We Interrupt This Presentation On Fruit For A Little... Christ and Culture

This was an assignment in Church History last semester. It was a very difficult read due to the organization of material, but somehow I managed to wade through it and put it into a framework I could understand better. If you have the patience, feel free to suffer through it. It will make for a good transition into the fruit of the Spirit - Long-suffering.

 

INTRODUCTION

            Richard Niebuhr defines culture as the “artificial, secondary environment which man superimposes on the natural. It comprises language, habits, ideas, beliefs, customs, social organization, inherited artifacts, technical processes, and values.”[1] To follow Niebuhr’s work comprehensively a definition of Christ must be attempted apart from culture so that proper attention can then be given to how Christ approaches culture. This leaves us with only the divine attributes of Christ to begin the definition since mankind and thereby Christ’s human nature through the Incarnation cannot be entirely separated from culture. The Nicene and Chalcedonian creeds identify the divine nature of Christ as fully God. Our understanding of Christ must then be that of fully God. We are faced with the pivotal truth and fact that Jesus Christ, fully God, entered the world through the Incarnation as fully man and therefore a cultural product himself as the Son of Man. As a man, Jesus Christ lived in, learned from, and ministered to culture. The “enduring question” that troubles us is how did Jesus interact with culture and how do we mimic his example in our endeavor for Christ-likeness.  

            The nature of culture plays out in our relationships with one another. In the beginning, as God formed Adam He rapidly concluded based on His own nature that it was not good for man to be alone. Upon the creation of Eve and the subsequent command to rule and replenish the earth, culture was formed. God saw the potential of culture and it was good. The problems we encounter with culture are due to the fall of man and the subsequent corruption of culture as a result of man’s corruption. In Christ and Culture Richard Niebuhr attempts to identify a variety of approaches to the struggle between the life of a Christian and civilization around us.

OVERVIEW

            Niebuhr outlines five types of Christian interaction with culture as the following: (1) Christ against culture, (2) Christ of culture, (3) Christ above culture, (4) Christ transforming culture, and (5) Christ and culture in paradox.  Despite Niebuhr’s endeavor to coherently lay out each view aside from bias, he still manages to favor one particular view. His overall conclusion however is that each believer must reach his own conclusion through careful study as a matter of obedience to Christ. Having reached my own conclusion on the matter, we will firstly summarize each viewpoint before stating any response.

            Christ against culture is one of the extremes of the five fold view. This approach focuses on the necessity to deny of self, recognize the Lordship of Christ and his sole authority, and completely reject culture as a product of a sinful world. Culture is viewed as temporal and passing whereas Christ is eternal.[2] Niebuhr cites Tertullian and Tolstoy as prominent exemplifiers of this stance. Tertullian saw Christianity as a lifestyle very much separated from culture.[3] Most proponents of this view have a preoccupation with final judgment, issues of consequence, and a sharply distinguished perspective of truth. [4] Tertullian viewed Scripture as teaching “the avoidance of sin and fearsome preparation for the coming day of judgment.”[5]

            Seventeen hundred years later, Tolstoy reiterates much of the same sentiment in his treatment of culture. For Tolstoy following Jesus Christ meant clear opposition to the institutions of culture.[6] Tolstoy took a stand against economic, military, intellectual, philosophical, artistic and scientific institutions, seeing them as meaningless to the overall ethos of life.[7] This perspective of withdrawal from culture has characterized many of the more ascetic groups throughout history such as the monastics, Quakers and other Protestant sects.[8]

            The Christ of culture view swings to the opposite extreme than that of the separatists. These “cultural Christians” believe that Christ is the fulfillment and end goal of all culture. The accommodating nature of this view attempts to align the motives of Christ with that of culture’s accomplishments. Niebuhr invokes the examples of the early Gnostics and the medieval Abelard. The focal point of this outlook is on the horizontal relationships between mankind often to the detriment and loss of one’s vertical relationship with God. However the progress made in the area of social reform in light of this view is astounding and exemplary. Niebuhr refers to the work of Walter Rauschenbusch and his work on developing a theology for the social gospel.[9] Rauschenbusch viewed culture and his ideal of the social gospel as the progression of Christianity to “narrow the influence of old, mechanical views of inspiration.”[10]

            There is much scriptural support from Jesus’ teaching and his use of parables that lends credibility to the effectiveness of using culture to spread the gospel. Jesus often crossed seemingly difficult and impossible cultural barriers to preach the gospel throughout all of Israel.[11] Culture is how we as humans relate and communicate with one another and it would be impossible to attempt to spread the gospel in a comprehensive manner without utilizing aspects of culture. Just as we are each affected by culture, this view of Christ sees him also as a product of culture. He was clearly Jewish, born and raised, and chose according to the will of the Father to begin God’s plan of redemption through the Jewish culture. Any attempt to dissociate Christ with Jewish culture attacks the core and history of Christianity at its roots in the Old Testament. While there are dangers to accepting every aspect and detail of culture without scrutiny, the repercussions of not understanding Christ from culture is a tendency towards an incomplete gospel. The relational and compassionate factor necessary between humans disappears which ultimately will also negate not only aspects of the Old Testament but much of New Testament teaching.  

            Christ above culture calls for a synthesis of Christ and culture. Since mankind was created by God to function within community and therefore as part of a culture then culture cannot be entirely bad. Obviously culture cannot be perfect through man’s efforts alone since we are now fallen but the synthesist believes that Christ is the Lord of culture and as such they function in unison. The synthesist seems capable of maintaining the core of the hypostatic union in a manner not possible for the accommodationist or the legalist.

            The synthesist appreciates the efforts and intentions of mortal law and respects civil authorities as having been given status and power by God. Niebuhr cites Thomas Aquinas as a synthesist with his view that Jesus is King over both the temporal and the eternal. Thomas Aquinas’ vision of the appropriate relationship between church and state is better realized in its separation today. Since this was not a reality in Aquinas’ day it was difficult for him to visualize and in light of this Niebuhr identifies several negative pitfalls with the synthesist view in the framework of a joint church and state. The problem with integration of church and state for the synthesist is that power and allegiance will always be an issue. However, when the powers that be are separated they are allowed to function equally as partners without the inherent struggle which has characterized attempts to combine church and state throughout history. The words of Jesus offer support for this view as well as he clearly separates the concept of church and state in his admonition to render to the state what is theirs and to God what is His.[12]  

            The Christ and culture in paradox view recognizes the validity of the synthesist view but denies the reality of true cooperation between Christ and culture. Martin Luther best dealt with the paradox with his view of the fallen nature of man. While we are saved by grace and no longer under the law, the law is still a necessary element because sin persists. In Luther’s view, a true Christian is no longer in need of the law in the sense that it is no longer a burden to him through Christ. The believer willingly does what is right and therefore does not come into conflict with temporal authority. 

            The downside of this view of Christ and culture is a level of passivity towards temporal rule that inhibits the progressive nature of culture. The problem in spiritual matters becomes one of struggle between sin and grace. Since we cannot rid ourselves of our sin nature and God’s grace flows freely then what purpose is there in the cessation of sin? The paradox begins to strafe into the realm of dualism.            

The final perspective Niebuhr identifies is Christ transforming culture. This view closely resembles the paradox view but differs in its understanding of the hopelessness of sin.[13] The conversionist does not hold that culture is irreparably lost but that Christ’s intent is to transform culture. This view matches the pattern of Christ’s ministry on earth. Jesus did not offer healing and restoration to those he came in contact with by sending them on to a better realm. Jesus provided wholeness to those he touched in the physical realm of the here and now.

Niebuhr cites Calvin and F. D. Maurice as exemplary figures of the conversionist view. Calvin’s hope in the resurrection of the body aided him in holding to a healthy view of the physical while still allowing him to reject the negatives in culture and accept the good that culture purports. Maurice’s view incorporated culture as a wealth of diversity centered on Christ. Once Christ has been placed at the center of culture a transformation begins. Maurice’s interpretation of the impact of God’s oneness on mankind resulted in a more or less utopian socialist stance. Maurice saw a plethora of sin in the church’s internal strife over the matter of doctrine itself, its result in divisiveness and the overall lack of unity. For Maurice, the unity of the body was key to the transformation of culture.      

            Niebuhr summarizes his analysis with the statement that his study is “unconcluded and inconclusive.”[14] It appears from Niebuhr’s writing that while he longs for an answer to the “enduring problem” he has accepted that one may never be found. Despite Niebuhr’s reluctance to articulate his own decisive response, he encourages the individual to wrestle with the question and make a decision reliant on faith but not independent of reason.[15]

RESPONSE

            “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift…and He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”[16] The example of Christ’s character and interaction with culture throughout the New Testament utilizes aspects of each view proposed by Niebuhr. It is my opinion that Christ has given to each person a task that incorporates how one must approach and deal with culture so as to make the body a complete and functioning unit that ministers in and to culture. Unfortunately over the course of the last century much abuse has occurred in the misunderstanding of Christ’s empowerment to the five-fold ministry. In light of this abuse, as is the case with any spiritual gift, we shy away from what we do not understand. Jesus Christ is the Son of God and as the Son of Man simultaneously fills the role of prophet, pastor, teacher, evangelist and apostle.

            Christ against culture conveys the passion of the prophet. The Old Testament is teeming with occurrences of the prophets countering culture. “Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.”[17] The prophet is countercultural, but intentionally so. It is the prophet’s task to observe and decry the errors of culture in order that the body of Christ may stay aligned with the Head.

            The Christ of culture translates the passion of the pastor. Not to be confused with its loose application today to any leadership role within the Church, the pastor assumes the role of shepherd to a flock. The shepherd eats, lives, and sleeps among his sheep caring for and nurturing their needs. It is not uncommon to find the pastor buried waist deep in the muck and mire of culture simply to lift a despairing sheep from the snares and dangers of the world. The role of the pastor demands understanding, compassion and social grace to effectively carry out his task within the body of Christ. The pastor is inseparably immersed in culture.

            Christ above culture relays the passion of the teacher. In his pursuit of research, study and the amassing of knowledge the teacher strives to compartmentalize all tidbits of information into patterned and categorized application. The teachers greatest motivation is to convey knowledge to the body of Christ in the most meaningful and comprehensive manner. The use of culture to instruct believers is pivotal to this function and was often employed by Jesus as he taught his disciples and the crowds of people who came to him through parables. The synthesizing of culture with the purposes of Christ is necessary for understanding how we are to live in this world without being corrupted by it.

            The Christ and culture paradox best explains the passion of the apostle as a founder, builder, and exhorter of the faith. Put quite simply, life is messy and it is the task of the apostle to approach culture with a clear understanding of the problem of sin and evil in the world. The apostle understands that without Christ sin will never be eradicated and it is the work of Christ alone that can accomplish such a thing. The apostle, much as Paul did throughout the New Testament, evaluates culture at the most practical level, often condemning both the letter of the law and complete lawlessness and attempts to reconcile the harmful and life-denying extremes in order that the body of Christ may grow and mature. The apostle both prunes and waters so that the yielding of fruit may be at its best.

            Finally, Christ transforming culture communicates the passion of the evangelist. Niebuhr aligned this view with the work of John the Evangelist as the interlocking and analogous function of spiritual and natural events.[18] The evangelist must believe with all his heart that he can be an instrument of transformation through the work of Christ and this belief becomes his driving force. The evangelist loves the Word of God with such fervor that he cannot help but preach the Good News from whatever pulpit he can muster.  The evangelist proclaims the Kingdom of God both now and in the future. The evangelist infuses the body of Christ with hope for a better future, ever-focused on forward, progressive motion until we come into the presence and glory of God.

            The Church throughout history swings through popular phases of the various viewpoints presented by Niebuhr in Christ and Culture. Only the first century as documented in the New Testament provides an adequate view all five approaches to culture working together to promote substantial and significant growth comparable to that of a spiritual explosion.[19] During the second and third centuries of the Church much attention was given to the view of Christ and culture in paradox as apostles and founding fathers in the faith strived to lay a foundation for the Church amidst persecution. Peppered throughout the early and middle age, the theme of Christ against culture can be observed as leaders sought to remain grounded in the faith in light of the continual onslaught of heresy.[20] Christ of culture can be seen in history repeatedly emerging in times where the legalistic tendencies of countercultural thought threatened to stifle the experiential life of the Spirit in the Church. The ages of enlightenment and reason beginning with Abelard in the high Middle Ages ushered in an era of Christ above culture as intellectuals, mathematicians, artists, and scientists attempted to amass information and correlate the rapid influx of knowledge with their faith.[21] The last two centuries have seen a shift to a view of Christ transforming culture as the prevalent and increasing expression of faith belonging to Evangelicals. Although perhaps not his intention, it seemed that Niebuhr also favored the transformation outlook.  

            Each perspective as outlined by Niebuhr has contributed to the character and growth of the Church today in some fashion. But none of these views is capable of sustaining the Church by itself and the intermittent dysfunction associated with Christianity through the course of history bears witness to this fact. Each task or view was appointed with a purpose and function in the body of Christ and is meant to be implemented in unison with the others. What Niebuhr inadvertently identified are the ministerial passions of the body of Christ belonging to those who are called by God to love and serve His people and to reach the world. The reason why Niebuhr could not come to a satisfactory conclusion on which view is most appropriate is because there is no single correct view. Each perspective is correct when used as designed to work as part of the body, relaying the passions of God’s heart towards the redemption of mankind. If we disqualify any one of these perspectives we maim the body of Christ and any impact on or integration with culture will be pathetically inadequate.

APPLICATION

            I readily identified with the Niebuhr’s explanation of Christ above culture. As a spiritually gifted teacher I recognized the validity and necessity of this stance. After carefully studying each view, I was able to understand the importance of each one and its contribution to the body of Christ even though that may not be my motivating passion. Over the past few years I have been learning to appreciate other’s ministerial gifts as necessary to the functioning of my own. The mindset of one person designed to be the spiritual jack of all trades is hastily declining.

            I may not be able to confront culture as the countercultural view is capable of doing, but I must validate those efforts as vital to the function of the body and take those admonitions seriously. I may not be able to crawl down into the trenches with the pastor of culture but I can learn to love his dedication and compassion for people and the social gospel. I take great delight in the role of the synthesist to find connections and meaning between the purposes of Christ and the function of culture. In fact, on closer analysis one might even conclude that I have exemplified my passion for harmony by addressing the “enduring problem” through the synthesis of the separate views in this very paper.

Niebuhr warns of the dangers of taking the view of Christ above culture to its limit and so I must be cautious to balance my perspective with the cultural aspect of others’ ministries. I must allow the prophet to identify the evil present in culture, the apostle to discern between the balance of law and grace, the pastor to love people despite their fallen and ugly state, and the transformational power of the evangelist to change people’s lives. My contribution to the process is to offer knowledge and wisdom gained through study to the complexities of culture that come into contact with the body of Christ. Niebuhr’s enigma of Christ and Culture offers an intriguing field of study to contemplate further.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Niebuhr, H. Richard. Christ and Culture. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1951.

Rauschenbusch, Walter. A theology for the social gospel. New York: Abingdon Press, 1917.

Shelley, Bruce L. Church History in Plain Language. 2^nd ed. Dallas, TX: Word Publishing, 1995.

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[1]  H. Richard Niebuhr, Christ and Culture, (New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1951), 32.

[2] Ibid., 48.

[3] Ibid., 49.

[4] Ibid., 50.

[5] Ibid., 52.

[6] Ibid., 60.

[7] Ibid., 62.

[8] Ibid., 77.

[9] Ibid., 100.

[10] Walter Rauschenbusch, A Theology for the Social Gospel, (New York: Abingdon Press, 1917), 191.

[11] Jn 4:1-42 [NKJV].

[12] Matt 22:21.

[13] Niebuhr, 191.

[14] Ibid., 230.

[15] Ibid., 249.

[16] Eph 4:7-12.

[17] Jn 4:44.

[18] Niebuhr, 197.

[19] Bruce L. Shelley, Church History in Plain Language, 2^nd ed. (Dallas, TX: Word Publishing, 1995), 27.

[20] Ibid., 47.

[21] Ibid., 197.

Fruit of the Spirit - Peace

The third fruit of the Spirit is Peace.  Not to be confused with silence, quiet, or inactivity as we often use the word, (ie: “Hold your peace” or “Rest in Peace”) the word means harmony, tranquility, security, or prosperity. Peace in a very literal and physical sense can be vividly seen in the Old Testament as can its connection to the Old Covenant. Close adherence through obedience to the terms of the Old Covenant meant harmony, tranquility, security and prosperity for Israel.   

The Hebrew word for Peace means “completeness.” This interpretation brings more significance to terms such as “Prince of Peace” or the “Peace of the Cross.” There is an element of wholeness and restoration that accompanies this word – Peace.  As angels announced the presence of peace on earth to shepherds in the field, one may better understand the proclamation of God’s purposes coming to completion and fruition with the arrival of His Son, Jesus Christ.

The lack of spiritual peace throughout the Old Testament as evidenced by a continual need for rituals and practices to combat impurity is the setting on which Christ arrives. So much striving, pain, oppression, and brokenness have plagued the world since the Fall of Man and now, finally there is peace on earth. Wait… what? Clearly one may look around at the various wars, famines, death and destruction still prevalent in the world today and claim that peace has not arrived. And one would be correct. Perhaps I will step on some eschatological toes here but this is my blog so I am allowed to do so. The establishment of a covenant as we see in the Old Testament does not guarantee its immediate fulfillment. In fact from start to finish, the Old Covenant lasted roughly 2000 years (Abraham to Jesus). But Jesus did in fact fulfill the Old Covenant and with that fulfillment and completion he brought peace. There is also the matter of spiritual completion and wholeness we find through the cross. 

The cross marked two covenantal milestones. The first feat was the fulfillment of the Old Covenant and the second was the establishment of a New Covenant.  Carrying our definition of peace into the New Covenant we can see that the elements of harmony, tranquility, security and prosperity are eternal qualities that hinge on our obedience to this New Covenant and its demand to believe in Jesus Christ. There is much parallel between the Old and New Covenants but that seems to be God’s pattern throughout the history of mankind. I would like to stop for one second and confront the issue of “prosperity” teaching. God does not ever promise us physical prosperity under the New Covenant, only eternal prosperity as our spiritual journey will not be barren, or devoid of fruit. We will be fruitful and multiply spiritually both in numbers and in personal growth and maturity. To promise physical or material prosperity (not to be confused with promises of meeting our needs) is to subject oneself to the terms of the old structure under a fulfilled covenant. We then profess that the Old Covenant is not in fact complete and in doing so negate the work of the cross. All that to say, please be cautious with prosperity teaching as the Kingdom of God is about bearing spiritual fruit not physical or monetary fruit.  And please do not think I am knocking those who are financially blessed either. God blesses each of us according to His good will and purpose and in a matter that best suits His Kingdom and its advancement. 

Returning to the matter of fulfilled covenant we see that there is freedom from the Law now that the Old Covenant has been fulfilled. The 2000 year journey from start to finish was fraught with times of prosperity and times of barrenness, times of justice, times of injustice, times of slavery and of freedom, times of immense wickedness and times of faithful adherence.  What are we to learn from this? Firstly, that God’s timetable is not our timetable. Secondly, as we sit precariously close to the end of yet another 2000 year period of covenant, peace hinges on our faith and belief in promises. There is peace to be found in God’s promises whether we ever see their fulfillment or not. Abraham believed, but never saw and he found peace. Moses believed, but never saw and yet remained faithful and he too found peace.  The prophets, in the face of great opposition believed and delivered the promises of God and they too found peace at the end of their suffering. There is great peace (eternal prosperity, tranquility, wholeness) available to those who would believe in God’s promises without seeing.

The fruit of the Spirit is often the object of much scrutiny and little legitimate practice.  This is unfortunate, but a balance of both analysis and application should be our ultimate desire. I have looked at the fruit in several ways. One approach is to dissect the fruit into digestible (pun intended) triads. If we analyze this first group of three as a triadic grouping we see the culmination of Trinitarian effort in Love, Joy, and Peace - Love of the Father, Joy of the Spirit, and Peace of the Son. Peace falls into place as a natural progression from God’s love, to joy in His presence to the peace found through fulfillment of His promises. Patterns are essential to me for memorization so there is no secret formula I am trying to prescribe here; simply a means which better incorporates the fruit into my life. Speaking of memory techniques, have you ever noticed that the peace sign is three prongs that converge into one? If all else fails just remember that peace is at the end of the first triad.  And so we arrive at the end of the first three fruit of the Spirit. I challenge you to love God more deeply so that you may experience His joy and that in His joy you may find the peace that comes through belief in His promises. I hope the journey thus far has not been overwhelming.

Upcoming fruit: Patience

               

Fruit of the Spirit - Joy

The fruit of the Spirit, joy, perplexed me as I studied and analyzed its presence amongst the fruit. I rapidly came to the conclusion that I did not know much joy and this troubled me. If I am a believer in Christ, knowing God's love then I should naturally be a partaker of joy. That statement is correct, but I erred in understanding the forms that joy takes and what happens to this joy resulting from love in a world plagued by sin.

My study veered to an indirect approach as I noticed the precarious balance in an existent relationship between joy and sorrow. Joy is inseparably linked to love and explains why love must precede joy. Love creates a fork in the road that branches into either joy or sorrow. We do not get to choose which path it takes as the direction pivots on what has been done with our love and how it has been received and returned. What should disturb an individual more than sorrow is a lack of either joy or sorrow as a recipient of a relational offense. Rushing too quickly into a state of peace (the next fruit in the series) fails to validate the presence of joy and so we must not be too anxious to arrive at peace. I found that this was my main failure in experiencing joy; too often I hurried beyond the discomfort and demands of joy.

What is joy? Many images flash through the mind as one meditates on joy. I thought of an overly exuberant cheerleader, an enthusiastic worship leader or the inappropriate and annoying optimist. Is there something wrong with me that I cannot fabricate this level of excitement? Do I not have joy? I searched Scripture for words of joy to help me understand its meaning. Joy is frequently expressed through singing, dancing and shouting. I sing. I sing a great deal. Perhaps my mental images of joy were impeding my recognition of legitimate expressions of joy in my every day life. I sing often to my children. I dance frequently with them. My children are a source of joy for me. This led me to contemplate new life and its rendering of joy. How do we create new life around us? Naturally my children fall into this category, but we humans are creative in a multitude of other ways. We cook, we paint, we write, we design. When I write I feel joy. I may not be bouncing off the walls with excitement (at least outwardly), but I am creating works and bringing words to life as I pen them.

Sorrow comes when the things we create or the life we experience and love ends. A child cries as a sand castle washes away with the tide. A writer grieves when words are not valued and lose meaning through the destructive overuse of cliches. A widow stares at a blank canvas, lost in how to possibly paint a future, the use of color almost mocking the drabness of the present. A mother clutches the lifeless body of her infant close to her breast not wanting to release all the hopes and dreams invested in this once vibrant young life. A young man laments the passing of his mother and all that taught him the formation of life-giving beauty. One thing they all have in common is that they have loved, and they have loved deeply. While there is great risk in choosing to love and bear the first fruit of the Holy Spirit, there is never even the remotest possibility of arriving at joy if one does not love. The greater one's love, the greater the joy that ensues. However, there is also the risk of experiencing great sorrow. There is at least this amidst the sorrow; you may know that you have loved and that is the beginning of all fruit. Joy amidst sorrow. I have known sorrow. I continue to know sorrow, but I am comforted through these feelings. I do not want to know a life that is devoid of the risk of sorrow and therefore empty of love.

The joy in one's life becomes an indicator of the level that we love as does sorrow. We lament loss of life in its many shapes and forms. We grieve the loss of hopes, dreams, creations, relationships, all indicators of the presence of life. But what of spiritual sorrow? Do I profess joy in the face of spiritual discouragement and pain? Disingenuous expression smacks of hypocrisy. What is spiritual joy and sorrow? If physical joy and sorrow is a result of loss of life or the failure to realize its fulfillment then that which is spiritual may follow suit. Spiritual life, the birth of the spirit through the life of Jesus Christ, is cause for great rejoicing in heaven. It stands to reason then that spiritual sorrow would be  the result of spiritual death or never realizing one's spiritual potential through Christ. This should grieve our spirits and cause great sorrow. If we are not grieved then perhaps we are not loving our fellow man as much as we ought to.

Our present day society and culture prides itself on the minimization of pain. We have an ache, we pop a pill. We hurt emotionally and we drink, self-medicate, or take an anti-depressant. We experience the discomfort and sorrow of labor and we hook up the IV's. None of these are wrong but often we are too quick to silence the symptoms without validating their existence and purpose. In the validation of their existence lies great joy. I have an ache, I have pushed myself to my physical limit, I gave it 100% and then some! I am hurt emotionally, I have loved deeply! I feel the pains of labor, I am bringing new life into the world! Joy hides in the unlikeliest of places. The next time you experience sorrow. take heart in that you have loved. And rejoice in the fact that one day we will be free to love, always knowing joy and never again experiencing sorrow.

"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Rev 21:4

Upcoming fruit: Peace

Fruit of the Spirit

INTRODUCTION

After a year immersed in a study on the fruit of the Spirit, I can honestly say I am no closer to the perfection they exude than when I first began. Thus is the nature of the divine attributes of God and any attempt of the finite to traverse the infinite. What I did gain was a better understanding of what the fruit of the Spirit is and how to at least induce the birthing process in my life.

Throughout this intense study the most alarming observation I had was how painful it truly is to attempt to birth these nine fruits in a nature prone to sin and the desires of the flesh. My soul groaned with the pain and sorrow that plagues her origins as she fought to bring life to the seeds God planted. Frustration hounded my every endeavor to turn out the fruit.  Contractions of resistance wracked me to my core. I cannot pinpoint the exact moment the realization came to me, it was a process. I realized that I was never intended to cultivate the fruit on my own. I have a partner, one who walks by my side, one who coaches my breath simultaneously whispering encouragement to my spirit, one who holds my hand and bears down with me, one who intimately knows the pain and grief of childbirth. The pain and sorrow at that point eased, the labor did not. Labor has always been part of the process; pain and sorrow came later. There is still pain - during the moments when my sin nature prevails and my spirit resists. But I push forward, delighting in the labor that characterizes my humanity as created in God’s image and recognizing the existent pain that is not part of His design.

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

We decided to address the various fruit of the Spirit in the order of their appearance. As our study progressed the recognition of intentionality in order marked our perspective.  We cannot know whether or not Paul realized this at the time of his writing or whether it was pure inspiration of the Spirit. I begin where we began - with love. 

LOVE

Love is the firstborn of the fruit. Through the course of study it became increasingly apparent that each fruit of the Spirit is most clearly seen through the words and character of Jesus Christ. As the begotten Son of the Father through the power and work of the Holy Spirit it makes perfect sense then to see the fruit of the Spirit as analogous to the life of Christ.

In observation of the love Jesus spoke of and exemplified in every action, the very contemplation of bearing such a fruit is overwhelming. Would I sacrifice my life for others? Would I sacrifice my life for anyone??!! Do I follow the most basic commandment to love God with all my heart, soul and strength? (Deut. 6:5) An immediate conviction arose from the truth that loving others was impossible without first loving God. I may profess my love for another, I may pay homage by going through the motions, but sincere and genuine love can only be expressed out of a love that originates from above. In the words of John the Evangelist, “Love is of God and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” (1 John 4:7-8) Awareness of God’s love for us becomes the initiator for the remaining fruit of the Spirit. John takes recognition of love a step further and does not allow us to stop at just loving God. The fruit is evidence of our relationship with God, so that if we do not have love for others our devotion to God is called into question. Bearing the very first of the fruits already appears a daunting and impossibly long process. And you would be right if it were a labor to be tackled alone, but it is not. The empowerment of the Spirit makes it possible.  

As will be seen through the analysis of each fruit, the world is capable of mimicking and counterfeiting the fruit of the Spirit. It is the task of the believer in Christ to exercise wisdom in discerning the true fruit from that which merely looks like fruit. The manner in which we do this is to pursue knowledge of God as has been revealed in the person of Jesus Christ and through our relationship with Him. The more we know Christ the more we know true love. The world tells us that these specific words or those particular actions will show others that we love them, but if God is not at the very center of one’s affections it cannot truly be love. This is a hard truth, an uncomfortable truth - nay - a painful truth, but a truth nonetheless. The first step in cultivating the fruit of the Spirit, love, is to abide in God and in His love. I recommend reading carefully through 1 John (5 short chapters) for a better understanding of God’s love and its impact on our relationships with others. Much more can be said and will be said about love as it is an integral part of each subsequent fruit.

Upcoming fruit: Joy 

 

I Need to Blog...

...and so I am posting this meaningless picture so that I will be so annoyed that I am forced to update my blog sometime within the next week. We shall see if it works.

Thanksgiving Break!

I am thankful for a brief rest from school and the rigors of my schedule this fall. We had a very fun Thanksgiving Day filled with lots of good eats. I have to say this year's turkey was my best yet. That recipe is definitely a keeper.  The pumpkin cheesecake and frosted pumpkin cookies turned out great as well. Overall I label the day a complete success.

Thanksgiving evening I stole off to see a late night viewing of the new Harry Potter movie. They did a fantastic job with the effects and all. I am thinking of putting together a piece of work on the spiritual lessons that can be derived from the series so that children can witness to their friends in an understandable manner. The overarching theme for this movie was "Lies of the Enemy" and how he preys on our fears and insecurities when we isolate ourselves from loved ones. I know there is a lot of negative press in Christian circles about Harry Potter and its magical themes, but I think it is naive to think that we can hide our children from its effects. I simply choose to view them all and discuss in depth the principles and content with my children so that they can better understand the difference between right and wrong.

I just enjoyed a visit from my sister, Denise, who is stationed in Guam. We had a really GREAT time together. Naomi and Declan loved hanging out with Aunt Nissie. Denise and I spent some time shopping, went to view the King Tut exhibit at the Denver Art Museum, stuffed ourselves on Brazilian cuisine at Fogo de Chao, and enjoyed the family tradition of unabashedly belting out some karaoke. I did not want to say goodbye come Monday morning, but I am encouraged that she is halfway through her Guam assignment and will be back home in a year and a half. Having Denise visit reminded me of how much I miss living in a place with family around. I love Denver but I sorely miss family. I hope someday we can all live closer together or at least be able to visit one another more often. Family is a treasure.

School has been quite the experience this year. I started off with a lot of momentum and enthusiasm. I am relieved as it enabled me to plow through some of the paper deadlines with flying colors. It has, however, taken a toll on me and I have not been able to devote as much time as I would like to my home and family. I have decided to take a lighter load next semester and to benefit from the intercession classes as well. I will only be taking 3 classes next semester which will allow me to spend more time at home; six was a bit much with a one year old running around. I did it... but I did not enjoy it as much as I would have liked to. And if you know my passion for study, that is saying a LOT!

I am still running even though the weather has dropped below freezing. I simply bought more cold weather running gear and motivated myself with a new Garmin. I find that technology gadgets are a great motivator for any daunting task. I run about five miles a day, five days a week. I would probably run more but that means more time away from home and so I content myself with the 45 minutes of cardio.

We are contemplating selling the house and moving closer to school. The house needs a bit of work before that will be possible so I am working on projects as I can. We put in new energy saving windows this last year and did some painting. Still need some more painting and some features like sinks, carpet, and tiles updated. We are updating the front and back yard landscaping right now. I am not very handy so you can imagine how slow my pace is. Hopefully in about a year we'll have it all done. Wish me luck!

Teaching at church has been a great experience this last year. As part of a teaching team, I teach once a month on the particular topic we are addressing. This year we taught through the fruits of the Spirit, concentrating on each fruit for 4-6 weeks. It has been quite the eyeopener. I never realized how deficient I was in the various fruits or how essential each one is to the functioning of the whole. The fruits do not function as the gifts do, where I am endowed with one but perhaps not another. The fruit of the Spirit is a network of characteristics that are interdependent and must all be formed in each individual. The importance of the fruit is that they are the evidence of our faith and relationship with God. An interesting aspect I came to realize about the fruit is that they are impossible to display outside of relationship with other human beings. I can scream from the mountaintops about my kindness and patience but unless I engage in relationships with others my words can never become actual deed thereby bearing testimony to my relationship with Jesus Christ and they are useless. This Sunday is my last teaching on the fruit of temperance before we move on to a new series. I hope to be able to write up a brief summary of them all with what I have learned once we are finished. This is truly why I love teaching so much, I learn so much in preparation. I am thankful to God for this gift He has given me and I love serving others with it.

I could keep going but I need to get back to studying and writing. Three papers left before the end of the semester and then finals! The end of the tunnel is approaching... I see the light!




   

Nature Prepares for Winter's Respite...I Envy Her Approaching Rest

The weather has finally cooled off in Colorado. Mornings are crisp and clean smelling and the colors of the season are striking in sharp contrasts of reds, yellows, browns, and greens. Every fall I feel this overwhelming urge to pack up and move to the mountains. I have realized of course the futility of doing so. If I move to the mountains I will no longer be able to see the mountains and so must content myself with admiring from afar. 

Lots of changes are on the horizon. Declan is finally walking and now getting into everything. (He's trying to climb a stack of boxes in the kitchen as I write.) Words are taking on more form and are somewhat intelligible. "Thank you" is "deet-do" but that's about all I can make out so far. He loves animal crackers, mac and cheese, goldfish, and bananas. I am still trying to accustom to feeding a child who can eat pretty much anything he wants to; such a drastic change from the strict dietary regime we continuously follow with Naomi. Declan seems determined not to ween, which is becoming quite the taxation for me. Although last night he drank a fair amount of whole milk. That was a first for him - he usually takes a sip and then dribbles it down his chest, making a huge mess. I hate to get my hopes up, and I know I will miss the bonding moments with him but I think its time to nudge him forward a bit. I am determined not to be an enabler for him, making sure he matures sufficiently to succeed in life. 

Naomi is loving 2nd grade. I am not enjoying it so much. This is the first year I have seriously contemplated homeschooling. I love all the opportunities for her to participate in extracurricular activities like choir, and drum line but feel she is suffering in academics. Hopefully this is an issue we can tactfully address in a parent/teacher conference. I do not want to hurt anyone's feelings but I do not think Naomi is being taught adequately at school. She keeps coming home with homework she has no idea how to complete. I am not one of those parents always siding with my child but I know what she is and is not capable of grasping and these things do not fall into that category. So if any teachers out there have some advice, I would love to hear it.

The holidays are approaching and schedules are filling up quick. Denise will be back from Guam for a few weeks and will have time to visit both Dawn (in VA) and me (in CO) while she is stateside. I cannot wait! I miss my little sis. It sounds like my parents are going to be here a fair amount of time through Thanksgiving and Christmas. I am looking forward to being able to spend some quality time with them before they head off to Brazil.

School is going well for me. I am learning so much in such a short period of time. I lament not being able to just sit and soak a lot of this in at a deeper level but realize the necessity of getting through the material. My favorite classes thus far are Church History and Apologetics. I have always enjoyed history and find it easy to absorb the information we study in class. Apologetics took me entirely by surprise. I love the thinking involved in formulating arguments. I am not however motivated by the quick battering wit of debate and so do not think I have a calling in that area but the research aspect of the discipline has great appeal. Greek is ... well it is Greek. All the languages I have learned so far are best tackled through speech. Since Koine Greek is a dead language I am finding it quite the challenge to remain motivated. Hermeneutics is also a bit dry yet I realize the necessity in it and have already identified several of my "bad habits" in interpretation. I love spiritual insight and having my 'aha' moments but there is not much appreciation for it when it comes to the assignments. It is, however, teaching me to stay on task and not become sidetracked on rabbit trails. Intercultural Ministry is proving to be much more involved than I anticipated. I figured since I was raised on the mission field the class would be somewhat routine. I am learning that much of my perception of missions is outdated and even slightly tainted with theological inconsistencies. I am shocked yet relieved that much of my disdain for missions has been a result of something wrong in my perception and not really anything faulty about it, in and of itself. I am looking forward to applying my new-found knowledge to missions tasks in the future. And last, but most assuredly not least, is Christian Formation (aka mentoring) which I am getting antsy about starting. I have chosen my mentors already and am working on deepening my relationships with those individuals and am really looking forward to gaining some ministerial clarity through the process.

I have a lot of new ideas for blogs but may not get to them until after midterms. I have requests so far for blogs on Meekness, Being Unequally Yoked, Gnosticism's Return, Women and Teaching, and a few others. If there is anything in particular you would like me to study and write on, please let me know and I will add it to the list. Please keep me in prayer as I struggle to maintain momentum in my many tasks this year.  

Godless

Last night I attended my first ever Atheist lecture at Metro State in downtown Denver. I was actually very excited to hear a “lead Atheist” express his beliefs, or as I would later learn, his lack of belief. It is very important to me to understand the points of view of others. If I cannot understand or at least make an attempt to grasp what they believe then I cannot “become all things to all men” and present the gospel in words that meet my audience where they are at. But I was sorely disappointed in the presentation and I think most intelligent Atheists would actually agree with me once I convey my reasons for that impression.

Let me begin with a brief introduction of the speaker. Dan Barker is the author of the book, Godless. Dan is an evangelical preacher turned Atheist and now makes it his mission to convert Christians from Christianity to Atheism. He has served as a pastor in several capacities in both the Friend’s and Assemblies of God denominations. He also writes music and has written several VBS and other children’s musicals under the pseudonym, Edwin Daniels. Dan has a degree in Religion with a minor in NT Greek from Azusa Pacific.

Dan began the lecture by describing the allure in Atheism being its abandon of hierarchical structure and contrasted it to the hierarchy presented in most religions. The religions of Islam, Judaism and Christianity were brought up at this point but that is the last heard of Islam and Judaism. The rest of the lecture focused only on Christianity and his opposition to those beliefs. In reference to his evangelical past, Dan conveyed his enjoyment of his Christian life as wonderful but that “being an Atheist is a lot more fun.” As Mr. Barker walked us through his Christian experience he continuously mocked the 2nd coming of Christ which left me with the impression that perhaps he had been caught up with some of the major Jesus Movements typical of the 60’s and 70’s, and dying out in the 80’s. The waning of that movement seemed to characterize the timing of the waning of Barker’s faith.

Dan invoked Scripture often but usually out of context and misquoted, ignoring other pivotal scriptures such as "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”(Mt 24:36) In an attempt to cast doubt on Jesus words “I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened”(Mt 24:34) as a reference to a 2nd coming, Dan expressed legitimate frustration over every generations impression of living in the end times. However, I would like to interject that the word used for “fulfilled” here is not indicative of a completed action but a bringing into existence similar to that of setting a stage in preparation for a scene to play out. The implication of Jesus' words are then not of completion of events but of circumstances necessary to set a series of events in motion. Before that generation ceased, all events would be set in motion for the beginning of the scene titled “end times”.

Mr. Barker spoke of his intellectual awakening at the age of 30 as the beginning of his process to abandon his faith, giving scientific evidence of a full development of his frontal lobe as a support of the change. In other words, his faith was simple childishness and immaturity. I cannot disagree. I do in fact believe that his faith was childish and immature. But God is not unaware of such physiological developments in humans and in fact waited often to call His servants until they were at least 30 years of age. This pattern is repeated throughout Scripture. I happened to have experienced a similar awakening at the age of 30 but mine seemed to have the opposite effect. I felt the need to “work out my salvation” and intellectually understand why I believed certain truths. I realized at that point in time my extreme love for Theology which has resulted in my attending seminary and pursuing that passion. In articulating this intellectual awakening, Barker sounded angry at his blind faith and jaded by his ignorance. This is understandable. I felt the same way upon searching out my own faith. How could I believe such a thing without exploring it further? My exploration, however only served to strengthen my faith whereas his exploration seemed to have weakened his own faith. Oswald Chambers stated the following:

Initially we trust in our ignorance, calling it innocence, and next we trust our innocence, calling it purity. Then when we hear these strong statements from our Lord, we shrink back, saying, “But I never felt any of those awful things in my heart.” We resent what He reveals. Either Jesus Christ is the supreme authority on the human heart, or He is not worth paying any attention to. Am I prepared to trust the penetration of His Word into my heart, or would I prefer to trust my own “innocent ignorance”?

While many of us may come to the faith out of a level of ignorance or innocence, God never expects us to remain at the state. The growth of one’s faith is very similar to the growth of an infant. We start out ignorant, but at some point in time, we must accept accountability for our actions and beliefs and grow and mature. But this did not happen for Mr. Barker. Instead of the natural progression of growth, he chose to abhor his ignorance and reject the faith completely. Barker referred to his ministry as a “stupid, infantile game.” He now views his state of mind as “intellectually mature” and superior to that of Christians. Here we arrive at the root of humanism - it is the love of one’s own mind as the end-all of faith. I admit to feeling prey to this belief all too often. When we gain intellectual ground it is easy to feel pride in those advances and forget that our minds are a very real reflection of an intellectual God. Instead of turning that pride to a state of humility to an all-knowing Creator, we stop short of that maturity and begin to worship our own intellect. It is natural to feel pride over the intellect, it is part of the image of God but it cannot end there; intellect must credit its source.

None of these issues get at the source of my frustration with the presentation and so now I turn to address that issue. Barker’s platform hinges on the Christian faith. Instead of presenting a set of beliefs and evidences, which is what I came to hear, he presented Atheism as an alternative to Christianity. I find this is a slap in the face of any intellectual advancement as I wanted to know why Atheism stands apart, alone, and superior to Christianity. Barker’s presentation felt parasitic in nature to Christianity, as if his “ministry” could not exist without it. I believe this is a betrayal to Atheism in general and I find it hard to believe a proponent such as Richard Dawkins would align himself with such a leech. The entire aura of the evening felt ‘evangelical’ in nature right down to the manner in which the event was advertised. He played on his past as an evangelical preacher to merit an audience; every expression of his belief had to be a response, counter, or mockery of the Christian faith; and even his upcoming book project is a humanist rebuttal of Rick Warren’s “Purpose Driven Life”.

My faith stands alone; I do not need Atheism to provide a platform for my faith and its expression. I believe this is the nature of truth. I also believe that this is the intent of Richard Dawkins work – that his Atheism can stand alone. So for this reason I cannot understand Mr. Dawkins support of Mr. Barker’s clear insubordination to the independence of Atheism. I found the entire evening fell far short of anything intellectual.
To make matters worse the Q&A portion revealed a multitude of inconsistencies with the lecture.

(1) Q: Why did you choose the truth of Atheism over the comfort of Christianity?
A: His response was in conflict to his opening statement that being an Atheist was simply much more fun than being a Christian. In his response he presented the decision as an absolute yes or no to Jesus (going back to the parasitic nature of his own version of Atheism – he needed Christ in order to even become an Atheist… how ironic.) To put it simply he stated that he “fell in love with his mind” and the Bible was anti-rational.

(2) Q: How do you respond to the accusation that you simply rush to the extremes of evangelical to atheist?
A: He is an evangelist no matter what he believes.

(3) Q: Should we all be conducting outreach – Atheistic Evangelism?
A: If it’s bad for us it’s bad for them (suggesting again that Atheism cannot stand alone and must feed and fuel itself off of Christian tactics.)

(4) Q: What is truth?
A: Truth is not a thing or morality; truth is the degree with which a statement corresponds to reality. The language of proposition must be supported by observation and evidence. Therefore Jesus cannot be truth (and yet another statement uses the foundation of Christianity for its existence).

(5) Q: Christian man came to the microphone at this point and apologized for the hatred Mr. Barker had experienced at the hand of the church and this was not indicative of the love of Jesus Christ.
A: Mr. Barker refused the apology and stated that the young man had no authority to speak for believers. (The demand for an apology carrying the weight of authority seems to be a direct contradiction to his support of the “freethinking” principle of no hierarchy. And yet here he demands the knee of some hierarchical structure to appease him. While I am on that note, how does one become a "lead Atheist" in a framework that recognizes no hierarchy?)

In summation, I felt cheated of the intellectual presentation I showed up to witness and felt more as if I had stumbled in on a locker-room pep talk for Atheists, lacking any substance but full of derision and fluff. My recommendation if you want to find material worthy of the title Atheist, is to look at Richard Dawkin’s work and not the intellectual freeloading of Dan Barker.

One Week Down

I have officially finished my first week at Denver Seminary and it was a blast!!! Now if I can just get through the next 15 weeks in one piece I'll be set. I loved every class and was very impressed by the knowledge and character of each professor. I realized after this week that the commute isn't as bad as I thought it would be. (approximately 25 min.) My greatest concern going into this week was the workload, but after carefully going over all my syllabi I am confident that with continuous work every day I will be just fine. The other looming anxiety was for Declan. I have been home with him since he was born (11 months) and I was worried about how he would do with someone else watching him. He is doing great!! God is so good! He spends the mornings while I am at class at one of my friends' house. She has an 18 month old daughter and they play great together. It is absolutely amazing how God works out the little details for us when we are following His will for our lives. I have to keep this blog short so I can get back to my reading. I think I'll write my first philosophy paper on the ineffectiveness of using too many textbooks in one class (8!!!). Joking... they're all great reads; I'm just glad I love reading, otherwise the load would be intimidating. Thank you everyone that has been praying for me this week. Please continue to lift me up in prayer as I need endurance to run this race.