Why Did Jesus Come? Part I

In the last 2 years I have have done a slow and methodical study through the New Testament asking the question,"Why did Jesus come to earth?" I came up with over 600 answers to this question from Scripture. The purpose of what is called the "Incarnation" is a lot more complex than most people think. In the short Epistle of 1 John for example, we find ten distinct reasons. Let me share the first three with you.

1. Jesus came to provide a remedy for our addiction to sin. Chapter 1, verse 7 states "but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin."  Whether sin is an active rebellion or a passive indifference toward God is immaterial. It is the central fact of life that all of us have to contend with. And Jesus came and specifically went to the cross (hence the reference to His blood)  with the express intention of providing us a remedy for our sin. Sin is something from which we must be cleansed. It makes us dirty and Jesus can make us clean! Jesus came for the purpose of cleansing us from all our sin!

2. Jesus came to be our "Advocate." Chapter 2 verse 1 reads,  "And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." The word "Advocate" means that He is our defense attorney, literally, one who comes along side of us. Jesus used this word to describe the work of the Holy Spirit in the Gospel of John.  Jesus is fulfilling that role at this very moment.

We can go to Him (that is prayer), confess our sins (this means admitting them) and He represents us before the Father. In 1:9, we are told, "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." He always wins His case! And He is our Advocate! In His role as Advocate, He deals with the presence, power and penalty of our sins!

3.  Jesus is the "propitiation for our sins." The Apostle John adds, "and not for ours only, but for those of the whole world." The word "propitiation" is translated the  "atoning sacrifice" in one translation (NIV). It is the word used to describe the Mercy Seat in the Ark of the Covenant in the ancient Temple. God said when He saw the blood of the sacrifice sprinkled on the Mercy Seat, He would pass over and not bring judgment. God's Mercy Seat for our sins was the cross of Christ. Hence, He is the reason God forgives. Our sins were judged in Jesus on the cross. He is our "Propitiation!"

 Jesus was, to use a popular term, purpose-driven. In this passage, we discover that He came to cleanse from sin, be our Advocate when we sin, and be our substitute taking our punishment for the sins we have committed. What a great Savior! Next Tuesday we’ll dive into 3 more reasons Jesus came. 

The Church and Best Practices in Business: Ask the Right Questions

It is no secret that my favorite business gurus are John Kotter and Peter Drucker. Both have shared a wealth of insight on how organizations function effectively. The Five Most Important Questions You Will Ever Ask About Your Organization by Peter Drucker is one of the most insightful books on the subject of leadership. These five questions are important if someone desires to succeed in business. They are equally important for anyone who desires to succeed in ministry. Grasping issues related to change, leadership, and management are critical for leaders of any kind of organization. Every pastor and every minister, no matter what their area of responsibility, should ask these questions on a regular basis. Identifying the correct answers is critical if the church or ministry is to flourish. Consider these:

1. What is our mission? In other words, why do we exist? What are we trying to accomplish? After all the prayer and the  effort, what is it we want to see occur in our midst? The key, here, is that these need to be driven by Biblical imperatives. What does God want done here in this time and place? Another way to phrase the question is "what business are we in?" If the congregation's collective answer does not match the Biblical imperatives, and if the ministers' answers do not match the Biblical imperatives, the church or ministry has serious work to do, or it will necessarily face serious consequences.

2. Who is our customer? Drucker restates the question thusly: "who must be satisfied for the organization to achieve results?" In church life, this can be a touchy subject. I customarily would tell our church members that "we are the only organization in the world that exists for the sake of those who are not yet members." All the while, pulling against this was the mindset of many, "meet our needs!" Trying to balance these two sets of demands (polarities) is certainly not an easy task! By acquiescing to either one at the expense of the other can have detrimental effects in the church or ministry.

3. What do the customers value? This can only be answered by identifying who the customers are and by asking them questions that need to be answered. I tell my preaching students repeatedly, "don't preach sermons answering questions no one is asking." We need to ask both the church and the unchurched, insiders and outsiders, what matters to them. In the words of some, we are asking how can we create and add value to our customers? In the church, we should be asking, "what needs can we as a congregation meet?" "Where are people hurting?" That is the key.

4. What are our results? Drucker once said: "Success in any organization is simple. Find out how they keep score, and score." So, when all of our efforts are added up, what results can we show? It always astounds me when people who talk (or write) but have no results to speak of  in their labors are given additional responsibility. Did not Jesus himself say, "he who is faithful in that which is least, I will make ruler over much"( Luke 16:10)? When I read the book of Acts, I see a lot of emphasis on what occurred, on the results. In the ministries with which we have been entrusted, can we show any results? Another word for results in Scripture is "fruit."

5. What is our plan? In short, the plan is "a concise summation of the organization's purpose and future direction. The plan encompasses mission, vision, goals, objectives, action steps, a budget, and appraisals" (see Drucker p.65.) An old adage states, "for a plan to work, you must work the plan." It is of incredible importance in any organization and especially the church and Christian ministries to know and agree on the "plan." Of critical value is getting everyone in the organization to embrace the plan and then to execute the plan.

These five questions must be answered well if the church or Christian ministry is to flourish.

Is God Too Big for One Religion? A Response.

Years ago I learned two principles which I have never forgotten. First, ideas have consequences. I first understood this as I read Richard Weaver's book by the same title. In brief, his motive was an attempted prescription for the perceived decline of western civilization. A second principle, like the first, is that often times actions (and ideas) have unintended consequences. In fact, some label this the law of unintended consequences. At times, in pursuit of one objective, a result is attained that is both unexpected and counter-productive.

These two principles jumped into my mind when I read Joe Phelps' essay, "God too big for one religion," published by the Associated Baptist Press (Phelps is the pastor of Highland Baptist Church in Louisville, KY which is affiliated with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship).

The essay begins with Phelps' personal story of a grade-school friend, Mindy, who was Jewish. By his description she was a wonderful person. He then relates his personal dilemma because he had been taught that without Jesus, all people, including Mindy, were lost.

This dilemma was rectified, he relates, when "a quiet voice rose in my heart that responded: 'Mindy is my child and I love her as much as I do you. Let me worry about Mindy.'" He then goes on to affirm his own conviction that "exclusivity" is a bad thing. He explains, "when one approaches faith with a presupposition of exclusion it is easy to find passages to justify this position." He goes on to argue that "the heart of God is inclusive and gracious." His conclusion is that "we (practitioners of all faiths) are all on the same team. Our understandings of God may differ, but ultimately, there is one Sacred Center toward which all faiths move when practiced in humility and reverence." He closes by quoting Michael Franti's "God is too big for just one religion."

So, how do you respond to an argument like this?

His "idea" is based on his boyhood feeling, "a quiet voice...in his heart." The idea, simply put, is his belief that all who practice some kind of faith are acceptable to God. How does he know? He had a feeling. Here, his emotion has displaced Scripture as the norm of what is to be believed.

By what he says and does not say, Phelps is arguing that Christianity is one valid religion among many valid religions. Of more critical importance is his refusal to believe that Jesus is the exclusive way to Heaven. If what Phelps believes is what he says, Jesus is optional.

So what are the consequences of his ideas? If people are lost without a Savior, and that is the unequivocal message of the Bible, then he in his "I am OK, you are OK" argument, gives his readers and listeners assurance of a salvation without a Savior. And if a person actually believes that they are "good enough," or that "all religious roads lead to Heaven," then they need not turn to Christ which is in effect what he was communicating concerning his friend, Mindy.

The unintended consequence, in his attempt to make Mindy feel safe, is that he has unintentionally locked her into her lostness. I only wish he had embraced the prayer of Paul, "my heart's desire and prayer to God for them (including Mindy) is that they might be saved" (Rom. 10:1).

Flannery O'Conner, the great American writer, stated, "the truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it." For Phelps, it certainly appears that truth for him is optional, if truth is indeed to be measured by Scripture.

Pastor Phelps has the right to believe whatever he wants. He does not have the right to parade it as orthodox Christianity. Neither does it give him the right to give people without Christ an assurance of Heaven. I wish a quiet voice would rise up in his heart and say," this is one you need to reconsider."

In Honor of Great Men: A Reflection on the Legacy of Leon McBeth

During my academic training, I had the privilege of studying under three great church historians, William Estep, Leon McBeth, and Tom Nettles. Each was outstanding in their fields of expertise. I had the honor of studying under the best scholars in America at the time. Dr. Estep passed away in 2000. Today is the funeral service honoring the life of Dr. Leon McBeth who passed away this past Monday, April 29, 2013.

   Although Dr. McBeth and I had different presuppositions, I had a profound appreciation for his learning and ability. These are some things I learned from him.

   My first memory was in his Introduction to Church History class. He had the ability to make the subject matter come alive. As he walked us through the Patristic period, I recall his assignment to go to the library and read so many pages from the Early Church Fathers which I did. His assignment's intention was to expose us to the primary sources. From this beginning I gained an incredible appreciation for the history of the church. Listening to him lecture was like getting a guided tour through the annals of Christian history. I never got over this guided tour.

  During my PhD work, I took Dr. McBeth (he preferred to be called Professor McBeth) for three year-long seminars: American Christianity, Baptist History, and Research and Teaching.

   One thing I noticed about Dr. McBeth was that he read with incredible speed and almost perfect comprehension. The summer before we started the American Christianity seminar, he had us read ahead of time, Sydney Ahlstrom's A Religious History of the American People as preparation for his seminar. He taught us to read much. 

   When it came to researching, he required us to be meticulous in our documentation. He taught us as we prepared our notes to write on only one side of a sheet of paper. To violate this was to misplace valuable information. He was tremendously well organized. When he prepared a manuscript, he literally had shoeboxes of notecards in order of source citations from start to finish. He demanded that we do our research well before we ever began to write. I have tried to live by that.

   I recall a discussion we had one day when he pointed out that in our research papers each student had selected a subject that carried self-interest. In fact, he taught us to write about subjects that we cared about. Do not waste your time writing on matters that you do not care about seemed to be his motto. That was good advice. Write in your area of passion. His, particularly, was Baptist history and he conveyed that love to us who studied under him.

  I do remember that he cared about his students as individuals. His attitude was not that he taught history, but that he taught his students about church history. His passion was that we would cherish the heritage that we had been given and bequeath it to others.

  When a student said or wrote something which he knew to be inaccurate, instead of belittling the student, he would ask questions that would lead the student to clarify his thinking. I always appreciated his tact and this approach to teaching.  I have tried to model that as best I can in the classroom.

  The last time I talked with Dr. McBeth was a chance encounter at the campus bookstore at Southwestern years ago. As a Baptist academician he was conflicted over the conservative resurgence. He knew that it was necessary especially at addressing the unchecked extremes. But it left a bitter taste in his mouth. As a Baptist historian he was witnessing the passing of an old order and it was an incredibly difficult adjustment. One of life's most difficult lessons is coming to grips with the reality that life goes on, and sometimes it is without us.

  Romans 13:7 instructs believers to "give honor to whom honor is due." Professor McBeth was a man to whom honor is due. He was a great professor, a great researcher, a great writer, and a great role model for aspiring academicians. May he rest in peace!

How to Handle Hurts in the Church

Fern and I recently got the pleasure of hearing one of my heroes, Jim Henry, speak at the Mega Metro Pastor’s Conference. He talked to us about how to handle hurts in the ministry. 

He began by sharing some of the painful experiences he had in the ministry. If you are in the ministry very long issues will arise and people will take a cheap shot at you. It comes with the territory. It is just a matter of time. So the issue is not if but when these things occur, how do you respond? Jim's notes apply not only to those in leadership but also to anyone who may experience hurt by others in the church.

1. Face reality. Painful situations hurt. To pretend they do not simply compounds the problem.

2. Pray the Word of God. This is specially a time to stand upon and claim the promises of God. He shared that this one discipline got them through many times.

3. Do not respond too quickly when you are hurt. Sometimes a knee-jerk reaction or a word spoken too soon simply compounds the problem. Make sure you are prayed up and prayed through before you respond to anything. 

4. Remember that it is better to confront an issue than to brush it under the rug. Too often failing to address an issue simply gives it time to get worse. 

5. Try to be noble and respond with grace as best you can. How would Jesus respond in this situation is a good question to ask.

6. Get alone with God and seek his mind and assessment of the situation and how you should respond. Crises and difficult times, unfair accusations and attacks of the enemy never catch the Lord off guard. Remember this, when there is a situation and the church knows about it, you cannot hide. These things almost never go away on their own.

7. Seek wise counsel. There are godly people whom God will bring into your life who will help give you honest feedback and an objective assessment.

8. Compartmentalize. There are times when you simply have to put these things down and take care of other business. If you do not compartmentalize, it can lead to a paralysis of action. By compartmentalizing, I mean, just shut part of that world out for a time. 

9. Remember that people are watching you. By your actions and reactions, you are giving them a life lesson.

10. Understand that a crisis will often make you as a shepherd-leader. What someone meant for evil, God will have meant for good to prepare you for the next leg of your journey.

Let me add a few things that I, too, have learned from difficult situations.

First, no matter what happens, forgive. Do not hold a hurt done to you over someone's head. You can forgive without forgetting. Forgiving is a choice. A heart unwilling to forgive is a heart unable to receive the life-sustaining grace of God.

Second, refuse to be preoccupied with the past. Be grateful for what God is doing now and look forward with anticipation to what He will do in the days ahead.

Third, understand that no matter what happens to you, God either permitted the circumstances, or He will override the circumstances. At times, He caused the circumstances to prepare you for your next assignment in life. Do you think Moses ever fretted during his 39th year in the wilderness or if he had any idea that God was preparing him for his greatest assignment?

Finally, never forget, our lives with all the twists and turns, are in God's hands. He is God and we are not. He is ultimately the one who rights all wrongs and it is sufficient to leave these things in His hands.

At some point you will be hurt by someone in the church. How will you respond? 

The Key to Effective Prayer

One of the most intriguing and inspiring classes I took in seminary was "Spiritual Awakenings" taught by Roy Fish. Several years later I had the privilege of teaching that same subject at Southwestern Seminary. As a follow-up to my keen interest, I (along with my wife, Fern) twice attended one-week intensive classes on Spiritual Awakenings at Regents Park College, Oxford University hosted by J. Edwin Orr. Orr, at the time, was considered the world's leading authority on the subject. One lesson I learned through this study has always stuck with me.

I hear and read friends say over and over, "pray for revival,” "pray for an awakening,” or "pray that God will intervene." It seems to me that these are general prayers and as a rule, general prayers are ineffectual prayers. 

How we can better focus our prayers? Let us trust the scripture in Philippians 4:6: "Be anxious for nothing; but in everything (greek word 'panti' meaning 'every single issue or item; all, any, every') with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God..."

We in the church are alarmed by the spiritual condition of family members, friends, co-workers, folks in our neighborhoods, our communities, the media, the sports arena, the business world, the entertainment industry, the academic world and the political world, not to mention the international scene. We are alarmed at the ungodliness that runs rampant, the shifting mores, the prominence of behaviors, attitudes, and  distorted values that the Bible clearly denounces as manifestations of sin.

I’m reminded of Jesus’ question: "What do you want Me to do for you?" (Matthew 20:32, Mark 10:36,51-52, and Luke 18:14) What do you want God to do for you? Would you answer that question in your prayers? Tell the Lord what it is that you want to see happen!

When you pray, I encourage you to pray in specifics. Instead of "Lord, send revival," pray, "Lord, would you open the eyes of our President to see that homosexual marriage is wrong?" "Lord, help the Supreme Court to see that homosexual marriage is detrimental to the nation." "God, intervene in the life of President Obama, Vice-President Biden, Speaker Boehner, and Chief Justice John Roberts." "Lord, in Hollywood, raise up believers who will challenge the hedonistic norms." "Lord, at Harvard, Yale and Princeton, raise up professors who have both brilliant minds and biblical convictions." "Lord, in my church, I pray that you will open our eyes to see the lost all around us." "Lord, I pray that you would place a hedge of protection around my Pastor and make him holy. Keep him from the destructive temptation of the evil one." "Lord, you know my family's needs. Please provide for us and open the right door for employment."

Each of these is an example of "specific" praying. If you will be more specific in your praying, I believe God will be more specific in His answers. Please, let's redirect our prayers to be more specific. I am convinced that if we pray specifically, God will answer specifically!

Q&A: On Atheism

I recently joined a discussion on Quora: "Is Atheism a crutch for those who can't bear the reality of God?"

The question is awkwardly posed due to the juxtaposition of the rational with the emotional. Atheism, by definition, has “begged the question,” as Aristotle framed it, because it assumes the posture that God (however He may be defined) is non-existent. This is a conclusion based on assumptions reinforced by experience which I would argue no matter how extensive it is still severely limited with respect to the possible scope of that which is indeed knowable. 

Atheists, and anyone else for that fact, ought to consider seriously the complexity of our universe both from a macro and micro perspective. Can any rational thinking human being honestly examining the complexity of life in any or all dimensions seriously conclude that everything we perceive just came into existence ex nihilo? The information, for example, contained in the genetic code of a single human cell in its DNA contains enough specific codified information to fill 8,000 volumes. To me it is an absurd notion to conclude that this phenomenon just happened accidently through some contrived scheme of natural selection. 

It is absolutely intellectually honest to conclude that the extent of design and balance in the universe has no other rational explanation than that some superior being designed it and I choose to call that being “GOD.”

As far as the consideration of the notion that Atheism might be perceived as a crutch for those unable to bear the possibility of the reality of God, I think a better question might be posed: “What evidence would a professing Atheist accept as proof that God just might exist somewhere in the realm of reality that they have yet to perceive or even consider as credible?” 

The notion of “not bearing the reality of God” is an emotional description while Atheism by definition is essentially a rational posture. I do think that it is possible for people to draw conclusions based upon emotions and not reason. Yet, even Anthony Flew, a famous former Atheist, came to a posture of Theism, simply because there is something instead of nothing. He concluded that Theism was a more rational posture not because as an Atheist he could not bear the reality of God, but because Theism, ultimately, was simply a more reasonable posture crutches not with withstanding. 

Any honest Atheist would be better served by taking the position of Agnosticism. Then, again, epistemological issues could be raised which might dictate that some truth claims are more credible than others and that is the subject for another day.