The Sword Room

Because I worked for over three decades as a pastor of smaller congregations (under 200) I am able to spot the inevitable power dynamics in churches rather easily. Most churches have a “church boss,” a person whose power is unquestioned and through whom all major decisions must pass. The church boss weilds enough money and influence to render the pastor practically impotent. Churches run by such individuals often hire younger inexperienced pastors who will be financially beholden to them and others who hold the purse strings.

When I visit such churches I hear much talk about the need to reach the lost and bring them into the fold. But very little is actually done to accomplish this end because there is little unity of purpose or mission in the congregation. Genuine fellowship is rare, and love is more a topic of discussion than a discipline to be practiced and nurtured.

Recently I visited in a church where the church boss lamented that the forces of Satan were running rampant in the community and seeking to hinder the church’s efforts to reach the lost. The pastor, a young man with excellent expository skills, emphasized the need for love and hospitality as a means of glorifying God and testifying of Christ’s reality to the world. As I scanned the audience during the sermon I noticed the disapproving look of the church boss and a few others of stature in the church. What the pastor was saying was 100% spot on (Preach it, brother!). What good does it do to preach the love of Jesus “out there” only to bring sinners into your loveless church and expose them to the trivial petty power games that are the norm? It takes no genius to notice such things and to be repelled by them.

In Mark Ch. 1 we read of Jesus casting out a demon in the synagogue (church service). There are several such accounts in the gospels. Satan likes to go to church even more than you do (provided you like going). He knows if he can drive wedges between believers and cause them to hold grudges he can thereby gain an opportunity and neutralize the work of the Spirit (Eph. 4:26-27). Stop looking “out there” to see what “Old Slew Foot” is up to and look for his work right under your nose.

To you church bosses who might be reading: Get off the high horse and deflate your head. It’s not your church, your building, or your money. God does not need you and in fact might even want you to get out of the way. You could be just as big a tool of Satan as the flaming pagan down the street frying his brain on drugs.

To you pastors who want to stay the course by preaching the whole counsel of God accurately and faithfully: Don’t give up. Rest assured that there is at least one other person who sees past the outer veneer and picks up the innuendos. Been there. Done that. I think you guys need all the support and encouragement you can get.

I feel bad sometimes for not jumping in to help, but when I see this kind of garbage going on in churches it makes me want to not get involved. I am so fed up with pompous people using the church as an instrument of their own power and control–especially those who proceed from biblical ignorance and unsound theology. Just remember it was a power trip that originally got Satan kicked out of heaven.

Last week a photo surfaced in the media of American Marines uninating on the corpses of fallen Taliban fighters. The outcries from the public ran the gamut of everything from calling for immediate dishonorable discharge to awarding the Congressional Medal of Honor–and all points in between.

Here is a situation where we need to put our feelings aside and ask: what specific rule did these men violate? Matters not what you or I think or feel about the actions of these soldiers. At the end of the day the bottom line is that when these men enlisted they agreed to abide by the code of conduct. If it can be shown clearly by means of an explicit rule in the manual or is otherwise decided on the basis of a more general statute, then they must abide by that ruling. Whether their actions were intrinsically right or wrong, moral or immoral is a secondary issue, one I will talk about momentarily.

By way of analogy, when I applied to go to Bible college I had to sign an agreement stating that I would not use tobacco, alcohol, or drugs, and that I would not play cards. I am not a big card player, but I was convinced there was nothing morally wrong, biblically defined, with playing cards. But once I signed the agreement I knew what I was getting myself into, and I was bound to abstain–I believe this was what God would have me do. Honor your commitment. Had I violated and been caught I would have deserved whatever consequences followed.

A week ago I was driving in Bellingham when my cell phone rang. The call was from someone I had been trying to reach for hours, and this particular person is notorious for not answering his phone. Now I am not a big phone talker under any conditions, much less when driving. But knowing that if I did not answer I might not get another chance for awhile, I picked up just long enough to say, “I’m driving up Northwest Avenue, and I will pull over in a minute and call you back.” That was all it took. Within seconds I saw the flashing blue and red lights of one of Bellingham’s finest on a motorcycle. What could I say? He had me dead to rights, to the tune of $125.00.

You might think the seat belt law is stupid. But if you choose to drive you are by so much agreeing to abide by the traffic laws. Now is there something innately sinful or wrong about driving 80 mph, talking on a cell phone, or not buckling a seat belt? Of course not, but when you get behind the wheel you are bound by the biblical principle of Romans 13:1: Obey the governing authorities.

Now back to the Marines. Did they violate a clear biblical principle per se by their actions? The answer is: NO! Peeing on dead bodies of enemy combatants is nowhere condemned either directly or indirectly by the Word of God. If you read the Old Testament you will see David circumcising a hundred dead Philistines and throwing their foreskins at the feet of Saul as a dowry for his daughter. Scripture doesn’t tell us whether what he did was right or wrong. But in the case of Samuel killing the Amalekite king Agag at Gilgal, we are told that he took a sword and hacked him to pieces before the Lord (1 Samuel 15:33). I could site many more examples where the Lord’s people cut off the thumbs and big toes of enemy combatants and beheaded them and hung their bodies on the wall of the city. Then there is the verse that depicts out Lord and Savior gorging the vultures on the corpses of his fallen foes (Revelation 19:21).

None of this is to say the Marines were wise to do what they did. All I am maintaining here is that, biblically defined, their only transgression was of whatever specific military regulation governed their behavior. Outside that I see absolutely nothing morally wrong with their actions. Unwise? Ill-advised? Undiscerning? Absolutely. Intrinsically sinful–categorically not. If you disagree, then give me chapter and verse–in context, properly exegeted. I am sick of hearing all the baseless effeminate outcries of eeeewwwww!!!!!! that was such an icky thing to do! News flash–war is icky.

When I got my cell-phone ticket I threw it on my desk and decided to wait the two-weeks allowed and turn it in on the last day with the box checked where I can go before the judge to explain the mitigating circumstances. Maybe he will cut my fine down considerably–most likely he will, even though I am 100% guilty of the offense.

If I am afforded this kind of leniency for a traffic violation, then when these Marines are judged for their violation of whatever rule or statute it was, should not the mitigating circumstances of being in combat, getting shot at daily, and seeing your comrades maimed and killed in the line of duty somehow demand that they receive leniency? I am sorry, but some of you who think the answer is dishonorable discharge are dear long-time friends. Nevertheless to you I must respectfully conclude that you have your heads up your collective derriere on this one.

Last week I talked on the phone with an old friend after a long hiatus. One of the topics we discussed was how unforgiveness creates so many problems, both personally and relationally. I was reminded of the words of Jesus: For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matt. 6:14-15). I have never interpreted these verses in terms of salvation, but rather of fellowship. As believers we are to be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you (Eph. 4:32). When we fail to heed this directive a root of bitterness may spring up and pollute our lives and the lives of those around us (Heb. 12:15).

My friend–an award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter–shared one of his latest compositions with me, and I was impressed by its message. It speaks to the need for reconciliation, not just with God but with others as well. I asked him if I could share it on the Swordroom and he was kind enough to consent–with one stipulation. He would like you to comment below after hearing the song in terms of five questions listed below. (The song is in mp3 format).

Song: Unity Comes

This song will be sent to you if all 5 questions are answered. No other promotions or emails will be sent to your address. If you would like a copy write to us using the contact link and we will email the file to you.

1.Did the words of this song, cause you to ask if their is somebody, or perhaps God, you need to make peace with?   YES / NO

2.Would you send this to someone who might be encouraged or challenged by the message of this song?  YES / NO

3.Would you like to receive this song. YES / NO

4.Would you be interested to hear another song from this artist.  YES / NO

5.Can you share in a paragraph or more how unforgiveness has affected yourself or an aquaintence.

Here are a couple of optional side questions I would be curious to hear your responses to: (1) If you had to categorize this song by style or genre, what would you say? (2) Does this artist’s voice remind you of another singer, and if so who?

This is a Canadian award winning songwriter who has been out of circulation for a few years and has recently recorded 11 new songs that are not yet released. He has agreed to let this song be used for discussion and encouragement on the Swordroom site. At this time he wishes his name to remain “un-promoted” (his words).

Or, if you had to choose one thing to go first what would it be? A friend of mine was talking to an older pastor last week at a restaurant after the service. The pastor commented that it mattered little what he ordered off the menu since he had long since lost most of his sense of taste. Can you imagine not being able to tell the difference between a bowl of bland oatmeal and pepperoni pizza? I have known some people whose sense of smell was all but shot. Wow! there is a bagelry right up the street from my office, and one of life’s sweet experiences is to walk past and smell the aroma of fresh bagels cooking.

In my last church the senior elder had run a rock crusher for so many years that you had to look him in the eye and raise your voice or he couldn’t hear you. My dad worked as an airline mechanic for over forty years on the tarmac at Sea Tac International airport, and he is deaf without his hearing aids. I can’t imagine what it would be like to never hear the laughter of my grandchildren. Those of us who subjected our ears to excessively loud rock music in the 60′s are a little hearing impaired but we can at least hear.

David is a good brother in the Lord and frequent visitor to this site. He is totally blind and lives alone in Seattle. He has to use one of those voice-activated computers when he comments on my blogs and has to listen to them rather than read them. I remember once a few years back I went with David to see a play. Along with his sense of hearing and the running commentary whispered in his ear by others, David seemed to enjoy the show as much as anyone present. I cannot imagine living and functioning without my sense of sight.

I have known others who suffered neurological damage as a result of accidents and have lost the sensation of touch. How would I play the guitar in that condition? Many of us are losing little bits of our short-term memory as we age; but imagine what life would be like if you lost all memory of past events, all the way down to your own identity. What would life be like in the absence of the ability to think and reason rationally?

If I had to choose which of my faculties I would want to lose first–well, that’s a hard call. We depend on all our senses to function normally. Putting on our socks in the morning and raising a fork to our mouths would be a challenge without our senses. We need our senses to relate and communicate with others and God. It is with our senses that we experience and appreciate the general revelation in creation and the special revelation deposited in the 66 canonical books of our Bible.

How sad that often we do not appreciate the blessings of God until we lose them. Do not take your senses and conscious faculties for granted. Use them. Celebrate them. Thank God for them. The day might come when that privilege will no longer be yours. Remember too that even though we derive great personal pleasure through our physical senses, the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy HIM forever. This means, as Paul tells us in the sixth chapter of romans, do not yield the members of your body as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but yield yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. Let not our pleasures be sinful but rather righteous. Pleasure without guilt is so much better!

Of course you should read and study your Bible regularly. But if you are looking for a good Christian book to read let me make a suggestion. Read Pink’s The Sovereignty of God. It is very readable and very edifying. Written 60 years ago, it is as pertinent today as ever. We live in a day when the true God of the Bible is replaced with watered down fakes. This little book serves as an uplifting corrective and source of devotional blessing. And it won’t cost an arm and a leg. Buy it on Amazon and funnel no money to the local trinket and junk emporiums otherwise known as Christian book stores.

In 2004 I went to a workshop as part of my continuing education requirement as a counselor. The man who led the training was a researcher who studied the factors in counseling which predict positive outcomes. He boiled down the top four factors in descending order of influence:

Extra-Therapeutic and Client Factors (40%): These are the strengths,supports, and past successes of the client. These factors exist independently of the counseling process,and the counselor’s job is to help the client see and utilize them. People who come for counseling have solved problems in the past, but for some reason get stuck in a place where they are unable to bring their resources to bear on the present situation.

The Therapy Relationship (30%): Even though the percentage is lower for this one it is the factor counselors have the most control over. People who make progress in counseling are those who feel safe to talk about their thoughts and feelings without being judged, advised, or shamed by the counselor. If you think about it this principle holds true in most relationships. If you want to have a positive impact in the life of another person you must make a healthy connection with them, whether you are a parent, school-teacher, coach, or friend. In the context of a good relationship you can work with others to see their strengths, supports, and successes and help them brainstorm problem-solving strategies.

Therapeutic Technique (15%): Research shows that cognitive vs. behavioral vs. psychoanalytic vs. family systems is beside the point. Nor is the level of education or license of critical importance. Diagnosis doesn’t amount to much in most cases either. It is true that good counselors are skilled, but the most important skills are personal and relational rather than technical and professional: listening and empathizing rather than evaluating and pathologizing.

Expectancy, Hope, and Placebo (15%): We all know this. If a person sees light at the end of the tunnel they will move toward it. Foster hope in a friend and he will become intrinsically motivated to action.

I have framed my thinking as a counselor to see the personal connection or relationship as the hub of a wheel and the other factors as spokes connecting to the outer rim where the rubber meets the road. Build that positive connection and the person being helped will become hopeful, will see their strengths, and your skills will be more effective in that context. So the bottom line is that it’s all about connection.

My counseling practice was revolutionized when I applied this approach. I made it my primary mission to connect with my clients, to build the kind of relationship where they knew I was glad to see them and positive about the future of our work together. My primary goal in the first session was to put them at ease and make sure they would want to come back again. Listen with a low level of judgment and try to hear their stories as though I had crawled into their skin. Allow them to talk about whatever was on their mind, without coaxing or cajoling them to talk about anything until they were ready and willing.

Here is what happened. People went away and by the time they returned for the first real therapy session they had already started working on their problems and making progress. I kid you not. They were hopeful and hence more motivated. I had moms of recalcitrant teenage boys tell me it was the first time their kid had reminded them of the counseling appointment. When I pause and reflect on those persons in my youth who  impacted me, I realize it was those who had made the same kind of connection with me.

Now as many of you know I am a thick-skulled Norwegian, and sometimes it takes awhile for things to sink in. I have struggled over the past two years after leaving “the ministry” to re-discover a sense of mission in my life. Recently I read a book on missional spirituality; and while I did have a few criticisms of the book, the Lord used that reading to help me connect a few dots.

First, God is a relational being existing as three distinct co-equal persons with distinct roles and functions. God created humans in His image, and it was not too long after the creation of the man that he placed the woman by his side and instituted the family. From that time onward people have existed as families, extended families, clans, tribes, etc. Sin has marred our relationships, so that they do not function ideally; and yet no man can live as an island in this world and be happy. Show me a depressed person and I will start looking for broken relationships behind the sadness. Just look at all the artificial cyber-connection people seek through the social networking sites.

One thing Jesus did was connect with ordinary people. He was the sinless holy and righteous Son of God, but sinners did not mind being around Him. The religious leaders hated Him because rather than build healthy connections with others they repelled people with their judgmental arrogance. From all I have just written I can boil it down to this axiom: The first step in having a positive influence on others is making a good connection. You can’t help another person if you are not connected to them.

Does this mean I have changed my theology? Not really. I still believe God is completely sovereign over the salvation of sinners. I still believe what Jesus said in John 6:44: No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him. But God uses secondary means in the drawing process, such as prayer and daily circumstances. He also uses relationships. So now I am seeing my daily mission in terms of connecting with people in positive ways to whatever degree possible. Here are a few examples:

Talking to a young man who was raised in a physically and sexually abusive home. Hearing his story and understanding that he wonders why it had to be him and not someone else. Delving from this into questions about the meaning of existence, how we know what we know, and what happens after death. I was able to share with this young man that his metaphysical inquiries point to the fact that he is a unique bearer of the divine image and that as a fellow image bearer I will be delighted to pray for him and talk to him again about such questions over a soda. He remarked that he had never met a pastor before who did not meet his questions with a canned “gospel” presentation, tract, or trite platitude. Or an exhortation to suck it up and deal with it.

Breakfast with a man who says he feels inexplicably angry and impulsively punches walls. Says he feels a rage that is only relieved by destruction of physical objects. I remember feeling like this as a young man. This guy was curious how one can know for sure Jesus is real–what is the evidence. I was able to share my own story about how I wrestled with this same question right after the death of my friend Lance. I further shared my belief that the Jesus of the Bible is alive and that we must seek Him with a no-holds-barred openness to however He chooses to disclose Himself to us.

Today at the supermarket. A lady who is usually a checker is stocking shelves, and I ask if she likes that better. She says no, she does not like it, but the economy is tight and downsizing has forced those with lower seniority to be bumped to less than full time doing the more menial work. All I can do is listen and empathize.

Do I still believe people are lost sinners who will spend eternity in a really bad place if they do not know Christ? Yes. But I am starting to see myself as an agent of blessing in making simple connections where God will use me in the drawing process according to His good pleasure. Again: The first step in having a positive influence on others is making a good connection. You can’t help another person if you are not connected to them. 

People are starved for connection, and they will gobble up all of this you can give them. I pray God will open doors and hearts. I pray His Spirit will convict unbelievers of sin, righteousness, and judgment. I pray that there will be opportunities to share the gospel. I believe no less than ever that people are lost and headed for a very bad eternity without Jesus Christ. But I also know that to hit today’s secularized sinner with a quick Romans Road or Four Spiritual Laws presentation will likely repel him before I even get a hearing. Taking him to your run-of-the-mill church service will not be any more helpful. It’s about connection first and foremost. God is sovereign and all I can do is be sensitive to Him.

Does this sound like friendship with an ulterior motive? Good. It is. If you knew someone was asleep in a burning house the most loving thing you could do is warn him. What could be more loving than to build a positive connection with an unbeliever with a view to his salvation? What if he rejects Christ? Then what? Stay connected and keep praying. Let your love for the sinner be unconditional.

Anyway, my mission is a mission of connection, and I hope for you readers who love the Lord it will be too. Every connection is a divine appointment. Where it leads is up to God; I will do what I can do. I can also tell you I am chomping at the bit to preach and teach the Word. But one thing I dread is getting a group of believers together and organizing it into a “church” because somehow that’s where things always seem to turn south. Still waiting on wisdom from the Lord on that one.

In the opening paragraph of Luke 20 (vv. 1-8) is the story about the Jewish leaders confronting Jesus as He taught in the temple. They asked Him where He received His authority or who had given it to Him. He replied with a question to them about John the Baptist–was his authority from heaven or from men. Caught in a dilemma the Jewish leaders refused to answer, and so did Jesus.

What the Jewish leaders were really asking is: Who gave you permission to come into our temple and teach the people? Jesus had not come up through any of the rabbinic schools, and He held no position of rank among the religious status quo.

On the surface their question did not seem unreasonable. In your standard church today the pulpit is not open to any Tom, Dick, or Harry who walks through the door. Normally churches select teachers based on giftedness, experience, and education. Some self-styled prophet who walks through the door is not automatically given the right to disrupt the service. The first Amendment does not give you the right to shout fire! in a crowded theatre or set up a soap box in the middle of a grocery store.

But the Jews should have recognized Jesus’ authority based on the confirming miracles He performed and by the content of His message. Jesus had an authority that was inherent in His person. People were blown away by the authority with which He spoke, in contrast to the dry teaching of the scribes in the synagogues.

We do not have authority in and of ourselves. As believers we have been entrusted with the gospel and the truth of God deposited in the scriptures. When we present the gospel clearly and accurately God’s word carries its own authority. It is my belief that if you are gifted in handling and presenting the word of God and you are walking with the Lord and trusting Him, then God has a place for you to minister. If you plug into a Bible-believing church and seek prayerfully to be used, God will open doors. To be very honest the churches today are seeing a famine for God’s word on par with the days of the prophet Amos. All manner of watered down culturally hip politically correct pabulum is being barfed forth from pulpits across North America, and many churches are becoming gargantuan goatfolds with a few sick sheep mixed in. Goats love garbage and if you feed them they will come. Give them shallow narcissistic albeit well-produced music, skits, puppet shows, and so-called Christian comedians. Anything but the clear teaching of the Bible–in context, properly exegeted.

I will give it to you straight up. One reason I left the pastorate is that it was a hindrance to my ministry. This blog and my men’s group (Fight Club) afford a golden opportunity to present truth. Who gave me permission to do this? Where does my authority come from? Ultimately the Word of God carries its own authority. My job is to handle it accurately and present it clearly. Beyond this I claim no spiritual authority except that which I exercise as I serve my family as a husband and father.

I just finished a book titled Missional Spirituality: Embodying God’s Love from the Inside Out by Roger Helland and Leonard Hjalmarson (IVP Books, 2011). Here I will offer my thoughts on this book in four parts: (1) how I came to read it; (2) the book’s basic theme and how the authors develop it; (3) what I found helpful about it; (4) a critique of a few elements in the book.

When I was saved in 1971 as a long-haired drug and alcohol addict, the good folks in mainstream evangelical churches were, quite frankly, fearful of me and those of my ilk. Times they were a changing, and many establishment Christians felt like the culture was getting away from them–moving faster han they could hang onto it. Some churches chose to circle the wagons and cling to their sacred cows, chanting the seven-last-words-mantra of the church of those times: We’ve never done it that way before. The attitude seemed to be that if the churches were to open the doors to us newbies we would sell drugs to their kids after the service. If these hippies were really saved they would cut their hair, shave their beards, wear decent clothes, leave their guitars at home, and sing these old hymns with us. If it was good enough for Paul… (Thank God for the Chuck Smiths of that era!)

Fast forward. After nearly four decades spent in a combination of Bible college, seminary, grad school, and pastoral ministry, I woke up one day and discovered I had become very much like those seasoned believers of yesteryear. Dour, crusty, dispassionate. I felt basically irrelevant. My church had no mission outside itself because I had lost my vision and was burning out. After awhile the church in which I served felt like death. Even if I were to lead someone to Christ–something I had not done in years–would I really want to bring them to one of our Sunday morning services? When your church gets to that point people turn their focus inward and feed upon themselves like famished barracuda. After much prayer and struggle on our part God mercifully provided a way of escape for Connie and me. For the last twelve years of ministry I had been working bi-vocationally as a licensed mental health therapist, and when I quit the church I became a full-time counselor.

For two years I struggled after leaving “full-time” ministry. We church-hopped and felt like we just didn’t know where we fit. Many of the congregations we visited were ingrown and seemed to have little concern for or impact on the surrounding community, while others tried to draw people in by being hip and un-church-like.  During this same period I started this website and fired up my weekly men’s group called Fight Club. And then just a week ago I heard about the new book presently under review. Seeing how I had not cracked a book in over a year I decided to give this one a read, especially since one of the authors was an old college buddy of mine.

No sooner had I finished the introduction to the book when I had an enlightening talk with a friend who is not a believer. I asked him if he ever feels uncomfortable with how quickly the world is changing. To my surprise I found that he feels pretty much the same way I do. Technology is ever-changing, the economy is going global, urbanization and transience are the norm, and we are becoming a more diverse and secularized culture. Because I am not a “pastor” any more I was able to share a little with him in a very relaxed way about how my faith stabilizes and grounds me amid the chaos that is my life these days. We have been getting together for several years on Sunday afternoons to jam on guitars and sing “non-Christian” songs, and I can tell you for a fact that he would shine me off pronto if I ever hit him with a canned approach like the Romans Road or Four Spiritual Laws.

Now about the book. In Missional Spirituality Helland and Hjalmarson are well aware that stories like my own are becoming more commonplace among Christians struggling to be salt and light in this critical cultural juncture they call a liminality–”a threshold, an in-between place of ambiguity and uncertainty, disorientation and transition” (p. 14). And they offer some real food for the beleaguered soul in terms of how we can live out our spirituality missionally.

The authors define missional spirituality as an attentive and active engagement of embodied love for God and neighbor expressed from the inside out. The challenges to living out a missional spirituality are defined as disenchantment, excarnation, abstraction, consumerism, entitlement, extraction, and mustant pietism. For a clear and comprehensive discussion of each of these items you will of course want to read the book. The shorter summary is that believers are often too unimaginative, cerebral, theoretical, materialistic, and spoiled by affluence. And they often seem to separate the spiritual from the secular in an unhelpful kind of  neo-gnostic dualism. A missional spirituality sees God as active everywhere all the time and connects theology with practice born of love for God and neighbor.

Helland and Hjalmarson build their concept of missional spirituality on four theological pillars: the trinity, the incarnation, the priesthood of the believer, and the great commandment (Mark 12:28-31), which they call the Jesus Creed/Shema. The tri-unity of God points us to the fact that He is a relational being by nature, as are we also since we bear His image. He exists in a love relationship and is eternally desiring to express this love from the inside out with His fallen creatures. The Lord’s incarnation and dwelling with us serve as an example of how we must be willing to get our hands dirty in the work of reaching out to others by living among them where they are. Our priesthood as believers speaks to the royal authority that is ours to move out into the world as his representatives. The Jesus Creed connects our wholehearted love for God with the natural outgrowth of love for our neighbor. Of course there is technically nothing new about any of this; it’s just that many of us have either lost sight of our sense of mission, or we do not know how to put feet to it in these changing times.

It is hard to grasp the meaning of missional spirituality without concrete examples, and the authors provide several examples in the form of a brief historical overview of missional spirituality in action. They seem to trace a thread of missional spirituality from the days of the apostles through the early Pietist movement and Phillip Jacob Spener, then through the Moravian movement and ministry of Count Nicolaus von Zinzendorf, next through Methodism and other Wesleyan offshoots, and finally through the ministry of A.B. Simpson and the Christian and Missionary Alliance. For good measure they also mention the various forms of modern Pentecostal and charismatic Christianity. What these historic movements all have in common is an emphasis on inner spiritual formation that works its way out in loving service to believer and unbeliever alike. They all share some claim to a second work of the Spirit after conversion and link it to the references to the baptism of the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts. It was not until I read this historical summary that I understood why, out of all the important biblical doctrines they could have mentioned, the authors chose the four aforementioned theological pillars as the foundation of a missionalspirituality. I was surprised they did not include the Jesus Movement of the late 1960′s and early 1970′s in their historical overview. (Maybe they did and I missed it.)

Once I understood where the authors were coming from historically and theologically I was not surprised to see them encouraging what many would call a more mystical approach to spiritual formation–emphasis on prayer, spiritual disciplines, and listening for the voice of God in our daily experience. Rather than go into any more detail I will suffice it to say that if you are familiar with the works of Richard Foster, Dallas Willard, and Henri Nouwen you will taste the flavor of the book in terms of spiritual formation and devotional piety. When I got to this point in the book I thought perhaps it could have just as easily been titled: Mystical Spirituality.

Nor am I being strictly critical here. God sovereignly brought this book to my attention at a time when I needed a spiritual jump start. I am thankful for the encouragement it has afforded me, and how it challenged me as one who stands within the Reformed Baptist tradition to view things from a different perspective. I came away from my reading of Missional Spirituality motivated afresh to see my daily encounters with others as opportunities to be a channel of God’s love. Having said that let me finish with a few quick areas of question or concern. I will state these as brief points so as not to bore the reader.

1.  A narrow view of church history. The feeling I got reading this book was that true missional Christianity could be traced through the ages in a thread of movements emphasizing a more or less common set of beliefs and practices. If I had to use labels I would describe these beliefs as mystical, second-blessing, and either Semi-Pelagian or Arminian. The book seemed to downplay the influence of the Reformed branch of the church. Apparently the Reformation sapped the church of the sense of enchantment that had previously existed and replaced it with a more rational and cerebral bent. Never mind that before the Reformation the church was shot through with pagan superstition and biblical ignorance of the first magnitude. And what about wave of gospel preaching of the Puritans in England? What about the great gospel preaching of men like John Knox? What about the mighty Spurgeon–staunchly Reformed yet warmly evangelical and missional to the core? We might also mention the influence of George Whitefield and the New England Calvinist pastor/theologian Jonathan Edwards. We could also point to the modern ministries of John Piper (Desiring God Ministries) and Mark Driscoll (Acts 29 Network/Resurgence).

2. Weak and seemingly arbitrary theological basis. If we are going to tell people to love God with everything they have, then is it not vital that they know who God is and what He is like? Why emphasize a concept like the trinity, which must be deduced from various texts, and not start with something a little more explicitly taught, like the holiness or sovereignty of God? When Jesus told the Jewish leader to love God, what God was He referring to? I’ll give you one clue: it was not the god of The Shack. It was the God of the Old Testament–the One whose first commandment was that no other gods than Him be worshipped. Not only that; Jesus claimed in more than one place to be the God of the Old Testament. Bottom line–your love for God is no better than your theology. It is true that information about God does not automatically lead to love for Him. But you cannot love him if you are ignorant or hold distorted concepts of who He is. For more on how a low view of God has rotted the modern evangelical church see my book: Breaking the Box: Rebuilding Faith in the God of the Bible. It is available on Amazon.

3. Artificial head/heart distinction. There is no real dualism here. Your brain is an organ of the body, and thoughts are behaviors. Believing false information about God and His will is just as sinful as stealing or lying. True, one can have a head full of facts and an abysmal practice. By the same token he can cast out demons and do many works supposedly in the name of Jesus without being known by the Savior. He can feed the poor and even allow himself to be burned at the stake, but if he does not love the Lord it profits him nothing. The issue of head and heart devotion is not a matter of either/or. We need both.

Another point worth mentioning here is that whereas we often compartmentalize people into distinct parts like soul, spirit, intellect, will, emotions, etc., ancient Hebrew culture viewed humans more holistically. When Jesus tells us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, He might not be splitting man into distinct parts; rather the piling up of synonyms is simply for emphasis. It’s as though He is telling us to love God with everything we have.

4. Definition based on a single Greek preposition. In Mark 12:28-34 Jesus’ statement of the twofold great commandment uses the Greek preposition ek to denote loving God out of  our heart, soul, strength, and mind. This is evidently a whole different story from loving Him with our heart, soul, strength, and mind. Perhaps, but (FYI) in the two parallel passages in Matthew and Luke the writers express Jesus’ words using the Greek preposition en, which would most naturally be translated with. Just sayin’.

5. A closer look at enchantment. I totally agree that many of us have lost our sense of awe and wonder. And while I am no cessationist I am not sure the best way to retrieve a sense of enchantment is to look inward in some form of mystical practice and listen to our inner twinges and impressions for the voice of God. In my years of ministry I have witnessed healings and some very unusual experiences with the Holy Spirit which resulted in folks getting saved and blessed. But I was never out-and-out looking for such experiences. And when I tried to replicate them it led to contrived and manufactured prophesies, words of knowledge, etc. I dabbled for awhile in the Vineyard and signs-and-wonders movement, and what I remember most was the de-emphasis on Scripture and a total abandon to the emotions. For me the best way to keep a sense of awe and wonder alive is through practicing the providence of God. Disciplining my mind to see the hand of God in everything, from the beauty of creation, to the breathtakingly adorned home Connie has created with her God-given talents, to the complexity of technological ingenuity that is on loan to us from our Creator. This is God’s world, and we breathe His air, eat His food, drink His water, and enjoy the beauty of His creation only because He has given us the ability to do so. God is always at work in His universe. Even so-called laws of nature like gravity do not operate intependently of  Him. Not even the smallest sparrow falls to the ground apart from His providential hand. Wow! And if God wants to speak to me or bless me in some extraordinary way, well, that’s gravy.

These items of concern notwithstanding, I would encourage you to give Missional Spirituality a read. It will challenge you and stretch your thinking. Hopefully it will kindle your love for God and neighbor. Reading it helped me erase from my mind those lingering doubts about whether I had flaked out on God by leaving “the ministry.” One thing I have been able to learn through this process is that I am gifted more for ministry with individuals than larger groups. Counseling is a natural avenue for me to work out my salvation missionally. Reading Missional Spirituality really helped me get confirmation of this fact, and despite my few criticisms I thank Roger and Leonard for writing it and God for bringing it to my attention.

Last night Connie and I watched an episode of Dr. Phil in which a mother and three adult daughters went round and round over offenses committed by the mother decades ago. Everyone was pointing fingers, blaming, rationalizing, minimizing, denying, and suffering from convenient memory loss. One of the daughters had been abandoned my her mother and left to care for the two younger sisters. Another had been beaten severely and verbally abused by her mom. And a third had been molested by an adolescent friend of the family, and claimed her mother reacted with apathy.

Dr. Phil listened patiently before offering his counsel. He questioned the mother’s sincerity and doubted that she was truly remorseful. Then he told the daughters to forgive their mother. You could see that when he said this the daughters screwed up their faces in shock. Quickly Dr. Phil clarified what he meant by “forgiveness.” Forgiveness is not forgetting, and it is not a denial that the offense occurred. In fact it is not really for the benefit of the offender at all. According to Dr. Phil, forgiveness is a letting go of our feelings of rage and resentment for our own sake, so that we can move forward and escape a life filled with bitterness. After all, we owe ourselves that much. This is a paraphrase, but it is pretty much you hear at the pop level from celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and psychobabblers like Drs. Drew and Phil.

Rather coincidentally (or not) this morning in my Bible reading I came across these words: If your brother sins against you rebuke him, and if he repents forgive him. And if seven times in a day he sins against you and seven times in a day turns to you saying “I repent,” forgive him (Luke 17:3-4).

Sounds kind of superficial and mechanical, does it not. Why should I forgive someone after seven offenses just because they say they have repented? Obviously if they keep offending they are not truly sorry or remorseful. This is just the point: we cannot evaluate this because we can only see behaviors and not the heart. How many times have you watched this or that expert say it is obvious that so-and-so has no remorse. How can they say this? All we can say it that the person does not seem to be expressing remorse. We have no real clue what is going on in the person’s heart, and so we must forgive.

Not only that–Christ has forgiven us and loves us unconditionally. No servant is above his master, so we can do no less than the Lord. Nor do we forgive as a salve for our own hurts or a vehicle for our moving on. We forgive for the sake of the offender out of love.

Of course forgiveness does not mean there are no consequences. I am sure God forgave Moses for his angry outburst, but still Moses was kept from entering the land. If I get drunk and lose a limb in an accident and then repent God will forgive me, but the limb will still be gone.

Stop listening to pagan experts when it comes to forgiveness and follow God’s word. No flaky forgiveness.

In my last post I lampooned the fad-ish-ness of American Evangelicalism. Christians are often like people who have been married for a few years and want to get that old spark back. Reading the Word, going to church, praying–it starts feeling like meat-loaf Thursday for the umpteenth week in a row.

So the idea is to generate excitement with some new program or activity. Once that fizzles out then it’s time to move on to the next thing. Problem is it never really works.

Sunday night I went and visited a little church a few miles out of our neighborhood. I got there a few minutes early and there were a half dozen people standing around in the tiny sanctuary. Their faces were flat as to affect and they greeted me unenthusiastically. The song leader showed up five minutes late and led us through the singing of four old hymns. The regular pastor had the night off, so a man looking to be in his late eighties preached a message about King Ahaz from Isaiah 7. After his sermon the preacher dismissed us with a benediction. I made small talk with an elderly gentleman for a few minutes after the service before driving home.

Those of a more Pentecostal persuasion would say such a service was dead. Their answer to such deadness is a lot of hollering, blabbering in tongues, and emotional release–5% inspiration and 95% perspiration. Either way I see no real fire–one approach simply has more smoke.

The thing both approaches have in common is that they are impotent in terms of reaching the lost. Mind you, the church service is not designed for evangelism. Ideally a worship service should be a place of fellowship with Christ and others, covenant renewal, and an equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry and building up of the body of Christ. Frankly the “dead” little church I visited was closer to the mark because at least someone intelligibly expounded the Word of God.

Problem is the people looked like they were bored stiff. It was as though they were going to church out of habit, but really had no reason to be there. They were just going through the motions.

I think this is one area where the gurus of the missional movement are correct. The church needs to have a sense of mission outside the four walls of the physical building. The question is, what is that mission and how should it be carried out?

One thing I know for certain–if you build on the doctrinal quicksand of Arminianism you will never end up in the right place. You will jump from one man-centered gimmick to another to be hip and relevant and to woo sinners to Christ. You will opt for mystical models of spiritual formation devoid of biblical support, and you will look within to hear the voice of God instead of to His completed Word. From here it is a downward spiral into deeper deception and error.

My mission is to be true to the word of God. Walk within the patterns of biblically defined sanctification. Then, as I live and move about in the world I want to see every person whose life I touch as someone I can be a channel of blessing to. If I am able to love a non-elect person, then God will bring the memory of His common grace back to their view on the day of judgment. There is always the hope that I will be granted an opportunity to present the life-giving gospel and God will be pleased to regenerate some to salvation.

If I am going to be missional then that is the way I want to do it. Love God and love my neighbor as myself. I am even to love my enemies. You might well ask:  if God does not love the Esaus of the world, why would He command me to do so? The answer is simple–God has every right to love whom He will, save whom He will, and harden the rest. But I am a sinner, and I have no right to hate anyone on the basis that they are a sinner; for otherwise I would be compelled to hate myself.