The Jesus Paradigm

Category: discipleship

  • What It Means to Give Glory to God

    8:20 AM Good morning, thoughtful bloggers and bloggerettes.

    I know I’ve been blogging a lot lately. Please don’t get tired of all this posting, especially not the posts coming at you from my heart. Unless I’m badly mistaken, you ponder many of the same questions I do. This morning, for example, I was really trying to wrap my head around the Christian’s purpose in life. We often say, “Why, it’s to glorify God, of course!” I have no problem with those words. But are we willing to pray, “Lord, glorify Yourself through me“? The reason I say this is because God sometimes has some strange ways of bringing glory to Himself. Lazarus’s sickness was for the glory of God (John 11:4). Peter’s death was to be a means by which he would glorify God (John 21:19). Much discussion, I believe, has confused rather than clarified this matter of glorifying God. It is possible to glorify God more by death than by life, in sickness than in health, during those twisted, terrifying periods of life when everything seems dark, even in those drab and normal days when nothing is “happening.” It is easily possible to so idealize “glorifying God” that we come dangerously close to denuding the expression of any meaning. Look at your life. By the world’s standards, it may or not be successful, but that’s really irrelevant. Satan is a great imitator, and he has a false gospel, a false discipleship, and a false sanctification. Especially vulnerable are those who get caught up in following some famous Bible teacher’s pet theories and religious vagaries, never settling and abiding in the Truth themselves. It is of first importance that the Christian learn to glorify God no matter what happens to him or her, whatever it takes, whatever it means, even if it means being dropped to the bottom of the ladder, even if it means stooping to drudgery or bending low in unappreciated service to others.

    Saving grace is always serving grace, and if we are not serving we had better check our theology. If we do not learn how to bring the glory above down into the misery below and come from the clouds to the barrios, then we do not really understand what it means to glorify God in sickness and in health, in life and in death, by what we do and what we forego, in body and in spirit, theologically and practically. As the Master, so the servant. No one can die and rise with Christ and live comfortably in a world like this. He bids us come and die. The early Christians wore scars but we want accolades. Do you have any wounds to prove that you have been in the battle? Or is “glorifying God” a mere slogan? True Christian activity should be the outflow and expression of our intimacy with God. Genuine discipleship will cost us everything we have. It cost John Bunyan his pulpit and John the Baptist his head. It may cost you your family. As we talked about yesterday, people call themselves “Christians” who are not Christian. The noun has yet to become an adjective. Our actions do not match our motives. We need to become Christian Christians.

    I’m excited (and a bit anxious) about how all of this is going to turn out in my life. God, true to form, is shaking things up. Which is why I’ll keep writing, keep sharing with you my struggles and aspirations and frustrations and victories. Because you are part of His work in my life through your prayers and emails, part of this awesome journey we call life. And that, my friends, is good enough reason to keep blogging.

    God richly bless you,

    Dave

    (From Dave Black Online. David Alan Black is the author of Energion titles Christian Archy, The Jesus Paradigm,  Why Four Gospels? and  Will You Join the Cause of Global Missions?. Used by permission.)

  • What is the Church? A List

    5:05 AM At the risk of repeating myself …

    • I am convinced that the house church rather than the sanctuary church was the New Testament norm.

    • I am convinced of the normalcy of tent-making leadership.

    • I am convinced that the church exists in part to equip all of its members for ministry.

    • I am convinced that the leadership of the church should be shared for the health of the congregation.

    • I am convinced that top-down structures of leadership are unquestionably more efficient. Efficient in doing almost everything other than equipping, which is the primary task of leadership.

    • I am convinced that the process of appointing new elders is best done on the basis of recognizing who is already serving as an elder in the church.

    • I am convinced that any local church that takes seriously Jesus as the Senior Pastor will not permit one man to become the titular head of the church.

    • I am convinced that the essential qualifications for ministry in the church have little or nothing to do with formal education and everything to do with spiritual maturity.

    • I am convinced that the church is a multi-generational family, and hence one of the things that makes the church the church is the presence of children, parents, and other adults.

    • I am convinced that because every local church has all the spiritual gifts it needs to be complete in Christ, believers should be exposed to the full expression of the charisms (grace-gifts) when they gather, in contrast to specialized ministries that center around singularly gifted people.

    • I am convinced that the local church is the scriptural locus for growing to maturity in Christ, and that no other training agency is absolutely needed.

    • I am convinced that the local church ought to be the best Bible school going.

    • I am convinced that Paul’s letters were not intended to be studied by ordinands (a candidate for ordination) in a theological college but were intended to be read and studied in the midst of the noisy life of the church.

    • I am convinced that the church is a theocracy directly under its Head (Jesus Christ), and that the will of the Head is not mediated through various levels of church government but comes directly to all His subjects.

    • I am convinced that the goal of leadership is not to make people dependent upon its leaders but dependent upon the Head.

    • I am convinced that since all believers are “joints” in the body, ministry is every believer’s task.

    • I am convinced that pastor-teachers, as precious gifts of Christ to His church, are to tend the flock of God by both personal care and biblical instruction, equipping God’s people for works of service both in the church and in the world.

    • I am convinced that the role of pastor-teacher is a settled ministry in a local congregation.

    • I am convinced that leaders should communicate that every part of the body is interrelated to the other parts and indispensable; every member will be appreciated, every charism will be treasured.

    • I am convinced that the whole church, the community of all the saints together, is the clergy appointed by God for ministry.

    • I am convinced that everyone needs to be equipped for his or her own ministry both in the church and in the world. If the church is to become what God intended it to be, it must become a ministerium of all who have placed their faith in Christ. The whole people of God must be transformed into a ministering people. Nothing short of this will restore the church to its proper role in the kingdom of God.

    Think about it.

    (From Dave Black Online. David Alan Black is the author of Energion titles Christian Archy, The Jesus Paradigm,  Why Four Gospels? and  Will You Join the Cause of Global Missions?. Used by permission.)

  • The Banner of the Cross above All Other Flags

    Recently PBS published a story called Colorado Springs Evangelicals. The new head of Focus on the Family is interviewed in depth. His goal? To engage the culture without becoming “wrapped around the axle of politics.” He is so right about this! The bottom of the bottom line is simply this: politics and religion don’t mix. Look, you are I are called to follow Jesus and advance His kingdom, which is “not of this world.” It’s also important to remember that the earliest Christians loved and supported their communities. They did not look down on lost sinners. It’s a beautiful thing when you begin to hear people at Focus on the Family admit that it was a mistake to become cultural warriors. The truth is that our activism has been a loud gong that has drowned out quiet voices, so that the culture has lost interest in anything we have to say. The people who have changed the world have always been risk-takers who climbed down through torn up roofs while the rest of the world slammed doors. I was a stranger at first to this kind of thinking, but my reading of the Gospels completely changed all that. (See my The Jesus Paradigm.) I don’t believe that God needs an advocate in DC or a faith-based organization to promote His kingdom. So I urge us all to be careful who we pledge allegiance to. Let’s be careful to raise the banner of the cross high above all other flags. So watch (or read) this interview. It should make us all uncomfortable. But the more you read the Gospels, the more your comfortable life will be interrupted.

    (From Dave Black Online. David Alan Black is the author of Energion titles Christian Archy, The Jesus Paradigm,  Why Four Gospels? and  Will You Join the Cause of Global Missions?. Used by permission.)

  • Sidetracked from Our First Love

    Saturday, February 23

    8:46 AM Hey there folks!

    This morning I read a very interesting book review over at the Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary blog. The reviewer was Bob McCabe, and the book was Peter Enns’ commentary on Ecclesiastes. Bob extols the book because it succeeds, in his opinion, in doing what every good commentary should do — bridge the gap between exegesis and theology. But is that the only gap we must bridge today? I noted that the heading at the DBTS site is “Theologically Driven.” Is that what drives us or should drive us? (more…)

  • How Can You Go On?

    From Dave Black Online:

    9:55 AM This post is for anyone who is going through a tough time. Last night I finished reading Sears’ book Gettysburg. Again, I was dumbfounded when I read about Pickett’s Charge. How could soldiers make such a charge? What can propel a man forward against such great odds?

    Take the struggle you’re currently facing. “How can I go on? How can I make it? Just look at the odds!”

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  • Nigerian Red Letter Bible

    6:38 AM The other day I heard someone describe Becky as “suffering for Christ.” I respectfully disagree. Cancer attacks all, Christian and non-Christian alike. Our enemy the devil is always busily at work trying to distort our understanding of Christian suffering. Our God is wanting us to understand that suffering for Christ is something we can opt out of. It is something we choose because we are following in the path of Jesus. Yes, Becky is suffering. And yes, she is using her suffering to advance the cause of Christ. We cannot deny that reality. But let me show you what real suffering for Christ looks like:

    Red letter Bible from Nigeria

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  • Be the Hands and Feet of Jesus

    5:29 AM From The Jesus Paradigm:

    Don’t wait for politicians to bring about cultural renewal. Be the hands and feet of Jesus – evangelizing the lost, feeding the hungry, teaching the illiterate, caring for unwed mothers, rebuilding the broken walls of our culture. “The central lesson of the last one hundred years is that the state can disrupt, but it cannot save families,” concludes Allan Carlson. If we want to build a caring society, good deeds speak louder than words. Societal renewal is not ultimately a political task but a spiritual mission. We need to take ownership of the towel and basin Jesus offers us. We must be willing, as Jesus was, to bend over and serve the helpless irrespective of status or social custom. Jesus not only taught but modeled the downward path. He embodied it by being an advocate for the outcasts. He said that we are to love others as He loved us. Isn’t that plain enough?

    (From Dave Black Online. David Alan Black is the author of Energion titles Christian Archy, The Jesus Paradigm,  Why Four Gospels? and  Will You Join the Cause of Global Missions?. Used by permission.)

  • Have I Done Enough?

    7:18 AM Do you remember this dialogue from the movie Schindler’s List? It haunts me to this day. It’s between Schindler and Stern:

    Oskar Schindler: I could have got more out. I could have got more. I don’t know. If I’d just… I could have got more.

    Itzhak Stern: Oskar, there are eleven hundred people who are alive because of you. Look at them.

    Oskar Schindler: If I’d made more money… I threw away so much money. You have no idea. If I’d just…

    Itzhak Stern: There will be generations because of what you did.

    Oskar Schindler: I didn’t do enough!

    Itzhak Stern: You did so much.

    [Schindler looks at his car]

    Oskar Schindler: This car. Goeth would have bought this car. Why did I keep the car? Ten people right there. Ten people. Ten more people.

    [removing Nazi pin from lapel]

    Oskar Schindler: This pin. Two people. This is gold. Two more people. He would have given me two for it, at least one. One more person. A person, Stern. For this.

    [sobbing]

    Oskar Schindler: I could have gotten one more person… and I didn’t! And I… I didn’t!

    Often I have asked myself, “Why is it I haven’t prayed more for the lost? Why is it I haven’t given more to help further the cause of global missions? How much more could I have done for missions had I not been so selfish? Why did I wait so long in life to learn the importance of of Christ’s call to live a life of radical Christian servanthood? Can I live more simply so that I can send more of my money into His work? Have I submitted every area of my life to His Lordship? When was the last time I shed tears for lost Muslims? If I really submitted my schedule to Christ, how would my life be different? How much more can I do? How much more should I do?”

    Often I have to get on my face and say, “Lord, please forgive me for my sloth and self-centeredness. Please forgive me and cleanse me.” How am I spending my leisure time? My vacations? My limited energy (I am getting older). Do I ask the Lord to plan my days and minutes even? Today, this very day, I need to compare my life against the Scriptures and see where I need to be. How can I best relate the crying demands of the unfinished missionary task to my everyday life and work?

    In Greek class yesterday we translated Philippians 1:18-26 and saw that Paul was willing to risk his life to preach the uncompromising Word of God. The approval of others, fancy titles, popularity — these meant nothing to him. They were less than nothing, mere skubala. His one goal in life was to know Christ and to make Him known. I called the class to make a decision. There is no place in seminary for the study of God’s Word without obedience. Far better not to study Philippians than to disobey its call to put the Gospel first in everything. Somewhere in the midst of our studies we must come to the place where we see the world as Jesus does, where are hearts break because His breaks, when we measure everything against the yardstick of the Great Commission.

    “I didn’t do enough!”

    No, and I haven’t either. Shame on me. Shame on all of us who are not consumed with the Gospel.

    (From Dave Black Online. David Alan Black is the author of Energion titles Christian Archy, The Jesus Paradigm,  Why Four Gospels? and  Will You Join the Cause of Global Missions?. Used by permission.)

  • 6:34 PM In an election year, the words of Dan Clendenin seem appropriate:

    Two radical corollaries follow from the global character of God’s kingdom — the decentralization of your geography and the reorientation of your politics.

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  • Completely at the Disposal of the King

    8:40 AM The Abnormal Anabaptist posts his thoughts about the SCOTUS decision in an essay titled What, did something just happen to change the world?  You simply must read it. It’s important to note that the acceptance he’s talking about is not passivity, fatalism, or resignation. It’s not about putting our head in the sand. It’s not about ignoring reality. It’s not about capitulating to evil or a refusal to do what you can do to change things. Rather, it’s a placing of oneself completely at the disposal of the King and His kingdom. It springs from love and trust. We have been shown the pattern by the non-political Jesus, who deliberately laid down His life and now calls us to lay down ours. There is very different from capitation or Quietism. Where there is no trust, where there is no radical abandonment to Jesus’ upside-down reign, it is not to be wondered at that decisions by SCOTUS easily upset Christians. We forget how the kingdom of God operates. The Anabaptists of the sixteenth century — I devote an entire chapter to them in my book The Jesus Paradigm — saw suffering and self-abnegation as normal. Their heroism lay in their acceptance of circumstances that other Christians would have avoided at all costs. (more…)