Category Archives: Theology

Discussion and Commentary on the Self-revelation of God as found in the Bible.

The Worst Church Sign

Theology

Over the last few weeks, I have had to drive to work passing what I now believe is the worst Church sign I have ever read.  You know the ones I mean — those signs in front of church buildings that get a different message every week or so.  This one, tragically, has had the same message all month:  “Look busy, God is coming.”

Never mind the grammatical offense that two independent clauses such as these must be separated by a semi-colon or a period, and not a comma.  This sign bears at least three other offenses to the name of Christ Jesus.

The first is in the first word: “Look”, as in “Look busy.”  Look busy?  You mean, “Act like you are busy even if you are not”?  The implication that I find so offensive here is that we can fake out God.  I remember times in grade school when the teacher would step out of the room.  The class would go nuts, having all kinds of “fun”, but there would be a look-out at the door.  When the teacher was about to return, the look-out would give the signal, and everyone would return to his desk and pretend that nothing ever happened.  If the teacher bought it, no one would get in any trouble.  Teachers, after all, can be deceived.  But God?  Never.  In Psalm 139, David confesses to God, “You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off.  You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways.  For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, O Yahweh, You know it altogether.”  (Psalm 139: 2-4)  You can look busy all you want, but “The Lord knows those who are His” (2 Timothy 2:19) — and He will not be fooled.

The second offense happens to come in the second word (so far, the sign’s writer is two-for-two!): “busy”.  Why in the world should the imminence of Christ’s return prompt us to look “busy”?  Is that what He will be looking to reward when He gets here?  Is that what He seeks in His saints?  “Busyness is next to godliness,” huh?  Somehow, I don’t think so.  I remember Martha — the busy one — and her sister, Mary.  Jesus rebuked Martha in all her busyness, saying, “You are worried and troubled about many things.  But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”  (Luke 10:41-42)  Jesus did not tell His disciples before His ascension, “Okay, guys; get busy!”  Rather, He instructed us to abide in Him.  “Abide in Me,” He said, “and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without me, you can do nothing.”  (John 15:4-5)  Of course, you can look busy doing your nothing and hope God is fooled when He gets here.  Somehow, though, I really wouldn’t count on it.

The third offense comes in the third word.  “God.”  In a manner of speaking, the offense to the name of Jesus is the name of Jesus, or rather the lack of same.  Where is it?  Why is it omitted?  Where in the Bible does one ever read that “God” is coming back?  We simply don’t.  In the Old Testament, we are warned repeatedly of the “Day of the LORD”;  literally, it is “the Day of Yahweh,” and it bears His covenantal name.  In the New Testament, we are told that Jesus will return (“Even so, come Lord Jesus!”).  But never is His return spoken of with the generic reference to “God.”  Why is that?  Because throughout the ages, men have always insisted that there are many gods, and that they are all pretty much the same.  Today, we are told by our president that Christians, Jews, and Muslims all worship the same god.  If “God” is coming back, it is left to each individual to decide for himself just who that “god” is.  But according to the Bible, the One coming back is the one with a Name, a holy Name, a Name that is above every name.  The One returning is Jesus, Yah-shua, Yahweh Saves.  Those who know Him by name will rejoice in His return, while those who despise His name should be very, very afraid.

Even so, come Lord Jesus!

Democracy and the Fall of the Southern Baptist Convention

Church Commentary, Theology

In recent years, the Southern Baptist Convention have added to their Baptist Faith and Message that the church is to be ruled by majority vote.  That is, the body of Christ should be a democracy, at least for the largest denomination in North America.  It figures.  After all, it has worked so well for America in general.  Plus, we have all that biblical support for the idea.

Like that day on Mount Carmel, when King Ahab was trying to decide whether to serve Yahweh or Baal.  I am sure you will recall the account:  Ahab stood up and began, “Okay, folks, let’s get this over with.  I have a 10:00 tee time with Ben-Hadad, and I DON’T want to miss it.  Prophet Elijah, I understand you have an item of business?”

Elijah rose to address the crowd:  “How long will you falter between two opinions?  If Yahweh is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.”

At that point, Ahab broke in:  “Okay, Elijah.  One motion at a time!  To repeat, Mr. Secretary, the first motion was, ‘If Yahweh is God, follow Him.’  Do I hear a second to the motion to follow Yahweh?  None?  Very well.  Sorry, Elijah.  Let’s move on to the second motion: ‘If Baal, follow him.’  Is there a second?  Oh, good.  Got three or four of them.  So.  Any discussion?”

Elijah again stood to address the crowd.  Ahab glared at him.  “The chair does NOT recognize Elijah at this time.  Did I mention I have a 10:00 tee time?  We do not have time for one of your sermons.  Anyone else?  Ah, the question has been called for.  All in favor of serving Baal, please signify by saying, ‘Amen.’  Oh, good grief!  Elijah wants a hand count.  Fine.  All in favor, signify by raising your right hand.  No, Zedekiah, your OTHER right hand.  Fine.  Hands down.  Now, any opposed?  Good.”

“Well, folks, I have good news.  The vote was 400 to 1 to follow Baal.  Clearly, the Lord has spoken through the voice of his people!  And even better…  Looks like I’m going to make my tee time!  Meeting adjourned.”

It is sad, really, that our national forefathers had the wisdom to establish a republic and not a democracy, recognizing how easily a majority can be swayed by their sin nature.  Yet, as a church, the SBC has failed to see that problem.  Victor Hugo once wrote, “Every civilzation begins as a theocracy and ends as a democracy.” Are we ready for the end of the SBC?

Consider the problem and its probable outcome.  In a sense, really, the church is to be congratulated.  We have been trying for 30 years to get unsaved people into the pews, and now that is exactly what we have: pews upon pews full of unsaved people!  Only now we want to make sure the church is run by their vote!

Imagine with me a congregation of 50 people.  Billy Graham has estimated that, in an average congregation, only about 20% are saved, or 10 of our 50.  The Barna Research Group has found it even less: only 9% of church members actually hold a Biblical (i.e. saving) world view!  But let us be generous, and say 40 of the 50 voting members of our imaginary congregation are actually saved.  They have a lot of 40-to-10 votes, but pretty much every one is in agreement to call Pastor Adam.

Pastor Adam is young and exciting, enthusiastic for outreach, and armed with a great strategy for soul-winning.  He has a proven formula to get those unsaved people into the pews, written by a best-selling author or mega-church pastor.  And so it begins.

Three years later, Pastor Adam is called to a new and more challenging (read: larger and wealthier) congregation.  By then, his outreach strategy has doubled the size of the church, bringing in and baptizing 50 new members.  The trouble is, most of these people seem genuinely unchanged by the Gospel they purport to have embraced.  Only 10 of the new 50 ever actually met Christ (though all 50 “prayed a prayer” and got wet).

Now the church has a dilemma.  It is split, 50-50, and it is time to call a new pastor.  What is more, the church doesn’t KNOW it is split 50-50, doesn’t even realize there is a problem.  So, when Pastor Bob comes along looking just like Pastor Adam did, all 50 new members are thrilled to find someone like the man who converted them (to the church, not necessarily to Christ), and most of the other 50 are at least willing to go along.  After all, he DID double the size of the church.

By the time Pastor Bob leaves his wife and runs off with the nursery worker two years later, the church has doubled again, under the same human-fueled outreach programs, putting another 80 unsaved people (and 20 genuine Christians who slipped through somehow) into the pews.  It is time to build a bigger building — and call a new pastor.

By now, slick but shallow Pastor Chuck has no trouble being voted in, since the unsaved out-number the Christians by almost 2 to 1. Then things really get rolling downhill, so that by the time Pastor Diabolos applies for the job, he is voted right in.  Oh, a handful of old fuddy-duddies leave the church over it, but what is that?  The church of 50 has grown to a church of 400, with the offerings to go with it, in only a few years.  Clearly, the Lord has spoken through the voice of His people!

Now, these illustrations may serve to spotlight a problem, but to establish the Truth requires Scripture.  Paul’s letters to Timothy and to Titus give us a wealth of insight into God’s design for the ruling of the Church.  I made it my practice to read them regularly during my 13 years of pastoring, as I believe every pastor and church leader should.  God’s design starts with the appointment of elders (Titus 1:5) or overseers (Titus 1:7), who are to “take care of the Church of God” (1 Timothy 3:5). The parallel sentence structure of that verse strongly implies that he cares for the church by ruling it (“If a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?”), and the word “overseer”, which to us has become a title, was a simple word with a literal meaning when the New Testament was written: they are to oversee the church.  Those three letters (to Timothy and Titus) are also chock full of instructions to overseers on how to lead, teach, train, and guide their own congregations.  Paul understood that, although God can work through a majority, it is certainly not wise to count on a majority, even in the church.  Especially when the right to vote is as easy to get as saying a prayer and taking a dip in water.  Inside.  Where it is warm.  Where no unsaved people will see you.

I know, this measure by the SBC was put to a vote, and the majority already decided that I must be mistaken.  I don’t mind.  I have a habit of standing with the minority, but then, so did all my childhood heroes: Elijah, Moses, Jesus and Paul.

So, the SBC encourages democratic rule.  I prefer the theocracy.  And God laid out that He would rule through elders and overseers.  Not Lone Rangers, mind you, like our modern business-inspired church CEO’s, but what the early church fathers called primus entre pares: first among equals.  The church should follow a group of elders, those wise and experienced in the faith, full of the Holy Ghost, with one from among them designated to take that first step to lead.

All in favor, please signify by saying, “Amen.”

Sheep and Goats

Theology

Here’s something to think about, especially if you believe a man with “free will” would ever choose God:

Based on the New Testament, at what point, and by what means, does a goat become a sheep?  Scientists and husbandmen (i.e. those practicing husbandry: shepherding, goat herding and the like) are not the only ones who would be baffled by such a question.  I must admit, I can find no Scriptural answer to it, either.

Apparently, in the Scriptures, goats don’t actually become sheep.  Lost sheep become found.  Goats remain goats.

In Luke 15:4, Jesus begins his parable of the Lost Sheep by asking, “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them . . .”  That is, the sheep in question already belonged to that man before it ever went astray.  Applying this to ourselves, and adding in the inescapable fact that we all are born in sin, and enter this world already apart from God, it stands to reason that we must actually belong to God from before we were ever conceived (physically, I mean).  We are born lost, but we are not born goats.  We are born sheep, who must be found.

That fits in with what the psalmist wrote in Psalm 139:16, which says, “In Your book they were all written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them,” or, as the NIV words it, “All of the days ordained for me were written in Your book before the first one came to be.”

The wheat and the tares works the same way — each is as it is from the moment it is sown (and, of course, even before that.)

Likewise, two other major pictures of salvation point directly to the idea that God chose us without the help of any “free will” on our part.  The first is that of being “born again.” Which of us had to ask or volunteer in order to be conceived?  I don’t recall that my parents gave me any choice in the matter.

The second is that of being transformed from death to life.  Now imagine with me that you have discovered an Elixir of Life which will revive the dead.  Any amount of decay can be reversed in moments, and any person who was dead can be made alive.  So, you throw together a few vials of this stuff, drive down to the local cemetery, and make the wonderful offer:  “Anyone who wants to be revived with this Elixir of Life, just raise your hand.  Anyone?  Anyone?”

In fact, I am unable right off to think of a single Biblical metaphor for the kingdom of God which does NOT demonstrate salvation by God’s election — but feel free to respond if you think of one; I’d like to look at it.  Especially if you find one in Jesus’s own words.  I figure, since He’s the One who did it, He had the best notion of how it works, and He’s the one who gave us most of these….