G8/20 Aftermath

Yesterday in Toronto I walked by some of the stores that were damaged last Saturday during the G8/20 summit when a group of hooligans went on a rampage and took advantage of the freedoms we enjoy here in Canada to wreak havoc. In the aftermath of the event I suspect that discussions about how the security was handled will be ongoing. But regardless of what the police did or did not do the damage done by the so-called "Black Bloc" demonstrates the difficulty of trying to hold an international summit in the downtown core of a major city and the fact that there will always be some who will use such an event to act out their own frustrations. Those who mingled with legitimate protesters and then went on a rampage of destruction are the most pathetic kind of cowards. There is no justification for their actions. If anything they draw attention away from serious and substantial issues that need to be discussed by the citizens of the world and their leaders. All is not right in the world and the problems we face are far too important and complex to leave in the hands of politicians, academics, economists or the business elite. We need to bring world leaders together and we need to find creative ways to make sure that as many people as possible are represented. The concept of G8/20 is a step in the right direction and let's hope that further summits will break new ground and open up new possibilities.

A Heart For God

Just another reminder of the Toronto Baptist Conference to be held at Jarvis Street Baptist Church and Toronto Baptist Seminary on September 24-25. More information about the individual sessions will be posted in blogs but we are looking forward to the ministry of 5 speakers who will looking at issues regarding spirituality today.

If you want more information see the seminary website or call the school at 416.925.3263. Every attempt is being made to make the sessions helpful and useful to a wide range of Christians. You are invited to join together with us and to be part of the conversation. If you have questions please feel free to ask for answers.

The Value of Conversation

The Toronto G8/20 summit has come and gone and time will tell what was accomplished. Although the price tag was exorbitant there is no denying the value of getting people - and particularly leaders - together to talk about their concerns. Wisdom is rarely found in an individual person but it often mysteriously rises to the surface when people talk to one another. I was reminded of this again today as I met with a group of colleagues to discuss how we can fulfill our responsibilities in the fields of service to which God has called us. If we do not talk and allow others to sharpen our ideas and perspectives very little progress is made and we are more likely to stay stuck in a rut which almost always guarantees unproductive irrelevance. We must be committed to pursuing truth and following the evidence wherever it leads us mindful of our roots and the labors and insights of those who have gone before us.

In this regard, I would like to see work done to revise and update some of the confessions of faith. Some of the ones that are being 'rediscovered' today and being used as the foundation of church statements of faith are hundreds of years old and do not reflect the best interpretations of scripture. These confessions are not infallible documents on par with the scriptures and should not be treated that way. They express what Christians believed at that time and as such they are historically valuable and provide us with theological boundary markers we need to recognize and respect. But they should not be seen as timeless expressions of Christian truth that are beyond examination and change (if need be) in light of what the Spirit has been teaching the church in the centuries since they were written. I know that we must proceed carefully and try to avoid the arrogance of thinking that we are so much smarter than our ancestors. There are good reasons for what they wrote and at the very least we should understand what those reasons were before we set about to change or improve them. But all of this must not be allowed to shut down intelligent conversations about what has been handed down to us and what it means and how it applies today.

Fame Versus Merit

The other day I was listening to a podcast and the subject of fame versus merit was mentioned. So often the assumption is that people are famous because they deserve to be, but a little reflection reveals that this is not always the case. By famous I do not mean infamous because like a car crash most people cannot resist turning their heads to have a look at a human wreckage. A famous person is one who is well known and well regarded by those around them. Sometimes this attention is deserved because they have actually contributed something of value to the world. But other times, for reasons that are difficult to pinpoint, fame is completely unrelated to anything beneficial or valuable.

None of this is earth-shattering information but nonetheless I think the distinction between fame and merit is important for the simple reason that there are many who contribute to the health and well-being of others who will never be written up in the paper or interviewed by Larry King. In the gospels Jesus is reported to have said, "But many who are first will be last, and the last first" (Mark 10:31; Matthew 19:30). This enigmatic statement reminds us that things are not always the way they appear to be. Those who get the most attention and command the largest salaries and security details may not be as highly regarded in heaven as they are on earth. All of this is part of the life of faith. We are called to set our minds on things above and to live in light of eternity whether or not anyone on earth takes notice. And we do this this because there is a God who sees and knows all things and in the end his evaluation is all that matters.

Lakeview Baptist Church

Those of us who teach at Toronto Baptist Seminary are always thrilled when our graduates take up new ministry responsibilities. In that regard I wanted to let readers of my blog know about Paul McDonald, who along with his wife Georgie, have embarked on an interim ministry at Lakeview Baptist Church. The church is located on the northwest corner of the Highway 48 and Hadden Road intersection in Virginia, Ontario, just minutes east of Sutton. The morning service is at 11 AM and the evening service at 6:15 PM. There is also a Tuesday evening Bible study and prayer meeting at 7 PM.

If you live in the area, or you will be vacationing there this summer I know that Paul and Georgie would love to meet you. In a day when you cannot be assured of a solid gospel ministry in small town Ontario I am thankful that the McDonalds are willing to carry on the faithful ministry of Lakeview Baptist Church and with God's help move it forward into the future. If you are reading this in another part of the country or the world you can still pray that God would bless his word as it is taught and lived out in Virginia, Ontario. Press on Paul and Georgie!

G8/20

Preparations for the G8/20 economic summit have turned parts of downtown Toronto into a prison complete with cement barriers, heavy gauge fencing, and police equipped with riot gear. No one knows - and we may never know - the total cost of hosting the event but many talk about a price tag well in excess of a billion dollars. Shuffling dignitaries around will basically shut down the city during the duration of the summit that we can only hope will be more than a glorified photo opportunity. Undoubtedly there will be no shortage of national ego and pride with so many 'important' persons running around but given the track record of most of these leaders a breakthrough which makes the world a better place for everyone is highly unlikely and probably not even in their best interests.

Economics and politics aside I wonder if future high profile summits cannot learn a lesson from the Ontario Plowing Match Association. The International Plowing Match is an annual gathering of farmers and those involved with farming. It is a kind of giant plowing and rural exhibition that takes place in a different rural location every year. The farm that is chosen to host the event is transformed into exhibition grounds for the duration of the plowing match and it is then returned to service as a field the following year. The people come and the people go and then life returns to the way it was with relatively little fuss - little compared to the monumental task and cost of trying to hold the G8/20 summit in a city like Toronto and in the downtown part of the city to boot!

In the future why not hold the summit on a farm in Saskatchewan. I am sure that you could erect quite a temporary tent city for less than a billion - yes, that is right, say it s-l-o-w-l-y - a billion dollars. Given the geography of the prairies security should not be as much of a problem because you can see the trouble-makers a long way off. Protesters could be accommodated in an adjacent field where they could be kept under the watchful eye of the police and they could play to the media to their heart's content. Yes, I know such accommodation might not be as fancy as the Deerhurst Resort, but it would not hurt some of the world's leaders and their entourages to rough it a little and it would remind them they are not kings whose royal courts should be extravagantly supported by the public purse. If such a working environment is not to their liking they are probably unfit to govern in the first place.

Will it ever happen? Nah, never. As someone once said: "Power corrupts; but absolute power corrupts absolutely." No, it will never happen in this life. But still I think my suggestion is a good one in a world where billion dollar economic summits seem a tad extravagant.

Oil, oil everywhere...

The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is an ongoing environmental and social disaster of unimaginable proportions. I have heard that the amount of oil that  is still flowing into the gulf is equivalent to an Exxon Valdez oil spill happening every 4 days. Whether or not that is true I have no way of knowing because one thing that has become apparent is that it is almost impossible to believe what the oil industry, governments, scientists and the news media say about the event. Everyone seems to be in a state of disarray. What has become clear is that for all technical  sophistication of an oil rig and as amazing as the process of finding and extracting oil from beneath the ocean is in the first place, no one was prepared for what has happened. Now everyone is scrambling to blame someone and that before anyone has found a way to stop the oil from spewing into the ocean and further contaminating the environment. The whole thing is a nightmarish mess!

Beyond the culpable irresponsibility of big businesses, governments and regulating bodies, this event and others like it remind us that for all our sophistication we do not have all of the answers and we are living on an earth which is under a "curse" because of human sinfulness and rebellion. Originally we were put here to subdue the earth and have dominion over it on behalf of God, but when he struck off on our own and decided to interpret reality autonomously, God put a curse on the earth which has greatly complicated our task. Instead of finding satisfaction in our work and making steady progress toward our goals we find that the creation itself is unruly and resists our efforts to develop its resources to the glory of God. Disasters should remind us not to put our hope in this life or in men no matter how wealthy or brilliant but in God. The message of the Bible is that God in grace will transform the earth one day and undo all the damage that we have done to ourselves and the environment. This is not an excuse to act carelessly now but it should chasten our expectations and increase our humility and refocus our priorities in a world that is too quick to congratulate itself. And more that anything else it should make us ask how God will do this, a question which if answered properly, brings us to the cross of Jesus Christ and to his resurrection from the dead as the first man of the new order. Frustration marks this existence. Fulfillment and peace mark the one to come.

Lord of Heaven and Earth

Is it just me or is anyone else tired of hearing the same old talk that oversimplifies the teaching of scripture and the problems of human beings? Alas it is no wonder that people are confused as to what it means to be a Christian and some are embarrassed by the examples of those who claim biblical authority for their silly assertions. How often is Christianity seen by those looking on from the outside as conservative or liberal politics dressed up in religious language? How often is it identified by weird looking clothes, battles of which Bible version gets it right, how husbands and wives relate to one another, the catechizing of little children, or alternative educational options? Where can we find leaders who are their own people instead of poor imitations of those they long to emulate? People who will think for themselves and address in new and fresh ways the challenges of their own unique situation? The Bible can be understood at one level by a child, but the interpretation and application of the Bible to real life and the very real questions being asked today is not a job for children.

Today we desperately need people who have the breadth of experience and training to address in an intelligent way the life with all of its complexity. We cannot afford to "cherry-pick" certain passages and concepts and then identify them with the gospel and neglect all of the surrounding texts and implications that cry for careful attention. I am not even sure that the modern concept of building churches and the leadership structure that goes along with it is what was envisioned in the gospel at all, and most certainly the way we "do church" is only part of a much larger picture. Although it may come as a shock to those who fancy themselves God's representatives on earth, the prevailing view of God is often too small and consequently our Christian vision is not all that it should be. The God of the Bible is Lord of heaven and earth but you would never know that from the truncated version of the gospel that is dispensed in his name. Surely we can do better. New coalitions need to be formed where these matters can be discussed and appropriate action taken.

Toronto Baptist Conference

This September 24-25, Toronto Baptist Seminary is hosting the Toronto Baptist Conference which wlll be held at Jarvis Street Baptist Church. The theme of this year's conference is "Spirituality." We live in a world in which many are talking about spirituality of one type or another and in such an environment we think it is important that Christians understand the difference between Christian and other forms of spirituality. To this end we have put together a conference that we hope will address some of the issues that we face in our world today.

Topics and speakers include: Tony Costa who we have asked to help us understand the attraction of Islam spirituality for such a large percentage of the world's population. Dr. Michael Haykin will speak about popular forms of spirituality under the title "New Age Spirituality." My brother, Dr. Stephen Wellum, will explore the biblical and theological foundations of Christian spirituality and Dr. Glendon Thompson will trace out the practical implications of Christian spirituality for Christians and the church. I am going to look at the influence of technology on spirituality in an attempt to encourage discussion on the revolution that is currently underway and its social and religious entailments.

Everyone is invited to attend and participate in the conference. It is not designed for pastors and church leaders per se although they are certainly invited and encouraged to get fully involved. As a theological seminary we want to serve the Christian church as a whole in the Greater Toronto Area and beyond as people are able to attend. More details will be forthcoming over the next few weeks but the conference will begin Friday afternoon, there will be a session Friday evening, two sessions Saturday morning and one session Saturday afternoon with the conference wrapping up by 2:30. You are most welcome to come for one or all of the presentations. As more details become available they will be posted on the TBS website and advertised in the Gospel Witness magazine. I know the conference will be informative, thought-provoking and helpful. I really hope to see you there.

Beyond the Bible to Theology

Issues of continuity and discontinuity raise larger questions about how to apply the Bible to life in the 21st century, in a world that in many ways is quite different from the 'worlds' in which the Bible was originally written. Exegesis is one thing, appropriate application is another. It is all too easy and too tempting to read our own ideas into the text or to fail to understand how the Bible applies today. Again it is a matter of balance. Some see no issue here at all, they think they can move from the biblical text to the present world without batting an eye. They believe that God's word is God's word and that human beings are essentially the same today as they have always been and so there is no problem. At the other end of the spectrum are those who think that the Bible is so locked in its own time and our day is so different from what has gone before that there are a number of complicated hermeneutical maneuvers that must performed if we are to bring God's word to bear on our world. I believe we must avoid what is surely the naivety of the first view and not become entangled in the complicated skepticism of the second view.

If you are interested in reading more on this subject you might take a look at Four Views on Moving Beyond the Bible to Theology, edited by Stanley N. Gundry and Gary T. Meadors, and published by Zondervan. Don't be put off by what could be perceived as a provocative title - the idea of moving beyond the Bible should make us nervous but Gary T. Meadors does a good job of putting things in perspective in his introduction to the book. This work features contributions from Walter C. Kaiser (A Principlizing Model), Daniel M. Doriani (A Redemptive-Historical Model), Kevin J. Vanhoozer (A Drama-of-Redemption Model) and William J. Webb (A Redemptive-Movement Model). Because there are so many proposals and no definitive explain-everything-answers the book concludes with a final chapter entitled "Reflections on Moving Beyond the Bible to Theology" written by Mark L. Strauss, Al Wolters and Christopher J. H. Wright. As I continue to work my way through the book I will post some of my reflections here on my blog in the hope of stimulating a much needed and long overdue discussion of these issues.

Enough for now... time to get back to some real work. :-)

Matthew: The Gospel of Fulfillment

The life of Jesus could not be captured in only one gospel and so God moved four evangelists to tell us about his ministry on earth culminating in his death, burial and resurrection. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are all incredibly valuable and they need to be read, studied, preached and taught. But when it comes to issues of continuity and discontinuity, the gospel according to Matthew stands apart from the rest. This is not to say that the other gospels do not help us understand how the Old Testament finds its fulfillment in Jesus, rather it is that Matthew excels in this regard.

Matthew was a tax collector who became a disciple of Jesus. He was a Jew who came to believe that Jesus was the fulfillment of the hopes and dreams of Israel and he wrote his gospel to prove that this was the case. As a result one of the distinctive characteristics of his gospel are a number of "fulfillment sayings" in which Matthew links the life of Jesus with the Old Testament scriptures (e.g. 2:15, 17, 23). But that is not all. Beyond these sayings Matthew ties Jesus to antecedent revelation when he presents him as "the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham" (1:1), and when he quotes Jesus saying, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them" (5:17). In fact, these are just some of the ways in which Matthew makes his case for Jesus.

In the providence of God the gospel of Matthew leads off the New Testament and in a most wonderful way prepares us for what follows. Read Matthew, read it carefully and you will see that Jesus has come at just the right time in fulfillment of the Father's will as foretold in the Old Testament. Jesus marks the dividing line between the Testaments and he is the one who brings God's salvation to the lost descendants of Adam. As the writer to the Hebrews puts it: "In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven" (1:1-3).

The Amazing Letter to the Hebrews

The New Testament book of Hebrews is one that needs to be studied and taught more than it is. Issues of continuity and discontinuity are impossible to ignore if the book is actually expounded and is not treated as a homiletical spring board on which to hang a sermon. The message of Hebrews must be understood in its own right and then examined in light of the New Testament and then the Bible as a whole. The content of Hebrews as well as the interpretative approach of the author needs to be noted because it provided a wonderful canonical example of how to understand the typological, or promise/fulfillment structure, of the scriptures. Hebrews can be intimidating and therefore neglected because it requires a knowledge of the Old Testament and in particular a knowledge of the ritual parts of the Mosaic Law. Above all, Hebrews is Christ-centered and it gives us insight into God's salvation that cannot be found anywhere else in the Bible - at least not with the detail and clarity that we find in this tremendous scriptural gem. Because it is anonymous its inclusion in the biblical canon was debated for a time but thankfully the church came to see that it belongs in the Bible and without it our grasp of the faith would be severely diminished. So if you are looking for a biblical place to start look no further than the epistle to the Hebrews. Next time I want to say something about which of the gospels we need to know inside and out if we are to read and properly interpret the Bible as a coherent whole.

Does It Matter?

One question that needs to be asked in all of this is whether or not it matters. I would be the first to acknowledge that so many of the things that Christian fuss about, particularly in the area of church practice, are of little significance and more often than not reflect nothing more than personal and cultural bias even though they are dressed up to be more important than they are. But issues of continuity/discontinuity do not fall into that category. What is a stake is the nature of the church as a believing community and the nature of the new covenant as 'new' and not just more of what has gone before. Too many churches are stiff and out of touch with the world around them. Theirs is a strange religious world that is disconnected from the reality of everyday life. The joy and power of the gospel is not what it ought to be and the Bible is read in a very narrow way that fails to speak to all of life and often ducks the hard questions. In such an atmosphere things like the roles of men and women, the minutiae of church government, and the spread and perpetuation of a particular brand of gospel presentation become uppermost. People are proud because they sing archaic hymns, or because they are singing away to the latest melodies, or because they have the right Bible version and parrot the latest ramblings of pastor so-in-so. Surely there is more to Christianity than this. I think there is. There is so much more if only we have eyes to see.

The new covenant community is a community born of the Holy Spirit in which everyone knows the Lord. His law is written on their hearts and they know the joy of sins forgiven. They have a 'new' song to sing that is centered in the work of the Lamb of God - our great prophet who is so much more than a prophet, our great priest after the order of Melchizedek, and our great king who rules over all things for our good and who will bring us safely home at last. It is not a community of believers and their children unless those church have been born again by the supernatural power of God. There is nothing more deadly than a 'church' of so-called 'covenant people' who have not been renewed by God. Such people are not interested in singing psalms, hymns and songs of Spirit both old and new, nor looking to see what God is doing in the world today. They are content with tradition, with their way of doing things that they vainly imagine separates them from the rest. They like to think that they are the elect remnant when they are not really any different from anyone else except in their eccentric church practices and ways of relating to one another within that context. What they need is life and salvation. They need to know the Lord personally and intimately and when they do they will see beyond the petty turf wars that mark evangelicalism to a world that needs the radical message of the gospel. And radical it is when it is experienced in all of its new covenant glory. Yes, the nature of the church matters as does the newness of the new covenant. But enough for now...

All the Prophets and the Law

Many years ago now a relatively well-known Reformed Baptist pastor from the United States came to a pastor's fellowship here in Ontario to set us Canadian Baptists right about the law of God and covenant theology. He was a forceful man who sincerely believed all that he said but that day his dogmatic address and his answers during the questions and answer time convinced many of us that there were problems with classic covenant theology and that too many Baptists did not appreciate how it undercut their own theological position. And although at that point some of us were not sure how best to systematize the Old and New Testaments, we came away from that meeting aware that the traditional position was problematic and needed adjustment in light of the scriptures. Here's why...

One way of trying to establish continuity/discontinuity when it comes to the Mosaic Law is to divide the law into three categories: moral, ceremonial and civil. The moral component of the law is that part which lives on because it represents the unchanging moral demands of God which like God himself do not change over time. The ceremonial component of the law are the ritual rules and regulations that govern the Levitical priesthood and the sacrificial system which finds fulfillment in Jesus Christ. And the civil component are the laws which governed Israel as a nation when it existed as a theocracy in the world - these would included property laws and the death penalty for Sabbath breaking and chronically rebellious children and heresy.

This tripartite division of the law is helpful for the purpose of analysis but it is not the way the Bible establishes continuity versus discontinuity. At the meeting mentioned above I asked the speaker if the death penalty for rebellious children was still in effect because in Matthew 15:3-9 Jesus takes the Pharisees and teachers of the law to task for breaking the command of God for the sake of their tradition. Jesus then specifically refers to the command to 'honor father and mother' - which according to the tripartite division of the law is 'moral law' - and he joins it to the requirement to 'execute anyone who curses their father or mother' - which according to the scheme mentioned above is 'civil law.' In other words, Jesus links so-called moral and civil law together and rebukes the religious leaders for 'breaking the command of God.' If we do not execute rebellious children today - and thankfully only a lunatic fringe would suggest such a thing - why not? Unfortunately the speaker did not know what to say which was disappointing at the time. I have since come to see that it is a difficult question to answer if you buy into the tripartite division of the law as a way of establishing continuity/discontinuity. Today I would want to ask some additional questions to reinforce the point such as: Is the 'moral, ceremonial, civil' distinction the best way to go in this regard? Could any Jew living under the old covenant divide up the law in this way and on that basis decide what he will or will not do? Is this how we should approach the law and determine what God wants us to do today?

I think a better and more biblical approach is to interpret the law in light of Jesus and the kingdom he has established by his life, death, resurrection and ascension. The law as a whole, in all of its parts, prophesied about him and the people that he would gather to himself forever as a result of his mighty work. The covenant that God made with Israel was one of a series of covenants that culminates in the new covenant and only by studying how the law points to Jesus and his work and the kingdom that he established can we determine how the Mosaic Law applies to us today. And apply it does - in fact, the whole Bible from beginning to end applies to the believer today - but to know how it applies we must read, teach and apply it in light of Jesus Christ.

Going back to rebellious children as an example, we do not put them to death, nor should we encourage the civil authorities to do so. We do not because we are not living under the Mosaic covenant and it is not binding on us as a covenant today. However, the Mosaic covenant has lessons to teach us about what is required of those who are in covenant with God and it prophesies about a day to come when all who are stiff-necked and rebellious will be forever excluded from the covenant people - the true Israel of God. That day has begun with the coming of Christ and it is manifested (or should be) in the church that he is building. The new Israel is not ethnically but spiritually based. It is not based on physical ancestry but personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not tribal in that people are blessed or cursed because of their relationship with their parents or leaders but they are held accountable for their own sins and blessed as they look personally and individually to the savior. And when God's work of salvation in Christ has run its course all of God's 'children' will be without strain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. No more rebellion and no more rebels!

If we were living under the old covenant the command to 'honor father and mother' and to 'put to death the son who curses his father or mother' would both be 'moral law' in the sense that we would have to obey them. That is no longer the case because if we are Christians we are part of the new covenant people of God. The old rules do not apply in their old covenant form even though they continue to instruct us as we read them and obey them from our place in redemptive history interpreted in light of what Jesus has done. This is why Paul only mentions 'honoring father and mother' in Ephesians 6:4 when instructing Christian sons and daughters. His interpretation of the law is not based on 'moral' versus 'civil' distinctions but on the fulfillment of the law in Christ. As Jesus himself said: "For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John" (Matthew 11:13).