Post Rapture Reflections

"I thought our attendance was really great Sunday considering the rapture occurred on Saturday, didn't you?"

This was the joke at a lot of church staff meetings today-  a reference to the now infamous prediction of Harold Camping, the Christian broadcaster who told his followers to expect the rapture last Saturday night at 6:00 P.M.

What are we to make of these kinds of sideshows in the sometimes three ring circus of American Christian culture?   We should keep in mind that fascination with the day and hour of Christ's return has been a part of Christianity since the early church.  So when we occasionally read stories like this we should remember that clear biblical teaching is that we are to be engaged with Christ's mission and work as if He were coming any day on the one hand (2 Peter 3), but on the other we are taught to be about that work with joy and steadfastness without our eyes fixated on the clouds as if we have nothing better to do(Acts 1:11).

Al Mohler recently published a response to Camping, which I think has some good points: 

First, Christ specifically admonished his disciples not to claim such knowledge. In Acts 1:7, Jesus said, 

“It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.” In Matthew 24:36, Christ taught similarly: “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.”

To state the case plainly, these two verses explicitly forbid Christians to claim the knowledge of such dates and times. Jesus clearly taught that the Father has not revealed such dates and timing, but has reserved that knowledge for himself. It is an act of incredible presumptuousness to claim that a human knows such a date, or has determined God’s timing by any means.

Second, the Bible does not contain hidden codes that we are to find and decipher. The Bible has been given to us in order that we might know the truth, and the truth is clearly revealed in its pages. We are not to look for hidden patterns of words, numbers, dates, or anything else. The Bible’s message is plain and requires no mathematical computation for its understanding. The claim that one has found a hidden code or system in the Bible is an insult to the Bible as the Word of God.

Third, Christians are indeed to be looking for Christ to return and seeking to be found faithful when Christ comes. We are not to draw a line in history and set a date, but we are to be about the Father’s business, sharing the Gospel and living faithful Christian lives. We are not to sit on rooftops like the Millerites, waiting for Christ’s return. We are to be busy doing what Christ has commanded us to do.

In Hebrews 9:28, we are taught that Christ will come a second time “to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” 

That is the faithful Christian response to the New Testament teachings about Christ’s coming. The church is not to be arrogantly setting dates, but instead to be eagerly waiting for him. Of that we can be truly certain.

Seeing Recent Events Through The Lens Of The Gospel

What a few weeks we've had.

A royal wedding was followed by one of the most dramatic military operations in U.S. history.  Someone famously tweeted,

"The girl married her prince.  The bad guy was killed. It's been a real disney weekend here on planet earth."

In addition to those dramatic events, we've had tsunamis,  earthquakes, nuclear meltdowns, floods, wildfires and what will go down in history as the "Arab Spring" because of the popular uprisings that have toppled governments in the Middle East.

What is the Christian perspective on these things?  Aside from the inevitable prediction that this is surely the end of the world (Jesus made it clear that when you think it's obvious- it's not), I've been thinking lately about how we as Christians should distill down the dramatic events we see around us.

There are many obvious points to make, but I want to focus not so much on what we see, but on what we should see through.

As Christians we are to see all of life through the lens of the gospel- that we are all dreadfully sinful and yet incredibly loved.  The gospel gives us our context for reality and is the central truth of our life.   Paul said, "I resolved to know nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1 Cor. 2:2).  The truth we learn in the gospel is the lens through which we understand everything else in life.

The gospel keeps us grounded and balanced in our understanding of everything that happens in life. It is through that lens that we as Christians are to see all of the world events.  This context brings balance to all that we experience- no matter how dramatic those events may seem.

So when we hear about a world terrorist coming to justice in a violent death our response should be measured somewhat by the overwhelming reality of the gospel.  On the one hand we delight in justice accomplished, but on the other we can see that it is only by His grace and mercy that we ourselves have been rescued from the consequences of our own sin.

The gospel does not allow us to categorize sin.  The Christian understands the incredible potential for evil that resides in every human heart and is able to say of the evil we see around us, "There except by the grace of God go I!"    In this sense it is important that when events like this take place that we not measure ourselves against the sins of others and rank human evil in a kind of hierarchy of severity (2 Corinthians 10:12).

The gospel teaches me that my sin was bad enough to put God on the cross.  It doesn't get worse than that.

My daughter asked me the day after Bin Laden was killed, "Dad, what do you think of all the celebrating going on for the death of this man?"  I said to her, "I understand it, but to see Americans celebrating a man's death feels a little weird to me."  She said, "Me too."

We talked about how to understand what we were seeing and what we were feeling about it.  I made the observation that the celebrations we see should remind us that although there is rejoicing today about the end of a type of evil, that one day there will be great and lasting joy about the end of ultimate evil (Revelation 20:2).   To put the celebrations in context in this way is helpful.

People long for the death of ultimate evil because it rings true.  That is what our future is moving toward.  We can rejoice in that.

Am I pleased that this man will no longer have the capability of terrorizing the lives of millions of people?  Absolutely.  Am I impressed with the faithfulness and sacrifice our military men and women who put their lives on the line every day for us?  You bet I am!

But do I rejoice in his death?  Of course not.   I do not rejoice in the death of a single human being who goes into eternity without Christ.   Ezekiel 18:23-32 teaches us that God does not rejoice in the death of the wicked.  The Spirit of Christ in me does not reconcile an emotion that runs contrary to the heart of God.

To see events through the lens of the gospel is also to understand how nuanced our own limited perspectives can seem.  The gospel is universal in scope and therefore as a believer I am to think locally and globally at the same time.

As Christians we are to understand our calling to proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28:19-20).  It is helpful therefore at a time like this to remember that there are believers in places like Pakistan and Afghanistan and Iraq and Jordan who are holding up the gospel to Muslims and praying for their salvation.

An Egyptian Christian woman whose posts have been extremely popular during the Egyptian uprising tweeted the day after Bin Laden was killed,

"Americans you are really freaking me out right now..."

Because the world is now a vast social network via the internet, American Christians now more than ever have to be aware of their global witness.  As Christians in America we have lived with the grief and sorrow of the events of 9-11 and have been immersed in the shadow of Islamic terrorism ever since.  So it is understandable that we all felt a sense of relief at the news of Bin Laden's death.  But at the same time we should make sure that our response to this kind of news is pleasing to Christ.

I am convinced we are individually accountable for how we bear His name to a lost world- even to parts of the world that insult our patriotic sensibilities- where unruly crowds shout "death to America" and burn American flags.  These are places of darkness where the gospel has not penetrated and those are people who Christ gave His life to save. Indeed, these are the "outermost parts of the earth" Jesus was talking about.  

So through the lens of the gospel I see things differently than my own limited perspective.

It is through that lens that I can see a true perspective on the meaning of the death of ultimate evil.

And this perspective helps me put all the other dramatic events of the past few weeks into proper context as well.  Through the lens of the gospel I understand the fascination with the beauty of a royal wedding broadcast to billions around the world because I know that there there will be a day when the true and better Groom will receive His bride and all creation will rejoice (Revelation 19).

Through the lens of the gospel I understand that all creation is convulsing in labor pains until His redeeming work is consummated at the end of the age (Romans 8).    I can see that these things that captivate us, as fascinating as they are, are not ultimate things.  They are only shadows of things to come.

The gospel therefore as my ultimate reality teaches me to see through them to what is most important.

To see that He by His redemptive work on the cross has defeated ultimate evil and suffering and will one day completely bring it to an end and that on that day the true Prince of Peace will invite us to His wedding feast.

That will be a day that even Disney couldn't imagine.

GoNomad!

More not exactly travel related news.

I just started working at GoNomad.com a travel website with trip ideas, articles and inspiration for alternative travelers. I will be blogging over there under the Travel Reader blog so if you feel so inclined, jump over there and give it a look.

In more personal travel news:

Plans are getting more serious, we have reached the three month countdown and though I personally am still trying to wrap my head around the idea that we are going, it doesn't feel real just yet.

Our paperwork is almost in order and then all is left is buying plane tickets and packing. I've started a mental list of all the shiz-nit we will need with us, but its a strange sort of list to make.

I'll post details as they come up, and maybe share more of my list making dilemmas when I've got a minute.

Shameless Plug

Pretty excited to announce that my article was just published in on Matador.com, " the world's largest travel website". Its about herbs and taking alternative health on the road.

Click on the title of this entry to go there.

I'm really excited to have it published and to have it be as popular as it has been.
I will let you all know about any upcoming articles( hoping there will be some!).

Love Wins Because Jesus Died For Sin

A few nights ago I read Rob Bell's new book, "Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived."  If you've not been paying attention to the Christian blogosphere you may not realize that this book has created an enormous amount of attention and has been roundly condemned by evangelical scholars like Al Mohler and John Piper.

The controversy surrounds Bell's contention in the book that he does not believe a loving God will send billions of people to a place called hell.   He believes that given enough time in eternity that every single person who has ever lived will eventually have their heart melted by the love of God and will choose to spend eternity with Him.   In the end, Bell argues, love wins.

Of course the controversy is that this belief, that everyone gets to heaven no matter what they believe in this life, is known in theology as "universalism", a heresy that has been condemned by Christian orthodoxy since the fourth century.   

This kind of argument has wide appeal.  In fact,  I would say that there are many Christians in conservative churches who buy into some form of universal theology.  The complaint that a loving God surely would not send good people to hell is not a new one with Rob Bell.  So what's the problem?  Why all the uproar from Christian scholars and conservative pastors?

The problem is that although the idea that in the end everybody wins has a lot of appeal, in order for a person to buy into this logic you would have to ignore or deny some very significant biblical teachings about the nature of man, God's grace and the blood atonement of Jesus.  In order for us to embrace the idea that everyone eventually goes to heaven without their hearts turning toward Christ in this life, we would have to believe that man is basically good, Christ's death on the cross was unnecessary and that man's natural tendency toward sin and rebellion is not as bad as we might think or the Bible says.  

But of course, the Bible teaches that we were all born in sin and rebellion against God (Romans 3:23) and that our situation is so dire we can't even know the depths of our wickedness and deceit (Jeremiah 17:9) and that the only remedy to our idolatrous heart is the substitutionary death, burial and resurrection of Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Bell gets past all of this by speculating that surely after death a loving God will give all of us a second chance at redemption.  The problem of course is that the Bible teaches we all get one death and then the judgment (Hebrews 9:27).  But remarkably the entire premise of the book rests on this one bit of speculation on his part.  He puts it like this:

 “And then there are others who ask,  if you get another chance after you die, why limit that chance to one-off immediately after death? And so they expand the possibilities, trusting that there will be endless opportunities in an endless amount of time for people to say yes to God.  As long as it takes, in other words.” (p.55)

Again, this logic, though appealing, runs contrary to the plain teaching of scripture.  An example is found in the teaching of Jesus himself.   In Luke 16:19-31 Jesus taught a parable about a man named Lazarus and a rich man who were both existing in a kind of eternal state of awareness after death.  Lazarus was in heaven and the rich man was in hell. Remarkably, the rich man begged Abraham to allow Lazarus to go back to earth and tell his brothers of their need for repentance.  Abraham's answer was that if his brothers would not listen to Moses and the prophets, they would not listen to a man who came back from the dead (v. 31).  In this fascinating parable, Jesus reveals to us that the human heart is in such rebellion against God that not even appeals in the afterlife would be able to budge it.  

This is not a new controversy.  In fact it seems like every generation has examples of this kind of thing.  One of my Dad's favorite biblical scholars when I was growing up was William Barclay.  Barclay was a prolific writer and theologian and his commentaries were a must in every conservative pastor's library.  Late in his career, Barclay caused a similar controversy when he announced that he was a convinced universalist.

The reason this particular event has become such a big deal is that Bell, like Barclay in my father's generation, has been extremely influential.  He is a very gifted communicator, whose Nooma videos have been played and replayed for years in worship services and youth ministry events in countless evangelical churches.   There is a lot to like about Rob Bell.  He is extremely creative and really a genius when it comes to communicating in popular media.   One of the best sermons I ever heard in fact from the book of Leviticus was preached by Rob Bell.  It was one of those sermons on the atonement I will never forget.  

In fact there were parts of the book I enjoyed.  I thought his treatment of heaven on earth in chapter two was masterful.  But in chapter three his theology started going off a cliff and it never recovered.  As a friend of mine remarked, the parts of the book that were good were really good but the parts of it that were bad were terrible.  

To be fair the book was obviously not written as a book of theology.  He is not making arguments for biblical scholars and theologians to pour over so they can develop counter arguments.   He is pithy and sarcastic and bombastic in his approach to conventional Christian belief.   Reading the book is like watching one of his Nooma videos.  For the most part, Rob Bell paints pictures, he doesn't develop scholarly arguments.    

My sense is that he probably doesn't care what conservative scholars think anyway or else he wouldn't have written such a provocative book.  Instead he is appealing to a large audience of unbelievers and others who are offended by the traditional teaching of the church.  Believe me that is a BIG audience.  There will be many who no doubt will be attracted to this spin on the gospel.  

Sadly, it's not the gospel of scripture and so it's not the gospel that transforms lives and changes hearts.   

It's another gospel.  

Which is to say, it's no gospel at all  (Galatians 1:6-8)

In his promotion video, Bell raises lots of questions about conservative biblical teaching regarding the atonement.  Denny Burke does a good job in answering those questions:

In the video Bell begins with an anecdote about a person who once suggested that Ghandi is in hell. Bell is astonished that someone would make such a pronouncement, and it leads him to pose a litany of questions--questions that he apparently intends to answer more fully in the book. I thought it would be worthwhile to take a crack at answering each of his questions here from a biblical point of view. So here are my answers to Bell's queries.

Bell: Ghandi's in hell? He is? And someone knows this for sure?

Answer: The Bible teaches that there is no other name given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). The Bible also teaches any person who does not believe in Jesus falls under the judgment of God (John 3:18). Anyone (including Ghandi) who refuses to trust Christ alone for salvation will die in their sin and will not be able to follow Jesus into eternal life (John 8:21).

Bell: Will only a few select people make it to heaven?

Answer: Yes, that is true. Jesus taught that a select number of people would make it to eternal life. Most people will choose the broad way that leads to destruction, but a few will choose the narrow way to life (Matthew 7:13-14; Luke 13:23-28). Nevertheless, the Bible also teaches that there will be a great multitude which no one will be able to count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Revelation 7:9).

Bell: And will billions and billions of people burn forever in hell?

Answer: I don't know if anyone knows what the exact number will be, but the Bible teaches that at the end of the age there will only be two groups of people: those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life and those whose are not. All those whose names are not written in the book will be thrown into the lake of fire. This will no doubt be a countless throng of people (Revelation 20:10-15).

Bell: And if that's the case, how do you become one of the few? Is it what you believe? Or what you say? Or what you do? Or who you know? Or something that happens in your heart? Or do you need to be initiated or baptized or take a class or be converted or be born again? How does one become one of these few?

Answer: There is nothing that any person can do to be counted among the saved. Salvation from the penalty of sin is all of grace. God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him might not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). God offers us His Son, and the only way to receive Him is by faith. Jesus said it this way, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent" (John 6:29). If you want to become one of the few, then you have to trust in Jesus alone for your salvation.

Bell: And then there is the question behind the questions. The real question: What is God like? Because millions and millions of people were taught that the primary message, the center of the gospel of Jesus, is that God is going to send you to hell unless you believe in Jesus. So what gets subtly sort of caught and taught is that Jesus rescues you from God. But what kind of God is that that we would need to be rescued from this God?

Answer: What is God like? This is the ultimate question and how one answers this question will determine how all the others get answered. God is holy. He loves righteousness, and He hates sin. He is the most valuable, precious being in the universe. He is worthy of all our worship, devotion, and obedience. All people fall short of their obligation to love and worship God, and this falling short is called sin (Romans 3:23). Through our sin, we all have earned God's just sentence of death (Romans 6:23). In fact, God says that He is angry with those who do not repent of their sin. The Bible says that God is storing up His anger for impenitent sinners (Romans 2:5) and that it will be a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of an angry God at the judgment (Hebrews 10:27, 31). The Bible teaches that God is both the treasure of heaven and the terror of hell. God will punish His enemies.

Bell: How could that God ever be good? How could that God ever be trusted? And how could that ever be good news?

Answer: You are asking how can God be good if He sentences sinners to eternal damnation, but I think you have the question backwards. The real question is how can God be good if He doesn't send sinners to judgment. In other words, how can God be good while forgiving sinners? This is the question Paul wrestled with in Romans 3, and he concluded that God set forth His son Jesus as a propitiation for sin. That means that all of the wrath and anguish that would have taken us an eternity in hell to endure, God poured out on His Son in the moment of the cross. God is good because He settles our sin debt in the cross of Jesus Christ, our substitute. This is good news because God clears away guilt through the cross and offers eternal life through the resurrection of Jesus. Anyone who believes in Jesus in this way can have forgiveness and eternal life. This is more than good news; it's the best of news.

Bell: This is why lots of people want nothing to do with the Christian faith. They see it has an endless list of absurdities and inconsistencies, and they say, "Why would I ever want to be a part of that?"

Answer: Sin will always appears as a trifle to those whose view of God is small. If you were to discover a little boy pulling the legs off of a grasshopper, you would think it strange and perhaps a little bizarre. If the same little boy were pulling the legs off of a frog, that would be a bit more disturbing. If it were a bird, you would probably scold him and inform his parents. If it were a puppy, that would be too shocking to tolerate. You would intervene. If it were a little baby, it would be so reprehensible and tragic that you would risk you own life to protect the baby. What's the difference in each of these scenarios? The sin is the same (pulling the limbs off). The only difference is the one sinned against (from a grasshopper to a baby). The more noble and valuable the creature, the more heinous and reprehensible the sin. And so it is with God.

If God were a grasshopper, then to sin against Him wouldn't be such a big deal and eternal punishment wouldn't be necessary. But God isn't a grasshopper, He's the most precious, valuable, beautiful being in the universe. His glory and worth are infinite and eternal. Thus to sin against an infinitely glorious being is an infinitely heinous offense that is worthy of an infinitely heinous punishment.

We don't take sin seriously because we don't take God seriously. We have so imbibed of the banality of our God-belittling spirit of the age that our sins hardly trouble us at all. Our sin seems small because we regard God as small. And thus the penalty of hell--eternal conscious suffering under the wrath of God--always seems like an overreaction on God's part. If we knew God better, we wouldn't think like that.

Bell: [You] see, what we believe about heaven and hell is incredibly important because it exposes what we believe about who God is and what God is like.

Answer: You couldn't be more right. But I question whether the god that you are describing is the same One I am describing.

The Real Saint Patrick and Nine Other Things

1.  Yesterday was Saint Patricks Day.  I asked my son if he knew who Patrick was?  "Was he an alcoholic?" was his answer.  So on the day after St. Pats day I thought I would post a good synopsis of the actual story which is much better than the myth.   If you've not read the history of Patrick before, you may be shocked that the way the world celebrates one of the most effective evangelists in Christian history is by getting plastered on green beer.

2.  I have been receiving emails from Christian friends in Japan who are asking for Christians around the world to pray specifically for the wind direction in Japan to remain low and eastward.  One article that explains the importance of this can be found here.

3.  The most effective way for us to give to the need in Japan is through the IMBs emergency fund.  We have people already on the ground assessing the needs and allocating the resources in effective ways that accomplishes both the short term and long term objectives for Japan.  You can allocate your offering through the church or you can give online here.

4.  Fellow Oklahoman Tom Eliff has been named the new president of the International Mission Board.  I believe Tom will do a terrific job as the new leader of our missions organization.  He is a proven leader who has experience not just as a pastor but as a missionary on the field.  He is widely respected and loved and brings much needed confidence and competence to the IMB.   Tom will face many challenges in the months ahead but I believe his most daunting challenge will be to simplify the organizational structure so that it is more effective at accomplishing it's mission.   If I were to summarize the biggest problem with the IMB right now I would say we are entirely too top heavy.

5.  I am excited about Eliff's new vision for the IMB to challenge local churches to partner with the board to reach unengaged and unreached people groups around the world.  I know there will be many challenges to pull this off, but it is a worthy vision at the right time in our history.  In many ways,  CRBC is already well positioned for this strategy, as our church has already partnered with the IMB in several different regions around the world.   I would like to see us ramp up our efforts in the days ahead however, especially now that we are out of debt and are positioned to allocate more of our resources toward missions.

6.  It's time for us to fix the roof over our heads.  For many years now our worship center roof has leaked like a sieve.  This problem needs to rectified before we can make any further improvements to our worship space.  The reason the problem hasn't been addressed sooner is the projected cost of the project has been so astronomical it was impractical.   We have recently received a much more favorable bid however and so we will soon  be bringing a recommendation to the church for finally resolving the problem.

7.  This is a time of terrific transition and opportunity in the MIddle East and North Africa.  I believe there is tremendous opportunity in the uprisings we are reading and hearing about.  We need to pray that the new governments that emerge will be intent on every kind of freedom for their populations, including freedom of religion.  One thing we know for certain, wherever there is turmoil and change, there is opportunity for the gospel.

8.  This past week a famous evangelical pastor released a book in which he challenged the longstanding Christian doctrine of hell.  The news about Rob Bell was disappointing but not all that surprising to me.  Bell has been moving down the neo-liberal theology road for a few years now.  I will write a more comprehensive blog on this subject later but to summarize my thoughts to you I believe Bell has not just stepped outside of biblical doctrine with this book, but has removed an important lynch pin in Christ's teaching on salvation.  After all, Jesus talked more about hell than he did about heaven.  There was a reason for that.   Read Al Mohler's thoughts on this subject here.

9.  There is nothing funny to me about what is happening to Charlie Sheen.  Watching the video of Sheen's drug induced rant is a poignant illustration of the depth of human depravity residing within every human heart.   The fact people are so interested in watching his self destruction is also instructive.  I believe cultures obsessive fascination with the Charlie Sheen's of the world is evidence of our collective depravity.

10.  This Sunday I will be teaching again on Colossians 3:1-11.   The money point of this entire series is that our understanding of our need for personal righteousness is what drives our motives, ambitions and our most important decisions in life.  Conversely, an understanding of how we find His solution is what brings us ultimate meaning, peace and lasting joy.  In a world that seems so upside down and changing rapidly, this is an immensely important truth.

Boasting Only In The Cross

Today begins what I believe is the most important time of the year for Christians around the world - the season of Lent.  It is the forty days of the Spring season that we focus on the most important truth of our lives- that Jesus Christ gave His life for us as a substitutionary atonement on the cross.  Although this is certainly the case for us every day of our lives all year long, I truly believe there is great value in taking roughly a tithe of the year leading up to Easter Sunday to bring this truth into greater clarity.  It is a time of fasting, reflecting and meditation on the meaning of the gospel.

Here is an excellent quote from John Piper that I think nails the point:

Only boast in the cross of Jesus Christ. 

It is a single idea. A single goal. A single passion. Only boast in the cross. The word can be translated “exult in” or “rejoice in.” Only exult in the cross of Christ. Only rejoice in the cross of Christ. Paul says let this be your single passion, your single boast and joy and exultation…

All exultation in anything else should be exultation in the cross. If you exult in the hope of glory you should be exulting in the cross of Christ. If you exult in tribulation because tribulation works hope, you should be exulting in the cross of Christ. If you exult in your weaknesses, or in the people of God, you should be exulting in the cross of Christ.

Why is this the case? For this reason: for redeemed sinners, every good thing – indeed every bad thing that God turns for good – was obtained for us by the cross of Christ. Apart from the death of Christ, sinners get nothing but judgment. Apart from the cross of Christ, there is only condemnation. Therefore everything that you enjoy in Christ – as a Christian, as a person who trusts Christ – is owing to the death of Christ. And all your rejoicing in all things should therefore be a rejoicing in the cross where all your blessings were purchased for you at the cost of the death of the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

Don't forget our Ash Wednesday worship is tonight at 6:30 p.m. in the Worship Center.  Mark Clifford will be leading worship.