Community

Hey all,

Today I have little to actually say about community.  Instead I have an opportunity for you to join in community with others and pull together to help my girlfriend Megan.

A couple years ago she spent a semester studying abroad in Uganda.  While there, she lived with and became a part of family that lives in Uganda.  Since returning she has remained close with the family and hoped for a chance to return to visit them.  This opportunity is now upon her--one of her Ugandan brothers is getting married this summer and she is going back for the wedding!!!

Why does she need your help?

Neither her or I have money.  We are both putting what money we can toward her trip but we need your help.  Here is a link to her blog where you can learn a bit more about Megan, her Ugandan family, and how you can help.

New Name?

I have decided to rename my blog.  This may seem like a trivial thing to post on (or maybe all of my posts are trivial), but I think not.

The new name that I have chosen for my blog is Pursuit.

Why did I chose this name?  Well... for several reasons.

1. Because I am pursuing truth.
2. Because I am pursuing faith.
3. Because I am pursuing what it means to truly live.

What does it look like to pursue truth?  Well... I'm not sure.  I think it has something to do with knowledge and thinking... as well as feelings and emotions.  Truth seems to be something deeper than just what we can know as facts.  It seems to be something that runs deep into our souls.

What does it look like to pursue faith?  I think it looks a lot like pursuing truth.  However, faith seems to go even deeper than truth.  Faith is something that we know before truth.  Faith must inform truth.  Why?  Because we all have faith in something... Faith creates our worldview in a way...

What does truly living look like?  It looks like now... the pursuit.  The pursuit for what?... for God.. the three person, holy, triune God.  In God we find truth.  In God we are given faith.

This blog, my space for thinking and writing, is my pursuit of God.  This pursuit entails searching for truth by faith that is life.  My pursuit is for knowledge but also something deeper, communion with God through faith.  In this communion truth and life are found and realized.

I hope you will join my pursuit and realize something about yourself along the way.

Rob Bell, Visionary or Heretic?

Well, as promised, here is my review of Rob Bell's newest book What We Talk About When We Talk About God.

This review is broken up into three sections:  In the first section I will give a brief synopsis--an overview of the book's movements and main points.  The second section will be my space for comments and personal insight, and the final section will be where I will suggest some possible applications and moving points that the book could create.

I. What's going on?

The big question that Rob is wanting to answer can be summed up as follows:  Is God like an Oldsmobile?

Or, in other worlds, is God old fashion?  Has humanity outgrown our need for God?  Was God relevant to life at one point but now no longer needed because we have things like science and government?

Rob's answer is no, but, for this to be shown, he thinks that we need to rework the way that we think about and talk about God.

Rob shows this by splitting the book into 4 sections:

1. Intro: Chapter 1 (Hum)
2. Set:  Chapters 2 & 3 (Open, Both)
3. Backbone:  Chapters 4-6 (With, For, Ahead)
4. Now what?: Chapter 7 (So)

To keep this section as short as possible (and to prevent me from giving too much away) I will briefly comment on each section.

1. Intro

There is little that needs to be said here.   Typical intro and set up work going on in the first chapter.  And, as usual, Rob's writing is captivating--I always find myself wondering how anyone can write with such eloquence.

2. Set

This section is where things really start to take off.  I titled it "set" because the two points that Rob wants to make here is the God is open (chapter 2) and God is both (chapter 3), and these points form the base for what Rob calls the "backbone" of the book (section 3).

God is open meaning, God isn't this closed reality we think he is.  If you are one for quantum mechanics and theoretical physics then this chapter is for you.  Also, this chapter should (and hopefully will) blow your mind (unless you are a theoretical physicist of course).

God is both--close and near.  In this section Rob explores the paradoxical nature of God.  Sometimes we feel like we know God but yet he also seems too far away and mystical--all at the same time!  We can talk about him in words, and yet he seems to transcend all words.  Here Rob also talks about how we even describe our own feelings and experiences.

What Rob is trying to show is that God is open and moving and that he (and life) are both physical and spiritual.  All of this to move to what he really wants to say...

3. Backbone

Here is the real meat of the book.  The main points that Rob is wanting to communicate are the following:

God is with us.  He isn't some sort of being that is floating in space, but rather he is close and intimately involved in our very existence.

God is for us.  God being with us is because he is for us.

God is ahead.  Not only is God with us and acting for us, but he is also ahead of us guiding our way and bring humanity closer to himself.

4. Now what?

So... what do we do now?  That is exactly what Rob does in this section, and he says it better than I can, so I'm going to leave that up to him.

II.  Thoughts?

This section is less important, so if you want to stop reading here, feel free.  However, I would appreciate comments so I can know how to improve my reviewing skills in the future.

What is my opinion?  This book was needed.  It does several important things for Christianity.  (1) It challenges Christians to think about God in relation to some of the cutting edge research in science.  (2) It shows that God may work differently than many of us think.  This includes both Christians and non-Christians alike.  (3) It shows God's transcendence yet reminds us of his immanence.  What does this mean?  God is above all and beyond all, however, he is also intimately involved in life and sustaining his creation.

If I had to rate this book among other books in pop-Christian culture, I would place it at the top of the field.  Not only does Rob write beautifully, but he also communicates a deeply needed message within American, evangelical Christianity.

This is also possibly Rob's best book.  I can't say this with complete confidence because it has been a while since I have read his earlier ones.  It rates up there with Love Wins--maybe not as controversial--but just as needed.

III.  Real Life?

This section may be the most important...or maybe not.

What do we do with this book?  What do we do with Rob Bell?

Well...Rob has been deemed a heretic by much of the evangelical world.  He effectively set himself apart from most of the church with Love Wins.  However, is Rob really a heretic?  I don't think so.  Without going too far into this issue, I think we need to remember that God isn't as "black and white" as we think.  Also, the Bible isn't as black and white either.  This is where Rob comes in.  He is really good at reminding us of this, and in such a beautiful, poetic way!

So...this book.  I think we should share it.  If you like how this book sounds, share my review with your friends.  Even better...buy the book and then share it.  If you don't want to share your copy, recommend it to a friend.

Rob's books may not be the best books out there, but they point to something bigger.  A movement...  Not just any movement, but the movement of the body of Christ, his holy, catholic church.  The Western Church must move or we will die.  I know I'm not going to miss the bus, will you?

Hope this has been helpful.  I want to write more of these, so if you enjoyed it let me know.  It will encourage me to read and write more.  Also, please feel free to comment.  I love conversation and would love to talk about these ideas more, especially after you read the book.

(Blank)-Ministry

Some quick food for thought.

Ministry, what is ministry? We (the church) use this word often. So much so that it appears that we often just paste the word ministry after what we do and that thing magically because "for Jesus".

This doesn't have to be a bad thing BUT isn't all that we do "ministry"? Why do we need to throw the word ministry after it? What strikes me as most interesting is that, after we throw ministry after some word, we automatically see that thing as something holy. Shouldn't all that we do be holy because it is in pursuit of Christ and for Christ?

Let us live life in pursuit if Jesus making our life," Life Ministry".

First thoughts...

Note:  I have since written a review of this book.  You can find it here.

I just finished Rob Bell's most recent book What We Talk About When We Talk About God. My initial thought is that it is probably Bell's best book thus far in his career. Unlike Love Wins, which was a good read, in this book Bell addresses some important issues that should be seriously considered by the church. Be watching for a full review in the next couple days.

When Two World Views Collide

Dear brothers and sisters,

I have been reluctant to post a blog on this issue, but after watching facebook explode over the last day I feel like it is important to speak.  First, I do not support or indorse gay marriage.  As I currently stand (I say this only to leave room for a more clear understanding of what I believe in the future) I would not marry a homosexual couple in my church.  However, I do not know how I would handle a homosexual couple attending my church--isn't this the issue for all of us future church leaders?  Second, I say none of this with certainty.  What I want to do with this post is push us towards thinking about this issue from a different direction.

1. State <--> Church 

The United States government has already ruled on this issue in many ways.  Marriage in the church's eyes is a holy bond before God--arguably the closest we can come to experiencing the trinity.  One man and one women coming together as one in Christ, entering into a covenant with one another before God.  The United States government does not view marriage in this way--it can't because if it did it would be taking a stance with religious grounds as the basis.  With this view, marriage in the Christian sense is not what the government has to offer homosexual couples.  This sense is only offered by the church.  In short, marriage in the sense that the government is talking is not Christian marriage.  Further, it never will be because the government has already taken the stance of separating religion and the state.

2. Church <--> State

The church should not be functioning in line with the government.  We do not need to support the governments policies.  However, when I say support here I do not mean stand in opposition with legislation but, rather, not supporting their stance in the church.  There are problems with this issue.  If the government were to start forcing churches to marry homosexual couples then this would become a problem (I do not see this being an issue in the near future).  However, for the time being we can stand for our beliefs while staying uninvolved in the government's stances.  In short, the church should be just as separated from the state as the state is from the church.  (This view goes all the way back to Paul. If asked, I can write on this specifically.)

3.  Set Apart

The church is set apart.  Some of you may have read my blog about Rob Bell's support of gay marriage (you can read that here).  Since I have already written on this topic I will speak briefly on this issue.  Also, for many this seems to be the hinging point on the issue.

In my previous blog I shared that Rob's stance may push the church closer to American culture.  What I mean by closer to culture is that, if the church accepts gay marriage, then we will be becoming more secular to appeal to the secular world.  However, Rob may not be suggesting that the church accept gay marriage within but only accept it from the outside.  Those who are not in the church are not held to our standard and we should not expect them to be.

It is hard to tell what exactly Rob is referring to (typical Rob Bell), but the deeper issue is the church needs to be the called out ones.  Called out of society and apart from the government.

4.  Loving Out

My final point is a culmination of these ideas.  We, the church, are not the United States government (and we never will be).  We are Christ's body, and we follow his guidance in the world.  We are not bound by secular governments because our head transcends all secular governments.  With this we are called to love those outside of the body.  Those outside the body are not expected to live to our standards.  Further, after joining the body, the only hope we have is in Christ convicting and teaching us through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  We cannot expect our standards of them; we can only love.  Loving out...

Please remember, these are thinking points.  They are not the end all or the final world.  This is only the beginning of the conversation.

Yours,
Chris

Imagine Hope

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“When we talk about God, we’re talking about that sense you have—however stifled, faint, or repressed it is—that hope is real, that things are headed somewhere, and that that somewhere is good.”  –Rob Bell

Have you ever thought about hope?  Have you ever thought of where it leads?  How do we get hope?  What should we hope for?

My hope is for the Kingdom of God.  Even though this hope is a reality, I still find myself hoping.  This hope starts small and sometimes I don’t think it is actually there.  But aren’t we supposed to hope?  Isn’t that our call?  Wait, hasn’t Jesus already brought our hope?  Maybe... but shouldn’t we hope for others to find the Kingdom of God?  Maybe they already have... maybe they hope too...

I think they do... When I look around I see a lot of hope in the world.  However, much of this hope doesn’t come from the church, it comes from the world.  Recently my father and I watched the documentary Imagine.  Imagine is compiled home videos from John Lennon and his life after the Beatles and, being huge Beatles fans, my father and I always find hours of enjoyment learning more about one of “fab” four.  Early in the documentary the song sharing its title was played.  In this song, John sings these words:

Imagine there's no heaven

It's easy if you try

No hell below us

Above us only sky

Imagine all the people living for today

Imagine there's no countries

It isn't hard to do

Nothing to kill or die for

And no religion too

Imagine all the people living life in peace

You, you may say

I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one

I hope some day you'll join us

And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions

I wonder if you can

No need for greed or hunger

A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people sharing all the world

You, you may say

I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one

I hope some day you'll join us

And the world will live as one

Many who hear this song are instantly turned off by the first verse, “Imagine there’s no heaven... no hell below us...” Their anger only builds going into the second verse, “...and no religion too...” However, notice how John ends the song, “a brotherhood of man” “...sharing all the world...”  “and the world will live as one.”  How can we say that John did not hope for the coming of the Kingdom of God?  Well... he may not have known it by that name, but John did hope for something huge...

What happened at the resurrection?  Have you ever wondered this?  For years I never stopped to think about what Christ’s resurrection meant for the world.  It always came to heaven and hell for me.  However, what Jesus truly did was conquer death, ushering in the Kingdom of God.  We do not need to hope for it because it has already come.

The Kingdom of God is how Rob described God above.  A place where we can hope that things are going somewhere...and they are.  John sensed it.  In some ways I believe John wanted to be a Christian.  Many times he talked about Gandhi and the peace he brought.  However, Christ brought true peace first; even Gandhi accepted this.  Instead of worrying about heaven, hell, or religion, let us look towards the cross and resurrection.  Here we find hope for all...