I'm building a bridge while they're digging a moat.

I often get the feeling these days that as I labor in the trenches, working on a regular basis with governmental workers who are trying to help the poor and with un-churched people that know next to nothing about God that far too many of the people on our own side would rather dig a deeper moat around the Church than help me work on this bridge.  Why do they feel the need to be defensive all the time, fighting a rear-guard action instead of attacking the enemy on his own turf?  There are many reasons why a Christian living in America in the 21^st Century might become a pessimist, but in the end they all boil down to this: they think we’re losing. 

It hurts down deep, to the core of who I am as an American, when I hear the “woe is us” doom and gloom of my fellow Americans who believe that the best days of our nation are behind us.  This isn’t a rational conclusion based upon evidence, it is simply a gut feeling based upon far too many frightening anecdotal reports spread by politicians and preachers with an agenda who are profiting financially off of the fear of those who listen to them.

It hurts me even more when I hear Christian parroting this line of pessimism.  The Church founded by Jesus Christ has triumphed over, through, and in spite of circumstances far more challenging and desperate than anything faced by the Church in America today.  Why are we filled with such despair?  Men like Dietrich Bonhoeffer who faced down the Nazis and refused to compromise the integrity of the Church to serve political masters would be ashamed of our lack of resolve and courage.  The Word of God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  The victory of the Son of God has already been accomplished; his final victory of sin, death, Satan, and hell is likewise assured.  So why do those who profess faith in this all-conquering Son of God believe so little in the next generation of their own Church?  Are they so eager for the Second Coming of Christ that they’re willing to accept, even welcome, a downward slide of humanity to make it happen?  Forget for a moment that this is one particular interpretation of Scripture’s teachings on the End Times, and also that Jesus repeatedly said that the End will come as a thief, when nobody expects it.  If you’re wrong, if Jesus tarries for another two thousand years, or more, don’t we need to persevere; don’t we need to build the Church by engaging with our world both now and in the future?

I, for one, will keep working on the bridge.  I’m trying to get as many people as possible to see the Light of Christ, come over the bridge of faith in him, and enter in his kingdom.  I just wish more people in his Church were willing to stop working on the moat long enough to help.

The previous “rant” is not an indictment of the wonderful people I’ve come to know and love here in Franklin, especially those I shepherd at First Baptist, my fellow ministers in the Joint Ministerium, and my fellow workers with Mustard Seed Missions.  They understand the need to work together to reach the Lost; they haven’t given up on the future.  Who will join us?

Daniel prayed, "just as he had done before." Daniel 6:10

As Christians, should we be in conflict with our culture as part of our effort to be salt and light as Jesus commanded, or should we be trying to live in peace, "If it is possible, as far as it depends upon you"? (Romans 12:18)  The question is an important one because our mission of bringing the light of the Gospel to a world living in darkness is far too crucial to be squandered or impaired by our own mistakes.  The example of Daniel is useful for us because he was part of a distinct minority in the culture of Babylon.  Daniel didn't choose to live in Babylon, but he did choose to make the best of his life in Babylon.  Daniel worked hard and was straightforward in his honesty and integrity even though he was working for the government that had destroyed Jerusalem (the Babylonians, who were in turn conquered by the Medes-Persians during Daniel's tenure in Babylon).  He was a man who recognized his dependence upon the grace of God, but at the same time did not go out of his way to cause conflict that would have required God's intervention.  When Darius was tricked into issuing a decree that was in clear violation of Daniel's ability to worship and obey the God of Abraham, Daniel did the only thing he believed he could as a man whose first allegiance was to God.  He did exactly the same thing he had done the day before.  Notice, Daniel didn't go out on the street corner to protest this unjust law, even though it clearly was unjust, nor did Daniel hide his disobedience behind closed doors.  It was not rebellion against authority that Daniel craved, but obedience to God.  Until the moment of this decree, Daniel had lived in peace with his neighbors and the government of Babylon.  The consequences of choosing to disobey the king were well known to Daniel, but his trust was in God as the judge of both the living and the dead.
Do we, as Christians in America, a nation where we have the right to vote and protest, follow the example of Daniel?  Should we?  To seek out conflict with our culture or our government simply to prove ourselves as passionate Christians would be a self-serving motive more in tune with our own pride than with our witness.  At the same time, to shrink back before potential hardship would be to abandon the faith that saved you for the sake of convenience.  In reality, nobody in America is being threatened with death if they follow Jesus Christ.  Nobody in America is being told they cannot proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ in person, by print media, audio or visual media, or anything else.  It is not laws that stop Christians in America from being true to their faith, but apathy, cowardice, or simply too much wealth and comfort.  It is not the outside world that we must be in conflict with in order to bear witness to our Savior, but rather our own sin natures that we must continue to battle.  What was the real reason why Daniel disobeyed the law against praying to God?  He was already in the habit of praying long before it was illegal.

Sermon Video - "our citizenship is in heaven" Philippians 3:15-21

Paul begins this last section of his conclusion by reminding the people of Philippi that all mature Christians will eventually agree with him that while perfection is unattainable, the process of striving after Christ-likeness must continue.  Paul boldly holds himself up as an example to emulate, but also reminds the people that God has placed good examples of Christian maturity within their own church; heroes are important, but we can find experience and advice close at hand to help us.
Having already proclaimed the need to strive toward Christ-likeness, Paul now concludes by contrasting the "enemies of the cross of Christ" whose focus is upon themselves as evidenced by their minds which "are on earthly things", with those whom God has redeemed whose "citizenship is in heaven".  To be citizens of heaven is a bold claim that alters our entire worldview, allowing us to let go of the past (before Christ) and embrace the future which God has in store for each of his own.  As citizens of heaven, we eagerly await the return of Christ (no matter how we understand the events of the End Times), when not only the earth will be brought under his dominion, but our own bodies will be restored to the perfection that God originally intended before the Fall.  Whatever the future holds, for ourselves, our church, or our nation, our faith rests upon the promises of God, he will one day transform the world, he will on day transform us because we are citizens of heaven.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video 

Do we love the world or hate the world?

There is a tension that exists within the Christian mindset concerning our view of the world that we live in.  On the one hand, we believe that God is an awesome creator, that our world and this universe is marvelous in its wonder and beauty, and that his creation of humanity in his own image is a crowning achievement which gives each person on the planet a worth beyond reckoning.  On the other hand, we believe that our world is fallen, in slavery to sin and subject to a curse because of human rebellion against God.  Are we supposed to love the world, because God created it, or hate the world, because humanity ruined it?  The answer is not the either/or that some sadly choose and thus warp their understanding, but the more delicate to hold, both/and.  We must both love the world and everyone in it, and hate the sinfulness and depravity with which our eyes are bombarded each day.
In his book, Orthodoxy, G.K. Chesterton wrote, "what we need is not the cold acceptance of the world as a compromise, but some way in which we can heartily hate and heartily love it...We have to feel the universe at once as an ogre's castle, to be stormed, and yet as our own cottage, to which we can return at evening." (p. 63)
If you don't love the world, and each person living within in it, you will never understand the mind of God.  If God did not love this world, he would not have sent his one and only Son to die in order to redeem it (John 3:16).
If you don't hate this world, and each act of violence, lust, and selfishness, you will never understand the mind of God.  If God did not hate this world, he would not have flooded it in the days of Noah, nor would he have sent his Law to be a guide or his prophets to warn of the coming judgment.
God loves this world, and hopes to see each and every one of us return home in repentance to his loving embrace.  At the same time, God hates this world, as any parent would hate to see his own children hurting each other.
The tension that exists within the Christian mind about loving and hating the world is supposed to be there.  It isn't a fluke, or a mistake to be corrected, rather it is a reflection of the mind of God who loved this world so much that he was unable to sit idly by and ignore its injustice any longer.

We belong to another world

There has always been a tension in Church history between the desire to live in a Christian society with a Christian government and ethic (an idea that later was termed Christendom), and Jesus' stern teaching, "The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." (John 12:25)  When the Reformation came to Northern Europe is was not a rejection of the notion of Christendom, but rather a replacing of the Catholic/Government alliance with a Lutheran/Government or Reformed/Government alliance.  The idea that society could be shaped and molded into a form that would make Jesus' words unnecessary, or at least much less urgent, continued.
That there wasn't any viable alternative to such an arrangement didn't prevent that feeling of unease from continuing.  Eventually, a new form of alliance, one of governmental indifference to religious practice would be attempted by the upstart American government, but such a novel idea needs time to prove its staying power.  There were some, however, who could not stomach the way in which people could be "Christians" and get along in this world with no trouble at all.  How can it be such an easy thing to take up a cross and follow Jesus?
One of the more peculiar of these men was the Danish Lutheran Soren Kierkegaard.  Although much is his writing is rather odd, Kierkegaard was right to point out that, "Original Christianity relates itself so militantly to this world that its view is: not to want to slip happily and comfortably through this world but to take care to collide in dead earnest with this world...Thus there is a world of difference, a heaven of a difference between the Mynsterian life-view (which actually is Epicurean, one of the enjoyment of life, zest for life, belonging to this world) and the Christian view, which is one of suffering, of enthusiasm for death, belonging to another world." (The Moment and Late Writings, p. 206)
What Kierkegaard was trying to explain was the frustration he felt watching a Church which had seemed to make its peace with this world.  A Church that had lost its counter-cultural role because it had been the dominant cultural force for too long.  How does own keep a revolutionary zeal, such as Jesus demonstrated going up against the religious authorities of his day, when the revolution has won?  How do we maintain our "in the world, but not of the world"  (Romans 12:2) fervor when Western culture is so fully intertwined with Christian thought?
The Post-Modern decline of Christendom has alleviated some of this tension, as churches find themselves feeling like outsiders within their own culture once more.  The obligation on those who would follow Jesus of Nazareth will always be to remain salt and light to those around us, beacons of hope calling out for repentance and reconciliation with God; even if you find yourself in the heart of Christendom, this is not your home, our citizenship is in heaven.

The Post-Christian West?

It has been popular in recent years to proclaim the end of the Christian era in the West and to speak of post-modernity as the "post-Christian era".  The assessment is that the saturation of our culture by Christian ideas and values is coming to and end.  There will be far more people in the future who have no real knowledge of Christianity so that when we encounter them (either as visitors to Church or in Outreach, or simply as neighbors or co-workers) we will have to work harder to establish basic Truths and prepare the ground for the Gospel to be heard.
The evidence in Europe of the "death" of Christianity is indeed stark; near empty Churches seem to be the norm, far more than vibrant ones.  But is this the case in America too?  We have witnessed dramatic growth in those who self-label themselves as Agnostics or Atheists, but have we also not witnessed a resurgence of those who have clung to the Church through its difficult days.  Yes, Church membership is down (almost across the board), but wasn't it bloated before with those for whom it was simply a status symbol and not really a serious commitment?
The future of the Church in America lies in the hands of the generations that will inherit the leadership and responsibility from the Baby Boomers (and this soon).  It will be up to us to raise high the banners that were handed down to us and proclaim our faith proudly despite the laughter of the sceptics.  It will be up to us to show that relationships still have value in a fragmented culture, and that love can transcend text messages.
Christianity has taken a severe blow as a cultural force in America over the last few decades, but it remains to be seen if the Church will once again rise to the occasion through acts of humility and charity.
Despair over the future of the Church is nothing new.  In generations past the Lord sent revival throughout our nation, a Great Awakening ensued; later on, a Second Great Awakening followed. 
Lord, it is time, send your Third Great Awakening to a dry and thirsty land; it is not the culture of this great Nation for whom we fear, but the lost souls yearning to find hope and peace.

Sermon Video: Restraining Sensual Indulgence - Colossians 2:20-23

Do groups that attempt to isolate themselves from the world, like medieval monks or the Amish of today, hold the key to holiness?  What is the value of self-denial (Asceticism)?  Paul explains why this belief is misguided and ultimately fails to accomplish its goal, the restraint of sensual indulgence.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video

How Creation, the Fall, and Redemption affect human relational intimacy

The Christian Worldview has a lot to say about the world we live in including an explanation of why our relationships are so strained, and what those relationships would have looked like before the Fall, and will look like after the Redemption that God has begun through Christ finds its fulfillment. This paper is a small attempt to discuss those issues in regards to human relationships.

Relational intimacy paper

A Christian Worldview applied to Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series

The Foundation Series by Isaac Asimov is an amazing series of books that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys a good story. With Asimov, it's always more than a good story, Asimov's view of humanity and human history is clear throughout his writing. I wrote this paper as an analysis of Asimov's view of history within the Foundation Series. If you're a fan of Asimov, give it a read, if you're not a fan, get one of his books.

Asimov's Foundation Series analysis by a Christian Worldview paper