Recovering Biblical Worship

Tonight, I listened to a talk N.T. Wright gave back in 2002 at Calvin College. Wright's take on life, theology, and spirituality have always challenged me to reevaluate whether I am living the Christ-life on God's terms or seeking to fabricate it on my own terms. Reading and hearing his perspective on Biblical worship in this setting was no different.

To hear the talk click Freedom and Framework, Spirit and Truth: Recovering Biblical Worship. To read the transcript, click here. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Blessings...

Quiet the Noise (Save me)

The poem below is entitled Quiet the Noise (Save Me). With this poem comes a specific context, so let me try to explain… When I hear people talk about how to “get saved” or how he/she needs to be “saved” it more often than not has a distinct connotation. It intimates an “Oh, that? Yeah I’ve done that” type of attitude. And with that I am starting to believe the experience of the Christ life gets short-circuited. With this little slip of the tongue a heart’s status is revealed.

Yes, there is a moment when we as Christ followers can look back and say, “God saved me!” To not do so in joy and awe would trivialize the glory and power of what Christ did on the cross. However, the power of His death and resurrection shouldn’t be relegated to that moment a person is “saved.” His death and resurrection hold the power of God that keeps saving us. It’s all throughout the New Testament. Paul talks about “working out our salvation (Phil 2:13-14).” And Peter calls the churches to rid themselves of “all malice, and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind… so that you may grow up in your salvation (1 Peter 1:1-2:3).” When I see these passages I realize how we limit His work.

In general when a person is “saved from” something that means that they are “saved for” a purpose or “saved to” someone. It’s the logical progression. Imagine a firefighter saving a baby from a burning home and afterwards the firefighter leaving the baby in the yard; how would you feel? That action of the baby being left in the yard is almost offensive to our natural sensibility. I’m thinking the stinking firefighter needs to find the kids parents and hand the baby over to them. It’s only natural! Right?

The Biblical call is to be transformed. We are being saved more from our sinful nature every day, and thus we are being saved TO know Christ more FOR the purpose of revealing Him to rest of His creation… daily! Jesus called us to make disciples – life long followers; He did not call us to make just converts.
So this reality that I need Him to save me more TO Himself today than I did yesterday is the context for this lyric. It's been my prayer lately, feel free to make it your own...

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Quiet the noise and everything that I’ve let crowd You out.
Quiet my soul and take the stage that should be solely Yours.
Quiet the lies plaguing my mind, the whispers that seem to shout.
Quiet my soul and take the place that You deserve O Lord.

For I long to see You as You are,
and not as I’ve conceived.
And I long to hear Your voice that brings
Your presence and Your fear.

So I sing, Hosanna, I am Yours.
So I sing, Hosanna, save me more.
So I sing, Hosanna, I am Yours.
So I sing, Hosanna, save me Lord.

a religion that frees...

A friend sent me this lecture from Charles Finney. For those who struggle with loving God simply, this is a good reminder. Remember Finney lived in a time where the language was less casual and so the vernacular will feel cumbersome, but it's worth the read. Click here...

an evangelical seduction?

I found an article in USA TODAY that brought up some interesting questions with the fall out of the drama involving Jon & Kate. It's an interesting read. Click here for article

Now whether you want admit it or not, I am sure you have heard about Jon & Kate Plus 8. I am not here to judge or defend this couple. Actually, I am saddened over what the Gosselin family has gone through. But I think their lives beg a bigger question than the article linked above brings up. The question that we as the American church need to answer is, how do we pursue Christ-like character in a celebrity driven culture?

The article above used the word "seduced" in regards to the evangelical church claiming the Gosselin family for their own. It's a word laced with imagery, but it fits. However, I don't think it was their "piety" that drew in so many from the realm of the church-going. Actually, I think a legitimate malady of today's western Christian sub-culture reared it's head. Let me explain.

For some reason the Duggars - the massive family with a different reality show on TLC who profess faith in Christ - don't seem to get the media love that the Gosselins have. Let's face it, Jon & Kate were perceived as the "cool" couple with adorable kids that happened to wear the appropriate t-shirts flashing bible verses. They were also willing to show on TV they went to church. What's not to love!?!... So, my pragmatic side wonders, was it simply the fact that the American church was looking for celebrities of some sort that might validate the claim that faith in Christ is still "relevant" or "cool" in the here and now?

Now, just for kicks, compound the American church's perceived lack of relevancy with this next reality. Our culture is enamored with instant everything - from fast food to hi-speed internet. Shoot, even William Hung parlayed his short yet memorable audition on American Idol into an album. The fact is we love everything "on demand" at the touch of button - even our celebrities. Realistically Jon & Kate fall into this category of instant celebrity. They went from being a couple with just twins to adding sextuplets, then mix in a TLC one-hour special, and bang... stardom. Five years later they are household conversation nationwide.

It's clear our culture has cultivated an obsession with celebrities. But here's the irony, today's celebrities don't seem to have the wherewithal or the consistency of character to avoid the pitfalls that come their way. Instead, once these celebrities have the spotlight, they only intensify that spotlight by scandalizing their lives - DUI's, questionable internet pics/videos, etc... you know what I am talking about. Today, celebrities rise quickly and fall even faster.

So, where does that leave the church to stand? Well, after watching how many in the evangelical contingent ate up everything Jon & Kate I would say the American church followed the culture's lead. Don't misread this as a knock on the Gosselins (or even the Duggars for that matter), this is the furthest thing from the sort. More appropriately, I believe this evidences how far today's pop-culture has crept into the way the American church follows Jesus.

This enfatuation, even borderline obsession, with the instant even colors our perspective on our faith. The reality of our mindset is actually more similar to our modern day attitude toward a "dial-up" connection - it's nothing more than an inconvenient truth that can affect our lives in those unexpected moments in the middle of nowhere. It's apparent in our pulpits when preachers say you can "claim the blessings" that are our birthright NOW. Or in our bookstores when authors write about 5-step processes to experience the victorious Christian life today.

The mentality many of us have about our spirituality is not what author Eugene Peterson would call for; he asks us to view it as "a long obedience in the same direction." I would have to agree with Peterson's take. When I look at Biblical heroes very few were instant. Goliath was slain by a boy who cultivated a trust in the God who delivered him (and his sheep) from a lion and a bear. Israel walked across the Red Sea following the lead of a murderer - redeemed by God - who had fled from Egypt before. The man known as the "father of many nations" had to wait years past his prime for Yahweh to make good on the promise of a son. Unlike the Bible, it doesn't seem that we in today's church cherish the fellow saints in our faith communities who have walked with Christ well for years, for decades. We like our Christian role models like we like our celebrities - instant, successful, hip, relevant, and sexy (ok maybe that's too strong, in the least, "attractive").

Maybe it's just me, but this saga involving the Gosselin family serves a simple reminder. When Jesus called His disciples, He called them to follow. He called them to come along with Him and follow as individuals in community. He calls us to do the same today, as He leads. Learning to follow takes time, because we are submitting to another's design and direction. It can not and will not be quick. He called the disciples to follow Him as He moved toward the cross and the empty tomb. They grew by a strength not their own into following well enough to step where He stepped, to speak how He spoke, and to love as He loved.

So, as we move forward in this same strength, let us be wary of the spirit of this age that screams "instantly", "faster", and "now!" May we embrace a focus on the only celebrity with life in His hand, the One worthy of celebrating - Jesus, the Christ! And may God grant us the resolve to NOT succumb to the seduction of evangelicals today - the celebration of the instant.

when good things become god things...

I am not sure what you may think of Mark Driscoll, the pastor of Mars Hill in Seattle. For those of you that know the name know that he can be a polarizing figure. Whatever you may think of him, the fact is he wants people to encounter Jesus as Lord.

This talk he gave to a group of ministry leaders forced me to do a "worship check". There are seasons of my soul where I need to periodically "check" my heart and ask God to weed out my crap. Hearing this talk led me to echo David's prayer in Psalm 139:23-24. ²³ Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. ²⁴ See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

It's entitled simply "Ministry Idolatry". Click here to link to the download page... May you be blessed by it as I have been.