Pilgrim Heart

The Nations & the Kingdom of God - a Commentary on Psalm 2 (II)

He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, "As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill." (Ps 2:4-6).

Who does God laugh at? The raging nations? The oppressed? Humanity in general? No, he holds those in derision who have held him in derision by abusing their power - the unjust rulers. God ordains government, and Romans 13 tells us that government rightly exercised is to be respected and obeyed. But government which exploits its citizenry for personal gratification will face the wrath of God.

As how is this wrath expressed? Through earthquake, tsunami, fire, war? No, through announcing to the temporal powers that a greater power is already in place above them: Christ is reigning from Zion.

The proclamation that Jesus is even now enthroned, that God has put everything under his feet, should be the beating heart of the church's response to political turmoil and unheaval. There is no better time to preach the gospel than when the kingdoms of the earth are being shaken, for that is merely evidence that we are "receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken," (Heb 12:28) - the rule of Christ.

The Christian's ability to see Christ ruling over all with our spiritual eyes whilst it is not yet evident to our natural eyes (Heb 2:8-9) gives us a uniquely privileged position to understand the times, and a clear course to plot: preach the gospel; live the gospel "having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace" (Eph 5:15).

Why would such a message be terrifying to the rulers of the earth? Because it calls into being a people with an allegiance to a higher authority and with access to a higher power: the empowering of ordinary people by the Holy Spirit is a disempowering of all human authorities which have thrown off their God given role and limitations.

So pray for our brothers and sisters in the places of conflict around the world; that their gospel proclamation will be strong and full of the peace of God: for God's answer to the unruly nations of the earth is "Jesus is already reigning over all" - and that is the gospel of the kingdom we are called to proclaim.

 

Seeing Jesus (1)

Have you ever considered what the ultimate manifestation of the presence of God might be? I have been doing a preaching series on the presence of God and when I came to consider the ultimate manifestation of God's presence on earth today, I was slightly surprised by where the scriptures took me (that's one of the things I love about the Word of God!).

The Kingdom of God and the Family Unit

Recently in my studies I have been considering the role of the family unit in the Kingdom of God. Our paradigm for the family unit is Adam and Eve, still valid today according to Jesus Mt 19:3-6. And in extending the Kingdom of God again our paradigm is Adam and Eve's commission Gen 1:28.

So the bible clearly ties these 2 together, the family unit and the extending of the Kingdom. The family unit is the building block of the Kingdom of God; which is why God is so interested in household salvation (see these examples).

Out of interest I thought I would see what people were saying on the internet about the Kingdom of God and the Family Unit. Many, many Christians have much to say on both of the subjects, much of it excellent.

However, the only groups I could find who linked together these two great conceptions of God were either cults (Moonies and Mormons) or heretics. That was sad. Anyone know of any good stuff on this on the internet or in books?

I will certainly be posting on this topic in the near(ish) future!

Trinitarian Patterns in Scripture 6

"Peter, and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who are elect exiles of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you." (1 Peter 1:1-2)

Here's another quite obvious trinitarian reference, but I was struck by the activity of the united Godhead in this opening blessing from Peter: it is to do with the readers' (and of course) our election.

Peter says we are elect exiles - that it our calling as God's elect, to live as exiles in this world because we belong to another. We have come to be the elect people of God because the Father foreknew us - and that means so much more that just he knew ahead of time: it means that in his great purpose for all creation he has deliberately planned for and chosen us!

We are also elect in the sanctification of the Spirit - we are brought into a process by and of the Spirit by which he is transforming us to be just like Jesus. There is something bigger here to. The Spirit has always been about sanctifying God's creation - even when all creation was "good" it was still immature and therefore in need of transformation. After the fall there was need also for the purging of sin and its effects from creation. Mankind posed such opposition to this work of the Spirit that God said, "My Spirit shall not contend with man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years." And a little later, "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the earth." (Gen 7:3,7). God's solution was to create a new heavens and a new earth (see 2 Peter 3) through the flood and to repopulate the world through Noah and his family.

The Spirit of God continues to work throughout history not just in sanctifying individuals but in transforming creation so the the glory of the Lord may be seen. It is into this ongoing work of the Spirit that we have been elected: the transformation and glorification of the world through the coming of the Kingdom of God.

Finally we find the why of our election it is "for obedience to Jesus Christ". It is to bring us under his rule and to form a people who will express the Kingdom of God in every aspect of life.

"May grace and peace be multiplied to you." Amen!

Trinitarian Patterns in Scripture 5

Through him [Jesus] we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. Ephesians 2:18

Paul is talking about the gospel being to the Gentiles and the Jews (hence "both"). What we find here again is the synergy of the persons of the Godhead and their inseparability when it comes to the life of believers: we come to the Father through the Son and in the Spirit.

"Through Jesus" and "in the Spirit" are phrases that occur again and again in the NT particularly in the context of worship. For example we worship "in Spirit and in truth" (John 4:24) and "through him [Jesus] let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God" (Hebrews 13:15).

Our only access to the Father is through Jesus and in the Spirit. Praise God that the way that is open through Jesus will never be closed to us (Hebrews 9:8, 10:20) and so long as the Spirit of God dwells in you, you will be in the Spirit (Romans 8:9) - so our way to the Father can never be blocked!

Trinitarian Patterns in Scripture 1

I am sure that most Christians will agree that God is revealed to us through his Word. Whilst I have no time for bible codes, sometimes there are deeper layers to the revelation of Scripture, for example the significance of different numbers or the various forms of parallelism in the OT.

One of these slightly "under the surface" aspects of Scripture seems to me to be the trinitarian nature of some passages. Paul is the most obvious in this way with scriptures such as:

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. (1 Corinthians 12:4-6)

Here we see the unity of the work of the Spirit, Lord (Son) and God (Father). This emphasis in the unity of work and purpose of Father, Son and Spirit are of great importance to us today when many Christians seem to have 3 Gods rather than one, where as the Bible says:

"Here O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One!" (Deut 6:4)

I plan several short posts showing some of these trinitarian passages and what they reveal about the oneness of our wonderful God!

Are You a Radical Protestant?

I have nearly finished reading Howard Snyder's "The Radical Wesley" - a very interesting read blending biography with an easy to understand analysis of church renewal.

In the book Snyder suggests 7 characteristics for a model of Radical Protestantism. I thought you might be interested to see where your church experience and personal convictions compare with this model!

The Radical Protestant Model of Church

1. Voluntary adult membership based on a covenant-commitment to Jesus Christ, emphasising obedience to Jesus as necessary evidence of faith in him. Believer's baptism has usually been the sign of this commitment, but nor always. The point is not, fundamentally, the form of joining the covenant community but the fact and meaning of the conscious committed membership in it.
2. A community or brotherhood of discipline, edification, correction and mutual aid, in conscious separation from the world, as the primary visible expression of the church.
3. A life of good works, service and witness as an expression of Christian love and obedience expected of all believers. Thus there is an emphasis on the ministry of the laity, rather than of a special ministerial class and the church is viewed as "a missionary minority."
4. The Spirit and the Word as comprising the sole basis for authority, implying a de-emphasis on or rejection of church traditions and creeds.
5. Primitivism and restitutionism. The early church is the model, and the goal is to restore the essential elements of early church life and practice. This usually implies some view of the fall of the church as well.
6. A pragmatic, functional approach the church order and structure.
7. A belief in the universal church as the body of Christ, of which the particular visible believing community is but a part.

So, which boxes do you tick?

Quotation from "The Radical Wesley" p 114, Snyder. P.S. the pic is Snyder not just some random bloke in a beard! Click on the link to WineSkins to visit Snyder's website.

Is Orthodoxy Overrated? Part 2

"A man may be orthodox in every point [and yet] have no religion at all."

John Wesley, "The Way to the Kingdom," Works, VI, 141.

[Please note, the title of this post is not an indication that I intend to publish heresies on this blog!]

Give Them What They Want?

I heard a news story this morning about the recovery of Marks and Spencers (a large UK retail chain). It's a great capitalist success story and at the heart of that success is the principle of giving the public what they want.

I was struck by how sad it is that many seek to build the church in the same way - by giving people what they want. Those with a charge from God to lead his people cannot follow this policy, and for all believers (for we are all ministers of Christ) we are answerable to God not to people.

When the apostle Paul met with the Ephesian elders for the last time he reminded them of his own ethos when it came to teaching the people of God:

"for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God." Act 20:27

Sometimes the whole counsel of God is not what we want to hear, but it is always what we need to hear. The partial word of God, that promises much but challenges little, is a dangerous thing! To live the life of God we need the whole counsel of God. So next time you have opportunity to minister to God's people, don't just tickle their ears, give them what they need!

Is Orthodoxy Overrated?

Here are the results of my heresy test...

You scored as Chalcedon compliant. You are Chalcedon compliant. Congratulations, you're not a heretic. You believe that Jesus is truly God and truly man and like us in every respect, apart from sin. Officially approved in 451. Chalcedon compliant 100% Nestorianism 33% Apollanarian 33% Pelagianism 33% Monophysitism 33% Adoptionist 17% Monarchianism 17% Gnosticism 8% Arianism 0% Docetism 0% Donatism 0% Albigensianism 0% Modalism 0% Socinianism 0% Are you a heretic? created with QuizFarm.com

I found a couple of the statements difficult as they contained 2 ideas and I agreed with one but not the other; but thankfully I am 100% orthodox, so obviously orthodoxy is not overrated!

I found the link on Boxologies - see my "Blogs to Enjoy" sidebar for a link to that site.