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Wednesday, August 26, 2009The Gospel According to Mac?
Have you ever run into an apologist for Mac computers? Perhaps you are one. Yesterday I was forced to endure a fellow customer at our local Apple Store make his case for why Macs are better than PCs. And he was blood-earnest in his argument.I was struck by his passion. Embarrassed for him in his tone. And amazed that he had no inhibition in grabbing hold of my attention and not letting go-until I politely yet firmly said "good-bye."
Let me say that I love my MacBook Pro. I have no desire to go back to the days of Dell. But watching and listening to this young man's evangelistic appeal for the supremacy of Mac brought one overwhelming phrase to mind: Misplaced passion.
I left the store wishing this man was half as excited for and eager to proclaim the Gospel. He was "sold out" for Mac, but I wondered if he had any ounce of affection for Christ.
As I walked to my car with my new Blue Snowball microphone in hand, I began to consider my own level of passion for the Lord. A Mac enthusiast shouldn't out zeal me. Am I as moved by the Gospel-and the God who comes to me in that Gospel-as this man was by a particular technology brand?
Thankfully, yes. And I pray to be even more so. As I drove away I prayed for the Mac man. And I reminded myself anew of the Christian's calling-a calling not for the passive or laconic person: "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
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Like so many of you, I've been moved by what seems like a steady stream of news stories depicting the rise of violence against Christians worldwide. For example, the Washington Post ran a story this morning describing brutal persecution of Christians in Pakistan. Here's an excerpt:Monday, August 3, 2009Doing Missions When Dying is a Distinct PossibilityA spasm of religious violence came to this rural town in the shape of an angry Muslim mob Saturday morning. The Muslims marched to avenge what they believed was the desecration of a Koran one week earlier. When it was over, dozens of houses were torched and Faith Bible Pentecostal Church lay in ruins. Two villagers were shot dead, residents said. Five others, including two children, burned alive.It's stories like these that force me to check my heart and consider if I'm real--a real Christian, that is. Would I go? Would I preach the good news in the face of violent threats and the distinct possibility of death? More to the point, would I go next door and tell my fellow suburbanite about Jesus?Will the violence in Pakistan or Nigeria or in any number of places around the world today thwart the American church's efforts to fulfill the Great Commission?God help us to boldly proclaim the good news wherever you call us to speak--whether overseas or across the street.[For more information on Christian persecution and the triumph of the Gospel around the world, follow @NationsBeGlad on Twitter.]
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Carl Trueman, professor at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has an excellent article in the latest edition of Themelios journal. While it is primarily written for theological students wondering about the merits of pursuing a Ph.D., his cautionary tale (and commendation) of higher learning is applicable to every thoughtful Christian.Thursday, July 30, 2009The Temptations of Theological LearningHere's Trueman's recipe for nurturing a life of the mind while avoiding the temptations that accompany theological education--and it has everything to do with the church:The simple way for theological students to resist both the temptation to pontificate beyond their pay grade and the temptation to pride and the moral and intellectual problems that inevitably come in its wake-fall is to find the proper context for accountability, to find their true home; and the good news is that this true home is easy to find—simply join an orthodox, gospel-believing and proclaiming church as member, submit to the elders, attend the corporate worship services, fellowship with the saints on a regular basis, get involved in the day to day work of the local body, even if it is “only” the cleaning rota (and, hey, worshipping in a dirty church quickly reveals how important that is), and pursue a disciplined life of private devotion.Here's the all-important conclusion:Too many theological students come unstuck not because they do not master the sophisticated intricacies of their chosen fields of specialization but rather because they failed their apprenticeships in the basics, the corporate disciplines of church attendance, submission to elders, hard work for the local body, and the individual disciplines which flow from these: private prayer and Bible reading, a crying out to God for his mercy, and a burning desire to be mastered by the Word of God. Successful theological students are never the subjects in theological study; rather they are always the objects of God’s grace. And the church is the place where they will be held accountable for these things. The church, not the seminar room, provides their only true home, their best classroom, and their best form of strenuous spiritual rest. Theological study at the highest level is a high calling indeed; but just for this very reason those who pursue it need to make especially sure that they truly are humble servants of the church.
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Evangelicals (I include myself in this category) love to "celebrate Jesus" on Sunday mornings. More and more churches seem to be moving toward this kind of language to describe what happens during corporate worship. I'm not convinced it's a good thing.Monday, July 27, 2009How Will You Respond When You See Jesus?Now I'm not saying Jesus--and the infinitely good news associated with his death and resurrection--is unworthy of our celebration. But I do worry that "celebrate" is an inadequate word to describe the response we should have to the Lord of the universe.Take, for example, the reaction of the guards when they came upon the angel at the empty tomb: "And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men" (Matt. 28:4). The response to an angel was fear, trembling and what I'm assuming was utter paralysis (i.e., like dead men). And this upon seeing an angel--a created being.It made me wonder: What will it be like when we see Jesus?There will be, I imagine, a sense of celebration. However, I think our idea of celebration is too often like fans at a sporting event: we will cheer and yell and maybe do the wave for our Savior. But this can't possibly be how we will respond to the Christ. It's too chipper; too trite.We will be no less overwhelmed than the guards upon seeing an angel. Indeed, we will be more so. How that looks I'm not exactly sure, but it's a sobering thought. And one I think should influence what we do on Sunday mornings--and throughout the week.
