Theology

Back when I was in High School someone hung a sign up in a classroom which stated, “Mean people suck.” Later the word ‘mean’ was crossed out and replaced with ‘stupid.’ Finally ‘stupid’ was removed altogether so the sign empathetically stated, “People suck.”

Today I was thinking about my frustrations with my church, how I’d like to leave because frankly, people are annoying. Sometimes they just suck.

I do ministry in a sensitive location. Due to a growing number of Christians but a strong government opposition to the faith we are raising up churches mostly underground. There are many different networks of churches but everyday we wrestle with what theological points are necessary to bring to these to people and what aren’t.

What should church government look like outside of America? Is it okay to dance? To drink? Can women lead or not? What’s Biblical and what’s not? What’s significant and what’s not? What are the majors that we can major in them and not the minors?

I was a believer for almost 21 years before I happened upon Hudson Taylor’s spiritual secret, and was shocked how clearly he spelled out that the solution to sin isn’t trying not to do it. It isn’t accountability, it isn’t reading encouraging books, it isn’t seeking counseling. All such things may help, but there is only one way to stop sinning:

Taking your eyes off the sin, and putting them on the Lord.

“Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.” - Luke 12:31 This encompasses even sin. Why is this not more widely taught?

Is there an identity crisis for this website? Can’t waste any time here if there is…

Who are the prophets in our churches today? Are we listening to them? Or are we killing them?

Can Christianity break out of the intellectual vice that it is in? Can it see beyond the human-centered spirituality to see what is in the darkness that the spirit of Christ is standing in? This is a very large question that separates us from the intellectual security of our theology, and the ‘will’ of faith in it. We love the nimbleness of modern intellectual perception to fortify what we believe. But what are the implicatons of ignoring what we are now capable of? God is All. What is All? A critical mass is building between religions, as each recognizes the similarities in each other. Will the Hindus be the first to recognize a specific God Consciousness? Or will Christianity wake up to the reality of the spirit world?

I know as ‘postmoderns’ we’re supposed to distrust creeds and statements of faith, but sometimes it becomes necessary to try to articulate, if only tentatively and imperfectly, what one believes – just in case anyone should ask. This is a personal statement of faith and is certainly not intended to represent the beliefs of the whole emerging church community. It is not exhaustive and will probably get revised from time to time.

(The image is William Blake’s ‘The Ancient of Days’.)