Black Eagle Tavern

End of an Era

2007-06-25T13:42:00.000-07:00

I've been reading NT Wright lately on Bible interpretation and worldview - he's been talking about worldview in terms of the dominant stories that people tell themselves within culture. It made me think of a bumper sticker I saw a few weeks ago on my drive out to Seattle (posted above).
All of my life I've heard a similar story: American Democracy is a beautiful creation, and the high point of cultural development in history. The Democracy we have today was established for us by brilliant men (probably with the benevolent aid of God), and was purchased for us and protected down through history by the blood of our fathers. The wars we've fought have been primarily about protecting this form of government for ourselves and for others. The twentieth century was a glorious ear wherein Democracy finally stood champion over it's arch enemies: fascism, socialism, and communism. The duty of all Americans today is to be thankful of those who gave their lives so we could enjoy this great gift, and to give of our efforts, money, and prayers, so that other people might also share in this marvelous institution.
That's the story I heard growing up - at school, at home, at church, and in the media. But it doesn’t seem like a story many people are telling anymore. I can't think of anyone I know, high school age or younger who responds to the Democracy story with much passion or comprehension. I think our foundational story collapsed some time in the last decade or two. I wasn’t really surprised by the bumper sticker at all, but it stick in my mind as poignant sign of the end of an era.

Satisfaction

2007-06-18T11:47:00.000-07:00

Last week my pastor said that, like a statistical sampling, we should let the experience that we have had of the world thus far be enough to prove for us that the world will not satisfy us. "You could eat the whole world and not be satisfied!" He often says. This week he spoke of satisfaction again as he was preparing communion, offering communion as a symbol of something that will genuinely satisfy.
I realized in thinking about satisfaction that it is the goal of my life. If I could have one thing, it would be to be filled and happy all the time! (Or at least most of the time). Food, relationships, nature, daydreams, travel: these are the sorts of things that I am continuously looking for because sometimes they satisfy me, and I never tire of the desire that some day soon they will fully satisfy me.
My pastor is right: nothing here has ever really fully satisfied me. And I reguarly find in communion a peace and staisfaction that I can not live without, and that I find no where else.
And yet here I am on Monday morning and I have already sought after a long string of things to satisfy me.
I've been reading proverbs again for the first time in years. According to proverbs the goal of life is to aquire wisdom, insight, and obedience. I am somewhat taken aback this morning that those things sound so different than satisfaction.
I hope that the Lord will help me to believe my needs a little less, or at least to listen to them with more of a sense of humor.

Cultures in the Church

2007-02-08T16:17:00.000-08:00

Check out this article by Tim Keller, Sr Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian in NYC.

What are your thoughts on the 3 cultures he finds in the PCA?

Are there other cultures (ie, is this too general)?

Where would you estimate you fall in the cultures he presented...R-h, R-c, or R-e?

It seems like Dr Keller has a good eye for what trends are going on in the church. I would probably fall mostly within the R-e camp, feeling that our doctrines are very important, but also that it is important to engage the world in mission rather than holding the world/culture at arms length. I've got some more ideas, but wanted to see what others thought as well.

Monday Quote (yeah, I know it's Wednesday)

2007-02-07T10:37:00.000-08:00

So the Monday quote is back (although it is Wednesday).

I've been reading Overcoming Sin & Temptation: Three Classic Works by John Owen, so here is a quote from the venerable Dr Owen:

"Do you mortify;

do you make it your daily work;

be always at it while you live;

cease not a day from this work;

be killing sin or it will be killing you."

-John Owen, Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers

2007-01-18T07:14:00.000-08:00

For all of you feeling the chill of winter's breath, gather warmth from this:

"True faith is an herb that grows best in winter weather."
Samuel Rutherford (1600-61), Communion Sermon 2, found at A Puritan's Mind

Monday Quote

2006-11-27T15:17:00.000-08:00

In honor of the recent Thanksgiving holiday, here's a quote about our Pilgrim forebearers:

The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving. - H.U. Westermayer

How often do we really understand what true thankfulness is unless we know why we should be thankful? It seems like there is a general air of thankfulness in our culture that is really just a masked version our own self importance. Are we truly thankful for the many blessings that our Heavenly Father has seen fit to bestow upon us, or do we just think that all the blessings that we have in life are just owed to us anyhow? It doesn't seem like there is anything good in my life that I deserve, outside of the grace and mercy of God. Our persecuted brothers and sisters are often more thankful than we who have so much; it is not poverty or riches, pain or health, persecution or peace that makes us grateful, it is the knowledge that outside of God, we can rely on no other.

Monday Quote

2006-11-20T11:43:00.000-08:00

It is not that we keep his commandments first, and that then He loves; but that He loves us, and then we keep His commandments. This is that grace, which is revealed to the humble, but hidden from the proud ... God chooses us, not because we believe, but that we may believe. - Augustine

musical longing

2006-11-16T12:21:00.000-08:00

On my way into work at the church, I was listening to Death Cab For Cutie to get revved up for their concert this weekend in, of all places, Clemson SC ("I know, can you believe it?"). The title track from their "Transatlanticism" album was playing as I took my 5 minute commute from home. As I was leaving the house, it looked like rain and there was a chill in the air. I had to put on my GoreTex Mountain Hardware coat, the one that I couldn't leave home without in Seattle but doesn't get much use here in fairly sunny and dry South Carolina. The clouds hung close to the trees. It could rain any minute, but nothing heavy, only a light sprinkle.

As I rolled over the hills, listening to Death Cab, warming my hands on the defroster, I was transported. I expected at any moment to turn the corner and see the Cascade Mountains, or possibly the Puget Sound. I felt a longing for something that felt home. The music lifted something within me to picture something distant in the past, though it seemed temporally rather close.

This is much the same way as the music we sing in worship. It lifts our minds to things that we cannot see and for whatever reason makes them closer.

Are we using music that does this? I am not advocating a certain style: a well-played organ can just as well shake me to the core as a hushed folk-acoustic tune. Are we settling for what works? For what offends the least number of people? As a musician, much of my job in worship is compromise: compromising to the abilities of the other musicians, compromising to the electrical and acoustic capabilities of the building, compromising to the generational tones of the congregation.

But is this the best thing? For all of us? Shouldn't we seek to be moved to worship, no matter what the cost?

Is it more worthwhile to mellow down to light rock for the sake of baby boomers than it is to sing a beautiful keening lament? Is it more beneficial to sing songs from every generation, even if some of those musical eras are in conflict with the core doctrine of the church at hand?

Music is very powerful, whether in the right or in the wrong hands. Experience is not the king of worship; God is that. But God wants more than our minds to be stirred when we are worshiping him; rather, our worship should stir memories that stretch back to the dawn of creation, walking the garden with the Creator, and look forward to that same fellowship with the Son that will stir our hearts unceasingly.

"I need you so much closer..."
(from "Transatlanticism")

are the elements of worship so elemental to our worship?

2006-11-15T08:49:00.000-08:00

As I was writing a sermon for my Worship and Preaching course, I was looking for a good Ascription of Praise to close my sermon. Trying to find one that connects with my passage from 1 Cor. 6, something about judgment and mercy. So I googled "pca ascription of praise" to find what other PCAers use, and I came upon this article by Dr. Rob Rayburn (Faith Tacoma) concerned with the issue of raising hands during the benediction. He was responding to a letter that he received (I believe from a member) concerning the fact that Rob does not raise his hands, and Rob responds with the following:

My decision not to use that posture had primarily to do and has today to do with the fact that the entire idea of the benediction has been largely lost in our spiritual culture. Even many PCA ministers do not understand or appreciate what they are doing when they practice it. God's people, as a result, have little appreciation of this rite or the meaning of the words pronounced. The proof of that is not only that congregations regularly have their eyes shut when the benediction is pronounced – that is, they view it as some kind of prayer – but that very often what is said is not a benediction at all.

The connection with my search for Ascriptions of Praise is that Rob later mentions that what many ministers today use as Benedictions are actually Ascriptions of Praise, and not blessings upon the people at all. This raises the question as to whether our ministers are really being taught the proper use of the elements in the service? (I wanted to use the word liturgy, but that seems stuffy here in the south...) In other parts of this worship course here at Erskine, this very question has come to my mind. Why have I heard so many times the passage from Jude 24-25 as a Benediction:

24Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

This is not a blessing for the reader; it's a praise to God!!! I don't want to be too critical here, but is this obvious to anyone else? A Benediction is more like one of the following:

The Apostolic Blessing from 2 Corinthians 13:14 – "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all."

The Aaronic Blessing from Numbers 6:24-26 – "The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace."

So what is this a symptom of? Is it that the ministers have no clue what they're doing? Does it mean that the ministers weren't taught right? Is the congregation in general ignorant of the receiving of a proper blessing?

I am sure that it is all of the above, and more. Years of watering down the worship of the American Church to a sermon and its bookends has probably brought us to the place that we have no idea what to do with the puzzle pieces. We put the tail where the wings should be; we put the beak at the end of the leg. The more I dwell on these things, I am encouraged by the trend of the church of recent years as understanding of the elements of worship is being renewed, but what do we do about the guys who went through seminary years ago and are in congregations that aren't going to change their ways because "we never did it like that"?

Forgive and point out any incoherence in this rant.

The cowboys are hiding in the dark

2006-11-14T15:33:00.000-08:00

A little over a month ago John posed the question, “Where have all the cowboys gone?” It really is a good question. The underlying assumption seems to be that men have disappeared. The question that followed was whether or not this was to a degree something that is also the fault of women. My answer is yes and no. Yes in that the obvious symptoms (an increasing feminization of the church, a decreasing role of the father, etc) can often point to this; no, because these symptoms are just that, they are symptoms, symptoms of a much larger problem that have been happening since Adam first kept his mouth shut in the garden.

So back to the first question, where have the men gone. We haven’t really gone anywhere, we’ve just shrunken back into the shadows and ignored the way in which we have been created. We were created in the image of God to reflect his glory, we were created with dignity and authority, yet at the first sign of temptation we kept our mouths shut. We weren’t absent in the garden when Eve was offered the fruit, we were right there with her, and we refused to speak out against the serpent when we knew unequivocally that God had said, “You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.” (Genesis 3:3)

I see it every day, guys trying to act like men when they don’t really know what that looks like, shirking responsibilities and commitments they have made, acting less like men than spoiled children, ignoring the wisdom and advice of men who have walked the same steps they have taken before them. We have been created to lead, not to cede our leadership to others who often would rather we just do the job we are supposed to and created to do. I believe that men and women were created with different but complementary roles, as an image of Christ’s relationship with his church. (Tim Challies has a great post on this here.) Yet we men ignore the way that God made us, leaving gaps that someone must fill. Men have left their families (physically or emotionally) and they have left the pulpits. Yes, women have filled many of these, but that is not what God has intended; God has intended for us to take the responsibilities we’ve been given, to be who we were created to be. Yet the sin in our lives keeps us from taking that moving forward as we ought.

How can we fix this? Simply put, we can’t. Only God can. But we do have a part, we are called to prayer, to faithful study of the Word. Men need to start taking responsibility for the sin in their lives rather than hiding it or attempting to pass the buck. Men need to start being present in all their faculties; loving their wives, caring for and raising their children, being leaders in their churches, being faithful in the work they have been called to, and spending time on their knees before God, seeking his wisdom in Scripture. As John Owen said, "He who prays as he ought will endeavour to live as he prays."

Finally, we as men need to start encouraging other men to not forsake the way their creator created them to be. We need to affirm what we see that is good in our brothers and seek to correct when we see error, and we need to do all this in love, first for God, and then for our neighbor.

Monday Quote

2006-11-13T15:45:00.000-08:00

A church of the living dead isn't just a movie; it's real. Like the zombies in Night of the Living Dead, a church of the living dead doesn't necessarily lie still: it has no true life in it, but the church is still able to do certain things and go through the motions. And like the zombies, a church of the living dead has a deadly effect: it can go after more people and turn them into zombies as well who spread death instead of life. - David Feddes, minister & British radio host

Quote of the week

2006-11-06T12:42:00.000-08:00

So I've been wanting to do this for a while...I am instituting the quote of the week...it should be posted each Monday (unless I forget, which apparently happens alot).

This week's quote is from Charles Krauthammer, an American news columnist:

"The reigning cliché of the day is that in order to love others one must first love oneself. This formulation – love thyself, then they neighbor – is a license for unremitting self-indulgence, because the quest for self-love is endless. By the time you have finally learned to love yourself, you’ll find yourself playing golf at Leisure World."

Ted Haggard

2006-11-06T12:36:00.000-08:00

I have been working on some thoughts relating to John's question on "where have all the cowboys gone?" and was struck by some things that have been brought up by the scandal involving Ted Haggard. I am going to refrain from commenting on this issue as Tim Challies has posted some great thoughts that are much more coherent than anything I could come up with.

What I would like to say though is that we need to be remembering to pray for our church leaders and their families, that we need to remember that we are all men at best and that no one is immune from temptation and sin.

More to come soon...I promise.

Where have all the cowboys gone?

2006-10-07T10:47:00.000-07:00

Our society today speaks of how men aren't stepping up, leading with authority and conviction. Chivarly is dead. As a result institutions like marriage and church, which depend on the leadership of men, are found in wanting. Single women and the "feminized" church cry out, "Where are all the men?" or to put in an Paula Cole statement, "Where have all the cowboys gone?"

Well what about this, what if the underlying reason why men don't step up is because of women? A dear friend of mine has a real screwed up view of women and relationships, and I know why. His parents divorced because of his mother's infidelity. It crushed him. And what made it worst his mom would compare her lover to her incompetant, lazy, untalanted husband. And with every biting and condescending statement he heard his mother say to his father, the more he feared women. And what makes it so sad is that my friend is godly, loving and compassionate and he desires with all his being to get married and be a father his wasn't. He's a romantic at heart, almost too much, and he has a tendency to "fall for" any woman around him, but as soon as he senses that this girl is critical, even if it's true, he tenses up and immediately he thinks of his mother's critical attitude and concludes it's not worth it before it can even start. I remember years ago, he told me, "John, I just don't trust women." I thought to myself, "Why is this man thinking like a woman?" But I realized that his scars were real and not foolish. His fear of an unfaithful wife is not stupid, it's just sad, and the fact is his mother really screwed him up. He has no hope in the institution of marriage and really it's because he has no faith in the gospel and it's implication. All of us are sinners, and the fact is the gospel changes us, it transforms us, and allows us to pursue things like marriage, which in fallen world with no grace, would be incredibly stupid. As men of the gospel, we need to have an answer and example in our own lives to show them there is hope. Are we up to it?

Donald Miller @ Erskine

2006-10-06T12:49:00.000-07:00

Needless to say, I was a bit surprised to see a flier for "Donald Miller, This Thursday at 11 am" when I was on the Erskine campus. First off, why wasn't it posted at the seminary? And second, how on earth did they get him to come?

To the first question, I'd say that the average Erskine Seminarian would have a tough time listening to Don Miller, author of Blue Like Jazz. If your first contact with him was a lecture, you'd probably never want to hear him again if you were above the age of 39. But I think they all should be interested in what he's saying because the upcoming generations are reading his books, or at least they think in a lot of the same ways that he does.

To the second question, he was in Atlanta and someone from the board of trustees was able to get him to come up.

So what did I think? Well, when I first read Blue Like Jazz, I would have lumped him into the emergent church movement. His postmodern/mosaic take on everything would fit quite well with them. His follow up book, Searching for God Knows What, shed a different light on his thinking, specifically that he cares about doctrine. In his lecture, he dissed on every mainstream church movement, including the emerging church, so he finally took that nametag off himself that I had placed squarely on his chest (to the right, not the left, because then you can read the nametag when you're shaking his hand).

He talked about church architecture. He cussed, but at the right times. He told great stories about soap commercials and two-year-old temper tantrums. He understood how to communicate with college students better than the previous two big-time guest speakers I've heard there. More than just making them laugh, he gets how they perceive the world because he isn't as far removed chronologically from their generation as the other speakers, who are at least old enough to be their parents.

I appreciate what Don Miller is saying. He's saying things, mostly close to what I believe, but is saying them in ways that others aren't. He and Derek Webb have a podcast together. It's worth a listen. And his books are worth a read. At least your college friends tend to think so.

No, not that Donald Miller!

Pet Blessings??

2006-10-04T09:30:00.000-07:00

October 4 is the Feast Day of St. Francis and is also apparently the day to take your pets to church and have them blessed.

The purpose of this is eluding me, even though I have spent a little while this morning thinking on it (more in the way of consternation than contemplation) and have not been able to come up with a good reason for this. Any thoughts? Does this come back around to our discussion of worship and what is and is not appropriate? Is the specific blessing of animals found in scripture?

ESV turns 5

2006-10-02T09:28:00.000-07:00

The ESV (English Standard Version) Bible turns 5 years old this month. It was first published in October 2001. Since then the ESV's popularity has grown amongst evangelical churches seeking a translation that is both readable and true to the original text. It has become more and more popular for preaching, teaching and personal study. I first came across the ESV when I worked at First Presbyterian in Columbia, SC. My boss had a copy and was talking about how great this new translation was. I had no idea. It really is great, maintaining integrity to the original text, and very easy to read. I have grown to prefer this version over the last 4 years and will probably continue to use it for years to come.

Here is some of what others have said about the ESV:

“I appreciate deeply the evident commitment to the absolute truth of Scripture, and the willingness of these scholars to yield to the Spirit rather than bend to the wind of cultural trends.” - Dr. Bryan Chapell, President, Covenant Theological Seminary

“The ESV represents a new level of excellence in Bible translations—combining unquestionable accuracy in translation with a beautiful style of expression. It is faithful to the text, easy to understand, and a pleasure to read. This is a translation you can trust.” - Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., President, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“We use the English Standard Version as our church Bible because we are passionate about God’s Word—every last word of it—and because we want our children to have the best available translation for reading, teaching, preaching, memorizing, and serious Bible study.” - Dr. Philip Graham Ryken, Senior Minister, Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

And last, but certainly not least, from the general editor of the ESV:

“I find myself suspecting very strongly that my work on the translation of the ESV Bible was the most important thing that I have done for the Kingdom, and that the product of our labors is perhaps the biggest milestone in Bible translation in the past fifty years or more.” - JI Packer

Worship Part 2

2006-09-27T19:04:00.000-07:00

So I've been reading On Being Presbyterian: Our Beliefs, Practices, and Our Stories, by Sean Michael Lucas and he had some good insights into worship. The book is pretty good and I picked it up so maybe I could have a more concise response to the question of why I believe what I believe. If you are interested, pick it up.

He made what I felt was a good distinction between the elements of worship and the circumstances of worship. The elements of worship are those things that scripture has set apart as the ways we are to worship God: prayer, word & sacrament. These are the things we aren't permitted to change. The circumstances on the other hand are those things that don't impede or change the elements of worship, such as service time, location, dress code, and music style.

Ultimately I think scripture shows us that worship is to be a calling from God and a response from His people. It seems like we get too pig headed about those things that are really just our preferences. Dr. Lucas puts it well here,

"At the end of the day we must believe that corporate worship is the God-ordained means of delighting in and enjoying God as his covenant people. Whether we sing Bach or rock is relatively unimportant compared to the much greater need that we have to hear God speak to us by his Word, to recall God's promises made to us in Christ, to be reminded of the gospel in Word and sacrament, and to be transformed by the Spirit using his Word in our lives." (p129)

If you're looking for more on worship, I would suggest picking up Hughes Oliphant Old's Worship: Reformed According to Scripture. (thanks luke for recommending this, its been helpful)

Finally, I'll leave you with this quote from the great Puritan, Richard Baxter, "Overvalue not therefore the manner of your own worship, and overvilify not other men's of a different mode."

Driscoll...doping?

2006-08-23T15:02:00.000-07:00

Check out the recent post on Tim Challies blog, I nearly sprayed coffee all over my computer screen.

In other news, a post from me on worship (re: Luke's post) is pending...but I'm slow.

THE LIMELIGHT OF CHRISTIAN WORSHIP

2006-07-18T06:04:00.000-07:00

this is a quote I received today from the Worship Quote of the Week mailing list

Traditionalists have much to answer for in their reluctance to understand that tradition does not mean stasis but change. In their reaction against contemporary styles, they fail to understand that what they have gotten used to was once contemporary and often objectionable. Contemporists likewise fail to understand how blunted their tastes are when only "their music" seems to do the trick and when what they are doing has, ever so quickly, frozen itself into a tradition. So we end up with two kinds of shortsightedness, one supposedly old, the other supposedly new, and both wish fulfilling. The separation of worship into preference groups is everyone's fault, in that narrow musical satisfaction has turned out to be more important than style-proof outpouring. I encourage people of all practices to become intently and intensely curious about each other's ways.

The church desperately needs an artistic reformation that accomplishes two things at once: first, it takes music out of the limelight and puts Christ and his Word back into prominence; and second, it strives creatively for a synthesis of new, old and crosscultural styles. A deep understanding of the arts, coupled to the understanding that at best the music of corporate worship is simple, humble and variegated, would bring something about that would make all churches into worshiping and witnessing churches that happen to sing.

˜Harold Best, UNCEASING WORSHIP: BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVES ON WORSHIP AND THE ARTS. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2003, p. 75. ISBN 0-8308-3229-7

comments? thoughts?

Must see indie flicks

2006-06-26T11:21:00.000-07:00

I have a growing interest in indie films, I'm not sure when it started, but I think it became full blown with Junebug last year, such a beautiful and thoughtful movie, well shot and written, unlike much of the mainstream, big budget, special effects stuff out of Hollywood right now.

This weekend I went to see the movie Expiration Date. Go see it. The director was there after the screening to talk about the movie. He is trying to work on a whole new way of movie distribution and movie making that defies the traditional ways in which Hollywood currently does things. Its going to be playing at Landmark Theaters around the country and it is opening in more cities next week. It's a black comedy and takes a look at the way we live our lives, what is important. The thoughtfulness in filming, location, actor choice, etc was amazing. It was also shot in Seattle and included some people I know (which doesn't hurt, but if they weren't in it the movie still would have been great.)

Another movie you should check out is Deepa Mehta's Water. It takes a heart wrenching look at the plight of Hindu widows in India. I've already been thinking alot about our call as Christians to take care of the poor and downtrodden, the widows and orphans. The movie has caused a lot of controversy in Mehta's native India, with people threatening her life, as well as the lives of the cast and crew, for the critical look she takes at this aspect of Hinduism. The movie is in Hindi with English subtitles.

Contextualizing the Gospel to Twixters

2006-06-16T17:30:00.000-07:00

I came across a really interesting article from TIME (http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101050124/) this past year on a post-college demographic that has been labled as "Twixters." Basically these are those who fall within the age range 21-30 who are single, some still living at home, who in some ways still exhibit the characteristics of teenagers while at the same time avoiding the responsibilities of adulthood. The article tried to figure out why this seemingly new group is springing up. Some have argued that it's due the increasing competition of a highly educated society, others believe it's due to the economic prosperity that they have experienced in the late 80's and early 90's. The two things that the article identified as determining whether or not someone in this age bracket was indeed a twixter were economic independence, and marriage. The question that comes into my mind is, "How are we to evaluate these people in light of the gospel?"

With GLPC's capital campaign just getting started, I recognized that God has been doing some amazing things in my personal life as well, specifically on how He calls us to be decisive people so that we can indeed be faithful stewards. I realize that one of the tendency I have, in soladarity with the Twixters is that I avoid wanting to make decisions due to a fear of failure, but in my own defense I ask, "Why is this a surprise?" Our generation has been marked with high rates of divorce and economic prosperity at all cost, even if that means never spending time with one's own family. The fact that there is a new demographic of cynical, indecisive young adults out there, shouldn't be a surprise in light of all the brokeness so many of my friends and peers have experienced in their own life. And it is this group of people we need to be prepared to share the gospel with. To borrow an Adlerian term, we need to be 'ringing bells' for this group so that they would be responsive to hear what the gospel has to say for their life. The question then becomes, how do we contextualize the gospel to this group? Please share your thoughts.

Vocational Approachability Part 2

2006-06-07T17:04:00.000-07:00

So I walked into a coffee shop in Seattle this afternoon (with a pile of things to accomplish), sat down at an open spot next to a sporty-looking urbanite and pulled out my work. No sooner had I sat down with my coffee than my coffee shop companion (will call him Raul because I never actually got his name) strikes up a conversation. "How's your wireless working? Where are you from? What do you do there?" asks Raul. Typical coffee shop banter. Except that I work in ministry. So I told him I'm on my way to seminary. "Well," said Raul, "What do you think about... (beware the opening question...)... the HOLY SPIRIT?" You can tell where this is going already huh? I actually enjoy meeting and chatting with people like Raul, and even talking about the Holy Spirit. The challenge is many times, like today, it's not really a conversation, because Raul's interest is not to converse but to impart. He embarked upon lengthy tales of spirit lead adventures and interpreted bible passages. He included phrases like, "I know I'm taking a lot of your time, but I've already experienced this stuff, it's for you not for me," and "I really beleive the Holy Spirit lead you here today," and of course the final, "What do you think?"
I'm writing all of this not to poke fun at this well known type, but to ask a real ministerial question. How do you "minister" to someone who has a genuine interest in talking, little interest in learning, and with whom you will probably only have passing contact. Thoughts?

Once Every 4 Years

2006-06-07T09:08:00.000-07:00

The 2006 World Cup starts this Friday!!

My boys from England are gonna win it all...just like in '66.

the black eagle tavern now presents...

2006-06-06T17:32:00.000-07:00

John Baek as Herman Bavinck

Justin Weeks as Martin Luther

Luke Morton as B.B. Warfield

Nathaniel Thompson as John Calvin
and Luke & Sarah Brodine as Mr. and Mrs. Rembrandt

Choosing a church

2006-06-05T21:40:00.000-07:00

A recent blog post by Anthony Bradley dealt with how we choose the church we attend. I'd have to strongly agree with him that we should be attending a church in our neighborhood when possible and if its not possible, be part of a team to plant a church in your area. I have seen far too many people choose their churches based on music style or liturgical style or the pastor (who by the way is not the church) or x program or y program, etc...are there good reasons for not attending a theologically sound, bible preaching, church in your local community? If you are denominationally minded, as I suspect most of those reading this are, is there a reason to drive past one church of your own denomination to attend another of the same denomination, besides personal & selfish reasons? These are just some questions I've asked myself and have reflected on recently as I've thought about where the Lord is calling me to pastor in the future.

Approachable vs. Vocational?

2006-06-05T10:50:00.000-07:00

I was reading Lauren Winner this morning. In the course of her writing she tossed in the assurance: I'm not a professional minister, or even a theologian, just a fellow traveler. A comment which I found to be quite winsome. Donald Miller, another recently popular Christian writer claims the same status I think, not to mention our esteemed C. S. Lewis. I've had a flurry of thought about this. On one hand I think I claim that status a lot myself in conversations. I really like to connect with people (and legitimize myself) by asserting that I too struggle greatly to figure things out; that I'm no expert. I know that I hide my "professional ministry" status as much as I can because I'm afraid people won't trust me if they find out. On the other hand (as someone headed to seminary) I'm sensing that this idea carries with it the assumption that professional ministers and theologians may be fascinating and intelligent people but they can't really be realted to or trusted. They're not like us. Which really isn't true. At least it shouldn't be. But where did this idea come from? Can't we have a category for ministers to be trusted fellow journeyers? What if someone wrote a book and tossed in the assurance, "I say this because I'm a pastor" and we all immediately sensed a level of trust and kinship that this was a fellow learning growing traveler with us??

Rain

2006-06-01T15:37:00.000-07:00

I've been back in Seattle a little over a week now. It's rained pretty much everyday. People don't like rain. No one likes rain, rain is inconvenient. I've always known this. That's why Seattle drinks the most coffee, and generates the most depressing music. But I stopped today and asked, "Why don't we like rain?" And I decided that maybe it's weird that we don't like rain. Rain is water, water that just falls from the sky, of its own accord. And water is life. "Anyone who is thirsty, let him come to ME and Drink!" Jesus screamed out. "Whoever believes in me, Out of his heart will flow RIVERS of Living Water." And the Psalmist, "he is like a tree planted by Streams of Water that yields its fruit in its season and its leaf Does Not Wither." Water is life. We need it, can not live without it. All of us are driven by the daily guttural desire to consume it. We can't really even generate it or control it. Here in the 21st century cities and nations are captive to the will of the weather, dependent upon it for a continuous and fresh flow. Rain is like life falling indiscriminately from the sky "He sends rain on the just and on the unjust." Sometimes it falls so freely that for a little while we can't even contain it all. It drips off noses and runs down streets, and we are gently renewed for another day. Common Grace. And we are so busy meeting our own Needs. I think I'm going to go out and get damp for a little while...

Speaking of Arts and Culture: Car Art in the Northwest

2006-05-27T12:00:00.000-07:00

I recently moved from Nebraska back to Washington State for the summer. I’m realizing that I’ve really come to love the Midwest; it’s so solid, stable and polite. The yellow ribbon “support our troops” bumper stickers so prevalent there just speak of solidity and dependability. I’m being reminded though that they do lack a certain Northwestern flair. No edgy in-your-face discussion of politics and religion to be found in Nebraska. In the few days that I’ve been back in Seattle I’ve been greeted with no end of personal testimonials and pithy political commentary proudly pasted before me. It's so fascinating! I may not always agree with my down and depressed brethren up here, but I give them points for passion and creativity. So much so that I want to share some of my recent favorites with you…

Political Expression:

Variations on a Political Theme:

Religious Expression:

Politics AND Religion!:

???:

Rembrandt: The Painter of the Bible

2006-05-24T13:58:00.000-07:00

I have just started reading in prepartion for a course on the Christian Use of Art. The course proper has been cancelled due to lackluster enrollment, but I am continuing as an independent study and will hopefully be the graduate assistant for the course next summer.

Of the provided bibliography, the most intriguing book was Rembrandt and the Gospel by W.A. Visser 't Hooft. I receieved my copy a few days ago and have proceeded to devour it. I will likely post more profound thoughts once I have finished reading and have adequately pondered the book to write my report for class, but I did want to post quickly about the above image.

Typically it is referred to as the "Hundred Guilders Print" due to the high sum of money paid for it at the time; it is also called "Jesus Healing the Sick". Far from portraying a single passage in the Bible, this etching covers Matthew 19 in its entirety:

To the right you see the sick coming to Christ for healing, praying directly to the Great Physician.
At his right hand, you see the little children coming to him, as Peter attempts to keep them at a distance from his master.
Below Peter is the Rich Young Man, cupping his hang over his chin as he ponders the cost of his worldly possessions.
In the upper left are the Pharisees after having tested Christ concerning divorce.

There are two unique portions in this image: first, in the lower left, there is a man with his back to the viewer. Where is he in the story? It would seem that he is meant to be the neutral onlooker, neither running toward Christ nor slithering away in disgust. Second, Christ himself is in the middle of the photo. He is simply being himself, not trying to show off his divine powers to win supporters but carrying out the Gospel on earth. This echoes what he told the followers of John the Baptist to report back what they have seen and heard.

Is Rembrandt trying to make the viewer take sides with the sick and shun the Pharisees? Is this an image upon which we can look with neutrality?

Comment on a Sobering Reality

2006-05-22T12:02:00.000-07:00

We lost an RUF intern to suicide this year too. He was a good intern, he was engaged to one of the other interns, and everyone was surprised when he took his life. I've thought about it a lot this spring. What has been on my mind the most is my tendency to hide things from other people, especially when I'm not doing well. From what we can tell my intern friend felt really inadequate for a while before hand, but didn't talk to anyone about it. The gospel that we are paid to share is all about honesty - how because of grace, security and justification we can finally be honest about who we are and the struggles that we have. And yet it seems like so many ministers (myself included) seem to privately hold on to the idea that we can really only be honest to a point. I feel like my own heart has developed a really tricky way of being selectively honest, carefully open. I was having a hard time this spring thinking about leaving Lincoln, and it's amazing to look back and see how hard it was for me to just be honest about that and ask for help and prayer. But once I did it was a lot easier. If the Bible has something to say about minister burn out, I'm sure that some of it has to do with the deceitfulness of the human heart (Jeremiah 17:9), and our need for brotherly connection and honesty (James 5:16).

The Sobering Reality

2006-05-13T23:11:00.001-07:00

Just heard from a couple friends back at Seminary about a guy I don't even know, committed suicide this past week. Ironic, from what I know, he was graduating this year with an M.Div. in Biblical Counseling. Had a great church, beautiful girlfriend and a community of godly people around him and yet in spite of all those things, his depression seemed too overwhelming. I can't say that I understand full blown depression. I don't think I have ever been that depressed before. And I wonder, as a young minister, what sort of dread and anxieties await me, await all of us? Just read an article that the number of young ministers leaving the ministry is staggering, do you think it's because of tragedy like this? It's strange, the Scriptures don't seem to have much to say on issues like these, but of course, that's just my ignorance talking. It's scary to think that in all the joys and excitements of ministry I can forget the fundamental thing I am called by God to do, to proclaim the victory over death, to bring hope to the unsettling reality of death's existence due to the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. God, in the midst of the sobering reality of death, help us not forget the truth, hope and victory of the gospel of Christ.

The Great Mad Theological Thinker

2006-05-08T13:20:00.000-07:00

That's right gents! The great Herman Bavinck, muhahahahaha! The man looks like Dr. Frankenstein, saying, "I can implode your brain with just one look!" But don't be fooled from the picture, this man is perhaps one of the greatest reformed thinkers that the church has ever created. For those of you in seminary, I strongly encourage you to get yourself copies of his works, whether his one volume ST book "Our Reasonable Faith" or the first 3 volumes from his massive "Reformed Dogmatics" that Baker has just started publishing in English. Here is a little taste to this man's thinking:

Is there greater gift than the Lord Himself? What can He give more than Himself, Himself with all His virtues and attributes, with His grace and wisdom, with His righteousness and omnipotence, with His un-changeableness and faithfulness? For when God is for us, who can be against us? Whatever may happen, He is and remains ours, in misery and death, in living and dying, for time and eternity. For He is not a God of the dead, but of the living. Blessed is the people whose God is the Lord!

This promise is so much richer, while God therein commits Himself, to be not only our God, but also the God of our seed. It would be great already if God granted communion with some people, who were not related; when in a arbitrary way He would, not taking in account generations, take His elect regardless of all historic coherence of flesh and blood.

But that is not how the lord works. He establishes an organic covenant with humanity, with Christ as its Head, first with Adam then with Abraham who is the father of all believers. With His grace He follows the line of generations. in re-creation he joins creation. He executes election in the way of the covenant, He moves as Father of all mercies in the way, to which as Father of all things, He Himself set His signature.

That is why the covenant of grace is eternal in the sense, that in history it continues from generation to generation and is never cut off. Grace is like a stream which commences after the fall, digs a bed for itself in the history of humanity and discharges in eternity. As covenant it may run through several dispensations and appear in different forms, through God's almighty power it has become an element in this world, which cannot be eradicated, and an indestructible good for humanity.

2006-05-04T10:48:00.000-07:00

Pictures of Ugly German Reformers part 2

To continue in the spirit of the below post on Luther, I just read a fascinating work on a little known reformer, Martin Bucer. The book I read was by Martin Greschat, and I did a crtique of it for my Reformation/Modern Church History course. At the end of my post I will include my critique since I don't think there's much I could say here that isn't already in that.

Yesterday I had lunch with Hughes Old, one of my professors at Erskine. The first time I had ever heard Bucer's name was in his book Worship: Reformed According to Scripture (a brilliant work for any interested in the historical development of worship), and I was wondering what first interested him in Bucer. He replied that in 1521, he was the first person in over 1,000 years to do a commentary on the Psalms from the Hebrew.

Bucer went on to be the middle man between Luther and Zwingli, and Protestants and Catholics, while still holding true to his principles... I should stop now and just post the critique:

Martin Bucer is a relatively unknown reformer from the sixteenth century, but recent scholarship has begun to discuss the influence that he had upon the Protestant Reformation, not only in Strasburg, but throughout Western Europe. Greschat presents not only a thorough biography of Bucer but also paints a far-reaching portrait of what life was like in the sixteenth century, showing that history did not revolve around Bucer. With only a rudimentary knowledge of the time period, the reader is able to walk away with a rich understanding of Bucer’s political, economic, and religious environment.

To support his thesis, Greschat weaves together Bucer’s education and experiences with the practical outworking of his convictions. Bucer was a true ecumenist during a time of polarization in theological thought among reformers. His attempts to bring reconciliation within Protestantism–Luther and Zwingli over the Lord’s Supper–and between Protestantism and Catholicism show the heart that he had for the body of Christ to be one, not many parts. Not to be dismissed as simply trying to make everyone get along, Bucer was no pushover when it came to his theological convictions. Greschat shows that due to his training in Scholasticism and later development as a Humanist, Bucer was not a blank slate when presented with Luther’s distinctive teachings. Bucer’s work is also traced through the Magisterial Reformation, especially in his up-and-down relationship with Jacob Sturm, member of the Strasburg City Magistrate.

The only drawback to the book is the negligible amount of discussion Greschat lends to Bucer’s theological writings, but including this would make the book unbearable in length and could be better addressed in a work dedicated specifically to this subject. In the end, Greschat draws some helpful conclusions to apply the story of Bucer to modern-day life, which are also relevant to any study of history.

This English translation is quite readable and serves as a second edition to the original German work by Greschat, which was published in 1990. Instead of attempting to revise each chapter, an additional chapter is given at the end to serve as an appendix, presenting the debates and corrections that have arisen since the original publication. This is a brilliant move, giving the reader windows into the ongoing scholarship to further uncover the life and thought of Bucer. Anyone who wishes to better understand the sixteenth-century Reformation will be enriched by Greschat’s book.

2006-05-04T10:34:00.000-07:00

Looking Closer Journal: Don't boycott. "Othercott."

With The DaVinci Code set to take aim, I've been trying to figure out whether or not to go to the film. Take a second and read her article linked from Jeff's blog and tell me what you think about her idea. (I'll post my thoughts later as not to taint those of others)

2006-05-04T07:52:00.000-07:00

Christian Leaders and Humility part 2

I am currently reading James Kittelson's Luther The Reformer, The Story of the Man and His Career. I'm not very far, but am getting ever so close to the posting of the 95 Theses. Last night I read about Luther's struggle with humility and faith. Luthers ultimate conclusion was that humility was necessary for faith, however, it is not something man can accomplish of his own will, rather, like faith, it is a gift from God.

"The whole task of the apostle and his Lord is to humble the proud and bring them to a realization of this condition, to teach them that they need grace, to destroy their own righteousness, so that in humility they will seek Christ and confess that they are sinners, and thus receive grace and be saved." Martin Luther (from his Collected Works)

Humility is intimately tied to our relationship with Christ. Without ever having realized our depravity and inability, we would never know our need of grace.

2006-05-03T16:11:00.000-07:00

Christian Leaders and Humility

So I was asked today about my opinion of a church and its pastor here in Seattle. I usually try and not be negative about other churches and my intention was not to do so in this case, highlighting some of the many positive things I have seen in this church and her pastor. However, my one caveat was the pastor's apparent arrogance and lack of humility. He makes it a habit of mocking other groups of people that he doesn't seem to like, making sweeping generalizations and comments that demonstrate very little Christian charity. It has also been the experience of some close friends of mine that he is rarely receptive to criticism or even questioning.

Now I am in no way perfectly humble, in fact I am probably as far from it as anyone else. I have seen the destructive nature of my pride and the pride of others and it seems like it is something the we should all examine closely in ourselves, seeking to submit it to Christ. This conversation today made me wonder how current and future leaders of the church can cultivate Christ-like humility; how we can look at our lives and shine the light of the Gospel in seeking for the ways in which our pride hides itself; how we can take our pride and set it aside for Christ's glory. I would like to see leaders in the church submit themselves faithfully to having their pride challenged by the Gospel, not to be crushed to a quivering lump of ineffectiveness, but to be humble and joyful servants of our holy God. Our culture has no problem with our pride and in many ways it celebrates it, but it is a contradiction of the Gospel of grace.

I can think of very little more destructive than the sin of my pride, but I am thankful that God's grace is greater than my pride.

2006-05-02T21:42:00.000-07:00

Black Eagle Tavern of today...

A while back I went down to Kansas City with my students to watch a baseball game. (Royals predictably crushed by Twins). After the game we all paid a midnight visit to the local Waffle House. I love Waffle House. Why? Because it's dirty? Because it's cheap? Because it's greasy? All of those actually, but even more for the environment it provides. Waffle House is, I believe, an integral part of our present day theological setting. Late night discussions are an important part of growing up and connecting with other people. Sometimes you just need someone else to stay with you through the night and talk through that big question. Sometimes it takes a moment of late night silliness to finally connect with someone. Need I cite Derek Webb's lyric, "Danny and I spent another late night over pancakes." from Table for Two. In any case, this is where real world ministry takes place.
There aren't any Waffle Houses in Nebraska, so on this particular evening I felt the need to let the waitress know about my affinity for her establishment. I left with a complementary Waffle House mug...

2006-05-01T10:39:00.000-07:00

Welcome to The Black Eagle Tavern!

In April 2006 Justin Weeks came up with an idea to invite some friends to blog together about theology and culture, including movies and music. Hopefully our comments and conversations will be insightful or at the very least entertaining.

The initial group consists of Justin W, seminary wannabe in Seattle, WA; Luke B, seminary student in Pendleton, SC; Luke M, seminary student in St Louis, MO; Nathaniel T, RUF intern and soon to be seminary student in Lincoln, NB; and John B, pastor in Seattle, WA.