"The Bible Says..." (Book Review: Scripture and the Authority of God)

I am almost done with N.T. Wright's book, Scripture and the Authority of God (HarperCollins, 2013). Some of it is a little "heady" for me, but necessarily so. I don't feel qualified to "review" the book, but I would like to share a couple of important take-aways, at the risk of oversimplifying a few points.

First, the entire lens of seeing the "authority of scripture" as shorthand for the "authority of God through scripture" is helpful. This position is one Wright uses throughout the book. To me, the Bible is not authoritative unto itself. It is what God and the church do with the Bible that demonstrates authority and divine inspiration. Without that authority, the scriptures become writings to be studied while missing out on true revelation.

N.T. Wright

Second, Wright reminds us that the glory in John 1 comes not from the idea that "the Word was written down," but the pronouncement that "the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." It is important to keep in mind that the "Word of God" that brings salvation and changes lives is none other than Jesus Himself, who literally moved into our world. Again, going back to the first point, the Bible is a resource of words that the Word may use to transform people's hearts and minds only when the authority of God through His Holy Spirit is at work.

The Bible does not equal "God with us" unless we are receiving the revelation of Jesus Christ (aka. Immanuel). In fact, Bible study could indeed be one of the least spiritual acts in which some people participate, misleading us into thinking we are growing closer to God through head knowledge when we are actually distancing ourselves through self-reliance (see John 5:16-47).

I'm glad I stuck it out and will finish the whole book this morning. It was interesting to consider how believers have wrestled with approaches to Scripture throughout the centuries, which Wright summarizes succinctly. I also found the chapter devoted to a case study on the topic of the Sabbath eye-opening, especially as he compared its relationship to time with the Temple's relationship to space. Ultimately, we end up with Jesus fulfilling Sabbath rest, in my opinion, but Wright got to deeper concepts that I had not considered before. For those interested, below are more viewpoints about Sabbath and/or N.T. Wright's perspective. Note that I am merely sharing, not promoting or opposing, these:

• Rethinking the Sabbath (Frank Viola)
• Blog review (Anabaptist Redux)

Only Human vs. Human Enough

Here is another insight from The Incomparable Christ by J. Oswald Sanders, from the Moody Classics series.

Sanders writes, "We must be careful to distinguish between 'human nature' and 'sinful nature.' They are not synonymous" (p. 112). He reinforces this point by reiterating that Jesus was fully human and yet without sin. 

Being human is part of the original design that God declared good. Theologians have sometimes picked up on this theme and submitted that part of the sanctifying work in people's lives is not to make us less human (more "robotic"), but actually more human; more fully alive, with our emotions and intellect and all parts of ourselves being touched by God.

While it is obvious that part of being human is making mistakes, to say, "I'm only human" when we are faced with the fact that we have made bad choices or willfully disobeyed God or hurt another person, is probably a very poor way of avoiding responsibility for our actions, both naturally and supernaturally.

The fact is that our human nature is what God made us to be. It is good. So, attributing our sin to it is bad theology and anthropology. It quickly can become, God, why did you make me this way? Now, we have fallen into the same trap as Adam and Eve and every blamer and excuse maker in history. We actually dismiss our evil as God's fault.

However, we have a "satanic intrusion" (as Sanders describes it) that is our sinful nature. You may hear the apostle Paul talk about the sin living inside him or doing things he does not want to do (Romans 7), but you don't really hear the excuse from New Testament writers, "Well, I'm only human."

Knowing all of this doesn't solve much of anything for us. We are still left to wrestle with the reality that there is a force at work against us. Simply, we do sin in our humanity. The only point is to be careful what we believe as a result of that fact. We can quickly get into a pattern of all kinds of faulty thinking about God and ourselves if we are not careful to keep that distinction between the human and sinful natures that Sanders mentioned. Once those mindsets take hold, they distort the meaning, and reduce the power, of grace and mercy and love.

Sanders concedes that we are left with a mystery when we consider how we have two natures, and even more, how Christ depended on his anointing from the Spirit rather than his own deity for power in ministry (p. 114). It is mysterious, but it is extremely important and practical for us to realize this truth. Jesus did not have to escape His humanity to perform miracles or love perfectly. Neither do we have to escape ours!

No longer should we say, "I am only human" (insulting the Creator's craftmanship). Instead, we can say, "I am human enough to respond to God and submit to His Spirit and carry out His will today."

Should Christians Follow the Bible or Jesus? (part 2)

Isn't this picture so sweet? 
Could you not see this on the wall of a children's worship room in a church building? 
It has everything, doesn't it? The good old commandments of the law and friendly Jesus, together forever?
The best of both worlds, the "total package", everything we're supposed to teach our children? Isn't that how it is supposed to work?


My last post claimed that we should choose Jesus over the Old Testament (Law, covenant). Here is a little more explanation of my position.

It is hard to imagine how the New Testament could be any more explicit that followers of Jesus are not to look to the law for guidance regarding salvation. Think of Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament, being able to boast in his knowledge of the law as a Jew, stating that we are dead to the law through the body of Christ (Romans 7). He also added, "What the law was powerless to do...God did by sending his own Son..." (Romans 8:3). Moreover, Paul writes to the church of Corinth about this former "ministry" that came with a fading glory that keeps a veil over hearts and dull minds and brought only condemnation, and contrasts it with Jesus who brings hope and righteousness and removes the veil (2 Corinthians 3).

Could we consider the multiple times Jesus says, "You have heard..., but I tell you...", or how many times Jesus publicly, deliberately violated the Sabbath rules just to make a theological point? Think about Jesus asking the people what Moses taught about divorce just to turn around and tell them that Moses only did that because of their hard hearts. In fact, Jesus clarified that what Moses wrote is not how we are to view divorce at all. (Mark 10)

Perhaps, nowhere is the Bible more direct about this point than in the book of Hebrews. The old covenant is labeled "inferior", "outdated", "obsolete" (depending on translations), and there are entire sections of this letter devoted to illustrating how it did nothing but find fault in people and could do nothing to cleanse or redeem anyone! Hebrews is equally as clear that Jesus is the new priest over a "new covenant established on better promises" (Hebrews 8:6).

These are only a few examples. So, what do we tell our kids about the Bible? Marc, would you really tell your children to ignore the Old Testament? Well, I've already addressed that in my previous post. However, here is what I will tell my daughters. If something you read in the Old Testament (or anywhere for that matter) points you to Jesus, then embrace it. If what you read points you to a rule or law, which will either condemn you or fill you with pride because law-keeping is a human effort that compares one person's "works" with another's, then disregard it. Our standard is never the law, but always Christ. Because of that, we are always dependent upon God's awesome grace.

The value in the Old Testament is that it does indeed point us to Christ and reveal Him over and over, so be on the lookout for Jesus at all times.

Should Christians Follow the Bible or Jesus?

I used to think that the whole Bible was put together to be a complete guide for us. I taught this same view to many others over the years. Sure, I still highly value all Scripture. In particular, the Old Testament has significant insights into God and human nature, tremendous and rich history, a huge volume of examples and "non-examples" of what to say and do, and foundational context to understand the New Testament. But I simply don't think I can support seeing it as a source of direction and authority for how Christians are to live.

With some simple church friends, we recently took a journey through the Old Testament, tracing the story of the Hebrews throughout the centuries. My daughter is working on a website that chronicles some of the lessons from this time that we all spent together. To say that the Old Testament is not important to me or my family would be grossly mischaracterizing what I am saying about Scripture. It is an essential narrative to His-story.

But...it is not essential for salvation. It is not essential to know how to follow Jesus. It is not essential for obedience to Christ, nor is it a pathway for life for the believer. The genuine follower today needs only to be obsessed with one thing - Jesus of Nazareth!

If I had to choose between my daughter knowing all the laws and commands of Moses and Israelite history inside and out, or knowing nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified, it would be a no-brainer! (1 Corinthians 2)

Teaching (Core Practice #4)

Intro Note: I have already written about our Plan on a Page, which lays out the four core practices that we consider the marks of discipleship according to the New Testament. In that document, we try to capture the "irreducible minimum standards" of our mission. 

Basically, I contend that there are many things you could not do and still be a Christian, or follower of Jesus. For example, you could not "go to church" or participate in a youth group or listen to Christian radio stations or become a missionary in a foreign land or tithe or...okay, you get it...and yet still be an authentic, sincere, passionate follower of Jesus. These examples may all be good things, but they are not the marks of true discipleship that Jesus gives us in the Bible. They are not the "make-or-break", non-negotiables of the Christian faith used to identify people as real believers.

Then, what are the non-negotiables?


The fourth and final one is TEACHING.

 If we are going to call ourselves disciples, then we must respond to the Great Commission, which calls us to teach new disciples everything that Jesus has commanded us. Discipleship is holding to these teachings. There is a long list of things we could teach each other that would be helpful in our faith, but Jesus has a special way of boiling it all down to the absolute most important teachings. He also makes it clear in Scripture how the world will be able to tell if we are truly His disciples.

Ultimately, everything comes down to obeying Jesus' command to love. This is the greatest command for us to obey. Obedience is expressed through the fruit of the Spirit and leads to freedom.

What is critical to teach children is that being a disciple means obeying and acting like Jesus, especially by loving God and loving others. 


The guiding question for a disciple or church could be, Are people being set free and becoming more like Jesus?

Why the Golden Rule is Key to Freedom

I could pretend to be really smart and try to write about the topics to which I am going to refer here, but it is much better and easier to just defer to people who can articulate it better. That being said, for those interested, check out these two articles.

https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/9-three-rules-of-human-conduct

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harm_principle

In short, the Iron Rule is about might. Bigger and stronger rules over smaller and weaker. The Silver Rule is a negative principle. It says, "Do not do unto others what you would not want them to do to you." It operates on the principle of reciprocity, and is the basis for much of the law in our society.

The Iron Rule can keep people in bondage. The Silver Rule is a step up because it at least says that we should not enslave others. However, neither of these rules prompt us to "set the captives free" if there is no harm to us.

The Golden Rule is set apart as a positively stated directive. It tells each of us to do to/for others what we would want done to/for us. Jesus issues the Golden Rule to dictate how we live because it is the rule of Love, not the rule of law. Ultimately, it requires His divine love to set people free, spiritually and physically. 

This concept of the "three rules" ties in directly with the issues related to modern day slavery because it is hard to see that we are in any way complicit in the problem. We are distanced from the anguish of human trafficking and forced labor by supply chains, business practices, policies, underground activities (even in our own backyard), and other factors. 

I know I am. 

Sometimes, it makes doing the right thing even more challenging. 

It is so uncomfortable. It is so inconvenient.

It is so Jesus. 

So, I pray that it will become so me.

Baptizing (Core Practice #3)

Intro Note: I have already written about our Plan on a Page, which lays out the four core practices that we consider the marks of discipleship according to the New Testament. In that document, we try to capture the "irreducible minimum standards" of our mission. 

Basically, I contend that there are many things you could not do and still be a Christian, or follower of Jesus. For example, you could not "go to church" or participate in a youth group or listen to Christian radio stations or become a missionary in a foreign land or tithe or...okay, you get it...and yet still be an authentic, sincere, passionate follower of Jesus. These examples may all be good things, but they are not the marks of true discipleship that Jesus gives us in the Bible. They are not the "make-or-break", non-negotiables of the Christian faith used to identify people as real believers.

Then, what are the non-negotiables?

The third one is BAPTIZING.

Let me start this one with what we teach children. We are baptized as a way of showing we understand that Jesus died and rose back to life to wash away our sins and give us power to live a new way of following Him. I respect that this is a topic about which parents can have strong feelings.

Baptism is one of the topics that has challenged me as I read through the New Testament objectively. It is possible to defend just about any position concerning baptism, depending on which verse people quote and what context they use it in. I am not going to dive into that debate here. Simply, we define this practice as uniting with Jesus in a new life.

Regardless of what you believe about baptism, there is no way to dismiss the significance of this act in the New Testament. The early church's immediate and automatic response to the gospel was baptism. 

Anyone who encountered Jesus could be baptized and baptize others.

I want to be clear that I am not saying that going into water is what "saves" a person, but I also can't dismiss the obvious importance of baptism as evidenced by the repeated emphasis on it throughout the New Testament. I just have to re-state it again: The early church's immediate and automatic response to the gospel was baptism. It was the Bible's equivalent to what the "sinner's prayer" or "altar call" has become in our part of the world over the past two centuries.

The guiding question for a disciple or church could be, Are we bringing people to salvation in Christ?

My wife baptizing me

(You can read my baptism story here.)

Going (Core Practice #2)

Intro Note: I have already written about our Plan on a Page, which lays out the four core practices that we consider the marks of discipleship according to the New Testament. In that document, we try to capture the "irreducible minimum standards" of our mission. 

Basically, I contend that there are many things you could not do and still be a Christian, or follower of Jesus. For example, you could not "go to church" or participate in a youth group or listen to Christian radio stations or become a missionary in a foreign land or tithe or...okay, you get it...and yet still be an authentic, sincere, passionate follower of Jesus. These examples may all be good things, but they are not the marks of true discipleship that Jesus gives us in the Bible. They are not the "make-or-break", non-negotiables of the Christian faith used to identify people as real believers.

Then, what are the non-negotiables?

The second one is GOING.

The idea here is to do good everywhere God sends us, individually and corporately. Although it's a little cliche, I like to say that our mandate is to choose what is right, and change what isn't.

The Great Commission tells all disciples to go and make disciples. Our identity in Christ is as a "sent" people. We are described in the Bible as ambassadors, reconcilers, and apostles.

The key is to see this practice as service in our everyday, real life contexts. We find ourselves in the mission field in our normal, daily lives in the marketplace, work, and home. This is one of the reasons the term "organic church" is used, because God plants us in all kinds of soil and we can organically respond to our natural surroundings. 

What is important to stress to children is that Jesus taught us to worship God by doing good everywhere we go. It is how we praise Him.


The guiding question for a disciple or church could be, Are we doing good works that help people and glorify God?

Praying (Core Practice #1)

Intro Note: I have already written about our Plan on a Page, which lays out the four core practices that we consider the marks of discipleship according to the New Testament. In that document, we try to capture the "irreducible minimum standards" of our mission. 

Basically, I contend that there are many things you could not do and still be a Christian, or follower of Jesus. For example, you could not "go to church" or participate in a youth group or listen to Christian radio stations or become a missionary in a foreign land or tithe or...okay, you get it...and yet still be an authentic, sincere, passionate follower of Jesus. These examples may all be good things, but they are not the marks of true discipleship that Jesus gives us in the Bible. They are not the "make-or-break", non-negotiables of the Christian faith used to identify people as real believers.

Then, what are the non-negotiables?

The first one is PRAYING.

There are many things you can decide not to do and still be in tight with Jesus, but deciding to avoid talking to Him or listening to Him is a deal breaker. This one falls into the common sense category. Trying to be right with God without ever praying is like marrying someone with the condition that you never communicate after the vows are exchanged. It doesn't work.

Another reason I would consider this essential is that Jesus commanded, taught, and modeled prayer for us. So far, these are the obvious reasons why prayer is important. 

There is one more truth, though, that needs to be highlighted in describing the necessity of prayer. It is, quite literally, how disciples are made. There is an illusion that people are persuaded into the kingdom of God, but it is probably more accurate to say that people are prayed into the kingdom. Receiving God's grace in Jesus is not a matter of the wisdom of the world, but is the response when are minds are "set on things above."

One of the interesting ironies of the gospel is that it cannot be shared by human means because it is SPIRIT-ual. The only way to make sense of the gospel or understand wisdom of the Spirit is to have Him reveal it to you. Prayer opens a channel for that to happen. It is how we know His mind, heart, and will.

What is critical to teach children is that prayer is how Jesus taught us to connect with God. We don't water down the message about prayer, but rather keep it simple because children can actually lead us in this area and have powerful relationships with God through prayer.

The final point about prayer is that it is a great example of the freedom we have in Christ. Prayer is not regulated. There is no requirement for a person to pray in a certain posture, at a certain volume, with certain words, at certain times, or in certain places. A conversation with God can be had anywhere. In fact, that is what is so great. I can talk to God or listen to Him at home, at my work, in my car, on the sidewalk, during a meeting, in a class, when I am alone, when I am nervous or happy or sad or confused, or even while I am at my computer typing the words to a blog. Thank you, Lord!

The guiding question for a disciple or church could be, Are we seeing prayers being answered?

My Christmas Story Poem

The Christmas Story – Forever on God’s Mind

 

I am sure through all your years of life, a story about Christmas you have heard,

But today I tell you the true Christmas story starts even before these words:

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

Earlier than He made any of this, God thought up a plan for Jesus’ birth.

 

He hadn’t yet formed the water, built up mountains or planted the first tree,

But He already knew how good and holy He wanted each one of us to be.

With His perfect plan in His mind, He had the wonderful idea of you and me,

So He began molding His design, knitting us together, wanting to set us free.

 

God showed off His creativity – He painted flowers and butterflies to color the world so bright,

He made lions and tigers and bears (Oh my!), and stuck a moon in the sky to reflect sunlight.

He was an Artist, whose imagination filled the air with birds and the seas with fish.

He was Eden’s Gardener, the Master and Friend who could fulfill our every wish.

 

As far as people go, Adam was the first one into whom He breathed life,

Then, it wasn’t long until God made another in His image to be Adam’s wife.

This first mom and dad have more to do with Christmas than many might believe,

Because the very first promise of our Savior as a child had to do with mother Eve.

 

Unfortunately, though, our story has a dark and scary part,

As any tale does when evil puts doubt in a good person’s heart.

Adam and Eve were fooled into thinking they could outsmart God, and they lied,

Suddenly, they were doing wrong and spreading blame, and eventually they died.

 

It was a tragedy to know God was mad at man, and we might lose His love,

There was nothing we could do on our own. Help would have to come from above.

Adam brought sin to us, which taught us to be bad. How could we ever cope?

Thank God! He planned ahead of time a way to provide freedom and a hope!

 

God allowed folks to have prophets and laws to guide them until the timing was just right,

But everyone needed a better Gift that would be revealed on Christmas night.

Sin is so bad; it can’t be fixed with just another rule.

It would take a miracle to heal the human race.

The law alone would be a useless tool.

The answer was to send, once for all, an overflow of God’s grace!

Against his enemy, Satan, God would deal a fatal blow when He struck this nerve,

He did the unthinkable and sent His own Son, an offering that none of us deserve.

There would be no need for Santa to double check a list of who is naughty or nice,

No, all sins would be forgiven and salvation would come only through Jesus Christ!

 

The perfect plan from before time that God had had along was now made known,

2000 years ago, a young woman learned that she would have a child of her own.

It took some time to set the stage for His dramatic arrival here,

But God wanted to provide all the clues so when it happened, it would be clear!

 

Clue number one was given so long ago in a promise to help us avoid a scam,

It was kept when Jesus was born to bless all people through the line of Abraham.

More impressive is how we were told of many more branches on His family tree,

And it all came to pass about Isaac, Jacob, and others in His genealogy.

 

But God would not leave it at that or some could call it coincidence,

So He gave us predictions of the time and place of these incidents.

Think, for instance, of what we heard when we read Hosea 11, verse one.

Just as it stated, centuries later, God called out of Egypt His very own Son.

 

And if the exact small town could be foretold, well, that would be nice,

So, Jesus being born in Bethlehem mentioned by Micah makes one think twice.

What about Malachi’s mention of the Temple, which in A.D. 70 they will destroy?

So it is truly amazing when the Lord Jesus enters it as a boy!

 

Yes, all of these proofs help strengthen our faith in the Christmas story,

Yet I’ve saved the best for last, the most famous of all, a feat of God’s glory!

Never before and never since has there been such a mystery in all the world,

The magic of Christmas is the birth of the Christ child to Mary, a virgin girl.

 

Now, with all the prophecies fulfilled and the main event finally here,

Let’s put things in order and celebrate His coming this year.

With all that’s been said, we know God’s idea was always on His mind.

On to the details of this turning point in history that is oh so divine.

 

This Christmas season, see it afresh as the scene has been set with all the clues,

Follow the action as the characters are ready for their cues.

God’s angel, Gabriel, gets us started by telling Zechariah what is going on,

His wife, Elizabeth, will be having a son that they are to give the name John.

 

Zechariah was speechless for a while because his wife was well along in years,

But Gabriel went on to pronounce a blessing to Mary and alleviate her fears.

Finding favor with God, she received the report, “You will give birth to a son!”

Since nothing is impossible with God, his name will be Jesus, Savior to everyone.

 

 

Mary was soon to be married to Joseph who was upset by this course.

He was a good man in confusion, and thought it best to quietly divorce.

Till God directly intervened to help Joe out and show him there is no need to fuss,

“For Mary’s Son is of the Spirit. He is Immanuel, which means, ‘God with us.’!”

 

Joseph was glad he could wed and help Mary with this situation she was in,

And more rejoicing came their way when she went to visit her cousin.

Still, though, this story being real life, includes taxes and a decree,

So, in due time, the young couple would have to travel from the region of Galilee.

 

Farewell to Nazareth, they made their way to crowded Bethlehem,

Where they found no rooms available to welcome the world’s greatest Gem!

It is good to know God’s eternal plan did not depend on enough space at the inn,

The Almighty, full of grace and truth, walked among us to save us from our sin!

 

Meanwhile, back in the field, some sheepish folks tended their flock at night,

Only to be taken aback by a heavenly guest with a dramatic flair surrounded by glorious light.

The angel declared, “I bring great news of a baby boy, which is Christ the Lord!”

The shepherds were astonished by the sight and the sound as more angels joined in one accord.

 

At once, the shepherds decided there is no need for this saving babe to still be a stranger,

So, they went to find the two new parents with Jesus wrapped, lying in a manger.

They could not hold it in as they shared with Joseph and Mary their joy.

And they praised God for all they had seen and heard concerning the baby boy!

 

It had been eight days since the shepherds took their short, adventurous trip,

Which meant it was time to be brought before the Lord for a holy “snip, snip.”

One thing was for certain, Jesus passed the test.

Sacrifices were made and by Simeon, Jesus was blessed.

 

Word had reached some wise men that the king of the Jews had been born.

They followed a star in the East, but King Herod, they inadvertently warned.

This Herod was mean and did not want the newborn child to live very long,

But Joseph and Mary received the wise men’s gifts, and Jesus proved too strong.

 

God’s plan was amazing and a huge success.

It would change everything forever and clean up our mess.

Jesus had brought God’s full love to the whole world, then and now!

It was always on God’s mind from before creation to save us somehow.

The “somehow” is the reason for this season. It is the baby Jesus who grew into the God-man.

But don’t be mistaken to think it started there because the Christmas story was written before time even began.

 

Scripture References
Genesis 1-3
Ephesians 1:4-14
Psalm 139:13-16
Romans 5:12-21
Romans 8:3
(Romans 2-8)
Galatians 3
Hebrews 8-10

John 3:16-21

John 14:5-7
Acts 2:22-36
Acts 4:12
Matthew 1-2
Luke 1-2
Genesis 12, 17:19, 49:10
Numbers 24:17
Jeremiah 23:5-6
Luke 3:33
Hosea 11:1
Micah 5:2
Malachi 3:1
Isaiah 7:14
John 1

For further reading: Genesis 1, John 1, Ephesians 1:3-14, Col. 1:15-23, Hebrews 1, 1 Peter 1:3-21

Faith Like a Child (Part 7)

To wrap up these posts about faith and children, I will simply leave us with the following passage from Mark 10:13-16. I welcome your thoughts and observations of this text. The only comment I will make is the obvious one - Jesus doesn't want anything to get in the way of children coming to him, or him coming to them! That is really what all these passages have boiled down to in my opinion.

May God guide and bless you as you receive and reflect on his words below. People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.

Faith Like a Child (Part 6)

Continuing with Matthew 18:1-6, now we arrive at one of the most intense teachings concerning children and faith. Jesus deals directly with the great responsibility we have when it comes to guiding children. He doesn't play word games or speak in abstract terms. He is as clear and to the point as anytime in his whole ministry. He says, "It is better to be drowned than to lead a child astray!"

I have watched a video about this teaching that was filmed in the Holy Land. The presenter showed a "large millstone" like what Jesus is referring to in this verse with a sea in the background. He demonstrated how vivid this warning would have been for the people listening to Jesus. It left quite an impression on me.

In context, this passage leads into some more verses explaining the devastating dangers of sin and how it is to be avoided at all costs. There is nothing light about this passage no matter which Gospel you take it from. And clearly, Jesus seems to be just fine with letting the immensity of it lay heavy on our minds and hearts. In sum, Jesus argues that the children are the greatest in the kingdom and becoming like them is really good, and causing them to go away from God is really, really, really, really, really BAD!!!

So, that leaves us with the responsibility of evaluating our own beliefs. What are we passing on to the next generation? How are we shaping their belief systems? What are we communicating about God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? Are we interfering with God's will or contradicting God's word? Are we passing on the gospel of peace or our own tradition? Are we handing children and youth a vibrant faith that accompanies true discipleship, or are we programming their lives with the religion of Pharisees? How honestly and willingly are we analyzing these issues?

If nothing else, we are at least left with a sense of burden from these verses.

 

Faith Like a Child (Part 5)

Before reading my thoughts today, you should check out Matthew 18:1-6.  Here we reach another popular, often quoted passage of Scripture. I only want to look at the first part now and save the last part of it for the next post.

A couple observations. First, this is one of the places the Bible records that people are to become like children to enter the kingdom of heaven. Interestingly, for as much as we talk about maturity in the church, there is no verse instructing children to become like adults, but Jesus explicitly says that entrance into the kingdom is dependent upon adults changing and becoming like little children. Now, I do believe we need to talk about spiritual maturity and growth in the church (more precisely, as the church) because I think there is plenty of biblical warrant for that, but let's not dismiss the profundity of Jesus' statement in this text.

I believe the issue here is what kingdom we are focused on. I submit that much of our rhetoric may be about getting children ready for the world. There is tremendous attention given to making them "better disciples" by being more responsible. Questions usually asked are: How can we help them do better at school? How do we get them to behave more appropriately in society? How do we teach them the importance of going to college, getting a good (aka. high paying) job, pick the best marital partner, raise a family, etc.? Obviously, there are necessary aspects to all these questions that I don't mean to diminish. However, my concern is that we could have become too preoccupied with the kingdom of the world...maybe we are too focused on "earthly things" at the expense of setting our "minds on things above." The truth is that we are "aliens", foreigners in this world, and that children are the best human representatives of the kingdom that we should be more concerned about.

What I need to be reminded of is that our identity as the church is in the kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven. It is this reality that flips our understandings and priorities completely. Suddenly, our emphasis is on how to become not the first, but the last; not how to gain status and income to be served, but to serve; and NOT how to raise children up, but how to bring adults down. In other words, the kingdom in which Jesus reigns as King has an interesting admission requirement. It is not about how we have raised children into better grown-ups, but it is how we have raised grown-ups into better children! After all, the kingdom belongs to the children. I mean, think about that truth for a moment. Do we really believe that? In all other arenas of life, if we totally believed that something we wanted belonged to someone else, then I bet we would go to that person or group to find out more. So, if we really care about the kingdom of heaven, then doesn't it make sense that we might want to spend some time with the very people it belongs to - the children themselves!

My second observation is simple and from the mouth of Jesus:  greatness is associated with the humility of children.