Attempts at Honesty

Reflections on the interplay of the Bible and Culture

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Church wounds run deep

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Church Wounds
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Recently I received an invitation from a missionary friend to a meeting to share the results from a recent trip. The event will be hosted by a church we previously attended. While I would like to support my friend, I am not welcome to attend any event at that church. I had to decline the invitation because of where it is to be held.

My emotional reaction to the invitation surprised me a little. It has been four years since we left that church. I have forgiven those that hurt me and I thought that my experience there was safely in the past. What I learned from the invitation is that while the pain is no longer acute, it is still there. I find that like the wound Frodo received on Weathertop, the pain never completely goes away. Church wounds run deep.

My experience with this leader is not unique to me. I had a conversation last week with a friend who relayed a painful church experience to me. Many people have been wounded deeply as a result of participation in a church. If you don’t believe me, try a Google search on “bad church experiences.”

My point is not to lash out at the former church. My purpose in sharing this is three-fold.

  1. I want to encourage leaders to examine the reasons why people leave their churches. If there is a pattern of people feeling wounded when they leave, then something is wrong and it needs to be addressed. It is your responsibility as a leader to figure it out and allow God to bring correction. You, as leaders, will be judged by how well you have nurtured those under your influence. Here is a quick test: do those who leave your church feel welcome to come back?
  2. I want to encourage those that have been wounded in churches, that the wounds they received also grieve the heart of God. Note that it was religious leaders who initiated the crucifixion of Jesus, so he fully understands the implications of leaders abusing their positions. The Old Testament prophets had a lot to say about the religious leaders of Israel who failed in their commission to shepherd the people of Israel (Ezekiel 34 comes to mind).
  3. I want to encourage those that have been wounded in churches, that while the wounds run deep, finding a good church does a lot toward relieving the pain of the bad experience. There are pastors who take seriously their calling to minister to their congregations and who lovingly care for God’s people. Find one.

On the bright side, much of what I now believe about what the church should be was shaped by that horrible experience. The pain caused me to seek understanding from Scripture about how the church should function and how spiritual leaders should act. An overwhelmingly negative example forced me to look for a positive one.

If you have been wounded by a church, please do not stop trying to find a church with leaders who are serving both God and his people. They are out there and they will one day be greatly rewarded for their service.

Feel free to share your experience in the comment section below. I’d love to hear from you.

On shining faces

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ex34_29In Exodus 34 we find that as a result of being in close relationship with God, Moses’ face shone to the point where the people were afraid of him. As a result, Moses went around with a veil over his face so that the people could bear his presence.

This was an anomaly, this is something that doesn’t normally happen. There is no other instance in Scripture that I can think of where someone’s face shone after spending time with God.

But should that be an anomaly? Should we not, in some measure, all reflect the glory of God after spending time with him? While it is unlikely that we will need to wear veils to avoid freaking people out, we can indeed reflect God’s glory as a result of our relationship with him.

We reflect God’s glory when we live in the freedom that the Gospel brings to our lives. We are redeemed and forgiven and the closer we are in our relationship with God, the deeper the knowledge of that forgiveness. The deeper knowledge should result in a deeper the impact on our behavior.

We reflect God’s glory when we walk in humble obedience to him. In a sense, using the term humble obedience is a redundancy, because any attempt at obedience without humility would be disobedience.

Historically, Christians have lead the charge with regard to humanitarian effort. Christians have often been a shining example of those who live in community and act for the benefit of others. Christians have faced death rather than compromise their relationships with God.

We reflect God’s glory when we gather to worship him in our local fellowship.

We reflect God’s glory when we respond to the people and situations in which we find ourselves in the same way that Jesus would respond. John tells us that Jesus was “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). When we respond to our circumstances with both of these traits, we reflect God’s glory.

We should all have shining faces after spending time with God.

Van Dixhoorn on the Ministry of the Word

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Confessing the Faith

In studying for a class on the Westminster Confession of Faith, it was recommended to me that I get a copy of Chad Van Dixhoorn’s commentary on the confession, entitled Confessing the Faith.

I began by reading the commentary on Chapter 14 of the confession (since this is the beginning of the session that we will discuss in the next class session). I liked these paragraphs and thought I would share them with you.

“The ministry of the Word is used by the Spirit to work saving faith in us. It should be added that the Word of God can increase and strengthen our faith.

What new Christian and what seasoned saint will not confess that his or her faith is often weak? All the honest ones will. For that reason Christian elders impress upon every believer the importance of attending as often as possible to the preaching of the Word. We want to see trust in Christ grow and be strengthened as the weeks and years go by. The Apostle Peter once urged believers to desire what he called ‘ the pure milk of the word’ precisely so that they would ‘grow up into salvation’ (1 Peter 2:2). Paul said much the same to the leaders of the Ephesian church when he commended his listeners to the ‘word of his grace, which can build you up’ (Acts 20:32). This is biblical advice; the soundest sort of wisdom.”

In the internet age, we have many ways of encountering Christian teaching in written, audio and video formats. I could fill my podcast app with enough teaching to listen all my waking hours.

But there is something very special about hearing the Word of God proclaimed by capable preachers along with my brothers and sisters in Christ. I read recently, that for many years, Martyn Lloyd-Jones resisted having audio recordings made of his sermons for this reason.

Obedience, trembling and embracing

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obedienceThis morning I was reading through the Sermon on the Mount and a phrase from the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) came to mind. In response to Scripture, the WCF speaks of

“. . . yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life, and that which is to come.”

The reason this phrase came to mind is that I was struck by how poorly I put into practice what Jesus commands in his sermon. I’m not very good at turning the other cheek. I balk at going the second mile. I grumble about, rather than pray for, my enemies. These are just a few of the ways I fall short of living out the commands of Scripture.

The bad news is that I will never be able to live out the commands of the Sermon on the Mount. This would be overwhelming if it wasn’t for the good news.

The good news (the literal meaning of the word “gospel”) is that God has made a provision for me to get past my inability.

In Christ I am forgiven. In Christ I am not condemned. My inability to live the Christian life has been taking into account and a fix has been implemented.

In Christ, I have the opportunity to obey the commands, tremble at the threatenings and embrace the promises. I can do so, not with the intention of earning merit with God. Rather, I can do so like a child seeking to emulate a loving father. Love is a much better motivation.

The irony of this is that by giving up the desire to put myself in a better standing with God, I then actually am in a better standing. I move from acting from duty or self-interest to acting from love. While God does not love me any more or any less as a result of my behavior, obedience, trembling and embracing align my thinking and behavior with God’s desire.

I find that increased obedience brings increased peace to my soul.

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