Living the Message

Bread & Wine (Overview of The Sacred Meal by Nora Gallagher)

2011-04-11T01:59:00.002-04:00

Nora Gallagher is a reporter and a writer. Personally, I don't think she was the best choice to write about this topic in this series ("The Ancient Practices"), but that wasn't for me to decide! Having read three of the eight books in the series, I think I have figured out that the editor (Phyllis Tickle) has asked the authors to include references to all three Abrahamic faiths: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. That's fine, but it does require slight modifications for certain practices, like changing the "Lord's Supper" to "The Sacred Meal." I guess you could call this being "religiously correct."

The topic at hand is hardly trivial. It's the thank-you meal ("eucharist") that Jesus instituted at the Last Supper when he told his disciples "Do this in remembrance of me." And so they (we) have ever since. Or, as Gallagher says, "[T]his odd, mysterious, ritualized eating and drinking...has been a part of the fabric of this faith in all probability since its inception" (xviii).

First the criticisms and then on to the decent points I think she made. One problem is her bent toward equating the Lord's Supper with a Soup Kitchen. She mostly restricts this to chapter 10, but references are present throughout the book. Another is her equating of activism with faith (see p. 36).

On to the better moments. For starters, she recognizes that, "[Communion] is meant to be done together; it has to be done in community. You can pray alone and fast alone. You can even go on pilgrimage alone. But you can't take Communion alone. More than any other practice, taking Communion forces us to be with others, to stand with them in a circle or kneel at the altar rail or pass a tray of grape juice and cubes of bread. We are forced to be with strangers and people we don't like" (12).

Also, I really like her three-fold division of "waiting," "receiving," and "afterward."

On waiting, she writes, "Part of waiting to take Communion is examining how we have been like the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah, how we have been drawn into the empire's kingdom (how we have sinned) and at the same time, to check in on how we have been like the citizens of Jesus' kingdom of God" (34). In summary, "[P]art of waiting...is examining what we did last week to find the kingdom heaven in our midst and to help others find it" (37).

On receiving, she makes a great observation when she says, "Even when seeking words for rest, we use phrases like refueling or recharging, more appropriate to machine than to persons" (42). Her instruction for receiving is simple: open your hands (to receive the bread and cup). In so doing, she writes, "we would have done two-thirds of what needed to be done. Which is to admit that we simply do not have all the answers; we simply do not have all the power" (45). But, oddly in my estimation, she take a strange turn at end of the chapter on receiving and says that "Faith is a catch-and-release sport. And standing at the altar and receiving the bread and wine is the release part" (see p. 46). That makes no sense at all, because she just spent the whole chapter talking about "receiving," not "releasing."

On the time following the Eucharist, which she dubs "afterward," she writes, "[W]hatever happens during Communion, one of the ways to spend the immediate time afterward, after coming out of the experience, is to sit in silence and let it seep into your cells" (56). This sacred meal is more than a remembrance and more than a memorial. It is transformative, because "Transformation occurs in encounters, sometimes better named collisions, either with the self or with others or with the holy" (60-61).

Beyond that tripartite scheme, she ventures into theological waters that are over her head that attempt to shine light (but fall far short of actually doing so) on the long-standing debates of "Real Presence" in the meal and what exactly is transpiring during the ceremony and in the elements of bread and wine.

In closing, it seems that all we can say is, "The body of Christ, the bread of heaven. The blood of Christ, the cup of salvation." And strangely enough, that is sufficient.

To Eat or Not To Eat (Overview of Fasting by Scot McKnight)

2011-04-04T15:50:00.000-04:00

In seminary I worked for a professor who has published many popular-level books on fasting. By his own accounting, the books he wrote on fasting sold more than any of his other books combined. The approach this man presented, however, was similar to what McKnight brands "the Traditional Christian understanding of fasting."

This approach, according to McKnight, assumes three predictable phases:

Phase 1: Something sacred occurs (sacred meaning set apart from the normal). This could be a death or illness in the family, a change in job and so on.
Phase 2: You stop eating (start fasting).
Phase 3: You get results.

The gist of McKnight's thought is that the biblical story has no phase three when it comes to fasting. In fact, when it's rightly practiced the discipline of fasting is organically connected to the holistic condition of our humanness. McKnight writes, "[A] unified perception of body, soul, spirit, and mind creates a spirituality that includes the body. For this kind of body image, fasting is natural. Fasting is the body talking what the spirit yearns, what the soul longs for, and what the mind knows to be true. It is body talk – not the body simply talking for the spirit, for the mind or for the soul in some symbolic way, but for the person, the whole person, to express himself or herself completely" (p. 11).

So rather than the traditional view, McKnight insists the phases are more like this:
Phase 1: Something sacred happens
Phase 2: You stop eating as response to the sacred moment.
There is no phase three.

In summary:
This is a good book - not too deep, too shallow, or impractical. Your body reacts to the sacred moment. All of who you are (your "self") participates in the moment. By abstaining from food, you actually forge a space to respond with God to the sacredness of that moment.

disclaimer: In exchange for this review, I was given a complimentary copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Publishers. All opinions, however, are my own.

Book Review: Same Kind of Different As Me

2011-01-05T15:46:00.001-05:00

Maybe I'm just a contrarian, but I have a certain aversion to books that make their way into the conversations of everyday Christians. I usually go for books that carry depth, insight, analysis, critique, and history...basically, anything but a sappy story.

Much like I did with The Shack, I gave in and read The Same Kind of Different As Me. This book tells the story of Ron Hall, a wealthy art-dealer who never had a problem that money couldn't help, and Denver Moore, a man raised in poverty as a share-cropper in the south. The two unlikely acquaintances met through Ron's wife who worked with a homeless shelter in the metro area of Dallas-Fort Worth. What began as Ron's self-congratulatory act of "lending a hand," eventually became a bond between he and Denver that anchored them through the storms of life.

This book was better than I expected, but my wife enjoyed it even more. She laughed and cried all through the book (and sometimes she did both at the same time!). As soon as she finished, she passed it on to one of her friends to read.

disclaimer: I was provided a review copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Publishers. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Book Review: The Boy Who Changed the World (Andy Andrews)

2011-01-05T15:18:00.000-05:00

So you want to change the world?
Most people would tell you to get started on something big or outrageous, something that borders on epic proportions. But wait, says author Andy Andrews, there's another way to do it: one word, one action, one step at a time.

The Boy Who Changed the World is a kid's version of another one of Andrew's books called The Butterfly Effect. And, if you've seen the movie by that same title, you might recognize the theme that is captured in the familiar quote related to Chaos Theory and attributed to the research of Edward Lorenz:
"It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world."

This nicely illustrated children's book introduces Norman Borlaug as a little boy living on his family farm in Iowa. Interestingly enough, I assumed that Norman Borlaug was just a fictional character created for the book. I was wrong. Norman Borlaug was a real person whose ideas, activities, and contributions for world food supply won him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970. Thus, the real-life Norman really did change the world.

Personally, my 3-year old hasn't cleaved to the book as much as I thought he would. It's probably a bit too long for him, but I assume it's a good book for children who are a little older. One day my little boy will make it through this book and, hopefully, he'll believe the message of the book: You matter, and therefore everything you do also matters!

Get a peek at some of the illustrations by visiting Andy Andrews' website.

Also, here's a nice promo video about the book:

disclaimer: In exchange for this review, I was given a complimentary copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Publishers. All opinions, however, are my own.

Book Overview: Coffeehouse Theology (Ed Cyzewski)

2010-09-10T23:02:00.000-04:00

I initially thought this book was going to be about sharing the Christian faith in the ordinary moments and everyday places in which we live our lives (like The Coffeehouse Gospel by Matthew Paul Turner). I was wrong. But it still seems there's a slight obsession with Christians and Coffeehouses! I, personally, have NEVER referred to any place as a "coffeehouse" so neither of those titles even fit with my vernacular...but I digress.

In Coffeehouse Theology, Ed Cyzewski unpacks some complicated topics in simple ways. I'm not using "simple" pejoratively either. He brings some complicated theological issues down to the level of the common reader.

The subject of this book is not evangelism, but contextual theology. This is a subject that acknowledges the limitations of living and learning in a certain place at a certain time. Our time and place comprise our culture, which, in turn, affects our interpretation of Scripture and, ultimately, our thoughts about God.

Contextual theology seeks to avoid the two extremes of syncretism on the one hand, and sectarianism on the other. That said, what Cyzewski has written a basic introduction to this type of theology. The introductory nature of this book can be seen by the "Further Reading" section included at the end of each chapter. Those sections include a list of books that expand on the points he made throughout the chapter, but I would have liked to see a brief summary of the books included in those lists (it's not likely that the popular-level - non-academic - reader is going to purchase all those books!).

The thing I appreciate most about this book is the author's insistence that both theology and culture matter. This is a healthy corrective to people and churches who emphasize one at the expense of the other.

On the whole, this book isn't great but it's a decent introduction to the ways that culture and theology intersect and shape one another.

Book Overview: Jesus Manifesto (Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola)

2010-07-15T15:40:00.000-04:00

This book makes strange bedfellows of two leaders whose writings are usually gobbled up by their respective small tribes of devotees.

The book itself is an expansion of the document, which goes by the same name, the two posted online in June 2009.

Viola has an anti-institutional church bent that he's voiced before (see Pagan Christianity and ReImagining Church), while Sweet comes across as wishing he were a 15th century French philosopher.

The format of the book doesn't disclose who is writing which portion, but it comes obvious: chapters with anti-church sentiments are from Viola, while chapters with quotes from random monks are from Sweet.

Manifestos, typically, are written to be punchy, controversial, and specific. I sensed none of that in this book. Instead, I found this book to be cheesy, uncontroversial, and vague. They never named names but only went on ad nauseum with metaphors describing how high and lofty Jesus is. If you had never heard of Jesus, you would come away from this book without realizing that he was a real human being.

The problem I have with this book is not its call to follow and worship Jesus, but that they never really define which Jesus it is to whom we should ascribe worth. Is it the "homeboy Jesus" of the Hollywood-types, the "baby Jesus" of Ricky Bobby, or the Jesus who lived, was killed in a public execution, and was resurrected within the ongoing story of people who believed themselves to be called by God.

In the final analysis, it seems that Sweet and Viola want to challenge the people who are intent on praying and embodying the Lord's Prayer. It seems they want those people to give up that agenda and, instead, become modern-day, middle-class mystics who meet in suburban house churches, chanting to a disembodied Jesus while sipping coffee from Starbucks.

This may be harsh, and not everyone will agree with my assessment; but it's just the way I see it.

disclaimer: This book was provided to me by Thomas Nelson Publishers. All opinions expressed are my own.

They Say / I Say

2010-06-05T20:57:00.000-04:00

"[T]o give writing the most important thing of all - namely, a point - a writer needs to indicate clearly not only what his or her thesis is, but also what larger conversation that thesis is responding to.
... Delaying this explanation for more than one or two paragraphs in a very short essay, three or four pages in a longer one, or more than ten or so pages in a book-length text reverses the order in which readers process material - and in which writers think and develop ideas.
... [R]emember that you are entering a conversation and therefore need to start with 'what others are saying,'...[21] and then introduce your own ideas as a response" (Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein, They Say/I Say, 20-21).

"Whenever you enter into a conversation with others in your writing, then, it is extremely important that you go back to what those others have said, that you study it very closely, and that you not confuse it with something you already believe. A writer who fails to do this ends up essentially conversing with imaginary others who are really only the products of his or her own biases and preconceptions [in other words, a 'straw man']" (Ibid., 33).

"Although it's naturally tempting to ignore criticism of our ideas, doing so may in fact be a big mistake, since our writing improves when we not only listen to these objections but give them an explicit hearing [79] in our writing. Indeed, no single device more quickly improves a piece of writing than planting a naysayer in the text - saying, for example, that 'although some readers may object' to something in your argument, you 'would reply that ___________.'
... [W]riting well does not mean piling up uncontroversial truths in a vacuum; it means engaging others in a dialogue or debate - not only by opening your text with a summary of what others have said ... but also by imagining what others might say against your argument as it unfolds" (Ibid., 78-79).

Op-Ed

2010-06-05T20:34:00.000-04:00

An "op-ed" gets its name from where it appears: on the page opposite from the editorial page of a publication. Simply put, an op-ed is a focused opinion that is written to engage readers while presenting facts to support the author's point of view. They are general between 500 and 700 words.

Writing an Op-Ed:
1) Identify a problem
2) Make a bold statement
3) Defend your statement
4) Propose a solution

This follows the logic of "Why-then-What."

Refresh Everything

2010-05-19T15:58:00.002-04:00

"God made us whole people; and in Christ he has redeemed us wholly. In the Christian view there is no dichotomy between body and spirit that either indulges the body because it is irrelevant or punishes it so as to purify the spirit. This pagan view of physical existence finds its way into Christian theology in a number of subtle ways, including the penchant on the part of some to 'save souls' while caring little for people's material needs. The Christian creed, based on NT revelation, is not the immortality of the soul, but the resurrection of the body. That creed does not lead to a crass materialism; rather, it affirms a holistic view of redemption that is predicated in part on the doctrine of creation - both the physical and spiritual orders are good because God created them - and in part on the doctrine of redemption, including the consummation - the whole fallen order, including the body, has been redeemed in Christ and awaits its final redemption" (Gordon D. Fee, The First Epistle to the Corinthians, 266).

Overview: Change Your Church for Good (Brad Powell)

2010-05-16T15:04:00.006-04:00

In this book, Brad Powell outlines his strategies and lessons learned from from leading change at Temple Baptist Church (now NorthRidge Church) in Detroit, Michigan. Temple Baptist had a rich heritage of growth and expansion, and was even included in Elmer Towns' list of the ten largest Sunday Schools in 1969. But we all know that the city of Detroit fell on hard times in the decades that followed. With the rise of suburban lifestyles and loss of downtown glamour, the churches of Detroit needed to make a change - and that included Temple Baptist. Powell became the Senior Pastor of the church in 1990, and this book is a broad stroke compilation of his advice to church leaders who find themselves in similar positions today.

In his own words, Powell says, "This books is about changing the church in its conduct (practice) without compromising the character (principle) of God's truth. It's about allowing the church to be a clearer reflection of who God is and what He does" (p. 76).

He tries to base all his advice on verses of Scripture, but it feels like he "backs into" a lot of those verses (ie. he started with his point and then searched a concordance to find a verse that says something along the same lines). That doesn't mean his points are bad, they're not, but it just means that he tried to base his words of wisdom on a higher authority that was really necessary.

This is book is a good starting place if you find yourself in a church in need of transition, and feel that responsibility falling upon your shoulders. The book has 5 parts, none of which are too academic, and all of which provide some helpful thoughts:
Part 1 is about the church as Powell thinks it should be.
Part 2 is about leadership and change.
Part 3 is about naming and proclaiming the vision.
Part 4 is about investing and persisting.
Part 5 is about seeing the big picture.

disclosure: This book was given to me by Thomas Nelson Publishers. All opinions expressed are my own.

Canon of the Bible

2010-05-11T22:01:00.002-04:00

What is the Bible? In his book Church History in Plain Language, Bruce Shelley says, “The Bible [derived from the Greek word Biblia - which means “The Books” - and later morphed, at the suggestion of Jerome in the fourth century, to singular form - meaning “The Book”] contains two portions: the Old Testament, which the early Christians claimed - along with the Jews - and the New Testament, which the early Christians produced - in spite of the Jews. The Old Testament promised; the New Testament fulfilled” (p. 58).

Shelley goes on, “The word for the special place these books occupy in Christianity is canon. The term from the Greek language originally meant ‘a measuring rod’ or, as we might say, ‘a ruler.’ It was a standard for judging something straight. So the idea transferred to a list of books that constituted the standard or ‘rule’ of the churches. These were the books read publicly in the congregations because they had a special authority of God on them” (p. 58).

In his book The Good Book, Peter J. Gomes answers the question from a different angle. He says, “[T]he Bible is not a book but a collection of books, in fact, a library of books. Sixty-six separate books have been collected from writings of ancient Hebrews and early Christians, and by a rational editorial process have been brought together over a period of centuries to form the book we now know as the Bible” (p. 13).

Gomes continues, “Although Hebrew scripture [Old Testament] takes different forms - poetry, history, law, and wisdom - the subject is always the same: the relationship between God’s people and their God…. The scripture of the Jewish people does not simply record historical facts, but by its interpretation of history, the Jewish scripture seeks to ask and to answer the fundamental questions of human existence. Who am I? Why am I here? What is the purpose of life? What does it mean to be good? What is evil, and how do I deal with it? How do I deal with death? These are both individual questions and, with regard to the Jewish people, also public and communal questions…. [15] This authoritative listing is referred to as a canon and evolved between A.D. 70 and 135 into its present form by a process of rabbinical councils…. [16] The Christian scriptures were chosen from a wide range of early Christian writings, and the final product, the present canon, represents the consensus of usage and dignity confirmed by the earliest churches in A.D. 367 [and was ultimately settled at the Third Council at Carthage in A.D. 397]” (pp. 14-16).

Why did Israel preserve the stories and scrolls that eventually became the Christian Old Testament? According to Daniel Fuller in The Unity of the Bible, “The likeliest reason that Israel preserved its literature so well was the people’s strong conviction that God had founded it as a nation through Abraham and had often intervened in its history to save it from destruction, because he was going to fulfill his promise to Abraham that in Israel all the nations of the world would eventually be blessed. Such happenings were far too significant to be forgotten and so impressive that the people developed a literature recounting God’s dealings with them” (p. 33). Fuller continues, “Ever historian is faced with the problem of explaining Israel’s unique conviction about its relationship to God, for it is axiomatic that every effect much have a commensurate cause. I argue that Israel’s holding to such a conviction, and carefully preserving the literature telling of the sequence and meaning of these divine interventions in its history, cannot be explained by any natural circumstance in its past. But since every effect must have a cause, the conclusion can only be that God did indeed intervene supernaturally in Israel’s history and that the Old Testament canon is a result of a phenomenon that can be explained only by this miraculous intervention” (p. 34).

On the NT canon, Fuller says, “The churches knew that people became apostles only because Jesus had appointed them. They in turn could and did appoint elders and bishops, but had no authority to appoint new apostles. So when the last apostle [one who had seen the risen Jesus and been commissioned by him as his spokesman (see 1 Cor. 9:1)] died [presumably at the close of the first century], the churches knew that revelation had ceased and that now they must bring together the teachings and writings of the apostles and their close associates…. [Also] so many writings falsely claiming to be apostolic were appearing. The Epistle of Barnabas, the Teaching of the Twelve, and the Shepherd of Hermas, for example, all claimed apostolic authority, and so the church had to draw a line between truly apostolic teachings and those that were spurious” (p. 58).

* Note that both Clement, most likely the bishop of churches in and near Rome, and Ignatius, bishop at Antioch in Syria, distinguished themselves from the apostles. 1 Clement 42:1, for instance, says, “The apostles received the gospel for us from the Lord Jesus Christ.” Then in 42:2, he says how only Christ, and not a bishop, could appoint people to be apostles.

When it came to singling out which letters and essays were authentic, Fuller says, “Such decisions singling out those documents that ‘teach the truth’ were not made in some church council attended by representatives from church districts scattered far and wide, as is sometimes claimed. Instead they were made informally at the grass-roots level, by small groups of Christian networked with each other in household churches located mostly around the eastern half of the Mediterranean. No doubt the decisions of one network would be transmitted by a traveler to networks elsewhere. Thus there must have been many lists of the New Testament canon made up, but only two from the period are extant [one is from Papias, quoted by Eusebius; and the other is the Muratorian Fragment]” (p. 62).

Finally, it must be asked, What about the letters and essays included in the New Testament that were not written by an apostle (or that we don’t know who the author was at all - like Hebrews)? Fuller responds, “It [the canon] readily admitted writings composed by nonapostles who worked in close association with an apostle [and corresponded to “The Rule of Faith” - meaning its teachings did not go against previously accepted teachings of outright apostles. Thus Luke, who wrote his gospel and Acts, has more in writing in the New Testament than any other author” (p. 66).

In his book A Short History of Christianity, Stephen Tomkins, pays more attention to the competing sects as the driving force behind solidifying the New Testament canon. He says, “The Ebionites rejected the works of Paul and perhaps Luke too as unapostolic, while the Marcionites accepted nothing else. Moreover, the gnostics soon followed by the Ebionites, had a rapidly expanding collection of writings that also claimed to be by apostles. Many allegedly apostolic writings were emerging that seemed to support mainstream Christianity too, but were of dubious origin” (p. 31).

He continues, “And so it was that the bishops had to…draw a line between those writings that embodied the teachings of Christ and the apostles with all the authority of holy scripture, and those that did not, in other words, to create the New Testament” (p. 31).

Overview: Four Pages of the Sermon (Paul Scott Wilson)

2010-05-09T00:07:00.002-04:00

Before proceeding to writing the sermon, identify:

One Text

One Theme: What is God doing in or behind this text? Whose action in this text is like God’s? Write sentence arising from that text should be a declarative sentence, not a question … use a strong, affirmative [active] verb. What is God doing in this text? The theme is statement from what the text is saying (sermon in a sentence). What the text says in response to our condition. Make God the subject, doing the gracious verb.

One Doctrine: arising out of the theme sentence. Which doctrine best relates/connects to the theme? Say the theme in the form of a historic, substantive doctrine statement of the church.

One Need: in the congregation that the doctrine or theme sentence addresses. What question can this doctrine answer? Include the question 2x in the sermon. Imagine scenes of life to which this doctrine has particular relevance. What need does this theme or doctrine meet in anyone’s life?

One Image: to be wed to the theme sentence. Paint a word picture with specific, concrete objects - not abstract ideas. Use it in the intro, on 2 pages, and conclusion. Connect it with the theme of God’s action.

One Mission: call toward action. concrete idea for action.

After those things have been identified, you can move forward.

INTRODUCTION

Within the 1st or 2nd paragraph, make the theme statement or topic clear, with some hint to both its relevance and the destination of the sermon. Use variety. Don’t start with a question!

Ideas: 1) Tell a story that suggests the flip side of the theme sentence (start at the place where the action is, fill in details as the action unfolds). 2) Start with a not-too serious experience of the general theme (don’t shove people into the deep end). 3) Start with the biblical text (this would actually be the start of Page One). 4) Start with a social justice issue. 5) Start with a news item (not a tragedy unless it’s immediately relevant).

PAGE ONE

What’s the trouble presented in the text?

Determine the reason or occasion for what the biblical writer is saying. Is there a mutual condition that we and the original hearers faced?

Page One is about one idea only! It should be a theological idea about trouble in the Bible. This idea will lead to trouble in our world on Page Two and prepare for God’s action on pages 3 and 4.

Give this page its own theological focus, but it must serve the theme statement! (ie. Genesis 3 - Adam and Eve are expelled; 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 - The Corinthians are divided; John 9:1-12 - The man was blind). Make it short and sharp. Focus only on it, develop it, biblically and theologically help the hearer feel the pain.

Recreate the biblical as if it’s the first time hearing (not reading) it - for many it is! If unsure how to connect with the theme, try a focus for page one that is the flip side of the theme (ie. John 9 theme: Jesus heals the person who is blind; Page One: Many people needed healing). Still make sure it’s a legitimate interpretation of the text!

PAGE TWO

Pages one and two are preparing for the theme sentence developed on PAGE THREE.

Find similar trouble in today’s world. The focus of trouble on PAGE TWO is determined by the focus of trouble on PAGE ONE (examples: Israel must change, our world must change; the woman needed healing, many suffer today).

Primary similarities between then and now are the unchanging nature of God and the continuing nature of human behavior.

When we speak of trouble in the sermon, we speak of human failure to live as God ordained and of the ongoing consequences of allowing that which is not sovereign to supplant God’s place in our lives.

3 solutions for presenting our trouble effectively:

1) Develop a three part theological understanding of trouble

a) transcendent/vertical (individual sin: individuals need forgiveness from God)

b) immanent/horizontal (social sin: society needs intervention by God)

c) human = vertical + horizontal (individual & societal: humanity needs to be rehumanized)

2) Preach with global awareness (speak about the issues, both large and small, of justice on the world stage).

3) Preach grace in tension with trouble

The best preachers use vertical AND horizontal trouble in indicative forms [not imperative forms].

By the end of PAGE TWO the preacher takes seriously the questions people have uttered during the prior week. The preacher reshapes these questions into theological questions. PAGES THREE and FOUR will provide responses to those questions.

Use stories as metaphors of the post-fall human condition or as metaphors/demonstrations of the incarnation of God, suffering servant, crucified Christ. Many things to or explore that condition.

PAGE THREE

Transition from PAGE TWO: “We may think that God is distant in these situations, but the opposite is true.” Often the theme sentence is all that we need to start page three. It must be developed into something that gives purpose and theological meaning to the ordinariness of life. The focus is God’s actions in the text. Help people see God where they perceived him to be absent.

On this page we proclaim God’s amazing nurture and saving acts without further putting the burden of action on the congregation. It is a way of putting our trouble in perspective before the cross of Christ who has taken our place, entered suffering, and gone into death for us, and thereby accomplished something so decisive that all life is changed by it. The trouble puts the burden of responsibility on people to act; whereas grace puts the burden on God in Christ, who has already acted in Christ. What we needed God has done in an ongoing relationship that overcomes human sin.

On PAGE THREE, we return to the biblical text and turn to God. We shift attention from human trouble to God’s activity by turning to our theme sentence. God’s action is the focus of this page and the unifying theme of the entire sermon, what PAGES ONE and TWO were leading toward.

Our primary goal is not to speak about God abstractly, or turn the text into propositions about God; it is rather to render God’s actions in as visual a way as possible through the event that the text itself represents.

PAGE FOUR

The focus in God’s action in the contemporary world. Claims about God’s activity are difficulty to make, for we need to point to signs of God that are usually ambiguous in the world. To make a claim about God’s action is risky. We might be wrong: we might claim too much about the wrong things, or claim too little about the right things, or miss God entirely. By contrast, passive claims about God are safe: we risk little because they are general propositions and they require little evidence in experience - but they also do little to foster faith.

We simply follow the promptings of the biblical text from PAGE THREE that identified God’s action in the biblical text, and now on PAGE FOUR we seek signs of the same action in the world around us.

God is lover, beloved, and their mutual love (the Holy Spirit). Thus one can look to experiences of friendship, caring family relationships, and the inclusive community of free and equal persons as intimations of the eternal life of God as a communion of persons.

Just as pages one and two followed exposition/application of trouble, pages three and four repeat that process from the perspective of God’s loving action. If PAGE TWO presents mainly vertical trouble, listeners need vertical grace on PAGE FOUR. If PAGE TWO presents horizontal trouble, PAGE FOUR must develop horizontal grace.

As preachers, we provide people with a transformed vision of ordinary life that now has deep theological purpose and meaning. We are saying, in effect, the trouble is less than true, because this affirmation concerning God is true.

The preacher needs to be focused on one theme sentence and connect it with a single doctrine and point to where people might see God doing this specific kind of action today.

Some preachers might portray God’s action as though it were automatic and mechanical, part of the nature of the universe. The danger here is generalizing God’s action into a principle about nature (ie. “the way things are”), as though God’s action is something like cruise control in a car that turns on at the press of a button. Instead, each action is to be honored as personal and specific to a time and place, a gift of grace.

The mission is in partnership with God’s action. Suggestions for mission should be helpful ideas to enable what listeners will want to do out of thankfulness for God’s love. These are invitations to encounter God, to serve others, to have our faith strengthened, and to have our lives renewed.

On this page Jesus must be presented as the Savior, the one who equips and empowers us, and whose endeavors we join.

CONCLUSION

Point back toward the theme sentence and the doctrine, wed the theme sentence to the dominant image; point forward to the coming week; and inspire people to mission.

Overview: Communicating for a Change (Andy Stanley)

2010-05-08T23:40:00.001-04:00

People aren’t usually impacted by a paragraph because they can’t remember it. People are impacted by statements. So take the time to reduce your one point to a sticky statement. This statement is your glue and your anchor – it’s what holds the message together and what keeps it from drifting off course.

The one point is not just information or a sticky phrase. It must be a burden in the heart of the speaker. It is the one message or truth that must be delivered at all cost. You can tell when a communicator is carrying a burden versus dispensing information.

You aren’t prepared if you cannot articulate the one thing the people have to know as a result of hearing your message.

1. ME

ME isn’t the really about me, it’s about finding common ground with THEM. An audience has to buy into the messenger before they buy into the message. This is why people don’t believe the Bible (they haven’t bought into God) and it’s why they don’t believe the speaker.

It’s difficult to receive challenging information from someone who seems to have no clue as to what it’s like to be you. When this part is handled correctly, the audience finds themselves shaking their heads in agreement and thinking, “me too.”

Look for opportunities to insert your personal struggles with the topic of the day at the front end of the message. Make it clear that you are wrestling with a particular tension in your own life.

2. WE

Broaden the tension so as to include everyone listening. Spend time applying the tension to as many areas as you can to spark an emotion in as many people as possible. “I struggle with it. You struggle with it too.”

Do not move ahead until you have created a tension that your audience is dying for you to resolve. Focus on the question you are about to answer until you are confident the audience wants it answered. Otherwise you’ll spend 20 minutes answering a question nobody is asking.

3. GOD

The goal here is to resolve the tension, or at least some of it, by pointing people to God’s thoughts on the subject at hand. Don’t just read it. Don’t explain it to death. Engage the audience with the text. Make it so fascinating that they are actually tempted to go home and read it on their own.

4. YOU

This is where we tell people what to do with what they have heard. Answer the questions “so what?” and “now what?” Find one point of application that everybody can embrace.

Rarely ask people to make a life-altering commitment to anything because it isn’t realistic; but challenge them to try something for a day or a week.

Helpful thoughts for discovering applications:

How does this apply to me? My family relationships? My relationships with Christians? My relationships with non-Christians?

5. WE

Rejoin your audience as you did in the beginning of the message. WE is really about vision-casting. It’s a moment of inspiration. Paint a verbal picture of what could be and should be.

“Imagine a church…a community…a school…a family…a friendship where…” Remind them that the Scriptures weren’t given solely to make our individual lives better; but so that we, together, could shine brightly for Christ in the world. Dream for them out loud.

“Imagine what WE could do together.”

-----

Information that doesn’t address a felt need is perceived as irrelevant. It may be incredibly relevant, but if our audience doesn’t see or feel the need for it, it is perceived as irrelevant (and their perception is their reality).

Your introduction should give them a reason to journey with you throughout the rest of the message. The last thing you want to do is rush through your ending. A hard landing leaves passengers feeling a bit uneasy, the same is same is true of a rushed conclusion to a message.

These 3 pairs of questions should help you develop an Introduction:
• What is the question I’m answering? What can I do to get my audience to want to know the answer to that question?
• What is the tension this message will resolve? What can I do to make my audience feel that tension?
• What mystery does this message solve? What can I do to make my audience want a solution?

Five suggestions to keep your audience engaged:

1. CHECK YOUR SPEED

The pace of our words communicates the importance of our words. If you talk too slow, you’ll bore people. If you talk too fast, you’ll lose them. Record yourself and make sure you stay at, or a little fast than, conversation speed.

2. SLOW DOWN IN THE CURVES (see pages 157-158)

Let everyone know you are making a transition. Transitions give people a chance to catch back up with you or re-engage if they have gotten lost.

3. NAVIGATE THROUGH THE TEXT (see pages 159-162)

Here are some ways:

• Highlight odd words or phrases (think of yourself as a tour guide, point things out, but keep moving)

• Help them anticipate the main point of the text (“okay, get ready, here it is…”)

• Deliberately read the text wrong, inserting a word that means the opposite, and then pause to let it sink in before correcting it

• Have them read certain words out loud for emphasis

• Summarize the text with a well-crafted statement

• Use visuals every chance you get

• Resist the urge to share everything you learned in research

4. ADD SOMETHING UNEXPECTED TO THE TRIP

When something unusual happens, everybody is interested; so plan something unusual. Get a group together before your next series to brainstorm how to create these unexpected happenings.

5. TAKE THE MOST DIRECT ROUTE

Let your audience know where you are going early in the journey. It’s better to tell them what you are going to talk about before you begin talking about it. Otherwise they have no frame of reference for the information you are giving them.

Overview: ReChurch (Stephen Mansfield)

2010-05-05T22:53:00.001-04:00

George Barna sets the stage in the foreword by diagnosing the problem: ecclesia exitus. This, he explains, is "the Latin term for church dropout" (ix). Then Barna cites a staggering statistic: "[N]early four out of every ten unchurched people (37 percent) in the United States avoid church because of bad experiences in a church or in relation to church people" (xii).

In this book Stephen Mansfield sets out to bring people back to church. He is concerned that "[S]ome of the most gifted and potentially powerful Christians I know are right now at a Starbucks or at a bar somewhere griping about the church, too tainted by grief and bitterness to be any use to anyone" (12). The growing number of people who "Like Jesus but Not the Church" has theological implications, too. Mansfield insists, "To think that we are entitled to love God and hate his people is sin" (15).

Diving in, he pins the problem (at least in these cases) on our forgetfulness of human nature. He says, "In our sentimentality about our church and those we love in it, we forget to stand guard against the natural failings of humanity" (45). Contrasting physical pain and emotional pain, he insists, "If we sit on a sharp object, the pain stops when jump up. When we are hurt emotionally, though, we carry the torment with us as we go" (66).

Moving forward, Mansfield walks the reader through forgiving the person(s) who caused the hurt. That process begins with identifying the positives and expressing gratitude for those things (107). His view about the origin of the negatives, however, teeters and totters between God's ordained plan and Satan's strategically placed traps. Maybe he is able to hold those two conflicting concepts together, but it's certainly an issue that deserves further clarification (especially because he builds much of his case on God's having predestined the hurtful events in question).

When it comes to heading back to church, he offers his advice: "Don't make your choice based on the Wow Factor or the Entertainment Factor or matters of personal charm and style. Choose instead after having listened and experienced for a while, based on whether or not the leadership team of this church will be able to coach you to your destiny and toward your place in the body of Christ" (153).

This book seems to be an exposition of the process of forgiveness and restoration, which is then applied to a person's stance toward the church. It offers worthwhile insights if you currently find yourself in a broken and bitter state of mind, or consider yourself "burned" by the church. You won't find all your answers in this work (it's only 170 short pages), but it can at least get you moving in a better direction.

disclosure: I was given a review copy of this book by Tyndale. All opinions are my own.

Purple Cows

2010-05-04T21:02:00.000-04:00

from: "In Praise of the Purple Cow" by Seth Godin

Being first in the frozen-pizza category was a good idea. Being first in pain relievers was an even better idea. Alas, they're both taken. Which brings me to the sad truth about marketing just about anything, whether it's a product or a service, whether it's marketed to consumers or corporations: Most people can't buy your product. Either they don't have the money, they don't have the time, or they don't want it.

And those are serious problems. An audience that doesn't have the money to buy what you're selling at the price you need to sell it for is not a market. An audience that doesn't have the time to listen to and understand your pitch treats you as if you and your product were invisible. And an audience that takes the time to hear your pitch and decides that they don't want it . . . well, you're not going to get very far.

The old rule was this: Create safe products and combine them with great marketing. Average products for average people. That's broken. The new rule is: Create remarkable products that the right people seek out.

...

Making and marketing something remarkable means asking new questions -- and trying new practices. Here are 10 suggestions.

Differentiate your customers. Find the group that's most profitable. Find the group that's most likely to influence other customers. Figure out how to develop for, advertise to, or reward either group. Ignore the rest. Cater to the customers you would choose if you could choose your customers.
If you could pick one underserved niche to target (and to dominate), what would it be? Why not launch a product to compete with your own that does nothing but appeal to that market?
Create two teams: the inventors and the milkers. Put them in separate buildings. Hold a formal ceremony when you move a product from one group to the other. Celebrate them both, and rotate people around.
Do you have the email addresses of the 20% of your customer base that loves what you do? If not, start getting them. If you do, what could you make for them that would be superspecial?
Remarkable isn't always about changing the biggest machine in your factory. It can be the way you answer the phone, launch a new brand, or price a revision to your software. Getting in the habit of doing the "unsafe" thing every time you have the opportunity is the best way to see what's working and what's not.
Explore the limits. What if you're the cheapest, the fastest, the slowest, the hottest, the coldest, the easiest, the most efficient, the loudest, the most hated, the copycat, the outsider, the hardest, the oldest, the newest, or just the most! If there's a limit, you should (must) test it.
Think small. One vestige of the TV-industrial complex is a need to think mass. If it doesn't appeal to everyone, the thinking goes, it's not worth it. No longer. Think of the smallest conceivable market and describe a product that overwhelms it with its remarkability. Go from there.
Find things that are "just not done" in your industry, and then go ahead and do them. For example, JetBlue Airways almost instituted a dress code -- for its passengers! The company is still playing with the idea of giving a free airline ticket to the best-dressed person on the plane. A plastic surgeon could offer gift certificates. A book publisher could put a book on sale for a certain period of time. Stew Leonard's took the strawberries out of the little green plastic cages and let the customers pick their own. Sales doubled.
Ask, "Why not?" Almost everything you don't do has no good reason for it. Almost everything you don't do is the result of fear or inertia or a historical lack of someone asking, "Why not?"
What would happen if you simply told the truth inside your company and to your customers?

The Apocryphal Books

2010-04-28T16:23:00.000-04:00

(found here)

Apocrypha is a Greek word meaning things hidden, and in ancient times this word was applied to religious writings esteemed almost as scripture by some, but which were not read to the unlearned in public. In modern Protestant usage the word "apocrypha" refers to all those writings which have wrongly been regarded as scripture by many in the church.

Brief Descriptions of the Apocryphal Books:

First Esdras. This book is someone's attempt to revise the canonical book of Ezra, supplementing it with material from the last two chapters of 2 Chronicles and the last two chapters of Nehemiah, and with an entertaining tale about three young courtiers who debate the question, "What is the strongest thing in the world?" The debate is held before the king of Persia, and the winner is to get a prize. The first maintains that it is wine; the second that it is the king himself; the third argues with some irony and humor that women are stronger than either wine or kings, but that "truth" and "the God of truth" are by far strongest. This last young man turns out to be none other than Zerubbabel, who for his prize receives generous help from the king in rebuilding Jerusalem.

Second Esdras. Also called the Ezra Apocalypse. This is a typical Jewish apocalypse, probably first written in Greek about A.D. 100. Some hold that it was originally written in Hebrew. It appears to be a composite work, compiled of two or three sources. Around A.D. 120 it was edited by an unknown Christian, and then translated into Latin. The Christian editor added some introductory and closing chapters in which reference is made to Christ, but the original Jewish composition was not changed in any important respect. This book was not included in Septuagint manuscripts, and so the Greek text has been lost. The most important witness to the original text is the Latin version, which was included in medieval manuscripts of the Vulgate. The book consists mostly of dialogues between Ezra and angels sent to him to answer his urgent theological questions about the problem of evil, and in particular the failures and afflictions of Israel. All of this is presented as if written long before by Ezra and hidden away. The book was obviously written as an encouragement to the Jews, who had recently suffered the destruction of Jerusalem (A.D. 70). It also includes some symbolical prophecies concerning the Roman empire, in which Rome is figured as a three-headed eagle that oppresses the world and is finally destroyed by a roaring lion (a figure of the Messiah). There is a fantastic story of how the Hebrew Scriptures were all destroyed in the Babylonian exile and then perfectly restored by the miraculous inspiration of Ezra as he dictated all of the books to five scribes over a period of forty days. Along with the canonical books, Ezra dictates 70 secret books that are to be reserved for the wise. Second Esdras is presented as being one of these secret books. Martin Luther omitted First and Second Esdras from the Apocrypha of his German Bible in 1534, and both books were also rejected by the Roman Catholics at the Council of Trent in 1546. Nevertheless, they were included in the Apocrypha of the King James version.

Tobit. This is a didactic and romantic tale written in Aramaic probably around 200 B.C., and afterwards translated into Greek. Fragments of the Aramaic text were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. The story is of a Jewish family taken to Nineveh during the Babylonian captivity. Tobit, the blind father, sends his son Tobias on a journey to collect a debt. On his way Tobias is led by an angel in disguise (Raphael) to the house of a virgin who had been married seven times, but whose husbands were all slain by a demon on their wedding night. Tobias marries the girl and drives away the demon by burning the heart of a certain fish in the bedroom, and with the help of Raphael. He returns home with the money and his bride, and then heals his father's eyes with the fish's gall. The story is sprinkled with pious observations and exhortations, and concludes with Tobias' departure from Nineveh, which, after the natural death of Tobit, is destroyed in judgment.

Judith. Written in Hebrew about 150 B.C., and soon translated into Greek. The Hebrew text is lost. It is a story about a beautiful young widow named Judith (meaning "Jewess") who saves her city from a military siege. She goes out to the enemy commander's camp, allures him, gets him drunk, and then cuts off his head while he sleeps in his tent. She returns with his head and shows it to her people, exhorting the men to go forth and rout the enemy, which they do. Throughout this story she is presented as a woman who is very keen to observe the Law of Moses.

Additions to Esther. These consist of six long paragraphs inserted in the Septuagint version of Esther in several places, and are thought to be the work of an Egyptian Jew writing around 170 B.C. They are designed to provide the book with a more religious tone, and to make it clear that it was for the sake of their piety that the Jews were delivered from the evil designs of the Gentiles related in the canonical book. These additions were put at the end of the book by Jerome when he made his Latin translation because he accepted only the Hebrew text as canonical.

Wisdom of Solomon. Sometimes called simply Wisdom. This book is a collection of theological and devotional essays first written in Greek by an Alexandrian Jew about 100 B.C., but presented in such a way that they seem to be discourses of king Solomon. The author compares Jewish religion with Greek philosophy, and shows faith to be the highest form of wisdom. The book is edifying and worthy of much respect. It has often been quoted by Christian writers in the past.

Ecclesiasticus, originally called The Wisdom of Jesus son of Sirach, or simply Sirach. Written first in Hebrew about 200 B.C. by a wisdom teacher named Joshua Ben Sirach, and translated into Greek by his grandson around 135 B.C. The book consists mainly of proverbs and other wise sayings about common life, strung together in short discourses or organized in topical sections. It also contains longer discourses about religious life and faith, which are well worth reading. It came to be called Ecclesiasticus (the "churchly" book) because in early times it was often read in church services, being the most highly regarded of the apocryphal books. This book should not be confused with the canonical book of Ecclesiastes.
Baruch. A composite book of five chapters, in which there are exhortations against association with idolatry, celebration of the Law as God's "wisdom," and encouragements and promises to faithful Jews, collected together and edited probably about 150 B.C. The material is presented as if by Baruch, the disciple of Jeremiah, during the time of the Babylonian exile.

Epistle of Jeremiah. Often printed as chapter 6 of Baruch, this short work purports to be a letter from Jeremiah to the Jews in exile in Babylon, but this is generally regarded as an imposture, or a mere literary device used by an author writing around 200 B.C. It is essentially a short tract against pagan idolatry, and makes much use of ridicule and sarcasm.

Song of the Three Holy Children (including The Prayer of Azariah). An embellishment of the ordeal of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego recorded in the canonical book of Daniel, designed to be added after verse 23 of the third chapter. It consists of prayers and hymns of the sort which might have been offered to God by the three while in the furnace.

The Story of Susanna. A short story about how two lecherous old men tried to compel a beautiful and pious young wife, Susanna, to lie with them, and then publicly accused her of adultery when she refused. At a trial they give false testimony and she is condemned by the council of elders. But Daniel the prophet is divinely inspired to know the facts of the case, and he exposes the two men in a second trial, after which they are put to death. This story was inserted between chapters 12 and 14 in the Septuagint version of Daniel, and at the beginning of the book in Theodotion's version.

Bel and the Dragon. This is a combination of two stories which were also attached to Daniel in the Septuagint, at the end of the book. The story of Bel concerns a Babylonian idol of that name, to which Daniel refused to give an offering. When he was challenged he told the Persian king that the vain idol had no need of offerings because it could not eat anything. The king then required the priests of Bel to prove otherwise or die. The priests tried to deceive the king by entering the temple of Bel at night through a secret entrance and eating the food-offerings themselves, but they were exposed by Daniel, who had spread ashes on the temple floor, revealing their footprints. The priests of Bel were then slain and their temple destroyed. In the story of the Dragon Daniel refuses to worship an actual living "dragon," and accepts a challenge to slay the dragon without sword or staff. He feeds the dragon a concoction of pitch, fat, and hair, which causes it to burst open and die. Daniel's enemies then cause him to be thrown into the lion's den again, but the hungry lions are fed with abundant food brought from Israel by the prophet Habakkuk, who is transported to Babylon with the food by angels. Both of these stories were evidently written around 150-100 B.C.

The Prayer of Manasseh. This is a psalm of repentance, composed to suit the situation of Manasseh, the king of Judah who was carried captive to Babylon (see 2 Chronicles 33:11-13, where the psalm was probably intended for insertion in the Septuagint). This book was rejected by the Roman Catholics at the Council of Trent in 1546.

First Maccabees. This book was written in Hebrew about 100 B.C., and soon afterwards translated into Greek. The Hebrew text was seen by Jerome, but is now lost. It is a sober but stirring historical account of Jewish history from 175 B.C. to 135 B.C., during which time the Jews of Palestine fought for and gained national independence from their Greek overlords. It is highly regarded by historians as a source of accurate information.
Second Maccabees. This is not a sequel to First Maccabees, but a different account of many of the same events related in that book down to 161 B.C., combined with many fanciful and legendary additions. The writer's interests are religious rather than historical, and he uses the history as a backdrop for advancing religious ideas current among the Jews of Alexandria during the first century B.C. It is generally thought to be later than First Maccabees, but earlier than A.D. 70. Some statements in this book support the Roman Catholic teachings on purgatory, prayers for the dead, and the intercessory work of glorified "saints."

Overview: Atonement & Violence (ed. John Sanders)

2010-04-27T22:08:00.013-04:00

Four contributors combine to form a worthy addition to the "atonement conversation." The format is similar to the viewpoints books published by Zondervan, in which one author presents his view and the others follow with a critique.

On the table for discussion is the question God's intention regarding the violence suffered by Jesus. The editor, John Sanders (author of The God Who Risks and No Other Name), sets the stage with a few questions: If God the Father used the cross of Christ to redeem us, did the Father intend for the Son to experience the violence he did? Is violence necessary for redemption? If the Father did not intend the cross, then does it have any significance for our salvation? Does any connection between Jesus' suffering and redemption valorize suffering? Should we understand suffering as a means to reconciliation with God or as a consequence of our reconciliation?

J. Denny Weaver presents what he calls, "Narrative Christus Victor." He explains, "Each atonement image attempts to explain what the death of Jesus accomplished, or in popular language, to explain 'why Jesus died for us.' ... Their distinct approaches appear clearly when we visualize the object or the 'target' of the death of Jesus for each family of images" (p. 2). Christus Victor targets the Devil, Satisfaction targets the offended honor of God, Penal Substitution targets the broken Law of God, and Moral Influence targets alienated humanity. Helpfully, he notes that "Anselm deleted the devil from the salvation equation" (p. 4). Weaver probes deeper by asking: "Who or what needs the death of Jesus?" (p. 4) and "Who arranges for or is responsible for the death of Jesus? ... Who ultimately killed Jesus?" (p. 5). He offers some challenges to the exalted status received by substitutionary models in contemporary evangelicalism. Then he offers his view of atonement: "Jesus did suffer and die a violent death, but the violence was neither God's nor God directed. Suffering and dying were not the purpose or goal of Jesus' mission. Death resulted when Jesus faithfully carried out his life-bringing and life-affirming mission to make the rule of God present and visible. Since saving his life would have meant abandoning his mission, his death was necessary in the sense that faithfulness required that he go through death" (p. 25). He concludes, "I am arguing that his death was not willed or needed by God. His death did not pay off or satisfy anything. On the contrary, it was a product of the forces of evil that opposed Jesus and opposed the reign of God. The real saving act of and in and with Jesus is his resurrection" (p. 26).

On Weaver's heels comes the essay by Hans Boersma. He advocates a view he dubs the "Modified Reformed View." Before he expounds his own ideas, he offers a critique of some portrayals from within his own reformed group. "It seems to me," he concedes, "that Calvinist covenant theology has tended to view our relationship with God too exclusively through a legal grid....There is no denying that there is a tendency here toward an economic exchange model of atonement ... [which] minimized the historical link between Christ and Israel. The transaction between Christ and the elect could have taken [50] place at any time and at any place" (pp. 49-50). Regarding the recent tendency to refer to the action on the cross as "divine child abuse," he writes, "The accusations of divine child abuse overlook the mystery of the incarnation" (p. 51). Weaver addressed such a response in his essay by saying, "[I]t is not possible for God exercise violence while Jesus is only nonviolent, and if Jesus is nonviolent, then the Godhead is also nonviolent" (p. 16). The format of the book really shines on this point because Boersma critiqued Weaver's premise, saying, "[I]f Jesus is truly one with the Father - of the same substance with the Father - then what happens on the cross is not a transaction between two individuals, one of whom is abusing the other" (p. 35)! Boersma concludes his assault on the nonviolent view by saying, "[T]hey need to come to grips with the biblical witness that repeatedly associates God with violence, including violence on the cross" (p. 53). Boersma then begins to explain his own view which is based on recapitulation (in the line of Irenaeus) and reconstitution (in the line of N.T. Wright). He clarifies, "When we say that Christ recapitulated Israel and Adam, we have not yet said in which way Christ recapitulated them. This is where the three atonement models come in. It is as the representative of Israel and Adam that Christ instructs us and models for us the love of God (moral influence). It is as the representative of Israel and Adam that Christ suffers God's judgment on evil and bears that suffering of the curse of the Law (penal substitution). It is as the representative of Israel and Adam that Christ fights the powers of evil, expels demons, withstands satanic temptation to the point of death, and rises victorious from the grace (Christus Victor)" (p. 55). In response to the question Why doesn't God simply forgive? Boersma says, "[P]unishment can serve different goals: prevention, rehabilitation, deterrence, retribution, or some combination of these four....[59] Abolishing all external punishment eliminates a much-needed incentive for the perpetrator to stop the cycle of victimization and so removes the perpetrator's as well as the victim's hope for peace and justice" (pp. 58-59). In other words, punishment has purpose. He concludes, "Exilic punishment (and Christ's suffering on the cross), ... is a form of restorative justice that is meant for the restoration of the people [61] of God" (pp. 60-61).

[Note: Regarding the concept of divine judgment, Weaver says, "Judgment, a violent judgment, need not be understood as the point in divine time when God stops being patient and moves to punish. Rather judgment, violent judgment, is what evil does to itself. Biblical proclamations of divine judgment are really declarations of what evildoers will bring or have brought on themselves if they continue in their evil ways. A human analogy is the professor who warns a student that he will fail the course if he refuses to do the required assignments. The student who does not do the work may complain that a hostile and judgmental professor failed him but in truth the student failed himself" (p. 77).

On the same concept, Thomas Finger (whose essay comes next) writes, "I find that God frequently judges sinners by abandoning them, or handing them over, to the gods they choose. I also notice, surprisingly, that Scripture very often ascribes these acts not only to God, but also to those death-dealing forces. For example, Yahweh is frequently said to judge Judah by sending her into Babylonian exile. But this same judgment is also ascribed quite often to the Babylonians. [New Paragraph] This judgment, accordingly, must be called God's judgment on Judah's injustice, unfaithfulness, and idolatry. Yet God is only the remote, or [39] indirect, cause of the actual events involved. The active, direct cause is the Babylonian army. Since this pattern appears very frequently in Scripture, I conceptualize it by distinguishing indirect from direct judgment - and consequently, indirect from direct use of violence. I propose that theology can attribute the former to God (contra Weaver), but not the latter (contra Boersma)" (pp. 38-39).]

Thomas Finger, the next contributor, presents a view called "Christus Victor as Nonviolent Atonement." In his scheme, Adam and Eve's disobedience to God in the Garden of Eden also constituted obedience to another lord, namely the serpent. He says, "By submitting to this lord, Eve, Adam, and their descendants not only turned away from God, they also subjected themselves to the serpent's dominion. This finally resulted in death - but not simply because God decreed it as a legal penalty for disobedience. Submission to the serpent intrinsically led toward death because it cut people off from God, life's source" (p. 91). Next, Finger analyzes sin. "Sin," he says, "is not only a human activity and disposition; it is chiefly bondage to sin, a suprahuman, quasi-personal power. Sin is a force that strives to snatch creatures away from God's order and subject them to its own rule, but thereby departs from life's source and, along with its captives, inevitably surges toward death. Like Boersma before him, Finger calls Irenaeus and N.T. Wright into his service; but he does so in slightly different ways. He writes, "According to Irenaeus, our childlike first parents did not so much reject a well-understood command directly as turn aside from it: by following another voice, taking another path....[New Paragraph] [This] entails that humans are both responsible for, and victims of, sin....We suffer not only the direct consequences of our own acts, but also the assaults of these collective forces. Since these are directed toward domination and death, ever-widening injustice and violence spread in their wake. God holds us responsible for our allegiance to these lords. Yet the sufferings they inflict are often excessively cruel and arouse God's compassion" (p. 93). Also, he notes that "God normally judges sin indirectly: by handing people over to the lords they choose. This implies, on one level, that these lords execute God's judgments. In this sense, these powers function as God's servants. But on a deeper level they are God's enemies, whom God works to destroy. Said otherwise: God, on one level, allows other powers to punish sin, ultimately with eternal death. Yet on a deeper level God works to save those under their judgment" (p. 94). Finger points the way between a substitutionary model, which he says focuses on Jesus' death; and a moral influence model, which he says focuses on Jesus' life. His depiction of Christus Victor incorporates two dimensions: transformative and conflictive. Employing Irenaeus' pattern of recapitulation, he says, "Jesus walked the path that God originally set before Adam and Eve....Unlike our first parents, Jesus, the second Adam, continually obeyed God's commands. As he responded to the Spirit's guidance, his humanity was increasingly divinized [a concept he explained earlier as the "transformation of our thoroughly human nature by divine energies" (p. 93)]. This process culminated with Jesus' bodily resurrection, through which he was fully divinized and became the first human to be entirely at-oned with God - the first fruits of many to follow" (p. 95). Transformation happens, he insists, through "participation with [Jesus], his Father, and his Spirit chiefly through incorporation into his body, the church. The Holy Spirit returns to the depths of the human heart, dispelling sin's greedy, fearful, violent inward rule" (p. 96). Continuing the theme of recapitulation, he says, "To recapitulate the human task, Jesus had to not only obey God but also resist the forces of evil as Adam and Eve had not, to avoid coming under their dominion....[97] By continually resisting these powers and their recommended behaviors, Jesus remained under God's dominion. Rather than succumbing to another lord and being taken over by its violent greed to dominate others and their belongings, Jesus served others and was increasingly divinized by God's Spirit. At the Gospel's heart, then, we find a conflict over the basic means of bringing atonement: by war and domination, or by servanthood and the way of peace" (pp. 96-97). Regarding the death of Jesus, he writes, "Were Jesus to share our fate, including the punishment we deserve, the death penalty would be executed, directly, by the powers ruling our world (by those operating, in Jesus' case, through religion and the violent state). Jesus bore their wrath, not his Father's, directly. To be sure, since the Father used these agents to execute justice, Jesus bore God's general judgment against sin, as we all do, indirectly" (p. 98). He sums up the benefit of his view by saying, "No longer is the Father opposed to or 'above' the Son (and the Spirit omitted). Instead, the evil powers are on one side, and God - the Father, Son, and Spirit - on the other....It is the powers, ranged over against God, who inflict the death penalty although Jesus was innocent. God does not inflict such a penalty, save in the indirect sense of allowing it to be exacted, without [100] intervening violently to prevent it, because this was an inevitable consequence of their mission of self-sacrificing love" (pp. 99-100). Of course if all that happened was a Jewish prophet crucified on a Roman cross, then there would have been nothing to proclaim. But there was resurrection: God's no the verdict of the powers and God's yes (and vindication) to Jesus. Because of that, Finger concludes, "God the Father, who had refrained from violent intervention in his Son's death, now intervened through his resurrecting Spirit to bring justice. Christ was now 'Victor' over the powers, judging them at the apex of their violent drive to subject all creatures to their dominion..." (p. 102). This matters because "[T]he resurrection 'verdict' consisted, above all, in the return of the Spirit of life, whom humankind since Adam had rejected, with strength to enliven the dead....Christ, through his Spirit, now breaks repeatedly into Satan's forfeited kingdom, reuniting humans and other creatures with God and one another" (p. 103). Finally, regarding the language of "substitution," Finger says, "This term could perhaps describe Jesus' work in the sense that he attained something for us that we could not attain for ourselves on which we can rely instead of our own inadequacies....[105] Jesus' death, then, did something for us, and also before us and outside of us, which he gives to us - as substitutionary theory insists. Yet we receive that benefit chiefly by participation in Christ - when the risen Jesus shares it with us, incorporates us into it, better, into himself, with his Father through his Spirit. Nevertheless, participation language, by itself, can blur distinctions between participants. It can blur the otherness of Jesus and his work, and thereby its character as gift, as grace. Substitutionary concepts can accent a contrasting objectivity. I do not find terms such as transfer of payment or legal right by themselves well suited to express atonement's participatory dynamism. Yet terms like these appear in Scripture. They have been used, and still can be used, in a secondary sense in Christus Victor" (pp. 104-105).

The final essay is by T. Scott Daniels. He presents a view derived from the sociological/anthropological/theological work of Rene Girard. This view is variation on the theories of mimetic rivalry and scapegoating. S. Mark Heim is another contemporary proponent of this view. I have looked into it, but remain unconvinced of its validity as a substantive theory of the atonement claimed by the New Testament.

Searching for Blue Oceans

2010-04-27T15:51:00.005-04:00

In their book, Blue Ocean Strategy, W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne align their business saavy with water colors.

In their scheme, Red Oceans are all the industries in existence today—the known market space. In the red oceans, industry boundaries are defined and accepted, and the competitive rules of the game are known. Here companies try to outperform their rivals to grab a greater share of product or service demand. As the market space gets crowded, prospects for profits and growth are reduced. Products become commodities or niche, and cutthroat competition turns the ocean bloody. Hence, the term red oceans.

Blue Oceans, in contrast, denote all the industries not in existence today—the unknown market space, untainted by competition. In blue oceans, demand is created rather than fought over. There is ample opportunity for growth that is both profitable and rapid. In blue oceans, competition is irrelevant because the rules of the game are waiting to be set. Blue ocean is an analogy to describe the wider, deeper potential of market space that is not yet explored.

The cornerstone of Blue Ocean Strategy is 'Value Innovation'. A blue ocean is created when a company achieves value innovation that creates value simultaneously for both the buyer and the company. The innovation (in product, service, or delivery) must raise and create value for the market, while simultaneously reducing or eliminating features or services that are less valued by the current or future market.

To establish a new value curve, they advocate a Framework consisting of four questions (and their corresponding actions) in particular:
1. ELIMINATE: Which factors that the industry takes for granted should be eliminated?
2. REDUCE: Which factors should be reduced well below industry standards?
3. RAISE: Which factors should be raised well above the industry's standard?
4. CREATE: Which factors should be created that the industry has never offered?

Transition Words

2010-04-27T10:24:00.000-04:00

Different categories of transitional words (from http://educationalwriting.net/resource_center/Essays/Popular/5_Paragraph_Essay.htm):

Time
Afterward, before, at last, currently, during, earlier, immediately, later, meanwhile, recently, then, simultaneously.

Cause and Effect
Accordingly, consequently, hence, so, therefore, thus

Conclusion
Finally, in brief, in conclusion, in the end, on the whole, thus, to conclude, to summarize.

Similarity
In the same way, also, just as ... so, likewise, similarly

Addition
Moreover, furthermore, also, in addition, even more, next, further, last, besides, and, or.

Place
Adjacent to, here, there, wherever, neighboring, nearby, opposite to, above, below

Illustration
As an illustration, to illustrate, to demonstrate, for example, specifically, for instance

Effect
Therefore, consequently, hence, accordingly, as a result

Concession
Granted, to be sure, of course, it is true

Overview: You Can Be Everything God Wants You To Be (Max Lucado)

2010-04-21T22:49:00.000-04:00

Max Lucado has written more books than most people have read in their lifetime! This book, You Can Be Everything God Wants You to Be, is not new material. It is a repackaged, condensed edition of his earlier title, The Cure for the Common Life. In his typical fashion, Lucado (the long-time pastor of Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, TX) weaves Scripture, stories, and common sense into a package that is easy and uplifting to read.

He calls the reader across the sacred/secular divide by pointing out, "Heaven's calendar has seven Sundays a week. God sanctifies each day. He conducts holy business at all hours and in all places" (p. 23).

He assists the reader in discerning their own "sweet spot," which he places in the center position of a Venn Diagram consisting of "My Everyday Life," "My Strengths," and "God's Glory."

He inspires the reader to live the life that they alone can live. He says, "You can't be your hero, your parent, or your big brother.... You can only be you. All you have to give is what you've given to give. Concentrate on who you are and what you have" (p. 75).

There's a sticker on the cover of the book that says, "Perfect Gift for the Graduate." I agree with that assessment!

disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book by Thomas Nelson publishers in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Overview: How Should A Christian Live (Devotional/Journal book)

2010-04-09T14:40:00.001-04:00

I work with high school students at my local church, so I am always looking for material that will help them understand and embody the Christian message. There are plenty of books on the market in this category, but with the students in mind I gave this book a try.

How Should a Christian Live is part of a series of titles meant to help young people explore the Bible with each book moving through a few books of the New Testament. This book covers 1 Corinthians through Philemon.

First of all, I like the design. It is contemporary and attention-getting without being overbearing. Also it seems to appeal well to both guys and girls, which is helpful if you plan on offering it to students at your church.

Each of the twelve seesions in the book are broken into five sections:
1) Get It, 2) Grab It, 3) Hold It, 4) Live It, 5) Give It.

While I do think that each of those parts deserves its alotted space, I'm not sure that most students will cover that many pages in a single sitting - which I'm sure was the intent. If you could imagine a continuum showing length, The One-Minute Bible for Students would on the short side, while this book would be on the long side. Ideally there would be something in the middle.

The two features that set this book apart are the audio version of the Bible chapters which are covered by the material (included on an mp3 cd) and the interactive exercises used throughout each of the sessions. The cd features the voices of Jordin Sparks, Sean Astin, Emily Osment, and other C-List celebrities; and the exercises vary from crossword puzzles to word searches with three being used in each session (all the answers are included in the back of the book). I think the combination of those two features will help a sutdent's ability recall what he or she has read.

My conclusion is that the information is too shallow for highschoolers (grades 9-12), but just about right for kids in middle school (grades 6-8). Maybe that is Thomas Nelson Publisher's target market for this book. If so, I say they hit their mark.

disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Resurrection: The Great Reversal

2010-04-04T12:58:00.001-04:00

There is a teaching in Judaism and Christianity that God will cause the dead to raise and live again on the earth. The event referred to in that teaching is called “resurrection.”

This is different from almost every other religion in the world. For instance, most Eastern Religions (originating in India, China, and Japan) like Taoism, Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, etc. teach that your soul transmigrates (reincarnates) into another form, animal or human, based on the Karma you built up in the previous life. The better your Karma, the higher up the chain you move. The higher up the chain you are, the better your opportunity to achieve nirvana. Nirvana is the event in which a person’s individuality is snuffed out, like a candle, and they are free from the temptations of the world because they are no longer conscious of themselves or anything else. They are melted, as it were, into what’s referred to as the “Luminous Mind.”

This thinking is not reserved to tribal people in remote villages or Tibetan Monks in Asian Monasteries, it’s gained a popular following in the United States today due to the teachings of Wayne Dyer – the bald-headed guy on PBS – and a book that Oprah recommends called A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle. But nirvana is obviously not resurrection.

In an effort to bring the two teachings closer together, there are some teachings that run down the middle. For instance, the ancient Greeks taught that we experience the final destination as individuals, but still maintained that it is a non-physical (spiritual) environment rather than a physical one. Basically they taught that people’s final destination is a bodiless existence that is far-removed from earth. Strangely enough, many Christians have followed that line of thinking more than the teaching of their own Scriptures. In their book Resurrection: The Power of God for Christians and Jews, Kevin Madigan and Jon Levenson point out, “Many people think that ‘resurrection’ is just an old-fashioned religious word for the survival of our souls after inevitable deaths of our bodies” (Kevin Madigan and Jon Levenson, Resurrection, Kindle version, location 57). They continue, “[R]esurrection envisions the return of the whole person, body and soul together, not simply the continuing survival of his or her ‘spiritual’ dimension” (italics theirs) (Ibid., location 59).

This is a critical distinction and you must know what you’re talking about. If you say you believe that Jesus rose from the dead, and if you say you believe that resurrection will happen, in similar manner, for all those who have since died, then you are, at the same time, saying that everyone is wrong who says those things didn’t and won’t happen.

The teaching of resurrection morphed out of the teaching of the restoration of Israel. Israel was in a bad situation and restoration was the hope of Jesus’ Jewish contemporaries. It involved a belief that the great prophetic promises of God would finally happen. They desired forgiveness of sins (which were the ultimate cause of their situation), their re-establishment as the people of God, the overthrow of the political powers that were oppressing them, and the glory of God to extend throughout the entire creation.

Alongside that hope of restoration, arose the belief of resurrection. Because the God of Israel was the Creator who acted with mercy and justice, it was unthinkable that those who had died in the process of bringing that newly restored world into being should be left out of the blessings when it eventually happened for the nation and the whole world.

But resurrection wouldn’t happen to individuals at different times, as if each person would be resurrected shortly after they died. N. T. Wright, leading scholar on the truth of the resurrection, insists, “the belief … was always focused on a general resurrection at the end of the present age and the start of the age to come” (N. T. Wright, The New Testament and the People of God, 334).

So resurrection was a teaching that held together four beliefs:

First, God is faithful to his promises.

Second, the present conditions are not what God intends.

Third, God will act to decisively and finally make things right. In other words, the present age, marked by evil will end, and the new age, called The Kingdom of God, will arrive.
And fourth, God will bring his faithful people into the celebration of the new age through bodily resurrection.

That’s the point of a passage like Isaiah 26:19 which claims of God’s people, “Your dead will live; their bodies will rise. You who dwell in the dust [of death], wake up and shout for joy. Your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead” (NIV). Or consider Daniel 12:2-3, “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. [v. 3] Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever” (NIV).

The Messiah was thought to be the one who was to spark and fan these things into flame. Jesus talked and acted as if he were the Messiah. But there was a catch.

“The Messiah was supposed to fight God’s victorious battle against the wicked pagans; to rebuild or cleanse the Temple; and to bring God’s justice to the world. Jesus, it appeared, had done none of these things. He had suffered the typical injustice of the world; he had mounted a strange and apparently ineffectual demonstration in the Temple; and he had died at the hands of the pagans rather than defeating them gloriously in battle. No [person] could have possibly imagine, after his crucifixion, that Jesus of Nazareth was indeed the Messiah” (N. T. Wright, Surprised By Hope, 47-48).

This is plainly seen in the attitude of the travelers on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24:21. Speaking of Jesus they say, “We had hoped that he was the one to redeem [restore] Israel.” The obvious undertone is that he couldn’t have been the one to do that, the Messiah, because he was killed. A crucified Jewish prophet on a wooden Roman cross means that Rome, not God, had the power. Jesus looked like nothing more than a failed Messiah, no different from the hundreds of failed Messiahs who had gone before him.

But then three days and three words changed all that. Some of his followers went to his tomb on Sunday morning and ran back the others with the report: “He is risen!”

That is what makes the resurrection the great reversal. Things seemed the same, but things are not what they seem.

“The large package of heaven-sent renewal [restoration] expected by many Jews, including the general resurrection, had not occurred. Pilate, Caiaphas, and Herod were still ruling. Injustice, misery, oppression, and death were still daily features of life for Jews and everyone else. … ‘[T]he resurrection’ expected by Jesus’ contemporaries had obviously not occurred.

And yet … the early Christians really did believe that they were living in the ‘age to come’ for which Israel had longed, the time of forgiveness of sins, the gift of the Spirit, when the Gentiles would be brought in to worship the one God of Israel. The ‘present age’ was still continuing, but the ‘age to come’ had been inaugurated [begun]” (N. T. Wright in The Two Views of Jesus, 117).

“The early Christians, in other words, affirmed not only that ‘the resurrection,’ the great hope of Israel, had happened, but that it had happened in a way that nobody had imagined (a single human being raised within the middle of ongoing history [rather than everybody at the end of it])” (Ibid., 118).

Because the new age of God’s Kingdom has broken though in the middle of the present age, we have a job to do. The longest explanation of Jesus’ resurrection is recorded in 1 Corinthians 15. Throughout the whole chapter, Paul is saying Jesus was raised from the dead. He appeared to many people. He appeared to me. How can some of you say he wasn’t raised from the dead? He was. He is seated on the throne of Heaven bringing the world into proper order. Those who have died between Jesus’ resurrection and the time when all things are made new will themselves be made new. And after all that, he concludes by saying, “Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV).

What is that work?

Being an agent for Christ to cause the people around you to turn from rebellion and be reconciled to God. In Paul’s second letter to the people in Corinth he explains, “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. [v. 20] We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God” (2 Corinthians 5:19-20 NIV).

This is important because all who are reconciled to God will one day share in the glory of resurrection. Their destiny is life forever on the earth that has had a makeover so that death has been defeated and God is all in all.

Overview: John Bunyan (Kevin Belmonte)

2010-03-26T21:45:00.002-04:00

After becoming a Christian, I had Bunyan's most enduring book, The Pilgrim's Progress, placed in my hands with a hearty recommendation. I read it and have since passed it along to others to do the same. But all the while I never delved into the life of the author of that immortal tale. Sure I had heard some bits and pieces scattered about in various sermons from time to time. Bunyan was known as a "dissenter," he was a "tinker," and he was jailed for several years. But there was nothing more concrete than that.

Then came my encounter with the John Bunyan biography written by Kevin Belmonte (part of the Christian Encounters series published by Thomas Nelson). The book can be read in a weekend (168 pages), but the impact of Bunyan's life story is tremendous. Faced with threats and pressure, he did not take the easy way out. Instead, he honored God by remaining true to his calling and convictions.

The book moves at a quick pace (averaging 6 pages per chapter) and it's peppered with quotations from various historians, writers such as C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton, some of Bunyan's contemporaries, and even from Bunyan himself. What were the experiences that shaped the man who would one day write The Pilgrim's Progress from the Bedford county gaol? How was he educated? What's a tinker? What happened once he was released from jail? The answers to all these questions and many more can be found in this worthy biography.

The most striking quote, in my estimation, was one made by a visitor to the prison. The visitor wrote, "I surveyed [Bunyan's] library, the least and yet the best that ever I saw, consisting only of two books - a Bible and [Foxe's] Book of Martyrs" (p. 101).

Read this book and find yourself strengthened and inspired by the life story of John Bunyan - a man who exhibited persistent endurance and wielded a pen with as much skill as any the world has ever known.

disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Pastors with Depression

2010-03-03T22:57:00.000-05:00

"Paul used three words interchangeably to refer to the office of pastor. Poimen, or 'pastor,' denotes shepherding a flock. Hence pastors are to feed, protect, and nurture a congregation. The word translated 'bishop' or 'overseer' is episcopos. The pastor is the leader of the church. Jesus is the sovereign head, but the pastor is [326] the human leader. Finally, a pastor is a presbuteros, an 'elder,' or a mature example to the flock" (Introduction to Evangelism, Alvin Reid, 325-326).

The "perfect pastor" is described (sarcastically) by R.G. Puckett:
"He preaches exactly 20 minutes and then sits down. He condemns sin but never hurts anyone's feelings. He works from 8 A.M. to 10 P.M. in every type of work from preaching to custodial service.

He makes $60 per week, wears good clothes, buys good books regularly, has a nice family, drives a good car and gives $30 per week to the church. He also stands ready to contribute to every good work that comes along.

He is 26 years old and has been preaching for 30 years. He is tall and short, thin and heavy-set, handsome. He has one brown eye and one blue; hair parted in the middle, left side dark and straight; the right, brown and wavy.

He has a burning desire to work with teenagers and spends all his time with older folks. He spends all his time with a straight face because he has a sense of humor that keeps him seriously dedicated to his work.

He makes 15 calls a day on church members, spends all his time evangelizing the unchurched, and is never out of the office" ("The Perfect Pastor," in Biblical Recorder, February 1, 1997).

In The 21st Century Pastor, David Fisher says, "Being a pastor today is more difficult than anytime in memory. ... [T]he majority of American ministers are suffering from burnout. ... Why is it that so many of us begin with such high hopes and dreams and end up tired and discouraged?

Psychiatrist Louis McBurney reports that low self-esteem is the number-one problem pastors face. Why? We [they] are in a high-demand, low-stroke profession in a culture that does not value our product or our work. We labor among people with unrealistic expectations, and deep inside we expect far more from ourselves and the church. It's no wonder that McBurney's study identified depression as the second most identified pastoral problem" (pp. 7-9).

Archibald Hart adds, "Contrary to what many laypersons believe, depression is a major occupational hazard for ministers. For many ministers, surviving the ministry is a matter of surviving depression. Mostly the depression is not a positive experience. It robs the minister of power and effectiveness and destroys the joy of service.

It is impossible for anyone who has never been a minister to understand the loneliness, despair, and emotional pain that a large number of ministers must bear. Not a few leave the ministry altogether because of the debilitation of depression. Others exist in their pastorates in an unhappy, dissatisfied, and disillusioned state rather than leave their churches or change vocations" (Coping with Depression in Ministry and Other Helping Professions, 12).

At the same time, we can't act as if church leadership should simply be a nice career option with good benefits - regular pay and people stroking your ego. Brian McLaren notes, "God's leaders have always faced criticism, threats, misunderstanding, and unfair treatment - when they weren't facing nails, whips, knives, and clubs. There is no way around it: Church leadership has always been less of a career than a calling. ... [120] Laity and clergy will have to cooperate to restore a sense of value and significance to the church. When ministry is just a professional career for the clergy and church is just another association or club, when huge arguments arise over petty trivialities and huge denial arises over major issues, the church hardly seems worth sacrificing for. The root of our challenge is to see the church as a life-and-death matter for individuals and for our world - as something truly worth the suffering invested to save it and lead it and love it" (Reinventing Your Church, 119-120).

For that reason, McLaren, points out that in the future "[Church] Leadership will have to become less damaging personally" (Reinventing Your Church, [the new edition of this book is called Church on the Other Side], 117). And we respond: yes please.

Overview: Saint Patrick (Jonathan Rogers)

2010-02-26T20:52:00.000-05:00

I was first inspired through biography 10 years ago when I was given a thin book about Jonathan Edwards. Since that time I have always found it inspiring to read the condensed biographic versions of the lives of those who championed the cause of Christ. For that reason I was excited and intrigued that Thomas Nelson Publishers had released a new series of Christian biographies called "Christian Encounters."

The first title of the series that caught my eye was the volume on Saint Patrick by Jonathan Rogers. With the recent rise in the popularity of Celtic-style Christian practices (with the exception of running nude into icy cold waters of the ocean), I wanted to get a good overview on the life of the most celebrated Celtic missionary, so the short (100 page) biography on Saint Patrick seemed a good place to start.

There has developed around this figure, who commands his own day in the United States (March 17), a great deal of folk lore - so much, in fact, that it's hard to separate fact from fiction. The author acknowledges that up front. He also informs the reader that there are two primary documents which are thought to be written by Saint Patrick that yield all the historical insights that are constructed about his life. When it's all said and done, we can conclude with some degree of confidence that Saint Patrick was raised in Britain, kidnapped and sold into slavery by Irish pirates, escaped, and sensed God's call to return to the Irish people (barbarians at the time) with the message of hope and love. He faced immense persecution from the Irish as well those from his own land, but endured through it all, leaving the world a better place for having lived a life of sacrifice in the service of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.

disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Revelation: for the majority or the minority?

2010-02-19T21:53:00.000-05:00

"If Revelation is a resistance document, its significance will become clear only to those who are engaged in resistance. It is no coincidence that the most powerful modern readings of Revelation have come from interpreters in socially marginalized positions who are seeking to call the church to countercultural resistance movements … Something very strange happens when this text is appropriated by readers in a comfortable, powerful, majority community: it becomes a gold mine for paranoid fantasies and for those who want to preach revenge and destruction” (The Moral Vision of the New Testament, Richard Hays, 183).

Overview: 66 Love Letters (Larry Crabb)

2010-02-18T21:09:00.004-05:00

Larry Crabb, renowned Christian psychologist and best-selling author, has written a book with which he hopes to alleviate a growing problem that he sees in the church today.

What's the problem?
Lack of biblical comprehension. He writes, "Most Christians don't know the Bible well" (p. xix).

What's the cause?
Fragmented reading regimens. He writes, "It is not a good idea to feel inspired and be instructed by a couple of good Bible lessons and assume we know what need to join the story of God" (p. xx).

What's the solution offered in this book?
The full picture. He writes, "My purpose in writing this book is to help you see ... the picture that comes into focus when all sixty-six pieces of the biblical jigsaw puzzle are fitted together" (p. xx).

Does he succeed?
Mostly yes. The book consists of imaginary conversations between Crabb and God that revolve around the point of the Bible. The chapters are clear and succinct, not too long and not too short to be read comfortably in one sitting. Even so, Crabb encourages readers not to rush ahead, but instead to ponder each chapter slowly and throughly. While reading, I found myself thinking, "This would be a great text for small group discussion." There's also a free study guide which goes along with the book available from Crabb's website (www.newwayministries.org) which can certainly help the book to be used for such a purpose.

The best part?
Each of the 66 books of the canonical Bible are given a 2-3 sentence summary. That part alone is worth the price of the book.

Note:
His starting point tips his conservative theological bias, in that he views the texts that make up the Bible as "Love Letters" from God to you (whoever/wherever/whenever you may be). For instance, he asks, "God, why did You write Genesis? ... God, why did You write Revelation? Come to think of it, why did You write each of the sixty-six books" (p. xvi)?

disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book by Thomas Nelson in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Revelation as Prophecy

2010-02-16T00:27:00.001-05:00

"Prophecy is not future telling, but articulating moral truth. The prophets diagnose the present and point the way to a just solution" (God's Politics, Jim Wallis, 72).

"'Twenty-eight percent of the Bible is prophecy,' Tim LaHaye likes to tell his readers. But what does prophecy mean?

... [89] Prophecy does not mean prediction of the future.

... When Revelation calls itself a prophecy it is situating its message in line with other biblical prophets like Jeremiah and Isaiah. Those prophets' task was to speak God's word - a word of salvation and justice for God's people and for the world. Their task was to set God's vision before the people so they could see it and live it. Prophets condemn injustice and greed; they advocate for the poor, for widows, and orphans.

When biblical prophets preached destruction, the purpose of their threats was almost always to warn of the consequences of destructive behavior, not to furnish play-by-play information about events in the future. Their goal was to wake people up and turn people's hearts to God and his vision of justice and generosity for [90] the world.

As Jewish theologian Yehezkel Landau [said], biblical prophecy is not a foretelling of inevitable doom or destruction. Rather, it is a timely warning combined with a promise.' In the Bible, the prophetic outcome is 'always conditional,' Landau explains, 'for it is dependent on human behavior in response to God's word.'

... The book of Revelation, with its predictive-sounding threats, was written to function in a way similar to Jonah's 'timely warning' to Nineveh that 'In just forty days this great city will be [91] destroyed.' While Revelation's prophetic threats sound concrete their primary purpose is to warn people. Revelation does not map out a divine script for the world's destruction. The goal of prophecy is rather to turn the world to God, to lift up a vision, so that threats of destruction will not be carried out.

... Revelation's visions of seals, trumpets, bowls, and other manifestations are meant to be a wake-up call. They unveil the urgency of God's justice and judgment by taking us on terrifying journey, all with the goals of persuading us to ally ourselves with God's vision for our world. The journeys are not intended as literal predictions of events that must happen; they are nightmarish warnings of what may happen - if we do not follow [the way of Jesus]" (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 88-91).

Revelation & A Christmas Carol

2010-02-15T23:57:00.001-05:00

"Charles Dickens wrote about an apocalyptic journey in his well-known A Christmas Carol - a morality play in which the miserly Scrooge is taken on a visionary tour of his life. A hair-raising visit from the ghost of his dead business partner, [83] Jacob Marley, gives Scrooge the first warning of what his future will be if he does not change his life. Marley drags chains made of 'cash-boxes, keys, padlocks, ledgers, deeds, and heavy purses wrought in steel.' Subsequent visitations by three spirits show Scrooge his painful past and his even more painful future. He also sees a scene that inspires hope - the warmth and love of the Cratchit house. These contrasting visions prove to be a wake-up call up for Scrooge.

Scrooge is changed by the final vision, when he sees his own lonely grave. He pleads with the Spirit of Christmas Future: Let the visions only show what 'may be,' so he can still hope to change his terrifying future.

... In the terrifying moment when he sees a vision of his own grave, Scrooge alters his life. Assured that what he sees does not have to come to pass, he commits to walking a different path. Scrooge [84] awakes to realize that he is still in bed. He has been on a visionary journey that has changed him forever.

The book of Revelation takes its readers on journeys that function in a similar way. ... John, the author of Revelation, is taken on a series of visionary journeys on behalf of his seven churches. Transpoted out into the future, he is shown contrasting visions of two cities. He sees the evil whore called 'Babylon,' whose merchants and kings lament the loss of their wealth. He hears that Babylon sits on seven hills - identifying Rome - and he hears the voice of an angel calling Christians to reject Rome and all it represents: 'come out of her, my people' (Rev. 18:4).

Finally John sees an alternative city - God's wonderful paradise-like world, descending from heaven like a bride, inviting us in. ... The urgent message is that Christians must be faithful to worshipping God and renounce Babylon/Rome in order to participate in God's holy city.

... [85] Revelation terrifies us with scenes of destruction. Over the course of its twenty-two chapters readers travel through earthquakes, oceanic plagues, and unthinkable human and natural disasters. Specific details of Revelation's sequences of seven seals, trumpets, and bowls and their calamitous plagues are part of the book's wake-up call to us. ... The visions' realism made them fearful, but not as literal prediction for the future. ... Revelation's primary purpose is life changing; it does not predict literal events. The book's goal is to exhort us to faithfulness to God by means of a new vision.

Scrooge's question to the Spirit is the right one to ask about Revelation's visions as well: 'Why show me this, if I am past all hope?' The book of Revelation - like A Christmas Carol - shows us terrifying visions precisely because there is still hope for us and for the earth. Indeed, the hope of the book of Revelation is that God's Lamb, Jesus, is already victorious and that God's people will be faithful to the Bible's vision of life. The hope is that we will follow the Lamb, renouncing all the seductions of imperial injustice and violence, so the threat of the plagues will be averted. God loves the world. God does not desire earth's destruction" (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 82-85).

Hope vs. Optimism

2010-02-11T16:38:00.001-05:00

"The reality is one of hope, not optimism. ... Despite all the evidence to the contrary, we have been taught to believe that the world is getting better and better. Industrial progress, technological innovation, and the many-sided wisdom of the Enlightenment, have produced and will produce a world in which old evils will be left behind. Try telling that to a Holocaust survivor, a Tutsi refugee, a Honduran peasant.

... Hope has to do, not with steady progress, but with a belief that the world is God's world and that God has continuing plans for it.

... [40] But the world has not yet become all that the biblical hope would indicate. ... The hope arrives in two stages. Jesus' resurrection was the prototype, the beginning and the model for the new world that is yet to be. His coming out of the tomb into a new life was the personal, close-up equivalent of the Israelites emerging from their slavery in Egypt. The hope is that God will [41] eventually do for the whole creation what he did for Jesus; God is at work in the present, by the Spirit of Jesus, to prepare the world for that great remaking, that great unveiling (that great apocalypse, in fact) of the future plan.

But that future, when it arrives, will not mean the abandonment of the present world, but rather its fulfillment. ... You don't liberate something by destroying it. ... There is a strong incentive to work, in the present, to anticipate the new world in every possible way. Those who are grasped by the vision of God's new world unveiled in Jesus' resurrection are already sharing in that newness, and are called to produce, in the present time, more and more signposts to point to this eventual and glorious future.
The central feature of the hope held out in the Bible is of course the personal presence of Jesus himself. Many Christians ... have reduced this feature of the hope to the belief [42] that one day Jesus will appear, flying downwards from the sky, perhaps riding a cloud.

... However, most of the biblical passages that are quoted in support of the idea of Jesus returning by flying downwards on a cloud are best seen as classic examples of apocalyptic language, rich biblical metaphor. The are not to be taken with wooden literalness.

Does this mean abandoning belief in the 'second coming?' Certainly not. It means taking seriously the whole biblical picture, instead of highlighting, and misinterpreting, one part of it. The problem has been, in [43] the last two centuries in particular, that certain texts have been read from within the worldview of dualistic apocalypticism, and have thus produced a less than fully biblical picture, with Jesus flying around like a spaceman and the physical world being destroyed. ... Rather, the Bible points to God's new world, where heaven and earth are fully integrated at last, and whose central feature is the personal, loving and healing presence of Jesus himself, the living embodiment of the one true God as well as the prototype of full, liberated humanity. When we talk about Jesus' 'coming,' the reality to which we point is his personal presence within God's new creation" (The Millennium Myth, N.T. Wright, 39-43).

Apocalypticism vs. Apocalyptic

2010-02-11T16:36:00.001-05:00

This post continues the previous post (Apocalyptic 201).

"I find it helpful to use the word 'apocalypticism' to denote the worldview in which certain people come to believe that their group is set apart from the rest of humanity, that it is righteous and all others are sinners, and, more particularly, that an event will soon occur which will sort things out once and for all. The sun and the moon will be darkened, literally not metaphorically; the Lord will descend from heaven and snatch the saints up in the air, literally not metaphorically; the Mount of Olives will be split in two, and rivers of fresh water will flow down to the Dead Sea, literally not metaphorically. And of course if you believe this sort of thing about yourself and your group, certain social practices follow: a tight drawing of boundaries within the group, a rigid exclusion of those outside, a carelessness or even downright [33] rejection of most concerns of ongoing society, a focus on particular styles of worship and holiness. As history both ancient and modern will show, such groups are often internally fissiparous, fragmenting into smaller groups that then reserve for one another their bitterest anathemas.

... [35] The New Testament simply doesn't support this literalistic use of apocalyptic language.

... Apocalyptic language, using cosmic language to invest historical events with their full significance, draws together the heavenly world and the earthly world; [36] 'apocalypticism' forces them apart. Apocalyptic language exploits the heaven/earth duality in order to draw attention to the heavenly significance of earthly events; apocalypticism exploits apocalytpic language to express a non-biblical dualism in which the heavenly is good and the earthly is bad.

... In the Bible [heaven and earth] are not two places, separated from each other by many miles, but two different dimensions of the total reality of the world. This is what I mean by a 'duality,' as opposed to [37] 'dualism.' ... These two God-given dimensions interlock and interact in a variety of ways, sometimes confusingly, often surprisingly. And it's particularly important to notice that heaven and earth were both created good. It isn't the case that the physical world is somehow shabby or second-rate, and the non-physical world somehow morally superior. That is a move into dualism, setting the two worlds against each other. Indeed, in the biblical story evil infected both spheres: creatures in heaven as well as on earth, we are told, rebelled against God.

... My point is this: the duality between heaven and earth is very different from the dualisms of sectarian religion. The mindset that tends towards apocalypticism normally think of the heavenly realm, or the spiritual realm, or simply the non-physical realm, as always good, and the [38] earthly, material, physical world as always bad. Hence the readiness to imagine the present physical world being blown apart in some great Armageddon, and the sublime confidence that 'we' - whichever group that might be - will be rescued from the ruin in a 'heavenly' salvation that has left earth far behind.

The question must be: how can we read apocalyptic language without collapsing into apocalypticism?" (The Millennium Myth, N.T. Wright, 32-38).

Apocalyptic 201

2010-02-11T15:31:00.001-05:00

"What is 'apocalyptic?'

It is a serious misunderstanding of the relevant ways of speaking and writing to suppose that when the Bible speaks of the sun and the moon being darkened and the stars falling from heaven, and of similar 'cosmic' events, it intends the language to be taken literally.

... I use the word [28] 'apocalyptic' itself to refer first and foremost to a way of writing, what you might a literary convention. Some writers chose means of a sometimes complex system of metaphors. 'The stars will not give their light,' wrote Isaiaih, 'the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light' (Isaiah 13:10). What was going on? Babylon was being destroyed, never to be rebuilt. In the prophet's world, that was like saying that London or New York would sink into the sea, never to rise. ... The whole point is, of course, that the world has not actually collapsed; if it had, there wouldn't be anybody around to be shocked and awed at the fate of Babylon.

... [29] Apocalyptic of this sort is a type of [30] language-game. It regularly involves vivid metaphors which enable the writer to say, and hopefully the reader to understand (Mark 13:14, in the middle of a passage most would see as 'apocalyptic,' urged 'let the reader understand,' though most still don't), the significance, within God's dimension of reality, of events that happen within our dimension, within the world of space, time and matter. To take Isaiah's stars, sun and moon literally - to suppose, that is, that he thought they really would be darknened and/or falling out of the sky is [a silly mistake]. ... [And] whichever city is referred to as 'Babylon' in Revelation 18, the one place it certainly isn't is - Babylon.

... Nobody takes all the Bible literally, and nobody takes it all metaphorically, whatever they may say; we are none of us as wooden as our slogans suggest. In order to interpret any passage, particularly any passage of apocalyptic, the way of wisdom is to go through it one step at a time, deciding what [31] is literal and what is metaphorical on the way. When Daniel says, 'I saw four beasts come up out of the sea' (Daniel 7:2), the 'beasts' and the 'sea' are metaphorical (the 'beasts' are human empires, and the 'sea' is the source of evil), but 'four' is literal. When says that 'the little horn was making war on the holy ones and prevailed against them' (7:21), the 'little horn' is metaphorical (referring to an actual human ruler), but the 'war' is literal. And so on.

But all of this, so far, is simply a matter of learning how to read texts from cultures other than our own; of recognizing other people's metaphors for what they are.

... The fantasies and speculations of which I have been speaking belong, not to 'apocolyptic' proper, but to what we may call 'apocalypticism.' This is a way of looking at the world, and a way of constructing or maintaining communities, which stir up and keep at boiling point certain types of end-of-the-world speculations [think David Koresh and the Branch Davidian cult from 1993]" (The Millennium Myth, N.T. Wright, 27-31).

Saying Farewell to the Rapture

2010-02-10T22:15:00.002-05:00

Referring to the Rapture, N.T. Wright writes, "This pseudo-theological version of Home Alone has reportedly frightened many children into some kind of (distorted) faith.

This dramatic end-time scenario is based (wrongly, as well shall see) on Paul's First Letter to the Thessalonians [chapter 4, verses 16-17].

What on earth (or in heaven) did Paul mean?

It is Paul who should be credited with creating this scenario. Jesus himself ... never predicted such an event. The gospel passages about 'the Son of Man coming on the clouds' (Mark 13:26, 14:62, for example) are about Jesus' vindication, his 'coming' to heaven from earth. The parables about a returning king or master (for example, Luke 19:11-27) were originally about God returning to Jerusalem, not about Jesus returning to earth. This, Jesus seemed to believe, was an event within space-time history, not one that would end it forever.

The Ascension of Jesus and the Second Coming are nevertheless vital Christian doctrines, and I don't deny that I believe some future event will result in the personal presence of Jesus within God's new creation. That is taught throughout the New Testament outside the Gospels. But this event won't in any way resemble the Left Behind account.

... The New Testament, building on ancient biblical prophecy, envisages that the creator God will remake heaven and earth entirely, affirming the goodness of the old creation, but overcoming its mortality and corruptibility (e.g., Romans 8:18-27; Revelation 21:1; Isaiah 65:17, 66:22). When that happens, Jesus will appear within the resulting new world (e.g., Colossians 3:4; 1 John 3:2).

Paul's description of Jesus' reappearance in 1 Thessalonians 4 is a brightly colored version of what he says in two other passages, 1 Corinthians 15:51-54 and Philippians 3:20-21: At Jesus' 'coming' or 'appearing,' those who are still alive will be 'changed' or 'transformed' so that their mortal bodies will become incorruptible, deathless. This is all that Paul intends to say in Thessalonians, but here he borrows imagery - from biblical and political sources - to enhance his message.

... First, Paul echoes the story of Moses coming down the mountain with the Torah. The trumpet sounds, a loud voice is heard, and after a long wait Moses comes to see what's been going on in his absence.

Second, he echoes Daniel 7, in which 'the people of the saints of the Most High' (that is, the 'one like a son of man') are vindicated over their pagan enemy by being raised up to sit with God in glory. This metaphor, applied to Jesus in the Gospels, is now applied to Christians who are suffering persecution.

Third, Paul conjures up images of an emperor visiting a colony or province. The citizens go out to meet him in open country and then escort him into the city. Paul's image of the people 'meeting the Lord in the air' should be read with the assumption that the people will immediately turn around and lead the Lord back to the newly remade world.

Paul's mixed metaphors of trumpets blowing and the living being snatched into heaven to meet the Lord are not to be understood as literal truth, as the Left Behind series suggests, but as a vivid and biblically allusive description of the great transformation of the present world of which he speaks elsewhere" ("Farewell to the Rapture," N.T. Wright in Bible Review, August 2001).

Missio Dei vs. Rapture

2010-02-10T09:26:00.000-05:00

Rapture/Escape is NOWHERE in the Hebrew worldview.

The Biblical view is that the earth is God’s good creation, which has been infected with sin down to its roots (figuratively yielding thorns and thistles from the ground instead of fruit). Therefore, the people of God are to bless the creation because they themselves have already experienced the blessing of God’s rule in their lives. In doing so, the earth will be renewed by the people of God who are engaged in the mission of God (which has historically been called the missio dei).

This is in direct CONTRAST with the rapture/escapist mindset which says that the earth is bad and the countdown for its destruction has already begun. The only mission in that world is to save souls from a sinking ship (as D.L. Moody, the 19th century evangelist, used to claim was his goal in life). After all, why would you waste time fixing the wheels to a car that’s already headed toward the cliff?

The Imaginary Rapture Script

2010-02-08T21:39:00.000-05:00

“According to the dispensationalist view, the Bible not only foretells the re-establishment of greater Israel but also spells out a strict sequence of future geopolitical events that must happen in Israel and the Middle East as the world heads toward the end times. For example, Russia must invade Israel, according to most dispensationalists’ interpretation of Ezekiel 38. This interpretation is based on the Hebrew word rosh, which they claim is an early name for Russia - a point that most Hebrew scholars view as ridiculous (since rosh actually means ‘head’).

… Specifically, the dispensationalist’s script calls ‘these things’ absolutely necessary for Jesus to come again to reign on the earth: The rebirth of the nation of Israel; The Rapture of born-again Christians off the earth; [56] The emergence of an evil Antichrist (and his one-world currency), probably from Europe; The Antichrist signs a seven-year peace treaty with Israel, setting in motion the seven years of tribulation - but the Antichrist will break the treaty after three and one half years; The rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem and resumption of animal sacrifices there; The desecration of the temple by the evil Antichrist, followed by the second half of the seven-year period of tribulation; Jesus’ return in the ‘Glorious Appearing’ exactly seven years after the Rapture, beginning with his touch-down on the Mount of Olives, which will split the mountain in two.

According to the script, after Jesus wins the battle of Armageddon he will then set up his millennial kingdom from the throne of David in Jerusalem, and will reign for one thousand years over a kingdom repopulated by converted Jews and un-Raptured people left behind on the earth. After that comes the last judgment, followed by eternity itself - God’s New Jerusalem.

To this overall timetable individual authors add a host of other details from Revelation. And of course, much bloodshed, torture and violent death is required during every phase of the timetable, as spelled out in their reading of chapters 6-19 of Revelation.

According to this dispensationalist script, the Rapture could happen at any moment, since there now is an Israeli state. But Christ cannot return again - the raging warrior Christ - until Jerusalem’s Temple Mount is clear of the [Islamic] Dome of the Rock and replaced with a new Jewish Temple.

[57] ‘There remains but one more event to completely set the stage for Israel’s part in the last great act of her historical drama,’ writes Lindsey. ‘That is to rebuild the ancient temple of worship on its old site’ [citing The Late Great Planet Earth, 55-56).

The rebuilding of the temple is demanded, in their view, by that same passage from Daniel 9:26-27, the three verses of Scripture that dispensationalists say give God’s framework for the world’s entire prophetic future.

… ‘Temple’ is not mentioned in this verse from Daniel, but ‘sacrifice’ is. The only place Jews could sacrifice is in their Jerusalem temple. But priestly sacrifice ceased there in 70 A.D. when the Romans destroyed the temple in Jerusalem. Using this opaque verse from Daniel, dispensationalists claim that the temple must be rebuilt because only if the temple is rebuilt can the Antichrist desecrate it halfway through the seven-year period of tribulation that they believe this verse foretells.

… [58] [But in reality] neither temple rebuilding nor restoration of the nation of Israel is mandated in the New Testament. The clearest discussion of the Jewish temple in the New Testament is in chapter 2 of the Gospel of John [verses 20-21], where the evangelist specifically states that the temple that will be rebuilt is the temple of Jesus’ resurrected body - not the literal temple building itself” (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 55-58).

1948: Modern Israel

2010-02-08T21:34:00.000-05:00

“When the state of Israel was in established in 1948, American fundamentalists sat up and took notice. Bible prophecy being fulfilled in their own time, the Bible coming to life! Statehood for Israel was the first of a number of specific things they believed had to come to pass before Jesus could return to earth.

… [50] Where is the founding of the modern state of Israel mandated in the Bible? In his 1970 best-selling The Late Great Planet Earth, [Hal] Lindsey invented the now-popular interpretation of Jesus’ fig tree parable in Matthew 24 [verses 32-33] as a text in which ‘Jesus predicts an extremely important time clue’ about the date for his return.

… Never mind that Jesus himself didn’t identify the fig tree as Israel. Lindsey interpreted Israel as the fig tree; and ‘putting forth its leaves’ was Israel becoming a sovereign state - the prophetic ‘super sign’ signaling that Jesus was at the gates and could return any minute: [Lindsey says] ‘When the Jewish people, after nearly 2000 years of exile … became a nation again on 14 May 1948 the ‘fig tree’ put forth its first leaves’ (The Late Great Planet Earth, 55).

Lindsey’s interpretation of the fig tree has become commonplace among dispensationalists. Lindsey further explains that ‘this generation’ in Jesus’ parable of the fig tree means the generation that saw the founding of Israel. Therefore, [he says] ‘within forty years or so of 1948, all these things could take place.’ … Needless to say, Lindsey backed off [51] from that statement as 1988 approached and it became clear that the Rapture and the end of the world were not happening within fourty years of Israel’s founding, contrary to his original prophesy.

… But is Israel’s founding really necessary in order for Jesus to be able to return, as dispensationalists claim? If so, then we must ask about previous generations of Christians who lived before 1948. For thousands of years, faithful Christians living from earliest times through the modern day have watched and prayed for the return of Jesus without believing his coming was contingent on a new state of Israel. Were all these Christians misguided to think that Jesus could return in their own lifetimes?

According to this mentality, most New Testament Christians would have to be considered misguided as well. The New Testament contains many books written after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Whose authors knew full well that Jews no longer had a state of their own. Yet all of them preached about the imminent return of Jesus. Take the book of Revelation, written years after Rome reconquered Israel. Revelation expects Jesus’ return any minute, but never does the book mention Israel’s rebirth as a prerequisite to that return. No passage in the New Testament makes Jesus’ return contingent on the re-establishment of a Jewish state” (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 49-51).

Adrian Rogers on the Rapture

2010-02-08T17:38:00.000-05:00

Another modern voice giving rise to the hope of a "Great Escape" (ie. Rapture) was Adrian Rogers (1931-2005). Rogers pastored Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee from 1972 until March 2005. During that time he wrote several books, one of which was Unveiling the End Times in Our Time (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2004). In that book he wrote:

"The Book of Revelation gives us alook at history and the future from the eyes of God. Not a guess, but a sure word from Almighty God.

... From [Revelation 4:1] to the end of the book, the word church is no longer mentioned because the church will be raptured by that point. According to Revelation, the rapture occurs before the tribulation, and the church then stands before the judgment seat of Christ and attends the marriage of the Lamb. Those who remain on earth will enter the Great Tribulation.

... When will the rapture take place? At any moment. We're not looking for some sign. We're not looking for some prophecy to be fulfilled before Jesus can come for His church. It could happen before you finish reading this sentence!

... [50] Satan's superman, who is also called the Antichrist (the counterfeit Christ) is coming into this world. And when he does, he will turn the world into a vast concentration camp with all of the inmates numbered. No one will be able to buy or sell unless they have the validating mark given by this man, who is the best.

... [51] In this panaroma of prophecy, first there will be the rapture, second will come the rise of the beast, and thrid will be the Great Tribulation, which will last for seven years. There has never been a time like this. Hell will have a holiday.

Calamities across the world will occur - hail, fire, a burning mountain cast into the sea, a bitter star named Wormwood that poisons the waters, boils, cosmic darkness, locusts (which are really demon spirits), horsemen who ride forth to bring pestilence, and the worship of the Antichrist. The vials of God's wrath will be poured out. The seas and rivers will turn to blood will turn to blood. There will be great heat and great darkness. The Euphrates River will dry up. It will be horrible beyond description.

[52] The tribulation will end with a battle called Armageddon. At this battel, the beast and his armies will be defeated. ... The vast plain you can see from atop Mount Megiddo in Israel is where the battle of Armageddon will take place.

[Jesus] will be coming not for His saints (they will have already been raptured). But instead, Jesus will be coming with His saints to defeat the beast and his armies" (Unveiling the End Times in Our Time, Adrian Rogers, 49-52).

David Jeremiah on the Rapture

2010-02-07T21:43:00.002-05:00

David Jeremiah, pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in California and popular TV/radio preacher with a show called "Turning Point," explains how he believes the church will escape the Tribulation via the Rapture (please note that I do not agree with him):

A day is coming when a billion people will suddenly vanish from the face of the earth without a trace! And when that event occurs, calling in the FBI will be of no use. … [T]hese vanished people will never again be seen until the Lord Himself returns.

… [97] The Bible tells us that on that day, millions of people will disappear from the face of the earth in less than a millisecond. And the purpose of that evacuation is similar to that of the emergency evacuation of Southern Californians: to avoid horrific devastation. This evacuation will remove God’s people from the disastrous effects of coming earthquakes, fire, and global chaos. As Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz explain, the evacuation itself will create considerable chaos and destruction:

‘Jumbo jets plummet to earth as they no longer have a pilot at the controls. Driverless buses, trains, subways, and cars will cause unimaginable disaster. Classrooms will suddenly be without teachers … Doctors and nurses seem to abandon their parents in the middle of surgical operations, and patients will vanish from operating tables. Children disappear from their beds. People run through the streets looking for missing family members who were there just moments ago. Panic grips every household, city, and country.’

… [99] Followers of Christ who are raptured will be spared the trauma of death and the coming disasters that will occur when the Tribulation breaks out upon the earth. That is indeed a cause for true [emotional] rapture on the part of those who love the Lord and long to be with Him.

... [100] [A]ll believers are raptured. He will immediately take them back to heaven with Him. But when Christ returns to earth seven years later in the Second Coming, He is coming to stay. This return, usually referred to as ‘the Second Advent,’ will take place at the end of the Tribulation period and usher in the Millenium - a thousand-year reign of Christ on this earth. So, first, the Rapture will occur seven years before the Second Advent. At that time Christ will take us to be with Him in heaven, immediately before the seven-year tribulation period. Then second, we will return to earth with Him at His Second Advent

... [200] When Jesus arrives on earth the second time, His landing will dramatically herald the purpose of His coming. The moment His feet touch the Mount of Olives, the mountain will split apart, creating a broad passageway from Jerusalem to Jericho. As you can imagine, this will be an unprecedented geological cataclysm.

… Christ’s return will be amplified by a devastating spectacle that will make Hollywood disaster movies look like Saturday morning child’s fare" (What In the World Is Going on?: 10 Prophetic Clues You Cannot Afford to Ignore, David Jeremiah, 96-100, 200).

Seven Years of Tribulation?

2010-02-07T16:28:00.000-05:00

"Television preachers like [the late] Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Jack Van Impe, [and John Hagee] preach the seven years of post-Rapture tribulation so constantly that many Americans assume it must be in the Bible. [Tim] LaHaye claims that 'the Bible devotes more space to the seven-year Tribulation than it does to any other historical period' [citing Tim LaHaye with Steve Halliday, The Merciful God of Prophecy: His Loving Plan for You in the End Times (NY: Warner Books, 2002), 139] - a startling claim if he means that the Tribulation eclipses Jesus' life and teachings as portrayed in the gospels!

But contrary to the charts and timelines that are so popular with dispensationalists, Revelation makes no references to 'seven years.' [37] While Revelation frequently uses the number seven, and Revelation also refers to 'tribulation' - primarily to describe hardships that first-century Christians were already suffering or would soon face - Revelation never mentions a future seven-year period of tribulation. Like the Rapture, the timetable of a seven-year period of tribulation is a recent development that dates back only to Darby's nineteenth-century system.

... Proponents claim that the seven-year timeframe of tribulation comes from that same crucial verse in the Old Testament book of Daniel. Daniel 9:27: 'He shall make a strong covenant with many for one week,' with a week being understood in Daniel not as seven days but as seven years. Proponents then argue that chapters 6 through 19 of Revelation give us the detailed chronology of events scheduled to happen during that period of Daniel's seventieth week of years. LaHaye and others also claim to find their seven years by combining the forty-two month span of Revelation 11:2 with the 1,260-day period of Revelation of 11:3 to add up to an approximate total of seven years.

But if chapter 11 of Revelation supposedly spells out the seven years of tribulation, it is striking that not one of the three crucial words - 'seven,' 'years,' or 'tribulation' - is found in Revelation 11. Why did Revelation not make the seven-year calendar more explicit, if Daniel's 'seven years' provides the chronological framework for the book? ... Only by rewriting Revelation for their own purposes can dispensationalists claim to find seven years of tribulation in this book" (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 36-37).

Escaping Tribulation?

2010-02-07T16:24:00.004-05:00

Popular Christian teachers insist that Christians will be spared the terrors they portray as happening during the years of great tribulation. For instance, John MacArthur writes, "[T]he entire church will be removed from the earth before the Tribulation begins. Scripture indicates that during Daniel’s seventieth week, national Israel, not the church, will the focus of God’s earthly program. The whole Tribulation period is a prelude to the national redemption spoken of in Romans 11:26 …” (The Second Coming, John MacArthur, 87).

John Hagee, pastor of the 15,000-member Cornerstone Church in San Antonio writes, "Believers in Christ will escape doomsday! Mark it down, take it to heart, and comfort one another with these words. Doomsday is coming for the earth, for nations, and for individuals, but those who have trusted in Jesus will not be present on earth to witness the dire time of tribulation" (Daniel to Doomsday: The Countdown Has Begun, John Hagee, 117).

Barbara Rossing calls out this thinking and labels it flat wrong. She writes, "[Tim] LaHaye and [Hal] Lindsey aruge that the Rapture is also taught in Revelation 3:10, where Jesus tells the church in Philadelphia: 'I will save you from out of the hour of trial.' Most scholars think the 'hour of trial' refers to a political trial or even the possibility of persecution for Christians at the time when Revelation was written. LaHaye, however, emphasizes the Greek preposition 'out of' and argues that this means Christians will have been snatched out [34] of the earth before the seven-year tribulation begins, although the word in the text is 'trial,' not 'tribulation.'

Moreover, Lindsey and LaHaye claim they can point to the moment in Revelation when this escape from the earth happens: Revelation 4:1, when the author, John, is told to 'Come up here' to heaven. This verse is the last time the word 'church' is mentioned in the book - therefore the church must have been Raptured up to heaven with John as of Revelation 4:1, they say.

In this scenario, believers will watch from a safe distance in heaven as God unleashes the plagues of Revelation's seals, trumpets, and bowls upon the earth for seven years. The church will then return to earth with Christ and armies, after the tribulation is all over, for the battle of Armageddon and the thousand-year [Millennial] reign.

But such an escapist interpretation is the very opposite message of Revelation.... While the word 'church' is not used after Revelation 4, 'the saints' are very much present on earth during Revelation's judgments, and they are the same group of people as the church. In Revelation 18:4 the church is directly addressed as 'my people' - a big problem for dispensationalists who think the church is absent during these chapters.

No, the message of Revelation is that God hears the cries of the church, the cries of 'my people,' and of oppressed people everywhere on earth. Life for God's people on earth involves tribulation, sometimes severe. John, the author of Revelation, writes not to urge escape from suffering or tribulation but to emphasize that he already 'shares in tribulation' with his churches (Rev. 1:9) The meaning of the word 'tribulation' can be very broad in the New Testament. The apostle Paul uses the same word, 'tribulation' (in Greek, thlipsis), to describe the sufferings he endured, including imprisonment, persecution, beatings, and physical illness. Whatever the tribulation, Paul and other early Christians would surely be [35] shocked to hear dispensationalists' interpretation that the church will escape tribulation by being Raptured out of the world.

... Christians are not dealt a get-out-of-tribulation-free card to play in the face of the world's suffering and trials. Such escapism underscores one of the biggest problems with dispensationalist theology. Jesus never asked of God to 'Beam me up' from the earth, nor can we. ... Tribulation is something that has happened and is still happening today for many of God's people in the world. God saves us not by snatching us out of the world, but by coming into the world to be with us. This is the central message of Jesus' incarnation and of the Bible. It is the central message of the culminating chapters of Revelation, the New Jerusalem vision of chapters 21-22. God still loves the world. The Bible proclaims an incarnational faith - God coming to earth - not Christians escaping from earth via the Rapture" (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 33-35).

Darby's End-Times Dispensationalism

2010-02-07T15:50:00.001-05:00

"In the view of Darby and other dispensationalists, God's whole biblical plan for the end-times is already mapped out in the Old Testament. The entire end-times framework of Darby's dispensational system is based on just three verses at the end of chapter of Daniel!

Daniel 9:25-27 gives a chronology of seventy 'weeks' of Israel's history - with a day representing a year in this apocalyptic book. How to interpret this opaque passage from Daniel is the great question that divides dispensationalists from most mainline Christians.

... [26] In the view of most scholars, the desolation and abomination that Daniel described in the final verse [of that passage] happened long ago, when the tyrannical emperor Antiochus Epiphanes desecrated the Jewish temple and set up a statue of the Greek god Zeus in 168 B.C. (see also Daniel 11:31). Daniel was using apocalyptic imagery to challenge the political oppression that people were suffering in his own time.

But for Darby and proponents of his system, Daniel's final seventieth week with the desecration of the Jewish temple has not yet happened. It remains 'unfulfilled prophecy,' awaiting fulfillment in some not-too-distant future time. According to Darby and the dispensationalists, the first 483 years of the Daniel prophecy were fulfilled in ancient Israel's history only up through week number sixty-nine.

But something happened! With the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, 'God obviously stopped the "prophetic stopwatch"' one week short of the end. 'The clock could not have continued ticking consecutively,' asserts [Hal] Lindsey, since Rome's destruction of the Jerusalem temple in 70 A.D. did not follow the chronology of Daniel in the literalist way that dispensationalists require (citing Hal Lindsey, The Rapture: Truth or Consequences, 3-4).

God paused the prophetic stopwatch for two thousand years because Jews, who should crowned Jesus as their Messiah and king, rejected him. God was forced to stop the clock and turn to a different plan, starting yet another dispensation of human history.

... [27] According to dispensationalists, Israel's prophetic stopwatch has been stopped now for the past two thousand years. We are currently living in a 'parenthesis' or 'gap' on the divine stopwatch, between Daniel's sixty-ninth and seventieth weeks. This is an astounding claim, based on three obscure verses in Daniel. All of church history is just a 'time-out' - what dispensationalists call the 'church dispensation' or church age, or 'God's great parenthesis in history.' Any minute now, God will remove true Christian believers from the earth in the Rapture, keeping the church completely separate from Israel - a key element in the system - and then the prophetic stopwatch can resume for the final 'week' or seven years of Israel's history. It's all prophesied in Daniel 9:27, they say.

... [But] if you actually read these verses in Daniel, there is no indication of a gap of thousands of years before the final seventh 'week' of year. The gap is imported into the text because rapture enthusiasts need it to make their prophetic framework fit with Israel's history. Such a move strains their claims of literalism, however, since there is no 'plain sense' warrant for inserting a chronological gap into the Greek or Hebrew texts.

... [36] Fabricated by Darby, the notion of any kind of rapture - whether pre-Trib, post-Trib, or mid-Trib - was imported into the Bible only 170 years ago.

... [41] [Dispensationalists'] arguments are convoluted and complex, relying on dubious 'gaps' of thousands of years. To make sense, their biblical chronology must combine bits and pieces of the Bible written many centuries apart and under very different circumstances into one overarching narrative. Their chronology of a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, for example, brings together the 'Antichrist' from the epistle of First John with an isolated verse from Daniel and another verse from Revelation. Their seven-year [42] tribulation chronology combines Revelation's sole reference to a 'great tribulation' with Daniel 9's 'seventieth week,' along with Jesus' discourse in Matthew 24-25.

But surely this is not how John nor Matthew nor any other biblical writer intended their writings to be used, as bits and pieces to be cut and pasted into an end-times formula. The Bible is neither puzzle pieces to be fitted together not isolated verses to be mined for their predictive code. 'Ironically, in their effort to interpret the Bible literally and consistently, proponents of the Rapture have mangled the biblical witness almost beyond recognition,' charges New Testament scholar Craig Hill [citing Craig Hill, In God's Time: The Bible and The Future (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2002), 207]. 'It is the Bible itself, this wonderfully diverse and complex witness to God and Christ, that has been left behind'" (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 25-27, 36, 41-42).

The Origin of Rapture-Fever

2010-02-07T14:43:00.004-05:00

"[T]he belief that Jesus will come again was not new. Christians have always taught that Jesus will return to earth and that believers should live in the urgent and hopeful anticipation of his second coming. This teaching is central to ancient Christian creeds and is taught by all churches. But [John Nelson] Darby's new teaching was the claim that Christ would return twice. The first return would be in secret, to 'Rapture' his church out of the world and up to heaven. Christ would return a second time after seven years of global tribulation to establish a Jerusalem-based kingdom on earth" (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 22).

Where did Darby's idea of pre-tribulation rapture come from?
"To understand, we must return to the 19^th century British Isles. In 1830 in Port Glasgow, Scotland, Margaret Macdonald expressed her belief that scripture taught that Christians would be raptured, or translated, from the earth before the Great Tribulation. This is the first time that anyone in Christian history had distinguished two stages of the Second Coming: the first stage, in which Christians are taken out, and the second stage, in which Jesus returns to earth.

Margaret Macdonald’s idea was adopted by the Plymouth Brethren, who were organized by John Nelson Darby (1800-1882). Darby was educated as a lawyer, became an Anglican priest in 1826, but went on to found the Brethren in 1830. Darby visited the Macdonald home in 1830 and first presented the new pre-tribulation rapture doctrine soon thereafter. The new doctrine was not received unanimously.
'The Roots of Fundamentalism,' by Ernest R. Sandeen, in discussing the history of the Brethren, says that Darby introduced the idea of a secret rapture of the church and a gap in prophetic fulfillment between the 69^th and 70^th weeks of Daniel. These beliefs became basic to the system of theology known as dispensationalism [this is the view that God has divided all of human history into seven distinct 'dispensations,' or ages, and during each time God has dealt with people according to a different set of rules].

From 1862 to 1877, Darby lived in and traveled throughout the United States and Canada, spreading his message. He was a very appealing speaker and also intolerant to criticism. At first he tried to win members of existing Protestant congregations to his sect, but met with little success. He then spread his end-times message to influential clergymen and laymen in churches in major cities without insisting they leave their denominations.

Two of his converts were James Hall Brookes, pastor of the Walnut Street Presbyterian Church in St. Louis and Adoniram Judson Gordon, pastor of Clarendon St. Baptist Church in Boston. These two men became leaders of the movement which spread the doctrine throughout the northeast and Midwest during the last quarter of the 19^th century. From 1883-1897, each summer at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, James H. Brookes led conferences which spread the doctrine very successfully to conservative church leaders of America who were concerned about the liberal influence of "higher criticism" that was making inroads into churches. The new message spread from the leaders down to the local congregations.

In 1897 there was a split of conference participants into two groups: a pro-Darby faction led by Arno C. Gaebelein and Cyrus I. Scofield, and an anti-Darby faction led by Robert Cameron. A five-year "paper war," in which each side wrote articles blasting the other side, ended in a win by the pro-Darby forces.
Many of the anti-Darby forces simply retired from the scene to avoid controversy or died of old age without a new line of advocates to replace them.

The pro-Darby force was aggressive at organizing new conferences and publicizing their message, which appealed to the wishful thinking of the masses. The foundation of the Darbyite message was that when evil is seen in society, Christians are to rejoice because that is a sign of the imminent return of Christ. To illustrate, there was even some concern that at the outset of the United States’ involvement in WWI that Americans would not respond because they might think they were fighting against the evil which was needed to bring Jesus back. A paralyzing religious neutralism had set in. Christians withdrew into the four walls of the church building and let society and government run its godless course. The Darby doctrine can be seen, for example, in a 1933 issue of the fundamentalist Moody Monthly, which said that Christians did not need to take a stand on a hot topic at the time, whether or not to recognize atheistic Communist USSR, because the Second Coming might quickly solve the problem. Religious neutralism became the norm for Christian churches until the late 20^th century when many Christians began taking a stand against evils in society like abortion and immorality in government leaders.

The pre-trib rapture doctrine was further spread by Cyrus Scofield’s Reference Bible. Began in 1903 with unusually generous funding from wealthy businessmen, it was completed in 1909 and published and promoted by the very prestigious Oxford University Press. It is basically a King James Version with extensive footnote commentaries by Cyrus Scofield and consulting editors. In every passage that could possibly to related to end-times, the pre-trib rapture doctrine is espoused. Many readers throughout the years have been unaware of the difference between words of scriptura and opinions of Scofield. This version of the Bible has been so promoted that its views have affected every church and town in America.

Geographically, the doctrine moved from its original foothold in the large cities of New York, Boston, Chicago, and St. Louis to the northeast and Midwest. Later it spread to the West and South, where it is very strong still. The doctrine is not taught in the liberal Protestant denominations but is taught in independent nondenominational and full-gospel churches and in some evangelical churches. Fundamentalist churches do not realize how relatively new the doctrines are.

[This] doctrine is promoted unceasingly in [American] print media, radio, and TV, while more traditional views are hard to find. These media present the doctrine with a mindset that takes for granted that the entire audience believes it unquestioningly. Also, most Christian TV and radio programs are produced by those with this point of view. Any given program is peppered with catch-phrases about the impending rapture and the Second Coming with parallels drawn between biblical prophecy of end-times and current events." ("How Did We the Idea of a Pre-Trib Rapture?" by Sandy Fiedler, http://reformed-theology.org/html/issue06/pre-trib.htm [accessed 2/7/10]).

"Prophecy conferences and radio programs sponsored by Chicago's Moody Bible Institute and a number of Bible schools elaborated on [24] Darby's timetable and end-times system. Early dispensationalist promoters included wealthy Chicago businessman William Blackstone (author of the 1878 work Jesus is Coming), an avid Zionist, and Lewis Chafer, a Presbyterian who founded the dispensationalists' training center, the Dallas Theological Seminary, in 1924. More recent disciples of Darby include ... John Walvoord, Charles Ryrie, and Hal Lindsey..." (The Rapture Exposed, Barbara Rossing, 24).

Apocalyptic 101

2010-02-06T23:24:00.000-05:00

“Scholars describe this pictorial presentation of truth as apocalyptic, a style of communication and writing characterized by bold colors, vivid images, unique symbols, a simple story line, a hero, and a happy ending. Thus, in Revelation you meet angels, animals, and numbers. You see lightning and hear thunder. You witness earthquakes and battles. You see the sparkle of jewels and a woman clothed with the sun facing a terrifying dragon. You see a rider on a white horse and hear the lyrics of the Hallelujah Chorus" (Four Views on the Book of Revelation, Sam Hamstra Jr. ed. C. Mavin Pate, 97).

“Futuristic interpreters tend to read Revelation as if it begins, ‘John, to the Christians in North America, who live in the twenty-first century,’ assuming that Revelation is primarily a book for those living at the end of time [which, conveniently, happens to be knocking on our door in the near future]. Most scholars today, however, note that Revelation begins, ‘John, to the seven churches that are in Asia’ (Rev. 1:4). To take this statement literally means that Revelation is primarily a book for its own time, and that it is written to communicate with Christian congregations in first-century Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). If futuristic interpreters assume that Revelation’s message will become clearer as the final days approach, many scholars take the opposite view. Assuming that [27] Revelation’s message would have been clearest to those who lived in John’s own time, they search for clues to understanding the book not by combing recent headlines or news broadcasts, but by studying the language and literature of the ancient world.

One of the most basic questions that scholars ask is, ‘What kind of literature is Revelation?’ The assumptions that people make about a text affect the way that they read it. People do not read a science fiction novel in the same way they read a history textbook, or approach a newspaper’s comic strips in the same way that they read the front page. Accordingly, those who assume that Revelation is essentially a history of the end of the world that has been written in advance will read the book one way, while those who assume that the book is not a script for the end times, but another form of literature, will read it quite differently.

Revelation is commonly grouped with other writings known as ‘apocalypses,’ a term that comes from the Greek word apokalypsis, which means ‘revelation.’

… Apocalypses are a form of literature with a narrative framework, in which a revelation of transcendent reality is given by an angel or other-worldly being to a human recipient. Usually the revelation unveils a supernatural world and point to salvation at the end of time. The apocalypses describe revelations coming in various ways, including visions and journeys into another world, and conversations with an angel, who [28] helps the seer interpret what he sees. The seer may also be given a heavenly book. Apocalypses assume that the world of ordinary life is mysterious, so that revelation comes from a supernatural source. They tell readers about a hidden world of angels and demons, whose activities affect human life, and about a final, future judgment of the wicked.

… [29] [P]eople generally wrote apocalypses to assure readers that God would be faithful, despite conditions of evil in the present age, and to encourage readers to remain loyal to God, rather than giving in to the powers that oppose God. Apocalyptic writers were concerned about the future realization of God’s purposes, but exhortation and assurance seem to have been more important than simple prediction of future events.

… [30] Revelation does not disclose future events in a linear fashion, but gives alternating messages of warning and encouragement that are designed to promote faithful endurance” (Revelation and the End of All Things, Craig R. Koester, 26-30).

The Informed Imaginative Idealist Reading

2010-02-06T23:09:00.006-05:00

This is my own title for my own reading of the book of Revelation. This is a mixture of what I feel are the strengths of the views, while still maintaining integrity to the trustworthiness of Scripture.

The best explaination of this position that I have found is that, "John seeks to unveil or uncover what he considers to be the deeper realities about both time and the world in which the churches of Asia Minor live. He does this by taking his hearers on an imaginative tour of both the divine throne room (or council) and the future. In so doing he helps to change his hearers' perceptions of the present and, in particular, the nature of the spiritual crisis that they face. His ultimate goal is to encourage those who share his views and persuade those do not to embrace his views, shaping not their beliefs, but their lives" (Conversations with Scripture: Revelation, Frederick W. Schmidt, 58).

The closest parallel to this position is probably the "Eclectic" view that Beale advocates. Here's how he describes it:
“A more viable, modified version of the idealist perspective would acknowledge a final consummation in salvation and judgment. Perhaps it would be best to call this fifth view ‘eclecticism.’ Accordingly, no specific prophesied historical events are discerned in the book, except for the final coming of Christ to deliver and judge and to establish the final form of the kingdom in a consummated new creation - though there are a few exceptions to this rule. The Apocalypse symbolically portrays events throughout history, which is understood to be under the sovereignty of the Lamb as a result of his death and resurrection. He will guide the events depicted until they finally issue in the last judgment and the definitive establishment of his kingdom. This means that specific events throughout the age extending from Christ’s first coming to his second may be identified with one narrative or symbol. We may call this age inaugurated by Christ’s first coming and concluded by his final appearance ‘the church age,’ ‘the interadventual age,’ or the ‘the latter days.’ The majority of the symbols in the book are transtemporal in the sense that are applicable to events throughout the ‘church age.’

[49] Therefore, the historicists may sometimes be right in their precise historical identifications, but wrong in limiting the identification only to one [specific] historical reality. The same verdict may be passed on the preterist school of thought, especially the Roman version. And certainly there are prophecies of the future in Revelation. The crucial yet problematic task of the interpreter is to identify through careful exegesis and against the original historical background those texts which pertain respectively to past, present, and future” (The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text, Gregory K. Beale, 48-49).

Richard Bauckham elaborates on this: "They [the images in the book of Revelation] are not just a system of codes in waiting to be translated into matter-of-fact references to people and events. Once we begin to appreciate their sources and their rich symbolic associations, we realize that they cannot be read either as literal descriptions or as encoded literal descriptions, but must be read for their theological meaning and their power to evoke response.
… John has taken some of his contemporaries’ worst experiences and worst fears of wars and natural disasters, blown them up to apocalyptic proportions, and cast them in biblically allusive terms. The point is not to predict a sequence of events. The point is to evoke and to explore the meaning of the divine judgment which is impending on the sinful world” (Theology of the Book of Revelation, Richard Bauckham, 19-20).

Mounce rounds out the scholarly descriptions of my reading:
“[I]t is readily apparent that each approach has some important contribution to a full understanding of Revelation and that no single approach is sufficient in itself. It is vitally important to see with the preterist that the book must be interpreted in light of the immediate historical crisis in which the first-century church found itself. The author employs a literary genre that grew out of his own cultural and linguistic milieu. His figures of speech and imagery are to be interpreted in the context of his own historical setting. They are not esoteric and enigmatic references to some future culture totally foreign to first-century readers (e.g., hydrogen bombs, satellite television, and the European Common Market). With the historicist it is important to notice that the philosophy of history revealed in the Apocalypse has found specific fulfillment in all the major crises of human history up to the present day. With the futurist we must agree that the central message of the book is eschatological, and to whatever extent the End has been anticipated in the course of history, it yet remains as the one great climactic point toward which all history moves. This age will come to an end. Satan and his hosts will be destroyed and the righteous will be vindicated. These are historical events that will take place in time. And they are future. With the idealist one must agree that the events of history give expression to basic underlying principles. God is at work behind the scenes to bring to pass his sovereign intention for the human race. To whatever extent the idealist rules out a consummation, it is difficult to see from history alone any cause for optimism” (The Book of Revelation: The New International Commentary of the New Testament, Robert H. Mounce, 29).

The Preterist Reading

2010-02-06T22:53:00.002-05:00

The preterist view sees Revelation as future from the standpoint of the writer, but having been fulfilled not long after the author’s own time (generally 70 AD), and thus it is history from our standpoint. Some preterists, called partial preterists, believe the final chapters of Revelation still look forward to a future second coming of Christ, while others, called full or consistent preterists, believe that all of Revelation has been fulfilled.

for a great primer on this reading see Kenneth Gentry contribution's in Four Views on Revelation, edited by C. Marvin Pate or R.C. Sproul's book The Last Days According to Jesus

Beale gives a thorough overview:

“The preterist perspective has two forms. The first sees Revelation as a prophecy of the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., which, of course, requires that the Apocalypse be dated prior to 70. ‘Babylon the Great’ represents apostate Israel, who aids Rome in oppressing Christians. Accordingly, part of the purpose of the book is to encourage Christians that their Jewish persecutors will be judged for their apostasy and to assure the readers that they are now the true Israel.

… A significant problem with this form of the preterist approach is that it limits most of the book’s prophecies of salvation and judgment to 70 A.D. and asserts that these prophecies reached their climactic fulfillment at that time. Indeed, the prophecies of Daniel 2 and 7 alluded to throughout the Apocalypse foresee a last judgment of the evil nations, not primarily of unbelieving Israel. Interestingly, these preterist interpreters identify the beast from Daniel 7 in Rev. 13:1ff. with a pagan nation (Rome), which Daniel then sees as the object of final judgment. But then they identify apostate Israel elsewhere in the book as the main object of Daniel’s prophesied final judgment (for example 11:15-18). It is true that the OT and NT expect apostate Israel to be judged along with the nations. John likely follows suit. Nevertheless, it would be strange if John saw unbelieving Israel as the primary object of judgment instead of the [45] evil nations, since Daniel viewed these nations as the main object of punishment. Therefore, one of the most difficult problems facing consistent proponents of this alternative is that what appear to be prophecies of final judgment throughout the book are seen as figuratively fulfilled in 70 A.D.

The second form of preterist interpretation holds that Revelation is a prophecy of the fall of the Roman Empire, ‘Babylon the Great,’ the persecutor of the saints, in the fifth century A.D. The purpose of the book is to encourage Christians to endure because their persecutors assuredly will be judged. Furthermore, Christians are exhorted not to compromise their witness by identifying in any way with the idolatrous Roman system, which has made inroads into Asia Minor. This version of the preterist approach is more viable than the 70 A.D. alternative because it does not necessitate the early date and because Rome is a more probable identification of ‘Babylon’ than Jerusalem. But this version does encounter the difficulty of understanding many of the apparent prophecies of final judgment as being already fulfilled in the fall of the Roman Empire during the fifth century A.D." ( (The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text, Gregory K. Beale, 44-45).

The Idealist Reading

2010-02-06T22:39:00.000-05:00

Simply put:

“The idealist approach affirms that Revelation is a symbolic portrayal of the conflict between good and evil, between the forces of God and of Satan" (The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text, Gregory K. Beale, 48).

The Idealist view takes Revelation as a kind of drama, which depicts spiritual truths which may occur over and over throughout history, such as the conflicts “between Christ and Satan, between the saints and the antichristian world powers, and depicting the final victory of Christ and his saints” (Revelation: Four Views: A Parallel Commentary, Steve Gregg, 3). Thus fulfillment may be seen as “entirely spiritual or as recurrent, finding representative expression throughout the age, rather than in one-time, specific fulfillments” (Ibid., 3). Thus the prophecies are applicable to Christians in any age.

More fully expressed:

You approach apocalyptic literature differently than you would a letter or one of the Gospels. In Revelation words take the place of pigments and brushes to create a portrait designed to visualize great principles, not particular incidents. Resisting [98] the temptation to dissect the portrait described in each vision, you let the vision as a whole impress you.

… In times like these, you need a word from the Lord. You don’t need a history lesson of the militant church of either the first or last century. You don’t need a prophetic vision of a day you will never experience in this life. At this moment in your struggle with sin and evil, you need a hope-filled word from the Lord. You need the Apocalypse of John now.

Some approach Revelation differently. Perhaps, naively secure in their luxurious homes, they turn their eyes from the evil and sin that ravages their brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the world. They think they are at peace, having learned the habit of a positive mental attitude. They don’t need a word of comfort and hope. So, they approach Revelation like a history lesson, memorizing trumpets and bowls like presidents and wars. Or they approach the Apocalypse like a puzzle with a thousand small pieces. At their leisure, they try to piece together the seals, the beasts, the prostitute, and the plagues. They are not blessed by the colorful visions, for they are never impressed by the vision as a whole. They are only confused because they cannot fit the pieces together.

Let the troubles come, however, and Revelation becomes as precious as it was to John on the island of Patmos. The book of Revelation is for believers … who find that following the Lord is a way of contradiction that pierces your inmost thoughts, even as it heals them with peace. It is for believers like those in the first century, who only conquest was their steadfast endurance with no tangible evidence of victory. It is for the believer who doubts the sovereignty of God, questions the influence of the church, and fears the power of evil. To these readers Revelation offers a message of assurance, hope, and victory (Sam Hamstra Jr. in Four Views on the Book of Revelation, ed. C. Marvin Pate, 97-98).

Even still, Beale points out the possible problem if this reading is taken too far:

"The most radical form of this view holds that the book is a timeless depiction of this struggle. The problem with this alternative is that it holds that Revelation does not depict any final consummation to history, whether in God’s final victory or in a last judgment of the realm of evil. The idealist notion encounters the opposite problem facing the preterist and historicist views, since it identifies none of the book’s symbols with particular historical events” (Beale, 48).

Mounce sums up this view and its potential weakness well:

"It is supported by the obvious fact that Revelation employs symbol as its major literary device. Its weakness lies in the fact that it denies to the book any specific historical fulfillment. From the idealist’s point of view the symbols portray an ever present conflict: there exists no necessary consummation of the historical process” (The Book of Revelation: The New International Commentary of the New Testament, Robert H. Mounce, 29).

The Historicist Reading

2010-02-06T22:16:00.004-05:00

This reading is similar to the predictive reading strategy that just looked at in the last post. It was very popular through the middle ages. In his resource Revelation: Four Views: A Parallel Commentary, Steve Gregg notes that while commentators from the past who held this position would make up an all-star list from church history (Wycliffe, Knox, Tyndale, Luther, Calvin, Edwards, Whitefield, Matthew Henry, Spurgeon, et al), "modern commentaries presenting this approach are rare to nonexistent" (34).

Why was this view popular?

According to Craig Koester, “Some interpreters in the later Middle Ages noted that Revelation began with messages for churches in the first century (Revelation 1-3) and it ended with a vision of the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21-22). They inferred that the intervening chapters must cover the centuries in between” (Revelation and the End of All Things, Craig R. Koester, 11).

What did this view teach?

According to G.K. Beale, “There are many versions of the historicist approach. Historicist interpreters generally see Revelation as predicting the major events of Christian history, most of which have been fulfilled up to the time of the commentator. The majority of these commentators have understood the seals, trumpets, and bowls as unfolding successive events of history in general chronological order. Christ’s final coming is usually seen as very imminent. Typically, this view identifies parts of the Apocalypse as prophecies of the invasions of the Christianized Roman Empire by the Goths and the Muslims. Further, the corruptions of the medieval papacy, the reign of Charlemagne, the Protestant Reformation, and the destruction wrought by Napoleon and Hitler have been seen as predicted by John."

Beale continues with the weaknesses of this view: "This view tries to identify historical movements too specifically and limits the prophecies of the Apocalypse to Western church history, leaving aside the worlwide church. Proponents of this view living in different periods of church history cannot agree with one another, since they limit the meaning of the symbols only to specific historical referents contemporary with their own times.

Another weakness of this approach is that such a projection of future history would have had little relevance to the first-century readers of Revelation” (The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text, Gregory K. Beale, 46).

Robert H. Mounce sums up this position (and its weakness) well:

"[T]he historicist interpreted it [the book of Revelation] as a forecast of the course of history leading up to his own time. Of little significance to its initial readers, the Apocalypse was held to sketch the history of western Europe through the various popes, the Protestant Reformation, the French Revolution, and individual leaders such as Charlemagne and Mussolini [and Hitler]. … It is antecedently doubtful that the Spirit of God would be concerned to inform the apostolic church with a rather detailed picture of events lying beyond their own time and having only a remote bearing on the consummation of the age” (The Book of Revelation: The New International Commentary of the New Testament, Robert H. Mounce, 27).

The Predictive Reading

2010-02-05T00:00:00.003-05:00

This reading "reads the text as a literal transcript of future historical events. ... [171] Each generation that follows this reading strategy tends to consider itself the last before the final great cosmic battle and the establishment of the messianic kingdom on earth. The text is then read as a coded allegory of contemporary political events.
... Whether the Beast was identified with the pope or Cromwell or Napoleon or Hitler or Gorbachev, the result has been the same: history goes on, and the ardent predictions of the interpreters are consigned to the junkyard....
... I believe the predictive reading strategy to be fundamentally mistaken, not just in its particular identification of the symbols in the text but in its fundamental perception of the genre of the text. The book was not written to predict particular historical events two thousand years in the future of its original author and audience. To construe it in that way is to make a foolish category mistake and - most important - to misread its word to the church" (The Moral Vision of the New Tesatment, Richard Hays, 170-171).

Some read Revelation and use it like a roadmap or GPS unit to the future. "In it they find a blow-by-blow [turn by turn] description of earth's final days, the judgment of all humankind, and the transformation of heaven and earth. Matching images with events, the reader is able to determine which of the events described there have transpired.
... [2] The history of this interpretative approach is marked by a tendency to invent and reinvent the connections between the book and each generation's historical experience.
... [3] [This interpretation sees] the events described in the Book of Revelation ... as part of a timetable. There is a considerable difference of opinion among its proponents about the precise sequence of events. Some believe, for example, that Christ will return before the millennium, or thousand years of peace [see Revelation 20:4-6f] (pre-millennialists). Others believe that the return of Christ will follow it (post-millennialists). And still others believe that the so-called reign of Christ will be a reign manifested in the hearts of those who are faithful (a-millennialists).
Roadmap readings of Revelation also differ on the timings of the 'rapture': a taking up of the faithful with Christ, while others are 'left behind' to face the final judgment of God. Some believe that the rapture will happen before a time of tribulation or trial mentioned in Revelation (pre-tribulationists). Others believe it will happen after [4] the tribulation (post-tribulationists), and still others believe it will happen in the midst of that experience (mid-tribulationists).
The result is a complex series of variations. But the broad sequence of events remains largely the same:

The moral decline of civilization
The rise of the Antichrist
A reign of terror or great tribulation
The Battle of Armageddon in which the Antichrist is defeated
The establishment of a thousand year's reign
A final revolt by Satan that is easily countered
The resurrection of the dead
The final judgment
The creation of a new heaven and a new earth

... Predictions of this kind, of course, assume that the images used in John's Apocalypse are of a literal character and can be unpacked in a [5] one-to-one correspondence with real people, places, and events. So, those who rely upon a roadmap-reading of Revelation are not just relying upon certain kinds of assumptions about the focus of John's vision, but about the nature of the literature itself. Fort this reason, the process of interpretation is far more akin to decoding the book than it is to interpretation.
... The still deeper assumptions that make this kind of approach possible are [placed] upon the nature of God and the Bible itself. ... Those deeper assumptions are:

God can do what God wants to do.
From God's mouth to our ear, Scripture describes what God plans to do.
Those who take God's plan seriously take Scripture seriously.
To take Scripture seriously means taking propositions one and two at face value" (Conversations with Scripture: Revelation, Frederick W. Schmidt, 1-5).

Overview: Nelson's Complete Book of Bible Charts & Maps (3rd edition)

2010-02-03T15:57:00.000-05:00

Book: Nelson's Complete Book of Bible Charts & Maps (3rd edition)

This book is a linear thinker's dream! From the moment I opened the package, I knew that Nelson had gone far beyond their previous efforts with this book. This is the 3rd edition and is chock full of color pictures, drawings, maps, and outlines. I was VERY impressed with how thorough the material was and how much of the Bible was included in this invaluable resource. Rather than brow-beating the reader with particular (and sometimes peculiar) interpretations, this resource helpfully lays out the various theological positions for certain topics that are bound to arise when reading the Bible.

I must admit that I have not found an adequate resource in the field of charts and maps ... until now, that is! The presentation of the content in this book made the facts, figures, places, names, and themes memorable. The layout is helpful because it provides just enough information to be helpful without giving so much that you feel like you have been the recipient of some scholar's brain dump! I am so sold on this book as a resource that will enhance biblical understanding, comprehension, and retention that I'm recommending it to every student of the Bible that I know!

disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book by Thomas Nelson in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Encountering the Book of Revelation

2010-02-02T12:58:00.013-05:00

The biblical book of Revelation has been the cause of debates, headaches, and nightmares for lots of people the world over. I remember thinking that the Left Behind series was an accurate (albeit using creative liberties) depiction of the events chronicled throughout the book of Revelation. I no longer think that way. Beginning with this post, I hope to explain a different way to read it.

Who wrote it? "[T]he internal and external evidence seems to point to the apostle John as the author ... or, at the very least, to a member of the Johannine school" (Four Views on the Book of Revelation, C. Marvin Pate and Stanley N. Gundry, 14).

When was it written? "[T]wo major periods periods qualify as candidates: emperor Nero's reign (A.D. 54-68) and Domitian's rule (A.D. 81-96). The preterist school of interpretation [for more on the various interpretations see below] argues for the former, while the futurist approach, especially classical dispensationalism, align itself with the latter. Progressive dispensationalism sees a combination of the two as operative in the book, while the idealist perspective is not bound by either time frame" (Ibid., 14).

Why was it written? "[T]he purpose of the book of Revelation is to comfort the ... Church in its struggle against the forces of evil. It is full of help and comfort for persecuted and suffering Christians. To them is given the assurance that God see their tears (7:17, 21:4); their prayers are influential in world affairs (8:3-4) and their death is precious in his sight. Their final victory is assured (15:2); their blood will be avenged (19:2); their Christ [Lord] lives and reigns for ever and for ever.
"The theme is the victory of Christ and of His Church over the dragon (Satan) and his helpers. The Apocalypse is meant to show us that things are not what they seem. The beast that ocmes up out of the abyss seems to be victorious. He 'makes war with them, overcomes them, and kills them. ... And they that dwell on the earth rejoice over them' [see Revelation 11:7-10]. ... But this rejoicing is premature. In reality it is the believer who triumphs [see Revelation 11: 11, 15]" (More Than Conquerors, William Hendriksen, 7-8).
"Presumably the churches were suffering persecution because of their refusal to participate in veneration of the emperor. Whether the persecution was a matter of official imperial policy is a debated issue; it is perhaps more likely to have involved sporadic local harassment. Indeed, some features of the text suggest that the churches were threatened less by organized oppression than by comfortable complacency.
"Nonetheless, whatever the precise historical circumstances in which it originated, the book of Revelation is above all else a political resistance document. ... It seeks to rally the seven churches to a stance of courageous witness against a culture that dangles seductive defilements before the people of God, seeking if possible to lead even the saints astray" (The Moral Vision of the New Testament, Richard Hays, 170).

How should it be understood? "Traditionally, four major interpretations have been put forth in attempting to unravel the mysteries of the Apocalypse: preterist, historicist, futurist, and idealist. The names encapsulate the essence of the respective approaches.
The preterist (past) interpretation understands the events of Revelation in large part to have been fulfilled in the first centuries of the Christian era - either at the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 or at both the falls of Jerusalem in the first century and of Rome in the fifth century. In effect the book was written to comfort Christians, who suffered persecution from both the imperial cult and Judaism.
The historicist school views the events of Revelation as unfolding in the course of history. This perspective was especially compatible with the thinking of the Protestant Reformers, who equated the papal system of their day with the Antichrist.
The futurist scheme argues that the events of Revelation are largely unfulfilled, holding that chapters 4-22 await the end times for their realization. If the preterist interpretation has dominated [18] among biblical scholars, then it may be said that the futurist reading is the preference of choice among the masses.
The idealist viewpoint, by way of contrast to the previous three theological constructs, is reticent to pinpoint the symbolism of Revelation historically. For this school of thought, Revelation sets forth timeless truths concerning the battle between good and evil that continues throughout the church age" (Four Views, 17-18).

“[W]e do well to take Revelation as a whole, as a book with its own integrity. Some of the approaches [on offer] assume that verses of the Bible are like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, and that our task is to put pieces from various book together to create a complete picture. To take Revelation as a whole means following its message from the introduction in Revelation 1 to the final blessing at the end of Revelation 22, instead of jumping from Daniel 9 to 1 Thessalonians 4 and then Revelation 6, etc. Read in this way, John’s [39] message remains compelling, yet it will seem different from many sensationalistic interpretations [offered today]” (Revelation and the End of All Things, Craig R. Koester, 38-39).

The Serving Leader

2010-01-31T14:18:00.000-05:00

"Shane Claiborne: We must always remember that we are carrying something big, and it's not just ourselves. We're carrying something beautiful, bold and precious. Something eternal.
We have to temper ourselves when we realize we carry something that can literally and radically change the world. The temptation will come to be the greatest, most talked about, most honored. We will want all the buzz that comes with being the greatest this or that. We [108] will want to be first in line, first on the bestsellers list, first as the fastest-growing, most effective nonprofit around. What did Jesus say about those who are first? I like to think that His answer was, 'Grab a plunger and follow me to the toilets.'
It's not a call to lead like the [others] and lord it over people, but a call to be the least.
So that's the call - a call to be the least. And following the call means together we can all move closer to the suffering, no matter where we start and no matter how great the divide."

John Perkins: "What if Jesus is taking us to the dump, but people do not want to go there? We need to ask ourselves that question. And I think that some teaching has to be done. We need to understand the virtue of suffering. Suffering, in the real sense, is the removing of instant gratification and replacing it with a promise for the future. Discipline is not giving people what they want right now - that will destroy them. Discipline is to delay that self-gratification in relationship to the future of life. As there is virtue in delaying, so there's virtue in suffering. This is a lost art in our society" (Follow Me to Freedom, Shane Claiborne and John Perkins, 107-108).

Overview: The Hole In Our Gospel (Richard Stearns)

2010-01-22T21:04:00.001-05:00

The Hole In Our Gospel by Richard Stearns

The book opens with a question it intends to answer in the 279 pages which follow. The question: "What does God expect of us?"

Stearns, currently the president of World Vision, recalls just 60 days into his tenure having his bubble of satisfied security burst open. He had been the CEO of Lenox, a luxury tableware company, who lived in a ten-bedroom house, drove a Jaguar, and flew first-class to business destinations around the world. In those days, when he encountered injustice and poverty, his response was to change the channel, turn the newspaper page, or write a check to keep it all at arm's length.

But, soon enough, his prayer echoed that of Bob Pierce, who founded World Vision. That prayer said, "Let my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God" (p. 9).

With that prayer being answered, little by little, in his own life, Stearns now laments, "[O]ur view of the gospel has been narrowed to a simple transaction, marked by checking a box on a bingo card at some prayer breakfast, registering a decision for Christ, or coming forward during an altar call. ... In our evangelistic effort to make the good news accessible and simple to understand, we seem to have boiled it down to a kind of 'fire insurance' that one can buy." He continues, incorporating the title and the premise of the book. "There is a real problem with this limited view of the kingdom of God; it is not the whole gospel. Instead, it's a gospel with a gaping hole" (p. 17).

What would the gospel without the gaping hole look like? Stearns says, "If we are to be part of this coming kingdom, God expects our lives - our churches and faith communities too - to be characterized by these authentic signs of our own transformation: compassion, mercy, justice and love - demonstrated tangibly" (p. 57).

I found this book to be very engaging, challenging, and well-written. It is clear that Stearns is living the message that he is proclaiming. He has experienced the best of times and the worst of times, and they have both combined to form a powerful mixture of intelligence, clarity, and passion.

Using stirring stories, relevant Scripture passages, eye-opening statistics, and personal insights, this book is the best I have ever encountered on the subject of trading in the American Dream of fleeting success for God's Dream of everlasting shalom (peace) in the world.

In the face of such a large agenda, Stearns advocates for neither optimism nor pessimism, but realism. He concludes, "The pessimist here sees only obstacles. The optimist sees only possibilities. But the realist sees the possibilities between the two. And that's who we must be. We must be people of the possible" (pp. 274-275).

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Overview: 9 Things Leaders Must Do (Henry Cloud)

2010-01-20T16:34:00.005-05:00

This is the clearest form of repackaging basic "secrets for a better life" and calling it leadership I've ever seen. This is the exact same as 9 Things You Simply Must Do to Succeed in Life and Love that Cloud published in 2004 with Thomas Nelson (and again in 2007)! I find this all-the-more ironic because the publisher for this book is listed as "Integrity House." That's downright laughable. I'm also guessing this is the reason why the "Look Inside the Book" feature is not offered on Amazon for this book.

While the content is short and to the point, it is not anything beyond practical commonsense. If the publisher really wanted to reflect the content well, they'd change the title to: 9 Things That Ordinary, Reasonable, Upright Members of Society Already Know How to Do.

Even still, here's the little nuggets he mentions (in both books):

"I began to identify several ways of behaving and responding that successful leaders had in common - ways they handled themselves, their relationships, their work, and their lives. There was no identifiable personality type common to these people. Rather there were several identifiable ways that these people did business and lived life, and for the most part they all practiced them" (p. 10).

Way #1: Evacuate Your Soul
"Leaders explore their deep hearts and invest in their inner desires and drives" (p. 15).

"There is no shortage of things in this life that can cause you to bury your heart and soul. The truth is, however, that those who succeed in ... leadership and life have not allowed those influences to keep their dreams and desires hidden. They have dug them out, faced their [20] fears, taken risks, failed, gotten up again, and found that they could indeed build something magnificent" (pp. 19-20).

Way #2: Pull the Diseased Tooth
"Leaders do not allow negative things to take up space in their lives" (p. 29).
"Even good things that consume time, resources, energy, and attention and do not get you where you want to go are negative" (p. 31).
Negative energy can come be physical, relational, or emotional.
"If you know that investing more time toward reaching a solution is never going to help, then it's time to pull the plug and move on" (p. 33).

Way #3: Play the Whole Movie
"Leaders evaluate their decisions in the present based on how they will affect the future" (p. 41).
"Sowing and reaping is much bigger than the connection between what I'm doing now and what will occur immediately following. It's about what I will ultimately end up with if I sow this particular behavnior, choice, attitude, value, or strategy. It is the long-term view. ... What happens in the end? is the question the wise leader seeks to answer" (p. 44).
"Plot a movie, a vision of your life, your career, your relationships, your finances, and so on. See it, plan it, and then evaluate each scene you write every day in the light of where the movie is supposed to end" (p. 50).

Way #4: Do Something
"Leaders continually ask themselves, 'What can I do to make this situation better?' It doesn't matter whether they think they are to blame or not. Even if someone else is at fault, they take initiative to address the problem and seek a solution. Whatever the answer may be, ... leader make a move" (pp. 52-53).

Way #5: Baby Steps
"Achieve big goals by taking small steps over time" (p. 61).

Way #6: Hate the Right Things
"Character is in part formed by what we hate, because we move to be different from whatever that is" (p. 77).

Way #7: Give More/Give Better than was given to you(p. 85)

Way #8: Be Humble
"[Humble] Leaders do not strive to appear more than they really are" (p. 95).
"Successful people show kindness, understanding, and help to others who fail. Successful people are not derailed by their own failures; they accept them as a natural part of the process" (p. 101).

Way #9: Leaders do not make decisions based on the fear of other people's reactions.

Real Leaders Make Things Better

2010-01-19T16:42:00.002-05:00

Marhsall Goldsmith, who is listed as one the 15 most influential business thinkers in the world, shares the best leadership advice he ever got in this article by that name:

"The Best Leadership Advice I Ever Got"
Like many young Ph.D. students, I was deeply impressed with my own intelligence, wisdom and profound insights into the human condition. I consistently amazed myself with my ability to judge others and see what they were doing wrong.

UCLA Professor Fred Case was my advisor and head of the Los Angeles City Planning Commission - where I was doing my dissertation research. At this point in my career, he was clearly the most important person in my professional life. He was also a man that I sincerely respected. He had done an amazing amount to help the city become a better place. He was also doing a lot to help me.

Although he was normally in a very upbeat mood, one day Dr. Case seemed annoyed. He looked at me and growled, "Marshall, what is the problem with you? I am getting feedback from some people at City Hall that you are coming across as negative, angry and judgmental. What's going on?"

"You can't believe how inefficient the city government is!" I ranted. I immediately proceeded to give several examples of how taxpayer's money was not being used in the way that I thought it should be. I was convinced that the city could be a much better place if the leaders just listened to me.

"What a stunning breakthrough!" Dr. Case sarcastically remarked, "You, Marshall Goldsmith, have discovered that our city government is inefficient! I hate to tell you this Marshall, but my barber who is cutting hair down on the corner figured this out several years ago. What else is bothering you?"

Undeterred by this temporary setback, I angrily proceeded to point out several minor examples of behavior that could be classified as favoritism toward rich political benefactors.

Dr. Case was now laughing. "Stunning breakthrough number two!" he chuckled. "Your profound investigative skills have led to the discovery that politicians may give a more attention to their major campaign contributors than to people who support their opponents. I am sorry to report that my barber has also known this for years. I am afraid that we can't give you a Ph.D. for this level of insight."

As he looked at me, his face showed the wisdom that can only come from years of experience. He said, "I know that you think that I may be old and 'behind the times', but I have been working down there at City Hall for years. Did it ever dawn on you that even though I may be slow, perhaps even I have figured some of this stuff out?"

Then he delivered the advice I will never forget. "Marshall," he explained, "you are becoming a 'pain in the butt'. You are not helping the people who are supposed to be your clients. You are not helping me and you are not helping yourself. I am going to give you two options:

"Option A - Continue to be angry, negative and judgmental. If you chose this option, you will be fired, you probably will never graduate and you may have wasted the last four years of your life.

"Option B - Start having some fun. Keep trying to make a constructive difference, but do it in a way that is positive for you and the people around you.

"My advice is this: You are young. Life is short. Start having fun.

"What option are you going to choose, son?"

I finally laughed and replied, "Dr. Case, I think it is time for me to start having some fun!"

He smiled knowingly and said, "You are a wise young man."

Most of my life is spent working with leaders in huge organizations. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that things are not always as efficient as they could be - almost every employee has made this breakthrough discovery. It also doesn't take a genius to learn that occasionally people are more interested in their own advancement than the welfare of the company. Many employees have already figured out this one as well.

Real leaders are not people who can point out what is wrong. Almost anyone can do that. Real leaders are people who can make things better.

*see (http://www.marshallgoldsmithlibrary.com/cim/Harvard-Business-Online.php) for more articles like this one

Tozer on Leadership

2010-01-18T22:14:00.001-05:00

“I believe that it might be accepted as a fairly reliable rule of thumb that the man who is ambitious to lead is disqualified as a leader. The Church of the Firstborn is no place for the demagogue or the petty religious dictator. The true leader will have no wish to lord it over God’s heritage, but will be humble, gentle, self-sacrificing, and altogether as ready to follow as to lead when the Spirit makes it plain to him that a wiser and more gifted man than himself has appeared.

It is undoubtedly true, as I have said so often, that the church is languishing not for leaders but for the right kind of leaders; for the wrong kind is worse than none at all. Better to stand still than to follow a blind man over a precipice.

History will show that the church has prospered most when blessed with strong leaders and suffered the greatest decline when her leaders were weak and time serving. The sheep rarely go much farther than the Shepherd” (The Warfare of the Spirit, A. W. Tozer, 191,192).

“A number of factors contribute to bad spiritual leadership. Here are a few:

1. Fear. The wish to be liked and admired is strong even among the clergy, so rather than risk public disapproval, the pastor is tempted simply to sit on his hands and smile ingratiatingly at the people. ‘The fear of man bringeth a snare’ (Proverbs 29:25) ….

2. The economic squeeze. The Protestant ministry is notoriously underpaid, and the pastor’s family is often large. Put these two facts together and you have a situation ready-made to bring trouble and temptation to the man of [76] God. The ability of the congregation to turn off the flow of money to the church when the man in the pulpit gets on their toes is well known. The average pastor lives from year to year, barely making ends meet. To give vigorous moral leadership to the church is often to invite economic strangulation, so such leadership is withheld. But the evil thing is that leadership withheld is in fact a kind of inverted leadership. The man who will will not lead his flock up the mountainside leads it down without knowing it.

3. Ambition. When Christ is not all in all to the minister, he is tempted to seek place for himself, and pleasing the crowds is a time-proved way to on in church circles. Instead of leading his people where they ought to go, he skillfully leads them where he knows they want to go. In this way he gives the appearance of being a bold leader of men, but avoids offending anyone and thus assures ecclesiastical preferment when the big church or the high office is open.

4. Intellectual pride. Unfortunately there is in religious circles a cult of the intelligentsia which, in my opinion, is merely beatnikism turned wrong side out. As the beatnik, in spite of his loud protestations of individualism, is in reality one of the most slavish of conformists, so the young intellectual in the pulpit shakes in his carefully polished Oxfords lest he be guilty of saying something trite or common. The people look to them to lead them into green pastures, but instead he leads them to a sandy desert.

5. Absence of true spiritual experience. No one can lead another farther than he himself has gone. For many ministers this explains their failure to lead. They simply do not know where to go.

6. Inadequate preparation. The churches are cluttered with religious amateurs culturally unfit to minister at the altar, and the people suffer as a consequence. They are led astray and not aware of it” (The Best of A.W. Tozer, A.W. Tozer, 75-76).

Leadership According to Joseph

2010-01-13T12:37:00.001-05:00

In the book of Genesis, we meet Joseph, son of Jacob, who you may remember was the grandson of Abraham, the father of the whole nation. This is not just a guy from an ordinary family – he is in the line of the patriarchs – Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In today’s culture descendents of famous people sometimes hold out their family tree as if it’s a card that guarantees them a free pass from all of life’s hassles.

When I was in graduate school, the parking lot was color-coded to designate which students could park in certain places. Closest to the building were the faculty spaces, then moving outward were the graduate student spaces, then the undergraduate student spaces. Imagine my surprise when one rainy day I was running in from my car and saw a freshman girl park in a faculty space. And I was even more surprised to find that she had a faculty parking pass. But I knew who this girl was. During my time as a graduate assistant I had graded her papers. She was the daughter of a well-known pastor (whose name I will not tell you). He was certainly not part of the school faculty, but sure enough, his daughter had managed to gain a perk because of the family she came from.

I imagine that Joseph started out in life imagining that such perks would be coming his way – whatever perks might be equivalent to an upgraded parking space in his world. But that’s not what happened. In fact, it was precisely the opposite. Let’s start at the beginning and work our way through his life and uncover the lessons that it has for us that pertain to leadership.

Joseph was much like other great leaders:
He didn’t start out as an effective leader: Remember the story of Theodore Roosevelt.
He had a vision or dream of a particular future: This is the starting place of all potential leaders. He and his vision were inseparable: No one else was to fulfill his dream for him, and he would not be content until that vision came to pass.
He had to share his vision with others: If done rightly, it can draw people to become contributors; if done wrongly, it can create great problems.

As Joseph started out, with just a vision for the future, he had no influence with anyone except for his father. So before God could use him, Joseph had to grow and develop into the leader he had the potential to become. Joseph, like most effective leaders did two things that helped them grow:
He used time and endured trials.

First, he used time to learn and mature. Joseph was an arrogant kid. He was too arrogant for his own good. It wasn’t enough for him to be his dad’s favorite son, he had to rub it in to his brothers. When God gave Joseph a dream revealing that he would one day become the leader of his family, Joseph proudly told everyone about it…twice. His father rebuked and his brothers sought revenge, which they got.

One day, soon after Joseph’s reported his dreams to his family, his dad sent him out to check on his brothers who were out pasturing the sheep. The Bible reports, “When Joseph’s brothers saw him coming, they recognized him in the distance. As he approached, they made plans to kill him. ‘Here comes the dreamer!’ they said. ‘Come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these wells. We can tell our father, ‘A wild animal has eaten him.’ Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!’ … When Joseph arrived, they grabbed him and threw him into the well. … [But] when the Ishmaelites, who were Midianite traders, came by, Joseph’s brothers pulled him out of the well and sold him to them…. And the traders took him to Egypt” (Gen 37:18-28).

You could safely conclude that Joseph’s skills in working with people weren’t very good. He also lacked experience, wisdom, and humility, which are important for the effectiveness of any leader. Over the course of Joseph’s life, we can see how time and experience contributed to his growth and development as a leader.

The phases he went through mirror those on what’s been called the Learning Ladder:
Phase One: Unconscious Incompetence (aka Happy Ignorance). Everyone starts out with ignorance. There are things we simply don’t understand, but the trouble is that we don’t even know that we don’t understand them. This is the state of the typical adolescent today. They believe they have life all figured out, they think know it all, not realizing that life only seems so simple because they are unaware of its complexity. This is what caused John Wooden to say to his college basketball players, “It’s what you learn after you know everything that counts.” Joseph started out there too. He didn’t understand his own family dynamics. Either he was ignorant of how his brothers would react when he shared his dream, or he didn’t care about the strife he would create among them. Joseph didn’t know what he was doing. He was saying and doing things without understanding what the ramifications would be. Ultimately, it separated him from his family for two decades.

Phase Two: Conscious Incompetence (aka Depressing Realization). It’s said that people learn on a need-to-know basis. They don’t actually desire to learn anything until they realize the benefit they will have by learning it. This principle was proven in my own life when my wife and I had our first son. I had never changed a diaper, soothed a crying baby, or thought much about any baby-related things. I was incompetent and I knew it. Shortly thereafter, I was visiting websites, watching videos, and buying books in an effort to develop as a parent. In the same way, it took a life-altering incident to get Joseph’s attention and start him on the road to growth. Upon being sold into slavery in Egypt, he began to learn about what he didn’t know. He must have realized that if his dream was going to become a reality, he recognized that there were some skills he needed to develop. In the years that followed he experienced betrayal, opportunity, friendship, success, and temptation. It was that process that molded his character.

Phase Three: Conscious Competence (aka Intentional Progress). My baby boy, that I referenced earlier, began to grow as time went by. Pretty soon I noticed that he would prop himself up on his knees with his belly and elbows on the floor. Then he started crawling. A little later he started grabbing the edge of the coffee table and standing up. And eventually, he took his first steps. But even then, it wasn’t like he just started running all over the house. No, he would walk a bit, stumble and fall, then get back up and walk a bit more. It took effort and endurance to keep going. It would’ve been easier for him to just go back to his belly and start crawling, but he kept on learning to walk. Whether you’re trying to develop virtue, knowledge, or skill, there’s one thing you can count on: it’s going to take intentional effort. The great inventor, Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” When Joseph finally got his opportunity to lead, he did it with character, wisdom, and skill. He succeeded because he had been paying the price for the previous thirteen years. Those skills earned him the position of second in command of what was the most powerful nation on earth.

Phase Four: Unconscious Competence (aka Second Nature). To finish off my story of my boy’s development, he is now running and jumping. The problems that walking once posed for him no longer exist. What once seemed to take all his effort (mental and physical) just to take a step and not fall down, now takes place without his even thinking about it. He gets out of bed and runs across the house looking for “mommy!” When a major famine was in the forecast, Joseph skillfully executed a plan to keep the nation running. His previous years of pain and growth had developed him greatly. His growth was most clearly demonstrated by what he did during the years of famine. He had secured enough food for the people of Egypt, and had enough surplus to barter with the people of other lands. In the process, he brought all the money, livestock, and land of Egypt into his master’s possession.

To become an effective leader, a person needs time. But time alone doesn’t make someone an effective leader. Some people get discouraged and give up, or get complacent and stay put. Either way, there are far too many people who remain in Phase One their entire lives.

The Second thing that helped Joseph grow was the trials he endured.

Gold is purified only after it passes through fire. Diamonds are created only under extreme pressure. And great leaders grow through trials. It’s doubtful that Joseph would have risen to the level of leadership he did if he had merely stayed at home, exploiting his father’s favoritism, and telling everyone about the dream he had as a teenager. Joseph became a great leader by enduring, and even excelling, as a slave and as a prisoner.

Trials that bring growth are not unique to Joseph in the Bible. Moses, Daniel, Job, Naomi, David, Esther, Peter, Paul, and many others all endured trials as they traveled the road of growth.

James encourages people to endure through hardships by citing the example of the prophets and Job who had endured hardships in times past. He says, “For examples of patience in suffering … look at the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy” (James 5:10-11).

And, it was Jesus who said, “Love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you” (Luke 6:27-28).

Usually when people face adversity they have two options:
They can GIVE UP or they can GET UP.

Joseph got up. He certainly had plenty of opportunities, and some would insist the right, to become negative and give up. Who could blame him? He had been wronged by his brothers, Potiphar’s wife, and the chief butler. But instead of becoming bitter, he turned to God in the midst of his struggle and sought for God to make good out of their evil.

When people heed the counsel of Peter to, “not return evil for evil, but with blessing,” he insists that they receive a blessing (see 1 Peter 3:9). Three blessings in particular can be pointed out in Joseph’s story.

Enduring trials brings honor to God. Joseph didn’t whine, or rebel, or curse God for the troubles he faced. Instead, he gave God credit for his victories he won. As God received the glory, Joseph received the blessing. God blessed Joseph in Potiphar’s house as a slave. Then he blessed him as he worked in the prison. Four times in Genesis 39 the Bible expresses God’s favor on Joseph. For example, Genesis 39:23, “The LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made it prosper.”

Enduring trials brings new opportunities. Without the trial of slavery, Joseph never would have experienced the triumph of leadership in the powerful nation. Psalm 105:17-19 recalls what happened, “Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character. Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free; the ruler of the nation opened his prison door. Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household; he became ruler over all the king’s possessions. He could instruct the king’s aides as he pleased and teach the king’s advisers.”

Enduring trials develops character. The Apostle Paul, who knew suffering well, wrote to the church in Rome, “We can rejoice … when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation” (Romans 5:3-4).

Joseph was enjoying the comforts of working in Potiphar’s house when Potiphar’s wife offered him enjoyment of a different kind. When Joseph refused, she tore her own clothes and accused him of forcing himself onto her. For that, he was sentenced to time in prison.

Only in testing do people discover what their character truly is. People can say anything they want about their values, but when the pressure is on, they discover what their values really are. Martin Luther King, Jr. wisely observed, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in the moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy” (quoted in Becoming a Person of Influence, John Maxwell and Jim Dornan, 132).

By using time and enduring trials, Joseph came to see that God was growing him into a leader worthy of the title. By the time his father, Jacob, died, Joseph had come to see things from God’s infinite perspective rather than his own finite one. With his brothers in front of him, afraid and groveling for food and forgiveness, he spoke as only a leader can, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God that I can punish you? You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me into this position so I could save the lives of many people. No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children” (Genesis 50:19-21). At the old age of 110, Joseph, the once arrogant teenage dreamer, told his family, “Soon I will die … but God will surely come to help you and lead you out of this land of Egypt. He will bring you back into the land he solemnly promised to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob” (Genesis 50:24).

So we finish with an equation:
Using Time + Enduring Trials = Growth.

Leadership According to Jacob

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Pasteur the Pragmatist

When Louis Pasteur died, he was 73 years old and widely recognized throughout the world. It was not always like that. Although he’s credited with furthering medical progress more than any other man of his time, Pasteur was never a physician. He was a trained chemist and devoted much of his time to research in the lab. When he put out his theories on the existence of bacteria, he was mocked by those who had formal medical training.

But he continued his research and invented the process we now know as “pasteurization.” He had concluded that bacteria in milk was causing disease to spread, so he heated milk to 140 degrees F for thirty minutes, then cooled it quickly in sealed sterile containers. This is the process still used in most of the Western world today. Reflecting on his success, he was quoted as saying, “My strength lies solely in my tenacity. That is the secret that has led me to my goal.”

Making Things Happen

People can usually be divided into 3 groups:

1) those who make things happen

2) those who watch things happen

3) those who say things can’t happen

The pragmatic leader ignores those who say things can’t happen, he inspires those who watch things happen, and he gathers whoever he can to make things happen.

Pragmatic leaders emerge in every sphere of life. In business, they are the troubleshooters called in to resolve a problem quickly. In churches, they are involved in rebuilding ministries which are in decline.

“The layman’s definition of pragmatism is ‘do whatever works,’ or ‘get things done;’ actions that are unencumbered by values, principles or ideology. But pragmatism must not be confused with utilitarianism. Pragmatic leadership is more fully expressed as putting our values and vision into practice and testing them in action. Or, as William James famously said, emphasizing verbs rather than objects…” (“The Beauty, The Beast, and Pragmatic Leadership,” Ron Nahser, <http://newsroom.depaul.edu/depaulexperts/FacultyOPED/FacultyOPED_9_4102_12502.html> accessed 1/2/10).

Those who use this leadership style may face certain challenges, namely, feeling boxed in by existing policies and procedures that an existing organization has in place. They can sometimes be guilty of justifying whatever means it takes to get the job done, and in their desire to get the job done right and on time, they may step on other people in the process. Also they may be successful in gaining initial buy-in, but can be unsuccessful in building strong loyalty among their followers because they alienate people in the process by doing everything themselves.

Jacob (Genesis 30-31)

Throughout his life, Jacob took a pragmatic approach to dealing with the circumstances he encountered. When Esau came in from the field hungry, wanting some of the stew Jacob had been cooking, Jacob seized the opportunity to trade the stew for his brother’s birthright. Later, he aligned himself with his mother to steal his father’s blessing when the opportunity presented itself. When he arrived in Haran and met Rebecca, he negotiated a deal to marry her. When he returned home and heard his brother was coming out to meet him, he rearranged his camp in an effort to ensure his own safety.

Oftentimes Jacob’s approach to problems and opportunities earned him the reputation of being manipulative. Sometimes it was flagrant and other times it was done in an effort to do good. He is a rather ambiguous character in the biblical story.

On one occasion, Jacob began by identifying a problem that needed to be resolved in his own life. His problem was that he had invested his life creating prosperity for Laban (his wife’s father) while neglecting his own need to establish stability for his own family.

Genesis 30 records a conversation with Laban, in which Jacob insists, “You know how hard I’ve worked for you, and how your flocks and herds have grown under my care. You had little indeed before I came, but your wealth has increased enormously. The LORD has blessed you through everything I’ve done. But now, what about me? When can I start providing for my own family?” (vv. 29-30).

For pragmatic leaders, problems are seen as challenges, opportunities for practical ingenuity which can change the reality in front of them. When faced with a problem, these leaders develop a plan to resolve to resolve the problem. Theodore Roosevelt summed up this attitude nicely when he said, “Do what you can, with what you have, wherever you are.”

Jacob had a plan that would provide the assets he needed to resolve his problem. When Laban asked “What wages do you want?” (v. 31a), he replied, “Let me inspect your flocks today and remove all the sheep and goats that are speckled or spotted, along with all the black sheep. Give these to me as my wages” (v. 32).

To ensure his “integrity,” he says, “In the future, when you check on the animals you have given me, you’ll see that I have been honest. If you find in my flock any goats without speckles or spots, or any sheep that are not black, you will know that I have stolen them from you.”

The strength of this proposal was that it appeared to be a good solution from Laban’s perspective. Anyone looking at Jacob’s herd would see livestock that appeared to have defects (speckles, spots, etc.), while Laban’s herd would be composed of livestock that appeared to be pure. So Laban agreed (v. 34).

With the deal struck, the goats and lambs were separated – the speckled from the solid. But while he was still tending over all the flocks, Jacob used his knowledge of the herd to ensure the stronger livestock were bred into his herd and the weaker livestock were bred into Laban’s herd (vv. 41-42).

Other shepherds may have though Jacob was just lucky to have his herd grow so fast, but Jacob knew otherwise. He had kept back part of his plan from the negotiating table, which allowed him to profit in ways that Laban had not considered. Jacob’s plan was successful. It resolved his problem and provided for his family. As the size of his herd continued growing, he traded part of his herd for other assets which enabled him to build other assets until this part of the story concludes with Jacob becoming very wealthy with far more than simply sheep and goats.

Pragmatic Leadership

All leaders will eventually encounter situations that require a pragmatic, down-to-earth, practical, “hard-nosed” approach. Pragmatic leaders will rely on expertise, logical appeals, and rational persuasion. In contrast to more charismatic leaders who rely on direct emotional impact, pragmatic leaders’ success is based on their ability to craft workable solutions to problems which are brought on by some sort of crisis or change. Pragmatic leaders usually show three common characteristics (see Pathways to Outstanding Leadership, Michael D. Mumford, 131):

1) Emphasis on problem identification – a problem occurs when there is a difference between what “should be” and what “is.” Problems occur in areas of internal processes, external impacts, and end-user satisfaction. They can directly or indirectly relate to the present or future well-being of the organization. Problems are most easily identified through direct observation. This is the strategy of restaurants that leave “customer comment cards” on tables. They are relying on the customer to help them identify where they are falling short.

2) Emphasis on idea generation – this involves brainstorming to gather a number of different approaches to the problem. Steps to an effective brainstorming session include: First, making people aware of the brainstorming session – date, location, time of start, time of end, list of expected participants, and the topic to be discussed. This will allow them to begin directing their thoughts toward that topic in the days leading up to the session. Second, upon gathering, remind all participants that you are looking to generate a lot of ideas and that there are no right or wrong suggestions. No one is judging the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of ideas at this point, so the goal is simply to produce as many ideas as possible. Third, have the participants conduct a personal brainstorm on the topic for about 5 minutes. Fourth, have people call out their ideas and have others add to them during the time limit. Ideas should be captured on a white board or flip chart for effective recall in step five. Fifth, look over the list and take the time to combine similar ideas that are worded in different ways. Also it may be necessary to clarify the meaning of some of the ideas. It will be necessary to eliminate those ideas that are obviously irrelevant. Sixth, gain the consensus of the group by deciding upon the best idea (which, at this point, is probably of a combination of several earlier ideas). Do not give in to the temptation to go further than this by developing a strategy to go forward with the idea. That is beyond the scope of the brainstorming session for ideas. If these same people will be involved in preparing the strategy to implement the new idea, then coordinate with them about the next meeting, which will be used for strategic planning.

3) Emphasis on strategic planning – this involves laying out a concrete plan for moving forward to correct the problem. Whereas vision can be somewhat lofty, this is extremely practical. The items that need to addressed in a strategic plan are: First, activities. What exactly will take place? Second, measurements. How will these activities be quantified and evaluated? Third, goals. How will you know if these activities are successful? Fourth, resources. What materials or finances are needed for each activity? Fifth, personnel. Who is responsible for each task? Sixth, time line. Does any activity require another activity to be completed before it can be started? When will these activities be taking place?

In all these things, pragmatic leaders must always guard against what’s known as “paralysis by analysis,” the feeling that action cannot be taken because there is always more information to gather, ideas to generate, and strategies to analyze.

The key to success as a pragmatic leader is deciding the right things to do and then doing them. As former U.S. Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld advises, “Amidst all the clutter, beyond all the obstacles, aside from all the static, are the goals set? Put your head down, do the best job possible, let the flak pass, and work towards those goals” (“Rumsfeld’s Rules,” Donald Rumsfeld, <http://www.opinionjournal.com/wsj/?id=85000505> accessed 1/2/10).

Leadership According to Abraham

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Now we turn our attention to Abraham. Abraham had an encounter with God that launched him on a lifelong journey to fulfill the vision God gave him for his life. In that pursuit, Abraham modeled the characteristics of an entrepreneurial leader.

What was that vision?

Gen. 12:1-3 – “Go from your country and your relatives and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. … In you all of the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Abraham’s vision took clearer shape as his relationship with God grew. In Acts 7:2, Stephen reminded the Sanhedrin, “The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran.” That encounter with God was the first of several in Abraham’s life. In each meeting, God revealed a little more of His character to Abraham through various names. In the process, Abraham came to know God as “God Most High, Possessor of Heaven and earth (Gen. 14:19), his “shield” and “exceedingly great reward” (Gen. 15:1), the “Almighty, All-Sufficient God” (Gen. 17:1), “the judge of all the earth” (Gen. 18:25), “the Everlasting God” (Gen. 21:33), and “the-Lord-who-provides” (Gen. 22:14).

We can say 4 things about Abraham’s vision of what God wanted to do in his life:

1) It moved him out of his comfort zone to take risks that others may not have understood or thought to be wise. Abraham was being asked to leave behind all that was familiar for something he had never seen and only later would later learn about.

2) It required a long-term commitment to the cause, even when it seemed like little progress was being made. We go back to Stephen telling the story to the Sanhedrin in Acts 7. “Abraham left the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran until his father died. Then God brought him here to the where you now live.” Day after day, year after year, Abraham continued pursuing God’s vision for his life in spite of mounting evidence that it might never happen.

3) It required trust and obedient response (faith) even when he had questions about the details of that vision. Abraham’s faith did not give way in hard times. In Acts 7:5, we’re told: “But God gave him no inheritance here, not even one square foot of land. God did promise, however, that eventually the whole land would belong to Abraham and his descendants – even though had no children yet.” When God confirmed his promise to Abraham late in life, Abraham continued to believe God. Romans 4:18-21 elaborates on the situation: “Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping – believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, ‘That’s how many descendants you will have!’ And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead – and so was Sarah’s womb. Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to whatever he promises.” Had he waited for all his questions to be answered before heading out on the journey of faith, he might have never left his hometown.

4) It called him to make significant lifestyle-related sacrifices as he pursued his goal. While others remained in comfortable homes and familiar family settings, Hebrews 11:9 tells us that, Abraham lived in tents in the land of promise – as if he were a foreigner. But even there, “He looked forward to the city that had foundations, whose builder and maker was God” (Heb. 11:10). Knowing God’s vision for his strengthened both Abraham and his wife, Sarah, to accomplish and put up with more than they otherwise would have accomplished or put up with. Abraham’s vision enabled him to take significant risks with confidence, knowing that the vision would be realized. This is the very heart of the entrepreneurial spirit. Abraham and Sarah eventually had the child of promise, and Abraham’s future descendants preserved the blessing of God, inherited the land, and established the Kingdom of Israel ruled by David. Hebrews 11:12 fondly looks back saying, “And so a whole nation came from this one man who was as good as dead – a nation with so many people that, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, there is no way to count them.”

At the core of their being, entrepreneurial leaders are visionaries. God’s vision for their lives is the foundation from which they lead. Those who incorporate this leadership style into their own leadership toolbox would be well-advised to begin discerning God’s vision for their life.

Six Acts of Visionary Leadership

George Barna has identified “Six Acts of Visionary Leadership” that are helpful in guiding the visioning process:

1) Understand the basic concept of vision. Barna defines vision as “a clear mental portrait of a preferable future, communicated by God to his chosen servant-leaders, based upon an accurate understanding of God, self, and circumstance.” According to leadership experts Warren Bennis and Burt Nanus, “To choose a direction, a leader must first have developed a mental image of a possible and desirable future state of the organization. This image, which we call vision, … articulates a view of a realistic, credible, attractive future for the organization, a condition that is better in some important ways than what now exists.”

2) Understand the content of the vision. When it comes to vision, the path is more important than the pace. Heading in the right direction, not speed, is the issue. In The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey warns that you don’t want to climb the ladder of success only to find it is leaning against the wrong wall! For that reason, It is common for successful business leaders, political leaders, church leaders, and every other kind of effective leader to set aside time for vision-crafting. These sessions, which sometimes last several days at a time, are focused times designed to identify and clarify exactly what the organization needs to be working toward. In his book Built to Last, Jim Collins teaches, “A well-conceived vision consists of two major components – core ideology and an envisioned future. … It defines ‘what we stand for and why we exist’ [which] does not change (core ideology) and sets forth ‘what we aspire to become, to achieve, to create’ that will require significant change and progress to attain (the envisioned future)” (Built to Last, Jim Collins, 220-221).

3) Pass the vision around. The leader must find a way to communicate the vision in a way that attracts and excites members of the organization. In The Leadership Challenge by Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner, which is one of the most popular leadership books of all-time, they conclude, “It’s not enough for a leader to have a dream. A leader must be able to communicate the vision in ways that encourage people to sign on for the duration and excite them about the cause. Although the enthusiasm, energy, and positive attitude of an exemplary leader may not change the content of the work, they certainly can make the context more meaningful. Whatever the circumstances, when leaders breathe life into peoples’ dreams and aspirations, those people are much more willing to enlist in the movement” (The Leadership Challenge, 34).

4) Put the vision into action. Several years ago country singer Toby Keith released a song titled, “A Little Less Talk and A Lot More Action.” That’s the sentiment that entrepreneurial leaders need to have posted on their desks. Because of their desire for progress and the clear view of the future they possess in their minds, they can easily be drawn into new projects before other ones have gained enough ground to be sustained. Therefore, they need to be reminded that it’s what we do that counts, not just what we say we’ll do or what we’ve dreamed of doing. And according to British pastor and activist Steve Chalke, there’s a benefit to action. He insists that, “Action leads to insight more often than insight leads to action” (Change Agents, Steve Chalke, 37).

5) Refine the vision. As action leads to insight you are able to evaluate where your projections were right and where they were wrong. In Good to Great, Jim Collins calls this the Stockdale Paradox in honor of Admiral Jim Stockdale who was a Prisoner-of-War for 8 years during the Vietnam War. According to this lesson, “you must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end – which you can never afford to lose – with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be” (Good to Great, Jim Collins, 85). Another cause for refining the vision is that, “We live in an age when change is accelerating. … [F]or now, and for the next five or ten years, the rate of change will continue to go up and up, with huge consequences for nearly everyone” (A Sense of Urgency, John Kotter, 11). These changes can happen in technology, politics, and economics, all of which can have large ramifications on your vision of what needs to happen and what you can do to make it happen. When you see the results you’re getting and recognize significant changes that bring unforeseen challenges or open new pathways, it is a wise leadership decision to gather your team and refine the vision to accurately address the needs of the day.

6) Reinforce the vision. There are several ways this can be done. First, express appreciation to people for their involvement in the effort. Second, take time to celebrate their successes. Third, constantly recommunicate the vision in unique new ways. Fourth, provide people with the satisfaction of seeing progress made toward the goal. Fifth, describe the growth of your movement and the effect your cause is having. Sixth, let people in on your moments of genuine passion and enthusiasm for the vision. Seventh, introduce people to other people from other places who have embraced the same vision. And last, find new ways to encourage/motivate people who are on the verge of burnout or are beginning to lose sight of the goal.

We conclude with the words of God to Habakkuk:

“Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, so that the messenger can carry it to others. This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. When the time is right, it will not be delayed” (Habakkuk 2:2-3).

Entrepreneurial/Visionary Leaders

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At this point we'll move away from talking about what leadership is and start looking at what various leaders in the Bible did – for better and for worse – the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Product Diffusion

New products are constantly being introduced into the market – some are adopted and have “staying power,” while others are neglected and have a short shelf life.

Economists have studied this phenomenon and concluded that consumers can be grouped according to how quickly they adopt a new product or technology – if they adopt it at all. On the one extreme, some consumers adopt the product/technology as soon as it becomes available. On the other extreme, there are consumers who are among the last to purchase a new product/technology. In all, 5 different groups can be recognized base upon this criteria:

1) Innovators – well-informed risk-takers who are willing to try an unproven product. Innovators represent the first 2.5% of people to adopt the product/technology. This would be the category for those using the new e-book readers currently being tested by Amazon, Sony, and Barnes & Noble.

2) Early Adopters – based on the positive response of innovators, early adopters then begin to purchase the product. Early adopters tend to be educated opinion leaders and represent about 13.5% of people. This would be the category for those using the newer mini-pc laptops that retail for around $250 and are half the size of traditional laptops.

3) Early Majority – careful consumers who tend to avoid risk. The early majority adopts the product/technology once it has been proven useful by the early adopters. They rely on recommendations from others who have experience with the item in question. This group represents 34% of people. This would be the category for people using Netflix or some other on-line movie rental company. Most people who sign up for those services are now doing so based on a recommendation from a friend or other trusted source.

4) Late Majority – somewhat skeptical consumers who acquire a product only after it has become commonplace. The late majority represents about 34% of people. This would be the category for people who are just now beginning to use Social Networking like Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, blogs, etc. Those things have been around awhile and thousands of people are still opening accounts every day.

5) Laggards – those who avoid change and may not adopt a new product/technology until traditional alternatives no longer are available. Laggards represent about 16% of people. This would be the category for the person who was using a rabbit ear antenna on top of the television into 2009 when the government forced them to make a change. It could also be the category for those who had to purchase a DVD when Blockbuster stopped carrying any VHS tapes.

This is nothing new. In the days of horses and wagons, there were companies attempting to manufacture and market cars. The problem was that each car was very expensive because a team of workers were building only one car at a time. This caused problems in towns because the loud engines of the cars would spook the horses carrying people or goods. Because of that problem the potential safety hazard it posed, a few town banned cars altogether. It looked like the automobile would never replace the horse and wagon in America.

But in October of 1908, Henry Ford introduced the Model T car. Instead of waiting for cars to be special-ordered, Ford began to design and build an all-purpose car for the average family. He decided he could reduce costs if each worker in his factory assembled one part of the vehicle. The idea of an assembly line had never been tried before in manufacturing. The car was very simple to drive, cheap to purchase, and easy to repair. By the 1918, half of all cars in America were Model T’s. And within a generation, cars became a necessity for most American families.

Entrepreneurial Leaders
One of the most dynamic approaches to leadership is that of the entrepreneurial leader. The Random House Dictionary defines the entrepreneur as “a person who organizes, manages, and assumes responsibility for a business or other enterprise.” But in reality, the entrepreneur is at work long before the business or other enterprise exists. This approach to leadership usually begins with a vision of what success looks like and an intuition that solutions to current problems are possible.

The great NFL coach Vince Lombardi once commented, “The best coaches know what the end result looks like. … If you don’t know what the end result is supposed to look like, you can’t get there” (“The CIO As Coach,” Eric Goldfarb in CIO, July 15, 2000 http://www.cio.com/archive/071500/re.html).

Entrepreneurial leaders are the innovators of society, transforming the world as it is into a new world they see in their mind’s eye. They are pacesetters in culture. They are the first to introduce what later becomes a trend, and is ultimately adopted as a major thread in the fabric of the new culture.

Their attitude is captured by what the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw once said, “Some men see things as they are and say, ‘Why?’ I dream of things that never were and say, ‘Why not?’” (The Good Book on Leadership, 28).

Entrepreneurial leaders are men and women of large dreams. Against all odds, they pursue those dreams to build new businesses, develop new technologies, and offer new services to the world.

They are the inventors who see work hard to find workable solutions that others failed to see. They are the church planters who begin a work with limited people and funds. They are the missionaries who devote their lives to reaching unreached peoples of the world.

Entrepreneurial leaders pursue a vision that others may find hard to grasp. Sometimes they have to temper their enthusiasm because if they move forward faster than others can follow, they might just turn around and find themselves all alone. They face the temptation of acting without a clear plan to implement the vision. And it’s inevitable this leader will be criticized by those who insist on maintaining the status quo. But they must keep going because, as the old country preacher B.R. Lakin used to tell other pastors, “If you want to avoid criticism, just be nothing, say nothing, and do nothing.”

Because they are innovators, they are cutting their own path as they go. This means that their road is a hard one and some people will shy away from such risky endeavors. David Livingstone, a 19th century explorer and missionary to Africa, once received a letter from the president a philanthropic group asking if he’d found a good road to get to where he was so the group could send other men to join. Livingstone replied, “If you have men who will come only if they know there is a good road, I don’t want them. I want men who will come even if there is no road at all” (The 360-Degree Leader, John Maxwell, 104).

Ironically, the very strengths of these leaders may also be their greatest obstacle. Because they’re deeply committed to the pursuit of a vision, they may take extreme risks that others find too reckless to support. And sometimes, because of the challenge and risk are so high, entrepreneurial leaders may experience prolonged seasons of loneliness, become dissillusioned with the size of their vision, and possibly even give up on the vision altogether.

In some settings, the group they’re trying to lead might not be receptive to the vision. If that happens, they will experience great difficulty raising the support and resources necessary to accomplish the vision.

Entrepreneurial leaders have often made the mistake of pushing or forcing their vision on others. When that happens people feel like cogs in a wheel rather than partners in achievement and they are likely to leave in frustration or burnout. Sometimes these leaders are tremendous dreamers and vision-casters, but lack the skills necessary organize a strategic plan to make it a reality. If that’s the case, the entrepreneurial leader is wise to surround himself/herself with others more gifted in organizational management and strategic thinking.

Despite the risks, however, it's imperative that leaders have a vision because vision is part of what it means to be a leader. A leader must see before others do. He must see what others do not. And he must see further out than others see.

Walt Disney, the founder of Disney, dreamed of developing a family-oriented theme park based on the characters he developed in his cartoons. He led his company to begin the Disneyworld project, but died before it was completed. At the opening of the park, a television commentator said to Mrs. Disney, “If only Walt could have seen this.” She responded, “If he hadn’t seen it first, you wouldn’t see it today” (The Good Book on Leadership, 27).

According to George Barna, “If you want to be a leader, vision is not an option; it is part of the standard equipment of a real leader. By definition, a leader has vision: what else would a leader lead people toward, if not to fulfill that vision?”

So we can say that a major part of a leader’s job is to craft a vision; and that vision gives direction – both to the leader and to those followers who adopt the vision as their own. It motivates people out of complacency to achieve what otherwise might have been beyond them.

Leadership Style (E)

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For the last part of a person's leadership style, we look at experiences.

God uses all of our life experiences – the painful as well as the enjoyable.

“Think back over all the [significant] experiences of your life that have shaped who you are today: childhood joys and sorrows, the pain and thrill of adolescence, the struggle and accomplishment of adulthood.

“Imagine yourself walking down a long hallway. On the walls are paintings that reflect those life-shaping moments in your life. On one side are portraits of experiences that brought you excitement, achievement, or fulfillment. On the other side [are] portraits of experiences that caused pain, frustration, and [regret].

“… As you examine each life-event portrait that [comes] to mind, take time to think about how it has ultimately impacted you” (S.H.A.P.E., 97).

It should become clear that “You have been shaped by your experiences in life, most of which were beyond your control” (The Purpose-Driven Life, 246).

It’s helpful to examine at least six different kinds of experiences from your past:

1) Family experiences – What did you learn growing up in your family?

2) Relational experiences – Who are the friends that brought out the best/worst in you?

3) Educational experiences – What is your favorite subject to learn about?

4) Vocational experiences – What jobs have brought you the most enjoyment/success?

5) Spiritual experiences – When/Where have felt closest to God?

6) Painful experiences – What problems, hurts, disappointments, or regrets have you had?

“When you attempt to [lead] in ways you’re not shaped to [lead], it feels like forcing a square peg into a round hole. It’s frustrating [for you and for those who follow you] and it produces limited results. It also wastes your time, talent, and energy. [To lead well] you must discover your shape, learn to accept it and enjoy it, and then develop it to its fullest potential” (The Purpose-Driven Life, 249).

Leadership Style (P)

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A person's leadership style is also affected by their personality.

“God made introverts and extroverts. He made people love routine and those who love variety. He made some people ‘thinkers’ and others ‘feelers.’ Some people work best when given individual assignments while others work better with a team.

“… Your personality will affect how and where you use your spiritual gifts, passions, and abilities. For instance, two people may have the same gift of evangelism, but if one is introverted and the other is extroverted, that gift will be expressed in different ways.

“… When you are forced to [lead] in a manner that is ‘out of character’ for your temperament, it creates tension and discomfort, requires extra effort and energy, and produces less than the best results. This is why mimicking someone else’s [leadership style] never works. You have their personality. … You can learn from the examples of others, but you must filter what you [246] learn through your own shape. … When you [lead] in a manner consistent with the personality God gave you, you experience fulfillment, satisfaction, and fruitfulness” (The Purpose-Driven Life, 245-246).

In her book Personality Plus, Florence Littauer compares our personalities to rocks. She says, “We were all born with our own temperament traits, our raw material, our own kind of rock. Some of us are granite, some marble, some alabaster, some sandstone. Our type of rock doesn’t change, but our shapes can be altered. So it with our personalities. We start with our own set of inborn traits. Some of our qualities are beautiful with strains of gold. Some are blemished with fault lines of gray. Our circumstances, IQ, nationality, economics, environment, and parental influence can mold our personalities, but the rock underneath remains the same” (Personality Plus, Littauer, 11).

She goes on to identify four basic personality/temperament types (pages 24-27):

1) Popular Sanguine – the extrovert, the talker, the optimist

2) Perfect Melancholy – the introvert, the thinker, the pessimist

3) Powerful Choleric – the extrovert, the doer, the optimist

4) Peaceful Phlegmatic – the introvert, the watcher, the pessimist

Elmer Towns expands on these definitions:

“Sanguine leaders tend to have a lively outlook on life. They have the God-given ability to live in the present. They tend to be friendly and outgoing. They love people and have a tender and compassionate heart. They can also be restless. At times they are impractical and disorganized. … They [may] start many things but seldom finish them.

“Leaders with a melancholy temperament are sometimes ruled by a dark impulse. They are analytical, self-sacrificing, sensitive, and emotional. They may be faithful friends and behind-the-scenes workers. Their tendency toward self-examination can bring activity to a halt and drain their energy. They tend to be pessimistic, seeing many problems as larger than they really are.

“Choleric leaders are aggressive, quick, active, practical, and strong-willed. They are very independent. They make decisions easily for themselves and others. They thrive on activity and are prone to take a definite stand on issues. They are quick to recognize opportunities and push ahead. … They can sometimes be perceived as cruel and [may] not show much compassion.

“Phlegmatic leaders are happy and pleasant people. The are cool, calm, easygoing, and well-balanced. They are natural peacemakers. They are dependable, practical, and efficient. They usually do not take seek leadership roles and tend to be spectators in life. Their motto could be: ‘Live and let live’” (The Good Book on Leadership, 14-15).

In order to better understand your personality, you should consider two things:

1) How you relate to others

2) How you respond to opportunities

When you walk into a room full of strangers, do you naturally go about meeting new people or do you seek an isolated place and stay to yourself? One is isn’t better than the other, but they do indicate that people respond differently to the same situation.

Do you tend to be open and verbal with your thoughts and opinions or do you tend to keep them to yourself?

Are you more competitive or cooperative?

Do you like variety and innovation or routine and tradition?

The answers to these questions, and other questions like them, can help you make progress in understanding your personality type. But it’s important to remember that no two people are exactly the same. “While there are some similarities among people of the same [personality] type, [personality] doesn’t explain everything about you or anyone else. [Personality type] does, however, do an excellent job of helping you understand yourself, appreciate others, know the [type of] work that is best for you and make sense of some of your life choices” (LifeKeys, Jane A.G. Kise, David Stark, and Sandra Krebs Hirsh, 156).

Leadership Style (A)

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A person's leadership style is also affected by their abilities.

Throughout your life, you discover things you naturally do well. That also means there are certain things you don’t do well.

“So the question to ask yourself is, ‘Where do I naturally excel?’” (S.H.A.P.E., Rees, 69).

Are you good at fixing cars? Can you balance the checkbook? Are you able to draw? Do you have an eye for interior design? Do you have your neighbors asking for landscaping advice? Are you musically talented? Are you athletic?

This question begins moving beyond what you enjoy doing into what you’re good at doing – though hopefully you enjoy what you’re good at. American Idol auditions are full of people who love to sing, but can’t sing very well. It’s important to point out that everyone is not good at everything, but everyone is good at something.

It very likely that you will find yourself leading in an area in which you are skilled. Why is that? Because you develop influence by being better at something than others are, knowing more about something than others do, or by working harder than others at becoming better.

It was because of an incredible work ethic that Rudy Ruettiger, a small football player at Notre Dame, was able to win the hearts of fans, coaches, and fellow players.

This can also be seen in pop culture today. In a great scene in season 2 of The Office the hopeless manager, Michael Scott, is being coached in various business practices by the office intern, Ryan, because Ryan is a student at the local business school – in that case Ryan wins the right to be heard because he knows more than others AND he is working harder than others at becoming even better. And sure enough, by the end of season 3, Ryan has moved from intern to sales rep to Michael Scott’s boss as VP of the Northeast Region for the company.

Leadership Style (H)

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A person's leadership style is also shaped by heart.

"Heart [is not only] a vital organ, but an animating spirit, the source of our enthusiasm, passion, courage, zeal, and energy" (What It Takes to be #1, Vince Lombardi, Jr., 80).

Rick Warren tells us, “The Bible uses the term heart to describe the bundle of desires, hopes, interests, ambitions, dreams, and affections you have. Your heart represents the source of all your motivations – what you love to do and what you care about most.

“… Your heart reveals the real you – what you truly are, not what others think you are or what circumstances force you to be. Your heart determined why you say the things [238] you do, why you feel the way you do, and why you act the way you do.

“… God has given each of us a unique emotional ‘heartbeat’ that races when we think about subjects, activities, or [people] that interest us. We instinctively care about some things and not about others.

“… Another word for heart is passion. … Don’t ignore your [passions]. Consider how they might be used for God’s glory” (The Purpose-Driven Life, 237-238).

Why is passion important? Two reasons:
1) Passion is linked to effectiveness. “When you are doing what you love to do, no one has to motivate you or challenge you or check up on you … because you love serving in this way. … If you don’t care about a task, it is unlikely that you will excel at it. [But], the highest achievers in any field are those who do it because of passion” (The Purpose-Driven Life, 238-239).

2) Passion is the fuel of life. “[Passion] is the great source of energy and drive. It’s what makes us explore new [places], develop new relationships, and seek solutions to perplexing problems” (Halftime, Bob Buford).

Here are some questions that can help guide you to discover your own “emotional” heartbeat:

What drives you?
What do my dreams of the future drift toward?
What motivates me to take action?
What do I crave?
How can I make a difference by utilizing my spiritual gifts?
What are the top two needs that I love meeting?
What lessons have I learned that I could pass on to others?
What cause or issue am I willing to argue about?
If time and money were taken out of consideration, what would you do with your life?

(questions from: S.H.A.P.E., Erik Rees, 56-63).