A week with the church
Last Saturday evening – just over a week ago – we had snow and ice in our area. In order to err on the side of safety, we cancelled our weekly Sunday meeting. So, does that mean that we did not meet with the church last week? Hardly!
A few times before I’ve posted about our meetings with the church during the week. For previous examples see “Church meetings” and “A week in the life of the church“.
Sunday: Although we didn’t have our formal weekly meeting, we invited some good friends to come to our house for lunch. We had a great time eating and talking with them, and hearing what God had been doing in their lives lately.
Tuesday: Margaret and Jeremy (my wife and son) attended a Bible study with several friends. They had a great time studying John the Baptist from the Gospel of Luke. It was a great parallel to our current study in Matthew.
Thursday: A young couple who is planning to get married came to our house for dinner. After dinner – a wonderful potato soup which Margaret cooked for the first time – we talked about marriage and discipleship for the most part. These are new friends, and we have enjoyed getting to know them over the last few months.
Friday: We went to dinner with another couple who are good friends. We enjoy doing things with our children, but it was good to have some time with other adults. Again, we had a great discussion about marriage and discipleship.
Saturday: Several friends came to our house. In particular, a young lady that we have not seen in a couple of years was in town, so she joined us. We were able to hear what God had been doing in her life during that time. It was great to again eat, talk, and laugh with some new friends and some new friends.
Sunday: This morning, we had our weekly meeting. We’ve been studying Matthew, and today we looked at Jesus’ baptism. The young lady who came to our house Saturday night also spoke to the group to tell them about what had been going on in her life. After the meeting, we went to the home of some friends to celebrate the third birthday of their daughter. We’re looking forward to praying with many of our friends tonight.
This times of gathering with the church do not count the times that we speak to one another briefly in grocery stores or on the phone. It also doesn’t include the times that Margaret and the children spend at Tae-Kwon-Do with some of our good friends.
God has blessed us with great brothers and sisters in Christ. We enjoy getting together in both formal and informal gatherings to help one another grown in Christ as we have a good time together.
I don’t share this to put our family or our friends on a pedestal. Instead, I hope that the work that God is doing in our lives – especially in drawing us together as a community in Christ – will encourage others to seek relationships with other believers and to share their lives – not just a couple of hours on Sunday – with them.
A Spiritual Remembrance
For “fun reading” before the start of the semester, I’ve been reading Understanding Four Views on the Lord’s Supper, edited by John H. Armstrong. So far, I have only read Armstrong’s introduction. I have not read any of the four views yet.
On section of the introduction is called “A Spiritual Remembrance”. In this section, Armstrong discusses 1 Corinthians 11:28-32:
Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:28-32 ESV)
Armstrong says:
The context of this counsel, often misunderstood by modern Christians who fear that they have committed a particular sin that must keep them from coming to the Lord’s Table, is about the unity of the church (see 1 Cor. 10:17; 11:21). The great sin in Corinth was the way the church humiliated the poor in their midst. Well-off Corinthians appear to have prevented the less fortunate from celebrating the various feasts. This problem carried over into the Lord’s Supper context. Their behavior was utterly selfish and a scandalous contradiction of the meaning of this meal. This action equates to what Paul calls “despising” the church of God in 1 Corinthians 11:22. What this underscores is not personal sin but actions and attitudes that would keep a person from fellowship with all the members of the congregation. This meal is a fellowship – with Christ and one another. It is a meal of peace; thus, to refuse to be at peace with our brothers and sisters is to eat and drink “judgment” on ourselves. Given the fact that schism and pride plague every congregation on earth, the Lord’s Supper is an appointed time for reconciliation and renewed fellowship. Here God’s grace is given to heal and to unite us again to our Lord and to each other.
Ben Witherington covers many of these same points in his book Making a Meal of It.
I agree with Armstrong and Witherington in this respect. The “examining” related to the Lord’s Supper in 1 Corinthians 11 is an examination of our relationship with other brothers and sisters in Christ. This is not “navel gazing” to determine if there is any sin in us – there is. However, if this sin causes disruptions in fellowship between us and other believers, then we need to correct this – to restore those relationships. This is an opportunity to both ask for forgiveness and to offer grace to others – to reject pride and to demonstrate humility by preferring others above ourselves.
But, it is at this point that we need to be careful. It is easy to assume that the “relationships” that need to be restored are limited to the relationships that we have with our close friends. But, what about our neighbors and coworkers and family members? What about the people who meet together down the street or across town? What about the church that does things a little different than us? What about that group that is more organized or less organized that we are? How are our relationships with them?
Remember that we are brothers and sisters with all of those who are in Christ – not just those who believe and act like us. If we maintain relationships with only those who believe and act like us, then we are guilty of the very sectarianism that Paul rejects. If we refuse to related with or if we ignore those brothers and sisters in Christ who believe or act differently than us, then we are guilty of creating schisms – which Scripture calls heresy.
As we prepare to eat the bread and drink the cup let’s consider the relationships with all brothers and sisters in Christ whom God has brought into our lives – not just those who are sitting around the table with us at that moment. If our brother has something against us, then let’s work to restore that relationship. If we have something against our sister, then let’s work to restore that relationship. And, let’s allow the one loaf and the one cup to be a reminder of the unity that we have in Christ together with all of God’s children.
Super Bowl XLII
Something strange is happening in me this year. I’m excited about Super Bowl XLII (that’s 42 for those who are not football fans and who never learned Roman numerals). Now, you must understand, I love college football, but I’ve never been a fan of professional football (in fact, I had to search to determine which Super Bowl this was). My son, Jeremy, on the other hand, loves the NFL and all things football. But, even though I care very little about the game itself, I’m excited about the Super Bowl.
I do think it would be great if the New England Patriots finished the season and the post-season undefeated. But, if you are a Giants fan, this does not mean that I have decided to pull for the Patriots. In fact, I really don’t care who wins the game. Actually, I’ll probably watch very little of the game itself. So, watching football has little to do with my excitement.
The halftime show will probably be very entertaining. I like Tom Petty. Several years ago (17 – I looked that up, too) Margaret and I saw Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers on their “Into the Great Wide Open” tour. It was one of the best concerts we’ve been to. So, it should be fun to hear Tom and the boys sing some of our favorite songs – and there will probably be no costume malfunctions this time either – at least none that anyone cares about. But, even the halftime show has little to do with my excitement about Super Bowl XLII.
Then, of course, there are the commercials! Many of the commercials from the past few years have been very funny. Do you remember “carne asada” – spoken like Ricardo Montalban, of course. Or what about the CareerBuilder survivor ads, the Sierra Mist comb-over, and the home-made Doritos ads. Those were all very funny to me, and even though I’ll probably watch more ads than football game, the commercials are still not the reason that I’m excited about the Super Bowl.
I’m excited about the Super Bowl because I know that we will either host or be invited to a Super Bowl party! This means that we’ll be able to hang out with many of our closest friends. We’ll talk and eat and laugh and cheer and generally have a good time together. A few weeks after the game, the game will be history and probably mostly forgotten, the ads will be old, the songs will be on the radio… but the friendships will continue. And, as I’ve seen in the past, God will use those friendships to point us to himself. This is why I’m excited about Super Bowl XLII.
A Time to Talk
I love this poem by Robert Frost. I want this to be a picture of my life and my care for other people.
A Time to Talk
by Robert Frost
When a friend calls to me from the road
And slows his horse to a meaning walk,
I don’t stand still and look around
On all the hills I haven’t hoed,
And shout from where I am, What is it?
No, not as there is a time to talk.
I thrust my hoe in the mellow ground,
Blade-end up and five feet tall,
And plod: I go up to the stone wall
For a friendly visit.
(HT: Backyard Missionary)
Meeting Tom
For the last two weeks, we have been travelling – visiting family and friends for Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. We spent several days in the Atlanta area with my parents. One Sunday, we visited a local church with them.
The meeting was traditional and typical. There was a choir that sang several songs as well as a soloist. There were two or three congregational hymns / praise songs. And, the interim pastor presented an entertaining sermon. We were glad to be able to be there with my parents.
The people seemed genuinely friendly. Several people introduced themselves and welcomed us. But, one person in particular stood out. His name was Tom. Tom sat in the pew behind us. When he sat down, he introduced himself and welcomed us. During the “fellowship time”, he again spoke to us. Then, at the end of the meeting, he talked to us some more.
I really enjoyed meeting Tom, and I wish that I had had more time to talk to him. Tom is an older gentleman. He moved to that area of Atlanta over 40 years ago with the military, and he retired there. As with other parts of the Atlanta metro area, he has seen tremendous change.
But, Tom seemed to understand the importance of people. Over and over again he talked to us, asking us about ourselves with what seemed to be genuine interest. While others shook our hand and walked on to the next person, Tom remained, and talked, and listened.
I can learn from Tom. I can learn to value people – to listen to people – to care about people. Like I said, I wish I had more time to talk to Tom. But, of course, the meeting had to start, the “fellowship time” had to end, and we all had to leave the building. Perhaps, one day, I’ll have more time to talk to Tom.
Ecclesiology FAQ
Ecclesiology is one of my interests, and my primary academic pursuit. Ecclesiology is the branch of biblical and theological study that deals with the church. Since this blog is primarily about ecclesiology and since people often ask me what I think about certain topics, I thought I would give links to my blog posts that deal with the most common aspects of the study of the church and the answers to the most comment questions that I’m asked.
1. The Nature of the Church
“Definition” label
“Defining the Church (part 1)“, “part 2“, “part 3“, “part 4“, “part 5”
“Minimalist Definition of the Church”
“Historical Ecclesiology“
2. Local/Universal Church
“Local or Universal?”
“How does God view the church in your city?”
“The ekklesia in context”
“Local church in Scripture“
3. Church Leadership (Pastors, Elders, Bishops, Deacons, etc.)
“Elders” label
“Elders (part 1)“, “part 2“, “part 3“, “part 4“, “part 5“, “part 6“, “part 7”
Series – Should elders/pastors be paid a salary? “part 1“, “part 2“, “part 3“, “part 4“, “summary”
“What does a bishop oversee?”
“What does a non-bishop oversee?”
“Exercising Authority”
“Ruling or Leading?”
“Obey and Submit? (Hebrews 13:17)”
“To Deacon or Not to Deacon“
4. Institutions, Structures, and Organizations
“The Church or the Organization”
“Am I against church programs?”
“Models and Mehods and Forms, oh my”
“Creating Church Organization”
“Old Testament Structures and the Church“
5. The Church Meeting and Edification
“Gathering” label
“Edification” label
“Messy Meetings”
“What if we met to edify one another?”
“Distractions to Worship?”
“Here I am to worship”
“But I have perfect attendance”
“Edification (part 1)“, “part 2“, “part 3“, “part 4“, “part 5“, “part 6“
6. Fellowship, Community, and Unity
“Fellowship” label
“Community” label
“Unity” label
“Community in name only?”
“A Common Table”
“The depths of community”
“The unhypocritical church (part 1)“, “part 2“, “part 3”
“Look also to the interest of others“
A natural meal with a supernatural family
Scripture tells us that on the day of Pentecost three thousand people were added to the church. As they began to learn what it meant to be God’s people, some things about their lives changed, while other things remained the same. They continued to eat normal food; but the context of those meals changed:
And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts… (Acts 2:46 ESV)
Every day, or at least regularly, the believers met together in their homes to share their food with other people. Family meals were very normal. The meal itself had not changed. But, the family was now completely different.
Of course, this relationship change had be described earlier by Jesus. His disciples were simply following his lead:
While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” (Matthew 12:46-50 ESV)
Jesus instituted a new family – not created by bonds of flesh and blood, but created by bonds of Spirit and faith. The new followers of Jesus did not merely accept this theoretically and then go on with their lives as usual. Instead, their new brothers and sisters became part of their lives, sharing everything with them – from the most extraordinary to the most ordinary. They shared their possessions, their meals, their time, their very lives. The meals that they shared were quite ordinary – natural meals. But, the family with whom they shared these meals was extraordinary – a supernatural family.
To do this, we have to be willing to open up time in our busy schedules for other people – to be willing to spend time with brothers and sisters that we may not know very well so that God can bind us together through his Spirit. It means that we will need to go to baseball games and dance reviews and award nights and picnics and vacations that are important to our brothers and sisters. We will need to consider them before we consider ourselves – which is almost impossible to do. It means we may need to turn off the TV or put down the book or open up our “family night” in order to invite in our true family – brothers and sisters who have been adopted into God’s family together with us.
During this time of Christmas, it is normal for us to spend time with our natural families. But, what about your supernatural family? Share your time and some meals with your supernatural families as well. And, when you do, share some of your experiences with us here. Let’s celebrate natural meals with supernatural families together!
Can we talk?
Have you seen the Kleenex commercials with the tag line “Let it out”? The man on the street with a box of tissue and big sofa can apparently get anyone to talk. This ad campaign has me thinking about communication and conversation.
My wife, Margaret, has always said that I can talk to anyone. In a way, she’s correct, because I’ve learned to ask people about themselves. People like to talk about themselves. They like to talk about their families and their past and their home town and their favorite sports team and their hobbies. So, as I learn about people, I simply ask them questions about the topics that they bring up. In other words, I let people talk about themselves.
Don’t get me wrong. I don’t ask people about themselves simply so that they will talk. I am genuinely interested. I like to hear people’s stories and I like to hear how God is working in their lives, and so I ask people about themselves. I’ve learned alot about people that they probably would not normally express simply by asking questions about them.
Occasionally, I get emails from people who read my blog. That’s a good thing. I put my email address on my sidebar several months ago because I wanted people to be able to communicate with me if they wanted to ask questions and make a statement without doing so publicly.You’ve seen some of those emails published here as “guest blog” posts. I always ask permission before I publish anyone’s email. When I get these emails and answer any questions that I can answer, I always ask the person if they would share something about themselves. Almost everyone who emails me responds to my question. Again, people like to talk about themselves.
I think that this is the key to the Kleenex ad campaign. Kleenex knows that people like to talk about themselves, and they are simply giving people an outlet to do just that. It works, by the way. Give people an opportunity, and they will gladly express themselves. Of course, someone has to be willing to listen and genuinely interested in hearing what the person has to say.
This type of communication and conversation is very important. For believers, most of the “one anothers” of Scripture are based on some type of communication. In order to consider one another, stir up one another to love and good works, encourage one another, submit to one another, etc. we must be willing to listen to what one another has to say. Perhaps “listen to one another” is the foundational unspoken “one another” of Scripture. But, I think, “listen to one another” is actually assumed in “love one another”. If we love one another, we will want to hear what the other person thinks, feels, dreams, experiences, believes, fears, etc.
But, this is where the rub comes. Everyone likes to talk about themselves. But, who is willing to suppress their own desire in order to allow another person to talk about themselves? You see, listening to one another actually goes against human nature. We like to talk about ourselves; we don’t automatically like to listen to other people talk about themselves. We like to control the conversation; we don’t necessarily like to listen to other people talk. We like to choose the categories and topics; we don’t necessarily like for other people to drift into “taboo” areas.
In reality, we are less like the guy in the Kleenex commercial, and more like Mike Myers’ character Linda Richman in the Saturday Night Live skit “Coffee Talk”. Linda liked to control the conversation – which usually revolved around Barbara Streisand, her favorite person. It didn’t matter who was the guest on Linda’s fake talk show, they always talked about Linda’s interests. Even when Linda got too emotional and couldn’t talk, she wanted to control the conversation by offering a topic. If you’re too young to have seen this skit, or if you don’t remember it, trust me, it was good, like buttah.
I think this may help explain why many relationships are rather shallow. Everyone wants to talk about themselves, but few are willing to listen. Also, I think this explains why unbelievers do not want to talk to Christians. When a Christian says to an unbeliever, “Can we talk?” the unbeliever knows that the Christian really means, “I want to tell you why you’re wrong and what you should believe”. In fact, I think many people have learned the correct answers to certain questions just in case a Christians decides to “talk” to them. Some of these people probably even think they are Christians because they know these correct answers. But, since so few people are willing to listen, those people may have never truly expressed themselves and their own beliefs.
Can we consider others better than ourselves and humble ourselves in order to listen instead of talk? I’m certainly not perfect in this area, and often find myself trying to control a conversation. But, thinking through things like this help me to remember to God values people, and I should as well. God listens to my prayers, and I should be willing to listen to other people too.
You’ll have to excuse me. I’m a little verklempt. Talk amongst yourselves. I’ll give you a topic…
Searching for fellowship (Guest Blogger)
I recently received the following email from a reader. I appreciate how this person has shared their struggles and triumphs as they attempt to walk with God. Perhaps you have some words of wisdom or encouragement to share with this “anonymous child of God”, or perhaps you would just like to share your own struggles to find fellowship:
—————————————————————————-
Hello:
I clicked on your blog link from another website. the verse you have headlining has been one I have been thinking about for a while : And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near. (Heb. 10:24-25 NASB)
Nearly 4 years ago our church – for lack of better words – Blew Up.
In a lot of drama, gossip, rumors, judgement and criticism people became scattered and went their separate ways injured and wounded. There were little “them and us” groups that formed..the mud slinging continued, and people that once claimed to be “family” and love one another became enemies.
Some were just caught in the middle not knowing which end was up. (I think those are the ones my heart aches most for)
The history in a nutshell is that this church was a new church plant about 4 years old. It came into a new area, started in a school gym, the growth exploded, we found a building, and worked very hard trying to get new people in by having lots of events. The church grew quickly and many of the leaders were very new believers. The pastor was working in many ways out of his flesh, though he had a sincere love for the people and for God, in his leadership role, there were times he wounded some. Those he wounded realized that he was not deserving of the pedestal they had placed him on and vowed to destroy him and his family.
As this drama unfolded for the next several years my family had been shunned by many of the people. (you see, the pastor was a family member) So, I can only think that we must in their eyes be guilty by association of the wrong doings they have accused him of.
My best friends walked away from me. People that we used to fellowship with turn from us when we run into them. As a matter of fact, I just ran into a woman last night in the grocery store, when I spoke up and said Hello, she looked up, her face became twisted, she struggled to murmur a quick hello and then looked away…and this is 4 years later…
My whole life I have gone to church on Sunday morning. Though now I realize that it was because that is what I thought I was “supposed to do”.
We have visited a few churches. But nothing feels right. And the thing is, that through this past 4 years, God has been bringing me into a new understanding of his Grace and Mercy. So when I walk into these places and hear legalism be preached, or hear that in my son’s Sunday school class the teacher told him to make sure and bring a dollar next week for the offering…it just turns me off. Not to mention, there is a bit of a fear of people in general after what we have experienced.
My kids ask why we don’t go to church. We have done some “home church” stuff, just here with the kids. But haven’t been consistent. My husband and I have read some books: “The Rest of the Gospel” by Dan Stone, and “Lifetime Guarantee” by Bill Gillam. We both attended a healing retreat that God really met us in. And we have several internet sites that support our growing in grace. And as it applies to our life, we share these understandings with our kids.
But the question for me now is what does not forsaking our own assembling together, mean to me? I do not want to go back to my old ways of thinking and go to a church just because I think we should. But I also feel that we are in this bubble of limited fellowship.
Recently I have been thinking a lot about this passage and what it might mean to me:
Jer 3:13 Only acknowledge your guilt. Admit that you rebelled against the LORD your God and committed adultery against him by worshiping idols under every green tree. Confess that you refused to follow me. I, the LORD, have spoken!
Jer 3:14 “Return home, you wayward children,” says the LORD, “for I am your husband. I will bring you again to the land of Israel–one from here and two from there, from wherever you are scattered.
Jer 3:15 And I will give you leaders after my own heart, who will guide you with knowledge and understanding.”
Jer 3:16 “And when your land is once more filled with people,” says the LORD, “you will no longer wish for ‘the good old days’ when you possessed the Ark of the LORD’s covenant. Those days will not be missed or even thought about, and there will be no need to rebuild the Ark.
I apologize for this lengthy email. And I am not even sure of my exact purpose for writing to you. But after looking at some of your writings, I thought you might be able to understand our situation and if the Lord leads you, to offer encouragement in Him. Let me also quickly mention that though this past 4 years have been painful and ugly on days, I wouldn’t trade it for the understanding I have gained of who I am in Christ and what His Grace and Mercy means to my life.
Thanks for your time,
(anonymous child of God)
Learning from One Another
This is going to be a different kind of post than I usually publish. I believe that followers of Jesus Christ should be humble enough to learn from other followers of Jesus Christ, even if those others are “different”, with “different” beliefs and “different” practices.
I believe that Baptists should learn from Presbyterians who should learn from Methodists who should learn from Disciples of Christ who should learn from Anglicans who should learn from Nondenominationals, etc. I believe that Conservatives should learn from Liberals who should learn from Moderates, etc. I believe that Moderns should learn from Postmoderns who should learn from Premoderns who should learn from Post-postmoderns, etc. We should learn from those who are different from us but who are, nonetheless, our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Therefore, I am going to ask you what you have learned from others. Here are the rules:
1. List only positive things that you have learned from other believers.
2. List only things you have learned from followers of Christ who are different from you (i.e. different denomination, philosophical worldview, hermeneutic, etc.).
3. List only positive things that you have learned (Yes, I meant to repeat this!).
Have you learned something from brothers and sisters in Christ who are different than you? Please share those with us.