Archive for the ‘Reformed’ Category

The Ancient Paths

Posted: March 31, 2015 in Ancient Faith, Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Counsel, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, John Calvin, life, Liturgical, Lutheran, Martin Luther, Ministry, Orthodox, Pastoral Care, Pentecostal, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, Testimony, universal
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ancient-faith

A Call to an Ancient Evangelical Future

PROLOGUE

In every age the Holy Spirit calls the Church to examine its faithfulness to God’s revelation in Jesus Christ, authoritatively recorded in Scripture and handed down through the Church. Thus, while we affirm the global strength and vitality of worldwide Evangelicalism in our day, we believe the North American expression of Evangelicalism needs to be especially sensitive to the new external and internal challenges facing God’s people.

These external challenges include the current cultural milieu and the resurgence of religious and political ideologies. The internal challenges include Evangelical accommodation to civil religion, rationalism, privatism and pragmatism. In light of these challenges, we call Evangelicals to strengthen their witness through a recovery of the faith articulated by the consensus of the ancient Church and its guardians in the traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, the Protestant Reformation and the Evangelical awakenings. Ancient Christians faced a world of paganism, Gnosticism and political domination. In the face of heresy and persecution, they understood history through Israel’s story, culminating in the death and resurrection of Jesus and the coming of God’s Kingdom.

Today, as in the ancient era, the Church is confronted by a host of master narratives that contradict and compete with the gospel. The pressing question is: who gets to narrate the world? The Call to an Ancient Evangelical Future challenges Evangelical Christians to restore the priority of the divinely inspired biblical story of God’s acts in history. The narrative of God’s Kingdom holds eternal implications for the mission of the Church, its theological reflection, its public ministries of worship and spirituality and its life in the world. By engaging these themes, we believe the Church will be strengthened to address the issues of our day.

1. ON THE PRIMACY OF THE BIBLICAL NARRATIVE

We call for a return to the priority of the divinely authorized canonical story of the Triune God. This story-Creation, Incarnation, and Re-creation-was effected by Christ’s recapitulation of human history and summarized by the early Church in its Rules of Faith. The gospel-formed content of these Rules served as the key to the interpretation of Scripture and its critique of contemporary culture, and thus shaped the church’s pastoral ministry. Today, we call Evangelicals to turn away from modern theological methods that reduce the gospel to mere propositions, and from contemporary pastoral ministries so compatible with culture that they camouflage God’s story or empty it of its cosmic and redemptive meaning. In a world of competing stories, we call Evangelicals to recover the truth of God’s word as the story of the world, and to make it the centerpiece of Evangelical life.

2. ON THE CHURCH, THE CONTINUATION OF GOD’S NARRATIVE

We call Evangelicals to take seriously the visible character of the Church. We call for a commitment to its mission in the world in fidelity to God’s mission (Missio Dei), and for an exploration of the ecumenical implications this has for the unity, holiness, catholicity, and apostolicity of the Church. Thus, we call Evangelicals to turn away from an individualism that makes the Church a mere addendum to God’s redemptive plan. Individualistic evangelicalism has contributed to the current problems of churchless Christianity, redefinitions of the Church according to business models, separatist ecclesiologies and judgmental attitudes toward the Church. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to recover their place in the community of the Church catholic.

3. ON THE CHURCH’S THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION ON GOD’S NARRATIVE

We call for the Church’s reflection to remain anchored in the Scriptures in continuity with the theological interpretation learned from the early Fathers. Thus, we call Evangelicals to turn away from methods that separate theological reflection from the common traditions of the Church. These modern methods compartmentalize God’s story by analyzing its separate parts, while ignoring God’s entire redemptive work as recapitulated in Christ. Anti-historical attitudes also disregard the common biblical and theological legacy of the ancient Church. Such disregard ignores the hermeneutical value of the Church’s ecumenical creeds. This reduces God’s story of the world to one of many competing theologies and impairs the unified witness of the Church to God’s plan for the history of the world. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to unity in “the tradition that has been believed everywhere, always and by all,” as well as to humility and charity in their various Protestant traditions.

4. ON THE CHURCH’S WORSHIP AS TELLING AND ENACTING GOD’S NARRATIVE

We call for public worship that sings, preaches and enacts God’s story. We call for a renewed consideration of how God ministers to us in baptism, Eucharist, confession, the laying on of hands, marriage, healing and through the charisma of the Spirit, for these actions shape our lives and signify the meaning of the world. Thus, we call Evangelicals to turn away from forms of worship that focus on God as a mere object of the intellect or that assert the self as the source of worship. Such worship has resulted in lecture-oriented, music-driven, performance-centered and program-controlled models that do not adequately proclaim God’s cosmic redemption. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to recover the historic substance of worship of Word and Table and to attend to the Christian year, which marks time according to God’s saving acts.

5. ON SPIRITUAL FORMATION IN THE CHURCH AS EMBODIMENT OF GOD’S NARRATIVE

We call for a catechetical spiritual formation of the people of God that is based firmly on a Trinitarian biblical narrative. We are concerned when spirituality is separated from the story of God and baptism into the life of Christ and his Body. Spirituality, made independent from God’s story, is often characterized by legalism, mere intellectual knowledge, an overly therapeutic culture, New Age Gnosticism, a dualistic rejection of this world and a narcissistic preoccupation with one’s own experience. These false spiritualities are inadequate for the challenges we face in today’s world. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to return to a historic spirituality like that taught and practiced in the ancient catechumenate.

6. ON THE CHURCH’S EMBODIED LIFE IN THE WORLD

We call for a cruciform holiness and commitment to God’s mission in the world. This embodied holiness affirms life, biblical morality and appropriate self-denial. It calls us to be faithful stewards of the created order and bold prophets to our contemporary culture. Thus, we call Evangelicals to intensify their prophetic voice against forms of indifference to God’s gift of life, economic and political injustice, ecological insensitivity and the failure to champion the poor and marginalized. Too often we have failed to stand prophetically against the culture’s captivity to racism, consumerism, political correctness, civil religion, sexism, ethical relativism, violence and the culture of death. These failures have muted the voice of Christ to the world through his Church and detract from God’s story of the world, which the Church is collectively to embody. Therefore, we call the Church to recover its counter-cultural mission to the world.

EPILOGUE

In sum, we call Evangelicals to recover the conviction that God’s story shapes the mission of the Church to bear witness to God’s Kingdom and to inform the spiritual foundations of civilization. We set forth this Call as an ongoing, open-ended conversation. We are aware that we have our blind spots and weaknesses. Therefore, we encourage Evangelicals to engage this Call within educational centers, denominations and local churches through publications and conferences.

We pray that we can move with intention to proclaim a loving, transcendent, triune God who has become involved in our history. In line with Scripture, creed and tradition, it is our deepest desire to embody God’s purposes in the mission of the Church through our theological reflection, our worship, our spirituality and our life in the world, all the while proclaiming that Jesus is Lord over all creation.

This Call is issued in the spirit of sic et non; therefore those who affix their names to this Call need not agree with all its content. Rather, its consensus is that these are issues to be discussed in the tradition of semper reformanda as the church faces the new challenges of our time. Over a period of seven months, more than 300 persons have participated via e-mail to write the Call. These men and women represent a broad diversity of ethnicity and denominational affiliation. The four theologians who most consistently interacted with the development of the Call have been named as Theological Editors. The Board of Reference was given the special assignment of overall approval.

Just before his death in 2007, Robert E. Webber (inset picture) spent a good portion of his time working collaboratively with over 300 theologians and other leaders to craft A Call to an Ancient Evangelical Future. The Call continues some themes and expands upon the Chicago Call” of 1977, and sets forth a vision for an Ancient-Future faith in a postmodern world. That Webber helped to craft such a call is not unusual, for he spent the whole of his professional life calling the church to continual reform and, most especially, encouraging leaders and laity alike to drink from the refreshing well of ancient truth. That the Call came, as it did, at a time of great change in the world and in the church, and that it also came just before his passing, gives it a kind of weight that makes it especially compelling to examine.

Remember the Stain…

Posted: March 27, 2015 in Biblical, Calling, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Counsel, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, life, Ministry, Orthodox, Pastoral Care, Pentecostal, poetry, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, Testimony, universal
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Washstain

Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. ~ Revelation 22:14 (ESV)

Remember the stain…

I remember the stain
at times it doesn’t seem right
to recall what marred my walk in the light
it cannot be removed
so much of life reviewed
in my minds eye

I remember the stain
i cannot clean it
even the rushing tide
sweeping away foot prints over and again
cannot remove it

I remember the stain
of idolatry, rebellion, and caustic choices
trying to reign over me
why do I remember?

I remember the stain
even though i can still see it
has been washed in blood deep red
where my Father sees me white as snow
where no stain is left to judge me rightly
where no bondage there to bind me tightly
where freedom rings so very brightly
at the dawn of His appearing
He remembers no stain at me leering

I remember the stain
maybe at my minds random recollection
to remind once more my souls misdirection
at one time I knew not
the Deliverer from before
to grasp again His winsome words
Nor do I condemn you, go and sin no more…

Narcissism, Social Media, and the Church

Posted: March 25, 2015 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Counsel, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, False Teaching, Heresy, life, Liturgical, Ministry, Pentecostal, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, Testimony, universal
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Narcissism, Social Media, and the Church

A definition of narcissism: The inordinate fascination with oneself; excessive self-love; vanity.

“The true destination for most of our online endeavors really are the new media equivalent of the biblical statues that were presented as deities. These digital shrines {idols} that we create to ourselves.” ~ from Confessions of a Narcissist, by Mitch Joel

Social-Media-Make-Us-Narcissistic

 

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.” Matthew 23:25 (NIV)

“He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.” Romans 2:6-8 (ESV)

“You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.” James 5:5 (ESV)

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 (NIV)

“What kind of impact could Christians have if we were more interested in helping a world in pain than in how good we look  to our digital friends? How can we {the church} redeem our online presence without becoming weird, obnoxious or confrontational?” (Shraeder & Hendricks, pp. 170-171)

References:

Schrader, T., Hendricks, K. (Eds.). (2011). Outspoken: conversations on church communication. Los Angeles, CA.   Center for Church Communication.

Does Social Media Make Us Narcissistic? Retrieved from: http://brandongaille.com/does-social-media-make-us-     narcissistic/

 

True Pastoral Care*

Posted: March 23, 2015 in Biblical, Books, Calling, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Counsel, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, John Calvin, life, Liturgical, Lutheran, Martin Luther, Ministry, Orthodox, Pastoral Care, Pentecostal, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, universal
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pastoralcare

“And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.”
Jeremiah 3:15 (KJV)

From this it is evident that there are five main tasks required in the pastoral office and true care of souls:

First: to lead to Christ our Lord and into His communion those who are still estranged from Him, whether through carnal excess or false worship.

Secondly: to restore those who had once been brought to Christ and into His church but have been drawn away again through the affairs of the flesh or false doctrine.

Thirdly: to assist in the true reformation of those who while remaining in the church of Christ have grievously fallen and sinned.

Fourthly: to re-establish in true Christian strength and health those who, while persevering in the fellowship of Christ and not doing anything particularly or grossly wrong, have become somewhat feeble and sick in the Christian life.

Fifthly: to protect from all offense and falling away and continually encourage in all good things those who stay within the flock and in Christ’s sheep-pen without grievously sinning or becoming weak and sick in their Christian walk.

~ from Concerning the True Care of Souls by Martin Bucer (1538) (p. 70)

{May this ever be my prayer, oh Lord my God}

*Note: Caring elders/pastors must seek the lost, bring back the wandering, restore the fallen, strengthen the weak, and encourage the strong. The Gospel brings salvation, healing, and deliverance.

Evaluating Media Forms in Ministry

Posted: March 21, 2015 in Biblical, Calling, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, John Calvin, life, Liturgical, Lutheran, Martin Luther, Ministry, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, Testimony, universal
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media-press

Evaluating Media Forms in Ministry

I subscribe to a magazine called “Salvo.” It is a publication of The Fellowship of St. James (http://www.fsj.org), Salvo is dedicated to debunking the cultural myths that have undercut human dignity, all but destroyed the notions of virtue and morality, and slowly eroded our appetite for transcendence. It also seeks to promote the Christian worldview. (http://www.salvomag.com)

That being said, I came to the “Book Blip” page, where a book review entitled “Trust Me, I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator” was given by Ryan Holiday. This is the review he wrote:

“Trust Me, I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator is a fast-moving, straight-talking mea culpa (which means “through my fault” and is an acknowledgement of having done wrong) from a marketer, media strategist, and apparent “first defector” from the “unreality” of the blogosphere — a nebulous entity whose very business model “rests on exploiting the difference between perception and reality.” Simultaneously fascinating and disturbing, Trust Me, I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator exposes the modus operandi of the internet news “racket” and educates readers in how to be more media-savvy.” (Salvo Magazine, Issue 32, Spring 2015, p. 6)

I share this with you all to establish a thought. The thought is, is the Church, which uses a variety of media forms in ministry actually telling the truth about their ministry? Is what is being marketed, or expressed the exact true representation of what the inquirer will actually find upon visiting the church? What is the intent and purpose of the church’s use of that media form? What is the desired goal from the use of a specific media form?

Here is another thought. I remember one year, receiving in the mail an invitation to go to a local resort hotel, have fun at its water park, and then come Sunday, enjoy the various zoo animals on display after the church service was over. What was the goal of this mailer? I think it was an attraction attention getter for those people with families, who, if so moved, would come to this local evangelical church. Did this church say anything that was untrue? No. They did exactly what they said they would. All you had to do was show the card you got in the mail, and you could play at the water park until you passed out. Then, the pièce de résistance was the various zoo animals on display after the church service. There was free hot dogs, popcorn, and soda for all. What was the intent of all of this engaging marketing? To get people to come to their church. I am sure hundreds went to the resort for a free water park fling, and yet out of the hundreds maybe 1-2% actually visited the church. More than likely those 1-2% were just there for the zoo animals. Instead of sending a card with the Gospel message on it, or a teaser with the answer for all the world’s problems, they spent thousands of dollars on a marketing campaign. Was it the right or wrong way to get people to church?

In our text book OutSpoken, we are told that we should be good stewards regarding how we use the various media forms at the church’s disposal. The goal or intent of using varying media forms, from my understanding, is obedience to the command to GO, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them, and teaching them everything Jesus had commanded the apostles.

When it is our turn to take advantage of the various media forms, which method or means are we going to use, and for what purpose, really?

Are You a Moralistic Therapeutic Deist?

Posted: March 19, 2015 in Biblical, Books, Calling, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, life, Liturgical, Ministry, Orthodox, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching
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mtdThere is talk in some church circles about “moralistic therapeutic deism.” We may abbreviate this ungainly phrase as “MTD,” in allusion to the popular cable channel showing music videos. Many teenagers and young adults are familiar with MTV; however, few would recognize “moralistic therapeutic deism” as playing any role in their lives.

Yet the contention we hear is that MTD, rather than classic Christianity, is the predominant religion among today’s teenagers and young adults. They may not recognize the phrase, but it describes the belief system that they actually profess and practice. And what’s more: We, the parents and other adults around them, are the ones who taught them MTD. This is a serious charge and deserves serious consideration.

An Inarticulate Faith

The phrase “moralistic therapeutic deism,” you will not be surprised to learn, was coined by an academic: Notre Dame sociologist Christian Smith. It has been disseminated more widely by Smith’s associates, including Princeton Seminary professor Kenda Creasy Dean. Based on her research with Smith, Dean published a book, Almost Christian: What the Faith of Our Teenagers is Telling the American Church. Dean has become a popular speaker at church events. She delivered a challenging presentation at my local church on a snowy Saturday in February, and I was among the large crowd that came out to hear her.

Smith, Dean, and their colleagues did surveys and in-depth interviews in which they queried thousands of young people about their religious beliefs and practices. Very few, they found, were atheists or hostile toward religion. On the other hand, relatively few were able to articulate and consistently practice a faith that resembled classic Christianity.

The vast majority of the respondents found it difficult to articulate any kind of belief system. They mentioned God, but it was a vague and distant God. They didn’t have much to say about Jesus.

What the respondents did seem to believe, as Smith summarized it, was: God functions as an authority who gives us rules to guide our behavior (this is the “moralistic” part). The main point of these rules is to be a nice person who gets along with other people. If we obey the rules, God makes us feel good about ourselves (this is the “therapeutic” part). But God isn’t involved in a personal or direct way in our daily lives (this is the “deism” part). He may show up in a crisis, to make us feel better about ourselves.

Almost Christian

This set of half-conscious assumptions is what Smith, Dean, and associates call “moralistic therapeutic deism.” It’s not necessarily false. We should seek good relations with the people around us. If we obey God’s commands, we will usually end up happier. God is a refuge in times of trouble.

Yet the Good News of Jesus Christ is so much greater than any of this. Dean, in her talk, showed a side-by-side comparison of MTD and the Apostles’ Creed. The differences were stark. MTD is all about myself and my happiness. The Apostles’ Creed is about the Truine God–Father, Son, and Holy Spirit–and God’s amazing works from the Creation to the Incarnation to the hope of life eternal.

So how did these teenagers and young adults come to settle for so much less than the Gospel? It wasn’t by rebelling against their parents’ religion. On the contrary, survey respondents by and large felt positively toward their parents and shared common values. Many of them reported that their parents had taken them regularly to church and youth group, and they had few complaints about the experience. It’s just that they didn’t emerge with a distinct Christian faith that they could articulate and practice.

Is This What We Teach Our Children?

Dean suggests a disturbing explanation: Perhaps these teenagers and young adults adopted MTD because that’s what they were taught. That’s basically the philosophy of life they have received from and observed in their parents. It’s what they learned in Sunday school and youth group: Be nice to other people and you’ll have a happy life, and God will be there when you need him. All that stuff about Jesus dying for our sins never really made an impression.

Dean’s presentation provoked some self-examination in me and others at my church: Is MTD what we are teaching our kids? When my wife and I lead Children’s Church, is the message the children are hearing the Gospel of God’s great mercy in Jesus Christ? Or is it something less? Are we preparing them to be nice people or disciples of Jesus Christ?

I must admit that some of the Sunday school curriculum we have used has been very moralistic and therapeutic. We read Bible stories, but the takeaway at the end of the lesson often seems to be that everyone is special to God and kids should be kind to their classmates. There isn’t much said about our being sinners to whom God sent a Savior. I have seen this failing not only in old line Protestant curricula, but also in curricula from publishers that have an evangelical reputation.

How would your congregation fare under this kind of self-examination? Maybe you intend to communicate the Gospel–as my wife and I do–but are you sure that’s what the children are hearing? It’s a question worth asking. The consequences go far into the future–indeed, into eternity.

Taken from “Theology Matters” http://www.theologymatters.com/

Written by: Alan F.H. Wisdom

From Atheist to A Lutheran Pulpit (The Remix)

Posted: March 19, 2015 in Biblical, Books, Calling, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, life, Liturgical, Lutheran, Ministry, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Preaching, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, Testimony
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Talking about TED

Posted: March 11, 2015 in Biblical, Calling, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, life, Liturgical, Lutheran, Ministry, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, The Story, universal
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ted-logo

Talking about TED

As the Communication in Ministry course glides midway in its third week, I remember the theme is, “what role do you believe story plays in ministry communication and how might you build stories into your ministry’s communication strategy?” The emphasis is storytelling.

The chapter we are reading in our text, Outspoken, by Shraeder & Hendricks, pp. 90-115 is entitled “Words and Stories.”

Everyone has a story. There is a story about just about everything. There are stories about food, drinks, cars, trucks, and M&M’s. I’m on the path toward a degree in Christian Ministry, and there is a story behind that, but I’m not going to tell it right now. Teased yet?

I get emails from a source called churchjobs.tv and at the bottom of the email there are some links to different resources. One of the links was to an article about TED. A gentleman named Todd Rhoades wrote an article asking the question, “What if our sermons were like TED talks?” Here’s the link: http://toddrhoades.com/what-if-your-sermon-was-like-a-ted-talk

Todd got the idea to blog out this question from another gentleman by the name of Eric Dye. Here’s his link:  http://bit.ly/1D7GKX0  “If Sermons were like TED talks”

Have you ever watched a TED talk on YouTube? I have. I have watched several, and honestly they were all very interesting.

What is TED? TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less). TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. Meanwhile, independently run TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world. http://www.ted.com/

TED is a platform for ideas worth spreading. TED today shares ideas from a broad spectrum. Meanwhile, independent TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world. http://www.ted.com/about/our-organization

Think about the rules of a TED talk:

  1. No talk can exceed 18 minutes in length.
  2. Speakers must tell a story or argue for an idea. They may not use the TED stage to sell products, promote themselves or businesses. Every talk’s content must be original and give credit where appropriate. Speakers cannot plagiarize or impersonate other persons, living or dead.
  3. Speakers must be able to confirm the claims presented in every talk.

What about this? Can we truly expound the Word of God in 18 minutes? I know there are many ways to preach or proclaim the Word of God, by topic, by subject, by Bible book, etc. Can you say everything about a passage of Scripture in 18 minutes? You may well be able to tell a story in 18 minutes, however, would we truly be feeding our flock on a diet of short bread? Should we feed growing disciples of Christ only the milk of the Word? What about the solid food of the Word? Check out what St. Paul has to say about it, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic elements of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food; for everyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is unskilled in the word of righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, for those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.” Hebrews 5:12-14 (NRSV)

Ok, don’t get me wrong, I believe in short stories. There are a lot of great short stories in literature. Maybe it would be good every now and then to give a short story, or short sermon, or a short message to get our point across. Maybe our message could best be told condensed or in a more concise manner?

Matthew 28:11-15 tells a short story of how the Roman soldiers were given money to keep their mouths shut about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. However, the short story had an ending that said, “So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is still told among the Jews to this day.” Matthew 28:15 (NRSV) The short story ended up being a story that is now told through the Scriptures, and we live in 2015 AD. Matthew was written at least in 60 AD. So, a short story can have lasting effects. Does this still give credence to an 18 minute sermon, homily, message, or word from the Lord? Well, I must admit it, yes. How could it be accomplished? I think the 18 minute sermon would have to be a story.

What about the Gospel story? Here is an example of short story. The Gospel in a little more than four (4) minutes:

The Miracles of Zarephath

Posted: March 6, 2015 in Biblical, Calling, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, Liturgical, Lutheran, Ministry, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, universal
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Elijah

The Miracles of Zarephath

God sent Elijah to Zarephath, a small town outside Sidon, on the Phoenician coast, which is now the Mediterranean Sea. Prior to this journey, Elijah was miraculously fed by a raven, and drank from the Brook Cherith, which streamed down the east side of the mountains and flowed into the Jordan River. When the brook dried up, God told Elijah to move. He moved to hide from King Ahab, because Elijah prophesied, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”

Therefore, God tells Elijah, “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.”

King Ahab had been eagerly seeking to apprehend Elijah in order to find some way to convince him to end the drought. However, it is not God’s will for that to occur, and what happens next in Zarephath turns out to be very miraculous itself.

It was apparently very hot and dry, even on the coastline; I am sure these people knew of some humidity during their lifetime living in a coastal town. It sure was dry enough to gather sticks for a fire, her last fire she thought, as she mused as to how she would use the last little bit of flour left in the jar. She had all but given up, and as the good mother, she was, and also a father to her son since her husband died; she would prepare their last meal, and wait to starve to death.

Oh, how many times have we come to the point in our lives where it just seemed so dry and lifeless? As Christians, we are bearing no fruit in our lives worth mentioning. We seem to be just gathering kindling for our last fire, thinking up ways to make it happen one last time, one last fire, one last reason to be a witness for Christ! We become sullen, looking down at the ground, crunching underneath our feet; they burn to remind us of the fire that once was aflame in our hearts for God!

She stands at the gate of the city. Why did she wander out? Were there no trees left in the city? Had everyone cut down the trees for firewood? Now, this widow has to go outside her city to find sticks, not a log or two, but just sticks, the remnant of what used to be flourishing. Why is it important to look at this widow gathering sticks at the gate? The Kingdom of God has a gate, and the Bible tells us that the only entrance into the Kingdom of God, or as St. Augustine said in his book, The City of God, is through Jesus Christ. If you are a Christian, you are part of the Kingdom of God, the Rule, and Reign of God through Jesus Christ, Who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. However, if you are not a Christian, or maybe even doubt that you are, you stand outside the gate. The city is behind you. Maybe, in your Christian life past, you flourished in your faith; you bore the fruit of righteousness. You may have walked through the gate into the city, but since you were a widow, without a husband, you have been outcast, alone, with no one to identify with, no one to care for you. Sometimes, I am sure we can feel widowed because we feel our faith died. The Bible says we can taste of the heavenly gift, we can see the Holy Spirit working in the lives of others. We can even be witnesses to the miraculous and still never experience faith for ourselves. I can confidently tell you, that even if you were baptized as an infant, you may not be saved. Do you stand outside the gate of the city? Do you stand outside the Kingdom of God?

The Bible tells us that God has already spoken to this widow woman to help Elijah. That adds a new twist to our story this morning. This place, this city, on the Phoenician coast, away from Israel, is a place where God is not worshiped. It is a pagan land, a land of idolatry. Yet, God spoke to her, commanding her to help the prophet. Therefore, Elijah sees this widow woman; I believe he knew her to be the one God told him about. Elijah asks her for some water. Remember, there is a massive drought going on in the land. Perhaps there was a well where fresh water was retrieved. As the widow woman goes for the water, he yells at her something like, “Oh, and by the way, bring me morsel of bread, I’m hungry!”

Brothers and sisters, have you ever had God tell you to bring him a morsel? Morsel is an interesting word the author of First Kings uses to describe what Elijah is requesting. Morsel – a crumb, as if it is rubbed off an actual piece of bread. Maybe a mouthful and that is a relative statement because I know some people that can put a bunch of bread in their mouths! So let us just stay with what it really means, a crumb, a little piece of bread. What was it that God asked you to do? Was it something very minute? Was it something so small, yet so demanding of you that you would say, “I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son that we may eat it and die.” The point here is that God does not command us to do something that He cannot provide us with the means or the ability to do it. She had already had her mind made up, that God could not use her anymore because she just does not have what it takes. There is only a handful of faith, or she can barely sense the anointing of the Holy Spirit in her life. She is just trying to find enough kindling to keep those fires burning in her heart – but she is ready to die because of the despair she has fallen into. She feels there is no hope. God, how can you call upon me to help others when I just do not have the ingredients anymore?

Then Elijah tests her obedience saying, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. First, make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth.”

First, when God calls you to Himself, He says fear not! When God calls you to do something for Him, He says fear not! Why? Do not be afraid! Do not despair! God is in control! Brothers and sisters, God is there when the crops do not grow! God is there when a pestilence destroys your crops! God is there when the rain does not come. God is there when the ground dries up. God is there when the flood waters rage. God is there when your husband or wife dies! God is there when you lose a loved one! God is there when your tractor breaks down! What did Elijah tell the widow woman? Fear not. Go, make me a little piece of bread, and bring it to me with what you have already in your jar of flour and oil. Do you remember the parable of the mustard seed that Jesus taught? How such a very small seed was able to grow in a huge tree that looks like a gigantic bush? God tells us even the smallest amount of faith can get us through. We must learn to trust in Jesus, we must learn to trust in God with the little bit of flour and oil in our jar.

But wait, there is more! God just did not leave the poor widow woman with nothing after she makes Elijah something to eat. Elijah tells her that God says her flour will not be spent! God says that her jug of oil shall not be empty!

Brothers and sisters, God is not done with you yet! God is telling you that your flour jar is not empty. The bread of life is Jesus Christ and you should feast on Him. Get your nourishment from Jesus Christ. He is the Bread that gives life. His life is the light of men. He is your portion and your provision. You still have something to give! God is telling you this morning with what is still within you, you have what can feed multitudes.

Brothers and sisters, God says your jug of oil shall not be empty. In the Bible, oil is used to describe the substance used to anoint someone, or pour over someone who is being consecrated for a specific office or task. Oil in both the Old and New Testament represents the Holy Spirit. If you are a Christian, the blessed Holy Trinity of God dwells within you in the Person of the Holy Spirit! What joy! What solace! What a relief! God is within us, not just with us! His anointing teaches us all things, gives us wisdom, gives us power, love, and a sound mind. The oil of God gives us strength to resist temptation. The anointing of God sanctifies us by His Truth; His Word is Truth, hallelujah! Your jug of oil shall not be empty! It will remain full until you each go home to be with the Lord or He comes back in glory! Either way, His Holy Spirit has taken up residence within you; He has regenerated you, declared you righteous in God’s eyes, sets you apart as holy unto the Lord, and gives you His gifts, and enables you to bear fruit unto Christ-likeness. You do not have to be a barren tree! You can bear the fruit of a holy and righteous life. Jesus said, “I will not leave you as orphans! I will not leave you fatherless, comfortless, parentless, and bereaved, I am coming to you!” Jesus also assures us by saying, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” Fear not, for the Holy Spirit is your oil of gladness!

Dear friends, as the Holy Scriptures attest, God accomplished what He said He would do. Elijah, the widow woman and her children ate for many days. In verse 16 it says, “The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.” God is not like a human being, who will lie, cheat, steal, and not keep the promises they make. No, God is God, Who cannot lie, and He cannot contradict Himself, nor go back on His Word, because His Word is Truth, for He is Holy, Just, and Righteous.

Consequently, there comes a time as we go through our Christian lives, our flour jar full to overflowing, and our jug of oil never fails, then something catastrophic or tragic happens. We get the diagnosis, or the telephone call, or the report of an accident. What happens then? What happens when we, full of faith and hope for the days ahead hear the news of the sudden death of a loved one?

For this widow woman, one of her children, a son, comes down so sick that he dies. The first thing that we do is tell God, “What have I done to deserve this?” Why is it that we come to the immediate conclusion that God has something against us when tragedy strikes? On the other hand, like when our home is hit by a tornado.  Do we realize that we hold on to our loved ones? Do we realize that we hold on to our homes, our tractors, our pickup trucks, our snowmobiles, our sports cars? Do we realize that we idolize things in our lives, or maybe we even idolize experiences in our lives? Elijah says to the widow woman, “Give me your son.” We must give all that we are, all that we possess, all who we love, to God. God has given us many great gifts, some of which you are sitting next to right now. Nevertheless, we must surrender them to God. We must put God above all of them. We must put God on the throne of our lives. He is Lord. Jesus is Lord. God is King. We serve in His Kingdom. God is on the throne of His Kingdom. We must love God so much, that it would seem that we would hate these things or father, mother, sister, brother, wife, husband, and child. God says, “Give Me all of you – so I can give you all of Me that you can contain.” The Bible does not say much of the widow woman’s faith or trust in God through the words of Elijah. However, she did trust in God, but blamed Elijah for some reason.

What does God say when this happens? Sometimes He will test us and try us as the Refiner of gold and silver. Seeking to view Himself in us, He heats up the gold or silver to a temperature that separates the dross, the dirt, the sin, that has mingled with the new creation in Christ Jesus that we are. Once the dross has reached the surface, God skims it off, gently, to not push down, or mingle again the dross with the pure gold or silver. When the process is finished, the Refiner can see His own image in the gold or silver. The Bible tells us that we will be transformed into the image and likeness of God’s Son, Jesus Christ, by the renewing of our minds in the power of the Holy Spirit.

God hears the cry of the widow woman, her heart saddened that her son, probably because of malnutrition has succumbed to a disease that took his life. We say to ourselves in cases like this, “if only I did thus, and so.” If only. If only. Nevertheless, God says, wait, there is more!

Elijah took the child into his arms and took him up to his room. The number three has significance in the Bible. The Trinity is one example for God, the Three in One, and the One in Three. Then Elijah, it says in verse 21, “stretched himself upon the child three times.” The Hebrew word for stretched is “madad” which means to stretch or to measure. The Greek text for 1 Kings 17, to me, gives us a bit more insight into what Elijah did. The Greek word is emphusaō, and this is a word that means to puff, blow on, or breathe on. I believe that Elijah breathed on or breathed into the child three times and he was resuscitated. Sounds like Elijah gave the child artificial respiration. I do not think that was the case though, for man did not know of this life saving technique at this time in history. What this scene does represent is Elijah, the prophet, representing God breathing life back into the child. That is just what happened. The Bible says in verse 22 that “the soul of the child came into him again.”

God can infuse life back into us again, when we think there is no life left in us. God can breathe newness into our lives when we believe that we have grown stale. God tells us this, even when we go through very hard times, with words that mean, “see, your son lives.” The son can represent an area of your life that you consider dead or dying. It could be a sinful behavior that you cannot seem to shake. On the other hand, it could be you are ill, and you are having a hard time reconciling your condition. In any situation, God comes to us, He carries us through, or He delivers us from it, all based upon His sovereign will. God can prove to you that His Word is Truth. God sent His Son Jesus Christ to provide for the redemption of our souls. Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price to redeem us from bondage to sin and death. Jesus Christ was the atonement for our sins, once and for all.

God can infuse His life into you today. The Bible says that anyone who calls upon the Name of the Lord will be saved. Have you entrusted your life to God? Do you truly believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Word of God, our Savior, and Lord, that God has raised Him from the dead, and that He now is at the right hand of the Father in heaven? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved. Can it be any more plain? Can you say like the widow woman, “Now I know that you are the Son of God Who has taken away the sins of the world.”

Brothers and sisters in Christ, receive what the Word of God is giving you today. Charles H. Spurgeon once wrote, “The word of God will repay searching. God does not bid us to sift a mountain of chaff and only find one grain of wheat in it, but the Bible is winnowed corn – we have but to open the granary door and there it is. Scripture grows upon the student. It is full of surprises. Under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, to the searching eye it glows with splendor of revelation, as if a vast temple paved with wrought gold, and roofed with rubies, emeralds, and all manner of gems. There are no goods like the merchandise of Scripture truth.” Lastly, the Scriptures reveal Jesus: “They are they which testify of me.” No more powerful motive can be urged upon you than this: he who finds Jesus finds life, heaven, all things. Happy is he who, searching his Bible, discovers his Savior.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Communication Strategies in Ministry

Posted: March 6, 2015 in Biblical, Books, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Covenant, Evangelical, Evangelism, life, Liturgical, Lutheran, Ministry, Pentecostal, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, universal
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Strategies

Communication Strategies in Ministry

I graduated from Crown College with a BS degree in Christian Ministry.  I have learned the essential skills necessary for the communication of the Gospel and biblical truths through a variety of available mediums (this one included). I am studying current mediums for communication, using the basic principles of exegesis and hermeneutics, strategies for effective communication, and preaching. I hope to be further equipped to formulate an effective communication philosophy and strategy for ministry.

Finding a mentor, to me, was like looking for the holy grail. I know what I was looking for, but the search was not uncovering my mentor. You see, I live 70 miles from the church I attend. My wife and I minister there. She plays piano for worship sometimes, teaches children’s church, and I have supplied the pulpit several times. Our pastor left to take another church, so I could not use him as my mentor resource. I visited several churches in the town where I live. I got to know two of the pastors and haven’t really been in communication with them for a while. I was afraid to ask them for their help. Who likes rejection? I did not even consider dropping this course on account of this hunt for my holy mentor. I prayed and agonized about what to do. So, I am sitting here in my office, and the Lord prompted me to send an email to both of the pastors. What have I got to lose? My grade, my GPA, all my effort! Thanks be to God! He does provide and He does supply all our needs. I found a holy mentor! We had our meeting, and he signed the agreement! So, onward, and upward. Whew.

I believe, like Luther and Calvin, that my salvation is totally monergistic. All God, and none of me! However, when I became a Christian, born again, regenerated, transformed by the Holy Spirit, my interaction with God became synergistic. God tells me what to do, and I am supposed to do it! However, even if that is the case, God’s Word tells me that “it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13 (NRSV) Even though my relationship with God is interactive, He still helps me. He doesn’t leave me without what I need to live in union and communion with Him. He enables me, He enables my will, and He enables my effort. Why? All for His good pleasure. Our wills and our actions are the very arenas where God’s own power is working. His grace still amazes me.

How does this relate to communication strategies? Well, did you get a picture while reading this story? Did you see me as one of Monty Python’s characters riding a stick pony along the wooded landscape? Did you picture me going along hill and dale until I finally came upon that glorious email sent from above saying, “sure I’d be glad to sit down and talk with you about this?” If you did, that’s awesome. If you didn’t, was my communication strategy working? Did you get another picture in your mind while reading this? Either way, the point is that there are many means to communicate – and this blog is one of the means that I use to present the Gospel to a lost and dying world. It works for me.

Application? Always trust in the Lord. Always trust Him for anything and everything. Jesus said that if we ask anything according to God’s will, our prayers will be answered. God will provide the means to accomplish the task He has assigned to you. That says a lot about the content of our prayer…. but hey, that’s another sermon!

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