A Theology of Indifference, Part 2
Lisa Robinson
Here is a follow up article also written by Lisa Robinson that I thought was a good read. She nailed it on the head by stating that the major concern in the church today is a “lack of discernment.” The average Christian does not want to love God with all of his mind. Why love God with all my mind when I can love Him with all my heart instead? So we substitute deep learning for ministry programs, conferences, seminars, revivals, concerts, outreaches, etc., all designed to promote involvement and fellowship, but very little deep seated learning. Here is a quote from her piece:
No amount of fellowship, ministry programs, revivals, outreach programs or worship concerts can compensate for the growing in grace and the true knowledge of Christ (2 Peter 3:18). It is my opinion that only through solid Christian education can any real growth take place through the application of discernment and ministry. Yes, they do go hand in hand. Otherwise, answers to questions and questions about answers will get swallowed up in a sea of popularized thinking that leaves no foundation for understanding why we believe what we believe.
Of course, fellowship is good and necessary, but never at the expense of depriving the mind of loving God. We are putting out droves of Christians who are feeling oriented and experiential seekers. When they are asked to sit in one place for 40-50 minutes to listen to sound doctrine, that’s considered too much to ask. Why should I sit down and engage my brain when I can go to the church across the street and engaged my feelings instead?
Here’s her article. Enjoy!
Not too long ago, I was sitting with a group of Christians and engaged in a discussion with a young man about theology. Immediately, some of his statements began to concern me as I found them inconsistent both with scripture and the historical foundation of Christianity. I looked around waiting for someone else to jump in. No one did. Either they felt what he was saying was not important or didn’t realize how off base he was. What was the problem? Apathy? Indifference? Who cares, he was a Christian anyway.
As a follow up to A Theology of Indifference from last year, I continue to be concerned, alarmed and dismayed at the growing lack of discernment in the body of Christ. This concern has recently been amplified by a comment, spoken to me in love, that I did not need to be so serious about my Biblical and theological pursuits. You need balance, my friend said. While I don’t quite have the social life I’d like since I am after all, a single mother taking a full load in the ThM program and working part-time, I balance (pun intended) that against the value of what it is all about – understanding more fully what God has revealed through his word, through his son and throughout history. No, it doesn’t leave too much room for a social life but maybe learning about God on his terms is a little more important. Maybe I care too much.
I have definitely become more aware of the importance of human relationships and the need to develop them. We cannot live this life alone, especially not a Christian life. Relationship is necessary. Engagement with people is necessary. I, for one, could use better relationship and have been making intentional steps in that direction. But does that cause us to put doctrinal significance of essentials on the back burner? Does the quest for relationship and balance cause us to lose sight of the importance of the triune God and his plan for his people? Have we exchanged fellowship for Christian education because in the end, it is people who matter. Who cares about doctrine and besides it divides.
Who is Christ? How are others expressing him? Listen and pay attention. You will find some interesting statements. I do wonder if the average church goer was asked what Christ accomplished on the crossed, what answers would we get? He died for our sins. Justification, reconciliation, propitiation, redemption and sanctification sound real fancy and probably to most, are relegated to academic learning but we needn’t be concerned with such technical terms. But I think these so vitally important to understand the great salvation that has been handed down encompassed in Romans 5:8, “while we were yet sinners Christ died for the ungodly”.
In Michael’s recent piece about people walking away from the church in droves due to dogmitized approaches to Christianity that leave no room for legitimate questioning or critical learning, is it any wonder that they have said “cancel my subscription”. No amount of fellowship, ministry programs, revivals, outreach programs or worship concerts can compensate for the growing in grace and the true knowledge of Christ (2 Peter 3:18). It is my opinion that only through solid Christian education can any real growth take place through the application of discernment and ministry. Yes, they do go hand in hand. Otherwise, answers to questions and questions about answers will get swallowed up in a sea of popularized thinking that leaves no foundation for understanding why we believe what we believe.
Friends, we need to start caring about our faith. We cannot settle for formulas, pop-theology and the latest formation craze. We need to start paying attention to how people are expressing the basics of Christianity – the nature of the triune God, the work and person of Christ, the purpose of the church and God’s plan for history. Otherwise, unchecked and unexamined ideas will infiltrate the church indicative of Jude’s concern that “certain persons have crept in unnoticed” (Jude 1:4). That does not mean go to the other extreme and nit-pick about every doctrinal issue. But it does mean at least understanding what they are. Fellowship is good, concerts are great, programs are helpful. But striving to understand God on his terms is priceless and worthy of the highest discernment.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
A Theology of Indifference, Part 1
Here is a blog that I really enjoyed reading. Lisa Robinson is a Th.M student and she hits home on what I also believe to be a major crisis in the church today – a lack of spiritual discernment. This is what she wrote:
I could be wrong, but I do believe there is a concerning lack of discernment in the body of Christ today. It is not obstinance, although with some that may be the case. It is not ignorance, because I think there is just way to much information out there. No, I think the problem is what I will call a theology of indifference. It is simply taking at face value a teacher or teaching as solidly Christian simply because they may teach about Christ, use the Bible and may even have large crowds and popular products and settling for a superficial knowledge of what constitutes our Christian faith.
Take the time to read through her blog. She also came out of the third wave movement which is part of the charismatic circle. Her story sounds a lot like mine in that she also started to question some of the beliefs that Charismatic teachers would put forth without any solid biblical foundation. Of course, it is not entirely their fault, since we also believed them and did not take the time to do our own investigation. Furthermore, for me, I have been one of those charismatic teachers.
Lisa’s blog will come in two parts. Tomorrow I will send Part 2. Enjoy!
As many reading probably know, I used to be firmly entrenched in third wave, word/faith, charismatic circles. During that time, there was most certainly hunger and an earnest desire to be on one accord with what God was doing, with how I believed that the Spirit was moving. I did study the Bible, well actually read the Bible, ferociously and was determined to not miss God.
I therefore, followed a number of popular teachers (names unmentioned) that had books, megachurches, TV spots, radio programs and conferences to which many would flock. If a book was written by one of these spiritual superstars, I wanted to get it. I faithfully followed the Elijah List, a consortium of today’s “prophetic” voice so I could stay on top of things.
But in gravitating towards popular name brands (because after all, with those kinds of crowds, how can the teaching be off in any way), it does seem like I missed something vitally important…discernment. Don’t get me wrong, I would listen carefully and yes, there were times that things were said, including times in my own church, that I would question or not necessarily agree with. But overall, I would dismiss these fleeting moments of doubt to embrace the larger and grander prize of being in the know, or so I thought. But the ability to really dig in and compare what I was listening to with what Scripture was really communicating was lost on me until about 3 years ago.
That is when I became acquainted with a dear brother in Christ who would eventually become of my best friends and he challenged me on how I was reading Scripture. This would usually occur after I would recite whatever latest musings I had grabbed hold of from one of these popular teachers. It was at this time that I really began to study the Scriptures, contextually, comparatively, exegetically and expositionally. Needless to say, since that time some of the positions that I dogmatically would espouse as truth, began to unravel under the microscope of Scriptural examination.
Since that time, I have noticed an alarming trend in my blogging travels, conversations with other Christians and general observations regarding church happenings. People in general want something more, they know about Christ and maybe even profess Him as Lord. They want to know God and to experience Him in their lives. They are taught to read the Bible and do as it says. There are many popular voices for them to listen to help them in their Christian journey. Go into any bookstore and there will be a plethora of resources to utilize. Naturally, I think the ones produced by the name brand will get the bill. But I wonder how much these are carefully considered as being sufficiently accurate compared to what Scripture is saying or are the sermons, resources and teachings automatically received simply because it rings of Christian truth?
I could be wrong, but I do believe there is a concerning lack of discernment in the body of Christ today. It is not obstinance, although with some that may be the case. It is not ignorance, because I think there is just way to much information out there. No, I think the problem is what I will call a theology of indifference. It is simply taking at face value a teacher or teaching as solidly Christian simply because they may teach about Christ, use the Bible and may even have large crowds and popular products and settling for a superficial knowledge of what constitutes our Christian faith.
I would not automatically dismiss folks as being too lazy to care. But I do think there might be many factors contributing to this trend and here are some I am considering:
Pastoral challenges: I do not envy the job of any pastor. He has a responsibility before God to instruct the flock about Christianity and what that should mean for them and to care for the needs of the flock. That is a tough balancing act, I think. People are hurt and come with needs. They want solutions to their problems, which are very real and imminent. Biblical instruction, while very much the charge of any pastor, may not appear to be the instant remedy to that hurting member of the body. How to meet those needs without forsaking the charge of solid Christian education?
And I do believe that the state of discernment rises and falls on the headship of the church. To the degree that the leadership is serious about fostering discernment through solid Biblical education is to the degree that that will most likely filter down to the members. I think there is nothing more grevious, and telling, of a church member who talks more about what their pastor said than what the Bible said.
I think too, there is always the temptation to confuse leadership with agenda promotion. The pastor leads the congregation through serving them, not ruling over them. In the hands of untrained, unstable, and maybe self-serving pastors, who do not themselves have a tight grip on what the Scripture really teaches about the purpose of their job, the way of pastoral care could easily produce spiritually anemic and Biblically illiterate saints who whole-heartedly support his vision that may be confused with Biblical doctrine.
Church challenges: The buildings and organizations we call churches, are in the business of being the church to the body. There are clearly some basics outlined in Scripture, but there is a lot of leeway to conduct corporate gatherings and produce programs that will fulfill the Scriptural mandate of what the church is supposed to be. The buildings called churches exist to foster a community of believers to grow up together in Christ. But similar to the pastoral challenge, the corporate structure of the church could bend so far in accommodating needs that critical Christian education is forsaken as a necessary component of discipleship in response to the demands of the congregation for help with concerns and focus programs around those needs. Please hear me, I am not saying these programs are not needed but it is about balance.
Status of Christian Education: for the first 2 reasons stated above, this is I think is in a dismal state. Again, members of congregations will rise to the occasion of learning to the extent that it is being promoted. A fish rots from the head, as one professional collegue told me years ago. This too, is a challenge. How to teach what every disciple should know in a way that engages them and adequately equips them not only for service but to be able to separate the real from the fake. And if congregations become less concerned about critically learning about their faith, that could seep into the corporate mindset of how programs and education are designed.
My dad was telling me that at his church in Southern CA, which is an Evangelical Free church, that the Adult Bible Fellowship program was abandoned because the congregation was more interested in fellowshipping than sitting in a classroom learning for 45 minutes. To be sure, fellowship and breaking bread together is a necessary component of doing life together. But it cannot take the place of Christian education. And this is the concern, that as desires of congregations are catered to and as churches are faced with dwindling numbers in Adult Bible Fellowship classes, there is a lessening or straight abandonment of teaching Christians about their faith so they will not buy hook, line and sinker anything that comes down the pike.
Disruption of Unity: I have heard this argument many times. Because of the unity that we are to have as believers, pointing out doctrinal differences goes against the grain of the unity espoused in Scripture. Ephesians 4 is usually the white horse that the unity trump card rests on. Besides, didn’t Jesus say that the world will spot disciples by the love that we have for one another? It does seem likely to be dubbed a heresy hunter if you comment about teaching that you believe may not be consistent with a plain reading of Scripture.
I do believe in the unity of the body. But the unity spoken about in Ephesians is solidified on the basis of who Christ is, what He accomplished and who we are in relation to Him. It is not a license to follow blindly any type of teaching that may mention Christ but distorts His character, work or purpose. But again, it is important to understand what the Christian business is all about in order to even make that assessment in the first place.
It is serious business to be a Christ follower and one that we should not take lightly, casually or apathetically. It is not enough to learn a verse a day to keep the devil away or even to get so entrenched with a particular Christian tradition that we abandoned the charge of discipleship, to grow in grace and the true knowledge of Jesus Christ. And we don’t know without a critical examination of our faith to do as the Bereans did in Acts 17:11 to examine the Scripture and see if these things are so.
This shows we care about our faith, about God, about the great salvation that has been given to us, that we are not willing to buy in to any product of Christianity without analyzing it against Scripture and sound doctrine. It shows we care that we are willing to do as Jude commends to earnestly contend for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. There is nothing wrong at all with pointing out distortions but there is everything wrong with not knowing what they are in the first place.
I could be wrong, but I do believe there is a concerning lack of discernment in the body of Christ today. It is not obstinance, although with some that may be the case. It is not ignorance, because I think there is just way to much information out there. No, I think the problem is what I will call a theology of indifference. It is simply taking at face value a teacher or teaching as solidly Christian simply because they may teach about Christ, use the Bible and may even have large crowds and popular products and settling for a superficial knowledge of what constitutes our Christian faith.
Take the time to read through her blog. She also came out of the third wave movement which is part of the charismatic circle. Her story sounds a lot like mine in that she also started to question some of the beliefs that Charismatic teachers would put forth without any solid biblical foundation. Of course, it is not entirely their fault, since we also believed them and did not take the time to do our own investigation. Furthermore, for me, I have been one of those charismatic teachers.
Lisa’s blog will come in two parts. Tomorrow I will send Part 2. Enjoy!
As many reading probably know, I used to be firmly entrenched in third wave, word/faith, charismatic circles. During that time, there was most certainly hunger and an earnest desire to be on one accord with what God was doing, with how I believed that the Spirit was moving. I did study the Bible, well actually read the Bible, ferociously and was determined to not miss God.
I therefore, followed a number of popular teachers (names unmentioned) that had books, megachurches, TV spots, radio programs and conferences to which many would flock. If a book was written by one of these spiritual superstars, I wanted to get it. I faithfully followed the Elijah List, a consortium of today’s “prophetic” voice so I could stay on top of things.
But in gravitating towards popular name brands (because after all, with those kinds of crowds, how can the teaching be off in any way), it does seem like I missed something vitally important…discernment. Don’t get me wrong, I would listen carefully and yes, there were times that things were said, including times in my own church, that I would question or not necessarily agree with. But overall, I would dismiss these fleeting moments of doubt to embrace the larger and grander prize of being in the know, or so I thought. But the ability to really dig in and compare what I was listening to with what Scripture was really communicating was lost on me until about 3 years ago.
That is when I became acquainted with a dear brother in Christ who would eventually become of my best friends and he challenged me on how I was reading Scripture. This would usually occur after I would recite whatever latest musings I had grabbed hold of from one of these popular teachers. It was at this time that I really began to study the Scriptures, contextually, comparatively, exegetically and expositionally. Needless to say, since that time some of the positions that I dogmatically would espouse as truth, began to unravel under the microscope of Scriptural examination.
Since that time, I have noticed an alarming trend in my blogging travels, conversations with other Christians and general observations regarding church happenings. People in general want something more, they know about Christ and maybe even profess Him as Lord. They want to know God and to experience Him in their lives. They are taught to read the Bible and do as it says. There are many popular voices for them to listen to help them in their Christian journey. Go into any bookstore and there will be a plethora of resources to utilize. Naturally, I think the ones produced by the name brand will get the bill. But I wonder how much these are carefully considered as being sufficiently accurate compared to what Scripture is saying or are the sermons, resources and teachings automatically received simply because it rings of Christian truth?
I could be wrong, but I do believe there is a concerning lack of discernment in the body of Christ today. It is not obstinance, although with some that may be the case. It is not ignorance, because I think there is just way to much information out there. No, I think the problem is what I will call a theology of indifference. It is simply taking at face value a teacher or teaching as solidly Christian simply because they may teach about Christ, use the Bible and may even have large crowds and popular products and settling for a superficial knowledge of what constitutes our Christian faith.
I would not automatically dismiss folks as being too lazy to care. But I do think there might be many factors contributing to this trend and here are some I am considering:
Pastoral challenges: I do not envy the job of any pastor. He has a responsibility before God to instruct the flock about Christianity and what that should mean for them and to care for the needs of the flock. That is a tough balancing act, I think. People are hurt and come with needs. They want solutions to their problems, which are very real and imminent. Biblical instruction, while very much the charge of any pastor, may not appear to be the instant remedy to that hurting member of the body. How to meet those needs without forsaking the charge of solid Christian education?
And I do believe that the state of discernment rises and falls on the headship of the church. To the degree that the leadership is serious about fostering discernment through solid Biblical education is to the degree that that will most likely filter down to the members. I think there is nothing more grevious, and telling, of a church member who talks more about what their pastor said than what the Bible said.
I think too, there is always the temptation to confuse leadership with agenda promotion. The pastor leads the congregation through serving them, not ruling over them. In the hands of untrained, unstable, and maybe self-serving pastors, who do not themselves have a tight grip on what the Scripture really teaches about the purpose of their job, the way of pastoral care could easily produce spiritually anemic and Biblically illiterate saints who whole-heartedly support his vision that may be confused with Biblical doctrine.
Church challenges: The buildings and organizations we call churches, are in the business of being the church to the body. There are clearly some basics outlined in Scripture, but there is a lot of leeway to conduct corporate gatherings and produce programs that will fulfill the Scriptural mandate of what the church is supposed to be. The buildings called churches exist to foster a community of believers to grow up together in Christ. But similar to the pastoral challenge, the corporate structure of the church could bend so far in accommodating needs that critical Christian education is forsaken as a necessary component of discipleship in response to the demands of the congregation for help with concerns and focus programs around those needs. Please hear me, I am not saying these programs are not needed but it is about balance.
Status of Christian Education: for the first 2 reasons stated above, this is I think is in a dismal state. Again, members of congregations will rise to the occasion of learning to the extent that it is being promoted. A fish rots from the head, as one professional collegue told me years ago. This too, is a challenge. How to teach what every disciple should know in a way that engages them and adequately equips them not only for service but to be able to separate the real from the fake. And if congregations become less concerned about critically learning about their faith, that could seep into the corporate mindset of how programs and education are designed.
My dad was telling me that at his church in Southern CA, which is an Evangelical Free church, that the Adult Bible Fellowship program was abandoned because the congregation was more interested in fellowshipping than sitting in a classroom learning for 45 minutes. To be sure, fellowship and breaking bread together is a necessary component of doing life together. But it cannot take the place of Christian education. And this is the concern, that as desires of congregations are catered to and as churches are faced with dwindling numbers in Adult Bible Fellowship classes, there is a lessening or straight abandonment of teaching Christians about their faith so they will not buy hook, line and sinker anything that comes down the pike.
Disruption of Unity: I have heard this argument many times. Because of the unity that we are to have as believers, pointing out doctrinal differences goes against the grain of the unity espoused in Scripture. Ephesians 4 is usually the white horse that the unity trump card rests on. Besides, didn’t Jesus say that the world will spot disciples by the love that we have for one another? It does seem likely to be dubbed a heresy hunter if you comment about teaching that you believe may not be consistent with a plain reading of Scripture.
I do believe in the unity of the body. But the unity spoken about in Ephesians is solidified on the basis of who Christ is, what He accomplished and who we are in relation to Him. It is not a license to follow blindly any type of teaching that may mention Christ but distorts His character, work or purpose. But again, it is important to understand what the Christian business is all about in order to even make that assessment in the first place.
It is serious business to be a Christ follower and one that we should not take lightly, casually or apathetically. It is not enough to learn a verse a day to keep the devil away or even to get so entrenched with a particular Christian tradition that we abandoned the charge of discipleship, to grow in grace and the true knowledge of Jesus Christ. And we don’t know without a critical examination of our faith to do as the Bereans did in Acts 17:11 to examine the Scripture and see if these things are so.
This shows we care about our faith, about God, about the great salvation that has been given to us, that we are not willing to buy in to any product of Christianity without analyzing it against Scripture and sound doctrine. It shows we care that we are willing to do as Jude commends to earnestly contend for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. There is nothing wrong at all with pointing out distortions but there is everything wrong with not knowing what they are in the first place.
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