Monday, April 23, 2007
The Essential - Defining Faith
Jollyblogger started out discussing my favorite celebrity chef, but then turned very serious on a very serious matter.
I find this especially abhorent in matters of eschatology - what does it matter?!?!?!? God is in charge, He will do what He will do and whether we know what that is, or not, is relatively immaterial. I for one do not intend to live differently in either instance. John Hagee is running a whole bunch of radio ads right now selling his latest tome threatening the end of mankind, and every time I hear one, I want to puke. Who is truly transfromed by the power of Christ with such nonsense?
But finally, the thing I find most troubling is the tendency to "kick things up a notch" in such discussion is idolatry. Just like the mega-churches I so often deride as placing the institution ahead of the Lord, this kind of theological smackdown places theology ahead of Jesus Christ.
We worship a being, God made human, not an idea, not a thought, not a system. NO UNDERSTANDING OF GOD OR ANYTHING ABOUT HIM IS COMPLETE. Only God can decide who is is in and who is out. We must do our best to develop our understanding, but we must do so with humility and grace.
Related Tags: grace, humility, eschatology, smackdwon, Jollyblogger
These are just a few of many examples of kicking things up a notch, or several notches. I know reformed people who won't accept Baptists as reformed. I have met reformed people who don't recognize Arminians as Christians. Then we have Dave Hunt who doesn't recognize reformed people as Christians. And of course there are the Caner brothers down at Liberty who, . . . well never mind. The point of my comments is that this practice of kicking things up a notch makes Christianity look like one big king of the hill contest (please forgive me for switching metaphors mid-sentence). We are constantly trying to one-up each other, proving that we are more pure than the next guy.Mostly I just want to second David here. What we see in this rhetorical gambit is the modern day equivalent of asking "Who will sit on your right hand, oh Lord?" And can I just say such is most unbecoming of the "grace alone," "totally depraved" crowd of Calvinists of which I usually count myself. How can people who rely on such claims have such incredible surety when it comes to their own understanding? How can such people lack the humility demanded by such doctrine?
It seems to me that almost anyone create a set of logical links between their own pet doctrine and another doctrine that is a notch or two higher in the "order" of doctrine, to borrow Mohler's triage analogy. And in doing so, they attain a higher level of purity and a higher level of rank in the kingdom.
I find this especially abhorent in matters of eschatology - what does it matter?!?!?!? God is in charge, He will do what He will do and whether we know what that is, or not, is relatively immaterial. I for one do not intend to live differently in either instance. John Hagee is running a whole bunch of radio ads right now selling his latest tome threatening the end of mankind, and every time I hear one, I want to puke. Who is truly transfromed by the power of Christ with such nonsense?
But finally, the thing I find most troubling is the tendency to "kick things up a notch" in such discussion is idolatry. Just like the mega-churches I so often deride as placing the institution ahead of the Lord, this kind of theological smackdown places theology ahead of Jesus Christ.
We worship a being, God made human, not an idea, not a thought, not a system. NO UNDERSTANDING OF GOD OR ANYTHING ABOUT HIM IS COMPLETE. Only God can decide who is is in and who is out. We must do our best to develop our understanding, but we must do so with humility and grace.
Related Tags: grace, humility, eschatology, smackdwon, Jollyblogger
