A blog by Adam W. Christman

Tag: Ecclesiology

  • On the Need for Discipleship, Part 2

    For part 1, click here.

    On the Need for Discipleship, Part 2

    Today’s post covers three areas. It has a relatively broad introduction on how you can disciple another person, different and more specific than last week’s post. The next area is on how to select a person to work with. The third area is how we help people on their discipleship journey, returning to some items we discussed last week. In all, last week’s post and this week’s post collect a general introduction to our need for discipleship. Next week, we’ll pick up with a different subject.

    People really do change. Pessimists will try to deny it, but people really do change over time.

    Where do you get your hair cut? Why do you go there? Did your friend tell you about it? Did a family member start a job there, or did he or she open that business?

    Where’s your favorite place for Mexican food? Why do you go there?

    My favorite coffee shop is called Lazy Eye coffee, located in my neighborhood. It has no seating and keeps very limited hours. But they have more business there because I tell people, “Go try their coffee. Try the peanut butter latte.” My favorite Mexican food place is called La Palapa, within walking distance of my house. I love their food, especially their breakfast burritos and, if I’m willing to go nuts on calories, the Crazy Fries. I frequently recommend it to people.

    You influence people, and people influence you. That’s not a question. The question is, how will you use your influence? You may not think of yourself as a powerful person, but God has put power in you to influence people.

    A disciple of Christ disciples others by helping them to follow Christ. Is that how you’re using your influence?

    A disciple is others-oriented.

    We strategically plan to bless others in our getting up, our going out and about, how we go to church and engage the church in worship and service, etc.

    Colossians 1:28-29, “We proclaim him, warning and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ. I labor for this, striving with his strength that works powerfully in me.”

    This is what “others-oriented” looks like. We do not dominate people through overt demands, guilt trips, or manipulation. We work by way of self-sacrificial labor, and we do so with as much wisdom as we can get from God’s Word. In so doing, we look to please our God and our King. “Well done, thou good and faithful servant,” He will tell us.

    Discipleship is when we help one another prepare for eternity.

    Here are steps we take to help people follow Jesus.

    • Initiating. We take a step to start the conversation with a fellow believer about starting an intentional process of discipleship.
    • We need to remember that efforts to help those “outside the church” is evangelism, not discipleship. We don’t serve unbelievers well if we help them behave morally but never share with them the Gospel of Jesus Christ so they might believe and be saved. Jesus warned the Pharisees in Matthew 23:15, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to make one convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a child of hell as you are!” Let me urge you, Christian, FOCUS! Share the Gospel and love them. Leave the discipleship for later. Discpleship is for those “inside the church.”
    • Teaching. This piece is key! How will they believe unless they hear (Romans 10), but also how will Christians obey unless they are taught? Remember the Great Commission, which, in part, says “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” You don’t have to have the spiritual gift of teaching. You don’t even have to be comfortable teaching! But you do have to take that which has been entrusted to you (Jude 3) and pass it along to the Christians you are privileged to invest in. You (probably) won’t use a whiteboard or a laser pointer, but you do need to communicate whatever you have learned. Attributed in many places to D.T. Niles, though I am unsure of its origin, is a saying that should help the hesitant to understand you don’t need to be David Jeremiah or John Piper in order to fulfill the Great Commission of teaching God’s Word to the person you disciple. The saying is that you are one beggar telling other beggars where to find bread. The best teachers are the humble ones who know this truth. I have no doubt that God has and can and will equip you to communicate however much you have learned, even if it is only a little!
    • Correcting. I can’t tell you how many times Google Maps has put me at the wrong place. Similar names, mislabeled businesses, user error have all put me in a place I didn’t want to go. I had to get back into the app, or I had to look at my surroundings, or I needed to go to the nearest gas station and ask for directions. I needed correction! This may come as a shock, but the person you disciple is a sinner. All have sinned (Rom 3:23), and we will continue to fight the spiritual fight against our old sin nature (Eph 4:22-24) to our last day on this earth. As we sin or even as we commit amoral foolishness, we stray. We go off the path God wants to lead us down. So, we need correction to get back on track. As the discipler, you will need to speak into the life of the person you disciple, to correct when you see them stray. Be gracious. Don’t swing the hammer! Use the scalpel. Precise, intentional, only the needed cuts. And only the cuts necessary for healing. Proverbs 27:6a, “The wounds of a friend are trustworthy.” Don’t rush into this; ask the one(s) discipling you what they think you should do.
    • Modeling. The proof is in the pudding, and the visible model of Christian living is YOU! Show them how to do things! You might be surprised how encouraging it is to someone to read Scripture with you, pray with you, etc., to see and hear how you do it. When Jesus said “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you,” you’ll notice He did not tell us to “teach them all the Bible trivia I have taught you.” Discipleship is far more than head knowledge. Pray with them, show care for them and for others in a way they can see, sacrifice, patience, offer godly counsel on the things you can speak to, and refrain from commenting on the things you don’t know about. (“I don’t know” is a powerful and honest thing to say!)
    • Mutual love. Your love for them will grow, as will their love for you. Both people benefit from the discipleship! You must truly love the person you disciple. They aren’t a project, but a person.
    • Humility. We aren’t the experts. Again, each of us is a beggar, pointing another beggar to bread. Share what you do know. Be prepared to take responsibility, even when you are not at fault. You are in that discipleship relationship to serve them.

    How do we start?

    You do ultimately have to choose someone. Here are some factors to consider. Please do NOT consider this list “the checklist.” These items are simply factors that may play into your choice. You are just like me: you only have 24 hours in a day and 7 days in a week. So you have to do what I do and make the best and wisest choices you can make.

    • Family member, if possible. 1 Tim 5:8 is primarily about material provision for family members, but if our greatest need is spiritual, then spiritual provision must be accounted for, too. Maybe you have a sibling or cousin willing to work with you in a discipling relationship.
    • Spiritual state. Don’t teach non-Christians to obey God’s commands. GASP! A pastor said that??? Let me explain a little. You waste your time & might confuse non-Christians about the Gospel if you teach them obedience before they believe. Share the Gospel with them, explaining it as clearly as you can. Once they believe, their obedience begins. If you’re working with a non-Christian, stay focused. Teaching a non-Christian to obey God before they put their faith in Jesus can create a very moral spiritual corpse. This is not your call to discipleship.
    • Church membership. You have a greater responsibility for members of your own church just like a person has more responsibility for their own siblings. If you don’t have a church where you are a member, join a healthy one.
    • Gender. It is wise for men to disciple men and women to disciple women. Inappropriate intimacies can come around if you spend a lot of private time with the opposite sex. It’s not that one cannot disciple the other (e.g., Priscilla & Aquila discipled Apollos; Paul discipled Lydia). It’s about wisdom navigating it.
    • Age. Don’t let someone despise you for your youth, but respect older men and women; this is biblical teaching. You certainly can and may need to disciple someone older than you. (Pastors do this every week.) However, you will typically disciple someone your age or younger.
    • Different from you. Consider what you might learn by spending time discipling someone in a different slice of life than yourself. Someone in a different mode of life, for example, like a college student, in a trade school, married or single, with kids or without, ethnicity, background, etc. Remember, both persons benefit in a discipleship relationship!
    • Teachability. You can’t teach someone who refuses to be taught. If they think they have nothing to learn, they are not ready to be discipled by you. If you think you have nothing to learn, you need to repent and become ready to learn. God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (1 Pet 5:5).
    • Faithfulness to teach others. Is this someone you can see taking what they’ve learned and multiplying it out to more people? It might be hard to see right now, but it is worth considering.
    • Proximity and schedules. It is hard to disciple someone if you have no opportunity to spend time with them. Online discipleship is only worth so much. Live, in-person discipleship will carry the ball MUCH further down the field than anything else.

    In the end, there may be no best answer on who to disciple. Maybe you have two options and you can only disciple one of those people due to time constraints. Pray, ask for wisdom, get council from an older Christian, then get to work.

    The goal of discipleship is to follow Jesus better. There are two rails the help the train of discipleship move down the track.

    1. Help people understand more. As we grow in the knowledge of God in Christ, our faith and obedience can grow. Christians can’t obey what they haven’t been taught. You need to get to know God and understand more in your own life. You then teach the truth that truth. Their life is impacted by your teaching.
    2. Help people to live better. We want to live like Jesus lived. Paul said, “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your  eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us” (Phil 3:17). Spend time with your person. Be transparent with him or her. Invite them to learn from your mistakes and your successes. Don’t know where to start? Discuss last week’s sermon with them and its implications for your lives.

    You might still be confused. I encourage you to ask your person questions. So much of discipleship depends on the specific person. Interests, background, hurts, fears, hopes, etc., are unique person to person. Ask them questions like how did you become a Christian; where are you from; were your parents (and grandparents) Christians; why do you have the job that you have; what do you plan to do with your degree (if they are a college student), etc.?

    Let me share a little more sober truth with you.

    There is a cost you will have to pay. Mark 8:34 reports Jesus’ words, which we discussed in the previous post, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”

    1. Discipleship will cost you time. You will need to spend time with them. You can’t disciple a person you don’t meet with. The primary focus of your time should be on God’s Word, but not necessarily the bulk of your time. You have to incorporate them into your life somehow. Meet for coffee or a meal. Invite them to eat dinner with your family. Incorporate them into a larger group, like if you regularly play disc golf or bowling or something. I once heard a quote I cannot find; I believe it is from Tim Keller. I’m going to restate it here in my own words. The strength of your friendship with this person is a bridge that will determine the weight of truth they will allow over it. In other words, the better a friendship you have with them, the better you will be able to share truth with them (and them with you!).
    2. Discipleship will cost you study. You will need to spend time studying God’s Word and other things to help you better help your person. If you’re going to share God’s Word, you have to have read it and studied it for yourself first. A starving man won’t do very well as a chef. You can do this! “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do,” Ephesians 2:10. God has already prepared you to study so you can better help others! Isn’t that amazing?
    3. Discipleship will cost you prayer. In other words, discipling others will cost you time and emotion spent in prayer for them. 1 Thess 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.” We need supernatural change. God gives us power through prayer. He isn’t witholding good things when we don’t pray. Rather, He wants us to pray so we can better know Him.
    4. Discipleship will cost you love. Love makes us deny ourselves and serve others. Love initiates a discipling relationship and perseveres in that discipling relationship. Love humbly receives the criticism that comes our way. Love humbly gives of itself in a discipling relationship. Love allows us to end discipling relationships when needed. After all, what they need is not us, but God Himself. Circumstances will change, like schedules. Or they will reveal an issue in their lives that is better served by a different disciple who has experience in that area.

    In closing, if you aren’t in a discipleship relationship with an older Christian, get one! If you’re not in a church where you think that can happen, join a healthy church!

    I have been so rewarded in my discipling relationships, both by my mentors and those who allow me to disciple them. I know you will experience the same!

  • On the Need for Discipleship, Part 1

    There are no Christians who are not disciples. To be a Christian means to be a disciple.

    “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” — Matthew 28:19-20 (CSB; emphasis added)

    A disciple is a follower of Jesus Christ who is in the active, intentional process of learning to think, feel, and act like a Christian. (Reminder: the term “Christian” means “follower of Christ”.)

    What we’re talking about in this post is that we have basic needs with regards to discipleship. This is big picture stuff to introduce to you our needs as Christians. We need to pay the cost of discipleship daily. We also need to live in light of the reality of our connection!

    We need to follow Jesus as His disciples. He calls us to do exactly that. And it really does meaning something!

    Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor up through World War II. In his act of Christian rebellion against the Third Reich in Nazi Germany, he was arrested by the authorities and ultimately martyred by the Nazis. He wrote this lengthy quote in The Cost of Discipleship:

    “Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will gladly go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.

    Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: ‘you were bought at a price,’ and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”

    Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: ‘you were bought at a price,’ and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us.

    The apostle Peter received two calls from Jesus to follow him. His first call was at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, to give up his vocation and travel (which required departing from his family for long periods of time). That call is not cheap or easy.

    Peter was called a second time after Jesus’ resurrection, on the morning that Jesus fed the disciples fish. John 21 records that morning’s events. In that account, Jesus cooked the fish the disciples had caught, He restored Peter, and concluded His remarks in John 21:22 with “follow me.” Peter’s obedience to the call would result in giving all, again. Jesus said this in John 21:18-19, “‘Truly I tell you, when you were younger, you would tie your belt and walk wherever you wanted. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will tie you and carry you where you don’t want to go.’ He said this to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. After saying this, he told him, ‘Follow me‘” (emphasis added). Peter’s call would result in his death.1

    Jesus’ whole-life call is not limited to Peter, but extends to all believers! Mark 8:34-38,

    Calling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it. For what does it benefit someone to gain the whole world and yet lose his life? What can anyone give in exchange for his life? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

    “Take up your cross” is a BIG call. Trusting Jesus is nothing as limited as a Sunday morning worship time, nor is it as simple and easy as registering for a political party. It is a call for all His followers to give all of themselves to all of Who He is and what He does. Jesus calls you to give 100% of yourself to Him; your time, your talents, your treasure.

    It is a call for all His followers to give all of themselves to all of Who He is and what He does.

    Mark Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington DC said, “Christians are people who have real faith in Christ, and who show it by resting their hopes, fears, and lives entirely upon him.”

    Dever also remarks:

    “The Christian life is the discipled life and the discipling life. Yes, Christianity involves taking the road less traveled and hearing a different drummer. But not in the way that Frost and Thoreau meant. Christianity is not for loners or individualists. It is for a people traveling together down the narrow path that leads to life. You must follow and you must lead. You must be loved and you must love. And we love others best by helping them to follow Jesus down the pathway of life. … Christianity is personal, yes, always!—but not private. You need to be involved in the lives of others, and you need them in yours. God is the only one who doesn’t need to be taught!” (Emphasis added.)

    God’s plan for your involvement in the lives of others, and for others’ lives to be involved in yours, is the local church. If you are a Christian, you need to be in a local gathering of the body of Christ, aka the church. (I don’t necessarily mean a brick-and-mortar church building, though those are certainly helpful resources we can use to bless and benefit our faith community and our geographical communities, too.)

    Hebrews 10:24-25, “And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching” (emphasis added). Notice the phrasing of continuous action? “Not neglecting.” In other words, “let us continually choose to gather together” for encouragement and provoking one another to greater heights of love and broader impacts of good works.

    Let’s back up to Genesis 2:18 for a moment. That verse says, “Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him.’” While this verse is primarily about marriage, it also points to a truth found all over Scripture and science: human beings are communal creatures. We weren’t meant to live life isolated in our bedrooms or living rooms, relegated to doomscrolling or watching endless screens of Netflix shows or movies. We also weren’t meant to live for ourselves, perhaps doing many activities and “to heck with everybody else”! We were meant for real connection to one another in our basic humanity (Gen 2:18). As Christians, our bonds to one another in Christ give more and eternal reasons to be connected one to another.

    Some biblical pictures of who Christians are will help us think about discipleship.

    -Co-workers with God. 1 Cor 3:9, “For we are God’s coworkers. You are God’s field, God’s building.” He has brought us into the work of His Kingdom!

    -Stewards. 2 Tim 2:2, “What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” I’m reminded of the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25. We have been given something to use in God’s mission to seek and to save the lost. I won’t go over the spiritual gifts of 1 Corinthians 12, et al, here. But they aren’t simply skills we have developed or deserve praise for. God gives us everything we have and we steward all of it to His glory and for His mission.

    -Soldiers. 2 Tim 2:3-4, “Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the commanding officer.” There is a cost. But there is also a great goal of seeing men & women saved, and the finish line is being in Jesus’ presence for eternity. Soldiers look out for fellow soldiers.

    -Athletes. 2 Tim 2:5, “Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.” Athletes train, strive, and agonize over mastery of their focused area. An athlete aims for excellence. The best athletes experience and utilize humility, learning, and repetition. Ultimately, the athlete does all that so he can put himself out there and give his best, leaving it all out on the field, holding nothing back.

    -Farmers. 2 Tim 2:6, “The hardworking farmer ought to be the first to get a share of the crops.” Farmers are patient workers who rely on God to give the growth. We do the work of plowing, planting, watering, cultivating, pruning, and ultimately harvesting. The best farmers, the happiest farmers, the most productive farmers all have something in common. They work together!

    –Body. Rom 12:4-5. 1 Cor 12:12f. With Christ as the head (Eph 1:22-23), we–His body–follow. We share a common and unbreakable bond through salvation and through the Holy Spirit.

    In today’s post, we covered the need and the reality of connection, as well as the cost of following Jesus. In next week’s post, we will get into influence and discipleship more specifically.

    1. Church history tells us Peter’s martyrdom was in Rome, hung on a cross. He requested of his executioners that they hang his cross upside-down since he was unworthy to die as Jesus died. This account of the specific detail regarding an upside-down cross is from a questionable source, but multiple early writers attest to Peter’s martyrdom, including his martyrdom in Rome “with a passion like that of the Lord” (Tertullian). See Clement of Rome’s Letter to the Corinthians, Dionysius of Corinth’s writings, Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History. ↩︎
  • A Visual Primer Bibliography on Church Discipline

    A Visual Primer Bibliography on Church Discipline

    The following is a list, in no particular order, of 12 helpful books that discuss church discipline or elements of it. This list is for layperson and minister alike, with some focusing primarily on the theoretical/biblical study of the issue, while others focus primarily on the practical, and some include a helpful dose of both.

    If you can only read one of these books, read Ken Sande’s “The Peacemaker.” If you can read two of them, add Jonathan Leeman’s “Church Discipline” (it’s very short; it’s more of a handbook). If you can read more than that, but don’t know where to go next, hit me up in the comments and we can talk about which one might be best for you and your needs.

    Several of these are available in Spanish, as well.

  • Ash Wednesday

    Today is a special day for my friends in the high church traditions – it is Ash Wednesday.

    As a Southern Baptist, I do not observe this day like my friends who are of a ‘high church’ tradition. I can appreciate it in certain ways, however. If you are like me, in that you do not want to observe this day exactly like Catholics, etc., but you are curious about what you might appreciate about Ash Wednesday, please read on.

    When you start something, when you create that moment of initiation, is it not a special moment? When I was a child and our family would go on a road trip, before we started the car, my grandfather or my mother would pray, asking for protection on the road. The point of the road trip was to visit Yosemite, or the Sequoias. It was not about sitting in the car and praying before leaving for a trip. But that first moment was still special. That prayer was a way to tell me, “The trip begins now.”

    Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent, the 40 day period leading up to Easter Sunday (or Resurrection Sunday, for those who want to separate from the secular culture’s use of rabbits combined with eggs, etc). Lent is a time of fasting and self-denial. I know many Baptists who practice a form of Lent, where they abstain from, say, Dr. Peppers for those 40 days. Or junk food. Or processed sugar. Usually, I hear Baptists ‘observing’ Lent by dieting, though I have also heard of denying oneself of this or that frivolous activity, though I also have Catholic friends who observe it similarly.[1]

    Is this the point of Lent and Ash Wednesday? To trim one’s waistline? To go “crunchy?”[2]

    In the high church tradition, Psalm 51 is typically the text for the Ash Wednesday sermon. I quote it here before continuing. It is only 19 verses long. It won’t take that long to read.

     51 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

    1     Have mercy on me, O God,

    according to your steadfast love;

           according to your abundant mercy

    blot out my transgressions.

    2     Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

    and cleanse me from my sin!

    3     For I know my transgressions,

    and my sin is ever before me.

    4     Against you, you only, have I sinned

    and done what is evil in your sight,

           so that you may be justified in your words

    and blameless in your judgment.

    5     Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,

    and in sin did my mother conceive me.

    6     Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,

    and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

    7     Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;

    wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

    8     Let me hear joy and gladness;

    let the bones that you have broken rejoice.

    9     Hide your face from my sins,

    and blot out all my iniquities.

    10    Create in me a clean heart, O God,

    and renew a right spirit within me.

    11    Cast me not away from your presence,

    and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

    12    Restore to me the joy of your salvation,

    and uphold me with a willing spirit.

    13    Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

    and sinners will return to you.

    14    Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,

    O God of my salvation,

    and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.

    15    O Lord, open my lips,

    and my mouth will declare your praise.

    16    For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;

    you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

    17    The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

    a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

    18    Do good to Zion in your good pleasure;

    build up the walls of Jerusalem;

    19    then will you delight in right sacrifices,

    in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;

    then bulls will be offered on your altar. [3]

     

    Ash Wednesday is the first day of a season where we reflect on human mortality and repent of our sins. Are those qualities that Baptists can appreciate? Can we participate in those activities without converting to Catholicism or leaving our denomination?

    I have heard it said that Catholics focus too much on the sadness of the death of Christ. When that is true, then Ash Wednesday would certainly be a part of it for those Catholics who focus on the death of Christ to the exclusion of the resurrection of Christ (to one extent or another). I quote here another passage from the Scriptures that, I think, should help us all to understand the value of Ash Wednesday a little bit more. Isaiah 61:1-3:

    61 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

    because the Lord has anointed me

           to bring good news to the poor;

    he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

           to proclaim liberty to the captives,

    and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

    2     to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,

    and the day of vengeance of our God;

    to comfort all who mourn;

    3     to grant to those who mourn in Zion—

    to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,

           the oil of gladness instead of mourning,

    the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;

           that they may be called oaks of righteousness,

    the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.[4]

     

    In 40 days, He will replace our ashes for beauty, our mourning for the oil of gladness, our faint spirit for the garment of praise. In 40 days, we will remember again that Jesus brought and brings good news to the poor, that he bound up and binds up the brokenhearted, that he has proclaimed liberty to the captives, and opened the prison to those who are bound. We rightly reflect on our mortality and sinful inadequacy when we recognize it as a precursor to the work of Christ, who died for us all.

    This season is one where winter is ending as spring begins. Death is mingled with life. On Good Friday, we will reflect on the Creator of life who demonstrated who he is by dying on a cross. On Resurrection Sunday, we will reflect on the defeat of death at the moment of Christ’s resurrection. But, for now, we speak to ourselves and each other of our mortality, and we speak to Christ about repentance, because he has spoken to us through his life, ministry, death on the cross, and resurrection from death.

    “This is the time of tension between dying and birth

    The place of solitude where three dreams cross

    Between blue rocks

    But when the voices shaken from the yew-tree drift away

    Let the other yew be shaken and reply.”

                -from T.S. Eliot, “Ash Wednesday”

    [1] This does not refer to the common practice of eating fish on Fridays during the Lenten season. This practice came about because red meat was expensive, so the practice of spending so much money during this season was discouraged. Fish is a much cheaper meat, so clergy pointed their parishioners to it as a replacement during Lent. One thing led to another, and now we have big posters for the Filet-O-Fish leading up to Easter.

    [2] I’ve only become “hip” to this term recently, under my wife’s tutelage.

    [3] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Ps 51:title–19.

    [4] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Is 61:1–3.

  • For Your Consideration: Elevation Church and a Cheap Trick (no, not the band)

    I would like to introduce what will be a regular feature of my blog: For Your Consideration. Each ‘FYC’ post will be a link to a piece by somebody else that I think is worth your time. It will include at least one paragraph by me, summarizing and responding to the article, poll, study, essay, etc., then it will include the link at the bottom for you to follow up, read, and be able to think about on your own.

    The first entry For Your Consideration is about a Southern Baptist church in Charlotte, North Carolina that calls itself “Elevation Church.” In the article, local journalist Stuart Watson investigates Elevation’s published strategy for increasing church membership titled “Spontaneous Baptism How-To Guide.”

    Let the title sink in for a minute.

    If you haven’t punched a hole through your computer or phone yet for that oxymoron, please read on. In the guide, emotionally manipulative tactics are detailed in how to get more baptisms through what is, essentially, a mixture of peer pressure, crowd mentality, and Disney-level marketing. That’s right. You are supposed to plant actors in the crowd who will come up to get baptized first, taking the longest and most highly visible path to get there. This little bit of theater, combined, no doubt, with emotionally manipulative song selection and the lure of a willing speaker (“pastor” just doesn’t seem the right word to use for someone utilizing these tactics) will bring about the desired results of getting a bunch of people wet so you can pad numbers.

    Speculation aside, one thing is clear. This is a misunderstanding of the doctrine of the church. Church is not a building padded to the rafters with people you got wet. The church is the Bride of Christ, filled with people who intentionally follow Jesus because he has made a change in their lives, saving them from their sins by his death on the cross. This is what I believe as a Christian and a member of the Southern Baptist Convention. I am ashamed that a church in my denomination is manipulating the people of the Charlotte, N.C. area.

    For your consideration, “How Elevation Church, Pastor Furtick produce ‘spontaneous baptisms’” by Stuart Watson.