On Divine Election and Adoption

Divine election.  In our day some may think this is a reference to the political ascendancy of Barak Obama; Oprah Winfrey seemed to have such an opinion.¹ Yet as much as we like (or maybe not like) our president, in Scripture there is a different sort of election that is spoken of that is much more mysterious and glorious than the rising and falling of political regimes.  In Ephesians 1:3, 4 we read the following passage:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.

The word translated “chose us” is the Greek word eklegein.  It has a range of usage but its meaning is to choose out, select or elect for some purpose.² The biblical teaching on election is that God chooses to save people from sin, death and hell completely by his grace and not because people are so fly. This is an issue that followers of Jesus have wrestled with, debated over the centuries and around which there have been various agreements and disagreements.  With the doctrine of divine election we would be wise to avoid two extremes.  First, we cannot claim to know too much about what God knows and how he does everything.  Second, we cannot be silent where God reveals to us in Scripture, the truth about his grace being poured out on people.

There have been several views over history as to what it means for God to choose and save people.  What we must not say is that God plays favorites or chooses people based on their merit or anything about them.  We will cover three views on election that Christians hold in a moment, but now I just want to reference both Old and New Testament passages which teach that God does indeed show grace and mercy to those who are undeserving.

The Old Testament

In the Old Testament we read the background for God’s work to save and redeem a people from sin and death from all nations on the earth.  He begins by making a covenant, a promise, to a guy named Abraham. His promise was to bless him and make him a great nation and that his descendants would be innumerable.  Furthermore, all the nations of the world would be blessed through his offspring (See Genesis 12 and 15). This of course foreshadowed the coming of Jesus, who descended from Abraham, to be the savior of the world. His saving work is applied in time and history to all those who believe in him, trust him and follow him. In the Old Testament we also read the following in Deuteronomy 7:7-8 regarding Israel:

It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

Why did God choose Abraham? Why did God choose Israel? Because they were a great people, or were better than anyone else? No, God simply chose them to be his own because of his goodness, love and redemptive purposes.

The New Testament

In the New Testament there are three primary words that speak to God’s choosing of his people.  The first, as mentioned before is ekloge (and its associated word group) which carries the meaning of being chosen or elected, being chosen by God.  We find it here in Ephesians 1:4 and nineteen other times in the NT. Second, the word pro orizein, or predestined, is also used to speak of God’s people.  Predestination deals with God’s determining something before the fact or to ordain that something would come to pass in time. This word is used in Ephesians 1:5, 11; Romans 8:29, 30; Acts 4:28; 1 Cor 2:7. Finally, the word foreknow or pro ginoskein is used to speak of all who belong to God. He knows people will come to him before it happens in history and this word is used in Romans 8:29, 11:2; 1 Peter 1:1,2.

Three Views about How/Why God Elects

There have been several ways that Christians have attempted to understand God’s choosing of his people. The following are but three ways others have attempted to grasp this deep truth.  All of these have been held by people who deeply trust Jesus in the gospel so though I favor one of them, they are all respectable views. Yet as will be seen, all cannot be true.

Unconditional Election

In this view, God chooses to save people based only upon his grace and nothing else.  There is no merit or condition in us, that requires God to save and forgive us. This does not mean that God’s election is also the basis for people’s condemnation. Scripture is clear that we are guilty before God and are separated from him due to our sin and our own choices (see Isaiah 53, Psalm 51:1-5; Romans 1-6). We are saved by God’s grace, but we are quite lost on our own. Unconditional election teaches that God intervenes through the gospel to rescue us from our self deceived, self destructive, blind and selfish ways that alienate us from God and one another. We deserve his opposition/wrath, yet he lavishes upon us grace and mercy through Jesus Christ.  Finally, the motifs used to describe us apart from God are revealing. We are seen as lost, blind, spiritually dead, enemies of God, not wanting or able to submit to God. Something had to change in our condition and it was the purpose and action of God which found us, opened our eyes, gave new life, made us friends with God now wanting to worship and follow him.  The late theologian Anthony Hoekema sums up this view well:

God the Father chose us to be saved not because of any merit he foresaw in us but only on the basis of our predetermined oneness with Christ.³

The problem some have with this view is that it leaves unanswered the question as to why God chooses certain people and could appear arbitrary. Of course, this view gives no other reason but God’s grace and mercy for his forgiveness offered to the guilty.

Election based on Foreseen Faith

Others hold that God does indeed choose to save people but he makes this choice based upon the faith he foresees they will have.  God knows all events, choices and people in all times and knows which ones will choose to believe in him and follow him. In other words, God chooses people based on what they will choose in their lives.  This view is sometimes called election according to foreknowledge. This actually sounds great because our destiny is really up to us.  There is only one problem with this. The prophets of the Old Testament, Jesus himself and the writers of the New Testament simply never teach this.  There are three places in the New Testament where God speaks of his foreknowledge and the salvation of people: Romans 8:26-30, 1 Peter 1:1, 2 and Romans 11:2.  In each case what is foreknown is the people not simply whether or not they will have faith.  Romans 8:26-30 actually teaches that God foreknows, predestines, calls and saves his people. 1 Peter speaks of “the elect exiles” in various parts of the world who are being saved, changed and coming to obedience to Jesus “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father”.  Finally, Ephesians 1 is very clear that God’s choosing took place in eternity past, before any of us even existed. He chose us in him before the foundation of the world.  God was at work before we  even were. That blows up my head in a good way.

Corporate Election “in Him”

Finally, another very interesting view is that God chooses all people who are “in Him”. In other words, he elects or chooses to save people through Jesus, but not particular individuals.  This view is attractive for several reasons.  First, Scripture does speak of election in corporate terms.  God saves a people, God saves a church, not just isolated individuals.  Ephesians 1 teaches that God chose us, Romans 8 teaches that he saves those whom he foreknew. Secondly, this view teaches that we are saved “in Him” or by our union with Jesus Christ. This is a biblical truth that should be highlighted as we are not chosen or saved apart from Jesus.⁴ However, it seems that this view misses a very significant point. The church is comprised of individuals so if he knows the group of those who will be saved, he also knows the individuals who make up the group.  Second, there are many passages that deal with Gods calling of individuals. Furthermore, the Scriptures do show us that God chooses, calls and saves individuals thereby grafting them into the church. The apostle Paul did not choose Jesus when Jesus knocked him down, put a light in his eyes and told him that he would be God’s messenger to the non Jewish world (See Act 9 for the story).  Acts 13:48 describes a scene where many Gentiles (non Jewish people) heard the gospel and it records that “as many as were appointed to eternal life believed”. This was a group individuals. Finally, the gospel of John teaches us that “that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out” (John 6:37) and “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:44). So while I find this view attractive⁵ in some ways, it seems to fall short regarding some important issues with election.

Some Strong Warnings

Christians in history, specifically in traditions that have followed the biblical doctrine of unconditional election, have acted as if they were God and knew who was and was not chosen. Only God knows his own mind on these matters. We have zero knowledge, let me said that again, we have zero knowledge as to who, how many, when, where or why God will save people from this moment forward.  To act like we know the mind of God and who he will ultimately save is arrogant, proud and smells of some sick religious elitism. Additionally, many followers of Jesus have taken pride in “being of the chosen folk” which is an attitude in direct contradiction to Ephesians 1.  We have no pride, no boasting, nothing special about us-we are only thankful to God for his love and grace. Furthermore, we know God has chosen and saved his people, so that we might worship God for his mercy. What we do know is that God is at work saving a multitude from every tribe, tongue and nation on the earth (Revelation 5:9,10).  For all we know, every soul on earth today could be chosen.  We do not have a black light which we use to scan people’s foreheads for some hidden fluorescent word “chosen”. Rather, we love and share the gospel with all people, trusting God that the gospel is the power of God for salvation of all who believe (Romans 1:16). One final warning on the other side of the coin.  To make ourselves the source of our own salvation belittles the grace and glory of God in the cross.  In Jesus, God is rescuing sinful people who then become worshippers knowing that they are not worthy of such lavish grace. So what shall be our path?  Another word in Ephesians one provides great insight for how we should see ourselves and the world around us.

On Adoption

God uses some wonderful language to describe his relationship to his people.  He presents himself as a loving Father who adopts children into his family by pardoning their sins and welcoming them home. This is the work of Jesus in the world today, he is adopting a big family which he loves.  All who hear the gospel and respond to him in faith he welcomes home with open arms. Rather than getting into worthless theological debates about who exactly is chosen and who is not, we should live on his mission of sharing life changing good news.  We then let the Father be the Father as his mercy is displayed in people’s lives.  We become his children by faith and worship together in the knowledge of his adopting love that rescues us out of sin and death.  

Humbled by the gracious gift of God in Jesus-in whom we are blessed with every spiritual blessing,

Reid S. Monaghan

Notes

1. Oprah referred to President Obama during the 2008 presidential campaign with the rather odd title of “the one” - http://edition.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/08/oprah.obama/index.html

2. Timothy Friberg, Barbara Friberg and Neva F. Miller, vol. 4, Analytical Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, Baker’s Greek New Testament library (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books, 2000), 138.

3. Anthony Hoekema, Saved by Grace (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1989) 56,.

4. See Hoekema, 56, 57. His treatment rightly incorporates unconditional election with that of union with Christ. We recommend this book for any library for those wrestling with these issues.

5. I find Paul Copan’s short summaryof this view helpful. That’s Just Your Interpretation —Responding to Skeptics who Challenge Your Faith (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001) 84-89. Copan follows the work of William K. Klein, The New Chosen People: A Corporate View of Election (Grand Rapids: Zondervan 1990).

Check out the Long Shots

 

Jon Copper and Dane Randolph are long shots to make the NFL - they were successful collegiate football players but are not ringers on draft day.  They are top level athletes with a shot, even if some see that shot as being a bit long. The Washington Post has asked these guys to blog a bit about their process in trying to make an NFL team.

Jon is a guy I have met through a mutual friend named Dave.  I like Dave, even though he showed me the difference between a college quarterback's arm and a 5 fot 7 inch high school quarterback arm in 1999. Dave was Mike Vick's backup at Virginia Tech, I was a the starting quarterback at Floyd E. Kellam High School - no comparison when we threw the pig skin around at an Athletes in Action picnic so long ago.  Jon and I have interacted some through email and I look forward to meeting him in person.

I think Jon is doing a great job with his blogging opportunity both in his witty writing and in taking opportunity to weave some gospel love into his posts. It is an art to saturate your life with the gospel yet not be the pushy, obnoxious religious guy.  Jon seems to have a great stride here and I wish him well in his NFL shot and his future beyond the gridiron.  Even though he went to UVA (an enemy of both UNC and Va Tech) I will be pulling for Jon in the coming days...then I am hoping he'll become a church planter, perhaps even come to Jersey to train for that season of life as well.

You can read the two Longshots' here: http://bit.ly/TTm7W

Why Tweet...just Flutter

Why Twitter when you can Flutter...next up is "Gaze" - where you type no characters and just stare like a zombie at blank computer screens with friends faces flowing by...The future is coming - and we are all idiots.

POC Bundle - 4.22.2009

Theological Reflection

• Josh Patterson, one of the pastors at the Village Church outside of Dallas, TX is doing a short blog series on biblical sexuality.  I like the tone and approach he will be taking - you may want to read in. Our little deal on this subject is online here. 
  
• Jeff Vanderstelt has some good words when discussing the establishing of the gospel in new places - I think Jeff's voice is needed in the "church planting" world that can get so dominated by marketing, buzz, spin and "doing church" the right way so big churches can happen.
  

Technology

• Interesting little article entitled "The Case Against Cloud Computing" over at PC Mag online. I for one use several cloud services (Gmail, share some Google docage with some JW people) but still have everything local just in case Google goes the way of the earth or the way of Darth Vader. In another post, which is somewhat revealing, Matthew D. Sarrel, writes the following about "the cloud" - We've been hearing about "computing in the cloud" for some time now. Sounds fluffy... peaceful... idyllic... effortless. Wake up, people! Cloud computing is just another term for outside your control.  Finally, some reporting on positive advice on Clouds from Google - hey, how kind of them.
  
• Hopefully I can connect to my cloud services through some Palm Pre Newness - hopefully coming in Mid May on SPRINT.  We have been on Sprint for about five years now - the customer support is actually better now, the prices very good and the network fast and reliable. I would actually recommend Sprint to you today - and with the new Pre coming - you really should make the move and save some cash.  AT&T and Verizon plans are too expensive.
• Speaking of Pre, here is what one developer had to say: Tom Conrad, Pandora's CTO, says, "It's the combination of these kinds of capabilities that excites developers. Palm started with a clean sheet of paper. Everything about the Pre feels like it's 'future-oriented,' not an iPhone-inspired knockoff." The mobile phone OS space is much more interesting today.
  

Just for Fun

• Where can you have 4/20 (aka weed smoker day), earth day, Ben and Jerry's free scoop day (related to the aforementioned earth day I believe) and Easter all within a couple of weeks.  The good ole US of A.  

Philosophical Reflection

• It is Earth Day you know - thank God for the earth. It is true that the main cause and raison d'etre for some people today is saving the planet.  Ironically, this reason for existing only exists because of the optimism of a past era.  We would bring utopia through industry...now they say we will bring hell through much of the same. So we humans have a reason to live today - to save the planet, but we only have this reason because others junked it up (again, this is the argument, it is not accepted by all) Now, I have said I am all for Greeness...I just find it ironic this is the only purpose we seem to have today. A bit sad really - but the worldview of secularism is sad on the whole - we have the Watchman comic as proof.
  

Life on Doctrine - A Study in the Book of Ephesians

 

Introduction

People at times polarize from living too much from the head or too much from the heart.  Some like to think lofty thoughts while others like to do lofty things in the world.  Yet no life is lived without beliefs and assumptions which help to guide our actions.  We all make many assumptions about the world, about God, about who we are and about how we should live in the world.  At times our beliefs are not conscious and are held in an unexamined way, other times our beliefs are thoroughly examined and thought through.  Either way, it is simply impossible to live a life devoid of any beliefs. 

We want to avoid two extremes in our lives as followers of Jesus. First, we do not want to make our faith purely an intellectual theological game where we sum up following Jesus as reading thick books about him.  Second, we do not want to live a doctrine[1]-less, belief-less, truth-less Christianity where we make up God in our imaginations and get warm fuzzies thinking about "our God."  Scripture holds a different path whereby we need teaching (doctrine) about who God is and what he has done and then calls for a response by living for him, worshipping him and following him in day to day life.  In other words, God has married life and doctrine together and we should not seek to separate the two. 

The book of Ephesians reflects the marriage of life and doctrine in that it contains deep theological truth about God's nature and work in the first three chapters. Furthermore, in the final three chapters it unblushingly calls us to LIFE that is in accord with this teaching.  As a kid I remember this commercial on TV that ran as a public service announcement.  It showed a hot frying pan and then said something like this: "This is drugs" Next an egg was shown and we were told "this is your brain." Finally, the egg dropped into the frying pan and the audio said "this is your brain on drugs...any questions."[2]  The point of the deal was to freak you out that smoking weed will fry up your brain.  Yet it contains an interesting truth. Being "on something" is an expression that means that your life is being deeply influenced by something external to you.  In the case of drugs, being on them will do bad things man, baaad things to you.  However, being on something can also be a great thing as well if what you are on will better your life.  Ephesians calls us to live deeply; to be on something, to be influenced by God's truth.  It calls us to live a life on doctrine.

As we begin our study of this ancient book of Ephesians I want us to do several things.  Primarily I want us to get a good introduction to the book as a foundation for our journey through the book.  To do so we'll first give a brief overview of the letter as a high flyover.  Second, we will take a brief look at the question of authorship of Ephesians; who wrote the book and when.  Third, we will look at the historical and geographical setting of ancient Asian Minor to understand the world in which the letter would have been read. Fourth, we will look at some of the major theological themes of the book before closing with some thoughts for our journey at Jacob's Well.  So let's get our life on some doctrine.

The Book of Ephesians

It is hard to overestimate the importance of the book of Ephesians on this history of Christ's people.  Harold Hoehner begins his massive volume on Ephesians with a long account of the thoughts and comments about the importance of Ephesians to leaders throughout history.  Chrysostom of Constantinople (modern day Turkey), Calvin of the Protestant Reformation, Poet and philosopher Samuel Coleridge[3] and New Testament scholar FF Bruce all comment on the influence of this book throughout history.[4] Raymond Brown sums up the influence of Ephesians well by saying that among the Pauline writings only Romans could match Ephesians as a 'candidate for exercising the most influence on Chirstian thought and spirituality.'[5]

The book is composed of two main parts; the first devoted to deep doctrinal truths about God and the second to paraenesis[6], the living out and apply these great truths.  The book begins with a strong exploration of our calling to God through Jesus Christ and ends with exhortation towards living a life worthy of that same calling. Klyne Snodgrass comments that "Ephesians provides some of the most direct and practical guidelines for living found in Scripture...Ephesians tells us how to be the church."[7]

The book was authored in history and inspired by God to accomplish a very important purpose. This purpose is indispensable for Christians in every time until the consummation of history.  Put very simply Ephesians tells us who we are, who God is and how we are to live together as his people in his world.   As a letter written from someone to a group of churches, we need to look at some of the issues surrounding the authorship of the book and the peoples to whom it was originally sent.  In doing so we may grasp how we are to understand and live out its teaching today.

Who Wrote It and When?

From the earliest records of Christianity, the church has understood the book of Ephesians to be authored by the apostle Paul.  The actual text of Ephesians claims Paul as its author in two places.  First, it is recorded in the customary greeting of the letter (Ephesians 1:1) and then again in chapter 3 when he describes his current circumstance as "a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of the Gentiles" (Ephesians 3:1).  Furthermore, the earliest records we have from Christian pastors all accord with the testimony that Paul is the author of the book.  Ephesians, and allusions to Ephesians, were cited often in early Christian preaching showing up as early as AD 95 in the writings of Clement of Rome.  Additionally it is quoted by Ignatius (AD 35-107), Polycarp (69-135), Iranaeus (130-200), Clement of Alexandria (150-215) and it is listed as a work of Paul in the Muratorian Canon (AD 180) an early collection of New Testament writings. [8]  Finally, the authorship of Paul was universally agreed upon by most scholars up until 1792. 

Over the last two hundred years the Pauline authorship of Ephesians has come under attack from various New Testament scholars and has been strongly defended by others.  Today, there are plenty of scholars on both sides of the debate and so no case has been made.  There are several reasons given for doubting Paul as the author of Ephesians but none of them are compelling in the end.  Our opinion of on the matter concurs with that of Harold Hoehner in his excellent treatment of the authorship of Ephesians:

The Pauline authorship of Ephesians not only has the earliest attestation of any book of the NT but this attestation continued until the last two centuries. The early attestation is highly significant.  They early church was not only closer to the situation but also they were very astute in their judgment of genuine and fraudulent compositions. This overwhelming support for the Pauline authorship of Ephesians should not be easily dismissed

...

Although Ephesians differs from other Pauline literature, the differences do not sufficiently argue for the rejection of Pauline authorship of this letter. Variations can be accounted for due to differences in content and differences in the character and needs of the recipients of the letter.   Furthermore, it must be accepted that a genius such as Paul is not sterile in his own expressions; allowances must be made for development in his own thinking...Authors are not machines that duplicate vocabulary and style.[9]

The discussion of the authorship of Ephesians Hoehner's work is thorough, clear, scholarly and faithful to a high view of the Bible. We highly recommend his lengthy treatment of authorship for anyone interested in this issue at a deeper level.  It covers pages 2-61 in the fifth printing of his commentary.

The Original Audience(s)

Paul's interaction with the church in Asia Minor, the location of modern day Turkey, took place over the course of several years and is chronicled in the Acts 18, 19.  The following is a simple outline of his work in this area of the world[10]:

• AD 52 - Paul, accompanied by the married couple Priscilla and Aquila, go to Ephesus. Paul ministers among the Jewish population and then departs for the city of Antioch, his home base of operations. A man named Apollos begins to teach the Scriptures in Ephesus and Priscilla and Aquila instruct him further in the gospel. Apollos' ministry flourishes.
• AD 53 - Paul returns to Ephesus on his third missionary trip and continues a successful ministry there accompanied by signs and wonders. Many of the Ephesians give up their magic practices and sorcery when changed by the gospel. Great opposition comes against Paul led by a local tradesman named Demetrius. Apparently he made lots of little statues out of silver in honor Artemis, patron goddess of the Ephesians. He was pissed that people quit buying little gods and started an uproar in the city against the new movement. Paul departs for Macedonia.
• AD 57 - Paul meets with the leaders of the Ephesian church on his way to his arrest in Jerusalem. He encourages them to continue to shepherd the church well and guard it from those who would seek to bring it down from within through false teaching. Paul would go on to Jerusalem, be arrested and taken to the imperial city of Rome as a prisoner.

Although it is impossible to be certain, the letter to the Ephesians was most likely written by Paul during his imprisonment in Rome around AD 60.[11]  The letter is categorized for this reason as one of the "prison epistles" along with Philippians, Colossians and Philemon.  The letter is very general in its theology and application so it is likely that Paul intended it to find use in many of the churches in Ephesus and throughout Asia Minor.[12]  While Ephesians is more general in content and less specific to situations in Ephesus[13], that ancient city was the cultural center of the region and knowing this setting can help us understand the book. 

The Ancient City of Ephesus

Ephesus was the political and financial center of this part of the Roman Empire.  It was located on the western coast of Asia Minor on the Aegean Sea just south of the mouth of the Cayster River.  The city's ancient harbor and its location between two land trade routes made it a bustling place in the empire.[14]  Ephesus was in a unique city in that its culture had been formed by various groups of people over time.  The city was influenced by Greek, Persian as well as Roman culture.  One thing is certain, religious veneration of the goddess was present for many centuries in the city.  The goddess took several names over time but at the time of Paul's ministry Artemis of the Ephesians was the name in vogue.[15] Two great architectural features of the city are known from antiquity.  The great theater which held a seating capacity of some 24,000 people and the temple dedicated to Artemis which was some 420 feet in length and 240 feet wide.  The temple's grandeur had it named among the seven wonders of the ancient world and apparently a statue of Artemis was composed at least partially from a fallen meteorite.[16]The prominent temple made Ephesus a destination for pilgrimage increasing its prominence as a city in the ancient world.

Figure 1 - Excavated Site of the Theater at Ephesus

Evidence also seems to show that Ephesus was a center for those who practiced magic arts and sorcery in the ancient world.  This seems to accord well with the biblical record we read in Acts 19 and Paul's emphasis on Christ's superiority over spiritual powers and authorities in his letter to the Ephesians. 

Finally, though mostly consumed under the historical conquests of Islam, Ephesus had a venerated Christian history as well.  After Paul's ministry the church at Ephesus was guided and pastored by Timothy and even enjoyed the influence of the apostle John.  Though it is uncertain, tradition holds that John was buried in Ephesus after dying there of old age.   Much of Asia Minor's ancient churches were influential in the first century but many of them quickly fell away from Christ.  In fact, it was the church at Ephesus which received a strong rebuke for leaving the love they had at first and living a religious life that was quickly becoming empty. In this church we find a lesson from history. We must never leave our love for Jesus and that which is true about him. The doctrine we find in the first three chapters of Ephesians is indispensible for loving and living well for Christ. We need to build our lives on these truths - we need to keep our life on doctrine.  Now let us move to some of the major theological themes found in the book.

Major Theological Themes

God the Trinity and His saving Work

Ephesians has a unique focus in its first chapter on how all the persons of the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit are active in the saving work of the Gospel.  The Father predestines, then calls and adopts his people throughout space, time and history.  The Father blesses his children with every spiritual blessing in our union with Jesus Christ. The Son redeems people through his sacrifice for us and will ultimately unite all things under the purposes of God.  The Spirit is the seal of our belonging to God and a down payment on our future inheritance in the Kingdom of Heaven.  Ephesians reveals the beauty, mystery and awe in the triune creator God lavishing grace upon his children to the praise of his own glory.

Christ's Exaltation over All Things

Ephesians does not present Jesus as a mere human teacher but as the unique divine Son of the Father.  The panorama in the book of the exalted Jesus is rather spectacular. He is said to exist before the foundation of the world (1:4-5, 11), seated at the right hand of God (1:20, 4:8), to be filled with the fullness of God (1:23), provides redemption and forgiveness for his people (1:7), he is the head of the church (1:22, 5:23) he will ultimately subject everything under his feet (1:22) and unite all things under his rule (1:10)[17].

Our Identity in Union with Jesus

Ephesians teaches us that we have every blessing "in Christ" and that our union with him is the way by which we live and walk with God in the world. Every human being wrestles with the question of identity, the question of who we are and Ephesians leads us to deeply find our identity in Jesus.  He is the fountain of our hope and love and in him we will understand ourselves and our role in the world as his church.

Our Life Together as the Church, the People of God

The doctrine of the church, the people of God, finds rich expression in the New Testament, specifically in Paul's letter to the Christians in Ephesus.  We stand at the end of perhaps the most individualistic era in the history of the world with our culture reeling from the selfish inventions it has brought down upon its own head.   This is an age where families are fragmented, communities compartmentalized and empty selves isolated from God wander the earth.  In such times the doctrine of the church, people called out of darkness as the people of God, is of utmost importance.  In Ephesians we see several rich metaphors for our life together.  We are called Christ's body, a spiritual building, the temple of God, a new humanity, a family and the bride of Jesus.[18] Furthermore, Ephesians gives great insight on how we are to get along with one another and love one another as the church.  If God's people would meditate regularly on Ephesians 4 in light of their relationships the world would be a very different place.  Finally, Ephesians gives a brief, but foundational instruction on how the church should operate in its mission. It should not be the leaders of the church who do all the work of the ministry, but rather all God's people should be equipped for ministry by those who serve as leaders.  

Unity of God's People in the Gospel

God's people have been brought into unity with Christ and one another through the gospel.  The body of Christ is not a people made up of a certain race, tribe, or ethnic group, nor is it of only one nation on the earth.  No, this body is a unique group of people, indeed a new people, made up of people from the diverse groups. This unity is ours in the gospel and we must work to maintain this bound of peace that has been given by God as we grow in maturity and how we love one another.

Family and Household Relationships

As the church is a family, Ephesians gives us clear instructions on how we live together as God's people.  It gives us instruction in interpersonal relationship, how we speak to one another and how we deal with our anger.  It gives husbands and wives great teaching about how we should live together and the significance of the marital union in displaying something of the committed love of Christ for the church.  Parents and children are exhorted about their roles in a family that follows Jesus and great insight is given for those in positions of servitude and authority.

Continuing Spiritual Battle as we Sojourn

Finally, the book of Ephesians exhibits a keen awareness of the spiritual forces of darkness at work in the world today.  We are reminded that spiritual powers are real and hold many people captive, dead in their trespasses and sins.  We are also encouraged and exhorted to fight spiritual battles by putting on the full armor of God described in detail at the close of this letter.  CS Lewis once remarked that we can make one of two mistakes regarding the demonic.[19]  One, we could make too much of the devil giving him too much power and attention in life looking for demons under every rock as it were.  Two, we could live as if he does do not exist, woefully deceived by the deceptions of the evil one.  Ephesians is much more balanced in its teaching.  It does not make the devil the central actor in history nor the one who holds the keys to our lives. We belong to the Father, purchased by the Son, sealed by the Spirit.  At the same time we resist the forces of darkness in the provision of God, fighting with the spiritual weaponry he so graciously gives.

Conclusion

As we stand in the midst of the birth of Jacob's Well, I can think of no better place to build our lives together than in the book of Ephesians.  God's teaching for us in this letter will give us the doctrine we need to build our lives upon.  Our community will be enriched, informed and blessed as we follow the teaching in the latter chapters about how to relate to one another.  When we look back on our journey years from now, it is my prayer that we will find worship provoked, love for Jesus deepened, friendships bonded, marriages established and homes blessed by our study of Paul's letter to the Ephesians.  As a community on mission we need to be "on something" to go after what God has set before Jacob's Well.  As we put our hands to building lives, communities and planting churches, we could launch all of this on human will, effort and ingenuity.  There is a more excellent way; we can build life on doctrine.  We can build on the truth of the gospel that sets people free. This must be our path as we aim towards living for the glory of God and the good of our communities by extending hope through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Every Spiritual Blessing in Him,

Reid S. Monaghan

Notes

---

[1] The word doctrine simply refers to a body of teaching or instruction. Doctrine, "Merriam Webster's Online Dictionary,"   [accessed April 16, 2009].

[2] The video is online at YouTube for those who want to feel the nostalgia of the late 1980s  - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nl5gBJGnaXs (accessed April 16, 2009)

[3] Coleridge is probably best known for his The Rime of the Ancient Mariner Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Paul H. Fry, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner : Complete, Authoritative Texts of the 1798 and 1817 Versions with Biographical and Historical Contexts, Critical History, and Essays from Contemporary Critical Perspectives (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1999).

[4] Harold W. Hoehner, Ephesians : An Exegetical Commentary, Fifth printing ed. (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic, 2002), 1,2.

[5] Quoted in Peter Thomas O'Brien, The Letter to the Ephesians (Grand Rapids, Mich. ; Cambridge Leicester: William B. Eerdmans ; Apollos, 1999), 1.

[6] Hoehner, 62.

[7] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1996), 18, 19.

[8]See Hoehner, 2,3. and Snodgrass, 23.

[9] Hoehner, 60, 61.

[10] Ibid., 89-92.

[11] Paul recounts in Ephesians 3:1 that he was a prisoner.  Though other imprisonments are possible, we concur that this was most likely during Paul's first imprisonment in Rome. See O'Brien, 57.

[12] Hoehner, 23.

[13] O'Brien, 48.

[14] Geoffrey W. Bromiley, The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1988; 2002), 2:115.

[15] See Acts 19:28

[16] Bromiley, 2:117.

[17] For a more thorough survey of the teaching of Ephesians about Jesus see Hoehner, 108-109.

[18] O'Brien, 3.

[19] C. S. Lewis and Evelyn Underhill, The Screwtape Letters (New York,: The Macmillan company, 1943).

Bibliography

Bromiley, Geoffrey W. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1988; 2002.

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, and Paul H. Fry. The Rime of the Ancient Mariner : Complete, Authoritative Texts of the 1798 and 1817 Versions with Biographical and Historical Contexts, Critical History, and Essays from Contemporary Critical Perspectives. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1999.

Hoehner, Harold W. Ephesians : An Exegetical Commentary. Fifth printing ed. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic, 2002.

Lewis, C. S., and Evelyn Underhill. The Screwtape Letters. New York,: The Macmillan company, 1943.

Merriam Webster's Online Dictionary.  [accessed April 16, 2009].

O'Brien, Peter Thomas. The Letter to the Ephesians. Grand Rapids, Mich. ; Cambridge Leicester: William B. Eerdmans ; Apollos, 1999.

Snodgrass, Klyne. Ephesians. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1996.

Weak Sauce Religion

A friend of mine sent me a quote this week that I finally tracked down in a piece by Ross Douthat on the Atlantic Monthly web site. The post is entitled "Theology has Consequences" and the discussion is about the "new religion" of America.  Some scholars, such as Christian Smith, have deemed the beliefs of many of Americas young people as "Moralistic Therapeutic Deism."

Here are the central tenants of this point of view.  Perhaps we could call this the five pillars of niceness:

1. "A god exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on earth."

2. "God wants people to be good, nice, and fair to each other, as taught in the Bible and by most world religions."

3. "The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself."

4. "God does not need to be particularly involved in one's life except when God is needed to resolve a problem."

5. "Good people go to heaven when they die."

It really makes me want to watch Oprah, Joel Osteen and not think at all about human nature, hope and a God worthy of worship.  I might as well read those five things and start worshiping my own good self.  Hey, maybe that is the point.  The Douthat piece is worth your time...if you are not watching Oprah that is.

Boy oh Chinese Boy

What do you get when you have the following sociocultural mathematical equation:

UltraSound + Abortion of Female Babies + Cultural Engineering by Population Control + Traditional Favoring of Males =

It seems there is massive gender inequality in China, but not of a kind you are used to hearing about in America.  According to a story in the NYTimes, it seems there are millions more men in China than women (32 million or so of "reproductive age").  What might of caused this imbalance? Well, it is clear to some researchers:

The trend toward more male than female children intensified steadily after 1986, they said, as ultrasound tests and abortion became more available. “Sex-selective abortion accounts for almost all the excess males,” the paper said.

There are going to be a lot, and I mean a lot, of frustrated dudes in China soon...What does this mean geopoltically? It seems that this has many people concerned:

The Chinese government is openly concerned “about the consequences of large numbers of excess men for social stability and security,” the researchers said.

The planned murder of children, and in this case little unborn baby girls, is a heinous idea on its own.  It also seems to have some serious consequences for society...not to mention getting a date.  In all sobriety, millions of angry young men usually leads to very bad things in the world. But hey, we love the game of pretend where we act as though we are masters of our own destinies. The problem is that such deceptions have real world consequences and ideas always come home to roost.

The Resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth

Introduction

Perhaps the most enigmatic figure in all of history is that of Jesus of Nazareth.  More songs have been written about him, more literature written, more artwork commissioned and more buzz created surrounding this one figure than any other in all of history.  Each year around Easter the pundits, scholars and documentaries all rev up again to discuss the identity of Jesus and the fantastic realities which surrounded his life.  There is no more important event in history than the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth and its reality continues to be debated and discussed year after year. 

Let me begin by making something very clear.  In the normal course of life, dead people do not get back up and walk around again.  It is uncontroversial that dead people stay dead, it is a truly radical thing for a dead person to rise.  The testimony of the early Christians was that a miracle occurred, that God raised Jesus of Nazareth back to life.  This miracle was the center point of their trust in God and they proclaimed this news throughout the entire known world.  In this short essay we will look at this event from several angles.  First, we will look at the historical nature of the Christian faith and some realities surrounding the resurrection event.  Second, we will look at how many attempt to explain away a real resurrection and how these explanations fall miserably short of making sense of history.  Finally, we will look at several theological implications that the resurrection holds and how these deeply impact our hope and joy in our lives today.  So let us begin by walking back into history together.

The Roots of the Christian Gospel

Christian faith is not rooted in fantastical mythology that took place in some unknown past or in some ethereal metaphysical realm. The events that birthed and shaped the Christian  gospel are very much rooted in space, time and history.  In fact, the Christian movement is founded upon the person of Jesus and the events that surrounded his life on earth.  Jesus’ early followers established the church on a simple but profound message that is found in their writings and creeds. One such early creed is found in a letter written by a leader named Paul to a community of Christians in the ancient city of Corinth. 

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

1 Corinthians 15:3-8 (ESV)

From this we see that the central focal point of the Christian message is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.  Later in the same letter, Paul goes so far as to say if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins (1 Cor 15:17) The resurrection of Jesus therefore is of utmost importance to Christianity and even resurrection skeptic Gerd Lüddeman openly  acknowledged that “the resurrection of Jesus is the central point of the Christian religion.”¹ So the question which has been asked for centuries is this: Did it really happen?  What follows is a short treatment of some facts involving the resurrection which must be accounted for by anyone seeking to understand the events from the days immediately following the death of Jesus.

Historical Realities

#1 The Death of Jesus

For there to have been a resurrection, there had to be a person living who actually died.  Though there are some folk out there who may be skeptical about the existence of Jesus, their claims have no grounding in history.  In fact, the life and death of Jesus are attested in the non biblical writings of the Jewish historian Josephus, the Roman historian Tacitus,  the Greek satirist Lucian as well as the Jewish Talmud.² The fact that Jesus lived and died is incontrovertible.

#2-The Empty Tomb

The earliest documents we have record that the tomb of Jesus was found empty by a group of his women followers.  Historically, there simply is no burial place of Jesus. Though spiritual leaders’ grave sites are places of worship for followers of various religions, there simply is no place to visit Jesus.  The story of the empty tomb is in the earliest writings of Christianity and therefore not a later legendary invention.  The early opposition of Jesus never produced a body or even a written account about showing forth a corpse which would have easily refuted their preaching.  There is simply nothing but historical silence on the issue. Furthermore, rather than refuting the empty tomb story, the earliest opponents actually produced a counter story to explain the lack of a body (they said the disciples must have stolen it-more on this in a bit). Finally, the early Christians record that a group of women followers were the eyewitnesses who found the tomb empty on the first Easter morning.  At first glance to a modern person, this seems a bit boring, but we must think with a 1st century mindset.  Both Greeks and Jewish people at the time had a miserably low view of the testimony of women; so much that it was inadmissible in any sort of judicial proceeding.  If the story by the early Christians is a fabrication it would have been seen as ridiculous to create the story of women being the first witnesses to resurrection. The only explanation to why they would have written this is that a group of women actually reported they found the tomb empty.  Finally, an empty tomb alone is just empty, but an empty tomb along with others seeing and interacting with the living Jesus is a more interesting reality.

#3-Eyewitness Experiences and Changed Lives

A third fact surrounding the resurrection event are the experiences and changed lives of the early Christians.  They claimed to have seen and had real life experiences with a living Jesus after he had died.   The early creed in 1 Corinthians 15 records that Peter and numerous other disciples experienced something which they described as the risen Christ.  In the canonical gospels we have Jesus eating with people, given final instructions and his friends embracing him physically (See Mark 15, 16; Luke 24; Matthew 28; John 20-21; Acts 1; ). These experiences of the early Christians literally transformed their lives from cowering followers of an executed leader to bold preachers of a risen God and King.  Finally, it was not merely his friends who were impacted and changed, it was also enemies and skeptics.  Saul of Tarsus was a strict adherent to Judaism and then became one of the key leaders of the Jesus movement.  His explanation was that he had met the risen Jesus (See Acts 9)  James, the brother of Jesus, goes from being a skeptic to a Christian pastor and worshiper of Jesus as God.  It is not normal to convince your brother that you are God.  Yet it seems James understood the risen Jesus to be no mere man and became a devoted worshiper so much as to give his very life for his Lord/brother.³ 

NT Wright, a leading scholar on Christian orgins rightly places these two realities together when thinking about the emergence of Christian teaching on the resurrection:

The two things which must be regarded as historically secure when we talk about the first Easter are the emptiness of the tomb and the meetings with the risen Jesus…Neither the empty tomb itself, however, or the appearances by themselves, could have generated the early Christian belief.  The empty tomb alone would be a puzzle and a tragedy.  Sightings of an apparently alive Jesus, by themselves, would have been classified as visions or hallucinations, which were well enough known in the ancient world. However, an empty tomb and appearances of the living Jesus, taken together, would have presented a powerful reason for the emergence of the belief ⁴

Along with Jesus’ death , the empty tomb, the appearances, changed lives of friends, skeptics and opponents, the birth and emergence of Christian faith is also powerful historical testimony to the resurrection event. We’ll touch on a few interesting facets of the early days of the Christian movement.

#4-The Birth of the Church and Its Worship

It is quite interesting to think about what brought about the birth of the Christian movement.  The testimony of the Christians was that resurrection and commissioning of Jesus gave it birth.  What we find in the very first decades of Christian faith are two fascinating facts.  First, we find that the first Christians, all who were devout Jews, abruptly moved their day of worship for the Sabbath (Saturday) to the first day of the week (Sunday).  Their reason for doing this was that Christ rose on Sunday morning.  Anyone who understands historic, devout Judaism knows what a massive and seismic move this would have been. The 10 commandments dictate that the Sabbath be a day of rest and this is to be on the 7th day, Saturday.  Yet we find an almost instant change in a centuries old tradition and custom.  Why?  Furthermore, we also find their Jewish monotheists begin to worship Jesus as God.  Not simply as a god, as any good polytheist would permit, but as G_D who had created the universe and covenanted with the Jewish people.  This is utterly amazing and the Christians saw the resurrection of Jesus to be a divine action of God that took place in their midst.  These seismic shifts and the beginning of the Christian movement are explained by the resurrection miracle.  Without this event we are left dumbfounded and groping for an explanation as to why there is a thing called Christianity at all.

Explanations-Attempting to Remove the Miracle

Most of these historical facts are actually agreed upon by both skeptical and believing scholars of early Christianity.  Yet all do not believe in a physical, historical resurrection. Other explanations for the historical record are offered and we will treat only briefly the  most common explanations. We have no space to do these justice here, so I will refer you to further reading in the books found in the notes.

Legends and Lies

Some skeptics will claim that the Christians invented the resurrection of Jesus after his crucifixion in order to create a believable mythology and religion.  There are several problems here.  First, the Christian teaching was resurrection from day 1, it is not a later embellishment and we have textual reasons to believe some of this material is within a decade of Jesus’ death.  Second, nobody believed or found plausible a bodily resurrection theory in the ancient Roman empire; it was not a popular idea among ancient people. Many Greek and Roman ideas held that the soul needed to be freed completely from bodies rather than being resurrected into a new one. Furthermore, the Jewish sect known as the Sadducees, did not even believe in resurrection.  It would have been a ridiculous story to make up as the ideological world of that time simply would not have welcomed it.⁵  Additionally, the story of women discovering the tomb would have been a terrible choice for legend makers as it would have made the testimony highly implausible.   Finally, some attempt to say that the Christians borrowed the story of resurrected savior gods from pagan religions and were engaging in a “me too” game of god-making.  Interestingly enough, Edwin Yamauchi, professor of ancient history at Miami University, has written convincingly that none of these so called parallel stories is remotely similar and almost all of them are dated after Christianity. In some cases these religions actually adopted their mythology in response to Christian teaching.  We highly recommend Dr. Yamauchi’s excellent essay Easter: Myth, Hallucination, or History.⁶

The Okie Doke of the Body Snatcher and the Lost Tomb

The earliest story involved the stealing of the body of Jesus from his tomb. This means the disciples were some sort of tricky liars that would have made the Oceans 11 crew look sheepish.  They would have created the hoax and then all died horrendous deaths for a lie they created and from which they gained nothing but trouble.  Others have held that those looking for Jesus got lost and could not find the right tomb despite the fact that prophets and religious leaders tombs were literally worshipped in the ancient world.  Additionally, the tomb belonged to a prominent man name Joseph of Arimathea so it is hardly likely that its location was unable to be found. Yet the empty tomb was not that which convinced people of the resurrection alone.  It was appearances of Jesus to them which convinced the disciples, his women followers, Paul and James.

Resuscitation not Resurrection

Another theory, at times called swoon theory or resuscitation theory, holds that Jesus was crucified and put in a tomb but really did not die all the way.  Perhaps he was only mostly dead in a Monty Python sort of way.  When Jesus was alone in the cold, dark rock tomb, he woke up, removed his grave garments and popped out to punk his disciples. There are two problems with this. Crucifixion and the preaching of the early church.  First, Roman garrisons charged with killing people, killed the people.  It was not permitted to not have them die.  Jesus was both scourged and crucified both horrendously painful and certainly lethal. Further, the biblical accounts hold that a spear was thrust through Jesus’ side in order to make sure he was dead dead not mostly dead.  Additionally, the customary burial process of the time would have had Jesus wrapped in all sorts of cloths and spices. He would have stripped them off, pushed a stone closure out of the way and then appeared to his followers triumphantly resurrected.  This is highly ridiculous and such a “risen” Jesus would not have seemed triumphant over death but in need of a modern emergency room.  Not many people put forth this idea any more.

Hallucinating Crowds

Finally, some have gone to the effort of explain the experiences of the early Christians by explaining they had visions or hallucinations based on their psychological state and wishful thinking.  This has one main problem; hallucinations are a personal event not something shared by groups of people, at various times and in diverse places (See again the creed in 1 Cor 15). Hallucinations are not shared among people and are private first person experiences.⁷ Furthermore it does not explain the empty tomb or the changes in the worship of the first Jewish Christians.

Bottom Line-Could it happen?

None of the theories which are offered about Jesus explain all the historical realities surrounding the resurrection event.  As with many things involving faith in God, human beings at times simply do not want to believe.  Some think miracles such as the resurrection cannot happen and therefore did not.  Such a priori naturalism is present in many at a worldview level so that no amount of reasoning will make a miracle acceptable.  Yet, for those with an open mind, there are powerful reasons to believe that a miracle, a historically defining miracle, did indeed occur on the first Easter morning.

The Theological Importance of Resurrection

In closing, the resurrection has extensive importance to our faith.  First, it is a vindication and confirmation of the work of God through Christ (Acts 17:31). It is also a foretaste of the Kingdom of God where life fully triumphs over death.  In this way the resurrection is the first act of God’s renewal from the curse of sin and death and we live in this renewal as his people today. Finally, the resurrection is a promise of our own resurrection coming when God culminates history. We will be raised to new life and with never ending hope where death is vanquished and Christ is fully King (1 Cor 15:50-58).  It is in this hope that we gather each year to celebrate Christ’s historical, bodily and triumphant resurrection on Easter Sunday.  With our brother Paul we now stand together before that great enemy of death and joyfully talk trash “Death, where is your victory, where is your sting!” 

This my friends is much better news than what comes from the Easter bunny.

Reid S. Monaghan

Notes

1. Quoted by William Lane Craig in Copan and Tacelli, Jesus’ Resurrection , Fact or Figment—A Debate Between William Lane Craig and Gerd Lüdemann (Downers Grover, Intervarsity Press, 2000) 31.
2. Gary Habermas and Mike Licona, The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2004) 49, 50.
3. Habermas and Licona, 68, 69.
4. NT Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God, (Minneapolis, Fortress Press, 2003) 686.
5. See chapters  2-4 of the extensive The Resurection of the  Son of God by NT Wright  for a copious summary of beliefs about death and after life in the ancient world.   For a shorter 14 page summary of Wright’s argument about the resurrection and its relationship to the rise of the church, see Jesus’ Resurrection and Christian Origins at www.ntwrightpage.com/Wright_Jesus_Resurrection.htm
6. Edwin Yamauchi, Easter: Myth, Hallucination, or History? Available online at www.leaderu.com/everystudent/easter/articles/yama.html
7. For a fuller treatment of psychological/hallucination/vision theories see Habermas and Licona, 104-119.  Gary Habermas’ website has many helpful articles on all things Resurrectional as well—http://www.garyhabermas.com/articles/articles.htm

Pre-views continue for Pre...

At the international wireless conference CTIA in Palm was demoing several new pre-view videos of the highly awaited Palm Pre. There are several new videos up now and a new "Weekend" promo that plays first below.

#1 - This Weekend Promo

#2 - Fandango and Sprint TV demoed

#3 - Sprint GPS turn by turn directions app

#4 - Music and Multimedia Demo

POC Bundle 4.04.2009

Philosophy

First, the classic 1948 BBC Radio debate between the Jesuit philosopher Frederick Copleston and the atheist philosopher Betrand Russel is online in transcript form. These few lines have been memorable to me ever since I heard a summary of them in the early 90s...

C: Yes, but what's your justification for distinguishing between good and bad or how do you view the distinction between them?

R: I don't have any justification any more than I have when I distinguish between blue and yellow. What is my justification for distinguishing between blue and yellow? I can see they are different.

C: Well, that is an excellent justification, I agree. You distinguish blue and yellow by seeing them, so you distinguish good and bad by what faculty?

R: By my feelings.

C: By your feelings. Well, that's what I was asking. You think that good and evil have reference simply to feeling?

Here is the link to the transcript.

Second, apparently postmodernism does not work in economics...just a few other insights.  Postmodern thought does not work epistemologically or metaphysically either. Just saying...

The Church - Sad ridiculous logic of Episcopalean "preaching" continues - Whoa...is right. 

General News - Check out the cool pictures of Earth Hour 2009 - when everybody (apparently not everybody from looking at the pictures) turned out the lights.

Princeton Pilgrimage

I am in Princeton a few times a week with our kids school and enjoy connecting with college students and ministry in that campus community.  Yet there was one thing I had not done until this past weekend.  Some guys from Southern Seminary are looking to plant a church in the Philly metro area and came up to visit this weekend.  We had a great time with them talking about the first six months of the JW and things we are learning in the process of church planting.  The guys also wanted to visit Princeton so I gladly made the 20 min journey down. 

We went to a place that many Christians like to go at Princeton - a cemetary.  You see, many theological greats of times past are buried in Princeton.  We saw the grave of Jonathan Edwards, one of the leaders of the 18th century great awakening and former president of the college of NJ (Princeton). Yet the grave I paused over most was one, Charles Hodge, professor of systematic theology in the 19th century at Princeton seminary.  Though many have turned sour on much of his theological method, I still find his work rigorous, biblical and faithful to historic Christianity...he was a spooky smart guy.  For a bit on his theological method see Dr. Paul Helm's excellent treatment of what he sees as unwarranted rubbishing of Hodge's theoloigcal method.  Anyway, I had a moment at the grave of Hodge worthy of a pilgrimage...OK, the pictures were staged...but we had fun.

 

And some well done photographic skills displayed by Brandon Rogers:

 

Relating to Caesar - Christians and Governments

In the book of Daniel we see our central protagonist serving God and Babylon faithfully under Nebuchadnezzar.  When we arrive to chapters five and six we see that a regime change is brought about and Daniel is now serving under the government of the Medo-Persian Empire.   I thought it might be interesting to discuss a little bit of how Christians are to live and flourish under various governments and systems as the sands of time continue to fall. 

In a previous essay we discussed the role civil disobedience1 in the life of a follower of Jesus.  The Scriptures are clear that we are to relate to government in an orderly fashion and even pray for our leaders.   A quick summary:

• Government is given by God to give order and punish evil (Romans 13)

• We are to pray for those in authority over us-even those with whom we disagree (1 Timothy 2)

• We are to respect and honor those in authority while keeping God as the highest authority in our lives (1 Peter 2:13-17)

• We are to obey God and not people when human authorities require us to sin against God. In such cases, non violent civil disobedience is our pathway (Exodus 2, Acts 4)

Governments have taken diverse and variegated forms throughout history and it seems some governments might be easier to live under than others.  After all, humans have been governed by monarchies of Kings or Queens, aristocracies where lords and landowners held power, oligarchies where small groups govern the many, socialist schemas where the state owns the means of production, fascist dictators have roamed the earth, communist have offered classless utopias and free market democracies have raced around the world.  Let it be known that I do like freedom, democracy and representative republics; I am not a fan of big brother or a massive centralized government.2  I am also for the separation of church and state (more on that later) and not for any sort of theocracy until the Kingdom comes and Jesus is the fully reigning King.  In this essay I have no interest in advocating for a particular system of human government.  Furthermore, the question as to how politically involved those who belong to God's kingdom should be I will also save for another time. My goal here is much simpler.  I only want to demonstrate that followers of Jesus can and should seek to follow the above commands of Scripture under whatever government they live.  

Jesus was clear that the human state and the Kingdom are not the same thing when he told his disciples to "give to Caesar what is Caesars and to God what is Gods."  In other words, we should obey just laws, pay taxes and seek to be good citizens in all the places God sends us.  Furthermore, we should seek to act justly and follow Jesus as the highest authority in whatever circumstance at whatever costs to our lives.  To demonstrate this I want to briefly survey a few different political settings in which God's people have faithfully lived out these principles.  The final government will be our own American situation. In discussing our own cultural situation I want to hit a few issues.  First, an understanding of state/church separation.  Second, some of the deep blessings afforded to us in our historical situation along with some risks we face living under our system in the 21st century.  In closing I want to encourage us in our sojourn here in New Jersey to live in light of the gospel so that God is glorified and our communities are blessed.

Examples of Christians under Governments

Under Roman Imperialism - Perpetua and Felicitas

The person of Jesus was born the son of carpenter in the middle east.  This area of the world was under the vast and powerful rule of Rome and much of early Christianity was birthed in this context.  The gospel took root among both the poor and the titled in the urban contexts of the port cities of the Empire.3  Both slaves and nobility became worshippers of Jesus and lived gospel life together.  At the dawn of the 3rd century, a noblewoman named Perpetua lived in the North African city of Carthage with her husband, son and a slave who was named Felicitas.  Under the edict of Emperor Semptimius Severus in AD 202,4 Roman power sought to suppress the Christian movement and aimed its efforts at the growing Christian community in North Africa.  Perpetua and several of her friends were cathechumen, new believers studying the faith to prepare to be baptized.  They were arrested and imprisoned under imperial rule and given opportunity to worship the emperor by sacrificing to him.  Her father begged her to say she was not a Christian but she could only confess that she was indeed a follower of the risen Jesus.  Her words to here father are instructional to our understanding of living under oppressive governments:

It will all happen at the prisoners dock [her trial] as God wills, for you may be sure that we are not left to ourselves but are all in his power.5

Perpetua and Felicitas were put before wild beasts to be attacked and then ultimately publically executed by the sword.  Under a state that persecuted them, they lived and then died as faithful followers of Jesus.

Under Clans and Kingdoms - Patricus in Ireland

After the sack of Rome by the Visigoths under the leadership of Alaric I much of the western Roman empire was in disarray.  The church brought stability and eventually the barbarian conquerors were converted to the Christianity of those they befell.  Yet in the outlying areas of the British isles, much of the government was based on clan affiliation, power landowners which were small Kingdoms unto themselves.  North of Britain were the pagan Celts of Ireland who were nothing like the "civilized" continentals of the Roman way.  A young 16 year old boy from Wales named Patricus was ripped from his home and made a shepherd-slave by Irish raiders.  For some six years he labored in isolated servitude and it was during this time that he met deeply with God and was formed spiritually.   After such years he escaped back to his homeland only to be called by Christ to return.  Patricus recounts a vision where a man from Ireland appeared to him begging him "to come and walk among us once more."  The visions continued and Ireland would not leave him.  At this point Christ began to speak within him "he it is who gave his life for you, is he that speaks within you."6  Patrick would go establish a mission in Ireland to bring the gospel to the clans and Kingdoms of the Celts.  A barbaric people who once cut their captives heads off to wear them dangling from ropes around their waists, would soon tie books and Bibles to the same.   Patrick brought the gospel to a people who lived under a clan-like government structure brought many into the Kingdom of God.

Under 20th century Communism-Richard Wurmbrand

Communism was founded on the philosophical and historical political theories of many thinkers, most prominently Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.  Marx once wrote that religion is the opiate [drug] of the masses7 which kept them subservient to the power brokers and rulers of a culture.  If people only cared for the life to come they would endure any misery in the here and now.  Communism was in no way friendly to the Christian faith.  In fact, communist regimes have systematically sought to suppress and eliminate faith to set about its atheistic, secular agenda to create a classless society.  Dictators of all stripes have never liked followers of Jesus who found his rule and reign higher than that of government commissars.  Jesus told people he would set them free no matter what situation and government they lived under; communists typically did not like this sort of thinking.  Yet as the Soviet power of the 20th century seized power in Romania, one Richard Wurmbrand, would choose the freedom of Jesus in jail cells over the oppression of a godless society.   Wurmbrand was a preacher who continued his work in the underground church in Romanian despite communist oppression.  He was arrested and jailed in 1948 and spent over eight years in various prisons and labor camps.  He resumed his work in the underground church in 1956 only be arrested again in 1959.  During his imprisonments he was tortured and suffered greatly spending years in solitary confinement.  Upon his release he began to speak for the persecuted church and founded Voice of the Martyrs a ministry which continues to this day.  Wurmbrand was a Jewish Christian who knew that Jesus was a good king who would guide him through his darkest hours.  He faithfully served under communist regimes and then lived in freedom before finally going to be with his Lord in February 2001.8

Under American Democracy

Our own situation is one in which we currently have freedom of religion.  We assemble in our homes, rent public meeting spaces and have every right that any one else has regardless of our religious beliefs.  This is a rare occurrence in the history of the world and one for which we need to be thankful.  This country was founded by those seeking religious freedom and many of them argued to keep it by desiring the church to be free from state control.  The first clause of the first amendment to our constitution reads:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof

There is no state church for our country and we have no official religion.  Yet in recent times some have began to interpret this clause to mean that it demands a public square free from all religion and only a strict secularism is to be permitted for citizens when they are relating to "public" issues such as education and law.  Spiritual beliefs and philosophical opinions should be kept a private matter and not be brought up in public company.  It is with great joy that we live in a culture where we have such great freedoms for our faith, yet I'm not sure that we can assume that it will always be this way. 

Today our culture can see evangelism as invasive and intolerant. Today many seek to silence teaching about Jesus and relegate it to the private halls and houses of worship.  It is not by force of arms or rule of law but by intellectual and social pressure and ridicule that Christians are subtly urged to keep quiet in the streets. 

Our freedom also brings great risks as we live under our current government.  It is easy to value Americanism and its values over the Kingdom and what Jesus wants for his people.  We can value riches and political influence over the gospel and loving others.  We can be seduced to thinking that America is somehow a divine nation rather than simply a nation that God has ordained for this time and place.  Please don't misunderstand me, I love this country and our systems of government.  Yet America ≠ The Kingdom of Heaven.  Nancy Pearcy, in her book Total Truth, even has a chapter with a revealing title "Christianity met America and Guess Which Won?"9  We must not confuse Christian faith with a particular political party, system of human government or nation.  We must always remain citizens of two realms, our own nation and the Kingdom of Heaven.  As Paul told the Christians in the ancient city of Philippi our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Conclusion

Our call has been clear in sojourning in Babylon with Daniel and his posse.  They lived in a culture in which the structures of power were profoundly not in submission to the creator God.  Their media, art and educational systems were in honor of false gods and human potentates.  Yet like Daniel, we too can walk with Jesus, remain faithful to God, be humble in our service to others and work diligently for the transformation of our culture.  We are not called to be powerful oppressors pushing our will upon others, but citizens of an in breaking Kingdom where we stand for justice, seek mercy and hold out the saving gospel of God as the only hope for all people.  Jesus suffered unjustly under a governor named Pontius Pilate even though he was the rightful ruler of the universe.  As we follow him we are reminded that our weapons are not of this world but rather comes through the powerful truth of the gospel.  God forgives, makes new and justifies the wicked through the work of Jesus Christ.  All who come to him are set free from sin, death and hell and will inherit eternal life.  We now live as sojourners in light of the cross, living for the glory of God and the good of others.  This is our way.

Notes

1. Essay on Civil Disobedience available online here: https://www.powerofchange.org/blog/2009/2/22/to-obey-or-not-to-obeythat-is-the-question.html

2. UVA Sociologist Brad Wilcox recently discussed in the Wall Street Journal how a growing state usually corresponds with a shrinking church-http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123690880933515111.html

3. For more on the early spread of Christianity see Rodney Stark, Cities of God-The Real Story of How Christianity Became an Urban Movement and Conquered Rome (HarperOne, 2006).

4. Justo Gonzalez, The Story of Christianity (HaperSanFrancisco, 1984) 83.

5. Perpetua, in Mark Gali and Ted Olson 131 Christians Everyone Should Know (Broadman and Holman, 2000) 363.

6. Summary of the account in Thomas Cahill, How the Irish Saved Civilization (Anchor Books, 1995) 105, 106.

7. In the introduction of Marx's Introduction to A Contribution to the Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right, 1843.

8. An interesting historical video on Wurmbrand is actually online at http://www.persecution.tv/media/tfc/player.html

9. See Chapter 10 in Nancy Pearcey, Total Truth (Crossway, 2004) 273.

A Marriage Meandering

Last week I stepped out of life for 6 days with my bride and friend Kasey Monaghan. The more years I have spent with this woman the more I have come to appreciate her laughter, her heart for adventure, her loyalty, and her compassion for me body and soul.  I love that she respects me but does not take me too seriously.  I love that she calls me on my junk and loves me in my weakness.  I love that she looks cute in a pony tail and plays soccer tenaciously.  I love that she can cut our grocery bill in half by diligent efforts and coupon craziness.  I love that she likes Sci Fi and Fantasy flicks and will even stay up late with me knowing a tired morning cometh.  I love other things as well, but that ain’t your business.

Times away like we had feel too short and I know we are both longing for another week some time ahead where we will be able to dance, laugh, rest and not have the life draining (and life glorious) role of being parents. I am perhaps procrastinating some sermon writing mid day here, but this has been on my heart all week and it has to come out.  I wanted to share with you some of the things that have made our almost 13 years of marriage. (Yeah, I don’t care about the number 13…our 7-8 years of marriage were actually our hardest - so no stupidstitioius stuff from me). Some thoughts on being and staying married.

Cultivate Time

So much of life is demanding of our time.  This week I realized that I don’t go on vacations for the sake of vacations…I go so that I can rest and then come back and do my work.  I love my job, I love my weird hobbies and I love my kids.  It can be easy to become utilitarian in marriage.  You connect on fixing the crawl space, shopping for dinner, managing household schedules, dealing with problems and taking out the recycling bins. One thing I have enjoyed in the midst of life is cultivating time with Kasey. Time we just spend together.  It is tough sometimes because after you get 3 little kids in bed you have no life left in you; but Kase and I have used evenings to dial in together if for only small respites watching BSG on Hulu.  I am not perfect, I work hard, I probably do not sign off and turn off enough from my work. But I try to pull away in small ways with my friend - because I love her.

Empower her passions

I love seeing Kasey come alive in various venues. She is a great soccer coach and still a feisty competitor.  So I actually love it on Saturday mornings when I can help get her to the fields as a player and a coach. I like to juggle kids for her and take them to practice and game fields to play and be with Mom.  My wife is also a very intelligent person giving so much time to shape the next generation of the Monaghan home team.  I am anticipating a day when the kids are all in school each day and Kasey can develop whatever talents she desires. She may want to engage a career, she may not.  She may want to go back to school, she may not.  She may want to spend more time resting.  Whatever it may be, I want to be there to help empower.

Listen when she protects you

My wife expresses care for me by telling me when I am tired, asking me many times “should you go to the doctor?” and saying “you need time off.”  I don’t resent it; I don’t always listen though.  It is a dance we have developed together over the years.  If she was not persistent I would be burned out long ago or in a fetal position sucking my thumb from being stressed out. I do listen more than she thinks.  I sleep in, or get away, or go to the doctor because of my wife’s protective love.  If it were not for her I would have bigger bags under the eyes and probably never see a dentist.  My wife can “see me” in ways that I simply cannot see myself…so I listen to her more than anyone because she knows me. To be honest, it is being known that is a true sign of deepening love and friendship.  Kasey drives me mad at times, but she knows me; I trust her.  Men, listen to your women.

Experience and Live Grace

Our marriage was shaped in the early days by the gracious gift of some friends (thanks Mike and Kim) to send us to a Family Life Marriage Conference.  At that gig, I heard a verse that has been in the heart ever since.  Ephesians 4:32 reads: Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. 

The second part of this Scripture encourages us to forgive one another; but any head shrink can tell you he discovered “forgiveness therapy” and put you through some weird exercises. The teaching we have here takes a step further in forgiveness.  We are to forgive one another, just as God in Christ forgave you. If you understand you are a jerk, sinner, selfish human being…who needs grace and forgiveness…you will have much more grace for others. If you are “a great person” who everyone else is always screwing over…well, you will have problems loving and being loved. I know God forgives me in Jesus - I also know I need that - so I know I ought forgive others, particularly those who sin close by. Marriage cannot live on the air of self righteousness and accusation, it breathes deeply on grace.  Don’t be stupid; say you are sorry, forgive them…then make up. That part is fun you know.

Seek Kindness in Your Hands

The first part of Ephesians 4:32 exhorts us to kindness.  If I could give a word to men it is to exhibity kindness towards your wife and children.  Men are at times harsh, cutting, attacking creatures - like a bull in a china shop we can tend to wreck things and ask others to pick up the mess.  Kindness does not mean weakness, it means your strong hands and shoulders should be full of love not anger and pain. I fail here; I am not always kind.  Yet if anything sticks with me more than anything, it is when my wife tells me I am a kind man towards her and my children (particularly my daughters). OK, now I am teary eyed at my freakin keyboard.

Love Her Children

Wednesday night my little girls, Kayla (7) and Ky (5), took baths early, dressed up in sharp little outfits complete with clip on earrings.  Ky had braided pig tails and Kayla a stylin little purple hat.  I put a sport coat over a wrestling t-shirt and we headed out on a Daddy date.  I fully open doors and giggle with the girls.  We went to TGIFs ate chicken fingers, carrots, fries and grilled cheese.  Then we hammered three spoons down on something called Browny Obsession.  I can’t tell you how much fun we had and how much we laughed.  We even discussed how animation is done…flipping napkins with stick figures drawn on them…then on to frame rates, computers and Pixar.  That night Kasey gave me a big hug and told me how much she loves the way I love our kids.  Look men, I am not patting my own back, I get much joy from being with my kids and family.  But by stopping work, throwing down the laptop and putting on the sport coat - a mother lit up.  Love her kids men.

Make Love not War

OK, POCBlog is a PG affair but do pursue one another and make time for one another. Ladies, the men feel really loved when you initiate and come hunting for them.  Even if he is tired, he’ll make time.  And as I said above, if you have been at war, make up…it is fun.  Young couples - don’t wait ten years to try to pay attention to each other.  Don’t let this part of your relationship get lost in life’s shuffle.  Talk to other couples about this if you are struggling and don’t buy into this culture that says everything has to be some 4th of July fireworks show.  Pay attention to one another don’t be selfish.

Laugh, Plan, Get Away

A friend and his wife from one of our stops along life roller bladed by Kasey and me one morning when we were out for a jog in Colorado.  He said “a family that plays together stays together.” (Thanks Dusty) Of course, we knew he didn’t mean “pray” though that is certainly a good little rhyme as well. Kasey and I made the decision a while ago that we would try as we could to do vacations with just the two of us. Many, many thanks to our families who have helped make this happen since the kids have come.  We have never lived too close to our parents as our mission has moved us out to different places, but they have been wonderful to come to us so we could get out together.  Most of the cool stuff we do is Kasey’s idea - I need to initiate more I confess.  But I am glad we took swing and waltzing lessons a few years back at a rec center. I was able to swing, dip, two step and fling Kasey around a dance floor last week; I got skillz and Kasey was beautiful - and happy. If you never hear your wife laugh any more, you need to repent and pursue her guys.

Look, I present no utopian marriage. One morning on vacation I was very frustrated because my wife makes silent plans that at times she doesn’t tell me about.  Then it encroaches on my plans (which I think I speak about??) and we get frothy.  But we listen, we forgive and then we do what she wants - just kidding.  I lead our family, but my dance partner is the most important person in my life.  I just regret I don’t show her enough, tell her enough, have actions that demonstrate it enough - but I also don’t just have a rookie card in the marriage game.  We have some laps now but are still launching out as well.  Pray for Kasey and me; and pray for marriage in our culture.  It is really dumped on too much.  I pray this little bit of ascii text may spit in the wind of a culture that divorces quickly, mocks married life and misses some of life’s deepest blessings along the way.

Kasey, if you read this, thank you for knowing me…all of it.

Reids

MacBook Screen Problems

It seems my screen/VPU problems are visiting others in the computing world as well. This time the MacBook Pro (the one where you can't replace the battery yourself) is having screen crazies.  Article over at MacRumors for those who have this saucy aluminum bodied MacBook Pro. Solution is being offered...

It seems packing all these thin, light, high horsepower components close together brings heat issues that can be very finicky.  I am sending my Dell off tomorrow to the doctor to be fixed and switching to a new Inspiron 15 for two weeks. Hopefully no more Dell screen hell is before me - this really took a bunch of time to deal with this week.

POC Bundle 3.25.2009

A few nuggets for the road mid week.

• The Church - The Wall Street Journal has an interesting short article on church planting in my home state of Virginia 
• Apologetics - Yes, Peter Singer teaches at Princeton University - just down the road from my house. He is a very consistent atheist as Dinesh D'Souza makes very clear.
• Technology - Palm Pre appararently has some in the software community a bit excited. See article in Business Week. Now I just hope it has decent battery life and a less than ridiculous price (for the phone and touchstone).  Some have been whispering that Dell might be interested as well.  I don't know about Michael, but I am interested and already a Sprint customer.  Also, the inevitable comparisons with the Apple phone are continuing. Fear not Apple phone users - you are still the coolest!
• Technology/The Church - How to move a Logos install to a new computer - moving to a new laptop for a couple of weeks because mine is having screen issues.
  
• Philosophy - Society of Christian Philosophers - new web site is an improvement
• Theological Reflection - hoping to write an essay this week on Christians and government - pray that I can get that done...thanks guys.
  

Palm Pre, Jimmy Fallon and Engadger High Fives

There is a great segment up from the Jimmy Fallon show featuring Engadget editor Josh Topolsky and a short demo of the Palm Pre. To watch these two contemporary human beings negotiate a high five was classic.  Guys, it ain't supposed to be that hard, but we appreciate the laughs.

Full coverage at Engadget

A Sci Fi Summer

This summer looks to be a pretty interesting one for fans of Sci Fi films. X-Men Origins:Wolverine, Abram's Star Trek, Terminator and the Transformers are all making an appearance in a few months. Which one(s) are you looking to see?

On a similar topic, The City Journal has an interesting look at the Sci Fi genres recent forays into things Spiritual and even things gospel.  For me the connection has been easy to make over the years...if the grand story of all of history is redemption through a chosen savior...Sci Fi has no choice but to rip off the grand narrative for its own purposes. 

We all agree on the following basic facts and this is where Sci Fi tends to tread quite often

• The world is jacked up 
• It needs to be fixed or somehow "saved"
  
• It seems we fight between cynicism and hope - recently I have realized that there is even a rightful place for a cynical hope.
• The world will end up being saved OR end up in some hell (nuked, climate catastrophe, cold heat death...)

The problem with the secular view today is that it has no Savior.  It logically leads to nihilism, which is hopelessly resisted by existentialism (try to think you are a super hero or just indulge pleasure to get by) and ends up in despair. We are all just dancing along to our DNA in a blind, mindless universe that simply does not care. So the western secular mind is left hoping and fearing with no path ahead save the perennial political saviors which promise the world and take your life and your money.  Or maybe defending our "rights" to freely indulge in every sort of base behavior invented by men. 

To be honest, I love the Sci Fi genre - my friends at Jacob's Well tease me about it - but to me the saving stories are not simply hopeful fancies of far out futures, they are the fabric of reality.  We are living in a fallen story, a world of madness, but walking in hope towards a world redeemed for a Savior has come and in invading the present through good news.  One of the ancients put it this way we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe...One thing is sure, this salvation is much better than terminator salvation.

Wolverine, Star Trek, Terminators or Transformers? Lots of back story type narrative coming it seems; so what are you looking forward to?

Book Review - Sammy and His Shepherd

 

I have just about finished reading and discussing the book Sammy and His Shepherd with my two oldest kids.  The book by Susan Hunt is an explanation of Psalm 23 by using a story about Sammy, who is a sheep, and his shepherd.  The story also includes another sheep who begins the story without a name but is simply called "My Friend" by Sammy. 

The book contains eleven chapters each treating a small portion of the classic Psalm.  The narrative unfolds as My Friend understands and experiences the leading of Sammy's shepherd.  The illustrations are modern and gritty which I really enjoyed.  Furthermore the illustrations are not tame and really give some contour to the story.  They are also friendly to all cultures as the shepherd is not presented as having blond hair and blue eyes.

Each chapter is paired with a discussion section which is found at the end fo the book.  The section has Scripture readings, reading comprehension questions and thoughts for living in light of what has been discussed.  This is a great addition to the narrative and my kids like the discussion aspect of the book more than anything.

Overall, I found this a welcome addition to our childrens library which addresses a wonderful Scripture in a way that is very contoured and real.  Popular Bible verses sometimes make it on to coffee cups and thereby loose their intended meaning - this is not so with Sammy and His Shepherd.  Remember, the valley of the shadow of death is not a happy place.  One final note, the book uses the ESV translation - always a plus for me.

Recommended...

What you really want...is a Jetpack!

Yeah, you know you want your $90,000 jet pack...planes are so 20th century

Who is in Charge around here?

As human beings we are in love with the idea that we are in control of things.  I think it is an especially acute problem for human beings in America. We think we can make it happen, win the day, command our destinies...it is a fun ride until reality smacks us around a bit.  The truth of the matter is that much of life is utterly out of our control.  We did not choose where we would be born, who would be our parents and a myriad of other things about our lives.  Yet we want to be in control and we know that our choices do matter greatly in how our lives turn out.

In Daniel chapter four we witness the final chapter of God's education of the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar.  The lesson which is taught is quite clear: God rules in the affairs of people and nations on the earth.  Theologically we use the term Sovereignty to describe God being the highest rule and authority known.   There is simply no throne or power above that of the creator God. Yet this does bring questions.  If God is Sovereign and is accomplishing his purposes how do my choices affect the outcomes of life?  Are my choices subject to God's direction as well?  How free is my free will? If God is Sovereign, then why does he permit certain things to go down?

In a previous junk drawer we discussed God's sovereignty and rule over both good and evil.  You can read that online if you like. This week we want to do something just a bit different; we want to discuss the relationship of God's Sovereignty and our responsibility.  In other words, how does God's rule over all things interact with my choices to do some things.  To do this I want to begin by defining what we mean by these two terms.  I will then discuss the scope of these and how we avoid any sort of contradiction by setting one authority above another.  Next I want us to chew on the nature of our free will and several philosophical definitions.  Finally, we will close by discussing our nature as creatures and how we respond to God in humility , faith and following.

Some Definitions

Sovereignty of God- As briefly stated above, when we say God is sovereign, we mean that there is  no higher rule, reign or authority that exists.  God is in control of all things and by providential leading brings them towards his desired ends.  There is great wonder, glory and mystery in the Sovereignty of God.  It is a teaching that brings great comfort to believers as well as a deep sense of human dependence.  Yet when seen in a skewed manner, God's sovereignty can cause some to think that his rule makes our choices, our lives, our journeys as somewhat inconsequential or unimportant . 

Human Responsibility- Though God is sovereign, he has created human beings, male and female in his own image (Genesis 1:26, 27).  Furthermore, God calls us to co-rule and reign with him on the earth as stewards.  He has vested us with dominion in the created order and we are to follow him in what he has called us to be.  By our very nature, we have been created to be responsible to God for how we represent him and steward our lives and the created order.  There is high human responsibility to a Sovereign God which is taught in the Scriptures.  

In Scripture we see God's sovereignty and our responsibility clearly taught in many places.   In the narrative of Daniel we see quite plainly that God is teaching us as well as various players in the story that he rules and reigns supreme over all.  He is the one who changes the times and seasons and sets up kings and removes them (Daniel 2:21).  His is the dominion which is an everlasting dominion and his Kingdom will last through all generations (Daniel 4:34).   Additionally, the prophecy of Isaiah teaches us that  there is no God but God who rules over all things and declares the end from the beginning in the story of history (Isaiah 45).  His purposes will stand, all that he wishes to accomplish will be accomplished (Isaiah 46); he is the Sovereign Creator God. 

At the same time, our lives are lived actively by either following him or in rebellion against  him.  To bow the knee, to follow him, to love him, worship him, trust him is an act of our wills, but our wills are hardened so that we need his enabling grace.   We are truly guilty before God for our sins and we are responsible for the choices we make.  We are responsible and God is still in control of all things.  At this some might think that sovereignty and human decisions are at odds with one another or produce some sort of contradiction.  There is no contradiction as long as we are not ultimately free and God ultimately sovereign.  The scope of our freedom is either limited by God's rule or God's rule is limited in some sense by the scope of human freedom.  I think is helpful to look at the scope of sovereignty and our freedom as a way to understand this a little better.

Scope-What's on Your Plate?

If we think in terms of ownership and responsibility the tensions between sovereignty and our responsibility resolve much more easily.  It is clear from Scripture that God created and is therefore the owner of all things.  Psalm 24:1 teaches us that the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.  Furthermore, Scripture teaches us that all things were created by him and for him (Colossians 1:16).  If God is the owner of all things, then he is responsible for all things. 

• Everything is on God's plate-he is responsible and sovereign in all things
• Some things God places on your plate-we are responsible for our lives and that which is entrusted to us as his stewards

Think about it.  If I were absolutely free to do anything and everything, then God could not accomplish anything in my life contrary to my will.  Absolute human freedom and absolute sovereignty actually are contradictory.  Yet if God is absolutely sovereign and I am responsible for what he puts before me then we have no contradiction.  Yet the nature of human free will and responsibility has puzzled thinkers in every age and I think looking at some things philosophically is appropriate.  So I want to pose what may sound like a crazy question-do we really have free will?

Do we have Free Will?

A question such as this can usually be a bit unnerving to us as we know we set alarm clocks, choose to get up (mostly), go to work and make decisions about how we act and treat others, et al.  It seems that I will likely choose to buy a new Palm Pre smart-phone some time 2009.  It is just self-evident that human beings posses something that many times is called free will.

As we begin a discussion of free will, it should be known that among secular philosopher types the belief that we have free will is laughable.  Most people who do not believe in God or any spiritual reality such as human souls, simply believe we are biological machines predetermined by causal chains of events determined by the laws of physics.  For instance the Center for Naturalism, an organization dedicated to promoting naturalistic thought and policies, makes the following statement on their web site:

Practically speaking, naturalism holds that an individual's development and behavior are entirely the result of prior and surrounding conditions, both genetic and environmental. Naturalism, therefore, denies that persons have contra-causal free will - that something within them is capable of acting as a first cause.

As a Christian, I do not believe we are simply determined by genetics and environment and that the world itself is not a closed system of cause and effect based on the laws of physics.  We hold that both God and human beings are capable of meaningful actions in the world.  Yet this quote brings up a distinction in discussions of free will in that it uses the term contra-causal free will to distinguish its views.  This brings up an important distinction in discussions about human choice, one that even Christians differ with one another about.  First two quick definitions:

• Contra Causal or Libertarian Free will...this is a version of free will you might call: really, really free, free will.  It holds that that a person can make genuinely free decisions without any other causation but the person's will.  Christian philosopher J.P. Moreland defines it this way: "When an agent acts freely, he is a first or unmoved mover; no event causes him to act.  His desires, beliefs and so on may influence his choice, but free acts are not caused by prior states in the agent."¹
• Compatibilism-Our choices are in accord with other factors and never uncaused or unconditioned.  Past choices, our environment, our character development and virtue, God's working, our current desires all weigh into our decisions. 

While the naturalistic determinist believes our choices are compatible (or more precisely dictated to us by) with genetic and environmental determinism, there are also Christians who believe our choices are free, yet God may guide them when he chooses to do so in order to achieve his purposes.   Another way of looking at this is that God has freer, free will than we do.  I do not find this troubling as it seems evident that God is God and we are not.  

In arguing that human freedom and God's sovereignty are compatible, Christian philosopher and theologian Bruce Ware makes an excellent point:  "human freedom that is compatible with God's meticulous sovereignty², then, cannot be libertarian or contra-causal freedom, but must instead truly be a freedom of one's strongest inclination, desire, and volition. That is, our freedom consists in our choosing and doing according that what we are inclined most, or what we desire most, to do."³ Dr Ware's contention is not that we do not choose to do anything, but rather human beings choose what they are most inclined to do or what they desire most.

We do not wish to say that our choices are not free in a limited sense; we do make choices and we are responsible for them.  Yet we do want to say is that God can indeed act in the lives of human beings, changing their minds and wills.  In fact, Scripture teaches us that human beings, if left to their own desires, will not seek God and will not submit to his rule.  People become followers of Jesus precisely because he intervenes to change us and give us new desires and inclinations (See Romans 3 and Romans 8 in particular).   Whereas one day we did not desire to love God, read Scripture, worship Jesus, etc. something happens and we are changed.  We now find Jesus to be a treasure and we actually desire to love and follow him.  This is not dependent on our free will but is rather a sovereign work of God.  Jesus told his closest friends on earth: you did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to bear much fruit, fruit that will last (paraphrase of John 15:16).  We are indeed chosen by God, saved by God and changed by God to become followers of Jesus.  All of this is by grace, not because of anything we are or anything we do (Ephesians 2:1-10). 

Unlike the secular determinist, we do believe that God can act in the world and we can make choices.  Yet we also believe that God is in control and bringing about his will, a purposeful working in history.  So in some sense, God is sovereign and determines everything, yet uses the choices of our lives as means to accomplish his ends.  

How God's Sovereign rule and our choices and responsibility interact is a puzzling mystery around which followers of Jesus have wrestled for years.  We do not intend to solve the issue here.  Yet as we see in the story of Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar, God wants us to know without question that God rules and his Kingdom will be established despite our pride and rebellion.  We far too often think we are the masters of the universe and the captains of destiny; we are not, and it is good news to realize this and follow the one who graciously leads all things.

Our Response to God's Initiative

One of the  most difficult things about becoming a follower of Jesus is realizing that you are not in control.  It sometimes makes us afraid to let go of the steering wheel of life and trust someone else with ultimate things.  Yet our wise and loving Creator desires for us to come to him by faith, to put our hand of trust into his and then follow. The irony of it all is that by yielding to a sovereign God we find our greatest joy.  We may go to sleep at night knowing that God is on point and that we can rest.   We need not persist in our self-deception that we are the little god of our own lives; such small deities always disappoint.  Yet knowing the God who made us, leads us and forgives us in Christ leads us to a place of life and peace forever.

God freely came to the earth in person of Jesus to show us who he is.  God freely came to the earth in Jesus to die for rebels and bring them home into a relationship that truly satisfies.  God loves freely, he is calling to you, if you sense his Spirit beckoning you to come home, then freely respond with the desire and the grace he is giving.  

Notes

¹ J.P. Moreland and Garrett J. DeWeese, Philosophy Made Slightly Less Difficult (Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 2005) 124. Emphasis added.

^2. Meticulous Sovereignty means that God is in control of all things in life, not just a few things here and there.

^3. Bruce Ware, God's Greater Glory-The Exalted God of Scripture and the Christian Faith (Wheaton: Crossway, 2005) 27.  Dr. Ware's discussion of Sovereignty and Free will in this book is a must read for Christians who desire to take seriously the teachings of Scripture regarding the sovereignty of God.   See pages 24-26 in summary and  chapter 3 in detail.