The Gospel Coalition

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the response I’d received from my article in Tabletalk - “Not So Fast” - which basically encourages most people to stay with their congregation during a difficult church situation rather than flee. Based on the notes I’ve gotten, some have misunderstood my suggestion not to be hasty in leaving a church (hence the title “Not So Fast”) as a hard, fast rule against ever leaving a church, no matter what happens.

Then Jonathan helpfully points out some examples of abusive leadership:

How do you recognize abusive leadership? Paul requires two witnesses for a charge to be leveled against an elder (1 Tim. 5:19), probably because he knows that leaders will be charged with infelicities more than others, often unfairly. That said, abusive churches and Christian leaders characteristically

• Make dogmatic prescriptions in places where Scripture is silent.
• Rely on intelligence, humor, charm, guilt, emotions, or threats rather than on God’s Word and prayer (see Acts 6:4).
• Play favorites.
• Punish those who disagree.
• Employ extreme forms of communication (tempers, silent treatment).
• Recommend courses of action that always, somehow, improve the leader’s own situation, even at the expense of others.
• Speak often and quickly.
• Seldom do good deeds in secret.
• Seldom encourage.
• Seldom give the benefit of the doubt.
• Emphasize outward conformity, rather than repentance of heart.
• Preach, counsel, disciple, and oversee the church with lips that fail to ground everything in what Christ has done in the gospel and to give glory to God.

The Exponential conference (largest gathering of church planting leaders in North America) begins today and will be simulcast for the first time. You can watch the backstage conversations (hosted by Geoff Surratt and Philip Nation) for free.

I’m Thankful for Christian Funerals:

Every time I have the privilege of preaching a funeral for a man or woman who has lived for the Savior, I feel incredibly close to the Lord.  There are several reasons I like Christian funerals…

Why Volunteers Don’t Attend Your Meetings:

Have you ever asked yourself why no one ever comes to your training meetings? Have you ever bought 200 bagels and 5 boxes of Joe in preparation for 100% attendance by your volunteer teams? Only to have 185 bagels left over. I see that hand and that hand belongs to me.

What do we do? We blame the people we invited we blame the methods we used to get the people out, and even sometimes the donuts, but rarely do we look at the content of the meeting itself.

The Passing of the Torch? Thoughts on the Passing of Chuck Colson:

For many younger evangelicals, “worldview analysis,” as the task is known, functioned as something of a halfway house between the uncritical anti-intellectualism of our pulpits and the more dialectical approach of the great books world or the more directly scholarly mindset of the academy.  Within the evangelical world, the approach necessarily shifted attention away from questions of politics per se toward those fundamental human questions that lie at the heart of any society. In that sense, Colson’s work opened up the space for a rethinking of the civic order along nonpartisan lines, even if for the most part the worldview crowd caucuses with Republicans.  Which is simply to say, his mission and message all seemed to be of a piece.  And in a fragmented world, that is itself an impressive accomplishment.

Pastors, Keep Your “Gray” Areas Off the Stage:

Don’t raise gray issues to the level of black-and-white. When you do, you’re speaking authoritatively where God has chosen to be silent. Which is not ground on which I want to find myself.

“Follow Me.”

He could have been talking to the brightest, most well-educated man He found. He could’ve been speaking with a businessman who had seen enormous success, so much so that the money from a potential partnership would more than pay for His expenses. He could’ve been talking to those who would’ve led a militia and fought for Him as king.

Once may be a surprise. Twice is a strange coincidence. Three times is definitely a pattern. Whom is He calling now? The fishermen who left their nets and their families behind – they were strange enough. The tax collector who left behind his life of bribery and extortion – that was daring enough. But perhaps this next summons is most shocking of all.

Two thousand years later. In a different time, in a different place. But it’s the same Galilean voice.

You have people to see, meetings to attend, children to tend to, parents to mind, activities you are trying to press into an already squeezed schedule. And yet quietly walking past you in the midst of your struggle, in spite of your sin, He issues His royal summons.

That’s the difference between Christianity as it should be and Christianity as it has become. We live in a world where many Christians still live for themselves. When “Follow Me” means “Let Me make you happy.” When “I have come to give life” means “I’ll give you money.” When “I have called you My friends” means “We can steer this life together.” When the royal summons to follow the King turns into a private devotion to buddy Jesus.

And in this crumbling world around us, beautiful even now despite the horrors that take place within it, Jesus is still calling. He invites us to take the journey behind Him, to allow His cloak of righteousness to cover our sin as we walk closely behind. Step by step.

Jesus invites us to the religious experience of a lifetime, precisely because this journey is not about having a religious experience. Adventure is promised, but not just the thrill-seeking adventure we desire, a way of satisfying our innate need for something bigger than ourselves. Adventure comes because that innate need is only met when we realize that Christianity is not about us; it’s not about my personal religious faith that I practice in the prayer closet;  and it’s not about my secure, prepared heavenly afterlife. Granted, all those get thrown into the mix. But the center of Christianity is the Christ  the “ianity” follows.

The summons is a royal one. The Messiah has beckoned. The King has spoken.

Each morning, as we wake up and our feet hit the floor, we ought to remember – “I’ve been summoned. Today belongs to my King.”

Christianity Today’s coverage on the death of Chuck Colson:

In many ways, Colson’s life encapsulated the eclectic nature of evangelicalism. His example shaped how evangelicals would promote ministry and social justice, evangelism and ecumenicism, cultural and political engagement, radio and writing, and scholarship and discipleship.

The Ultimate Homophobia:

In our secular and pansexual culture, ex-gay Christians are the worst and most vile homophobes in the universe because they announce that Jesus saved them from homosexuality and the Holy Spirit transformed them and empowered them to live a holy life without it. Though society may call them homophobes, I am not ashamed to call them my brother or sister.

America’s Foolish Detour into Shopping Malls:

These land-devouring, car-dependent malls were invented 60 years ago, with Seattle among the pioneers. Now they are in terminal decline. There was a better idea in Kansas City, but unfortunately it was eclipsed by our mania for malls.

Doubting Darwin: Panic in the Suites of Evolution

The sky is falling! Many interest groups and journalists raced to tell that to the public when a modest but important bill became law in Tennessee early in April. The law instructs teachers and administrators to “create an environment within public elementary and secondary schools that encourages students to explore scientific questions, learn about scientific evidence, develop critical thinking skills, and respond appropriately and respectfully to differences of opinion about controversial issues.”

O Lord our God,
We know You are not only good
but also great.
We know You are able
to do strange and wonderful things.

Let us not be so skeptical
that we fail to see them.

But neither let us be so greedy for signs
that we fail to see the slow steady wonder
of creation and providence all around us.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

- Cornelius Plantinga, Jr. 

“Christ will by His death destroy the power of death, take away the sting of the first death, and prevent the second.” – John Wesley

“Christ came into the world to destroy the works of the devil. And this was the very thing that did it, the blood and death of Christ. The cross was the devil’s own weapon; and with this weapon he was overthrown, as David cut off Goliath’s head with his own sword.” - Jonathan Edwards

“No proposition can be more plain than this, that the power of Satan was destroyed by the death of Christ.” – John Owen

“Churches are the armies of the Lamb, the grand object of whose existence is to extend the Redeemer’s kingdom.” – Andrew Fuller

“As the Risen One He has become Head over all things; and that He must reign until He shall have put all things under His feet. Our brother, who has like us been acquainted with death – He it is who rules over the ages, the ages that are past, and the ages that are passing, and the ages that are yet to come. If our hearts should fail us as we stand over against the hosts of wickedness which surround us, let us encourage ourselves and one another with the great reminder: Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, of the seed of David!” – B.B. Warfield

“If Christ on the cross was spoiled Satan, let us not be afraid to encounter this great enemy of our souls. In all things we must be made like Christ. We must bear our cross, and on that cross we must fight as Christ did with sin and death and hell.” – Charles Spurgeon

HT – Phillip Bethancourt

1 minute and 49 seconds of hilarity! (HT)

Links for your weekend reading:

1. Interesting article from CT – “The New Conversion: Why We ‘Become Christian’ Differently Today”

2. Ed Stetzer - Southern Baptists, Stats, and Race: Reflections on Some Unhelpful Remarks

3. “Tool Box” – pastoral reflection on multi-generational faithfulness

4. Lord Carey: Christians “Vilified” By the Courts

5. Homesickness in the Civil War

6. Missions is Contagious

7. What Kindle Should I Buy?

Exponential Conference is next week. Simulcast info is here:

The Exponential Conference has become the largest gathering of church planting leaders in North America each year with nearly 5,000 attendees. Exponential champions healthy, reproducing faith communities by inspiring, encouraging and equipping church planting leaders. From leaders considering church planting to seasoned veterans, the conference’s 100+ national speakers, 100+ workshops, and 15+ tracks provide some of the best church planting training available. For the first time ever, the 5 Main Stage Sessions and 4 Family Track Sessions from an Exponential Conference will be made available via live Simulcast.

The audio from the Adult Education Panel I moderated at T4G (with Matt Chandler, Mark Dever, Michael Kelley) is now available. (Right-click to download.) The video is here.

Timothy Tennent on the future of the United Methodist church:

We were once a powerful evangelistic movement.  Now, we are forever searching for new ways to manage our decline.  Endless studies and reports and commissions and re-structuring and new slogans (Open hearts, open minds, open doors) have ensued over the years.  None of these well intentioned initiatives have halted – or even really understood – the nature of this decline.  It will probably take a least three more cycles of general conferences before the following suggestions can be heard.  Nevertheless, here are a few suggestions to consider…

Greg Brezeale - How I Pray for My Sons:

I have two boys. Cross just turned 3. Rhyse (pronounced rise) is 6 months. Here are some ways that I pray for them…

Tim Challies on passing by an abortion clinic:

All of that unraveled in the few seconds it took for me to pass by—a very powerful few seconds. I was shocked and gravely disappointed—shocked again, shocked anew, that we allow this to happen, that our society not only allows this to happen, but is actually complicit in this genocide. And I was so gravely disappointed in myself, so ashamed.

What Memes Mean: The Re-Appropriation of Ryan Gosling

This strange development illustrates one of the keys of meme: re-appropriation. Re-appropriation means taking something and using it for something it wasn’t necessarily intended for. With memes, we feel we have full right to re-appropriate anything in whatever means we choose, be it a music video, public figure, or whatever else. Any and all re-appropriations are allowed and encouraged.

Chuck Colson taught me how to think.

I never met the man. Never heard him speak in person. Never interviewed him on my blog or asked all the questions I had for him.

Nevertheless, his work had a profound influence on my life, especially in shaping my thinking during my teenage and college years. How Now Shall We Live?, the book he wrote with Nancy Pearcey, was a paradigm-shifting book for me. It illuminated Christianity in light of competing worldviews and helped me understand the world I live in.

Even when the critical thinking skills I learned from Colson led me to critique some of his own positions, I always felt indebted to him. Colson was the bridge back to Francis Schaeffer, who led me back to C.S. Lewis, who in turn led me back to G.K. Chesterton and other great Christian minds. In my theological journey, Colson served as the librarian who beckoned me to explore the riches of the Christian faith and see how Christianity encompasses all of life.

What was his appeal?

Colson the Story-Teller

For starters, Colson was a masterful storyteller. Just yesterday, I was reading parts of his big book, The Good Life. The tales of religious persecution, corporate greed, extravagant waste, of merciless injustice were so gripping I couldn’t put down my Kindle.

Colson knew a good story because he had one. From the heights of privilege and responsibility in the Nixon White House to the depths of despair and determination in prison, his life was a classic example of power and corruption transformed into servanthood and integrity. The only thing more compelling than the stories he told was the story he lived.

When I was a college student in Romania, I checked out Born Again from the library and read it all in one afternoon. His testimony shined a spotlight on God’s grace. The grace so evident in Colson’s life provided a compelling apologetic for Christian truth claims.

Colson the Truth-Teller

Colson was also a masterful truth-teller. He saw how postmodernism’s inability to come to grips with objective truth claims made it more and more difficult for Christians to gain a hearing for the gospel. Evangelism was never far from his heart. His popular philosophical critiques were born out of a heartfelt desire for people to experience the grace he had.

There were times Colson seemed to emphasize the objective nature of the Bible’s truthfulness in a way that relegated all biblical truth to propositions and left little room for the narrative nature of Scripture. But one can understand his emphasis on propositional truth when seen in light of his desire to uphold the very places where Christianity’s foundations were being undermined.

In later years, Colson seemed to move away from his concentration on the reasonableness of Christianity and became more explicit in his exposition of Christian doctrine. The Faith exemplified this shift. It was a book that celebrated Christian orthodoxy with Colson’s unusual combination of childlike wonder and theological sophistication.

Colson the Bridge-Builder

Perhaps the most controversial aspect of Colson’s ministry was his ecumenical pursuits. Along with Timothy George, J.I. Packer, and other Protestant leaders, Colson contributed to the official statements of Evangelicals and Catholics Together. He was also involved with the Manhattan Declaration, a statement that was significantly less ambitious than ECT, but still focused on common Christian views of morality.

The upside of Colson’s bridge-building was his reflection of Christ’s heart in pursuing unity with other Christians. Jesus’ prayer for Christian unity and the need for a united Christian witness motivated these ecumenical endeavors.

The downside of this bridge-building was that Colson seemed to walk back and forth across bridges that weren’t always there. He tended to overstate ECT’s ecumenical implications, suggesting there was broad agreement between Catholics and Protestants, when in fact, the joint statements did not reflect the official positions of the Roman Catholic Church or the major Protestant denominations. Likewise, the statements themselves (under significant scrutiny) sometimes allowed both sides to continue affirming the same positions because they could pour Catholic or Protestant meaning into common words.

Though I didn’t always agree with Colson’s decisions in these areas, I appreciated the constant reminder that the day  is coming when God’s kingdom won’t be divided up into denominations. Colson thought we should bring people together in anticipation for that Day.

Conclusion

I thank God for Chuck Colson. He was a man who sought to use his platform to be a faithful witness to the grace and love of Jesus Christ.

Others will speak of his prison ministry, his political involvement, and his keen understanding of the times in which we live. But I’m thankful personally for the way he helped me think. He was a man who pointed pilgrims and wanderers to the Way, the Truth, and the Life. In Colson’s words:

Either we are pilgrims looking for answers in order to make sense of our world, or we are wanderers who have turned off onto byways of distraction or despair, alienating ourselves from wonder. If you are reading this book, you probably are a seeker. That’s good. To be alive is to seek.