Deconstructing the Church by the Gospel

The church has created a salvation culture and Scot McKnight argues in his "The King Jesus Gospel" that the gospel needs to deconstruct the church. He lists five ways this is to happen:

1. We have to become people of the story. Let God's Word shape us.

2. We need to immerse ourselves more into the story of Jesus (read, study, digest the four gospels).

3. We need to examine more carefully how the story of Israel, Jesus, and the church by the Apostles transformed the next generation and culture and the connection of that generation all the way to our generation.

4. We need to reframe and contrast our story against the myriad of false stories.

5. We need to disciple and live as transformed people by the gospel story.

Evangelicalism: Is it still worth fighting for?

I am looking forward to reading D. A. Carson's new book "Evangelicalism." Evangelicalism is neither dead or over but many are seeing great glaring problems or holes in the bottom of the boat that desperately need to be fixed. One of the reasons I understand Carson wrote the book was his disagreement and critique of Mark Noll's book "Is the Reformation Over?" Noll in contrarian fashion answers with a "yes" and a No." Yes in the sense of how Catholics and Protestants understand the gospel and salvation (justification by faith) but no in the sense that the Protestant vision of scripture checking tradition and gospel checking contemporary practices of the church are still needed. I suspect Carson still views the Catholic Church vision on salvation as still defective but I will have to wait and see?

What Reformation churches need to come to terms with (and this is not just a Catholic critique) but self-criticism from within it's own ranks is how the Reformation shifted theology from the early church focus on Christology to Soteriology (Salvation) and how the gospel has also mutated and shifted from the story of Israel, Jesus, and the church to the a simple four or five point exercise called "the plan of salvation" or what Scot McKnight calls "the gospel of Soterians."

Christianity today in the Western Church has become a gospel of salvation without discipleship and a private enterprise disconnected from real life (the sacred and secular split). What we continue to see is what Bonhoeffer called "cheap grace" or what others call "powerless Christianity." Either way the corporate dimensions of faith, the heart of discipleship, and transformation and missions must once again come to the forefront of Western Christianity if it is going to go out with a bang and not simply more and more disappear with a whimper.

The Great Reversal

"ONE PEOPLE SHALL BE STRONGER THAN THER OTHER, AND THE OLDER SHALL SERVE THE YOUNGER" - Genesis 25:23b

The Bible from cover to cover is full of reversals. The oldest son is to have the greatest blessings in the Jewish culture. Here we see twins, Esau and Jacob and the youngest gets the spriritual inheritance while the oldest sqaunders it for a pottage of stew. Can it be that we often look at things from the top down when God says his order is just the reverse of ours?

Does not scripture tell us that its the weak who are strong, that the foolish are wise, the poor are rich, and the meek shall inherit the earth. Do we really believe that? Scripture is about reversal after reversal. The great day of the Lord as a day of judgment is suddenly in Acts chapter two a day of salvation. "This is that" but it's not like anything we expected. Death looks like the end but then we have resurrection, the greatest game changer and biggest reversal of all.

When Jesus told parables and stories, the bad guys often become the good guys and the good guys don't look so good in the end. Can it be that when it comes to the gospel of Jesus Christ, we still have things backwards? Discipleship should come before evangelism and not the other way around? Should we not emphasize Jesus Lordship even before a person comes to term with Jesus as Savior? Can it be that the first really shall be last and least and forgotten become the greatest?

To Protect and To Serve

The new courageous movie has a little of everything. A great script, humor, action, and a great challenge to fathers who want to be the men that God has called them to be. The movie is not just about the challenges and courage of policemen but also the behind the scene challenges of life and family struggles. I saw grown men weep at this movie and I needed a few tissues myself. For a well done movie in every way, I highly recommend the new movie "Courageous." If there is something missing in many Christian homes and families, it is courage under fire!

There are also workbooks that men and women can work through called "Resolution." This ais another way discipleship can work within the context of families. I still remember the impact the movie 'fireproof" had on families, but even more the fireproof book was a tool I saw literally saved several marriages that were crumbling. If husband and wives are not doing some kind of discipleship study togetether, I would recommend this one to couples.