Bibles and Churches

"Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language?" (Acts 2:8)

From the first day of the church, God has made it clear that he wants people to hear the good news of Christ in their own languages. On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit enabled the apostles to proclaim the message in a wide variety of languages to a diverse audience.

In the years since then, the message has been preserved in the Bible. Missionaries have traveled the globe, translating the gospel into many more languages.

In the English-speaking world, we have been blessed with numerous translations of the Bible, from the old King James Version to the newer English Standard Version. Some versions have been excellent. They have been accurate and understandable. Some versions have been horrible. They have altered the meaning of words in order to deny key doctrines such as the deity of Jesus Christ. Some versions have been very good, but with an ever-changing language, they have become difficult to understand. No translation has been perfect. Some have been great. Some have been atrocious.

In a similar way, churches translate the gospel into their circumstances with varying degrees of success. Some churches present an accurate and understandable message about Christ. They reach people around them without changing the gospel. Some churches present a terribly inaccurate message, even misleading people into obvious heresy. Other churches present the right message, but in a difficult form for people to grasp.

As with Bible translations, no church is perfect. Some churches are great. Some are awful. The goal is to be a church with credibility, a church with an understandable and accurate message that is being lived out in the lives of its ordinary members.

Relax

"Are you tired of walking on eggshells and jumping through hoops in trying to please God? Relax. Come to me. We'll walk through life together. I'll do the heavy lifting while you watch and learn. I'll be a patient and kind teacher. I will lighten your load, and you will grow stronger. Together, as you depend on me, we will approach my Father with confidence and joy."

--Jesus Christ (paraphrased from Matthew 11:28-30)

Merging the Message with the Ministry

"Jesus replied: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments'" (Matthew 22:37-39).

"Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age'" (Matthew 28:18-20).

Sometimes we have a tendency to separate what God has joined together in our lives. We can be so consumed with the spiritual condition of the world that we exert all of our energy on spreading the message of salvation in Christ, neglecting people in physical need. On the other hand, we can be so consumed with the physical needs of our world that we exert all of our energy on relieving physical suffering, neglecting spiritual needs among the people. We can even attempt to justify our neglect by saying, "The only real good that can be done is by preaching the gospel" or "I preach through my actions." Neither excuse justifies us. When we proclaim the good news, we are not exempt from caring for people's physical needs. When we show mercy, we are obligated to point people toward Jesus Christ, the source of true mercy. Otherwise, we are tempted to show mercy for the wrong reasons: to make ourselves feel good about ourselves or to enjoy the praise of people.

Harold Shank, Anthony Wood, and Ron Bergeron wrote, "Jesus served people in holistic ways...He sought to serve people physically and spiritually. Only when we adopt his mission, casting aside our own world-supplied agendas that fracture our ministry, can we hope to find a holistic approach to the lost and the poor. Anyone who claims that the Christian mission includes only the spiritual, needs to read again the simple conclusion of James about spiritual ministry: 'Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world' (Jas 1:27). Any who limit the Christian mission to the physical must note Jesus' own calling: 'I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose' (Luke 4:43)" (Up Close and Personal: Embracing the Poor, p. 85).

John Piper wrote, "(Y)ou dare not choose between the motives to love people and glorify Christ. They are not separate motives. Acting on one includes acting on the other. Thus, if your aim is to love people, you will lay down your life to make them eternally glad in God. And if your aim is to glorify Christ, who is God incarnate, you will also lay down your life to make people eternally happy in God.

"The reason for this is that any good-hearted goal, without the desire to give people eternal joy in God, is condemnation with a kind face. Love always wants what is best for the needy, and what's best is enjoying God fully and forever" (Don't Waste Your Life, p. 159).

Let's care about people in every way possible while giving God the credit in every way possible. In doing so, we will also be loving God in every way possible.

Jesus, the Community Organizer?

Radio talk shows have been receiving calls from listeners saying, "Jesus was a community organizer. Pontius Pilate was a governor." Of course, those listeners have been attempting to equate Senator Barack Obama (a former community organizer) with Jesus Christ, and Governor Sarah Palin with Pontius Pilate (the governor who allowed the execution of Jesus).

Although a clever line with slanderous innuendo, it doesn't quite work. The problem? Jesus was not a community organizer. A community organizer lives in a community and organizes social programs or activism. When Jesus lived in a community, he worked as a carpenter. When he began his ministry, he wandered from place to place preaching. He did not organize a social program or initiate social activism.

However, this does not imply that anything is necessarily wrong with community organizing or with governing a state. Both can be done honorably. Both are needed. We need community organizers to deal with community problems. Where would we be without the community organizers who have initiated neighborhood watch programs to combat burglary, drug dealing, and gang violence? We need men and women who will organize to close down strip clubs and pornographic retail stores within neighborhoods with children. Where would we be without governors who take the lead in attracting decent businesses to a state, increasing teachers' salaries, and balancing budgets? We need leaders who will look out for the best interests of citizens. We do not need to demean honorable occupations or honorable volunteer activities in an effort to get our favorite candidates elected.

Stop the Presses: Preacher Believes Jesus Saves!

"Jesus answered, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6).

Is this so rare that it's newsworthy? A preacher who believes that only Jesus Christ saves people has been found in Alaska (http://www.newsweek.com/id/157570).

(Thanks to Albert Mohler's blog for alerting me to the story.)

I Could Use Some Help

"If anyone sees his brother commit a sin that does not lead to death, he should pray and God will give him life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that he should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death" (1 John 5:16-17).

How do you handle those verses? I have never completely understood them, and I have no idea how to apply them to my life. How do you know the difference between the sin that leads to death and the sin that does not lead to death? As far as I can tell, the apostle John never defined those terms in his writings. Have I overlooked something? Did his student Polycarp ever mention those terms in any of his writings from the second century of the church? What am I missing?

In addition, how do I know when I'm wasting my prayers on someone? I have seen people become Christians whom I would have written off as unreachable. I have seen people return to Christ who looked like they had rejected him forever. However, the apostle John indicates that it's a waste of effort and time to pray for people who have committed the sin that leads to death. How do I know when I should not be wasting my emotional energy on people who will never turn to Christ for life?

I would appreciate any help my readers could provide. Please leave a comment if you can help me with this in any way. Thanks!

The Best Thing is Helping People

"The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love" (Galatians 5:6).

We have returned from a good evening at the Parkview Terrace apartments. The Contact Church (with help from some friends from the Garnett Church of Christ) held a cookout for residents of the apartment complex late this afternoon and evening. We grilled hamburgers and hotdogs, played with the children, and talked with the adults. Our son Christopher loved participating. He had the time of his life playing basketball and running around. Then he helped serve hotdogs to other kids. On the way home we were talking about the good time we had enjoyed with the people at Parkview Terrace, when Christopher commented, "The best thing is helping people!" I couldn't have said it better myself.