The Gospel Coalition

In the stupendous matter of our salvation Christ shall be the Alpha and the Omega. With Him the gospel plan originated- by Him it was revealed- by Him it was executed- and in His undivided glory and endless praise it shall forever terminate. From every tongue in glory, and through the high arches of heaven, the anthem shall peal, ‘Worthy is the Lamb!’

Believer in Christ! Does not your soul pant to join in that song? and does not your spirit exult in the truth that salvation, from first to last, is of God? Oh, how precious is this truth in the consciousness of our many failures and defects!

Our salvation is all in Christ- our righteousness is all in Christ- our merit is all in Christ- our completeness is all in Christ- in Christ our Covenant Head, our Surety and Mediator; and no flaw in our obedience, no defect in our love, no failure in our service, should so cast us down as to shut our eye to our acceptance in the Beloved.

Imperfections we would not overlook, sin we would not allow, disobedience we would not indulge, temptation we would not encourage; nevertheless, we would ever remember, for our encouragement that, in default of perfection in the most perfect of our own doings, we are fully and eternally complete in Jesus.

— Octavius Winslow, The Sympathy of Christ

Seven links for your weekend reading:

1. What Faith Is: Accepting Conditions (Eternity is inevitable, one way or another. We may want to get used to it.)

2. SBC Discussion: “Not Your Daddy’s Church”

3. Susan Wise Bauer: “Why Anthony Weiner’s Public Confession Failed”

4. Four Ways to Neutralize Your Weaknesses

5. Tullian Tchividjian: Work Hard! But In Which Direction?

6. Settlers of Catan: How a German Board Game Went Mainstream

7. Seven Theses on “Celebrity Pastors”

Yesterday, I began a conversation with Jess Rainer, co-author of the new book, The Millennials: Connecting to America’s Largest Generation. For a limited time, the Kindle version of The Millennials is available for free download. Today, we talk about how the Millennial generation views technology, and how churches can effectively minister to this generation.

Trevin Wax: Jess, an interesting feature of your research was the statistical data that demonstrated this generation’s interweaving of relationships and technology. The world is certainly changing.

You and I are both Millennials, and neither of us have ever owned a landline phone and answering machine. We live and relate through our cell phones and social media outlets. Right now, the research shows that technology serves the millennial desire to foster strong relationships.

Jess Rainer: Technology has indeed driven relationships to closer levels, especially within family units. As older generations began to embrace social media more, they were immediately opened to a world with heavy Millennial use. With the desire for stronger traditional family values, Millennials quickly allowed family access to their social media world.

Trevin Wax: Do you see technology also becoming a hindrance to close friendships? I’ve seen some research that shows younger millennials reticent to use Twitter. Many teens are admitting fewer and fewer friends to their FaceBook accounts, as they have decided they don’t want their lives on full display to a large number of people. Do you anticipate a technological backlash of sorts with the generation that is 10 years behind us?

Jess Rainer: There is certainly another side to allowing family, friends, and co-workers access to a virtual diary with pictures. Stories about people not getting hired or even fired from a job for what was found on social media sites are abundant. The Millennials have quickly learned that technology can have a positive and negative affect for the present and future.

We mentioned in our book that we interviewed the Millennials born between 1980 and 1991. These older Millennials already indicated a shift in technology use even in this 12 year gap. Of this group, younger Millennials text 19 percent more than their counterparts. Additionally, email is dropping as a primary form of communication. The research shows a clear change in technology, especially how it is used as communication.

Despite the risks, I do not see Millennials shying away from technology. Twitter for example, tends to not fill a need in a generation that heavily uses Facebook (Facebook already has a built in status update). Although I use it frequently, I have very few close friends on twitter.

I believe our generation will always embrace the newest technology, especially if it has an apple on it. Although, Millennials will continue to learn and to demonstrate wisdom on how this technology will be used. Relationships will still be driven by technology. Millennials will just need to determine their own unspoken criteria about what will be put on public display and who will gets to see it.

Trevin Wax: I’d like us to end this conversation the way the book does – with insights that church leaders can take away regarding the Millennial generation. How should churches consider reaching millennials?

Jess Rainer: There are two different groups of Millennials that churches need to be aware of: the 85 percent group and the 15 percent group. As mentioned previously, 85 percent of Millennials are not Christians. And its these non-Christian Millennials that are indifferent to the church. Churches need to understand that they are not on the radar of non-Christian Millennials. It will take an intentional effort to reach our generation.

A great place to start to reach non-Christian Millennials is to simply invite them. When asked, these Millennials will attend church with a friend.

Also try to find a way to connect the Millennials to their Christian parents. Millennials are seeking advice and guidance from their parents on a regular basis.

Additionally, leaders must be transparent, humble, and have integrity. It’s these leaders that need to demonstrate the deep meaning of following Christ.

Trevin Wax: What about ministry among the Christian Millennials? What suggestions do you have for evangelical churches seeking to engage this generation?

Jess Rainer: The Christian Millennials want to see churches challenge themselves. “Church-as-usual” is no longer effective in retaining Christian Millennials. Churches need to start with deep biblical teaching. Watering down scriptural truth will only cause Christian Millennials to look for another church. There has to be an outward focus as well. Churches need to commit to investing in their communities, love the nations, and direct revenue outwardly. Christian Millennials, like their counterpart, want to see leaders who demonstrate transparency, humility, and integrity.

It’s not an easy task to reach the Millennial generation. I am experiencing these difficulties first hand as I reach out to our generation with my church plant. At the same time, I am seeing a small group of younger believers start to desire deeper teaching and community involvement. One of the biggest misconceptions is Millennials are unwilling to commit themselves to the church. It’s this small group that is becoming more committed each week. Millennials want to radically commit themselves to something. There is nothing more radical than a true follower of Christ.

More than 9 in 10 Americans continue to believe in God:

Despite the many changes that have rippled through American society over the last 6 ½ decades, belief in God as measured in this direct way has remained high and relatively stable. Gallup initially used this question wording in November 1944, when 96% said “yes.” That percentage dropped to 94% in 1947, but increased to 98% in several Gallup surveys conducted in the 1950s and 1960s. Gallup stopped using this question format in the 1960s, before including it again in Gallup’s May 5-8 survey this year.

Interesting article about a church member who stonewalled growth and outreach. The article ends with several church leaders revealing what they would have done in the same situation:

As he threw the church keys at the new lay leader, Jim (not his real name) angrily declared, “You’ll never see me here again!” Does he really mean it? I wondered as Jim stormed out in the middle of our board meeting. And if he does, how will we survive? Christ Church has had some tense moments in its 165-year history, and it has had near-death experiences more than once. Would this time, however, be the death of this struggling congregation?

East Tennessee: The Switzerland of the Civil War

When Middle and West Tennessee citizens voted on June 8, 1861 to join the Confederacy, most East Tennessee voters rejected the call. It would remain a thorn in the eyes of the Confederate republic, and an enticing and romantic rallying cry for the Union—even though its complex views on race and the government would vex both contemporaries and historians for decades to come.

The goal of a “gospelized” community:

When you magnetize a piece of metal, the metal becomes magnetic. When you sterilize a surgical tool, the tool becomes sterile. When you tenderize a piece of meat, the meat becomes tender. When a person or a church is gospelized, they ooze gospel, they bleed Jesus, they over flow with Spirit, they radiate the Father’s glory. That is the goal of a gospelized community.

Dressing Taller: 10 Tips for Short Guys Like Me

That means that a shorter man wants to ease and encourage the viewer’s eyes upward towards his face. Visual clutter-such as eye-grabbing stuff on the body-breaks up the impression of height. That means staying away from obvious accessories like big, chunky watches, but it also means keeping an eye out for things as simple as the pockets on your suits and shirts.

Today, I’m excited to welcome Jess Rainer to the blog. We’ll be discussing an important new book that Jess co-authored with his dad, Thom: The Millennials: Connecting to America’s Largest Generation. For the next two weeks, you can download the Kindle version of The Millennials for free. I recommend that pastors and church leaders (or anyone interested in generational shifts) consult this book for insights into the church’s mission to reach this generation for Christ.

Trevin Wax: Jess, you and I are both part of the generation called “The Millennials.” Labeling people according to their generation is a tricky exercise, full of complexities that make a common portrait difficult to ascertain. My first thought upon seeing The Millennials was: ”I hope this isn’t a one-size-fits-all portrait of our generation.” I was surprised to see that one of the millennials you interviewed said roughly the same thing: “Don’t stereotype my generation.”

Despite my aversion toward broad generalities, I couldn’t help but nod my head at the general descriptions you give in the book. Over and over, I thought, That’s me. Or: Yes, these findings are an accurate characteristic of the Millennials I know. So tell me how waded through all the diverse pieces of information about this generation in order to pull out these commonalities.

Jess Rainer: You are correct that we can not stereotype any particular person within the Millennial generation. The diversity is far too great to even try to put the Millennials into one category. In fact, the first thing I discovered in the research was that I am not the typical Millennial! But despite all the diversity we found, there were still common themes throughout our generation.

One approach we took to understanding the 1200 different Millennial responses we received was to break the findings down by beliefs, actions, and expectations in all major life categories. These life categories includes items such as family, work, money, religion, media, diversity, as well as other categories.

For example, we asked these 1200 Millennials what they believed a family unit should look like. We asked what their family unit looks like right now. We asked what they expect their family to look like in the future. In asking these key questions, patterns or themes became more evident as more and more responses were received. This process is the only way to get a high level perspective of our generation. Anytime I looked at individual responses, I would be amazed how the answers would drastically change.

Trevin Wax: This strategy appears to put a strong emphasis on relationships during the information-gathering process.

Jess Rainer: Yes, that’s right. In addition to the pure statistical research, my dad and I both made it a point to engage the Millennials on a personal basis. Observational research provided an extra source of validity to the massive amounts of statistical research we accumulated. These conversations and observations helped bring the major themes of our generation to the surface. For example, my dad and I quickly saw the lack of environmental vigor that was expected out of the Millennials.

It was an exciting time to read the statistical data and then engage my friends and peers. I think some of my friends got tired of me backing up their feelings and desires with percentages and fractions! The twofold approach to the research brought the book to life and provided the realness of life as a Millennial.

Trevin Wax: You mention the lack of environmental vigor as one of the facts that surprised you. Millennials are “green” in that there is an environmental sensibility about us, and yet we don’t think that environmental issues should polarize people. This distaste for polarization is a key feature of the millennials that leads you to call them “the mediating generation.”

Jess Rainer: Yes. Millennials are weary of screaming voices and lack of civility in work, politics, family, and religion. We see the extra efforts of unnecessary fighting as a waste of time and energy. I do not know how many times I have said the phrase, “If he would just stop arguing and do something about it…” Being in the ministry, I get frustrated with those who stand to argue about minor details when that time could be spent on effectively ministering to the those who do not know Christ. The distaste for polarization is a common sentiment within the Millennial generation.

Trevin Wax: What are some of the benefits of the Millennial distaste for polarization?

Jess Rainer: I think adopting this attitude will make the Millennial generation very productive. Not only in work and politics, but in family and religion. Families of the Millennials will take a mediating role instead of a “me” role. We are determined to keep families together. Millennials will also seek to serve others in their community. Religion will take a more outward focus. We are determined to make the church more effective in reaching out.

Having “can’t we all just get along?” mentality can often be perceived as weak, but the research shows that millennials have strong convictions. A realistic peace is in mind for our generation. Trying to make everyone and everything get along will inevitably challenge the status quo. Millennials are ready to make large-scale changes if needed. There are impatient when things are not being accomplished.

This attitude could have a negative return by make big changes without thinking about the costs. The youthful knowledge of our generation with the desire to see change can have negative implications if we are not careful. It could also cause older generations to not give the Millennials the chance to succeed, which is already occurring, according to the Millennials.

Trevin Wax: Isn’t the downside of this “can’t we all just get along?” attitude demonstrated in a willingness to let go of religious convictions? I was distressed to see how low a priority religious matters were to millennials. The emphasis on family and relationships were encouraging, but religion is all but absent, which leads to discouraging views on matters like same-sex marriage. Even the Christians were wobbly on marriage, probably because the mediating position leads to a “let’s stop arguing about stuff like this.”

Jess Rainer: You are absolutely right. Millennials that enter churches only to find infighting and large amounts of negativity will become frustrated, leave, and avoid the church altogether. Those Millennials with minimal religious convictions will let go of them in order to maintain peace in their own lives.

I mentioned before that I am not the typical Millennial, so I see the church in a different light. The few Millennials that hold strong religious convictions desire to see the church change in a more positive, outward, and deeper theological direction. We are willing to maintain our convictions and work through disagreements in civil way in order greater God’s Kingdom.

Those who match my Evangelical convictions only make up around 6 percent of the entire Millennial generation. But the other 94 percent of the our generation are not against the church or organized religion. In fact, using the very broad definition of Christian, 65 percent of the Millennials claimed it as their religious preference. Without using too many more numbers, approximately 85 percent of the Millennials are indifferent to the church.

Trevin Wax: Your book doesn’t talk about abortion, but I wonder if you agree with the polls showing a surge in pro-life conviction among younger generations.

Jess Rainer: With such a large percentage of indifference, religious convictions are not present when making decisions based on same-sex marriage, abortion, military issues, or many of the other politicized issues.

I do believe there is a tipping point with these politicized issues, even though we did not perform specific research on this. Millennials hold strong convictions, even if they are not strong religious convictions. I mentioned earlier about Millennials seeking too much change too quickly. In some areas, the recent presidential election may be an example of that. While I have no statistical research on the issue, the Millennials may be responding to the recent change in what it means to be pro-choice. Obama’s support of the Freedom of Choice Act may have caused Millennials to counter the pro-choice camp in order to show their disapproval. So, it is not that an indifference to religion or a desire to be the mediator will make the Millennials a generation of “peace at all costs.” It’s more the desire to have disagreements resolved in a fair and civil manner.

Jess and I will continue this conversation tomorrow, focusing primarily on how churches can seek to do effective ministry among and for Millennials. Meanwhile, I encourage you to download “The Millennials“, offered on Kindle for free for a limited time.

Pastor Weiner:

Please.  Don’t be a Pastor Weiner. Don’t defame Jesus by lying, cheating, scheming.  Be truthful.  Be 100% truthful.  All the time.  Even when it hurts.  Even when you make a mistake.  Even when it will certainly make you look bad, or silly, or cheap, or sinful.  Be honest.  Be transparent.

Make Every Effort:

Let us not make the mistake of Keswick theology with its mantra of “let go and let God.” Justification is wholly dependent on faith apart from works of the law. But sanctification-born of faith, dependent on faith, powered by faith-requires moral exertion.  “Mortify and vivify” is how the theologians used to put it. When it comes to growth in godliness, trusting does not put an end to trying.

I Am Tired of All the Options:

In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty . . . right? Let me try to briefly state the issue that I have, today, at 5:24pm CST. I am getting the feeling that Christian apologists and theologians, in order to make our faith more palatable to the outside world, are attempting to move all difficulties of our faith into the “non-essential” category in order to create “opt outs.” This is where just about everything outside of the person and work of Christ becomes negotiable. When does the form of Christianity we offer become something different than the historic Christian faith?

Epicycles and Phlogiston: Fanciful Flights from the Historical Adam and Jesus:

Theological liberalism hates talk of the historical Adam. Just when they think they’ve evaporated him in the “myths” of Genesis, he crops up in New Testament texts as a real man. There he is in Romans 5, as in “by one man sin entered into the world” and as in “death reigned from Adam to Moses.” Then he appears in 1 Corinthians 15: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive”; and again, “The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.” Not to mention the genealogy in Luke 3 and the talk of Eve’s and his problems in 1 Timothy 2. It’s enough to make a Tübingen adept long for Martian loops. Thus begins the hermeneutical epicycling.

Last month, John Starke and I had a friendly blog conversation about the place of the church in how we think and speak about the gospel. John expressed concern about the Story-Announcement-Community emphasis explained in my book Counterfeit Gospels, particularly because the metaphor could lead people to think the church (an implication of the gospel) is too tightly tied to the gospel announcement.

I agree with John that the church is not the gospel, and that the gospel births the church. But I believe the potential for error is greater in making too sharp a separation between the gospel and the church. There are times that our theological precision can lead to ideas that were foreign to the sensibilities of the apostles.

A Scenario from Baptist History

Let me give an example from my Baptist heritage. Baptists disagree with the idea that salvation is somehow dependent upon a person’s baptism. We want to (correctly, I believe) make a distinction between repentance and faith as the condition of salvation and the act of baptism as the expression of salvation. But there are times when, in our zeal to make this distinction, we unintentionally downplay the importance of believer’s baptism.

The Apostle Peter’s sermon at Pentecost ended with a command: “Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” Now imagine a back-row Baptist critiquing Peter’s sermon, chiding him for saying, “Peter, Peter, the way you’ve formulated your gospel presentation might confuse people into thinking that baptism is a requirement for salvation. You might confuse the implication with the announcement. You need to make sharper distinctions.”

The Baptist is right to distinguish between the act of salvation and the expression of baptism, but wrong to push that distinction to the point he imposes foreign sensibilities on the Apostle. It’s obvious that Peter saw repentance and baptism as so intertwined that he thought the danger of too sharply separating the two was stronger than the danger of putting them too close together.

The Gospel and its Purpose

Now back to the gospel announcement and the gospel community as two legs of the three-legged stool. The announcement and the community aren’t the same thing, but they are tightly intertwined. And though I agree with John that certain distinctions must be made, I want to stay true to the way the Scriptural authors hold the announcement and the community together. I believe making too sharp a division is more problematic than keeping them too close together.

Let me put it this way: If you excise the gospel community from your thinking about the gospel announcement, you gut the gospel of its purpose. Though the church is not the subject of the gospel announcement (Christ alone is the subject, of course), the church is a necessary object. Christ’s death has a purpose: to save sinners and incorporate them into a community that reflects His glory.

Story – Announcement – Community

Too many times, we think of the gospel as a story that jumps from the Garden of Eden (we’ve all sinned) right to the cross (but Jesus fixes everything). On its own, that works fine in getting across the systematic points of our need for salvation and God’s provision in Christ, but from a biblical theological perspective, it doesn’t do justice to what’s actually in the text. Once a person becomes a Christian and cracks the Bible, they’re going to wonder what the big deal is about Israel and the covenant, since that storyline takes up roughly 75% of the Bible. Getting people into that story is important. As D.A. Carson says, the announcement is incoherent without it. That’s why I want to hold story and announcement together.

Furthermore, the gospel has a telos – the purpose of calling out a people, which is why I want to keep “gospel community” close to the announcement. I fear that most evangelicals see the church as “just an implication of the gospel” instead of thinking, This is the whole point of the good news – God forming a people for His glory and the good of the world.

The Gospel Community in the New Testament

The backdrop for the gospel announcement are three covenants (Abrahamic, Davidic, and the New Covenant) that culminate in God calling out a people who will know Him and reflect His glory. It’s no coincidence that immediately following Mark’s summation of Christ’s gospel preaching “The kingdom of God has come near” (Mark 1:15) we see Jesus calling the first disciples (1:16-20). The gospel is proclaimed in order that the community might be formed. The good news constitutes a people.

Jesus succeeded where Adam failed. He succeeded where Israel failed. He died in the place of His people, rose from the dead in victory, and has set about building a new temple – a body of believers from all nations, all to His praise and glory. The formation of the church gets to the “why” of Christ’s death and resurrection. Look at what Paul writes in Titus 2:14:

He gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for Himself a people for His own possession, eager to do good works.

We often emphasize the first purpose – that Christ died to redeem us from sin. But we can’t miss the second part of that purpose, the “why” of Christ’s cleansing us from sin – that we would be a people for His own possession, eager to do good works. Just verses later, Paul again makes the gospel’s purpose clear:

When the goodness of God and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us – not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. He poured out this Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that having been justified by His grace, we may become heirs with the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7).

Our personal salvation incorporates us into the family of God. We are reconciled to the Father and are promised an inheritance. Peter uses this language as well:

According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable… (1 Peter 1:3-4)

This idea of receiving the promised Holy Spirit, which signifies the forming of a new people, is central to the way Peter presented the gospel at Pentecost:

“Repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call.“

The Spirit is the sign that God is forming a new people. Peter makes it even more explicit in his first letter: “For Christ also suffered for sins, once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God…“ (1 Pet. 3:18) That “us” is plural.

The idea of sharing the inheritance as a family is expressed by Paul as well when speaking of the mission of the Gentiles. When he recounts his dramatic conversion story in Acts 26, Paul quotes the Risen Jesus as saying:

“I now send you to them to open their eyes so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that by faith in Me they may receive forgiveness of sins and a share among those who are sanctified.” (26:17-18).

Do you see the connection? Faith in Christ assures us of “forgiveness of sins” and “a share among the sanctified.” Reconciliation with God leads to inclusion among His people. Paul has no trouble keeping the announcement of forgiveness together with the incorporation into the gospel community.

Then there is Ephesians 1-3. In Ephesians 1, we get the wide-angled view of the gospel story, culminating with the gospel announcement of Jesus Christ (1:20-23). The gospel announcement is brought down to the individual level in Ephesians 2:1-10: For by grace we have been saved through faith. Why? For the creation of the gospel community in 2:11-22 and chapter 3. Story, Announcement, Community.

In Ephesians 3, we see Paul even more explicitly linking the church to the gospel announcement. He declares that Christ is our peace, the One who tears down the dividing wall of hostility, and brings together Jew and Gentile in order to create one new man from the two. Then, watch how he speaks of the Gentiles: they are coheirs, members of the same body, and partners of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. (3:6) Immediately following this statement, he says, “I was made a servant of this gospel…” (3:7). Apparently, Paul has no trouble linking the gospel announcement with its purpose: the creation of the gospel community.

The theological body of Paul’s letter to the Romans is bookended by this same emphasis. The letter begins with Paul’s proclamation that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, for the Jew and the Gentile alike (1:16), and the letter’s theological portion ends with the breathtaking picture of Jews and Gentiles singing together the praises of God (15:7-13). The ultimate aim of the gospel is the glory of the God who brings salvation through judgment, and the gospel community is what puts that glory on display.

Don’t Miss the Point

So, back to my original point. The gospel announcement of Jesus Christ must be understood within the context of the story that gives it meaning. This announcement then births the gospel community. Saying the good news is limited to the gospel announcement is like saying, “The good news is that the adoption papers are signed” without a view to the purpose of the papers – to incorporate an orphan into a family! We can say all day long that becoming part of the family is the implication of the adoption process, not the process itself. But to make that point too forcefully risks losing the point of it all.

Christ’s death and resurrection completes the transaction of the gospel, yes. But the purpose of Christ’s work is that, in union with Him, we would be reconciled to the Father and adopted into His family.

Good news all around! So, let’s make sure that in our thinking and speaking about the centrality of the gospel announcement we not leave out the gospel-formed family. Otherwise, we gut the gospel of its purpose.

What Happened Inside the Hospital during the Joplin, MO Tornado:

You never know that it will be the most important day of your life until the day is over.  The day started like any other day for me: waking up, eating, going to the gym, showering, and going to my 4 pm ED shift. As I drove to the hospital, I mentally prepared for my shift as I always do, but nothing could ever have prepared me for what was going to happen on this shift.

The difference between a sin and a mistake:

When people refer to behavior as a mistake rather than a sin, they are either consciously or unconsciously evading responsibility. Why? Because of the fundamental difference between the two. Many people assume they are synonymous. They are not.

Adoption, Identity, and Kung-Fu Panda:

My shoulders tensed up, as I looked over at my sons, eating popcorn in the seats next to me. It’s not that I didn’t think there would ever be a film that might unearth some awkward and potentially traumatic family conversations. It’s just that I didn’t expect it would be Kung-Fu Panda Two.

Piper, Carson, and Keller talk about sustaining marital love:

“Have you ever heard of The Dick Van Dyke Show?” I asked Dad. I was ten years old and had just seen a commercial about a “new” old show about to start re-running on Nick at Nite.

Knowing my love for writing, Dad replied, “Yes, son. And you will love that show, because it’s about a comedy writer.” Dad was right. Twenty years after I first discovered Dick Van Dyke and fifty years after the show first aired, I’m still a fan of the 1961-66 series now considered a television classic. The camaraderie of the cast, the rapid-fire jokes, the slapstick comedy, and the smart set-ups – it’s no wonder The Dick Van Dyke Show is still on the air today.

Dick Van Dyke is one of only a handful of performers who excels at expressing profound joyfulness in art. Just think of how brilliantly he infused the lowly occupation of a chimney sweep with dignity and joy in Mary Poppins. (Watch the clip “Step in Time” and you’ll what I mean.)

Now 85 years old, Van Dyke has just released his autobiography, My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business: A Memoir, which humorously chronicles his illustrious career. The book is an interesting read at a number of levels, but I was most intrigued by Van Dyke’s willingness to open up about his desire to know God and the meaning of life:

“Throughout my whole life I have pondered the big questions… I would read the great thinkers and try to figure out what it all meant – my life and life in general. What was the point? What was I supposed to do? Was I getting it right?” (270)

The beginning of Van Dyke’s search for God goes back to his modest upbringing in the cultural Christianity of the Midwest. After attending a summer Bible school one year, Van Dyke (who was only eleven at the time) decided to read through the entire Bible. “I struggled through the various books, asked questions, and when I reached the end I had no idea what any of it meant,” he recalls (14).

Van Dyke’s desire to find answers to life’s big questions almost led him into the ministry. “The subject intrigued me intellectually,” he confesses. “But pretty soon I lost the fervor that inspired me to carry around a Bible and think deep thoughts. I joined the drama club instead – and found my true calling” (17). Though he pursued acting rather than ministry, Van Dyke’s curiosity about spiritual matters never went away, which is evident in the way he peppers his reflections with phrases like ”I planned nothing”, “I felt blessed”, and “Something greater than me was happening.”

The road to earthly success was not easy for Van Dyke or his family. But his persistence and work ethic opened the door to bigger and better opportunities. He was already married with four children when he became a television star. Interestingly enough, Van Dyke doesn’t credit himself for his success. Throughout the narrative, he constantly deflects praise, mentioning unsung heroes like writers, editors, and producers behind the scenes. He appears to be a genuinely humble man who marvels at his popularity.

Van Dyke’s religious upbringing and his desire to maintain normalcy in Hollywood led him to make important choices in regards to his career. He writes:

I met my agent, Sol Leon, for lunch at the commissary, and talked through my concerns. He asked the obvious questions: What kind of films did I want to make? Where did I see myself going in terms of movies? What sort of scripts should he look for?

“I’ve thought about this,” I said, “and I’m pretty clear on it. I only want to make movies that my four children can see.”

“Only kids’ movies?” he asked.

“Not kids’ movies,” I clarified. “I want to make movies that I can see with my kids and not feel uncomfortable.”

He expressed slight worry that that might limit my opportunities, particularly at this time when standards in Hollywood, like the culture itself, were beginning to change and evolve into what we remember as the more liberal, experimental Sixties. But I didn’t share his worries. I had a long-term vision in mind…

I wanted to be able to talk about my work at the dinner table and hold my head up on Sundays when my wife and I led our children into the Brentwood Presbyterian Church, where I was an elder. You were not going to see me acting up at Hollywood parties. For the most part, you weren’t going to see me at any Hollywood parties. I stayed home.

Van Dyke’s curiosity about God and the world led him to read a number of popular theologians of his day. “I was intensely curious and even passionate about God,” he writes. (124) He pondered the works of Buber, Tillich, Bonhoeffer, and Tournier. For the most part, his theological study led him further away from the beliefs of his youth. Though he defends the idea that there is a God to whom we are accountable, his view of life and salvation reflects a moralistic framework:

“Was there one way? No, not as far as I could tell – other than to feel loved, to love back, and to do the things that make you feel as if your life has meaning and value, which can be as simple as making sure you spend time helping make life a little better for other people. I decided if I could manage that I wouldn’t have any serious problems were there to actually be a Judgment Day.” (125)

Van Dyke’s spiritual journey moves from a culturally Christian view of the world to a more amorphous, general sense of seeking the divine. His spiritual trek goes from specific Christian teaching to vague spirituality:

“If knowing, finding, and giving love were the paths to knowing God, I thought people could get there without much additional doctrine.” (163)

In the 1970′s, Van Dyke’s church took an unfortunate stance on racial issues, which pushed him away from organized religion altogether. “I never went back there or to any other church. My relationship with God was solid, but the hypocrisy among the so-called faithful finished me for good.” (166)

Unfortunately, Van Dyke’s retreat from the church coincided with hypocrisy of his own: severe alcoholism and an adulterous affair that ended his marriage. He describes himself during this time as “writhing in guilt.” Along the way, he keeps asking, “What was I going to do with my life? What was going to make me happy? Why wasn’t I happy?” (202)

The memoir of Dick Van Dyke ends with the optimistic enthusiasm that has characterized his life. But I get the sense that this is a man who still hasn’t found the joy he is searching for. My heart aches for Van Dyke, knowing that even though he has given many people countless hours of happiness through his entertainment, he doesn’t appear to have found the everlasting joy that comes from knowing Christ. That’s why I’m praying the final chapters of Van Dyke’s life will be happier than the last chapter of his memoir. May he receive forgiveness offered through Jesus Christ and joy that never fades!

For Truth and Beauty: Thoughts on Argumentation in Sermons

There are countless ways to argue. You can argue from nature, science, statistical data, everyday observations, or sheer logic. For the preacher, all of these are on the table. However, what makes us preachers different from other communicators is that we are not arguing stock truths or life principles. We are not even arguing biblical truths in general—we are arguing the specific truth of the Bible itself, the truth embedded in the one text from which we are preaching. This is more precise than extracting truths from the Scripture; it is taking the argument of a specific text and making it our own.

Interview with Luke Harper on Josiah Road:

Luke Harper is a seventeen-year-old student who just graduated from high school as a published author. Luke authored Josiah Road with his dad as a part of an effort to call students to stand, influence, and lead. The study was inspired by principles gleaned from the biblical account of King Josiah (2 Kings 23; 2 Chronicles 34). All the royalties from the sale of the Josiah Road resources will go into a student leadership scholarship fund, which will be used to equip and train students in the area of leadership.

Self-Hating Evangelicals:

Do cures for evangelical self-hatred exist? Strong church worship and preaching is key. Solid reading about what evangelically-minded folks have contributed to the world, and increased reporting of what evangelicals are doing now, can help as well.

He Was No “Uncle Tom”:

His reputation suffered dramatically at the hands of late-nineteenth century melodrama and a post-Reconstruction revival of racist attitudes and practices throughout the Union. This was so much the case that we now remember the distorted stereotype far better than the actual character in the novel. Far from being a weak-willed boot-licker, Tom is the consummate man of courage and integrity.