THE RICHES AND POVERTY OF AFRICA
PART ONE
[The following was an email I sent to our supporters in August, 2002, after our memorable trip to visit our graduates from Scott Theological College in seven African nations – Uganda, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Malawi, and Tanzania. After you read the whole series of four parts, I would be happy to receive your feedback.]
“For the past thirty four years we have lived and worked in Kenya with its rich beauty and natural wealth mingled with wrenching poverty of people surviving with meagre resources. During our recent opportunity of visiting seven different African countries, from Ethiopia in the north with its ancient peoples and culture, to Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Swaziland and Namibia in the south, I have done a lot of thinking and enquiring. Why does Africa have so many riches mingled with such pervasive and endemic poverty?”
“Africa is a beautiful continent which is rich in natural resources. Africa cannot take a back seat to “America the beautiful” in its diversity of natural beauty and resources. Every country we visited was unique in its splendour. The awesome lakes in the Great Rift Valley are jewels in Africa that stretch from Ethiopia in the north, through Uganda and Kenya, down into southern Africa, moving into the Indian Ocean off the coast of Mozambique. We saw the water plunging out of Lake Victoria into the tributary that flows into the Nile. It takes three months for the water to flow 4,000 miles to the Nile delta. We walked beside the longest shelf of falling water in the world where 550 million litres fall 300 feet into the gorge every minute, sending mist 1,500 feet into the air. It is awesome. In the vernacular language these falls are called, “The smoke that thunders.” David Livingstone called them the Victoria Falls. We travelled over the vast Central African Savannah grass lands where elephant grass grows fifteen feet tall and the whole of central Africa receives plentiful rainfall for all kinds of rich agriculture. We saw the tiny but beautiful monarchy of Swaziland perched on the mountains of southern Africa with mountain streams flowing everywhere. Though Namibia is a desert country with the Namib to the west along the Atlantic ocean (the oldest and driest desert in the world) and the Kalahari desert on the east sweeping into Botswana, the country is actually rich in mineral wealth. In fact all these countries have mineral wealth which is the envy of the world - tin, copper, bauxite, coal, gold, diamonds, oil and uranium.”
“But mingled with all the natural beauty and resources, I frequently became depressed by the pervasive, persistent and endemic poverty everywhere. Yes, the wealthy class is always present in these countries. When arriving in Zambia, the first place Bishop Shamapani took us was a modern shopping mall recently built by a South African company. I was dumb struck. I thought, “Has Zambia overtaken Kenya in economic development?” Inside the mall one would have thought he was in some electronic store in the modern West – wide aisles stocked with electronic goods that staggered my mind. But we soon discovered that Zambia is a very, very poor country with people subsisting on this fertile land. Yes, a rich minority but the masses in poverty. Zambia is a country with so much land occupied and developed by so few people that the Zambian government is actually inviting white, commercial farmers from Zimbabwe and South Africa to take possession of empty portions of the land and develop it. People in all the countries where we visited (except Uganda) felt that their country was economically depressed. Ethiopia is reckoned the second poorest country in Africa even though they trace their history back to King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba and even though Ethiopia became a Christian monarchy in the fourth century. Why?”
CONTINUED IN PART TWO
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Christianity and Spiritual Warfare in Africa
CHRISTIANITY AND SPIRITUAL WARFARE IN AFRICA
Part Three
The Christian Church has been firmly founded in Africa and there are many vibrant Christians committed to Jesus Christ. They show by their lives of commitment that they truly are disciples of Christ. But those who are truly discipled are a distinct minority with the masses of “Christians” either nominal in their confession or weak in their understanding and obedience to the Word of God. The peoples and the countries wherever we went are wide open to the Gospel. Africa has not yet reached a state, as found in the West, where the peoples oppose Christianity and resist the Gospel. This is the day for the Christian Church to fulfill the Great Commission in Africa.
We must not give up on Africa, either in despair because of its failure to progress, or in the belief that Africa is now Christian and can evangelize their own people without the help of western missionaries. The greatest need in Africa today, as we see it, is biblical teaching of the Christians and the training of church leaders. So many, many evangelical denominations in these countries are tiny and need a boost in evangelistic zeal. So many denominations have only a small percentage of trained pastors. The result is that many Christians are not being taught the deep truths of Scripture and challenged to devote themselves fully to Christ. In many ways the Christian Church in Africa is the victim of her own success. The churches have grown so rapidly that they have not been able to provide adequate numbers of well trained shepherds to disciple the flock. We need missions and missionaries who can come along side the national Christians with a sensitive and humble spirit to assist them in becoming all that God intends them to be, firmly rooted in the Word of God. There is so much confusion everywhere, a cacophony of different theologies and ideologies that Christians must become confused without deep teaching from Scripture. In Machakos, our neighboring town in Kenya, with 30,000 people (precise figure is not known), there are 37 different kinds of churches (this I counted recently).
Our visit to these Scott graduates has confirmed my conviction that the ministry of Scott Theological College, along with other similar ministries of leadership training, is the most strategic and important ministry today in Africa. Together with this, we need to find creative ways of providing Bible teaching with practical application so that the anemic and weak Christians can grow. We need to find ways to provide in-service training for pastors to help them continue to grow in the Lord. And above all else, we need to continue to pray and work for revival in our churches. A revitalized and renewed Christian Church will be energetic in their witness, faithful in their personal lives and eager to reach out to the lost who still do not know the Lord.
FINIS
Part Three
The Christian Church has been firmly founded in Africa and there are many vibrant Christians committed to Jesus Christ. They show by their lives of commitment that they truly are disciples of Christ. But those who are truly discipled are a distinct minority with the masses of “Christians” either nominal in their confession or weak in their understanding and obedience to the Word of God. The peoples and the countries wherever we went are wide open to the Gospel. Africa has not yet reached a state, as found in the West, where the peoples oppose Christianity and resist the Gospel. This is the day for the Christian Church to fulfill the Great Commission in Africa.
We must not give up on Africa, either in despair because of its failure to progress, or in the belief that Africa is now Christian and can evangelize their own people without the help of western missionaries. The greatest need in Africa today, as we see it, is biblical teaching of the Christians and the training of church leaders. So many, many evangelical denominations in these countries are tiny and need a boost in evangelistic zeal. So many denominations have only a small percentage of trained pastors. The result is that many Christians are not being taught the deep truths of Scripture and challenged to devote themselves fully to Christ. In many ways the Christian Church in Africa is the victim of her own success. The churches have grown so rapidly that they have not been able to provide adequate numbers of well trained shepherds to disciple the flock. We need missions and missionaries who can come along side the national Christians with a sensitive and humble spirit to assist them in becoming all that God intends them to be, firmly rooted in the Word of God. There is so much confusion everywhere, a cacophony of different theologies and ideologies that Christians must become confused without deep teaching from Scripture. In Machakos, our neighboring town in Kenya, with 30,000 people (precise figure is not known), there are 37 different kinds of churches (this I counted recently).
Our visit to these Scott graduates has confirmed my conviction that the ministry of Scott Theological College, along with other similar ministries of leadership training, is the most strategic and important ministry today in Africa. Together with this, we need to find creative ways of providing Bible teaching with practical application so that the anemic and weak Christians can grow. We need to find ways to provide in-service training for pastors to help them continue to grow in the Lord. And above all else, we need to continue to pray and work for revival in our churches. A revitalized and renewed Christian Church will be energetic in their witness, faithful in their personal lives and eager to reach out to the lost who still do not know the Lord.
FINIS
Friday, November 19, 2010
Christianity and Spiritual Warfare in Africa
CHRISTIANITY AND SPIRITUAL WARFARE IN AFRICA
Part Two
In the limited circles of Kampala, the capital of Uganda where we stayed one week, there was evidence of education and Christian faith. The Anglican Church we attended had a vibrant service which became my favourite of all the churches we attended during our twelve weeks of travel. It combined solid biblical truth in hymns, liturgy, two Scripture readings and an expository message from the Word, with enthusiastic singing, dancing and praising God by the people for twenty minutes. The people were well dressed, English is the official language of Uganda (as was true in every other country we visited, except Ethiopia) and we found churches everywhere. However, a missionary told us that just beneath the surface one finds deep, traditional, cultic beliefs in ancestral spirits and mystical powers. Indeed, when we visited the Kasubi tombs where the last four kings of the Baganda were buried we could detect an underlying world view of spiritism. More than seventy descendants of the late kings’ wives still live there and several are always in the building. They perform rituals and give offerings for the dead. The well being of the Baganda depends on these offerings to the spirits of the dead kings.
In Swaziland where 80% claim to be Christian only 19% are church members. 50% of all church members belong to one of 73 Zionist denominations which are mostly syncretistic without knowledge of the Gospel. Swaziland prides itself in its strong traditional culture but this includes performing rituals and ceremonies for the dead. Christians in a couple’s seminar we attended from an evangelical church admitted that most of the Christians, even in the evangelical churches, perform these rituals simply because it is Swazi culture, without any understanding that this is anathema before God.
Pentecostal type of Christianity (both mission churches and African indigenous churches) is sweeping over Africa with its emotional extremes, theological errors and lack of biblical depth. In Ethiopia, during the years of persecution under the Marxist government when all churches were closed, the Christians clung together for survival in house churches with constantly changing locations and times. As a result of this mixture and lack of biblical teaching, all churches tend to be similar in their theology and Christian practice. In one SIM daughter church during a choir number, one woman jumped to her feet in hysteria, made some emotional outburst and then collapsed to her seat. When I inquired later what this meant, I was informed that she had just been “filled with the Spirit.” I was greatly disturbed as we attended church after church, how seldom there was Scripture reading in the service. Even in the best of churches, there was no Scripture reading. The message we heard in Addis Ababa was nothing but random talk about Christ’s death and resurrection without any biblical basis, theme or biblical instruction. Worship is becoming louder, nosier, more emotional and ecstatic, with the focus seemingly on how good one feels rather than focusing on God and praising him for his glory and greatness.
When we were in Malawi I asked one Malawian what he felt was the greatest need in the church. He thought for a minute and then replied, “Revival.” Many churches have lost the Gospel through a liberal theology. Others have lost their zeal for evangelism and devotion to the Lord. Church leaders are often pre-occupied with retaining their position and see the educated younger clergy as a threat to them. Thus church growth is squelched. The Presbyterian Church in Malawi opposes evangelism and excommunicates anyone who claims to be “born again.” They desire to co-exist in peace with the Muslims which are now spreading rapidly because the President is Muslim and the Arab oil wealth is pouring into the country. Evangelical churches founded by faith missions have lost their zeal for evangelism in several South African countries we were in. Those with an evangelistic zeal are seen as a threat to the leaders who were never known for evangelistic outreach.
So what is our conclusion? There is a spiritual warfare going on in the African continent. On the one hand, there is the voice of the Christian Church, over radio and TV, in public arenas and official circles and within the churches. But competing for the attention of the peoples are two other voices: the traditional attraction of African religion with its mystical powers and dependence on the ancestral spirits and witchcraft, and the modern attraction of materialism, hedonism and humanism. On one bus we heard the gospel sung and preached and later on saw a western movie full of violence and lust.
CONTINUED IN PART THREE
Part Two
In the limited circles of Kampala, the capital of Uganda where we stayed one week, there was evidence of education and Christian faith. The Anglican Church we attended had a vibrant service which became my favourite of all the churches we attended during our twelve weeks of travel. It combined solid biblical truth in hymns, liturgy, two Scripture readings and an expository message from the Word, with enthusiastic singing, dancing and praising God by the people for twenty minutes. The people were well dressed, English is the official language of Uganda (as was true in every other country we visited, except Ethiopia) and we found churches everywhere. However, a missionary told us that just beneath the surface one finds deep, traditional, cultic beliefs in ancestral spirits and mystical powers. Indeed, when we visited the Kasubi tombs where the last four kings of the Baganda were buried we could detect an underlying world view of spiritism. More than seventy descendants of the late kings’ wives still live there and several are always in the building. They perform rituals and give offerings for the dead. The well being of the Baganda depends on these offerings to the spirits of the dead kings.
In Swaziland where 80% claim to be Christian only 19% are church members. 50% of all church members belong to one of 73 Zionist denominations which are mostly syncretistic without knowledge of the Gospel. Swaziland prides itself in its strong traditional culture but this includes performing rituals and ceremonies for the dead. Christians in a couple’s seminar we attended from an evangelical church admitted that most of the Christians, even in the evangelical churches, perform these rituals simply because it is Swazi culture, without any understanding that this is anathema before God.
Pentecostal type of Christianity (both mission churches and African indigenous churches) is sweeping over Africa with its emotional extremes, theological errors and lack of biblical depth. In Ethiopia, during the years of persecution under the Marxist government when all churches were closed, the Christians clung together for survival in house churches with constantly changing locations and times. As a result of this mixture and lack of biblical teaching, all churches tend to be similar in their theology and Christian practice. In one SIM daughter church during a choir number, one woman jumped to her feet in hysteria, made some emotional outburst and then collapsed to her seat. When I inquired later what this meant, I was informed that she had just been “filled with the Spirit.” I was greatly disturbed as we attended church after church, how seldom there was Scripture reading in the service. Even in the best of churches, there was no Scripture reading. The message we heard in Addis Ababa was nothing but random talk about Christ’s death and resurrection without any biblical basis, theme or biblical instruction. Worship is becoming louder, nosier, more emotional and ecstatic, with the focus seemingly on how good one feels rather than focusing on God and praising him for his glory and greatness.
When we were in Malawi I asked one Malawian what he felt was the greatest need in the church. He thought for a minute and then replied, “Revival.” Many churches have lost the Gospel through a liberal theology. Others have lost their zeal for evangelism and devotion to the Lord. Church leaders are often pre-occupied with retaining their position and see the educated younger clergy as a threat to them. Thus church growth is squelched. The Presbyterian Church in Malawi opposes evangelism and excommunicates anyone who claims to be “born again.” They desire to co-exist in peace with the Muslims which are now spreading rapidly because the President is Muslim and the Arab oil wealth is pouring into the country. Evangelical churches founded by faith missions have lost their zeal for evangelism in several South African countries we were in. Those with an evangelistic zeal are seen as a threat to the leaders who were never known for evangelistic outreach.
So what is our conclusion? There is a spiritual warfare going on in the African continent. On the one hand, there is the voice of the Christian Church, over radio and TV, in public arenas and official circles and within the churches. But competing for the attention of the peoples are two other voices: the traditional attraction of African religion with its mystical powers and dependence on the ancestral spirits and witchcraft, and the modern attraction of materialism, hedonism and humanism. On one bus we heard the gospel sung and preached and later on saw a western movie full of violence and lust.
CONTINUED IN PART THREE
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Christianity and Spiritual Warfare in Africa
CHRISTIANITY AND SPIRITUAL WARFARE IN AFRICA
Part One
In the year 2000, prior to our retirement after thirty-six years of ministry in Kenya, East Africa, God gave Flo and me the marvelous privilege of traveling to seven different African countries to visit our former students whom we taught at Scott Theological College in Kenya, the Chartered Private University of the Africa Inland Church in Kenya with some 5,000 churches.
Arising out of our three months visit to these graduates, I did a lot of reflection on many issues. Following is Part One of a three part series on my Reflections of Christianity and Spiritual Warfare in Africa which I prepared in August of 2000.
Those who come from abroad to visit us in Africa are impressed by the strong presence of Christianity. Indeed, the Christian Church is widespread and the Christians are vibrant in their worship and testimony. Never before in the history of the Christian Church has a whole continent been converted to Christianity within one century. As we visited seven African nations to spend time with our Scott graduates, we saw living evidence of the dynamic presence of Christianity everywhere.
Ethiopia embraced Christianity as the state religion in the fourth century. The late Emperor, Haile Sellasie, traced his roots to King Solomon and the queen of Sheba. He was a faithful member of the ancient Ethiopian Orthodox Church which remains orthodox to this day in its Trinitarian doctrine derived from Alexandria in Egypt and Athanasius, the champion of orthodoxy. During the fifteen years under Marxism and since its overthrow the Christian church in Ethiopia has exploded exponentially in numbers. The Lutheran church which does preach the Gospel has exploded from 57,000 in 1967 to 2,000,000 today. The SIM daughter church has grown even more.
Uganda has a marvelous history of Christian faith which includes the birth place of the East African Revival in the 1930’s which transformed the spiritual landscape of the country.
In southern Africa David Livingstone left his mark, not only with landmarks of his pioneering journeys and museums displaying his relics, but missions and churches that sprang up through his vision. The Blantyre Mission was founded in Malawi in 1876 through his inspiration. Named after the home town of David Livingstone in Scotland, the modern industrial city of Blantyre in Malawi grew up around the mission station. Today the Presbyterian Church is virtually in every corner of Malawi together with other churches.
The President of Zambia, a born again Christian, declared several years ago that Zambia was a Christian nation. When travelling in Zambia I was impressed with a Christian radio station playing gospel music and preaching the gospel on a public bus. It was not uncommon to find in many places Christian music being played in stores and public places.
When we arrived in Swaziland we were warmly greeted outside the airport with a large sign, “Welcome to Swaziland. We love you but Jesus loves you more.” 80% of Swazi’s are “Christian” by their own profession. The government has built a Christian Church beside the Parliament where public official religious services are held. The king and queen mother frequently preach.
But the visitor to Africa who sees and hears all of this can be easily deceived. In fact, there is spiritual warfare being waged in Africa and those who truly know the Lord are a remnant among the masses. Never before has there been greater need for discipling, biblical teaching and leadership training than there is today. The fact is that not far below the surface of public confessions of Christian faith, there is evidence of nominalism, syncretism and divided allegiance.
CONTINUED IN PART TWO
Part One
In the year 2000, prior to our retirement after thirty-six years of ministry in Kenya, East Africa, God gave Flo and me the marvelous privilege of traveling to seven different African countries to visit our former students whom we taught at Scott Theological College in Kenya, the Chartered Private University of the Africa Inland Church in Kenya with some 5,000 churches.
Arising out of our three months visit to these graduates, I did a lot of reflection on many issues. Following is Part One of a three part series on my Reflections of Christianity and Spiritual Warfare in Africa which I prepared in August of 2000.
Those who come from abroad to visit us in Africa are impressed by the strong presence of Christianity. Indeed, the Christian Church is widespread and the Christians are vibrant in their worship and testimony. Never before in the history of the Christian Church has a whole continent been converted to Christianity within one century. As we visited seven African nations to spend time with our Scott graduates, we saw living evidence of the dynamic presence of Christianity everywhere.
Ethiopia embraced Christianity as the state religion in the fourth century. The late Emperor, Haile Sellasie, traced his roots to King Solomon and the queen of Sheba. He was a faithful member of the ancient Ethiopian Orthodox Church which remains orthodox to this day in its Trinitarian doctrine derived from Alexandria in Egypt and Athanasius, the champion of orthodoxy. During the fifteen years under Marxism and since its overthrow the Christian church in Ethiopia has exploded exponentially in numbers. The Lutheran church which does preach the Gospel has exploded from 57,000 in 1967 to 2,000,000 today. The SIM daughter church has grown even more.
Uganda has a marvelous history of Christian faith which includes the birth place of the East African Revival in the 1930’s which transformed the spiritual landscape of the country.
In southern Africa David Livingstone left his mark, not only with landmarks of his pioneering journeys and museums displaying his relics, but missions and churches that sprang up through his vision. The Blantyre Mission was founded in Malawi in 1876 through his inspiration. Named after the home town of David Livingstone in Scotland, the modern industrial city of Blantyre in Malawi grew up around the mission station. Today the Presbyterian Church is virtually in every corner of Malawi together with other churches.
The President of Zambia, a born again Christian, declared several years ago that Zambia was a Christian nation. When travelling in Zambia I was impressed with a Christian radio station playing gospel music and preaching the gospel on a public bus. It was not uncommon to find in many places Christian music being played in stores and public places.
When we arrived in Swaziland we were warmly greeted outside the airport with a large sign, “Welcome to Swaziland. We love you but Jesus loves you more.” 80% of Swazi’s are “Christian” by their own profession. The government has built a Christian Church beside the Parliament where public official religious services are held. The king and queen mother frequently preach.
But the visitor to Africa who sees and hears all of this can be easily deceived. In fact, there is spiritual warfare being waged in Africa and those who truly know the Lord are a remnant among the masses. Never before has there been greater need for discipling, biblical teaching and leadership training than there is today. The fact is that not far below the surface of public confessions of Christian faith, there is evidence of nominalism, syncretism and divided allegiance.
CONTINUED IN PART TWO
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Worship and Culture
WORSHIP AND CULTURE
In Kenya I worked with the Theological Advisory Group Research Team on worship. Of all the various research teams this was my favorite. It was composed of pastors and Bible College teachers from many backgrounds, including Gikuyu, Luo, Akamba, Kalenjin, a white South African and an American. In our discussion it was apparent that culture affects one’s style of worship. To think that all Africans are the same is a major error. The Gikuyu and Luo are much more emotional in their expression of worship. The Kalenjin kept saying, we need a balance between the emotions and the mind. And of course many white Americans are even less emotional outwardly.
The most important biblical teaching on worship are Jesus’s words to the Samaritan woman, “God is Spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth” (Jn 4:24). Indeed, the Kalenjin were right, we need a balance between “spirit” and “truth.”
“Truth” is the objective element in worship that guides us in worship that is acceptable to God according to his revealed Word. Truth must continually shape our forms, expressions and modes of worship. Who is God? What does He require of us? What pleases him? How can I worship God in a manner that honors him? This is a fundamental issue.
This means that the Word of God must play a formative role in all of our worship. Tragically, this is often not the case. Where the reading and preaching and teaching of Scripture is sidelined, people may lose their moorings and move into troubled areas that do not honor the Lord.
But worship that honors God must not only be “in truth” but also “in spirit.” This refers to the inner part of our human nature. Worship is not formal and external ceremonies. Many have the erroneous notion that when they participate in all the elements of worship on Sunday morning they have worshipped. The service may be rich in truth with great hymns of the faith, Scripture reading and expository preaching. And yet the person has not truly honored God because he has not worshipped “in spirit.” To worship God “in spirit” means that we must worship God with our whole inner person, sincerely and from our heart. We must mean and feel what we sing and pray. We must be real and genuine.
Our “spirit” is taught and molded by many factors, including our naturally born temperaments and personalities, our traditions of worship and the cultural milieu in which we grew. Culture is all learned behavior, values and traditions. Our spirits are deeply affected by what we learn. That is the reason there is such a deep divide between the youth who have grown up with one form of music and the adults who have learned to appreciate a different form of music. If you think there are music wars in the American church, “you ain’t seen nothing.” Adults in Kenya grew up with a worship experience shaped by the missionaries. The youth today have grown up with Christian Unions in their schools. We need to learn from each other.
Music is a form of language. Just as we learn Kiswahili or English, we learn different forms of worship. I am able to worship with certain forms of music. Other music simply turns me off. But I recognize that my “spirit” has been nurtured by my past church and cultural experience growing up. I need to learn to respect and accept others who feel they need other forms of music to worship and they need to understand and respect me.
Worship that pleases God is worship that is “in spirit” and “in truth.” We cannot truly worship unless God’s Word shapes our worship so that we honor God in ways that He has revealed. Neither can we worship “in spirit,” from our hearts, unless we consider the cultural factors which make worship meaningful to the worshipper.
In the end we can only worship God truly when the Spirit of God energizes, motivates and enables us to worship. In this sense we worship God “in Spirit” as the Spirit of God enables our spirits to worship.
In Kenya I worked with the Theological Advisory Group Research Team on worship. Of all the various research teams this was my favorite. It was composed of pastors and Bible College teachers from many backgrounds, including Gikuyu, Luo, Akamba, Kalenjin, a white South African and an American. In our discussion it was apparent that culture affects one’s style of worship. To think that all Africans are the same is a major error. The Gikuyu and Luo are much more emotional in their expression of worship. The Kalenjin kept saying, we need a balance between the emotions and the mind. And of course many white Americans are even less emotional outwardly.
The most important biblical teaching on worship are Jesus’s words to the Samaritan woman, “God is Spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth” (Jn 4:24). Indeed, the Kalenjin were right, we need a balance between “spirit” and “truth.”
“Truth” is the objective element in worship that guides us in worship that is acceptable to God according to his revealed Word. Truth must continually shape our forms, expressions and modes of worship. Who is God? What does He require of us? What pleases him? How can I worship God in a manner that honors him? This is a fundamental issue.
This means that the Word of God must play a formative role in all of our worship. Tragically, this is often not the case. Where the reading and preaching and teaching of Scripture is sidelined, people may lose their moorings and move into troubled areas that do not honor the Lord.
But worship that honors God must not only be “in truth” but also “in spirit.” This refers to the inner part of our human nature. Worship is not formal and external ceremonies. Many have the erroneous notion that when they participate in all the elements of worship on Sunday morning they have worshipped. The service may be rich in truth with great hymns of the faith, Scripture reading and expository preaching. And yet the person has not truly honored God because he has not worshipped “in spirit.” To worship God “in spirit” means that we must worship God with our whole inner person, sincerely and from our heart. We must mean and feel what we sing and pray. We must be real and genuine.
Our “spirit” is taught and molded by many factors, including our naturally born temperaments and personalities, our traditions of worship and the cultural milieu in which we grew. Culture is all learned behavior, values and traditions. Our spirits are deeply affected by what we learn. That is the reason there is such a deep divide between the youth who have grown up with one form of music and the adults who have learned to appreciate a different form of music. If you think there are music wars in the American church, “you ain’t seen nothing.” Adults in Kenya grew up with a worship experience shaped by the missionaries. The youth today have grown up with Christian Unions in their schools. We need to learn from each other.
Music is a form of language. Just as we learn Kiswahili or English, we learn different forms of worship. I am able to worship with certain forms of music. Other music simply turns me off. But I recognize that my “spirit” has been nurtured by my past church and cultural experience growing up. I need to learn to respect and accept others who feel they need other forms of music to worship and they need to understand and respect me.
Worship that pleases God is worship that is “in spirit” and “in truth.” We cannot truly worship unless God’s Word shapes our worship so that we honor God in ways that He has revealed. Neither can we worship “in spirit,” from our hearts, unless we consider the cultural factors which make worship meaningful to the worshipper.
In the end we can only worship God truly when the Spirit of God energizes, motivates and enables us to worship. In this sense we worship God “in Spirit” as the Spirit of God enables our spirits to worship.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Theology of Predestination, Part Seven
MUSINGS ON THEOLOGY AND PREDESTINATION, PART SEVEN
Continued from Part Six
Perhaps one more word needs to be said in support of my understanding of predestination. The key is the biblical meaning of FOREKNOWLEDGE. “For those whom he FOREKNEW he also PREDESTINED…(Rom. 8:28f). If you are foreknown you will surely be glorified. This is our assurance. Understanding what FOREKNOWLEDGE means in this context is the key.
Arminians believe that God foreknows THAT certain individuals will believe the gospel and on that basis God elects them. That is not the way I understand the Scripture. Let me list my arguments for believing that FOREKNOWLEDGE in this context means that God has known us before hand in a particular way of choosing us. Foreknowledge is based on God’s eternal will of choosing and loving beforehand, not on the basis of what he foreknew we would do.
1. The English dictionary defines “foreknowledge” only as prescience, knowing something ahead of time. That is what we are familiar with in English. But the Bible was not written in English and all words anywhere are defined by the context.
2. It is true that the Greek word for foreknowledge in the Bible can mean “know beforehand, in advance” (II Pet. 3:17). But it also means “choose beforehand” (Arndt and Gingrich Greek Lexicon). In I Peter 1:20 we read, “He was CHOSEN before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake (NIV)” (KJ says “foreordained,” ESV says “foreknown”). Clearly, Jesus was not just known beforehand; he was chosen and foreordained to die on the cross.
Romans 11:2 is clearly not a passive foreknowledge or prescience when Paul writes: “God did not reject his people whom he foreknew.” The context speaks of God choosing Israel/the remnant by grace 11:5. Israel was a CHOSEN people and his remnant was chosen. God did not simply know them beforehand. God knows all things perfectly from eternity past. God’s foreknowledge in our salvation goes beyond prescience.
3. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that divine election is based on God’s foreknowledge that we would believe. NOWHERE does it say that.
4. Romans 8:28 does not say that God foreknew THAT we would do anything. It says God foreknew us. That is a big difference. He foreknew us, according to Romans 8:28; he did not simply foreknow that we would believe. That is extra canonical.
5. We are not free to pick and choose whichever definition we prefer. The context determines the meaning, and the context of Romans 8:28 clearly indicates a “choosing,” a knowing with a preference. All Greek lexicons affirm this.
For me this divine act of election is abundantly clear. It is equally clear that we have a responsibility to repent and believe; we have a responsibility to preach, teach, pray, evangelize and use all means possible to bring people to Christ. It is unbiblical to be passive in evangelism, to assume that the elect will be saved without your help or mine.
How do we resolve this dilemma of reconciling the divine act of election with our human responsibility? We cannot, anymore than we can resolve the mystery of the Incarnation.
Continued from Part Six
Perhaps one more word needs to be said in support of my understanding of predestination. The key is the biblical meaning of FOREKNOWLEDGE. “For those whom he FOREKNEW he also PREDESTINED…(Rom. 8:28f). If you are foreknown you will surely be glorified. This is our assurance. Understanding what FOREKNOWLEDGE means in this context is the key.
Arminians believe that God foreknows THAT certain individuals will believe the gospel and on that basis God elects them. That is not the way I understand the Scripture. Let me list my arguments for believing that FOREKNOWLEDGE in this context means that God has known us before hand in a particular way of choosing us. Foreknowledge is based on God’s eternal will of choosing and loving beforehand, not on the basis of what he foreknew we would do.
1. The English dictionary defines “foreknowledge” only as prescience, knowing something ahead of time. That is what we are familiar with in English. But the Bible was not written in English and all words anywhere are defined by the context.
2. It is true that the Greek word for foreknowledge in the Bible can mean “know beforehand, in advance” (II Pet. 3:17). But it also means “choose beforehand” (Arndt and Gingrich Greek Lexicon). In I Peter 1:20 we read, “He was CHOSEN before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake (NIV)” (KJ says “foreordained,” ESV says “foreknown”). Clearly, Jesus was not just known beforehand; he was chosen and foreordained to die on the cross.
Romans 11:2 is clearly not a passive foreknowledge or prescience when Paul writes: “God did not reject his people whom he foreknew.” The context speaks of God choosing Israel/the remnant by grace 11:5. Israel was a CHOSEN people and his remnant was chosen. God did not simply know them beforehand. God knows all things perfectly from eternity past. God’s foreknowledge in our salvation goes beyond prescience.
3. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that divine election is based on God’s foreknowledge that we would believe. NOWHERE does it say that.
4. Romans 8:28 does not say that God foreknew THAT we would do anything. It says God foreknew us. That is a big difference. He foreknew us, according to Romans 8:28; he did not simply foreknow that we would believe. That is extra canonical.
5. We are not free to pick and choose whichever definition we prefer. The context determines the meaning, and the context of Romans 8:28 clearly indicates a “choosing,” a knowing with a preference. All Greek lexicons affirm this.
For me this divine act of election is abundantly clear. It is equally clear that we have a responsibility to repent and believe; we have a responsibility to preach, teach, pray, evangelize and use all means possible to bring people to Christ. It is unbiblical to be passive in evangelism, to assume that the elect will be saved without your help or mine.
How do we resolve this dilemma of reconciling the divine act of election with our human responsibility? We cannot, anymore than we can resolve the mystery of the Incarnation.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Theology of Predestination, Part Six
MUSINGS ON THEOLOGY AND PREDESTINATION, PART SIX
Continued from Part Five
I believe that the Bible teaches that on this side of the veil we pray for the lost, preach the gospel and plead with them, reason with them and beseech them to turn to Christ, to decide for Christ and to seek God with all their hearts. We should follow Paul and use all means to bring people to Christ.
How they are saved is the mystery. Daniel Whittle’s hymn speaks to this thought, “I know not how this saving faith to me He did impart, nor how believing in his Word wrought peace within my heart.” For five stanzas he confesses, “I know not why…I know not how…I know not what…I know not when…” “BUT I KNOW whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I’ve committed unto him against that day.” What is not clearly revealed in Scripture I leave with God to sort out. “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever” (Dt. 29:29).
On a different note, Paul had the audacity to say that “some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of good-will…But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice” (Phil. 1:15ff). If Paul could rejoice over the preaching of the gospel by those with false motives and malicious attitudes toward him, how much more should we rejoice when the gospel is preached by those who do not subscribe to the particular theology that we have adopted, and do not practice our forms of evangelism?
To make snide remarks about those who preach the gospel, to question their motives, to repudiate their efforts in evangelism because they do not dot the i’s and cross the t’s in their theology as we wish they would has brought me much pain and grief. We need bigger hearts and more humility to recognize that maybe we also have blind spots. Jesus taught us, “Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.” We all need mercy because we all fall short.
“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (I Cor. 13:12). In glory we will know more perfectly than we know down here. In the mean time we seek to follow Paul’s example of using “all possible means” to win men and women to Christ. And we do not become upset when others say that the sun sets when in fact we know that the sun only sets from our standpoint.
Continued in Part Seven
Continued from Part Five
I believe that the Bible teaches that on this side of the veil we pray for the lost, preach the gospel and plead with them, reason with them and beseech them to turn to Christ, to decide for Christ and to seek God with all their hearts. We should follow Paul and use all means to bring people to Christ.
How they are saved is the mystery. Daniel Whittle’s hymn speaks to this thought, “I know not how this saving faith to me He did impart, nor how believing in his Word wrought peace within my heart.” For five stanzas he confesses, “I know not why…I know not how…I know not what…I know not when…” “BUT I KNOW whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I’ve committed unto him against that day.” What is not clearly revealed in Scripture I leave with God to sort out. “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever” (Dt. 29:29).
On a different note, Paul had the audacity to say that “some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of good-will…But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice” (Phil. 1:15ff). If Paul could rejoice over the preaching of the gospel by those with false motives and malicious attitudes toward him, how much more should we rejoice when the gospel is preached by those who do not subscribe to the particular theology that we have adopted, and do not practice our forms of evangelism?
To make snide remarks about those who preach the gospel, to question their motives, to repudiate their efforts in evangelism because they do not dot the i’s and cross the t’s in their theology as we wish they would has brought me much pain and grief. We need bigger hearts and more humility to recognize that maybe we also have blind spots. Jesus taught us, “Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.” We all need mercy because we all fall short.
“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (I Cor. 13:12). In glory we will know more perfectly than we know down here. In the mean time we seek to follow Paul’s example of using “all possible means” to win men and women to Christ. And we do not become upset when others say that the sun sets when in fact we know that the sun only sets from our standpoint.
Continued in Part Seven
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Theology of Predestination, Part Five
MUSINGS ON THEOLOGY AND PREDESTINATION, PART FIVE
Continued from Part Four
Two aspects of our salvation cannot be reconciled or comprehended by our finite mind – God’s eternal election and Man’s responsibility.
The Bible teaches that man is born spiritually dead. That is biblical (Eph. 2). Exactly, what does this mean? The text does not explain the meaning of “dead.” Does this mean that he has no living, relationship with God, no spiritual life, no hope of life eternal? Clearly this is taught in the Bible (Romans 3:9-18; Ephesians 4:17-19). Does Ephesians 2 mean that man has no consciousness of God, no sense of right and wrong given by God, no spiritual sensitivities? Clearly this is not true (Romans 2:12-16).
Does the spiritual deadness of mankind mean that man is unable in any way to respond to the gospel until he is regenerated first by God? How do we logically put together this conundrum concerning God’s sovereign election, and mankind’s spiritual deadness with human responsibility to repent and believe the gospel?
Today we speak of the sun rising and setting, not simply because this is traditional but because this is the way it appears to our eyes; even though we know that the earth moves around the sun, not the other way around. In the same manner we may speak of man’s activities which lead to his salvation – indeed, they are commanded in Scripture – even while we understand that behind all of our turning, God is sovereignly working out his eternal purposes.
Ravi Zacharias, the brilliant apologist, makes various comments in his book, “Walking from East to West.” “But my hungers went unfulfilled until I FOUND HIM.” Is this semi-pelagian? Can a man find God or does God find him. He states, “I was very clear in my mind as I left the hospital with my mother that I had MADE A COMMITMENT to Christ. It was the most striking and MOST NOBLE-MINDED DECISION I HAD EVER MADE. My life now belonged to Jesus Christ.” Is the plea for people to “decide” for Christ semi-pelagian? Can those who believe in election and innate spiritual deadness of natural man call invite people to decide for Christ? When Ravi spoke to a hostile crowd, they quieted down and began to listen. “When I gave the invitation at the end, the response was overwhelming – nearly one hundred in that audience of just over two hundred RESPONDED TO THE INVITATION to turn their lives over to Christ.”
Is this unbiblical talk? Not in my book. We speak in human terms – choosing and deciding. At the same time we recognize that only God can bring new life to this person. Let us not become unbalanced by neglecting either the divine work of God in salvation or the human responsibility God has placed in our hands.
A critic of D.L. Moody cornered him, finding fault with Moody in his evangelistic crusades and altar calls. Moody responded, “And what is your method of evangelism?” The critic stuttered and replied that he had no method. “In that case, Moody said, “I like my method better than yours.”
Continued in Part Six
Continued from Part Four
Two aspects of our salvation cannot be reconciled or comprehended by our finite mind – God’s eternal election and Man’s responsibility.
The Bible teaches that man is born spiritually dead. That is biblical (Eph. 2). Exactly, what does this mean? The text does not explain the meaning of “dead.” Does this mean that he has no living, relationship with God, no spiritual life, no hope of life eternal? Clearly this is taught in the Bible (Romans 3:9-18; Ephesians 4:17-19). Does Ephesians 2 mean that man has no consciousness of God, no sense of right and wrong given by God, no spiritual sensitivities? Clearly this is not true (Romans 2:12-16).
Does the spiritual deadness of mankind mean that man is unable in any way to respond to the gospel until he is regenerated first by God? How do we logically put together this conundrum concerning God’s sovereign election, and mankind’s spiritual deadness with human responsibility to repent and believe the gospel?
Today we speak of the sun rising and setting, not simply because this is traditional but because this is the way it appears to our eyes; even though we know that the earth moves around the sun, not the other way around. In the same manner we may speak of man’s activities which lead to his salvation – indeed, they are commanded in Scripture – even while we understand that behind all of our turning, God is sovereignly working out his eternal purposes.
Ravi Zacharias, the brilliant apologist, makes various comments in his book, “Walking from East to West.” “But my hungers went unfulfilled until I FOUND HIM.” Is this semi-pelagian? Can a man find God or does God find him. He states, “I was very clear in my mind as I left the hospital with my mother that I had MADE A COMMITMENT to Christ. It was the most striking and MOST NOBLE-MINDED DECISION I HAD EVER MADE. My life now belonged to Jesus Christ.” Is the plea for people to “decide” for Christ semi-pelagian? Can those who believe in election and innate spiritual deadness of natural man call invite people to decide for Christ? When Ravi spoke to a hostile crowd, they quieted down and began to listen. “When I gave the invitation at the end, the response was overwhelming – nearly one hundred in that audience of just over two hundred RESPONDED TO THE INVITATION to turn their lives over to Christ.”
Is this unbiblical talk? Not in my book. We speak in human terms – choosing and deciding. At the same time we recognize that only God can bring new life to this person. Let us not become unbalanced by neglecting either the divine work of God in salvation or the human responsibility God has placed in our hands.
A critic of D.L. Moody cornered him, finding fault with Moody in his evangelistic crusades and altar calls. Moody responded, “And what is your method of evangelism?” The critic stuttered and replied that he had no method. “In that case, Moody said, “I like my method better than yours.”
Continued in Part Six
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
