve sat in services where the Holy Spirit is never mentioned. I’m a Baptist and I find the HS often gets neglected in our worship. We are Trinitarian but maybe out of fear of Pentecostalism we ignore 1/3 of the Trinity on many occasions! Regardless we need a healthy understand of the Trinity in the church today.

Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the Trinity. Mormons radically redefine the Trinity (They see three separate beings with one purpose). Historical/orthodox Christian faith is Trinitarian.

First we must be clear that we are monotheists and believe in ONE GOD. This is where Mormonism goes really wrong. Mormons believe that it is possible through Christ and works to one day be a god or goddess. LDS President Lorenzo Snow expressed the nature of God in his couplet “As man is, God once was– and as God is, man may become.” They might not equate this with being the one true God but still a god. The truly do practice a plurality of gods. While it may not be as popular some Mormon writings hint of a Heavenly Mother. To my Mormon readers I’d love you to comment on this.

Second we must be clear that the Trinity is a basic Christian teaching. We’ve always believed in one God only. This was made clear to Abraham that there is only one God (OT). Jesus came and said he and the Father were one. He is the Word (John 1) and has always been and is not a created being. He came as a man but existed before the birth. He saves us from our sins because he is God. He promised to send another (one just like himself) the Holy Spirit who is not a force or power but a Person. The Scriptures do not use the word Trinity but the concept is in the Scriptures. We believe in the Truine God (3 in 1).

Scriptures about the Trinity

• Matthew 3:16–17: “As soon as Jesus Christ was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and landing on him. ¹⁷And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’ ” (also Mark 1:10–11; Luke 3:22; John 1:32)
• Matthew 28:19: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
• 2 Corinthians 13:14: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.”
• 1 John 5:7–8: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.” (This passage may not be in the oldest translations.)
• Hebrews 9:14: “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”

Jesus as God

• John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” together with John 1:14 “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” and John 1:18 “No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.”
• John 5:21 “For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it.”
• John 8:23–24: “But he continued,’You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am [the one I claim to be], you will indeed die in your sins.’”
• John 8:58 “I tell you the truth”, Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!”
• John 10:30: “I and the Father are one.”
• John 10:38: “But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”
• John 20:28: “Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’”
• Philippians 2:5–8: “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!”
• Colossians 1:15: “He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God”
• Colossians 1:16: “For by him [Jesus] all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.”
• Colossians 1:17: “He [Jesus] is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
• Colossians 2:9: “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form”
• Titus 2:13: “while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.”
• 1 Timothy 3:16: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”
• Hebrews 1:8: “But about the Son he [God] says, “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.”
• 1 John 5:20: “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.”
• Revelation 1:17–18: “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”

The Nature of Christ- One Example of Why Theology Matters

As the early church brew folks begin to debate how to understand this Jesus who said that he and the Father were One.  They all believed Jesus was central to our faith and was the Son of God.  But they struggled with how he could be a man and be God.

Why does this matter?

As people expressed their views on how to understand this theologically those views hold real consequences. Look at the above chart.  Each view in the purple was an attempt to explain the incarnation but they made Jesus took away the humanity or the divinity of Jesus.  If Jesus were not fully human then it changes how we view Jesus.  How could he really be tempted and understand us?  It lessens the impact of his sacrifice.  If he isn’t really divine then how can he bring salvation?

Today there may be new names and new camps arguing the nature of Jesus.  The ideas behind the fictional “Da Vinci Code” make Jesus very human and rob his divinity.   Jehovah’s Witnesses (in my opinion) lessen the divinity of Jesus.  They deny the Trinity and see Jesus as not equal to God.  JW believe Jesus is God’s firstborn Son.  He has a divine nature but isn’t equal to the Father.  He is also seen as the angel of Jehovah and the archangel Michael.

Regardless what we believe about Jesus matters and this serves as a case study to why the church needs to do theology.

Derik

Missing the Point– A Lack of Theology

Not long ago I wrote about the problems with Biblical knowledge/study today.  The average person in the pew is not only not reading their Bibles but they are also not learning much theology in the average church.  Many ministers shy away from teaching or preaching theological issues and offer more ’self help’ sermons.  Studies on various doctrines are not popular and people as a result simply don’t learn much about their faith.

The word ‘theology’ means study of God.  Some people think it is boring, dull and only for the academy.  Some think that if you just love Jesus what else do you need to know?

The result is when real life situations come up folks who have poor theological understanding do not have the resources to cope with life.  If a pair of Mormon missionaries come to the door and talk long enough many Christians will find themselves confused and wondering if maybe those nice young men are right.  Or if their loved one marries a Jehovah’s Witnesses and the person begins to talk about the Trinity not being true does that matter?

Christians need to study and understand Christian doctrine.  What we believe matters and impacts our daily living.

What is your theological understanding of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit (individually and as the Trinity)?  What about sin? Redemption? the church? And so on.

I’m concerned about this and believe more studies/sermons/classes that tackle Christian theology is needed in the local church.  It doesn’t have to be ‘boring’ and it does relate to real life.

For example…

What if someone tells you that it doesn’t matter if Jesus was a good man that you can be a Christian and see him as a great prophet or that perhaps he is unique but still a created being?  Does this impact your understanding of salvation?  How would this alter orthodox Christian faith?

What if someone says that you need to be baptized to be a Christian or do certain things?  What would you say?

When someone denies the Trinity or question the resurrection then how do we respond?  Why is the resurrection essential?  Why is the Trinity important?

And so theology matters.  When you really study the Bible you are doing theological work.  And so digging into the Bible and wrestling with faith issues is important.  We need to know what we believe and why.

Blessings,
Derik Hamby

Summer Reading Suggestions

This summer if you are looking for some good books to read here are a few I’d recommend.

“The Last Word” by N.T. Wright- This book will help you answer the question “Can we still trust the Bible to lead the church?”  Wright will help you understand some of the arguments among folks who fight over the Bible.

“The Language of God” by Francis Collins- a brilliant scientist who is an evangelical talks about how science can be the language of God!  This book takes a view of creation much different than popularized by many conservative Christians today.  I encourage you to read it!

“Left Behind?  What the Bible Really Says about the End Times” by James M. Efrid (Smyth and Helwys publishing)- tackles popular ‘rapture/left behind’ ideas of the Second Coming and does so in a easy to follow way.  He shows that not all Christians agree with the current LEFT BEHIND view of the second coming.

“The Dawkins Delusion” by Alister McGrath and Joanna Collicutt McGrath- If you have read Dawkin’s “The God Delusion” and are troubled by the issues raised this book is a good response.  It is brief so this is more of an overview of the issues.

I’ll add more books as I have time but these would be great to read if you are looking to expand your horizon.

Derik

Bible Passages You Should Know!

In our church I’m preaching a series of sermons entitled “Bible Passages You Should Know!” I’ve already preached on the 10 Commandments and the 23rd Psalm (you can listen to the audio files on www.randolphalive.org). This week I tackle Ecclesiastes 3. In the last two weeks I’ll tackle the Lord’s Prayer, John 3:16, and 1 Corinthians 13.

My purpose in this is that I really do believe Christians need to learn and spend time in the Scriptures. In this blog I’ve dealt with Mormonism and other groups that promote false teachings. I’ve dealt with core and authentic faith and many issues that would be easier to deal with if Christians would really spend time learning the Bible.

We live in a time when Bible study couldn’t be easier. This blog is an example of the avenues of faith formation that exist. You can check out sites like www.biblegateway.com and read various translations of the Bible. There are sites like RE: Greek that allow you to examine the Greek NT. Sites like Wikipedia offer information. The web site “The Text this Week” will give you so much information to learn about various texts. With Amazon and other websites you can order books (reading the reviews first) and then find links to more books on any religious subject.

And yet the lack of knowledge in the Bible continues to grow. My current series explores some basic passages that should even be memorized by believers. Yet most folks don’t know these crucial passages. I was at a youth concert where a Christian punk band was playing. They did only one familiar song, “Amazing Grace.” They stopped to teach the words to this song that they wanted the kids to sing along. There was a time you could just sing the first words and folks would just follow along. Now I’m glad they did this but it reminds me of the shifting trends in the church today.

So what do we do about? I suggest you dust off your Bible and dig in. Find a translation you can understand. And begin reading the Bible. Take a section of the Bible and read and reread it and really get into it. Maybe commit to studying the Gospels for one year. Take those four gospels and read them through continually for a year. Read the four first just for themselves. Then reread them with a notebook at hand and make notes. Get on line and do research on passages or events you don’t understand. Make a time line of Jesus’ life. Look up phrases and terms you don’t know. Figure out who those Pharisees were and other religious groups. Look up the OT passages quoted in the Gospels. Talk to a trusted pastor or friend for suggestions to read some books about the gospels that year. Spend 12 months really learning the gospels. Think about how they apply to your life today. Make them a part of your prayer life. Make notes whenever a minister talks about them. Go to lunch with your pastor or a professor and quiz them about your learning and talk about it.

You can do the same thing in other sections. After the Gospels you might spend some time on Paul. Read the book of Acts and the letters. Work on a timeline and flow chart for Paul’s life. List the various things he taught. Do the same thing you did with the gospels. You might do this with the prophets, or the first five books of the Bible. Or maybe the history of Israel.

Commit each year to tackling one piece of God’s word and making it a foundation and going from there. I still would start with the Gospels but after that the journey could go where you like.

I haven’t read Rick Warren’s book on Bible study methods but a book like that might provide some other approaches to Bible study.

The point is get into God’s word. Don’t put it off.

And memorize some of it! Choose some passages to pray and repeat every day. Make them a part of your life. Mark up your Bible (it’s not a sin). Make notes. Keep a journal. Do whatever it takes. Listen to it on your ipod (the Bible narrated and read to you).

This is the only real way to know what you believe and to be able to deal with the challenges and issues we face today.

Some of the people who argue the most about the Bible rarely read it. If we believe the Bible we will read it and live it.

Blessings,

Derik