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“Doctrine is timeless,

methodology is timely.”

Spiritual Transformation: Disciplines

Our study thus far of the spiritual life has been rooted in the reality of our co-death with Christ and the empowering of our spirit that follows forth.  We now move the focus to the body.  As man’s spirit is the foundation of the spiritual life, we now aim to show that the body is the primary resource.  Paul’s writing sheds light on this reality:

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor your God with your body. (1Cor.6:19)

…I urge you brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy an pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. (Rom.12:1)

Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. (Rom.6:19)

In our conversations about spiritual disciplines and obedience unto the Lord, it is imperative to remember that the activities (disciplines) bear no value in of themselves.  The power and blessing flow from the fact that disciplines are routinely put in place to exemplify our weakness, and do not themselves constitute our strength.  It could also be said: we do not practice disciplines to obtain something, but we practice disciplines to position ourselves for something.  Many folks are extremely reluctant to even entertain the thought of incorporating disciplines into their lives because of a false fear of having a “meritorious works” mentality.  Unfortunately, I believe this mindset has overcome the church in many regards and disciplines are therefore hardly spoken about.  This indeed is a shame, and we are paying a heavy price for it.  Most are not spiritually equipped, and most try to function in life without the necessary strength and wisdom that only spiritual disciplines can produce.

Dallas Willard uses a very informative illustration to highlight the importance of discipline.  The example is that of a young boy who idolizes an incredible baseball player.  In his desire to imitate his idol, he tries his hardest to behave exactly like the star when he (the boy) is playing in a baseball game. The boy holds his bat like his idol, he wears the same glove, tries the same sliding technique, wears the same shoes, etc.  But what are his chances of performing like the star he idolizes?  There is not a chance, no matter how naturally gifted he may be, the star performer did not achieve his excellence by trying to behave a certain way only during the game. Instead, his lifestyle was one of constant exercise and preparation with the intentions of building a foundation of automatic responses and reactions.  Talents of greatness are birthed out of a daily regimen that no one sees; and the successful athlete understands the strict discipline that is necessary in succeeding his foe.

This principle extends into the whole of life, not least being our relationship with God!  It is of greatest importance to realize the truth that we still live within a sinful flesh that wants to make decisions that are contrary to what our spirit desires.  At the same time, we are saved and come into relationship with God through grace alone.  But let us not be a people that stops there!  Grace does not automatically mean that we will always have a sufficient amount of insight and wisdom at any times notice and/or moment of need.  An athlete who expects to excel in a performance without the adequate training and exercise of his body is no more ridiculous than a Christian who hopes to act righteously and worthy in manner when faced with a difficult test without the appropriate exercise in godly living.  Willard is, without a doubt, correct in this observation.

Let us not forfeit the privilege that we have been given.  We live as a people who have been given the ultimate example of godly living – Jesus Christ.  Through God’s word, we have the actual account of how Jesus walked as a man in-tune with the Spirit.  We are called to be imitators of Christ, are we not?  Then why do we not partake in the things that He did??  If Jesus was reliant upon and in need of these spiritual disciplines, how much more are we!  Yes, God desires that we live in freedom.  Yes, He grants us a burden that is light.  But these do not come without an effort of obedience on our end.  The Lord’s commandments are not given to burden us, they are given to guide us into godliness.

We meet and dwell with Jesus and his Father in the disciplines for the spiritual life.  To live a life as Christ means that we are to live a life as He did in all his life.  We cannot expect to excert the the power and display the mercy that he did without instilling the discipline and obedience into our everyday lives that he did.

more to continue……

Dallas Willard. The Spirit of the Disciplines. (HarperCollins)

Fleshly vs. Spiritual [Part 3]

To refresh, the aim here is to establish a biblical foundation for the pursuit of becoming a “spiritual” Christian rather than a “fleshly” one (1 Cor. 3:1).  Our brief study thus far has had the majority of its focus on the revelation and recognition of what our LORD has already accomplished on our behalf.  We have emphasized that we must first pay attention to, and believe, God’s word considering our flesh .  Those in Corinth, “babes in Christ”, had been crucified with our Lord Jesus on the cross, but this fact they had not grasped or realized.  Our first step is to deal with the flesh from God’s point of view (Gal. 2:20; Rom. 6:6).

By dying to what once bound us, we have been released and loosed from the dominating position of our flesh.  Once we believe and confess this truth – and not before  this – we now give our utmost attention to our experience.  Our reality now becomes one with the working of the Holy Spirit.  In Colossians 3, Paul urges his readers in verse 5 to “put to death, therefore, that which belongs to your earthly nature.”  The major significance for our discussion here is that the word “therefore”  has its basis in verse 3 – “For you died.”   This death that we have experienced, becomes the death in which we continuously apply to our sinful nature.   In this fact is where the practical implications of this discussion start to take their form.

“The first death is a positional fact which we have in Christ.  The second death is the real experience which we possess.  We can see the relationship between the two.  The failure of the believers in the flesh is because of not seeing the relationship of the two deaths.  Some only want to put to death their flesh, first paying attention to their experience of death, but the more they  put to death their flesh, the more alive their flesh is.  Some only know that their flesh has been crucified on the cross and do not pursue the practice.”

We have the tendency to quickly jump to practices and solutions when dealing with our sinful and disobedient flesh.  But what this discussion aims to highlight is that it is more important to understand the foundation from which we wage war against the passions of the flesh (1 Peter 2:11). Otherwise, we will haphazardly pursue victory and experience through our own efforts.

We must operate through the knowledge and experience of co-death.  It is through co-death that we rightfully apply the power and practice of “putting to death.”  Romans 8:13  says that “by the Spirit you put to death the practices of the body.”  Our earlier discussion of how regeneration has brought our spirit back into its original and prominent place of our being finds its significance here.  God’s own life has been given to us, and His Spirit has resurrected ours and now abides in our spirit. Through the renewal of our spirit, we have the authority to apply death through the power of the Holy Spirit.

In light of our new identity in Christ, and in the foundational truths that have been set before us, we are commanded to – “walk by the Spirit” and “by no means fulfill the lust of the flesh” (Gal.5:16).  We have ventured to set the foundation from which this can become an actual reality in our lives.

This discussion of the “spiritual man” leads way to the next set of posts that have their dealings in “spiritual disciplines.”  We move our attention (but not forgetting our foundation!) to the body/soul.

Fleshly vs. Spiritual [Part 2]

We continue on this discussion of Paul’s distinction of fleshly/spiritual by emphasizing that regeneration is the impartation of God’s life into the spirit of man.  To be “born again” is completely a matter in the spirit; the relationship has its direct ties with spirit (not with the soul or body).  This particular discussion aims to stress  the power and privilege that resides in our spirit through the workings of Jesus Christ.  Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:3 that we are a people who has been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  Unfortunately, I believe we would agree that there is a lack of power in existence amongst us; and more than not are presently functioning as “aged babes” in the faith.

The fallacy that Paul addresses in our original text [1 Cor. 3:1], and rampantly exists today, is the fact that truly spiritual Christians have come to be viewed as extraordinary Christians.  Restraints have been placed on our minds and our hearts through this mode of thinking.  We need to recognize that the opposite should truly be the case – “spiritual” Christians should simply be the norm, while “fleshly” Christians should be completely abnormal.  My hopes are that we are moving to a place where the supernatural becomes the natural in our lives.

So, once again, the beginnings of this discussion reside in the scriptural truths in the basics of our identity as regenerated believers.  Let us look at a few passages to help in our understanding of our spiritual identity:

The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord. [Prov. 20:27]

We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. [1 Cor. 2:12]

For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit. [Rom. 1:9]

The true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truthfulness. [John 4:23]

In these verses, we see that all communication with God is done in and through our spirit.  When God saves us, He initiates the process of restoring the rightful position of the spirit within us to its prominent place [further discussion on this reserved for later post].  His Spirit, his life, resurrects our spirit, and a new life is birthed at the time of regeneration.  It is important to understand that regeneration is not about repairing the old flesh and converting it into the spiritual life.  It is about being born anew and receiving a new life.

Just as our fleshly body is surely born of our parents, so our spiritual life is also surely born of God.  The meaning of giving birth is “to impart life.”  Therefore, to say that we are born of God is to say that we have received a new life from God.  Just as we received our fleshly life at the time we were born of our parents, we also received our spiritual life at the time we were born of God.  This life is a real life. [Nee, Spiritual Man p.64]

In multiple places in Scripture, we see Paul urging his readers to forsake their previous way of life an lay aside the costume of their unregenerate selves.  They are to instead put on the entirely new creation that is God’s own life.  In Ephesians 4:22-24, Paul says:

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

The work is done – the life is there for us.  It is through regeneration that a life is given to us that has power to overcome the flesh.

Next, we will look at more practical applications for dealing with the flesh…..

Fleshly vs. Spiritual [Part 1]

And I, brothers, was not able to speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to fleshy, as to infants in Christ.  I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, for you were not yet able to receive it.  But neither yet now are you able, for you are still fleshly.” [1 Corinthians 3:1-2]

In this passage we see the apostle Paul establish a clear distinction of Christians into two categories: the spiritual and the fleshly.  It is wise for us to recognize this distinction that Paul sets forth in this passage and contemplate the implications that is has for us.  I believe that  many of us who are followers of Jesus understand and are able to discern what is “fleshly” and what is “spiritual.”  But a deeper look into the depth of our creation and being will prove fruitful to our current walk in Christ.

As with Paul’s remarks in the passage above, what is being discussed in this post is not a discussion centered upon salvation, but upon those who have already been regenerated through the life and death of the Messiah.  The focus here is on those who still remain subjected to the flesh though they have already become Christians.  We want to examine here what Scripture has to say about the matter, and how a better understanding can impact our lives.

Once again, Paul is urging his readers not to live according their old self [fleshly self], but to live a life that is worthy of the LORD’s calling.  Their reality should be thus of a spiritual man – a life that reflects an authority of the Spirit.  In this, they are to first recognize their current positioning and and believe what has been done in their place.  The following are a few passages that Paul sets forth in this area of discussion:

That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit. [John3:6]

For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin – because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. [Rom 6:6]

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. [Gal.2:20]

This matter of overcoming our flesh, clearly in the eyes of God, has been done away with and accomplished.  The Word tells us that the flesh of those of Christ Jesus has been crucified.  Our flesh has already taken its place on the cross and has been crucified through the Messiah.

The experience and the power will come from our willingness to reckon and believe this fact to be true in our life.  This, of course, does not mean that we will continue on without the hardships and sufferings of the flesh.  Rather, our journey in the maturing and becoming of a “spiritual man” finds it’s beginnings in the fact of recognizing who we are in light of Christ and His accomplishments on our behalf.

We will continue on with this discussion in further depth……

The Spiritual Man; Watchman Nee

Answers??

Some may have noticed that through the few posts that have been written, I have not undergone the task of giving direct answers and suggestions in many cases.  I recognize that a number of these particular discussions will leave some asking “Ok, so what do you suggest?”  For some individuals (including myself many times), it can be frustrating to have someone put forth bold statements and accusations without extending a proposed and/or corrected view.  At this, I would like to clarify a few points: [1] Many times, I simply do not feel as if I have the answers myself.  I am thoroughly convinced of the shortcomings/misperceptions that I see and discuss through these posts, but at this time lack complete understanding and discernment in professing a concrete remedy. [2]  Most importantly, I believe that many of the answers and clarifications that God desires for us to see, comes through the intentional efforts of listening to one another and learning from how God is working in each other’s lives in each of our specific context [hence, the purpose of this blog].  There is a dire need for loving ears to simply listen to what God is doing in and through the lives of others around us.

May we be a people that value one another, love one another, and seek first the wisdom of God in all that we do.

Cultural Change

“The Missional Church”; Roxburgh

Church is not to be viewed as a once-a-week gathering but rather as a community that relates to the whole of life and one that each person plays an integral part in.  Each individual makes an active contribution to the betterment of the community.  Unfortunately, I believe that the culture that exists within many of our churches is one that is ‘consumer based’ and ‘personal-need-focused.’  Now, while this area of providing for the needs of the congregation is important, it is not the primary focus of what Jesus established these communities to be.  The Gospel has become a message that is constantly viewed through the selfish lense of individualistic needs, rather than a message of us being a missionary people demonstrating God’s plan in and for all of creation through Jesus Christ.  I believe that the problem that exists here can not be minimized, and the extent and depth in which we have compromised is beyond what we are even aware of.  What then should the culture, or the nature, of the church be?

It is always essential to remember that we were made for God: to worship God, for God’s glory, and to reflect His likeness.  This is what truly lies at the foundation of our heart’s deepest desires and is the source of our deepest vocation.  It is what we were created for.  It is by looking at Jesus and his life in that we truly discover who the true and living God actually is.  John 1:8 tells us that:

No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only[referencing Jesus], who is at the Father’s side, has made him known” [emphasis mine].

I point to this verse to show that through the life of Jesus, the nature of God has been revealed to us.  We then look at Phillipians 2:5-9, where we see one of the greatest proclamations of who Jesus was and what he represented:

“Who, being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing“- put in another way, “emptied himself.”

How the church can take this story, one of emptying one’s self and giving up rights in obedience, to one of God wanting to meet my needs, reveals a stark existing contrast that needs a radical conversion.

As stated in the previous post, this is a problem that will take far more than changes made in the organizational structures of our churches.  This has more to do with relationships, community, the ingraining of spiritual habits and disciplines, and leadership that cultivates this culture.  This is dealing with changing the culture in which our communities operate.  There is great need for a renewed interest in the things of God, and of the life of Messiah, to recognize all that God has for His people.

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Missional Church

“The Missional Church”; by Alan Roxburgh

Within the last few years there has been a substantial amount of information being discussed and published concerning the “missional church.” Unfortunately, it is beyond the scope of this post to go into great discussion on specifically defining the missional church. Rather, considering the fact that we are immersed in a radically changing culture, I believe that there is particular language of the missional church that is helpful and fruitful in understanding our place in the context in which we live.

Above all, there is a definite recognition within “missional” conversation pertaining to the idea of a radical change, a paradigm shift, in the way we perceive and ‘do’ church.

Roxburgh states:

The missional church conversation is far more than finding new words for old ideas. It is not about putting new paint over the racked and chipped frames of an established way of thinking. The missional church conversation challenges some of the most basic assumptions we have about the nature and purpose of the church.

There are four major characteristics that Roxburgh highlights:

• Western society as mission field

The language of missional church has to do with the recognition that the Christian story has essentially been lost in Western society as the normative and regulative background. We can no longer assume that the Gospel story is part of the cultural narrative of the people. The implications then are that we cannot simply plant thousands more churches nor change or tweak the programs and activities that already exist. Rather, there is a need to fundamentally rethink the framework and paradigms that have shaped the church over the last half-century. This requires far more than adjustment. It calls for a radically new kind of church.

• Mission is about the missio dei [mission of God]

To many, this seems to be a rather obvious statement; however, this is not the case. Much of the missional language discusses a fundamental shift in the locus of the understanding and practice of the Christian narrative. The centrality of the message is no longer on God and what He is about in the world; it is more concerned with how God serves and meets the human needs. For many, it has become a “spiritual food court for the personal, private, inner needs of expressive individuals.” The missio dei is about a theocentric understanding of God’s engagement with the world.

• Missional church is about the nature and purpose of the church

The church is an essential part of the Kingdom and is the agency of God’s mission in the world. There is much attention to the purposes of God and his church in relation to the nature of the culture we currently live. The church is no longer the center of the culture and this raises fundamental questions concerning the relationship between our Christian life and the pluralistic culture which we now live in. In the life and message of Messiah, we see the in-breaking reign of God into the world and the further calling of a covenant people. The church is the called out community of God, called out for the sake of God, in the midst of the specificity of a culture. The nature of the church is found in it being a called out assembly whose lives publicly, and purposely, are a witness and foretaste to which God is calling and inviting all of his creation.

• The church is a contrast society

The God that we meet in the Word calls for us to live in the opposite direction of the culture – to participate in a community that no longer lives for itself but rather lives together to manifest God’s glory and reign. It is a call for individuals to willingly concede personal needs and rights and to conform their lives to the practices and habits of a Christian life that has its roots in ‘one-anotherness’. The life that God has called us to through the Messiah is shaped by obedience and conformity to practices and habits set forth through both testaments. It is a society which is formed around commandments and practices which continually teach and form a way of life that replaces the I with the We.

While these points are used here to particularly illustrate the missional church, I do believe that there is much necessity in acknowledging the importance of these topics in our own current cultural context. In this brief overview, a “missional” mindset rightfully recognizes how conformed we have actually become to the world around us. These perceived changes that are suggested to be made are based on, what I believe to be legitimate points of contention in many of our current churches.

We need to highly consider some questions. Firstly being – are we a distinguished people? Are we a people that are recognized by our commitment to God and to others, or as more committed to fulfilling our own personal needs and desires? Are the majority of us viewed as ones trying to make it through life through our own individualistic strength and abilities, or as a people who recognizes that our strength comes from the LORD and also from those who live life in community with us?

[This post is in no way a promotion for the "missional church," rather a series of points for us to contemplate in our own context in which we live out our calling.]

The Importance of ‘Narrative’

The Missional Leader; by Alan Roxburgh

For people to become something more than a collection of individuals crowding together for warmth, they must recover a common narrative that gives sense to the present and shapes the future. [Italics mine]

Unfortunately, we currently live in a culture that strongly encourages the pursuit of new experiences, instant gratification, and fresh moments that ultimately connect us into something other than ourselves. The focus on the present moment, and on the individual self, has become the spotlight that bears ‘true meaning’ in our lives. Our culture is rarely recognized nor seen through the lens of a biblical narrative. At best, we resemble a culture that lives off fragments of past stories pieced together for a moment’s time.

Theologian A. MacIntyre describes the significance of narrative in this way:

We can recover a direction and purpose that are more than arbitrariness or construction of self, by understanding that human life is rooted in narrative and tradition. To be human is to indwell a narrative. We cannot understand ourselves in society apart from the repertoire of stories that constitute our lives.

Narratives are not about a dead story or memory, nor is language just about words. Unbeknownst to most, these narratives that surround us have created and shaped our atmosphere and reality. They are formed over time by communities and shaped into and by a tradition.

An example given, and one that has everything to do with us and God’s kingdom, is that of the identity of the Jewish people. It is formed out of a series of stories within a tradition of thousands of years. Their identity is shaped by specific stories – one of God calling Abraham and forming his descendants into a peculiar people, and thereafter the continuing covenant of promises and commandments of God that distinguished a people. The continuing story of exile and exodus rises out of the past, forms the Jewish identity, and is embedded in rituals and ceremonies such as Passover and Hanukkah that are repeated year after year. Every Jew is born into this tradition and the story is passed on from birth. Who they are and how they experience and read their world are framed and determined by the richness and depth of this narrative tradition.

So the question arises – what is the narrative that shapes our lives? In which stories and languages do we find our identity? Do we even recognize the impact, or lack of, that a common narrative has on our lives? This discussion is very challenging, and at the same time encouraging, as we continually strive to to align our lives with the will and the purposes of God’s kingdom.

Intro

I have been very fortunate of late to have available time in the majority of my days that has allowed for a considerable amount of reading. I wanted to take the opportunity to post on many of the topics and insights that I hope are beneficial, in one way or another, to those who read them. Even more so, my desire is to engage in conversation with those who come in contact with the subject matter, as this proves to be the most fruitful element of the learning process in my opinion.

I’ve grown increasingly frustrated at the lack of opportunity and willingness to dialogue about spiritual issues and truths. There is so much initial excitement in the discovery of new truths and new ways of thinking, but as with most things, it can easily dwindle, or disappear, if not continually discussed and studied upon.

So, this blog was birthed out of a desire to create discussion that questions, challenges, and affirms issues and matters that pertain to our lives in the context of the Kingdom of God.