" † "

The day that I understand God is the day that I become an atheist.

velvet

I bought a book today that I assumed I was going to hate.

You see, I have become rather fascinated by what is unofficially known as "The Emerging Church" and, under its official title, the "Emergent." (Technically these are different things despite being so similar in name).

This movement contains both positive and negative elements and is difficult to contextualize. For example, my exposure to the Emerging Church began with Mark Driscoll, one of its founders, who is now one of the foremost critics of others within the movement. The above linked article is a decent overview but has its flaws.

I have heard that the Emerging Churches are saving Christianity... I have also heard that they are heretical neo-liberals. But wait, Mark Driscoll is highly conservative in his theology. Get it? Hard to pin down.

There's this guy named Rob Bell who is really important in the "Emergent Village," the apparently more liberal minded "official" stream of Emerging Churches. He wrote this book called "Velvet Elvis." Some people love it, others, including most of my friends of the reformed persuasion think that it is heretical trash.

Of course, if there is one thing that I have learned in university it is that I have to critically analyze texts for myself. And if there is one thing I've learned in the bible it is that I have to test all things and hold on to the good.

With this in mind I can honestly say that I am led by the Spirit of God to read this book, so I bought it... It's hard for me to really explain, but the only thing I've been able to think about in my devotions lately is this book. I wake up and the front cover is in my mind. It's the only thing I've been able to think about, "I must read this book."

I'm surprised, challenged, thoughtful. Two chapters in and it has me on my toes, it in one hand the bible in the other. A lot of what it has to say is valid and worth consideration, and some of it is postmodern questioning for the sake of asking questions. It's not all heresy, but I'd have to say that some of the ideas presented are heretical. So I'm going to hold on to the good and reject the bad. I don't hate it... I don't love it either.

Expect more thoughts later.

Grace & Truth

Truth without grace breeds a self-righteousness legalism that poisons the church and pushes the world away from Christ. Grace without truth breeds moral indifference and keeps people from seeing their need for Christ. [Randy Alcorn, "The Grace and Truth Paradox"]

I recently had a conversation with someone I know but don't often see from TCF. Certain issues came up, and eventually I quoted a sort of proverb that I obviously must of heard someone say before because it was too good to be mine! What I said was "Truth without grace is judgment; grace without truth is license." I believe Randy got it better than me, but the point got me thinking.

It seems to me that most Christians are either "Truth Christians" or "Grace Christians," and that we collectively lack the humility to be both. In North America we particularly have a lack of grace that leads many people being excluded from the church and us being labeled as hypocrites. Some seek to remedy this by ignoring sin, and but this as well doesn't work No one will come to Christ unless they are convicted that they are a terrible sinner.

Jesus would be the best example of grace and truth working together. For example, one popular biblical passage (John 8) discusses Jesus' response toth e religious leaders presenting him with an adulteress, who, according to Jewish law, should be stoned.

Jesus' response is intriguing. First, he draws some pictures on the ground. I have no idea why! But then he says "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." According to the biblical law, only those who were innocent of the sin being punished could participate in the stoning. In this case the sin was sexual, and you'd be hard pressed to find a man, any man, who has never lusted after a woman! So all the men disappear. Notably Jesus didn't deny the Jewish law, he just expected them to follow it all.

The only one there who could justifiably stone the woman was Jesus, but instead he shows her grace: he doesn't. But he also shows her truth: he tells her "Leave your life of sin." This simple statement is not necessarily as easy as it looks. Considering the laws of the middle east in Jesus' era, if this woman was sleeping around she probably wasn't married. Most likely she was a prostitute and made her living off of her body. She also (obviously) didn't have the best reputation. In order for her to "leave her life of sin" she would have to trust that she could make an income in another way (most women didn't work), but also she would have to fight to build a reputation as a good woman because everyone knew her as a whore.

So, her life was saved, but it would not be easy to live from now on. It is like being a Christian in every way. Jesus shows us the holes in his hands proving that our sin is forgiven and that we will go to heaven! But then he looks at us sternly and says "Leave your life of sin... take up your cross and follow me."

Have you?

That requires humility, that we be full of grace and truth, that we show the world God's unquenchable love for us, but also his wrath that is only quenchable by the blood from his son's veins. It is always a dichotomy. Fear and love, friends.

Unto Death?

This is not a study but an observation, in terms of studies within the next few months I'll be posting an essay on the Spiritual Gift of Discernment (expect 3000+ words), and possibly a quick(?!) study on 2 Timothy 3. But until then, this:

I've recently been saddened by noticing the amount of Christians(?) I know who are fallen away from God/the church. I will not name names, as this is not Noah's rumor mill, but there is at least 10-12 people I know, of different ages and backgrounds, friends/mentors/pastors and others who at one point showed an intense love for Christ but now are disgruntled and don't give a crap.

All of them people who taught me about God, molded me into who I am today, and influenced me specifically in my Christian life. The part that really sucks though is that these people mostly didn't just wake up one day and decide that Jesus wasn't for them, instead it was a result of being fed up with the church's hypocrisy and/or being pushed away from the church by other Christians. Once void of fellowship, they were left to Spiritual predators and Satan the ravenous lion had his way with their souls. I feel there is nothing I can do to reach out to these people from my past.

For the record I am a firm Calvinist. I will go along with Charles Spurgeon on this one... I have my own private beliefs regarding biblical doctrines and "Calvinism" is just a nickname given to "the Gospel." I believe in salvation by grace alone through faith alone. I believe in the inherent sinfulness of humanity from conception, and in the divine election of the Saints by God unto salvation. I also firmly believe in the doctrine of eternal security, that once one commits their live to Christ that nothing, no plot of man or the devil, even of themselves, can loose them from the grip and love of God.

When I see my fallen friends I am left with two options that either, a) they never knew Christ to begin with, or b) they do know Christ and are backslidden. Neither option appeals to me but both are in agreement with Scripture on the topic. I do not claim to understand this, but it makes me really sad.

We are not resurrected unto death, but unto life, and once one has tasted of that life why would they again choose death? Why do I so often choose the rotten death of this world over the freedom inherent in the Gospel? Do I care about my eternal soul? Do I love Jesus? Is God my father or my General? Do I truly understand that God's will is one of blessing and not of cursing? This makes me want to scream expletives at the top of my lungs.

Will I stand among those to whom Christ says "well done good and faithful servant" or will I stand among the deserters shamed by my sin and my pathetic stupidity?

oh God forgive me

aeroplane flies high

Ugh... 3-11 tonight, 7-3 tomorrow morning, another day with no sleep. For those of you who prayed over my foot thanks, the day after I made that most it was about 95% and now it's great! Of course, now Rachel hurt her foot playing soccer!

This weekend I'm heading down to Dundas for Rachel's sisters' birthday party. Should be fun meeting more of the fam, plus I will be discussing certain items of note with the parents... ahem...

I find it ironic that Smashing Pumpkins b-sides are often better than Smashing Pumpkins a-sides... notably all the b-sides from Adore and Machina are actually better than those albums... and I'm a big fan of the Pumpkins later period, more so than the early stuff actually. If you ever see a copy of the SP greatest hits record that includes the second disc Judas 0: B-Sides and Rarities 1995-2000 do not hesitate to make purchase of those shiny discs. Judas 0 was tres limited and contains some GREAT songs...

Rachel and I are now done 1 Timothy and moving on to 2 Timothy in our weekly studies. From 1 Timothy I believe I am starting to get more of a grasp on Ecclesiology, and what I find most interesting is how much the elders are told to say no. Paul instructs the elders to pretty much do a background check on anyone who requires assistance to make sure that they're not screwing the church... of course this is under the obvious assumption that the church offers support to those who need it.

Also the fiscal responsibility of being a husband really hits me hard... I have often been frivolous with money because I've always had extra cash but that will have to end when I get married... I assume that my wife will be staying home with the kids, and therefore I will be providing most or all of the money for living expenses. Yes, I believe in the "traditional" (a.k.a. biblical) family model. No, I am not sexist, and no, I don't think it is wrong for women to have careers. However I do believe that when a man and woman choose to marry that they should do so with the understanding that God intends for them to have a family and that God has ordained the husband as the provider for that family. 1 Timothy includes the chilling warning "If a man does not provide for his family he has betrayed the faith and is worse than an unbeliever" yikes.

I may go into more detail about this passage later but don't expect it!

Looking forward to the weeks to come, see y'all later.

Gradiduationedzes

Lis10in: The Smashing Pumpkins- I of the Mourning Everyone called MACHINA/The Machines of God the worst Pumpkins record. I disagree... Don't let your appreciation of this record be tainted by your Adore disappointments. I would say that I dig this more than Adore and also more than Gish. The lyrics are Billy's best too. It's too bad the production is so processed though. Got it for $4.99 so I ain'ts complainins

The past few days have been quite packt (like sardines in a crushd tin box). Thursday was my gradiduation from Trent University. So now I can prove to you that I can speak good. So, tso good. The ceremony was... um, distorted by hail the size of ice cubes which enjoyed cutting my fingers open. Following was some dinna avec Dad (from TO) and Rach at Hot Belly Mamma's, one of teh best restaurants in this town.

On Friday I hung out with my dad and we had some good conversationings. I also found the elusive Metroid II: The Return of Samus for use on my old skool Gameboy system (the original, folks). This was at the Hock Shop. The game play has some unique features... much simpler control than on Super Metroid, but also harder to master the intricacies of movement.

I also went to Emmaus with Rach and picked up the book Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches on a recommendation from Erin Doherty. It includes 5 chapters from different "Emerging" pastors about essential doctrine, etc. Each other writer then responds, so it is kinda like an academic roundtable discussion. Apparently I should like the first chapter (Driscoll) but become increasingly pissed off as I go on. We'll see. Three cheers for comparative theology!!!

Also werkt midnights last night and tonight.... sux. But next week it is all days. Yays. That is all fer nowz.

EDIT: It also turns out that this was my 500th blog posting.

reflections

I am feeling drawn to a study of Ecclesiology (that is, the study of church structure). Mostly I want to look at the positions of Pastor, Elder and Deacon in the New Testament and compare it with how we are (and by "we" I mean my church body) structuring leadership in the church. Ideally I want to chart an effective plan for approaching the church with biblical leadership practices.

I will only be there for four more months, but I would like to make it count. I met with Pastor Norm yesterday and we discussed some of these matters. I offered myself, literally, for "slave labour" (e.g. all the jobs that no one else in the church wants to do that I will have time to do). He has some ideas, we'll see where we go.

After TCF I can't see myself in a teaching position for a while. I'm all "teached out" at the moment. I see this as a season of reflection and personal learning before I can enter into another teaching or discipling role within the body. We'll see how it goes, but the Lord may have other plans as he so often does...

Links Update

I have just updated the formerly outdated links to the right to better reflect where I am at now. Some general notes:

See Also: my other interweb places.

Comrades: Added blogs I frequent, and that are frequently updated.

Music that Doesn't Suck: Not a complete list of my favourite bands, but certainly the ones that I particularly want to support with links for various reasons.

Enjoy the Word of God: BibleGateway is a nice site with translations in various languages including Greek and Hebrew. Blue Letter Bible is a bit more difficult to to use but much more scholarly in its scope. E-Sword is a great, free, downloadable bible tool that is (sigh) unavailable to MacAddicts like myself.

Other Stuff: The Mind Control is Shelby Cinca's personal portfolio of art, photography, writings, and music. This guy is prolific (Frodus, Decahedron, Frantic Mantis, The Cassettes, and solo!) and enigmatic. This site sheds some light and has excellent design. Speaking of design, James Provost is my buddy from way back and is about to graduate from Sheraton College with a degree in Technical Design & Illustration. He has done work for high profile clients including the Toronto Transit Commission. If you need some design done please support him. Examples of his work are on the website. Mark Driscoll is my favourite preacher/theologian.

These are among my most frequented web visits

you got yer eggnog in ma goat's milk!

Warning: preceding information is entirely irrelevant to the meaning of this post.

Listening to: Aphex Twin- 54 cymrv beats Aphex Twin: inspiring and confounding music lovers since 1989!

Lots of good stuff recently. School is almost over so I am in that transitional area where I am not yet working full time and I no longer have classes, aka the University student's 2 week summer... so I am whoring it out like any good 23 year old would.

This week I had lots of fun... impromptu Breakfast with Chris Jardin and Jerry Bolton, applying for the coveted (HA!) position of supervisor at Timmy Ho's, going to the 'Shwa with Bolton, Steven and Rachie (and sorry that Shane couldn't make it). Also some good readin' and a bit of studyin' to keep it all mildly formal.

While in the 'Shwa I picked up a book by Mark Driscoll, who is a mentor of sorts, entitled "Confessions of a Reformission Rev." This basically chronicles the development of the Mars Hill Seattle church. Considering I am a mad fanboy I've heard most of this before in sermons, etc. but it's nice to get it all in one place. Mark is pretty blunt, and the book has already pounded me upside the head like a large brick a couple of times.

Tomorrow is the dreaded Historical Linguistics exam. I hate this lots... mostly because I entirely ignored this class the whole semester.

In other news I am going to purposefully and consciously cut down on the music I buy... I am addicted to buying new music and I spend way too much money on cds. I am going to do this by progressively limiting both my time looking for music and the amount of music I buy. This is officially starting tomorrow, and will begin as a weekly thing (e.g. I am only allowed to look for / purchase music on a weekly basis) which doesn't sound like a lot, but is significant to me.

Also I will try to cut down on cds purchased at a time on trips... so no more buying 8 cds at Sonic Boom in Toronto when I visit it the 4-6 odd times a year. Instead I will make a specific list and stick to it, limiting those trips to only 2-3 cds, which again, would be a lot to others, but to a cd junkie like myself this is a drastic reduction. Hopefully this will have two effects, first, I will have more money for other things because I am spending less, and second, the music I do buy will be of a consistently higher quality because it will be more deliberated upon.

Anyway, that's the news from me! Also, Rachel and I will be at 6 months on Monday, which isn't really all that long, but is still significant. We'll be havin' some nice eats that night.

Tags anyone?

Hmmm.... I am slowly realizing that I need to start work on the 3 assignments that are all due on March 30th or I'll be a sad, sad boy....

Listening to: Neutral Milk Hotel- Oh Comely AMG describes these guys as "a marching band on acid." Apt description. This song is more of a pseudo-ballad. It's long, like the American Pie of low-fi indie-rock. There singer reminds me of a less annoying combination of Violent Femmes' Gordon Gano and Jeff Suffering from Suffering and the Hideous Thieves. Highly recommended.

So I'm at Haaselton's because my Metaphysical poetry class was modified and shortened, and my facilitator job doesn't start til 6pm so I got some time. My BME belt buckle came in really fast, ordered it on Saturday and it arrived yesterday, talk about fast shipping. It's gorgeous too, 4 inches by 2 inches and excellent detail. I'm sure I will receive some comments on it (a picture of it and my toe here).

Read the first two sentences of Ephesians with Rachel yesterday... the sentences of Greek grammar tend to be long, covering at times 3-4 "verses" and entire English paragraphs. It's interesting ignoring those little superscript numbers and instead looking at the punctuation to guide my reading. That and Ephesians is the entirety of Christian doctrine summed up in 6 chapters. Very packed stuff, and since Rachel has the NKJV we got to discuss dispensationalism. We had a fruitful conversation about how to seek God, and how Christians need to be Godly in order to function as human beings.

Oh, I also plan to surprise everyone at the TCF Coffeehouse by doing something quite uncharacteristic of me...