Category Archives: Theological Musings

Theological and philosophical musings; this would be the thesis to the community category’s praxis.

My Letter to Joshua Harris (because it’s too big to be called a ‘comment’)

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(This was originally posted as a comment on Josh Harris’ blog. I have edited it slightly for clarity, as I seem to always think of a better way to phrase things after I click the ‘submit’ button.)

Josh,

As one of the former moderators for your message board (remember that old thing?), I know what a big deal it is for you to let some of these comments sit here.

And as a former SGM member (2 years at CCK, 2 years at Joppa), I want to impress upon you that those of us who have spoken publicly regarding our concerns with SGM… we’re not your Assyrians. We’re the donkeys to your Balaam.

You see, God has shown us the damage that you and other leaders are wreaking upon yourselves and your congregations. When we tried to bring this to you, it was received as sabotage—a rebellious attempt to divert you from your course—and the ‘rod of correction’ was brought down on us.

We were not in the habit of doing these things—of speaking in this way about these churches and leaders we truly loved—yet that was not taken into consideration when we refused to go down the path we were being lead. No, when that happened your focus was on your ‘crushed foot’, and the rod of correction was once more laid against our backs.

And for nearly all of us, this conflict came to a point where there was nowhere left to turn—we were being pushed toward a place we knew was wrong, but all you saw was our ‘prideful arrogance’ in refusing to go down that path. So once more we felt the sting of an ignorant rebuke.

And then, God gave us a voice.

God has used SGM Refuge and SGM Survivors to make you see what you could not—what you would not: this whole time, while you were being so diligent to ‘bring Godly church discipline’ to bear? We’ve been trying to save your life.

I and others certainly have scars from those beatings. Do not waste them. Please, do not rush through this time of repentance! There are quite literally thousands of God’s adopted sons and daughters who have been deeply wounded by the arrogance of SGM pastors. Not only do those former and current members need to see a vibrant repentance, but those pastors need you to set an example of Godly humility for them. Up until now their primary example has been C.J., and speaking as someone who was only ever a “rank-and-file” member? They have taken his example to heart—even the worst parts, the parts you thought you were successfully ‘covering’.

It breaks my heart to (even now) see messages from SGM pastors this past Sunday, calling for mercy toward C.J. but chastisement for those who have been hurt by his actions. Please—no more favoritism! Show as much mercy toward your critics as you wish to show toward C.J., and hold Mr. Mahaney’s feet to the fire just as much as wish to do with ours.

Though some have given up hope of those SGM pastors ever truly repenting, many (I daresay most of us) still cling to the hope that God will grant you all repentance (and, for many, reconciliation). I have to admit, I had almost given up hope. But (for the first time in nearly five years), when I listened to your message from this past Sunday I could actually begin to imagine that we might actually be reconciled this side of Eternity. I can’t think of an adequate way to express the hope that was awakened in my soul as I listened to your ‘humiliation’—it was like hearing a loved one’s seemingly terminal cancer had gone into remission!

You have our attention, Josh. But more than that, you have our full support. Don’t squander this opportunity! Let’s work together to really dig up that stone and get it out of the garden for good. Please believe me: your “Assyrians” don’t seek your destruction; we’ve been crying out to SAVE YOU from destruction. We gained nothing (and lost much) from doing so:

“The donkey saw me and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let her live.” (Numbers 22:33)

So far, C.J. has only expressed the vague ‘repentance’ of King Saul. I pray it doesn’t end there. Your message on Sunday had more the heart of Josiah’s repentance, and this is far more encouraging. Thank you for taking this painful first step.

What sort of speech is “good for building up”?

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coffee talk, by AnyaLogic on Flickr

I wanted to take a few minutes and share my thoughts on a passage from the Bible that’s been on my radar lately:

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. — Ephesians 4:29, ESV

Y’know, I think there’s a world of difference between what Paul was thinking when he said this, and what people today tend to think when they read it.

This verse marks the last of four times in this epistle where Paul uses the same word (Gr. oikodome, but your translation probably says something like “good for building up,” or “edifying”). Even so, when I’ve heard pastors preach on this topic they’ve typically focused in on an understanding of the word that’s informed solely by the verse itself, and divorced from other passages where Paul’s usage could shed light on what he means by it. This sort of thing always bugs me: if pastors are trying to build a true understanding of what Paul’s telling us to do here, then at the very least they ought to point us to those previous instances of the word. Right?

Because let me tell ya… it certainly helps it all make sense!

Here’s all four appearances of oikodome as they’re translated in the ESV. Continue reading →

Dish Rag Jesus

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(This is the first in a series of rediscovered writings from one of my first web sites back in 1999. Some may have aged well, others… not so much. I’ll let you decide.)

This morning at the kitchen sink, I was hit with a revelation. Jesus is kind of like a dish rag. Hey, don’t give me that look. Let me explain before you flame me, okay?

A dish rag washes dishes that are caked with all sorts of nasty stuff like dried ketchup and crusty eggs. Likewise, when we ask for forgiveness, Jesus removes the sin from our lives and makes us sparkle like new.

Another parallel is in the cleaning method. The way a dish rag cleans dishes is by taking the food (if you want to call it that) and getting it stuck to itself. It’s common knowledge that the dish rag is the dirtiest, most germ-ridden item in the sink. The Bible says “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9) In other words, Jesus got dirty to make us clean. In his death on the cross, all of our sin was placed on Jesus. Matthew 27:46 says “About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’–which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’” If you’ve ever cleaned out a refrigerator and had to toss out things like chunky milk and something with fuzzy green stuff growing on it, you get the picture. We ain’t talkin’ ’bout no rotten egg. The stench of the sin placed on Jesus was so strong, God had to turn his face to keep from barfing.

Yet another similarity is in what is washed. Have you ever washed a plate, and think you have déja vu, until you realize you really DID wash that plate before? That’s right. Even though you’ve cleaned the plate, it got dirty again. “Well, duh, Travis! You really WERE born yesterday, weren’t you!” Gimme a break. Jesus is like that, too. No, he doesn’t get déja vu. What I mean is that even when he’s forgiven all of our sin, we still mess up. That’s why 1 John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

There is one difference, though. (Okay, maybe more than one, but it’s all you’re getting out of me.) After a while, a dish rag gets so worn from continuous cleaning that it has to be tossed out and replaced, but Romans 6:10 states that “The death he died, he died to sin once for all”. Jesus’ act of mercy covered the sins of every single human who ever lived and ever will live, and will never run out. There’s no ‘sin limit’, and there’s no sin so big that he can’t forgive. All that is needed is to ask. According to Matthew 7:7-8, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Y’know, I think I’ve had my head in the suds too long.

A 2000-Year Old Modern-Day Parable

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There was this successful businessman, okay? He was raking in the dough, and he was all like, “What am I gonna do with all of this? It’s not like I can cram it all under my mattress.”

So he talked to his financial advisers, and decided, “I’ll max out my 401(k), flip some real estate, buy up a bunch of tech stocks and live off the dividends. I’ll be all set, and I can retire before I’m fifty! See the world… maybe spend a year or two relaxing in Paris. I’m set for life.”

But God had other ideas: that same week the economy tanked, taking all the man’s investments with it. He died over the weekend of a massive stress-induced heart attack.

“This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”

So here’s the deal: don’t worry about “taking care of yourself.” God’s been taking care of the rest of the world for a while now, and frankly, he’s way better at it than you are. There’s all sorts of idiots scurrying around chasing after things they have no real control over.

Don’t be like them, they’re stupid.

Instead, chase after God’s kingdom and trust him to take care of that other stuff. He’s happy to do it, too! So don’t freak out; sell all of that crap you’ve been holding onto, then take that money and give it to people who are worse off than you. That’s how you chase after God’s kingdom, and it’s the only investment that’s a sure thing.

See, you’re like a manager who’s been put in charge of payroll: you’ve been given access to large sums of money, but don’t let that delude you into thinking the money’s for you, because it’s not. What would the boss say if he found out that while he was on vacation, that manager withheld everybody else’s paychecks and gave himself a hefty bonus? Do you think he’d even be given time to clear out his desk?

Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.

Piety’s deposit fund

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On his Assembling of the Church blog, Alan Knox recently wrote not just one, or two, but three posts on Tertullian’s writings and their bearing on ecclesiology (which basically means the study of how we “do church”).

It’s illuminating to read what church leaders wrote in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. So much corruption crept in when Rome took over the church that it’s otherwise difficult to sort what practices are actually rooted in the Apostles’ teachings.

If you have a few minutes, go read Alan’s posts. You may be surprised at how much church meetings have changed!

Early Church Meetings [Quotes Week]

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Pliny the Younger

“They asserted, however, that the sum and substance of their fault or error had been that they were accustomed to meet on a fixed day before dawn and sing responsively a hymn to Christ as to a god, and to bind themselves by oath, not to some crime, but not to commit fraud, theft, or adultery, not falsify their trust, nor to refuse to return a trust when called upon to do so. When this was over, it was their custom to depart and to assemble again to partake of food–but ordinary and innocent food. Even this, they affirmed, they had ceased to do after my edict by which, in accordance with your instructions, I had forbidden political associations.” — Pliny the Younger

In more sixpencey words, “Sing a song to Jesus | and promise not to lie | then get together in a home | and eat some fresh-baked pie.” Sounds… simple, doesn’t it? Why doesn’t this sound anything like most Christians’ (in the Western world, at least) Sunday gatherings? Head on over to Alan Knox’s post on it to chime in on that particular discussion.

Sovereign Grace Ministries – Church or Cult? [Quotes Week]

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I want to kick off “quotes week” on a serious note, but the Monkey song was just too darned funny. Anyway, here’s my original Monday post:

“…how is it that CJ Mahaney can make 5 references to his pride and arrogance in his blog, [and] that’s somehow celebrated as humility… [but Larry Tomczak] is confronted with observations of pride and arrogance, prayerfully considers these observations, repents of his sin, writes a letter to this effect that is distributed to the entire ministry, steps down from leadership, and submits to months of disciplinary consequences… [only to be considered] ‘disqualified’ to lead a church?

“I’m sorry. But this woman’s posts—more than any others (b/c she was obviously involved in this process)—has convinced me that Sovereign Grace is a cult.”

(comment by “SGM Casualty” on SGM Survivors)

This website is blowing the lid off of the corruption and poor leadership that’s been allowed to fester in Sovereign Grace Ministries, due to years of fear, control, and cultic tactics. It’s heartbreaking to hear some of the stories from former members; moreso to hear the ensuing silence from SGM leadership.

There’s nasty stuff in there, folks, but C.J. et al seem to want to just circle the wagons. Honestly? I think that’s worse than anything that’s being said over on the blog (and new message board).

“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.“ — Ephesians 5:11 (ESV)

UPDATE: On Friday, March 14th, Eric Simmons spoke to the singles at Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, MD. You can download the MP3 of his talk, but what I find most interesting is this particular quote (beginning at the 13:49 mark):

I’m also concerned because at this point in time, we are at the pinnacle of the Information Age. You can in an instant find tons of information on any subject you want on Google. Do you realize that Google allows you to be one step away from a lot of heresies?

There are a lot of heretics out there with a lot of false teachings that have blogs. And it’s phenomenal to me in our age now, that what is represented on the Internet is now seen as fact, and authority, and truth! And the reality? Most of these guys who are writing blogs are 24-year-old guys living in their moms’ basement, sitting there in their underwear! That’s what they’re doing! They’ve got a robe on, and they’re just typing away. And they’re typing away their false teaching, which is honestly a bunch of garbage.

It’s out there! It’s just one click away.

Eric Simmons: quote on bloggers

I would humbly submit that this is nothing more than fear-based propaganda. (I would also like to point out that C.J. Mahaney, Josh Harris and Eric Simmons are all bloggers–Eric doubly so, as he also writes for the New Attitude blog.)

UPDATE #2: I seem to have driven the “Orthodoxy Underground” further underground, as can be attested by Google’s cached versions of these Blogger profiles. (Thanks to Elaine Hooton for pointing out that the blog was apparently taken down.) I don’t know much of anything about the blog (it was private; you had to be pre-approved by their admins just to read it), but apparently (according to Google) Thabiti Anyabwile, Justin Buzzard and Ricky Alcantar were all members of the blog. So why’d they delete the whole thing, just a few days after this matter came up? :?

UPDATE #3: Bugger. The Google Cache link doesn’t work anymore. Well, it just listed the Blogger profiles for Eric, Thabiti, Justin and Ricky (and showed them as linked to the Orthodoxy Underground site). Thanks to Dan for catching this one!

UPDATE #4: What do I mean by “cult”? Find out here.

It’s All A Matter of Perspective

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I woke up at 5:00 this morning, and despite how that might sound, I was actually wide awake. I tiptoed downstairs, put on some coffee, and started my day. It was rather pleasant, actually.

But you’d never think that from looking at this picture.

Day 3: It Began Very, Very Early

[T]he king of Syria was greatly troubled… and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you not show me who of us is for the king of Israel?” And one of his servants said, “None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” And he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and seize him.” It was told him, “Behold, he is in Dothan.” So he sent there horses and chariots and a great army, and they came by night and surrounded the city.

When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” — 2 Kings 6:11-15 (ESV)

Facing certain death, was Elisha’s servant asking a question, or rhetorically freaking out? The odds of two men fending off an entire army? Let’s just say they aren’t in the two men’s favor.

But you see, that’s the problem with people; we can spend so much time thinking about odds and chances that we begin to treat statistics as some sort of god, sovereignly dictating its omnipotent will.

It’s one thing to count the likely cost of a project before taking it on; it’s another matter entirely to run screaming when you see the estimate. Following the will of God often means choosing the seemingly foolish path because it’s the path God has called you to. God’s command trumps our understanding of wisdom, so the path we’re called to is the path in which God will bless us. We aren’t called to protect our lives and livelihood; we’re called to carry our crosses—to face our own “certain death”—because it’s in laying down our lives for His sake that we find true life.

[Elisha] said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. — 2 Kings 6:16-17 (ESV)

There’s all sorts of situations in life where we can lose heart. Me? In the last week I lost two pairs of dress pants (required for my job). A few days earlier I tore the inside handle off my car’s driver-side door, and at 215,000 miles and counting, it’s hard to tell whether the necessary repairs are really all that necessary. I’m committed to voting for a guy who—statistically speaking—is unelectable. And lest we forget, compared to gold the U.S. Dollar is only worth one quarter its value on 9/11; Bush’s multi-trillion-dollar “war” on terror is forcing us all into a slavery of debt, much as Pharaoh’s 7-year drought did to the Hebrews.

But… I’m not discouraged. Because God owes me nothing. Not a thing. “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return.” So whether it seems like He doing more giving or taking away, “blessed be the name of the LORD.”

I still say you should vote for Ron Paul, though. ;)

NASA Exists for the Glory of God

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What if, when Jesus spoke of “the world,” he really meant exactly what it says in the Greek: that is, the kosmos (universe)? How would it change our approach to the various fruits of the Gospel?

“For God so loved the [universe], that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the [universe] to condemn the [universe], but in order that the [universe] might be saved through him.” — John 3:16-17 (ESV)

And no, I’m not talking about universalism–that’s a whole different beast. What I’m talking about is this idea that’s grabbed me—that maybe John 3:16 has less to do with God loving “each individual person” and more with loving his entire creation and seeking its redemption. Like Paul told the believers in Corinth:

For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. — 1 Corinthians 8:19-24 (ESV)

The entire universe was “subjected to futility,” “its bondage to corruption”–that is, entropy–along with us, so that it will also be restored along with us! It is an unbiblical notion that God only sent Jesus to redeem people. When man sinned, the universe cracked under the weight of our guilt. Jesus has come, and is coming again to make all things new!

And he said to them, “Go into all the [universe] and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.” — Mark 16:15 (ESV)

And what has NASA done with the Hubble telescope? And what of all the many television and radio signals shooting off into the ether? Whether they intended to or not is beside the point; the gospel is being proclaimed by the whole creation and to the whole creation.

“And then the end will come.” The end where he says,

“Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.“

Just think about that for a minute: a day is coming when living a life apart from God… and tears… and death… and mourning… and crying… and pain will all be “former things.”

That’s a Sabbath rest worth getting excited about! :)

To submit every tradition

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"The hallmark of an authentic evangelicalism is not the uncritical repetition of old traditions, but the willingness to submit every tradition, however ancient, to fresh Biblical scrutiny and, if necessary, reform" (John Stott, "Basic Stott," Christianity Today, Jan.8, 1996)

This quote was cited in The Problem With Preaching, a year-old article I just discovered. The author says this:

"Preaching" as it is practiced in churches today (& in the past) has little biblical basis—the "preaching" that occurs is extra-biblical (outside the bible). In the New Testament, preaching was always linked to preaching of the gospel or kingdom to those that are outside or on the edge of the kingdom—the Greek verbs used in the NT to portray preaching are found overwhelmingly in situations which are outside church meetings and evangelistic in nature. In contrast, in our churches today we "preach to the choir"—most people sitting in churches listening to sermons are Christians, and most have been there listening to sermons for many years—our preaching is actually teaching about Christianity to a predominantly Christian audience, week after week for the rest of their lives.

He lays out a pretty strong case for his stance, and I’d recommend y’all read this article—if for nothing else than to get a fresh perspective on something we typically take for granted in the Church.