Archive for the ‘Misc. Theology’ Category

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A Couple More Thoughts About Being Led

Friday, September 26th, 2008

So, a couple more things:

1.) I want to re-iterate that I think the leading of the Spirit is tremendously difficult to articulate well.  I haven’t reached a place where I can talk extensively about it, and then come away super-confident that I got it right.  There are some things that I absolutely affirm, and some principles about discernment & testing that I think are very important.  There are various bits and pieces where I can point to clear biblical teaching.

I’m hesitant about how people use the language “God told me”, but I’m not sure I want to deny it.  I’m positive that the Spirit leads us, but I’m not sure how much “leading==intuition”.

But our minds are being renewed.  We are growing in the mind of Christ, if we are maturing as God’s children.  We are being transformed.  We are being given a spirit of wisdom and revelation.  I don’t know exactly how that works out, all the time.  But I want to seek more of the Spirit’s work in my life, to grow me in Christ.  I want to be led by & to be full of the Spirit of Christ.  I want to be willing & responsive to his influence in my life, in every sense and every way.

2.) I went back and added a couple comments to my earlier entry on audible voices & Scripture.

3.) A Wise Individual has directed me to an article at Christianity Today.  I appreciate these thoughts about God’s guidance.  They describe a sort of freedom, one that every mature, Spirit-filled believer ought to be able to experience:

The Puritans had a way of assuming God’s guarding guidance by saying, “I will do thus unless providentially hindered.” In this view of divine guidance, God lays out before his people a veritable smorgasbord of opportunities, saying, “See what a wonderful table I have placed before you. Choose; enjoy. I am with you.”

To trust God’s guarding guidance is wonderfully freeing when it comes to geographic moves, marriage proposals, vocational choices, or even routes for horseback riding. Depending on the weight of the matter, we draw on common sense; the teachings of Scripture; the advice of wise, godly friends; the guidance of the church; and our own interests, abilities, and inclinations. We pray throughout this process—and then we choose. If that door is closed from the other side we can smile with relief, even if disappointed, because God our guarding guide has protected us. And so we move on under his continued care, continuing to graze on his smorgasbord of opportunities.

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Decisions and the Leading of the Spirit

Saturday, September 20th, 2008

I recently talked about the difficulty of articulating how we are led by the Spirit–that it’s very easy to say too much or too little or to say things poorly.  Well, I’m going to give it a shot.  :)

(Incidentally, this was one of the first topics I posted about.)

This entry will mostly be copied from the same comment section as my recent entry on audible voices & scripture.  (Both came from Dan Phillips’ post on general & special revelation. We also started talking about science & religion. The whole thread is good food for thought, even where I don’t quite agree.) After the copy-and-paste, I’ll add some further thoughts.

Carrie, a contributor to the Beggars All Reformation blog, said,

I was also reminded of most of the Evangelicals I know who walk around “feeling like God lead them…”. It seems to get to a point where all revelation becomes personal and extra-biblical and I’m just not sure how I feel about that.

(more…)

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The Spirit Leads as the Spirit Wills

Sunday, September 14th, 2008

The leading of the Spirit seems to be a topic that’s inordinately difficult to articulate.   It is very easy to say too much, or to say too little, or to say things poorly.  And people have been hurt by poor guidance in this area.

Fortunately, the Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force, something we utilize by skill.  He works in us and teaches us and leads us in the midst of the immaturity from which he lifts us to wisdom.  Learning better from Scripture how to seek his help is vital.  But it’s comforting to know that he comes to where we are and helps us in our weakness.

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” (James 1:5)

“I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might”. (Eph. 1:16-19)

“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8)

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Audible Voices & Scripture – Some Thoughts

Saturday, September 13th, 2008

People talk about “hearing the voice of God,” in a personal, subjective sense.  I definitely believe there’s a reality to that.  The Holy Spirit definitely ministers in various ways, and I think people are often having real experiences.  But I’m not sure about using those terms.

I have some concerns about when we can say that we “heard God”.  I can articulate some of them… And I may post about them more in the near future.  For now, I want to share a question that someone asked over at TeamPyro, and my response.

Barbara asked,

There have been two instances in my (still relatively new) Christian walk where I have had what seemed like direction to specific scriptural passages come into my head. As an especially baby Christian, one time I had been praying at length about a particular concern (hardheadedness, hard places in my heart) and then I finally began to settle in for the night. My head no sooner hit the pillow than I heard in my head, “Turn your light back on and get your Bible.”
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On Our Hope in Suffering

Friday, May 30th, 2008

Michael Patton at Parchment and Pen has posted an email from one of his readers, who is struggling with the question of suffering, and whether God is there.  My comment ended up being too long to post, so I’m posting it here.

———–

Hmm…

First, I would encourage anyone struggling with suffering  anyone who may struggle with suffering anyone to listen to D.A. Carson’s two sermons On Evil and Suffering (pt 1, pt 2). (I just found online notes on both the first and the second sermons.) I think his insights are very helpful for learning to think “Christianly” about suffering–in the way that sustains you in very hard times.  (Note: One point he makes is that it’s important to think about these things before we encounter suffering–it’s much harder to process these things when you’re in the midst of it.)

Second, you (the writer of the email) said:

I found it ironic that your biography page on the Parchment and Pen blog lists “A Mighty Fortress” as, apparently, a song that you like. I’ve reached the point where I just can’t sing that song, because it feels so false. I used to think that God would essentially protect his children from any major suffering, but I now realize that that is not true.

I agree; it is not true that God will protect his children from any major suffering. If you have been taught to expect that God would, that’s not good.  I don’t think that is what God has promised us.

(more…)

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A Discussion on “orthodoxy” (little o)

Saturday, March 15th, 2008

I spent some time commenting in another Parchment & Pen entry, “An Emerging Understanding of Orthodoxy“. Michael Patton showed some interesting diagrams to illustrate both progressive revelation, and progressive understanding. The latter has to do with development of doctrine–as time has progressed, the way that Christians articulate doctrine has also changed. How do we take that? Does it mean that truth is changing? Does it mean that the earlier Christians got it wrong and we have to correct them? Eastern Orthodox deny that doctrine can develop; does it mean that we’re wrong, because we disagree with Tradition? How do we balance the need for reform and discovery with respect for those who have gone before? How do we ensure that we provide a place for Christians to ask questions in a healthy, cautious manner?

The post is good, and there’s some good discussion in the combox. Patton discusses the issue in terms of doctrine going through a process of “maturing”. In the early church we may find immature doctrine, still going through the process of significant refinement in the way it was articulated. And as time progresses, and our doctrine has “matured”, it has also stabilized–it’s not going to change significantly, even as we continue to learn and refine and mature.

I’ll try to summarize some of my contributions in a numbered list. First, a little more introduction: (more…)

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Avoid Everything That Appears Evil?

Wednesday, February 20th, 2008

My goodness, two posts in one day? After two weeks of silence? What’s gotten into me?!?

So, here’s the issue: Does 1 Thessalonians 5:21 tell us to abstain from everything that even appears evil to some people? That’s how people sometimes read the KJV translation: “Abstain from every appearance of evil.”

In an entry at Parchment and Pen, Dr. Dan Wallace–author of the standard text Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics, and chief translator of the New English Translation (with its wonderful footnotes)–explains why it doesn’t. In modern English, it says something closer to “Avoid every form of evil.”

Not only that, but in context, it looks like it’s talking about false teaching & prophecy. The ESV says:

Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thes. 5:19-22

“Abstain from every form of evil” is the counterpart to “hold fast to what is good”, and both refer back to “test everything”.

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Law vs. Gospel

Wednesday, February 20th, 2008

There’s an interesting discussion at the Internet Monk’s blog, based on a recent broadcast of the White Horse Inn. (Links further below.) It’s very meaty and edifying, and is related to some of what I said in my last entry. (OK, so practically everything in theology is connected. But the connection here seemed particularly strong.)

Note: The following intro is sprinkled with links to Scripture references. They’ll pop up in a new window, and I tried to keep them concise (just a couple or a few verses each), so I hope you’ll take the time to open them up as you read–and get the richness of God’s word from the source, rather than just from this faulty conduit.

In the last entry, I mentioned how the Spirit works in God’s children, teaching us that we are sinners, showing us our need, and pointing us to Christ and to what he did for us. When Paul taught about the way that God convicts us of our sin, he emphasized the role that the written Law plays. All of us (even we Gentiles) do have God’s Law written on our hearts, so that we have an instinctive understanding of morality–against which we sin. But Paul says that a function of the written Law is to increase our sin–when we see the written Law, it confronts us with our sin. And not only that, but our rebellious nature is such that when we hear a command, “Don’t do this,” we may be more likely to commit that very sin!

The Law points us to our need, and to our utter inability to satisfy its righteous requirements that are based in the very nature and character of God. So when Christ comes, we fall at his feet, and know that we can only be justified by faith. Apart from our working.

That’s part of the reason that Christians struggle with the awareness of our own sin. The Law teaches us sin more clearly. Sin abounds, so that grace may abound to those who believe. And those who believe are exhorted to present ourselves as slaves to righteousness. But…As his children whom he disciplines, with the Spirit in us moving us to delight in God and his law, we struggle with our sin even more. Realizing the need to assure us in our struggle, Paul wrote Romans 8. In this life, in this unredeemed flesh, the struggle makes us look ahead in hope to the promised renewal of our bodies and all creation. God is our adopted Poppa, he has given us the Spirit to guarantee our inheritance, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, God uses everything that happens to our good, and nothing will separate us from his love. (And notice: In our struggles–both against persecution & suffering and against our own weakness–God promises that he will bring us through. God is moving heaven and earth so that those whom he calls and justifies, he will also sanctify and glorify. And nothing can stop his determined effort! Our security and our perseverance stands in the strength of the Creator God.)

OK, so, that was the introduction. :)

On to the links, with a (much briefer) description of the broadcast and discussion. (more…)

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Complacency, Doubt, and Assurance

Monday, February 18th, 2008

The sermon this week at church, the latest in a series on the person and work of the Holy Spirit, dealt with the subject of assurance. The pastor preached from Romans 8, with the central verse 15, “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!””.

It got me thinking about a conversation I had a month or so ago, with someone who was not feeling at all assured. And then this morning, the book I’m reading touched on the same topic. So, I’d like to share from the book by Sam Storms, Signs of the Spirit: An Interpretation of Jonathan Edwards’s “Religious Affections”.  I found out about this book by listening to Storms’ appearance on Converse with Scholars, about which Carrie Hunter said, “He discussed the wonderful language Jonathan Edwards used to show how we as believers can see the true marks of the Holy Spirit in our own lives as well as in the lives of others.” I’m enjoying it very much; it’s edifying, concise, and quite readable.

As I was reading this morning, I came to a passage that deals with some elements of the false assurance felt by those whose faith is not authentic, and with why Christians may still struggle with assurance:

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On the Gospel, the Need for Salvation, and Once-Saved-Always-Saved

Saturday, February 2nd, 2008

Michael Patton posted on the subject of once-saved-always-saved, discussing the problem of false assurance that some people have based on a memory of “walking the aisle”. It’s personal for him, because his father may have that kind of false assurance. He started by saying, “I have someone who is very close to me who will not be broken. I don’t really know how I desire him to be broken, but conversations with him are always very frustrating.”

In the comments, someone named Scott Gray found that statement disturbing. It smacked of coercion to him. Particularly because he rejects that idea that a relationship with God requires salvation.

I exchanged some comments with him (my username: Jugulum). After I pointed him back to some sermons by the apostles in Acts, he said:

i did read the acts passage you pointed out, but i don’t see much connection to the original post topic. could you explain, please? how do you think the acts text pertains to cmp’s original post?

This morning, I wrote the following response, discussing the nature of the gospel, our need for salvation, some implications for assurance of salvation, and the nature of what Christ did, reconciling the world to himself. (You can go back to get the context, if you like.)

(more…)

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