Scripture… As We Live It #268
This is the 268th passage in “Scripture… As We Live It.”
In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God would never say that I am proud of my work, even if I did it for God. (Romans 15:17 re-mix)
(Please read the first post for an explanation of this series.)
Replay: How to be an example to others
Four years ago, I wrote a post called “How to be an example to others.” In many ways, this is still a challenge for me. If I were to change anything in the post below, it would be this: We should not seek to be an example; our life is already an example to those around us. Instead, the question we should ask ourselves is this: “How can we live as a positive example of a follower of Jesus Christ?” I still think that Paul’s “example” to the Thessalonians is a good place to start.
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How to be an example to others
In 1 Thessalonians 2, Paul reminds the Christians in Thessalonika about the time that he spent with them. Paul probably only spent a few weeks with the Thessalonian believers. However, it seems that he made the most of that time.
This is what Paul says:
For you yourselves know, brothers, that our coming to you was not in vain. But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict. For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed- God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us. For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all mankind by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved- so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But God’s wrath has come upon them at last! But since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, in person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face, because we wanted to come to you- I, Paul, again and again- but Satan hindered us. For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? For you are our glory and joy. (1 Thessalonians 2 ESV)
What can we learn from Paul’s example:
1: Continue making disciples in spite of difficulties.
2: Seek to please God, not people.
3: Do not try to persuade people by your rhetoric or your method of teaching or your arguments.
4: Do not make demands on people, even if you think you may have the right.
5: Gently care for people.
6: Share your life with people, not just your words.
7: Work hard serving people and serving with people.
8: Continually encourage people to walk with Christ.
9: Give God all the glory when people grow in maturity.
I don’t know about you, but I think I still have a long way to go before I am following Paul’s example. While I can see where my life and discipleship has matured in some of these areas over the last few years, I can also see where I have much more need for growth.
Primarily, I think the first item is one of the toughest for me. Paul suffered greatly at Philippi – he was imprisoned. Yet, he continued to make disciples. He did not let the difficulties distract him from his purpose.
I tend to be distracted much more easily. If something goes wrong or if life gets difficult, I tend to withdraw and forget or ignore the fact that I am supposed to be making disciples. Sometimes, I let my circumstances dictate my level of obedience. I can learn from Paul here. I can learn to trust God and follow the Spirit in spite of my cicumstances, allowing him to strengthen me.
What about you? Have you seen growth as a disciple-maker in your life? In what area or areas do you still need to grow?
Ministry, leadership, seminaries, and the church
Yesterday morning (July 4, 2013 at 7:55 a.m.), Dave Black shared some of his thoughts related to ministry, leadership, seminaries, and the church. His observations and conclusions come from studying the New Testament as well as working closely with the church in Ethiopia for the last several years.
A couple of years ago, I had the opportunity to travel to Ethiopia with Dave. I saw the work that God was doing through him and many others there. I also observed many of the same issues that he illustrates below.
However, I think these same problems are alive and well among the church in the United States.
Here are his “thoughts” related to ministry, leadership, seminaries, and the church:
1) Most of the “ministry” in Ethiopia is done by ordained clergy who are seminary trained and are paid for their ministry. Often the people perceive them to be the ministers of the church. Becky and I are committed to involving more of the Body in ministry. And we are training the leaders of the local churches to do their best to equip others (2 Tim. 2:2).
2) The resident seminaries in Ethiopia are usually geared to training academically superior leaders who are required to dislocate themselves from their homes and communities for at least 3 years. This model of education, as I have often said, is beset with 3 problems: extraction, expense, and elitism. Extracting leaders from their communities is very expensive and often leads to a sense of elitism among the graduates. We are beginning to train leaders in their home environments. We do not believe that servants-in-training need to be uprooted from their homes. Nor do we believe that theological education need involve formal schooling; indeed, traditional theological education is, we are sadly discovering, often a disadvantage.
3) We believe that the best leadership development occurs in local churches. Students should be living in their homes, serving in their churches, and active in their communities as they exercise teaching, preaching, administrative, and evangelistic functions. Again, our experience has shown that when we extract students from their culture, many of them are unwilling or unable to return to the towns from which they came.
4) What should be the curriculum of leadership training? We believe that the best textbook is the Bible itself. Hence the scholar-teachers who come with us to Ethiopia do verse-by-verse exposition of a book of the Bible with a constant focus on practical ministry.
I suppose our convictions might be summarized as follows.
- All believers are called to be ministers in building the kingdom of God.
- Spiritual leaders have the responsibility to equip all members of the Body to serve.
- Theological education is best accomplished on site rather than in faraway seminaries.
- Theological education finds its fulfillment within the framework of the local church.
- The proper end of all theological training is ministry, not degrees or ordination.
- The aim of teaching is not to impart knowledge but to produce obedient disciples.
- If a man is seminary-trained but not living in a manner that is obedient to the commands of the Lord Jesus, he is not qualified to lead.
By the way, while you’re thinking through some of these things, please pray for Dave’s wife BeckyLynn. You can read about what she’s going through in her essay “Running to Home Base.”
For freedom Christ has set us free
Yes, it’s Independence Day in the United States of America. But, I’m not writing about our political independence from Great Britain. Instead, like many Christians, I’m writing about our freedom in Christ.
But, my take on this freedom we have in Christ may be a little different. You see, according to Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia, Jesus has set us free from our slavery to sin and the law so that we now have the freedom to make ourselves slaves to one another.
That’s right… we are now free for ourselves; we are now free to become slaves.
There are two key verses in the last chapter of Galatians:
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1 ESV)
For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. (Galatians 5:14 ESV)
Between these two verses, Paul explains that those who are in Christ are no longer slaves to the law and sin. Christ has freed them. And, just as they trusted in Jesus Christ for salvation, he exhorts them to continue to live by “faith working through love” – not through any kind of law-keeping. Paul is concerned that someone is telling the Galatian believers that they must continue to keep the law to remain in God’s good graces, and he reminds them that this teaching does not come from him.
But, on each side of verses 2-13, there seems to be contradictory statement.
First, in Galatians 5:1, Paul tells his readers that since they are free in Christ, they should never again submit to a yoke of slavery. Then, just a few sentences later in Galatians 5:14, he tells them to use their freedom to serve one another through love. Interestingly, the verb “serve” in Galatians 5:14 is the verb form of the noun slave (which Paul condemned in Galatians 5:1).
So, which is it Paul? Do we never submit to a yoke of slavery? Or do we make ourselves slaves to others? The answer is, “Yes.”
When Paul wrote, “Do not submit again to a yoke of slavery,” context tells us that he was talking specifically about the law and the false hope that is found in trying to keep the law in order to be right with God. He goes on to say that the real hope of righteousness in found in the Holy Spirit by faith. (Galatians 5:5)
However, while we are free – and should never again make ourselves slaves to the law or sin – we are not freed for ourselves or to fulfill our own desires. We are free to make ourselves slaves of other people. And, again, the context tells us exactly what Paul means by “serve one another” (i.e., make ourselves slaves of one another):
For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Galatians 5:13-14 ESV)
When we serve one another, we are demonstrating God’s love to one another, and thus keeping the Great Commandment (as Jesus might say) or fulfilling the Royal Law (as James might say).
So, yes, yes, yes, we are free indeed… For freedom Christ has set us free. What kind of freedom is it? Freedom to make ourselves slaves to others so that we can demonstrate that we love others more than we love ourselves… which is the best demonstration of our love for God. (For a parallel to this freedom and slavery analogy, see Romans 6:15-23.)
To encourage active participation when we gather with the church
Let’s be honest. For the majority of Christians (especially in the west), “church” means attending a weekly event in which there is singing, praying, giving, and listening. God works through these events in many different ways. However, I think that God intends to work even more to bring his children to maturity by working through more of them when they gather together.
Obviously, when we see the church as God’s people gathered together (and not defined by some specific activities, location, organization, etc.), then any time we come together with other brothers and sisters in Christ, we are the church. These times of gathering together with other believers are designed to be interactive, conversational, mutual.
But, there’s a huge divide between the passive “church” experience of most western Christians and the active gatherings that I’ve just described. Sometimes, even when people realize that something is missing – and that they should “participate” – the believers still do not know how to break through the barrier of what they’ve been taught is “church”… “worship”… “holy.”
Kathleen at “Church in a Circle” has offered “7 ways to turn your passive church service into an active learning experience.”
Briefly, here are Kathleen seven ways to help people move from passive listening to being “involved and participating”:
- Get them moving.
- Make it fun!
- Use all the senses.
- Let them discover it.
- Get them talking.
- Share an experience.
- Reflection and response.
Be sure to read Kathleen’s post. She explains each of the points above in detail.
I’d like to add a few others to consider, especially by those who are seen as leaders among the church:
- Don’t be afraid of silence.
Give the Spirit time to work in the hearts of the people who are struggling to know when and how to participate. If you (or other leaders) are filling all the time speaking, the others will never speak because they don’t have opportunity.
- Don’t respond to everything that’s said.
In other words, don’t feel like you always must have the last word, even if you think you can explain something better. Don’t do it.
- Sometimes, don’t say anything.
This is self explanatory. But, at some gatherings, don’t say anything at all, unless it is to thank someone else for what they said.
What would you add, change, or removed from the advice above to help people move from passive gatherings to actively participating in helping one another grow in maturity in Jesus Christ?
Leaving the distractions without leaving the church
Last week, my good friend Eric from “A Pilgrim’s Progress” wrote a post called “Not Looking for the Perfect Church. Just Looking for the Church.”
In the post – and as the title suggests – Eric explains that he did not leave “the institutional church” in order to find “the perfect church.” Instead, he says, he was simply looking for church.
At one point, Eric wrote:
Many of the things that pass as the church today are not the church. I can list a few that we are all familiar with: the building, the worship service, the clergy, the tithe, the youth group, the sermon, etc. It is for many of these reasons that we left the institution never to return. We weren’t looking for something better; we were looking for something qualitatively different.
In response, a commenter by the name of “die” (I’m assuming that’s the German definite article…) asked the following question:
Can you list the distinctions between “The Church” and its less ideal institutional counterpart?
Eric pointer the commenter to some of the blog posts that he’s written in the past on the topic. But, Eric’s post and the commenter’s question swirled around in my head for a few days.
Like Eric, people have often suggested that I’m “looking for the perfect church” or that I’m “angry with church leaders” or that I just want things my way. Interestingly, none of those are true. Like Eric, I know that no group of people – however mature in Christ they may be – will be “perfect,” at least, no in this age. Also, looking back over my experiences, I’m not angry with any church or church leader or denomination or anything like that. Finally, the group that I meet with does not do everything “my way,” so that can’t be it either.
So, why do I prefer to meet in a way that is different from the way most traditional churches meet? Why do I define the church in a way that is quite different from the traditional definitions? Why do I seek to share my life (fellowship) in a way that crosses boundaries normally erected by “local churches”? The answer to all those questions is the same: maturity in Christ.
The things that Eric lists above – building, worship service, clergy, tithe, youth group, sermon – and other things like those are often considered to be part of the nature of the church. In fact, many could not imagine the church without many of those things.
But, to me, those things are usually distractions that hinder the growth of the church. According to Scripture, several aspects of our shared life with Christ and our shared lives with one another facilitates our spiritual growth and maturity: fellowship and mutual (“one another”) discipleship/edification.
It’s never my desire to separate from my brothers and sisters in Christ – even if they want to meet in traditional ways that I think are less healthy to they spiritual growth. Unfortunately, when people’s identity as the church is tied up in those activities that I consider hindrances, it limits our ability to share our lives with one another. So, while it may appear at times that I’m “leaving the church,” it’s really a desire to leave the distractions, never the people themselves (who are the church).
[By the way, in the image attached to this past, the line of text at the bottom – which is difficult to read – says, “Distractions can seem important at the time, though later you realize that it was what was around it that was important…”]
Do elders manage or care for the church?
When Paul left Timothy in Ephesus, he either left a letter with him or sent a letter to him in order to help his young apostolic coworker. (1 Timothy) In part of that letter, Paul wrote to help his friend understand who should be recognized (or appointed) as elders among the church. (1 Timothy 3:1-7)
In this section, Paul describes what kind of person should be an elder. There are many different descriptions within this short passage. But, for this post, I want to focus on one sentence (in two verses):
He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? (1 Timothy 3:4-5 ESV)
This passage is often presented as an indication that elders are “managers” over the church. However, the verbs used indicate something different.
To begin with, there are two important verbs used in this passage: “manage” (in vs. 4 & 5) and “care for” (in vs. 5).
First, the verb translated “manage” comes from the Greek verb προΐστημι (prohistemi). This verb has a wide range of meanings, including “be over,” “superintend,” and “managed” and also “aid,” “care for,” and “give attention to.” So, as the ESV translates it above, this verb can definitely mean “manage.”
In the passage above, the verb προΐστημι (prohistemi – “manage”) demonstrates the relationship between the elders and their families, especially their children. Again, in that context, “manage” would work.
Next, the verb translated “care for” comes from the Greek verb ἐπιμελέομαι (epimeleomai). Unlike the verb above, this verb has a much more narrow range of meaning: “to take care of a person or thing.” This verb cannot mean “manage.”
The verb ἐπιμελέομαι (epimeleomai – “take care of”) is only used in one other passage in the New Testament – in Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan:
He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, “Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.” (Luke 10:34-35 ESV)
It’s clear from the context above what “take care of” means. It means “to render aid” or “offer support”… it does not mean “manage.”
Now, remember, Paul is making a comparison. He’s comparing a person’s relationship to their family and suggesting that the familiar relationship will be an indication of their relationship with the church. Paul describes the familial relationship with a verb that could mean either “manage” or “care for.” But, he describes the church relationship with a verb that could only mean “care for.”
Regardless of what Paul is saying about the elders’ relationship with their family, he is definitely not saying that the elders are to “manage” the church. Instead, he is saying that elders are to “care for” the church, much like the “good samaritan” took care of the wounded traveler.
By the way, there is another Greek verb that falls within the same semantic domain (meaning) as the verb “care for” (ἐπιμελέομαι – epimeleomai). Which verb is that? The verb that is usually translated “shepherd,” which is also often used to describe elders.
[I wrote a similar post about 3 1/2 years ago called “Manage his own household?” However, the Greek fonts became corrupted during a database upgrade, so I decided to rewrite the post here.]
Scripture… As We Live It #267
This is the 267th passage in “Scripture… As We Live It.”
There is therefore now no condemnation acceptance for those who are in Christ Jesus who do not believe and act in a manner that we approve. (Romans 8:1 re-mix)
(Please read the first post for an explanation of this series.)
Replay: Reciprocity and Mutuality among the Church
Four years ago, I wrote a post called “Reciprocity.” In the post, I looked at the meaning and importance of “reciprocal pronouns” in Scripture. Then, I consider some of the reciprocal/mutual instructions that we find in Scripture. Some of those instructions are easily recognized and accepted as mutual by the church today. However, others are not usually seen as being mutual – even though they use the same kind of mutual pronoun in Scripture. I wonder what would happen if these we not only recognized, but lived as mutual/reciprocal instructions.
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Reciprocity
According to Princeton’s wordnet, “reciprocity” means “a relation of mutual dependence or action or influence.” Similarly, a “reciprocal pronoun” is “a pronoun or pronominal phrase (as ‘each other’) that expresses a mutual action or relationship between the individuals indicated in the plural.”
Did you know that reciprocal pronouns are common in the New Testament? They are. They are usually translated “one another” or “each other” or even “each one”. Reciprocal pronouns are very important for us to understand how we should relate to one another. Many times, this relationship is obvious and easy to understand.
For example, in 1 John 4:7, John writes that we should “love one another.” (ESV) Most believers recognize that our relationship with one another should be expressed with mutual love. If person A loves person B, but person B does not love person A, we recognize that they are not loving one another.
Similarly, in 1 Peter 5:14, Peter writes that we should “greet (or welcome) one another.” (ESV) Again, it is easy to recognize that if one believer greets someone, but the greeting or welcome is not returned, then they are not greeting one another.
In James 5:9, James writes, “Do not grumble against one another.” (ESV) Grumbling probably means complaining. So, believers should not complain about one another. So, if one sister refuses to complain, but another sister does complain, then the two are not following James’ command. They are grumbling against one another.
We find Paul using reciprocal pronouns often. For example, in Galatians 5:13, he tells us, “Through love serve one another.” (ESV) This is also a command that recognize as a reciprocal command. If a brother is serving someone, but that brother refuses to serve, then the two are not serving one another.
But, there are other reciprocal instructions that are difficult to understand. In fact, in some circles, the reciprocity is removed from these commands.
Consider Paul’s statement in Colossians 3:16. He says that when the word of Christ dwells in us richly, we will demonstrate that by “teaching and admonishing one another.” (ESV) How reciprocal are we with this instruction? If one person teaches, but another person does not teach, do we recognize that they are not teaching one another? What if one person is admonishing but another is not admonishing? Do we allow this instruction to only apply to some believers but not to other believers?
Paul makes a similar statement in Romans 15:14, where he says that he is convinced that the Romans are “able to instruct (admonish) one another.” (ESV) Does the reciprocity in this statement apply only to the Romans? Did they have something that believers today do not have? Or, could God still expect all believers to teach/instruct/admonish reciprocally?
Another interesting reciprocal statement is found in Romans 14:19. Again speaking to the believers in Rome, Paul says, “So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding (the edification of one another).” (ESV) The reciprocal pronoun is harder to see in the ESV translation “mutual upbuilding.” But apparently Paul that it was important that all of the believers in Rome reciprocally pursue those things that led to peace and edification. Is this still something that we all pursue reciprocally.
Peter writes some of these difficult reciprocal commands also. In 1 Peter 4:10, he writes, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” (ESV) Do we recognize the importance – the necessity even – of all believers exercising their spiritual gifts in a manner that can serve other believers? Do we sees this as every believer’s responsibility?
There are many other “difficult” reciprocal commands. A couple would include “submit to one another” (Ephesians 5:21), “humble yourselves before one another” (1 Peter 5:5), or “count one another as more significant than yourselves” (Philippians 2:3). These, and many, many other commands in Scripture, are reciprocal commands. That means that the commands are give to a plural group to be carried out as “a mutual action”.
Why do you think its easy for us to recognize “love one another” and “serve one another” as mutual requirements, while we tend to not recognize “teach one another” or “edify one another” as mutual requirements?
The accidental organic/simple church
A few years ago, my family was part of a group of believers who decided to leave one church organization in order to form another church organization. That new church organization became “Messiah Baptist Church.” We were a typical Southern Baptist group, many of us with ties to a local Southern Baptist seminary.
A few things happened in those early days that influenced what happened in the coming years.
First, several of us were interested in ecclesiology (the study of the church). Second, almost all of us held a high view of Scripture and desired to compare everything that we believed and did to Scripture. Third, we did not have a place to meet throughout the week, so we rented a community center on Sunday and met in homes during week for Bible studies. Fourth, we decided to eat together regularly – every week at first, and then at least once per month. Finally, we were a small, poor group so we could not afford to pay someone to be our “pastor” and to preach every week.
Like most new church organization, we began with a set of bylaws, church membership covenant, and a leadership team (since we couldn’t afford to pay one person). We met on Sundays for a “worship service,” complete with a band and a sermon (with different people – primarily one of the chosen leaders – preaching each week). We had several home-based “Bible studies” since we could not do Sunday school in our Sunday meeting location. (By the way, these Bible studies became the medium through which we built very strong relationships with each other.)
As I said, we desired to compare everything that we believe and did according to Scripture, and over the next few years many, many things changed. The primary thing that changed is how we thought of ourselves and our relationships with God and with one another. Gradually, the focus on the organization faded, and relationships became much more important.
Of course, everyone did not appreciate these changes, and preferred “church as we know it” – as it’s been called. Interestingly, several of us remain connected with those who no longer meet with us because of those disagreement about the church… and we continue to serve them whenever we can.
Today, we continue to gather weekly. But, our gathering are much more interactive and teaching is primarily through discussion and dialog. We do not have a band or even a planned set of songs that we sing each week. We sing if someone has a song they would like to sing. We often gather in each other’s homes, at the park, at the beach, anywhere and for almost any reason. We share our lives with one another, and still easily welcome new people we meet.
As people move away from our area, we often find that we’re able to stay in contact with one another because of the relationships that we’ve built. (Of course, this doesn’t happen with everyone who moves away.)
In many ways, we still have aspects of traditional church organization, especially when we gather on Sunday mornings. On the other hand, we also have many aspects of simple/organic churches. (This is why I often say that we’re a “hybrid.”)
In fact, many people who prefer more organized church think that we’re not structured enough. People who prefer more simple/organic type church life often think that we’re too organized. (And, I like it that way… )
We did not set out to start an “organic church” or “simple church.” If you asked many of the people who we gather with regularly, they would probably not even know the phrases “organic church” or “simple church.”
Instead, we are simply a group of followers of Jesus Christ who are at a certain state in our life with God and our lives with one another and continue to seek to help one another group in maturity in Jesus Christ.
I would not recommend that other groups take that same journey that we take or seek to be at the same point we’re currently at. So, what do I recommend? Exactly what I said above: be a group of followers of Jesus Christ who are at a certain state in your life with God and your lives with one another and continue to seek to help one another group in maturity in Jesus Christ.