Some people become Christians because they find the evidence for a historical, resurrected Jesus to be incontrovertible. Some people become Christians because God helps them through a difficult time. Most of us have realized how ugly and selfish our hearts are, and we want to give that up, and be made new in Christ. But I think one of the things that most draws me to God is my sense that there is more – more out there than just me. Eugene Peterson articulates this so well in his book Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places:
We sense that life is more than what we are in touch with at this moment, but not different from it, not unrelated to it. We get glimpses of wholeness and vitality that exceed what we can muster out of our own resources. We get hints of congruence between who and what we are and the world around us – rocks and trees, meadows and mountains, birds and fish, dogs and cats, kingfishers and dragonflies – obscure and fleeting but convincing confirmations that we are all in this together, that we are kin to all that is and has been and will be.
Not only is this “more” seen in the natural world, but there is a sense of “more” that makes up the goals of my life as well.
We have this feeling in our bones that we are involved in an enterprise that is more than the sum of the parts that we can account for by looking around us and making an inventory of the details of our bodies, our families, our thoughts and feelings, the weather and the news, our job and leisure activities; we have this feeling that we will never quite make it out, never be able to explain it or diagram it, that we will always be living a mystery – but a good mystery.
And I especially agree with that feeling that we are living a good mystery. We cannot prove God, or fully explain him. But we can KNOW him…
If you were going to write a book on the hard sayings of Jesus, which ones would you pick? Money? Divorce? Communion? What if you had only 160 pages, and had to pick only seven sayings? Shawn Wood took on the challenge in his new book Wasabi Gospel. It’s a quick read, but because he picks only seven sayings, it allows him to stick to a single theme. What is it?
"The chapters in this book attempt to touch on a few of the more radical sayings of Jesus. In this book, I also attempt to paint a picture of words that, when applied to our lives, will radically change us."
Wood moves from extreme forgiveness, to loving your enemies, to putting the Kingdom before money, to childlike faith. He provides prayers to guide spiritual growth at the end of each chapter. Wood also interweaves the chapters with journal entries of a fictional “Laura,” who struggles with life and faith. By the end of the book this is effective, though I worried that it would prevent sharing this book with any actual “Lauras” who live these same issues.
The best parts of the book for me were Wood’s encouragement to take the Christian life past “getting to go to heaven” and moving it into a Kingdom-centered life focused on glorifying and serving God. I recommend this book as a gentle introduction to the Kingdom-centered life. Its short length and seven chapters would make it a good book for a small group, especially for young marrieds.
On July 8, the book becomes available for pre-order. Thanks to Shawn for providing a digital copy of the book to me to review. If this is a title you are interested in purchasing, please consider placing your order on July 8 to increase the visibility of the book… and the gospel.
The book The Unexpected Adventure is written by Lee Strobel and Mark Mittelberg, who also worked together on the “How to Be a Contagious Christian” curriculum produced by Willow Creek Association.
It has a similar focus to “Contagious Christian” (our church went through the DVD and book about 2 years ago), but the framework is completely different. The book is designed to be a six-week devotional, with 42 short (5 – 6 page) “chapters.” The authors suggest that we read one chapter each day. So… okay. I didn’t want to. I borrowed the book from the library, and I wanted to read the whole thing. So keep in mind that I didn’t follow the instructions, and anything I don’t like about the book is my own fault now.
Each chapter has a story about one of the authors’ evangelistic interactions. They then follow the story with an “action principle,” or summary of how we can apply the principle, and then something they call “stepping into the adventure.” This often had a biblical example of the point… or sometimes they just talked more. I never did quite gather what the “stepping” section was for. But since I don’t have nearly enough evangelism stories to fill 42 chapters myself, the authors get to do what they want.
The strengths of this book are the repeated examples of relatively normal people talking about their faith with non-Christians. Some of the important things I learned are: read more…
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession”
As much as it pleases me to think that I am special, that my country is special, or that I have earned blessings, this is not why I am part of a holy nation. The holy nation Peter speaks of is the nation of people who have chosen to submit themselves to a higher authority, a spiritual authority.
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
I belong to the Holy One, and he is my primary allegiance. He has rescued me from selfishness, and shame, and desire for recognition and wealth and freedom. I am honored to stand in his light. It purifies me, and cleanses both my shame and my pride. I am honored to shout, “Great is the Lord! Great are his blessings!” And I am honored to stand beside those who have also chosen this holy nation, who also shout.
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”
Today my country celebrates its origins, its birth. Because I was born in this nation, I have freedom and material wealth and safety that many do not have. I am profoundly grateful for the blessings that my government makes possible. But I count myself first of all part of the holy nation formed by allegiance to Jesus Christ. And I welcome those who join me in this nation – from all countries, from all political parties, from all cultures. Together, we acknowledge that we were in darkness, but we have received mercy, and we give all honor to Him who alone deserves it. We belong to God above all.
I Peter 2:9-10, TNIV
In Greg Boyd’s book Myth of a Christian Nation, he presents the following thesis: “I believe a significant segment of American evangelicalism is guilty of nationalistic and political idolatry.” Do you feel uncomfortable reading that? After finishing this book, I feel a mix of both pleasure and fear. Pleasure, because I often feel uncomfortable when I see church and politics mix. But also fear, because Boyd’s alternative is fiercely humble and sacrificial.
The logic of the book might be summarized as follows:
- The kingdoms of the world seek improve society by controlling behavior. God orders the kingdoms of the world, but lets Satan have authority over them.
- God’s kingdom on earth is currently limited to those who accept Christ’s rule. His rule grows throughout the world as we allow Christ to live through us and draw others to him.
- The kingdom of the world and kingdom of God have opposite aims and responses. Even the best version of the kingdom of the world is part of the problem, using coercion rather than love. God’s kingdom rules by changing hearts, not behavior.
I like Scot McKnight’s fear of and fascination for the Bible that he expresses in this introduction to his book:
“I have learned that when we take our hands off the pages of the Bible, read and listen to its words, and enter into its story by faith, something happens. It renews and continues to renew its powers. It becomes what it was meant to be, something both more intimate than an old pair of jeans and more unusual than alien creatures, something like a familiar stranger or an unpredictable neighbor or a pet lion whose presence invigorates its surroundings. Something like the glory of the ocean, which on the surface appears gentle and strolling and pleasant to observe, but under that surface there’s a vibrant, teeming, swirling, dynamic world full of beauty and wonder. Or perhaps listening to the Bible is like having the most powerful person in the world sit down with you for coffee as a friend and chat with you.”
Anyone who feels like they’ve got the whole Bible thing worked out probably also thinks the collar and leash they’ve got on Aslan is going to hold.
In keeping with my general theme on this blog, I am not a Bible expert. Or a seminary graduate. But I do think that anyone who wants to can learn how to read the Bible the way God wants us to. Given that assurance, and my huge background in hermeneutics (I read How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth in a small group!) I dove into Scot McKnight’s The Blue Parakeet this week.
It’s both more readable and more mysterious than How to Read. The tone is much more conversational and casual. But McKnight’s philosophy is much more …. philosophical … than Fee and Stuart’s. I give a quick summary below – not so you know what it is about, but to help me process.
McKnight’s main question is “how are we to live out the Bible today?” And in his answer is as follows:
One of the theologies I’m currently struggling with is the working out of my faith. Justification. Regeneration. Spiritual formation. The whole “becoming more like Jesus” thing. Here is a good essay on the topic by John Ortberg in LeadershipJournal.net. He doesn’t do much except point out the importance of recognizing and dealing with sin, but he does a great job:
So the question isn’t "How much sin am I allowed?" The question is "Am I moving toward the darkness or toward the light? Am I growing toward God, or away from him? Am I becoming more sensitive and responsive to Jesus?"
Read the essay here.
I’ve been a Christian for a long time. But last August I had a bit of an epiphany about how little I knew about God and Christianity, in spite of being in church and small groups forever. So I started reading. It’s been a year, now, and lots of books later. I thought maybe you might find it entertaining to see what happens when a non-seminarian tries to learn.
1. How to Read the Bible for all its Worth. I learned a tremendous amount about the complexities of translating the Bible, and recognizing how important it is to read the Bible in paragraphs and chapters and books, rather than in verse-snippets.
2. The Divine Conspiracy. I had a sense that this book was “important.” But read more…
After reading A Praying Life, I’ve been motivated to be more deliberate about my praying. The book talks about using prayer cards and a prayer journal. What I like a lot about Miller’s praying is the idea of keeping the needs of people regularly in prayer so that I can be alert to how God is working in their lives, and by providing scripture to pray for each category of need.
My first attempt is to use a small notebook. I like seeing scripture typed out (it’s less distracting for me), so I’m using mailing labels to print scripture for each category of prayers. Then I can write the specific requests and people under the scripture. The rest of the notebook is to record events and quotes and sermon illustrations for me to also bring back to mind and to God.
Here are my categories and scriptures so far:
