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Credo ut Intelligam

~ I believe so that I may understand

Credo ut Intelligam

Monthly Archives: November 2018

Star and Guide

30 Friday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Quotes

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Holy Spirit

“O holy Spirit, Love of God, infuse Thy grace, and descend plentifully into my heart; enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling, and scatter there Thy cheerful beams; dwell in that soul that longs to be Thy temple; water that barren soil, over-run with weeds and briars, and lost for want of cultivating, and make it fruitful with Thy dew from heaven.  Oh come, Thou refreshment of them that languish and faint.  Come, Thou Star and Guide of them that sail in the tempestuous sea of the world; Thou only Haven of the tossed and shipwrecked.  Come, Thou Glory and Crown of the living, and only Safeguard of the dying.  Come, Holy Spirit, in much mercy, and make me fit to receive Thee–Amen.

-Augustine of Hippo, quoted in Great Souls at Prayer, 61

The Greatest

29 Thursday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Meditations

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Christ

Luke 9:46 is a good reminder of our human weakness, and how very vulnerable we are to pride.  Following the revelation of Christ’s glory in the transfiguration (Lk. 9:28-36), the demonstration of the disciples’ lack of faith that they could not drive out a demon (vv.37-43), and Jesus’ repeated prediction of His coming betrayal (vv.44-45), comes the remarkable statement that “An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest” (v.46).

That’s just like us, isn’t it?  We see Jesus’ glory, we see our weakness, and somehow we get the lesson that we’re pretty great.

Jesus has a different lesson for them, and for us.  “Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him stand beside him.  Then he said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.  For it is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest” (vv.47-48).

Christ has a lesson to teach, when He directs the disciples’ attention to a little child.  Greatness is not found in wealth, or education, or power, or celebrity status.  Greatness is found in simple and childlike faith.  Greatness is all about Christ: putting our focus off ourselves and onto Christ, and treating those the world sees as unimportant with Christlike love.  Christ is great; our concern should be advancing His greatness.

Not a Hard Question

28 Wednesday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Uncategorized

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Megachurch, Ministry

Following up on my last post, someone might ask, ‘but what are the dangers of having celebrity pastors?’

Well, here’s a ‘for-instance’: Harvest Bible Chapel Sues Former Members, Julie Roys for Defamation.

Should a megachurch and its celebrity pastor, James MacDonald, be suing a journalist and some other writers over criticism?  It’s not actually a hard question.

The answer is no.

What could possibly have inspired them to think this was a wise and righteous course of action?  1 Corinthians 6:1-11?…no, that wouldn’t do it…Luke 6:28?…no, that doesn’t help either.  One suspects the inspiration for this litigation comes from something besides the Scriptures.

This quote from MacDonald is, I think, telling:

“It isn’t that some of the criticism wasn’t fair. I believe in the marketplace of ideas and of regular, vibrant discussion inside a local church. It’s just that their words were often untrue, their information was incomplete, and over time their tone of reasonableness disintegrated, exposing their obvious goal of ending our ministry. Over a three–year period, their materially harmful untruths drove more than 2000 members out of our church — a church we founded with a handful of people more than 30 years ago and have given our lives to,” MacDonald explained in the statement in which he said he was “devastated.”

The church belongs to Christ.  It’s His church; we give Him our lives.  The bigger and more famous we get, the easier it is to forget.

 

Diagnosis or Symptom?

19 Monday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Musings

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Celebrity Culture, Irony, Megachurch

Notice anything ironic about this headline?

Leading pastors discuss dangers of ‘celebrity culture’ in church, how body of Christ should respond

Madam, I think the disease has progressed further than you realize.

Semper Reformanda

17 Saturday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Contra Mundum, Theology

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Authority, Scripture

The good folks at Reformation 21 have been so kind as to post another of my pieces.  This one is on the authority of Scripture for believers.  Head on over and check it out!

Power and Purpose

13 Tuesday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Meditations

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Power

In Luke 9:42, Jesus frees a boy from demonic possession.  Once again His divine power is displayed, and people respond with awe: “And they were all amazed at the greatness of God” (v.43).

But it is interesting that this demonstration of the power of God is followed by a statement of the unexpected plan of God.  “While everyone was marveling at all that Jesus did, he said to his disciples, ‘Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men'” (vv.43-44).

How could that happen?  He’d just shown that He could send a demon packing!  Surely a human betrayal–and one that He saw coming–would be no threat.  But it was going to happen because it was the purpose of God, it was why Jesus came, that He should be condemned for us and bear the penalty of our sins.

The power and the plan of God go hand in hand.  We must respect not only His might, but also His wisdom.  It can be hard to suffer knowing that God could take your suffering away.  But He has a plan.  His purpose involved sending His own Son to die in your place.  His purpose involves Christ coming once again, and raising to life eternal all who are united with Him by faith.

And He has the power to do it.

White Robes

10 Saturday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Contra Mundum

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“To the angel of the church in Sardis write:

These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.  I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.  Wake up!  Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God.  Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent.  But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.

Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes.  They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy.  The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white.  I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels.  Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev. 3:1-6, NIV).

            Recent times have seen a bit of a dust-up over the Trump administration’s attempt to root gender in biology.  Sensible and scientifically-valid though this is, it met with outrage from advocates for transgenderism.  Andrew Walker offered a sound response to the pro-transgender objections (see further here).  On the lighter side, the ever-incisive Babylon Bee has given a couple of good replies: “‘Anti-Science’ Trump Administration to Revert Definition of Gender to Objective, Scientific Standard,” “On Gender, Left Steps Up Effort Against Notorious Hate Group: Reality”.

            To these responses, I wish to add only a specifically theological observation.  Transgenderism represents a profound confusion about the nature of humanity.  It is the sort of confusion that is scientifically indefensible, but it is not surprising to find it in the world, which is lost in darkness and shuts out the light of truth.  What is worse is to see this sort of confusion about humanity among professed Christian teachers.  What are we to make of certain “transgender Christian leaders” expressing dismay about the idea that gender be defined in accordance with God’s design?

            Our response must be that loving your neighbor does not mean lying to them, and that sanctification is not an optional add-on to the Christian faith.  Christians are saints, those who have been sanctified by Christ, and are called to grow in sanctification.  There is such a thing as a Christian who struggles with gender dysphoria, but there is no such thing as a transgender Christian.  If cross-dressing is a sin (Deut. 22:5), it is most assuredly a sin for a man to claim to be a woman or to hormonally and surgically mutilate his body to appear female.  Our response to “transgender Christian leaders” is, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.  A man reaps what he sows” (Gal. 6:7).  The day of judgment is coming; repent and be saved.

            It has been the concerted and very effective strategy of the LGBTQ+ movement to hijack the civil rights movement, to portray perversities as oppressed minorities.  The rainbow revolution has only succeeded to the extent that it has deceptively seized moral high ground.  Once again, it must be stressed that this is expected of the world, which is in the grip of the evil one; but it should not be seen or tolerated in the church.  Any “Christian leader” who dons a rainbow stole must face the truth that believers are called to walk before God dressed in white.

            That comparison brings to mind a scene from J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring.  Gandalf has come to meet with his companion Saruman, unaware that Saruman has gone over to the enemy.  “I looked and saw that his robes, which had seemed white, were not so, but were woven of all colours, and if he moved they shimmered and changed hue so that the eye was bewildered.”  Purity no longer pleased him. 

This is a terrible thing to see infiltrating the church.  Christianity is not compatible with the LGBTQ+ revolution.  We must choose between rainbow garb and robes of white.

Listen to Him

06 Tuesday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Meditations

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In His incarnate ministry, Jesus’ glory was usually veiled.  He is fully God and fully man, but most people saw only a remarkable man.  This is a special theme of Luke 9, where the people recognize that Jesus is a great prophet (He is), and the disciples acknowledge that Jesus is the Christ (He is), but the fullest revelation comes on the mount of transfiguration, where the veil is torn away for a moment, and three disciples are confronted with the divine majesty of the Son of God.

“As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.  Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus” (Lk. 9:29-30).

Even so, their full understanding of His identity mostly waits until His resurrection.

In that story of the transfiguration, Peter blurts out how useful he and the other disciples can be, building bungalows for Jesus and His esteemed companions.  But God has something else in mind.  He covers the mountain with a cloud–bringing the shelter Himself–and speaks to the disciples:

“This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him” (v.35).

How often we have our own plans for how things should be done in Christ’s kingdom.  It might be useful to contemplate the connection here between the glory, majesty, and authority of Christ, and the command to listen to Him.  The Christian life is lived in submission to Christ.  The Church is to follow her Lord.  We must learn to listen to Him.

About that hex…

03 Saturday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Contra Mundum

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Witchcraft

“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars–they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.  This is the second death” (Rev. 21:8, NIV)

A recent item in the news has detailed the plans by certain modern pagans to put a hex on Justice Kavanaugh.  There are two possibilities for interpreting such behavior: it is either impotent and silly wickedness, or it is demonic wickedness.

If the former, if this is a powerless display of the folly people will engage in when they have rejected God, the rise in witchcraft in contemporary America should remind us of the epigram attributed to G.K. Chesterton, which is something to the effect that “when people cease to believe in God, the danger is not that they will believe nothing, but that they will believe anything.”

If the latter, if these witches are engaging in real sorcery (i.e., trafficking with demons), then it should suggest to us that secularism is a farce.  When a culture rejects Christ, they will not arrive at some neutral and ideology-less open space; they will open themselves to pagan superstition or atheistic dehumanization–in our case, both.

In either case, this gathering ought to remind us that witchcraft is not the benign, life-loving, spirituality that it tries to sell itself as these days.  Cursing your enemies was a major element of ancient paganism.  While witchcraft needs to appear benign because of society’s suspicion, it will; let it become acceptable, and do not be surprised if the mask falls off.

God said to Israel:

“Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.  Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD” (Dt. 18:10-12, NIV).

Witchcraft is wickedness, and God will judge those who practice it.  But this is the time of His mercy, the time to repent of all such evil and receive the gift of eternal life in Jesus Christ the Lord.

Cruciform Living

02 Friday Nov 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Meditations

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Discipleship

There are places in this world where it seems like Satan tries to stamp out the church by force; where Christianity is hard because it is so dangerous.  North Korea, for instance, would fit this description.  But in the West, where we have enjoyed not only a tremendous amount of freedom but also unparalleled prosperity, I wonder if the enemy takes a different mode of attack.  Here the church is not to be pressed in the vice of persecution, but rather, seduced.  We are told that we can enjoy ease, luxury, and popularity in this life and still be faithful to our Lord.  Christianity need not involve self-sacrifice to any uncomfortable degree.

We in the American church need to reflect on the words of Christ: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.  For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.  What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?” (Lk. 9:23-25, NIV).

The world has long offered the American church a more comfortable path of discipleship.  But that is not, actually, theirs to offer.  Only the Lord can call disciples, and only He can show us the way to follow Him.  He has called us to cruciform living.  We must learn to see the lies of the world for what they are.  The call of Christ remains the same: ‘take up your cross daily and follow me.’

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