Messy Scriptures #3 : Genesis 22

Scary picture, isn't it? Think about this incident from Isaac's perspective. "What on earth is dad doing? He's bound me, he's raising the knife! He's going to kill me?!"

I'm sure social services would have taken Isaac away from Abraham. Here is an abusive, mentally ill father, doing what God told him to do; sacrifice his son.

So why did God ask Abraham to do such a thing? Passages such as Psalm 44:21, Luke 16:15, Acts 15:8, Romans 8:27, 1 John 3:20 tell us that God knows our hearts. If God knows our hearts, why does he test Abraham? Wouldn't he already know what he appears to discover about Abraham? "I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me" (Genesis 22:12). What is the point of the test? Who is the test for?

I know that Hebrews 11:17-19 gives us some insight into this passage, but if we read it canonically (in the order in which it is written, without reading the New Testament back into the passage just yet), what image appears for us? There is no mention in this text that Abraham believed God would raise his son from the dead. It is clearly a test of Abraham and his willingness to obey God. Quite honestly, a canonical reading of Genesis to this point reveals a rather different picture of God than the classic philosophical-theological view. Perhaps more on this in another post.

How do we square this passage with the classic philosophical-theological understanding of who God is? Merciful, loving, omniscient, unchanging? Perhaps this is where Greg Boyd and open theism can help us:

If the classical understanding of foreknowledge is true, God’s statement “now I know” seems disingenuous. The meaning of God’s explanation for this knowledge—+dqo/since you have...”—is also obscured. Indeed, if the future is exhaustively settled there would be no point in his test of Abraham, because God would never have to find out anything.

Messy Scriptures #2 : Genesis 22

1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, 'Abraham!'

'Here I am,' he replied.

2 Then God said, 'Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.'

Here in Genesis 22 we find the story of Abraham being asked of God to sacrifice Isaac to him.

This is a fascinating story. Let us read and think about this s-l-o-w-l-y. Evangelicals focus on the result of this story, that Abraham obeyed God and God blessed him. It is correct to focus on this as it is the point of the story. But let's stop and think about this s-l-o-w-l-y.

God asks Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac as a burnt offering. It is a rather problematic request, isn't it? Consider Deanna Laney:

Dr. Park Dietz said Deanna Laney believed God ordered her to kill her children last Mother’s Day weekend. “She struggled over whether to obey God or to selfishly keep her children,” Dietz testified.

Laney, a 39-year-old stay-at-home mother who homeschooled her children, has pleaded innocent by reason of insanity to charges of capital murder and serious injury to a child in the deaths of 8-year-old Joshua and 6-year-old Luke and severe injury to then-14-month-old Aaron.

Dietz said that Laney, who is deeply religious, had a series of delusions on the day of the killings. He said she saw Aaron with a spear, then throwing a rock, then squeezing a frog and believed God was suggesting she should either stab, stone or strangle her children.

Laney at first resisted, but she felt she had to do what she perceived to be God’s will to prove her faith, he said.

There is no question that today Laney is at the least a really poor listener to God and at best mentally ill. But might God ask someone to sacrifice their children to him? He did it once before. Why not again?

Interestingly, Laney was said to struggle over whether to obey God or not and that at first she resisted. Our narrator in Genesis 22 does not give any hint as to whether or not Abraham struggled or resisted. Yet in Genesis 21 when Abraham sent Ishmael away, the narrator tells us that Abraham was distressed. Why not a narrative comment here in this distressing passage?

Would struggle or resistance on Abraham's behalf indicate disobedience?

Does the lack of struggle or resistance raise questions as to Abraham's love for his son?

Once again, we have stumbled upon a text that just doesn't work too well as a proof text for family values. But I'll keep reading. I'm sure it's in here someplace!

MP3tunes.com

Good looking new service to download music!

Read the TNIV Online Bible

Cool. Looking forward to diving into this new translation!

Messy Scriptures : Genesis 21

8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, 10 and she said to Abraham, 'Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.'

11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12 But God said to him, 'Do not be so distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 13 I will make the son of the maidservant into a nation also, because he is your offspring.'

Family values. They are thrown around today by all sorts of people. Many who use these words appeal to the Bible as the basis for family values. But if we read the Bible carefully, we will find that the Bible paints a rather distressing picture of "family values."

As quoted above, the story of Sarah having Hagar and Ishmael sent away cannot possibly be held up as a story stressing family values. Yet God counsels Abraham to do as Sarah requests!

Isn't this counsel the breaking up of a family? Isn't this counsel the separation of a young boy from his father? This can't be right! So much for Genesis 21 being a proof text for family values!

Don't misunderstand me. I'm all for the family. But Christians tend to argue from the Bible that the perfect family is one husband, one wife, 2.5 kids, and a dog. Yet we rarely encounter that kind of family in Scripture.

I would suggested that much of what is argued for as "family values" in America is "chronocentrism--our tendency to assume that the worldview we hold at the present time is the ultimately true worldview." (God at War, Boyd, p. 18).

Throughout Scripture we see many families and few of these families can be held up as models of American family values (1 husband, 1 wife, 2.5 kids, a dog).

Dr. Dobson's a "Wacky Evangelical"

Dr. Dobson has made more headlines last week attacking Sponge Bob. Here's some of Phil Vischer's, the creator of VeggieTales take on it.

I doubt if this specific incident will amount to anything more than another 'look at the wacky evangelicals' sidebar.

Here are Phil's thoughts concerning the video and whether it promotes homosexuality or not...

Do you think the We are Family video promotes homosexuality?

Sorry, I haven't seen it. I heard Ernie & Bert were standing very close, though so, you know … that's concerning.

Do you think that the website (and tolerance pledge) does?

Boy, that's a thorny one. Does pledging to "respect people whose … sexual identity or other characteristics are different from my own" promote homosexuality? We're supposed to love everyone. I'm pretty sure that's biblical.

At the same time, we certainly can't endorse behavior that the Bible labels as sinful. So is "respecting" more like "loving," or more like "endorsing"? Are they encouraging grade school kids to accept homosexuality or to accept homosexuals? I'm not sure I'm qualified to parse that sentence.

And what's the inverse of that pledge? To disrespect people of differing sexual orientations? Jeepers, that doesn't sound biblical.

As far as I am concerned, Vischer does a great job of dissecting this whole issue.

Sadly, I believe that most of the church's response to this issue is not one of love but one of disrespect.

Like the song says, "They will know we are Christians by our disrespect, er...love!"

Church Structure and Leadership

Issues of structure apply to the church as well. Most churches have a constitution or bylaws which govern its structure, its officers, and basic operational schema. When a church’s bylaws are poorly conceived, or non-existent, watch-out! In such instances, when people can make up the rules as they go along, a steady stream of conflict and behind-the-scene power plays inevitably follow. One long-time minister who pastored such a church (with no bylaws) reflected, “those were the 20 most miserable years of my life.” Indeed, when an outside consultant was brought in to evaluate the conflict a subsequent pastor was experiencing at the same church, the consultant declared, “the most perfect pastor in the world could not have pastored this church.”

One of my churches is currently experiencing this. To complicate matters, the yoke relationship needs structure but the structure is being resisted because I think those in power at the one church recognize that they have much to loose if the yoke relationship and how the churches will get along with each other is clarified.

This is so utterly frustrating! Why can't we be about advancing God's kingdom instead of our own little kingdoms? Honestly, these little kingdoms don't amount to much! But we protect that turf like our lives depended on it!

Sadly, this dysfunction is really casting a dark shadow over these churches.

Gender-Accurate Bible's Release Triggers Renewed Debate

Theologian J.I. Packer, James Dobson of Focus on the Family, and SBC seminary presidents R. Albert Mohler Jr. and Paige Patterson, were just a few of the religious leaders who argued vociferously against the new NIV revision.

So glad to see that Dobson has decided to throw his weight around on this issue! Not! Why James, why? Let the Bible scholars discuss this! The sad thing is Dobson has a huge platform for shaping opinion whereas the informed Bible scholars do not.

This issue is so frustrating that I don't even know were to begin commenting.

I think Dr. Craig Blomberg in his endorsement of the new translation puts it best,

The TNIV avoids the overly free translation of certain texts that previous gender-inclusive translations have included, while rendering gender-inclusive uses of "man," "he," "brothers," and the like with appropriate, contemporary English exactly corresponding to the meaning of the original Greek or Hebrew. Not to do this leaves a Bible that increasingly misleads the modern reader; as the father of two daughters I know first hand how this works!

ononion: Artwork by Jack Chick...

Great spoof! What if we are wrong? ;)

QuestionsAboutGod - Freethought Media Library

I think its a good idea to read what people who are hostile to the idea of God and the church think. Here's a list of questions. How would you answer these? Would you try?

Family Scuffles, Pastor Says Jeans a Demon

'You're not wearing pants in my church, you demon'

This is ridiculous.

Homosexuality and the Bible

...without proper knowledge of the original language and context of biblical content, these passages can easily be taken to mean something quite different than was originally intended

Sorry Derek, I'm not convinced. At the very least the Bible is negative toward homosexuality and at the very most the Bible labels it a behavior that is outside of righteous behavior (sin).

The real problem I have with contemporary evangelicalism is the making of one's view and treatment of homosexuality an issue of orthodoxy.

Yet to single out one sin among many as a test for orthodoxy seems strange to me. What if we singled out gossip or gluttony as the litmus test? So much for church potlucks!

I still believe the acting out of homosexual desires is sin. But so is acting out heterosexual desires with someone other then a spouse.

Obviously the real difference is that a homosexual person then has no legitimate arena in which to act upon their desire. But is this all that unique? I would say no. Does an alcoholic have a legitimate arena? Does a single heterosexual? People experience all sorts of desires which cannot and should not be acted upon. There is always something restraining us be it culture, morals, religion, or others.

Isn't that what being finite is about...limitation? There is only one who is infinite, without limit, and last I checked you and I are not that one.

That being said, I don't think God has it out especially for homosexuals. I don't think God is out to get anyone. Actually, come to think of it, God is out to get us just not in the negative sense of that phrase. God is out to get us, to reconcile us to himself through the person of Jesus Christ. The infinite pursuing the finite. Unlimited grace to the limited.

I don't have all of this figured out, I just know that I am limited, finite, sinful and in desperate need of an infinite, unlimited, perfect God to help me, redeem me, rescue me, love me.

Westboro Baptist Church FAQ : On the tsunami

Please keep your mouth shut! Sadly this is just more fodder for those opposed to Christianity and belief in God. Can you blame them?

This is the end result of Calvinism applied to situations without any pastoral heart! Is it even possible to apply Calvinism with a pastoral heart?

Beware of 'Free' Services

I have concerns about blogging companies as well. For example, who really owns the content and can a blog be easily moved from one provider to another? Not a huge deal, but if your private blog suddenly becomes public because some vendor screws up or the company suddenly fails and you can't get your content back, then you'd have a problem.

Interesting thoughts. Though I'm not terribly concerned about this, it is a good question. Especially for many of those power bloggers out there.

Lately, my blog has been pretty lame. Mostly links to other articles with very little comment or original thought. Hopefully, I will find the time and discipline to change this in the coming weeks. But if I start writing some really good stuff (and that's a big IF) who really owns the content? Now that's a question worth asking!

Small churches take up pastor-sharing tradition to stay alive

On yoked congregations...

Pastor Dies While Preaching About Going To Heaven

Wow! It'd make a great object lesson!

Atheist's turn toward God was a 4-year process, friend says

'Three weeks ago I received a letter from him where he said that he was rereading my arguments for the resurrection and was very impressed with them,' he said.

Despite his interest in the resurrection, however, Flew remains far from belief in Christianity, Habermas said.

Perhaps you have heard about Antony Flew's change of heart and mind in the existence of a God. Here's an article with a little more insight into his journey from atheism to deism.

The obstacle of legalism

I have been amazed at the amount of legalism that I find in rural America churches. In fact, some of the largest churches that I have seen are very legalistic (at least from my perspective). My feeling is that many of these churches would really struggle in an urban context.

Here is a good article discussing the dangers of legalism. Sadly, it appears to me to be right on the mark.

Tsunami: Map of Destruction

Powerful.

Apple - Mac mini

It's time for me to switch back to Mac. I used Macs for years and loved them. Since I have switched to PC's several years ago, I have grown rather frustrated with how much they crash.

Declining Southern Baptist Churches

More signs of the changing culture.

Telegraph | News | Science's scourge of believers declares his faith in Darwin

'I believe, but I cannot prove, that all life, all intelligence, all creativity and all 'design' anywhere in the universe is the direct or indirect product of Darwinian natural selection,' said Prof Dawkins in the responses published yesterday on www.edge.org.

That, of course, means that there is no need for a god to design the universe: 'It follows that design comes late in the universe, after a period of Darwinian evolution. Design cannot precede evolution and therefore cannot underlie the universe.'

The Partial Observer - Post-Christmas Reflections on a World Deprived of Joy

From silent night to deafening roar
as waves of terror washed ashore.
The product of a monstrous quake
left countless lifeless in its wake.

Powerful poem from Greg Asimakoupoulos

Edge : What do you believe is true even though you cannot prove it?

Check out this fascinating article with 120 contributors.

Church Websites

As the American public becomes more and more reliant on technology in everyday life, they will logically expect churches to have things such as website, streaming audio or video on the site, or study materials on video or computer software

Even these little churches out in the sticks? I sure hope so! One of the biggest problems I have out here is communication. Many have email but very few check it regularly. I am convinced that very few people here out in the sticks actually use email for business.

MSNBC - Countless Souls Cry Out to God

Great article looking at how the different religions in the area hit by the tsunami seek to make sense of this tragedy through their faith.

Though I am sure this article grossly oversimplifies all of the faith responses, a tragedy of this magnitude makes open theism more and more appealing to me.

If you are interested in studying open theism read God at War or God of the Possible. I know not everyone will agree with open theism and many may even see it as a heresy. Yet in the face of such tragedy Calvinism is downright cruel. As one of my professors put it (whose a Calvinist) Calvinism works in the classroom but not as a pastor.

I say if it doesn't work pastorally it doesn't work at all!

NT Wright on the tsunami

People today assume that a 'religious' view of life must address 'the problem of evil', the toughest part of which is so-called 'natural evil'. Evil isn't as bad as it seems, say some; or it's all someone's fault (or, with natural evil, Satan's fault); or it offers a chance for greater moral virtue (courage, and so on). One major tsunami does to theories like that what it does to buildings and people: it crushes them to matchwood.

This reminds me of Greg Boyd's discussion of the problem of evil in God at War. Our theories and explanations work well as long as evil is abstract. As soon as we wrestle with concrete evil it's a whole new ball game.

The Student Tablet PC: Mind Mapping Overview

Here's a great article on mind mapping and links to the software I use for this activity. As I have mentioned elsewhere in my blog, I use mind maps for my preaching. I haven't posted one in a long time but mind mapping is now my sermon preparation method of choice. It is a great tool and Mind Manager is a great program!

Infinite Church: Live Virtual Worship and Christian Chat

New virtual church. Not enough time for me to check out today. Thought I'd pass the link along.

Monday Morning Insight Weblog: Starting 2005 with a Healthy Attitude

Very cool article on a small church giving to a megachurch! Now if I can convince my elders to give away one of our Sunday morning collects! :)

I'm back!!!

It's been a crazy couple of weeks as my computer has been down for the better part of two weeks! Technology...a blessing and a curse.

I'm up and running now and I hope to be better about writing.

We will miss you Ken...

We will miss you Ken. A good friend of mine entered heaven a few days before Christmas. Ken was a wonderful man who loved God and people. I had the priviledge of working with Ken for a year at Faith Presbyterian Church in Aurora, Colorado.

It is still hard to believe he is gone. Ken fought cancer for 6 years. It is times like these that I am so thankful for the hope of the resurrection through Jesus Christ! My heavenly deposits keep growing. 

Moore not the same after Bertuzzi hit

This attack had nothing to do with hockey,'' Danson said. ``The puck was nowhere near Mr. Bertuzzi or Mr. Moore. And so what happened in this case is what they promised, to do serious injury to Mr. Moore -- and they did. And the result is a $500 fine and community service.

"Wal-Mart" churches spring up in rural areas

Oh the joys of rural ministry!

Top 5 in 2004

Here's a list of the top blogposts in 2004. Have fun surfing and reading.

Bose Personalized Amplification System - Amplifiers and Sound Systems for Musicians

So why haven't I been writing lately? One of my church's recently bought this great system! It is awesome! The sound is unbelievable and so simple to achieve!

This is the perfect system for small to average size churches looking to get great sound and simple operation at a great price!

Out in the sticks is one year old!

My blog is now one year old! It is amazing to think about how life has changed in that time. A new laptop computer, wifi hotspot in Wray, wifi at work...and even with all the new accessibility I haven't posted in 8 days or so!

In the coming year I hope to write more. We'll see if I am able to do that.

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

I'm loaded

How rich are you? >> I'm loaded. It's official. I'm the 433,272,059 richest person on earth!

And that doesn't even include my non-monetary riches!

Nomo Pomo

I'm fully prepared to admit that when we boomers were young, we faddishly embraced church-growth ratios and sociological analysis; we praised these modern tools as the salvation of the church. So it's poetic justice for us now to sit in the back of the room, the balding and befuddled, as the next generation praises the postmodern matrix as the salvation of the church.

But we're both wrong. We've already got a salvation for the church, and he will not share his glory with any current cultural form, no matter how valuable or necessary it may be. If the church uncritically embraced modern culture, the solution is not to uncritically embrace postmodern culture.

Good advice to keep in mind on any new thinking or technique in the church!

next-wave > church & culture: American Jesus: How the Son of God Became a National Icon...A Review by Tim Berroth

What follows in Prothero's book is a systematic analysis of how Jesus has become a modern day version of the Greek god Proteus, conveniently morphing and changing into whatever image is created for him.

This sounds like a very interesting book. I hope to pick it up soon. Here's another quote which reminds me of the 'Dirty Harry' piece I linked to a while back:

The natural response to this softer effeminate Jesus was a push for a more masculine Jesus. Christianity was viewed, for the most part, as a religion for women. In the late 19th-century, church membership was only 28 percent male. By 1910, U.S. churches were only one-third male. In The Virility of Christ , published in 1915, author Warren Conant protested against artists who "subjoin a silky, curly beard to a woman's face and hair and label it 'The Christ'" Instead he offered a vision of a "Fighting Christ" with "big lung capacity" and the "free swinging stride of the mountaineer." Men of the industrial age would "demand a strenuous Christ." Prothero's examination of this battle for the male/female Christ is fascinating in light of the church's continuing struggle and failure to proclaim the distinctly masculine God revealed in the scriptures. In the wake of the radical feminism of the 1960's and 70's the church is still scrambling to figure out how to define roles of the sexes and how to faithfully proclaim God as a male.

Wireless hotspot in Wray

Here I am sitting in the greatest coffee shop in Yuma County Colorado and now it's even better because it is now equipped with a wi-fi hotspot!

And wouldn't you know it, it is the same week I get my own wifi at the church! Wow, no more wires and much faster internet experience!

By the way, this is the same coffee shop which we have had our alt worship service Echo at, Canyon Cafe and Coffee. If you're ever in Wray, Colorado look me up and I'll treat you to coffee and wifi!

ChristianToday > New Handbook to Promote and Sustain Christian Presence in Rural Areas

I'd love to read this handbook. Hope the Methodist church will make it available online.

The Death Clock - When Am I Going To Die?

When will you die? Check out the internet's friendly reminder that time is slipping away!

For me, January 7, 2041.

How God fooled Satan at Christmas

Very interesting take on the Christmas story.

Denver Journal - 7:0302 - A Generous Orthodoxy review

This is from a review of McLaren's new book Generous Orthodoxy by Craig Blomberg:

But overall, I am far more enthusiastic about this volume than worried over it. What worries me are the growing numbers of people who are worried about it. What does this portend if not an ungenerous orthodoxy that draws ever-narrowing boundaries around what counts as authentic Christianity, thereby alienating even more onlookers from the very faith they already see as too judgmental and divisive? I recommend McLaren's work highly to anyone who cares about evangelizing postmoderns and about developing the kind of community in the church of Jesus Christ that our Lord himself seems to have desired.

I have been wanting to get a copy of this book for some time. Now I am really wanting to read it!

As a graduate of Denver Seminary and former student of Dr. Blomberg's I have great respect and admiration for his thoughts and opinions.

The Emergent matrix: A new kind of church?

While emerging churches talk a lot about being relevant to postmodern culture, they are also aware that there is a danger in relevance. Lauren Winner, author of Girl Meets God, posed the question this way at the convention: “How do you simultaneously attend to the culture and be a pocket of resistance? You can’t be a pocket of resistance without attending . . . but I still think people come to church when church is different from the world, when there is something noticeably ecclesial in the broadest sense, when church seems like church rather than a shopping mall.”

An Emergent definition of relevance, modulated by resistance, might run something like this: relevance means listening before speaking; relevance means interpreting the culture to itself by noting the ways in which certain cultural productions gesture toward a transcendent grace and beauty; relevance means being ready to give an account for the hope that we have and being in places where someone might actually ask; relevance means believing that we might learn something from those who are most unlike us; relevance means not so much translating the church’s language to the culture as translating the culture’s language back to the church; relevance means making theological sense of the depth that people discover in the oddest places of ordinary living and then using that experience to draw them to the source of that depth (Augustine seems to imply such a move in his reflections on beauty and transience in his Confessions). Relevance might simply mean wanting to understand why so many young people have said that attending U2’s Elevation Tour and hearing Bono close the show with choruses of “Hallelujah” was like being in worship (but a whole lot better).

I am currently wrestling with these thoughts. I sense that I agree with much of it.

I feel I am growing more and more tired of the emerging church "conversation". It has reached both Christian Century and Christianity Today.

It's hip and trendy. This I believe is what the masses experience and believe the "conversation" to be.

But those who started the conversation are seeking much more. Much of what they write and speak of resonates with me at some levels and on some points. Yet I feel a certain skepticism toward the conversation/movement.

What about you?

MSNBC - Religion: The Birth of Jesus

A NEWSWEEK Poll found that 84 percent of American adults consider themselves Christians, and 82 percent see Jesus as God or the son of God. Seventy-nine percent say they believe in the virgin birth, and 67 percent think the Christmas story—from the angels' appearance to the Star of Bethlehem—is historically accurate.

So what do you think?

A Perfect Brainstorm

Interesting article on brainstorming.

New Rescue Truck

Here's our town's brand new rescue truck for the volunteer fire department.

Denver Journal - 3:0103 - Text & Experience: Towards a Cultural Exegesis of the Bible

Lastly, one who desires to do contextualized biblical work must also think through the meaning of the nature of the inspiration of the text.... A host of thorny theoretical matters come to the fore, and confessional commitments become an inescapable factor to consider in this contextualizing enterprise.

More thoughts on contextualization from Dr. Danny Carroll from Denver Seminary. This quote is from a review of the book Text & Experience: Towards a Cultural Exegesis of the Bible.

Can a Christian deny the virgin birth?

More contemporary attacks on the virgin birth of Christ have emerged from figures such as retired Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong and German New Testament scholar Gerd Luedemann. Luedemann acknowledges that 'most Christians in all the churches in the world confess as they recite the Apostles' Creed that Jesus was born of the virgin Mary. Now ... modern Christians completely discount the historicity of the virgin birth and understand it in a figurative sense.'

Obviously, the 'modern Christians' Luedemann identifies are those who allow the modern secular worldview to establish the frame for reality into which the claims of the Bible must be fitted. Those doctrines that do not fit easily within the secular frame automatically must be discarded. As might be expected, Luedemann's denial of biblical truth is not limited to the virgin birth. He denies virtually everything the Bible reveals about Jesus Christ. In summarizing his argument, Luedemann states: 'The tomb was full and the manger empty.' That is to say, Luedemann believes that Jesus was not born of a virgin and that he was not raised from the dead.

I find it fascinating as a pastor how in a quest to make Christianity more appealing to the masses, many have essentially destroyed the Christian message.

The gospel must be contextualized. But must the gospel be denied in order to be presented in a particular context?

If you are working to contextualize the gospel in a naturalist context, some theologians and pastors do not seek to challenge the basic worldview of naturalism. Rather they seek to understand the gospel in light of naturalism, seeking scientific and natural causes for the accounts in Scripture.

But is this really contextualization? Contextualization is to present an idea in a particular context. So to present the virgin birth idea in a naturalist context is to challenge the very worldview of the naturalist.

Ultimately the naturalist must decide to accept the supernatural as an explanation for the virgin birth or they must deny the virgin birth and remain committed to their worldview.

Hmmm...to change your mind and realize that your worldview is incorrect...doesn't that sound like repentance?

And isn't that the message of the gospel? Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is near!

The "evangelical uniform" versus real piety from PreachingNow

In the second part of his article on "The Future of Expository Preaching," Bryan Chapell says, "How we will apply Scripture to our present situation in order to be salt and light remains a hot topic in adult Sunday Schools but a great void in the homiletics literature. Once application was easy. Everyone knew the uniform that Evangelicals were supposed to wear: do not smoke or drink or chew; don't see bad movies; and don't cuss when the preacher's around. Virtually any biblical text could be exegeted to add threads to this uniform of Evangelical/Fundamentalist identification.

"Of course, for reasons both good and bad, that uniform is now largely considered out of fashion. Survey after survey tells us that the life patterns of Evangelicals on matters as varied as marriage, entertainment, alcohol and drug use, abortion and charitable giving vary little from the secular culture. The individualism that we were inadvertently promoting by emphasizing faith as a path to personal fulfillment has come home to roost as mere paganism among our people.

"We know how to preach salvation by faith, but we have not yet determined how to replace false legalisms with true piety. Young and old are more schooled in popular culture than biblical thought — that is evident in not only in our congregants' lifestyles but in their shocking lack of Biblical knowledge. Yet, before we blame others for not applying the scriptures well, we must confess that even among conservative church leaders there is little consensus regarding such culture forming issues as economics, government, education, poverty and war. The cold wash of this culture's realities are making it startlingly evident that it was far easier to talk about the uniform than it is to fight the spiritual war of the soul in today's society.

"We are beginning to think afresh about how exposition and application relate to these cultural battles for the soul. There is a healthy trickle of recent articles and books on how to do exegetically sound application. Still, much work remains to be done in order for expository preaching to move from merely creating weekly to-do lists based on our own traditions and really identifying how biblical truth applies to life's struggles."

Will 1 in 8 churches close? From PreachingNow newsletter

Thom Rainer, dean of the Billy Graham School of Evangelism and Missions at Southern Baptist Seminary, and an astute observer of the church growth scene, believes that 50,000 American churches will close by the year 2010.

In an article which originally appeared in his The Rainer Report newsletter, he noted, "Thousands of churches are on the precipice of closing. The conventional wisdom was that churches were tenaciously stubborn, and could keep going for years. But those churches were led by the Builder generation, those born before 1946. The churchgoing builders attended churches out of loyalty and tradition. They would often remain loyal to a church despite deteriorating quality and attendance.

"But Boomers, Busters/Gen Xers, and Bridgers — those born between 1977 and 1994 — have no such loyalties. They see no need to remain with a church that exists out of tradition and with little care for the quality of the ministries. . . . The fading of the Builder generation indicates the death of one out of eight churches in America today."

The big question remains: what kind of churches will close their doors over the coming decade? Most likely, they will be churches for which maintaining the status quo is the major priority.

Wow! Now how to get beyond maintaining the status quo...

Baptism + Fire - Christianity Today Magazine

God loves you and has a difficult plan for your life....
Suffering is our preparation for ministry in a world of suffering—all manner of suffering: from the trivial irritations of daily life to paralyzing accidents, from family squabbles to church splits, from the ravages of sexual slavery to the countless deaths of innocents at the hands of cruel dictators. This is not a world for shallow people with soft character. It needs tested, toughened disciples who are prepared, like their Lord, to descend into hell to redeem the lost.

Many of the difficulties that God sometimes directs and sometimes permits in our lives are not about us. God's got the whole world in his mind, and he is looking for people who are keeping that world foremost in their minds, as well.

Great article!

Brawl at church

And I thought conflict at my churches was out of control!

Religion News Blog : And on the eighth day, the Lord created spam

This disgusts me!

Doug Giles: Dirty Harry Goes To Church

Can you imagine Dirty Harry Callahan attending a highly effeminized church?

Perhaps a bit overstated but the point is clearly made!

The Jesse Tree: Celebration of Advent

I have never come across this before. It looks like a very meaningful and powerful activity for a family to do at Advent.

2005's Newest Minority - LeadershipJournal.net

Of those born after 1980, 27% claim no religion.

Let that sink in.

LeadershipJournal.net - Rabble Roused

It is the repetition of the complaining that tempts the leader to burnout.

Nice little article on complainers and the role of a pastor.

Toilet cleaning - the fastest way to the human heart

Wow! What a powerful story and an inspiring way to BE the gospel through servant evangelism.

The Moral Majority Coalition

Yikes! This stuff scares me. Jerry especially scares me!

Skip Christmas

Attention getting idea from a creative church.

I always suspected...

You Are From the Moon

You can vibe with the steady rhythms of the Moon. You're in touch with your emotions and intuition. You possess a great, unmatched imagination - and an infinite memory. Ultra-sensitive, you feel at home anywhere (or with anyone). A total healer, you light the way in the dark for many.

What Planet Are You From?

Emerging church? What's that? from Maggi Dawn

This is a question and a perspective that I have felt for sometime.

frontline: is wal-mart good for america? | PBS

Did you see this program on PBS? It was fascinating and overwhelming. I don't know even were to begin on this issue.

Beef! It's what's for dinner! And in our case after receiving a side of beef breakfast and lunch! 

Compassion International increasing help for AIDS-infected children

Compassion estimates that more than 20,000 children whom it assists in Africa are HIV-infected and tens of thousands more have a parent or sibling with the disease.

“HIV/AIDS intervention is an ongoing, natural extension of Compassion's mission to provide health-related benefits to all Compassion-assisted children,” Stafford said.

World health experts warn the problem is only growing. There are nearly 11 million AIDS orphans in Africa, and in sub-Saharan Africa, 42 million people are HIV positive. Two and a half million Africans will die this year from disease.

While Compassion has always provided medical help to the 600,000 children in its program, the latest addition calls for the use of antiretroviral drugs -- medicines that can extend the life and quality of life for a child.

Good to see Compassion responding! We sponsor two children through them and it is a great organization!

Pastors.com Article: I left Kenya asking, 'God, what can I do?'

just one of the 700 to die of AIDS, in a single day, in Kenya. That’s 4,900 a week; 21,700 a month; 252,000 a year

Horrifying statistics from Kenya. Read the article to be encouraged to get involved.

Global AIDS Prayer Partnership

Check out the Call to Prayer they are organizing on World Aids Day December 1.

Church Marketing Sucks

Good stuff. Check it out.

Radical Reformission : Reaching out without selling out

Mark Driscoll on his new book Radical Reformission:

Our lives shape, and are shaped by, the culture we live in, and the gospel must be fitted to (not altered for) particular people, times, and circumstances so that evangelism will be effective.

Great quote in a great article. He goes on and defines three tendencies in Christianity; parachurch, liberalism, and fundamentalism. Here's his great formulation for thinking about these tendencies:

Gospel + Culture - Church = Parachurch

Culture + Church - Gospel = Liberalism

Church + Gospel - Culture = Fundamentalism

Great thoughts!

My hope is built on nothing less...

I am amazed at the amount of despair I am reading on several blogs concerning the re-election of George W. Bush. Is our hope really on the government? Do we really need to rant about conservative Christians voting their moral values?

I am becoming more and more turned off to this whole blogging thing. Especially the reading of blogs part. Don't get me wrong. I have learned much and have been greatly challenged. I hope others find my blog and read it.

But I have often been admonished to spend time reading those books that are classics, that have stood the test of time. How many blog posts will stand the test of time? How many will be still read a year from now let alone 100 years from now? Honestly there are very few classics in the making either on the net or hard copy. C.S. Lewis writes,

It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones.

I think I need to apply this to blogs as well for the very reasons Lewis gives in the context of the statement above.

Every age has its own outlook. It is specially good at seeing certain truths and specially liable to make certain mistakes. Where they are true they will give us truths which we half knew already. Where they are false they will aggravate the error with which we are already dangerously ill. The only palliative is to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds, and this can be done only by reading old books.

I am feeling the need for some clean sea breezes! Happy ranting to all you ranters out there...I'm going for a nice long walk on the beach.

Online Finger Meditation Tool

Give it a try.

Luke 20:27-38

As I study this passage in preparation for this week's sermon, I am reminded of what Dallas Willard said about Jesus in his book The Divine Conspiracy. Willard called Jesus the greatest teacher ever. Here in verse 28, the Sadducees trying to trip up Jesus call him Teacher.

Is this an image of Jesus that I hold? Do I view him or understand him as Teacher?

This led to asking Jesus questions like you would a Teacher. Teacher, is God good? Teacher, is anything certain? Teacher, how can I be a better husband, father, follower?

It is amazing how different it feels to pray like this! To pray to The Teacher, seeking his input, his truth, his wisdom on life's situations.

I liken it to seeking out a mentor, becoming an apprentice. Who would you most like to be an apprentice for? The Donald as in the show The Apprentice? Who we choose as a mentor has much to say about our values.

[Listening to: From The Beginning - Phil Keaggy]

Why Church Isn't Really a Church

The pain of all this strikes church leaders especially hard. Deep down, not one of us believes the organization we serve is a true expression of authentic Christian community. Each of us thinks, 'THIS is what Jesus gave his life for? No way!'

Good article. This has been my experience as well. The churches I lead clearly aren't true churches as we struggle to form true Christian community.

Dallas Willard
: Articles

I attended a conference this week on anti-racism/pro-reconciliation. Though the conference was offered by one of the denominations I am affliated with, we did not talk at all about spiritual formation and transformation of the heart as the most profound answer for this complex and difficult problem.

Needless to say, I was deeply disappointed. This article by Willard in which he discusses his book Renovation of the Heart, I believe hits the nail on the head.

That’s the secret of Jesus. You watch Jesus and you see he never did “withdraw” and then “attack.” All of the time people wanted him to do it and in many ways, but he would not. Then to the body of believers he said, “This will show everyone that you are my disciples, if you love one another,” but he had already said, “Love one another as I have loved you.” So that’s the model. In that sense the transformation of the social world is at its heart the transformation of personal relations. That’s the key to transforming society in the larger arena. There is no cure for the social battles that we fight in our culture–and there’s so much grief around race, gender, and so forth–until you eliminate “withdrawal” and “attack” and replace them with “acceptance” and “help.” Once you do that and not just talk about it, these other issues will fall into place quickly. They will not fall into place at all unless it is done this way.

The church truly is the hope of the world!

First time Wi-Fi

This is the first time I have ever connected by wi-fi and I am loving this! The speed is incredible and the freedom is awesome! For this rural kid, I keep thinking that I need to get one of these connections!

RUF Hymnbook Online Hymn Resource

Very nice discovery today!

.: Corvallis Gazette-Times :. Archives

The survey also found the quality of the sermon is the primary reason new people return to a church. It ranks above how friendly the church is or the 'overall worship experience.'

NFL.com - NFL Hurricane Relief Drive

Visit this page and the NFL will donate $1.00 for hurricane relief.

our back pages : christiancounterculture

Looks like a lot of good articles to read.

te deum : That Glorious Mongrel : How Jazz Can Correct the Heresy of White Christianity

I simply ask us to consider how much our white Christian worship, and our practice of faith in general, is more akin to the framing of the concert hall experience than of the jazz performance. Too often, it seems to me, our worship is oriented to the isolated individual's private relationship with God and set apart from the world around us. We order and arrange it so that worshipers are mere auditors, focused as passive and inert spectators on the preacher's words or the singer's solo performance. Jazz as a model would have us recognize the importance of everyone's participation in worship and see the constitution of a social body—not one-on-One relationships with God—as vital to Christian spiritual formation and witness.

I am a huge jazz fan having played in high school and college and this is a great article looking at how jazz can help white Christianity and its heresies. Long article but well worth the read.

ginkworld; se7en questions, ron jackson

Interview with George Barna at ginkworld.

'Breakout Churches' reveals leadership essentials

The process of moving a church from mediocrity to greatness "included more than the transformation of a church; it also included the transformation of a leader."

Bummer! So there's no slick program I can implement to help my church grow? You mean I have to grow as a pastor if I want to see transformation in my church!?

Wray routs Akron

Thomas Barnett was shocked to see the ball in his hands on the first play of the game.

Wray's 285-pound defensive lineman doesn't catch many passes, but his interception triggered a landslide against No. 4 Akron on Friday night, and Wray cruised to a 35-0 Class 1A North Central League victory at Akron Field.

Our high school football team, the Wray Eagles are 6-0 and having a lot of fun! Thomas goes to the Christian Church. Way to go Thomas!

2 Timothy 3.14-4.5 10.17.04

2 Timothy 3.14-4.5 10.17.04
Originally uploaded by hawkenstein.

Here's my mindmap for my sermon today. If you are interested, click on the image for a larger image that you can actually read!

[Listening to: Thinking Of You - Lenny Kravitz]

Well we did it! Echo was a great time with 15 to 20 people there and many asking when we are going to do it again! The coffee shop on Main Street was the perfect location. We hope that this service will reach more and more people in our community. Thanks for your prayers! 

Found this very funny sports statue of Jesus playing football with some kids! The caption is great! 

Confessing Christ in a World of Violence

Could you sign this statement?

When churches head left (10/18/04)

...but the efforts of the woeful mainline churches are better seen as classic knee-jerk leftism, an expression of hard-core loathing for the United States and the West, with Israel as a stand-in for America. The mainline churches believe they still stand for high moral purpose in politics. They don't. They can no longer be taken seriously on politics or human rights.

And the PCUSA wonders why rural America is leaving?

Building Below the Water line

Great metaphor for pastors.

Out in the sticks in October. [Listening to: Jazz Odyssey - Audio Adrenaline] 

Egg on my face : my new blog

I have finally taken the plunge on a second blog that I have be thinking about for some time.

This blog has long been in the back of my mind. Today I ran across a quote from Leith Anderson that forced me to create this blog.

Here you will find my thoughts and reflections on pastoring yoked congregations::the challenges, opportunities, frustrations, joys...everything. I have long joked about writing a book entitled: How to Pastor Yoked Congregations Without Getting Egg on Your Face! Pretty lame I know but, I've found it to be one of the bigger challenges in my current calling.

As some of you may know, I pastor two mainline congregations in rural northeastern Colorado. Both churches are under 100 people. The denominations are Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). I have served in this call for nearly two years.

I hope this blog helps other pastors who are serving in yoked congregations as well as educates others who are contemplating such a ministry.

Grace and peace,
Steve

Worldometers

Here are some interesting counters for all the statistically minded out there. Could make for fun discussion starters.

American Idols

Quote of the day:

Spiritual community is like a good marriage. It's good, but never ideal. We're getting closer to it.

Looking for answers in an ask-assertive world

Great article by Spencer Burke over at the Ooze.

Sometimes Ministry Stinks - LeadershipJournal.net

Nothing in the ministry has the power to determine the pastor's countenance. In the words of Viktor Frankl, "The last of the human freedoms is to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances." So why would you hand over that freedom to a bedpan? You may have to carry the smelly mess, but you don't have to let it into your soul, where attitudes are created.

Dignity in ministry is found not in the task but in the one who has called us to it. If you are clear that it is Christ who has called you to serve this church, then you are always part of a royal priesthood. But you have to choose to see that. It's the only way you can look like royalty while doing a task that just stinks.

In my years in ministry, I have found it to be true that the church attracts some odd people. But I have always worked hard to love them and to show them God's love for them through how I treat them.

Where I wrestle with this issue is when these odd people begin to suck you dry and take up lots of time and energy to minister to. How do you go about setting boundaries with them?

Though this question is beyond the scope of Barnes' article I believe it is also an important issue to consider.

Eventually the members and elders of the congregation get bugged by the problem parishioner, but it usually falls to the pastor to "do something about it."

Many times though, I have found that these odd people who bug others in the church are a wonderful opportunity to grow in their ability to love.

When I was a youth pastor I was amazed at how loving the kids could be toward difficult and odd kids. They humbled me in the love the showed to odd people. And to me, that's the church in action! So pastors, turn the tables! Encourage your people to reach out to and love the unloveables and the odd folks in your church and community. I bet God will teach everyone a lot in the process. Maybe even someone will grow spiritually!

Echo flyer

echo flyer
Originally uploaded by hawkenstein.

Here's the flyer we are putting up around town. Hopefully it will create a buzz for the service on October 17.

Organic Worship

Great worship ideas. Take a look and have fun experimenting.

Here in Wray, we are going to try to start a new service on October 17. There are a lot of people 40 and under in our town who don't go to church. It's probably because all of the churches in town are stuck in the '50's, '60's, & '70's. We hope that this service will become a community of people who seek to experience Jesus Christ in fresh, organic, alternative ways. I am nervous and excited! Nervous because nothing like this has been done here. Excited because nothing like this has been done here!

We are meeting in a cool coffee shop on Main Street. Hopefully this neutral turf will work for us. Please pray about this new ministry if you think of it!