Yet, if we know anything of the God of the bible, we know  that the same God who numbers our hairs and does not allow a sparrow to fall to the ground apart from his will, also allows great suffering to be experienced by most everyone, including His chosen people.  Even the Apostle Paul, whose numerous personal examples of suffering are described in Acts and 2 Corinthians, described some of these times as being “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.” Suffering to the point of despairing  must have been very difficult, yet Paul says, “but this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God.” It’s true that we cannot always know the particular purposes for our suffering, we can always know this purpose of not relying on ourselves, but God.  I think of this purpose, of relying not on  ourselves, but God as being like “first base”.  Perhaps we won’t be able understand more until we get to this place, first.

When I noticed a revised and expanded edition of Surprised By Suffering – The Role of Pain and Death in the Christian Life, by R.C. Sproul, I decided to give it a read.    R.C. Sproul is a very able teacher and I was pleased with the balance of theology and biblical illustrations as well as personal illustrations from his life and family heritage.  I was also pleased with the breadth of the book, covering everything from faulty theology (“It’s not God’s will for you to suffer…”) or the benefits of suffering for the sufferer or secondary benefits for others who might be observing, to the final act of suffering – namely, dying in faith followed by the resurrection and life after death.  Indeed, two thirds of the book is devoted to death and  dying followed by subjects of the resurrection and afterlife.

Originally, I was surprised at this emphasis, but quickly came to appreciate the necessity of the whole picture of life, death and resurrection, especially in light of the Gospel’s answer to the question of suffering and afterlife compared to other worldviews.   Since virtually every human culture has developed some form of hope in life beyond the grave, it was enlightening to be led through a brief overview of ideas from Plato, Socrates, Kant and eastern views as well.  All of which provided the background in which to contrast the teachings of Jesus and the New Testament on resurrection and the afterlife.    Truly, as Paul says, “If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”

Steve Barry

Surprised By Suffering by R.C. Sproul; Hardback, 156 pages; $15.00 retail, $12.00 Cornerstone price

There is a natural order in all of creation – ideas have consequences.  What people believe affect their actions.  The actions we take influence other people and their beliefs.  When Reverend Samuel Rutherford believed that “all men are equal” he wrote the world shaking doctrine of ‘Lex Rex‘ (The law is king).  This philosophy influenced the creation of our country, dissolved slavery, and still is challenging those in power today (for more information on this specific philosophy ready Francis Shaffer’s ‘The Christian Manifesto). In contrast to most actions, the written word has power to last beyond the spoken word, spreading its influence into the future.  Wiker states at the very start of his book:

“Common sense and a little logic tell us that if ideas have consequences, then it follows that bad ideas have bad consequences.  And even more obvious, if bad ideas are written down in books, they are far more durable, infecting generation after generation and increasing the world’s wretchedness. [...] What then? Shall we have a book burning? Indeed not! Such a course of action is indefensible.  As I learned long ago, the best cure – the only cure, once the really harmful books have multiplied like viruses through endless editions – is to read them.  Know them forward and backward.  Seize each one by its malignant heart and expose it to the light of day”

In the Lord of the Rings, when Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippen return after destroying the one ring, they must purge the last remnants of evil from the Shire. Likewise, when we return from fighting the battles out in the world, we have to purge the last remnants of sinful philosophy from our “Shire:” our hearts.  We must follow the mandate of 2 Corinthians 2:5 “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

Benjamin Wiker sets up the battle field of the mind by addressing ten works that have influenced our thought lives without our knowing. He also addresses five other books that set the groundwork for philosophy without theology: Machiavelli’s The Prince, Descartes’ Discourse on Method, Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan, Rousseau’s Discourse on the Origin and Foundations of Inequality among Men, and Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique. Each of these works are studied and have entered our culture’s thought patterns without our knowing.  Has someone challenged Descartes entrapping claim that “I think therefore I am”? Or attacked the skepticism that has arose from that concept? Has someone charged into battle against Rousseau’s belief that “the law is merely a tool for the rich to keep their riches, making the rebellion of the have-nots justified”?  All the errors and misconceptions of the 10 books spring from the removal of God from Man’s thought life. They all build off of each other – each book branching in a different direction but from that same trunk.

Carl Marx and Friedrich Engel’s The Manifesto of the Communist Party

John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism

Charles Darwin’s The Descent of Man

Friedrich Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil

Vladimir Ulyanov (Lenin)’s The State and Revolution

Margaret Sanger’s The Pivot of Civilization

Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf

Sigmund Freud’s The Future of an Illusion

Margaret Mead’s Coming of Age in Samoa

Alfred Kinsey’s Sexual Behavior in the Human Male

All of these works offer differing perspectives on what to do with man ignoring God.  Wiker offers a critical mind-set in which the work is evaluated by its own merit.  Every book has citations taken and evaluated (except of Kinsey’s as the Kinsey Institute denied Wiker the right to cite).  Even for those not versed in philosophy, Wilken’s does an admirable job of shining light and making the errors of these 10 books seem obvious.  Wiker ends his book by stating:

“We are so fond of thinking of our progress from the simple savage that we forget to take account of whether we are really progressing in some sort of virtue or rather becoming more complexly and deviously savage.  [...] By following the trajectory of these books that screwed up the world, we can wonder whether the advance of ‘science’ over theology is an unmitigated good, and weather it is really progress.  Perhaps it is bringing us to a new age of technological barbarism, what we can certainly say is that the intensity of humanity’s self-destruction is a measure of the myth by which it lives, and this destruction is by no means limited to war and state-sponsored extermination.”

It all comes down to the concept of progress – is it something that has a foundation (a light that illuminates the world), or is it the destruction of what came before?  G. K. Chesterton gave this illustration in 1905:

“Suppose that a great commotion arises in the street about something, let us say a lamp-post, which many influential persons desire to pull down. A grey-clad monk, who is the spirit of the Middle Ages, is approached upon the matter, and begins to say, in the arid manner of the Schoolmen, “Let us first of all consider, my brethren, the value of Light. If Light be in itself good–” At this point he is somewhat excusably knocked down. All the people make a rush for the lamp-post, the lamp-post is down in ten minutes, and they go about congratulating each other on their unmediaeval practicality. But as things go on they do not work out so easily. Some people have pulled the lamp-post down because they wanted the electric light; some because they wanted old iron; some because they wanted darkness, because their deeds were evil. Some thought it not enough of a lamp-post, some too much; some acted because they wanted to smash municipal machinery; some because they wanted to smash something. And there is war in the night, no man knowing whom he strikes. So, gradually and inevitably, to-day, to-morrow, or the next day, there comes back the conviction that the monk was right after all, and that all depends on what is the philosophy of Light. Only what we might have discussed under the gas-lamp, we now must discuss in the dark.”

Read, Know, Confront, Battle, Stand.

—–

Ben Bishop is a recent graduate of Boise State University and is an assistant coach for speech and debate at the College of Western Idaho. In his spare time he reads as many books as he can get his hands on and blogs (http://windmillfighter.wordpress.com/).

What does it mean to follow ethics?  Is it duty, pleasure seeking, something greater?  Since the greatest questions do not have apparent answers – we can enjoy the self-discovery.  Just like Job, when like any person, reached his breaking point he cried out ‘Why?’ and God answered.  Clearly God did not answer with an explanation but with other question proving His sovereign power to which Job was satisfied.  God’s mysteries are greater than man’s solutions.  One of the mysteries of God is why allows evil to exist, but that may be another book [The Problem of Pain by C. S. Lewis].  This great mystery has had many attempts to give a solution for some have failed and yet are still followed, and others give a glimpse of the great mystery.

Steve Wilkens compiles 9 common ethical theories: ‘When in Rome, Do as the Romans Do’ – Cultural Relativism, ‘Look Out for Number One’ – Ethical Egoism, ‘I Couldn’t Help Myself’ – Behaviorism, ‘The Greatest Happiness’ – Utilitarianism, ‘It’s your Duty’ – Kantian Ethics, ‘Be Good’ – Virtue Ethics, ‘All you Need is Love’ – Situation Ethics, ‘Doing What Comes Naturally’ – Natural Law Ethics, ‘God Said It, I believe It, That Settles It’ – Divine Command Theory.  In each a fair summary is given, what is right about the theory, and then what is wrong.

However despite the Christian appeals Wilkens keeps the mystery.  As each chapter contains a bumper sticker title, it is that type of thinking that is argued against.  As soon as we give a solution of Man, God’s mystery is ignored.

“Instead of accepting ‘bumper stickers’ at face value, this system fills in the blanks and provides arguments about why its views are better than other options.  Only when we dig deeper into bumper sticker-sized bits of moral directive ca we know if an ethical perspective will bear the weight of a lifetime of moral decisions.”

Ethics ought to be used to argue for and support our own ethics.  How ironic would it be to support a deontological point of view with an ‘end justifies the means’ method.  If we do then we could become the Operative in this scene in Serenity.

Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: I don’t murder children.
The Operative: I do. If I have to.
Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: Why? Do you even know why they sent you?
The Operative: It’s not my place to ask. I believe in something greater than myself. A better world. A world without sin.
Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: So me and mine gotta lay down and die… so you can live in your better world?
The Operative: I’m not going to live there. There’s no place for me there… Malcolm… I’m a monster. What I do is evil. I have no illusions about it, but it must be done.

Evil can never justify itself, but what it can do is cloud mistake the actions and center only on the outcomes.  This is why Socrates is still looked up to as the searcher looking for Truth (and yes, I’ll forget about The Apology).  Wilkens concludes his book by writing:

“Socrates can remind Christians of something valuable here. Many of us feel pressures to come up with the right answer right away.  However, this can lead us to be dishonest in the process.  Truthfulness, goodness, and rightness need the characterize not only our conclusions buyt also the mans by which we get to our conclusions.  And if there is any place where Christians should be honest, it is the ethical process.”

An uniquely honest and ethical perspective from an unique book.

There are five DVD’s available.  Normally, they would retail $15 – $20 each.  But we can distribute them to you for small donations such as:

3 DVD’s for $10.00

5 DVD’s for $15.00

7 DVD’s for $20.00

15 DVD’s for $40.00

20 DVD’s  for  $50.00

If you add a little for postage, we would be glad to mail them to you as well.

The Case for Christ

Lee Strobel’s bestseller comes alive in this documentary that chronicles the reporter’s journey from atheism to faith. The former legal editor of the Chicago Tribune draws upon his investigative skills to examine the historical viability and accuracy of the Gospels, along with the personal claims and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Case for a Creator

In this video adaptation of the best-selling book from Lee Strobel, you’ll encounter the mind-stretching discoveries from cosmology, cellular biology, DNA research, astronomy, physics, and human consciousness that present astonishing evidence for the existence of a Creator.

Unlocking Mystery of Life

Unlocking the Mystery of Life is a compelling documentary examining the scientific case for intelligent design — an idea with the power to revolutionize our understanding of life…and to unlock the mystery of its origin.

Privileged Planet

Most scientists and philosophers claim that Earth is an ordinary speck of dust adrift, without purpose or significance, in a vast cosmic sea. This idea from naturalistic philosophy that has dominated science for the past 150 years. Yet, remarkable evidence–unveiled by contemporary astronomy and physics-tells a very different story.

Prophecies of the Passion DVD

Prophecies of the Passion is an extraordinary look at the Messianic prophecies fulfilled during the final week of Christ’s life on earth. “This film is a work of art. I believe many people will understand the full meaning of Christ’s death and resurrection for the first time.” – Lee Strobel Author of The Case for Christ.

As for me, I tend to fellowship with folks who are closer to the latter camps. Having known about Mr. Driscoll for a while, I finally got around to reading two of his books. First I read “Confessions of a Reformission Rev.: Hard Lessons From An Emerging Missional Church.” That book is about those lessons learned along the way of planting a church from a handful of folks to having thousands in attendance. As he chronicles the Mars Hill Fellowship’s trials, tribulations and growth, he lays out a practical biblical wisdom in how to model a biblical, but culturally relevant church in the 21^st century. (Please note that it is a church that is trying to reach out to Seattle and young people in particular, so it is a bit of a special case.) Those involved in church planting would particularly be blessed by his Confessions book, which is actually part of a leadership book series.

Many of his mistakes could have been avoided if he had more discerning in his choice of co-laborers. But then, Jesus’ disciples weren’t the most stellar examples initially, either. (And we assume He knew what he was doing!) The Apostle Paul also forewarned the Ephesian church that the enemy would bring heresy from within (Acts 20:28-31). One of insights from Driscoll, that I personally appreciated, was that “liberal theology” comes in both “Modern” and “Post-modern” sheep’s clothing. These kinds of distinctions help one to not make mistakes with sweeping generalizations about the so-called “emerging church” being “liberal,” etc. One of the mistakes that Mr. Driscoll made was assuming that some “postmodern Christians” were more Christian than they actually were.

Actually, it is the “Confessions” part of the book that also gets Mr. Driscoll in trouble. Since these “confessions” are frequently told in a very humorous, less than dignified manner, many do wonder if he really is repentant of his flaws. But I suspect his main point is still to take God very seriously and oneself much less seriously. There are times when he does speak pretty bluntly about the flaws of others, but frequently this is also a bit tongue in cheek, if you catch the humor.

I think many don’t understand this. And there are lengthy blogs on the internet debating some of the subjects which Mark “confesses”. (I guess some people have a lot of spare time.) By the way, I am not opposed to critiquing teachers. Even though I believe much of the critique over Driscoll and his ministry is perhaps the result of people being “overly righteous” (Eccl. 7:16), this doesn’t negate the fact that the pastor/elder does needs to be “above reproach” and teachers will rightfully be judged more strictly.

The other book, Radical Reformission: Reaching Out Without Selling Out was published first (2004) and sets out to be more instructional in tone, particularly on how to understand the gospel, the church & culture that you are in (or the culture you are most comfortable in) and then finally, the culture that you are trying to reach. That is one of the assumptions of the book – that we are actually trying to reach others beyond our church and perhaps beyond the culture we are in.

One of his main points is that we need to be aware of the interplay between the gospel, the church, and the surrounding culture. For example, in a somewhat simplistic manner, he says that when we neglect one of these three aspects, there will typically be some form of error creep in. for example:

The Church + The Culture – The Gospel = Liberalism
The Church + The Gospel – The Culture = Fundamentalism
The Gospel + The Culture – The Church = Parachurch

Obviously, these aren’t absolute categories, but they are recognizable tendencies which are pretty easy to see. Well, at least they are easy to see in other folks!

Later on, in the chapter that some people tend to read first (Chapter 6: The Sin of Light Beer), he brings up the New Testament religious/cultural groups known to us as the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Zealots, and the Essenes. Each of these cultural sub-groups, living contemporary to each other, tended toward different expressions in their degrees of cultural syncretism, cultural separation and sectarianism.

From these illustrations, Driscoll moves on to something more tangible in modern times—the use and abuse of alcohol. In a brief, but relatively thorough treatment, he outlines the Scriptural teaching on alcohol-use and abuse, along with some history and compares people’s reactions to this subject in modern American Christianity. Again, for many, there is no “news” here, but for others, this window of thought, along with many others in the book, is very eye-opening.

To help illustrate his overall principles throughout the book, there are also small “Reformission Interview” chapters where some basic questions are asked of Christians whose current vocation is frequently sometimes considered “questionable” or at least “sub-Christian.” These people include folks who are “a film critic, a radio D.J., a pub owner/brewer, a rock band manager, a tattoo artist and even someone who came to Christ working as a exotic dancer. (Pub owner? Okay. Tattoo artist? Maybe. Exotic dancer? Just how does an exotic dancer apply Paul’s teaching about “remaining in their situation…” (1 Cor. 7:17-24)! I guess you’ll just have to read it to find out.)

In addition to the chapters and these interviews, there are also discussion questions at the end of each chapter, thus making it a good tool for small groups. Which is exactly one of the things we are planning to do at The Cornerstone. There will be some scheduled times when people will be getting together briefly to discuss a chapter and learn how they can be more “refor-missional” to their culture. If you are interested, give us a call or send an email. Or, read the book and discuss it with your own group of friends. We will have copies on sale for discount and even a few to borrow.

(*Just what is meant by “reformissional” anyway? Near as I can tell it is a term coined for a movement which has, among other things, the emphasis that Christians and churches should be faithful to the content of unchanging Biblical doctrine while believing that they should, at the same time, continually reform their ministry methods to most effectively reach the changing cultures(s) to which they are sent by God as missionaries, e.g.1 Cor. 9:19-23.)

Steve Barry