Author Archives: preachersmith

Feb 13 2012

word for the weak: week seven

 

This week marks our seventh week in the Uncommon Truth for Common People project, a church-wide Bible reading project for the year 2012 through the Daily Companion Bible. This week’s theme is hospitality. This week’s reading schedule is:

• Mon., Feb. 13 – Matthew 25:31-46; 1 Peter 4:7-11
• Tues., Feb. 14 – Luke 14:1-24; 24:13-36; Hebrews 13:1-3
• Wed., Feb. 15 – Acts 2:42-47; 21:1-6; 28:1-10; 3 John
• Thur., Feb. 16 – Acts 16
• Fri., Feb. 17 – James 2:14-26; 1 John 3:16-24

This week’s memory verse is: “… provide for their journey in a way that honors God.” (3 John 6b)

Feb 11 2012

this went thru my mind

 

Advice: Best Advice I Ever Got

“… we asked a host of influential leaders to share with us the wise words that changed their lives forever.”

Bible reading: Reading the Bible for Understanding and Not Just Information [quote]

“One enemy of good reading is confusion about which mode of attention is appropriate to a given book. I am certain that this very confusion makes it almost impossible for anyone to read—genuinely to read—the Bible. In both the Hebrew and Christian Bibles, narrative and other more-or-less literary forms are dominant, which seems to call for a strategy of reading for understanding similar to what one might use in an encounter with, say, Homer; but these books’ status as sacred text suggests, to many modern readers anyway, that their purpose is to provide information about God and God’s relation to human beings. “Strip-mining” the Psalms, or the Song of Solomon, or even the more elevated discourses of the Gospel of John, “for relevant content” might not seem like a promising strategy, but many generations of pastors have pushed it pretty hard, as though the Bible were no more than an awkwardly coded advice manual.” (Alan Jacobs, The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction, p.99)

Churches of Christ: * 102,000 fewer people in the pews since ’03: Churches of Christ in decline * Why Should I Stay?

* “Another striking number: 708 fewer Churches of Christ in the U.S. in the last nine years. The nation’s 12,447 congregations represent a 5.4 percent decline since 2003.”

* “… this is an important question for any Christian Fellowship to answer: ‘why should I stay?”

Compassion: Seeing Her by Richard Beck

“Two weeks ago I was asked by our Psychology Club to share a few thoughts for their Club chapel. The theme for the chapel this semester is to share about characters in the Bible who have affected or inspired your spiritual walk. I selected the unnamed concubine from Judges 19. Judges 19 is, perhaps, the most horrific episode in the Bible. I expect this may be the first, last and only time the students hear a message from this text. I started by reading the whole chapter. When I ended it was pretty quiet in the room.”

Criticism: A Passing Thought on Receiving Criticism by Dane Ortlund

“Seems to me there are two wrong ways to receive criticism and one right way.”

Garbage/trash: What’s In Your Trash? [infographic]

“The average family of four throws out 880 pounds of food a year; that’s about the weight of an adult cow.”

Immaturity: “I’m Not Being Fed” (and other stupid things Christians say) by Brian Jones

“Show me someone who keeps whining about not singing enough worship songs, or “being fed,” or doesn’t want the church to focus on evangelism, or missions, or feeding the poor, or singing secular music on Sunday, and I’ll show you a freakishly immature Christian. The sad, and sometimes scary thing, is that 99 times out of 100 they simply don’t realize it.”

Men & women: On Jesus’ Choosing Twelve Males by J. Daniel Kirk

“According to the economy of the world, with its measures of greatness, to be the twelve is to be exemplary, in the place to lead, to exclude others from leadership, to stand close to Jesus and guard the gates of who else can draw near. And to the extent that we look to Jesus’ selection of them, and the apparent marginalization of the women, as paradigmatic for male leadership in the church, we show ourselves to be people whose minds have not yet been transformed by the very story to which we are appealing.”

Politics & race: Race, Politics, and Christianity in the American South by Richard Beck

“… sociologist Bradley Wright cites statistics that show evangelical Christians to be one of the most racist groups in America. To be sure, only a minority of evangelicals fall into this category, but relative to other Christian groups as well as to non-Christians evangelical Christians are the most likely to hold a candidate’s race against them in a political election. And as most people know, evangelicals tend to vote Republican and are plentiful across the American South. This racist strain in southern Christianity greatly disturbs me as I encounter it frequently where I live. So what changed in the South? … The American Civil Rights Movement.”

Prayer: Six Ways to Help People Pray by Michael McKinley

“Pray big prayers. Think beyond the hospital visitation list. Pray prayers that reflect God’s sovereignty over the whole world. Pray for the spread of the gospel in foreign nations; pray for an end to human trafficking worldwide; pray for religious freedoms to spring up in oppressive regimes.”

Singing: Singing in Worship – Cause or Response? by Paul Smith

“You see, we teach that our songs and prayers and sermons and fellowship are all “worship.” We go to extravagant lengths to make the “worship” meaningful. But, if we have not prepared the gift long before we arrive, all we are doing is manipulating our fickle human emotions with gimmicks, whether we use instruments, praise teams or simple acappella singing.”

Singles: One’s a Crowd by Eric Klineberg

“More people live alone now than at any other time in history. In prosperous American cities — Atlanta, Denver, Seattle, San Francisco and Minneapolis — 40 percent or more of all households contain a single occupant.”

Visitors: 6 Reasons Why I Do Not Attend Your Congregation by Chris Gallagher

“This is written from the perspective of a visitor. Last year, my family and I took the entire month of February away from local ministry and traveled to various congregations, both near and far, and enjoyed some time visiting. We learned much about the attitudes of congregations towards visitors and it is reflected in the words below.”

Feb 10 2012

elders: how the early church thought of their qualities

 

With our next post in this series (this coming Mon., Feb. 13), we’ll zoom into a close examination of the key words and concepts regarding elders as given in 1 Timothy 3.1-7; 5.17-22; Titus 1.5-9, and 1 Peter 5.1-5. However, with this post I’d like to pause one last moment with our wide-angle leans and note an ancient Christian description of the qualities of one fit to serve as an elder. It is a portion (6.1-3) of Polycarp‘s letter to the Philippians, written probably between 120-140 A.D. Polycarp, born about the time of the death of the apostle Paul, was an elder in the church at Smyrna and was martyred for his faith in Christ about 155 A.D. Smyrna is located just a few miles from Ephesus, where Timothy was ministering when Paul wrote to him the letter we now know as 1 Timothy.

I include this excerpt here for three reasons: (1) so we can notice the strong similarity between Polycarps’s words and the words of Paul in 1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, and elsewhere, (2) to shed additional light on how the church in its earliest years understood the qualities and role of elders, and (3) simply as additional food for thought. The translation that follows is that of Cyril C. Richardson in his work entitled Early Christian Fathers (p.133-134). Other translations are available elsewhere online.

“Also the presbyters must be compassionate, merciful to all, turning back those who have gone astray, looking after the sick, not neglecting widow or orphan or one that is poor; but ‘always taking thought for what is honorable in the sight of all men of God and of men,’ refraining from all anger, partiality, unjust judgment, keeping far from all love of money, not hastily believing evil of anyone, nor being severe in judgment, knowing that we all owe the debt of sin.

If, then, we pray the Lord to forgive us, we ourselves ought also to forgive; for we are before the eyes of the Lord and God, and ‘everyone shall stand before the judgment seat of Christ and each of us shall give an account of himself.’

So then let us ‘serve him with fear and all reverence, as he himself has commanded, and also the apostle who preached the gospel to us and the prophets who foretold the coming of the Lord. Let us be zealous for that which is good, refraining from occasions of scandal and from false brethren, and those who bear in hypocrisy the name of the Lord, who deceive empty-headed people.”

Feb 9 2012

elders: what’s happening in ‘the lists?’

 

We’ve attempted to broadly categorize the words and phrases contained within the two most frequently referenced lists of qualifications for elders among God’s people (1 Timothy 3.1-7; Titus 1.5-9). To those lists we’ve also drawn attention to two texts that are all too often neglected (1 Tim. 5.17-22; 1 Pet. 5.1-5). Having done this, we’re now prepared to zoom in and look at the words and thoughts in these four texts in a bit more detail.

However, before we do that, we should note that the apostle Paul is simultaneously doing two things as he constructs the better known texts (1 Tim. 3.1-7; Titus 1.5-9). First, the contents of the lists he is authoring is not at all unique to Christian thinking. First-century readers would have been quite familiar with such lists.

“We find here the sort of list typical of Greco-Roman moral discourse, found in inventories of virtues and vices, in catalogues of hardships, and in polemic.” (Luke Timothy Johnson; The First and Second Letters of Timothy; p.213)

Further, as Paul creates these lists, he is deliberately searching for, and pointing out, the ideals of good things he can see respected by the culture surrounding, and making up, the population of the churches ministered to by Timothy and Titus. For example with the list of 1 Timothy 3 specifically in view, James W. Thompson writes:

“The list enumerates qualities that ancient people highly respected in religious and secular contexts. Indeed, several attributes listed also appear in an ancient list of qualities of the good general.” (The Transforming Word, p.992)

And as M. Eugene Boring and Fred B. Craddock put it in The People’s New Testament Commentary:

“All of the following sixteen virtues are found in typical lists of the qualifications expected of civic and military leaders in the Hellenistic world.” (p.661)

Or as Carl R. Holladay notes:

“To require that one love goodness (philagathos) and be prudent (sophron), upright (dikaios), and devout (hosios) identifies qualities highly prized within the Hellenistic culture.” (A Critical Introduction to the New Testament; p.425)

There is precious little that is distinctly “Christian” about the concepts Paul includes in his two lists in 1 Timothy and Titus. Paul is not revealing new, surprising, or dramatic concepts, rather in effect, is saying “Both believers and those yet to believe know and understand what sort of people are truly qualified to lead other people.“

Second, while finding points of resonance with the surrounding culture and appealing to the common understanding of what is truly exemplary moral character, Paul is also selecting words and concepts that strongly contrast with the characteristics of the opponents and generally unhelpful characters Timothy and Titus face in their particular ministries in Ephesus (1 Tim. 1.3) and Crete (Titus 1.5), respectively. We’ll make note of such contrasts as we work through the lists in detail in the coming posts in this series, only noting here what well-known New Testament scholar has rightly observed:

“… the message of the chapter [1 Timothy 3] is missed if the reader does not interpret it in light of the Ephesian situation. Almost every quality Paul specifies here [1 Timothy] has its negative counterpart in the Ephesian opponents. They are bringing the church into disrepute, so at the head of the list Paul says that a church leader must be above reproach. They are teaching only for financial gain; Paul says that an overseer must not be greedy or a lover of money. They are promiscuous; Paul says the overseer must be a ‘one-woman’ man. Once a full picture of the opponents is developed, chap. 3 becomes one of the strongest arguments that the PE [Pastoral Epistles; 1 & 2 Timothy & Titus] are directed toward a specific historical problem and should be understood in light of that situation. (William D. Mounce; Pastoral Epistles: Word Biblical Commentary, p.153)

And so, as Paul writes Timothy and Titus, he is saying to them, “You’ll know what sort of leaders to appoint in the churches by finding people with qualities precisely the opposite of those who are giving you problems.“

Feb 8 2012

who is qualified to serve as an elder? (3)

 

Thus far in our study of who is qualified to serve as an elder we’ve noted two things:

1. Rather than attempting to give us a one-size-fits-all checklist as to who is fit to serve as an elder, the NT presents us with a painting of elders. A portion of the artwork is composed of varying lists of qualifications (e.g. – 1 Timothy 3.1-7; Titus 1.5-9). Another segment of the picture depicts what pastors actually do (e.g. – James 5:14-18; 1 Peter 5:1-5). Yet another part of the canvas tells something of the preparations made for their service as well as wisdom and warnings regarding their future (e.g. – Acts 20:27-35). And the painting continues. It’s about maximizing perspective. It’s about asking, “What is all of God’s will?”

2. Elders are to be exemplary models of what it means to be a Christian. Their leading of God’s flock flows from, and largely consists of, their consistent, powerful demonstration of well-developed discipleship. This is crucial for sheep tend to become like their shepherds. If elders are erratic, fearful, or difficult, the sheep will be the same. If shepherds are calm, consistent, and gentle leaders, the sheep will pick up on that as well. It’s about developing people. It’s about asking, “Through whom is God working his will?”

As to the first item, experience tells us our tendency is all too often to zoom-in on only one portion of the painting, namely the two very highly-concentrated (and valuable and vital!) passages concerning qualifications of elders (1 Timothy 3.1-7 and Titus 1.5-9) … and to virtually ignore the other parts of the painting. My strong encouragement would be that while we make good use of a macro lens, we also make sure we regularly swap that glass for a wide-angle lens lest we fail to see the forest for the trees.

As to the second item, experience also tells us the temptation is great to attempt to drive, rather than lead, people. This is never good. More often than not, “driving” doesn’t come from a deliberate, willful attempt to do so, but simply from being distanced from the people. That distancing often stems from being so busy with so many things that interacting with and personally caring for people unwittingly takes a back seat. Moses certainly experienced that and we know the wisdom his father-in-law gave him (Exodus 18); delegation is not merely good, but essential for the good care of all, including the shepherds themselves. Good shepherds know their sheep and the sheep know them. Sheep will follow shepherds they know and know truly care for them.

All of this is to simply say that items (1) and (2) work together; they are two sides of the same coin. Perspective and people are crucial.

How can it be determined who is fit to shepherd God’s flock? (1) Develop a healthy, holistic perspective of Scripture. Study all the portions of the painting, not just one part of it, and back off ever so often and drink in the big picture. (2) And remember the people. Interact, observe, and prayerfully ask yourself a very important people question: “Who is consistently, strongly growing in their resemblance of the Good Shepherd and is already shepherding others with faith, hope, and love?”

Call them what you will – criteria, qualifications, guidelines, indicators – but if a church follows the path of these two ways – all of Scripture and loving, wise observation – a church will be led by God to appoint elders fit to serve.

Feb 8 2012

this went thru my mind

 

Change: The Worst of Both Worlds by Rubel Shelly

“The ways of God are always fresh and challenging. When Jesus came to his peers, he was rejected because of the new things of God he said and did. Then or now, those who try to contain the fresh presence of Jesus within the old and familiar forms typically wind up with the worst of both worlds.”

Fellowship & salvation: Christianity: Who Is In and Who Is Out? by Brian Mashburn

“So who’s in? It’s not my call, praise God, it’s His. I admit that in my practice of ‘fellowshipping’ with people, the farther along that I perceive someone to be in their devotion to following Christ, the deeper the fellowship (friendship, partnership, companionship) I invite. But as to the practice of proclaiming definitively and authoritatively to my fellow man who I think I can declare is ‘in’ or ‘out,’ I just can not do it.”

Health care reform: How Doctors Do Harm by Dr. Otis Brawley

“For more than two decades, I have studied disparities in health outcomes and the inconsistencies in how medicine is practiced. I have come to believe that much of the rhetoric for and against health care reform lacks the understanding that the issue involves human beings.”

Leadership: How to Let Go Without Giving In by Dan Rockwell

“You must. Letting go isn’t optional – organizational success demands it. New talent produces new perspective, innovation, fresh vitality, and forward momentum. You can’t. You can’t step away even though you must let go. Bringing on new talent is never exemption from your leadership-responsibility.”

Ministers & ministry: Statistics on Pastors by Richard J. Krejcir (thank you, Brad Morrow, for showing me this article)

“After over 18 years of researching pastoral trends and many of us being a pastor, we have found … we are [in] perhaps the single most stressful and frustrating working profession … We found that over 70% of pastors are so stressed out and burned out that they regularly consider leaving the ministry … Thirty-five to forty percent of pastors actually do leave the ministry …”

Open-mindedness: They Were Right (And Wrong) About the Slippery Slope by Rachel Held Evans

“Now, every day is a risk. Now, I have no choice but to cling to faith and hope and love for dear life. Now, I have to keep a very close eye on Jesus, as he leads me through deep valleys and precarious peaks. But the view is better, and, for the first time in a long time, I am fully engaged in my faith. I am alive. I am dependent. I am following Jesus as me—heart and head intact. And they were right. All it took was a question or two to bring me here.”

Parenting: * When Will We Learn? by Mark Stevens; * Sharing Your Faith at Home by Chad Nall

* “Leighton Ford once said, ‘What is the difference between a man who spends every night at the bar and one who spends every night at the church? Nothing, they both lose their kids!’”

* “Having been in youth ministry for nearly 12 years, I’ve had countless opportunities to share the Gospel and my faith with teens. I’ve sat in seminars, conferences, and classes that have equipped me to do so. I’ve listened to experts talk about how to talk to teenagers, how to lead a teen to Christ. I’ve read books on mentoring and asking questions. I’ve loved every opportunity I’ve had. But I’m discovering that it’s a whole different ball game when it comes to my children.”

Personality & suffering: Wired to Suffer: On Theodicy and Personality by Richard Beck

“Theodicy has two sides. There’s an analytical side and an empathic side. … we see people doing one of two things to run from theodicy problems. Hedge on the empathy or hedge on the logical consistency. But what if you’re the sort of person who can’t hedge on either? What if you’re one of those rare individuals who are both very analytical and very empathic? It seems to me, if you are one of these sorts of people, that you’re basically screwed. … It’s a theological nightmare. You can’t turn your mind off. Or your heart. Theologically speaking, I think some of us are just wired to suffer.”

Regrets: Dying Regrets

“A palliative nurse recorded (over several years) the dying bits of wisdom from patients in the last twelve months of their lives. She recently listed the top five regrets. Here are the five.”

Religion: How to Fight the Man by David Brooks

“A few weeks ago, a 22-year-old man named Jefferson Bethke produced a video called ‘Why I Hate Religion, but Love Jesus.’ … The video went viral. … Right away, many older theologians began critiquing Bethke’s statements. A blogger named Kevin DeYoung pointed out, for example, that it is biblically inaccurate to say that Jesus hated religion. In fact, Jesus preached a religious doctrine, prescribed rituals and worshiped in a temple. Bethke responded in a way that was humble, earnest and gracious, and that generally spoke well of his character. He also basically folded. … Bethke watched a panel discussion in which some theologians lamented young people’s disdain of organized religion. ‘Right when I heard that,’ he told The Christian Post, ‘it just convicted me, and God used it as one of those Spirit moments where it’s just, ‘Man, he’s right.’ I realized a lot of my views and treatments of the church were not Scripture-based; they were very experience based.’”

War: Memories of Nine Years at War in Iraq by Shaun Casey

“As I grapple with the legacy of our immoral misadventure in Iraq, the main thing that stands out is the terrible, mind-numbing cost. More than 4,000 U.S. soldiers are dead and 33,000 wounded. An estimated 178,000 suffer traumatic brain injuries, more than 2,000 are amputees, and hundreds have committed suicide. Some estimate more than 1.4 million Iraqis died in the war, which cost more than a trillion dollars.”

Feb 7 2012

who is qualified to serve as an elder? (2)

 

A close look at the texts previously noted (1 Timothy 3.1-7; 5.17-22; Titus 1.5-9; 1 Peter 5.1-5) will likely stir up a thought with anyone truly familiar with the New Testament, namely that virtually all of the picture held up for elders to emulate is the same picture all Christians are called to imitate.

This is plainly apparent by working a simple two-step reading exercise. First, read the preceding four texts and then, without pausing, (2) immediately read the following excerpts from the same letters (1 Timothy, Titus, and 1 Peter). As you work step two, read with a close eye noting similarities of thought and wording between the qualities of elders and the qualities of Christians in general. Following are the texts for step two:

Take care of widows who are truly needy. But if a particular widow has children or grandchildren, they should first learn to respect their own family and repay their parents, because this pleases God. A widow who is truly needy and all alone puts her hope in God and keeps on going with requests and prayers, night and day. But a widow who tries to live a life of luxury is dead even while she is alive. Teach these things so that the families will be without fault. But if someone doesn’t provide for their own family, and especially for a member of their household, they have denied the faith. They are worse than those who have no faith. Put a widow on the list who is older than 60 years old and who was faithful to her husband. She should have a reputation for doing good: raising children, providing hospitality to strangers, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in distress, and dedicating herself to every kind of good thing. But don’t accept younger widows for the list. … So I want younger widows to marry, have children, and manage their homes so that they won’t give the enemy any reason to slander us. … If any woman who is a believer has widows in her family, she should take care of them and not burden the church so that it can help other widows who are truly needy. (1 Tim. 5.3-11a,14,16 CEB)

… you should talk in a way that is consistent with sound teaching. Tell the older men to be sober, dignified, sensible, and healthy in respect to their faith, love, and patience. Likewise, tell the older women to be reverent in their behavior, teaching what is good, rather than being gossips or addicted to heavy drinking. That way they can mentor young women to love their husbands and children, and to be sensible, morally pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their own husbands, so that God’s word won’t be ridiculed. Likewise, encourage the younger men to be sensible in every way. Offer yourself as a role model of good actions. Show integrity, seriousness, and a sound message that is above criticism when you teach, so that any opponent will be ashamed because they won’t find anything bad to say about us. Tell slaves to submit to their own masters and please them in everything they do. They shouldn’t talk back or steal. Instead they should show that they are completely reliable in everything so that they might make the teaching about God our savior attractive in every way. … Remind them to submit to rulers and authorities. They should be obedient and ready to do every good thing. They shouldn’t speak disrespectfully about anyone, but they should be peaceful, kind, and show complete courtesy toward everyone (Titus 2.1-10; 3.1-2 CEB)

Therefore, once you have your minds ready for action and you are thinking clearly, place your hope completely on the grace that will be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed. Don’t be conformed to your former desires, those that shaped you when you were ignorant. But, as obedient children, you must be holy in every aspect of your lives, just as the one who called you is holy. … As you set yourselves apart by your obedience to the truth so that you might have genuine affection for your fellow believers, love each other deeply and earnestly. … like a newborn baby, desire the pure milk of the word. … Live honorably among the unbelievers. … make yourselves beautiful on the inside, in your hearts, with the enduring quality of a gentle, peaceful spirit. … submit by living with your wife in ways that honor her … Finally, all of you be of one mind, sympathetic, lovers of your fellow believers, compassionate, and modest in your opinion of yourselves. … Whenever anyone asks you to speak of your hope, be ready to defend it. … be self-controlled and clearheaded so you can pray. Above all, show sincere love to each other, because love brings about the forgiveness of many sins. Open your homes to each other without complaining. And serve each other according to the gift each person has received, as good managers of God’s diverse gifts. Whoever speaks should do so as those who speak God’s word. Whoever serves should do so from the strength that God furnishes. … rejoice as you share Christ’s suffering. (1 Peter 1.13-15,22; 2.1,12a; 3.4,7-8,15b; 4:7b-11a,13a CEB)

This profound similarity and tremendous parallel between the qualities to look for in elders and the attitude and ways expected of every Christian tells us a number of things, not the least of which is that those who are on the road to being qualified to serve as a flock’s shepherds are fully mature, exemplary Christians.

In other words, elders are meant to be role models of faith to the flock of faith. This is a radical word for today for it is precisely the opposite of the popular and seemingly dominant understanding as to elders are to be about. For we see from Scripture that an eldership was never designed by God to function anything like a board of directors. Though we may pray frequently for “the elders to make good decisions,” the decisions in view should not be for them to make good judgments concerning the church’s utility bills, but to live such exemplary lives in Christ that they readily nurture wise decision making toward godly living by all the members of the flock under their influence and responsibility.

In a few words, an elder is to be “a Christian’s Christian.” They’re the sort of people you’d would hope people in the community would stand a bit in awe of as to their distinctive walk of faith in life. They’re the sort of folks you plan to to be like someday when you “grow up” in the Lord. They’re the sort of Christian you’d readily point out to your children and the children of others and say, “That’s what a fully developed Christian acts like. Become that!”