markdroberts: guest bloggers

Less Time on Websites, More time for Witnessing?

In his final sermon as the outgoing president of the Southern Baptist Convention, Bobby Welch expressed his unhappiness with the bloggers of his denomination. I cited several of his comments in my last post. Today, and in the days ahead, I want to respond to Welch's concerns in some detail.

According to BPNews, "Welch said he’d been wondering about Southern Baptists and that if 'we’d spend less time on these websites that we’d be able to spend more time witnessing?'"

In case you're not familiar with conservative Christian lingo, witnessing is another word for evangelizing. It usually describes what others might call personal evangelism: one-on-one conversation about Christ with the purpose of converting a non-believer. Baptists believe that all Christians should witness, that is, should "share Christ" with people around them.

I'm not a Baptist, but I also believe this. I realize that this isn't conducive to postmodern relativism, but a consistent relativist will at least allow me to believe what I in fact believe. I do believe that Christians should share the good news of Christ with others. I do not defend rudeness or arrogance, however. Personal evangelism doesn't have to be obnoxious, though some well-intentioned Christians seem to prove the opposite point. Evangelism, in its literal meaning, simply telling others about something good. If I see a good movie, I want to tell my friends. If I read a good book, ditto. So how can I not share the best news in life?

I've said this to make it clear that, though I might not sound like Bobby Welch, I agree with his idea that we Christians should "spend more time witnessing."

But does that necessarily mean we should "spend less time on these websites"?

Well, it all depends on the content of the websites, doesn't it? To take the simplest case, a website might be a way for communicating the gospel, rather like an online tract. Time spent doing a website might be time spent witnessing.

But even if a website isn't overtly evangelistic, it seems to me that blogging enables Christians to engage the larger world. Though my website occasionally evangelizes in the narrow sense (through my sermons, largely) I am regularly engaging the ideas, concerns, and values of the world in which I live. My website helps me to interact with the culture in a way that might be called "pre-evangelistic." It helps me to know the people to whom I'm called to witness, and it helps me to enter into constructive dialogue with them.

My guess is that Bobby Welch, given his perspective on the Internet, hasn't spent too much time checking out various Christian blogs. No doubt he thinks of blogging largely in terms of Southern Baptist politics. I'd recommend that he spend some time reading the blog of Albert Mohler Jr., president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Here Welch would find serious engagement with the culture from a clear, conservative, evangelical Christian perspective.

If Christian blogging can have value, even from an evangelistic point of view, does this mean it's just fine for Christian bloggers to spend all the time in the world on their websites? Of course not. Though he didn't put it this way, what Bobby Welch should have said is that we all need to think about how we spend our limited time on this globe. Blogging can be an enjoyable hobby, even an effective ministry. But it can also be a time-waster, a distraction, or an obsession. I would confess that there have been times when my blogging has taken me away from more important activities.

So, though I don't agree exactly with Bobby Welch's either/or position, either websites or witnessing, I do receive his challenge to look carefully at how I spend my time and to re-think my "mission" in my own website.

Outgoing Southern Baptist President Takes Swipe at Bloggers

In my last post I explained how bloggers recently had a major and unexpected impact on the politics of the Southern Baptist Convention. The response of Baptist officials was typical. Even as mainstream media pundits bash the bloggers, so did the outgoing Southern Baptist President.

Here is an excerpt from the sermon of Bobby Welch, who just finished his term as president of the SBC, as reported in BPNews.net:

Welch said he’d been wondering about Southern Baptists and that if “we’d spend less time on these websites that we’d be able to spend more time witnessing?

“Do you think if we spent less time blogging we might have more time to do some baptizing?

“Do you think if we spent less time fumbling around with those computers we might have more converts?”

Welch advised the crowd not to gloat that he’s chiding “them bloggin’ boys. Why, you run around with that wireless telephone up in your ear all day long like a pacifier.

“You think if we’d spend less time with those wireless telephones and more time on the street we wouldn’t win more people to Jesus?”

The article did not mention whether or not Bobby Welch said anything about how the bloggers had impacted the election of the next president, a man Welch did not prefer, apparently. I expect he left this out. But I find it curious, and telling, that in the aftermath of the SBC election, Welch decided to go after the bloggers.

It would be easy to dismiss Welch's opposition to blogging as the ravings of an icon of an aging generation. The world has changed, and Welch is not happy about it. Somebody moved his cheese, as it were. But I want to pause and think about what Welch said. His questions deserve serious answers, I believe, even if he meant them as rhetorical slaps in the faces of uppity Southern Baptist bloggers. Moreover, I think Welch isn't entirely out of line in what he says. In my next post I'll begin to look critically at his comments.

The Bloggers Revolt

Denominational politics is never pretty. This has been seen clearly in the recent actions of my denomination, the Presbyterian Church USA. The political maneuvers of some Presbyterians have led us to the brink of schism. Sigh!

I was fascinated to learn recently that the Southern Baptists have been having their fair share of problems. They aren't debating such weighty matters as the definition of the Trinity or whether to follow biblical guidance with respect to homosexual behavior, however. Rather, the Southern Baptists have been getting worked up about . . . blogging. That's right. Blogging has been stirring things up in the Southern Baptist Convention. (Would that we Presbyterians could be so settled on the majors that we could argue about the minors, like blogging!)

Time Magazine published a story on the rise of the bloggers among the Southern Baptists. Apparently, a bunch of young pastors, feeling excluded from the denominational hierarchy, began to use blogging as a way to express their frustration and rally the troops. This ended up in a most surprising way, with the election of dark horse candidate for president of the convention. Dr. Frank S. Page defeated the heir apparent, Dr. Ronnie Floyd, in part because of the support of blogging Southern Baptist pastors.

Time quotes a veteran Baptist journalist, "Without the bloggers Page wouldn't have been elected. He was a relative unknown, and the bloggers really have created the whole conversation. It's very much a generation shift." Yep. A generation shift. A new way of doing business, with bloggers leading the charge.

This doesn't surprise me, really. Blogging is simply a way for people to communicate effectively with a wide number of people. Communication influences people, including Southern Baptists, it seems. It changes minds and affects how people vote. Blogging is just one tool in the communication arsenal.

I do find it ironic, however, that in yet another sphere bloggers are upsetting the apple cart and making the apple cart owners angry. We've seen this again and again in the mainstream media. Now the power of blogging is influencing denominational structures. What's common in both instances is that the institutional gatekeepers (major media outlets, Southern Baptist hierarchy) are losing power, and aren't very happy about it. It's common these days for mainstream media commentators to bash the bloggers, suggesting that they are a trivial annoyance.

Well, as it turns out, the Southern Baptist hierarchy also took a swipe at the bloggers. I'll examine this in my next post.

Does God Want Us to Leave the PCUSA?

Part 6 of series: The End of the Presbyterian Church USA?
Posted for Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Permalink to markdrobert.com

So far in this series I've argued that, given God's concern for church unity, people should only leave (or divide) a denomination in extraordinary circumstances, for strong biblical reasons, and only after an extended season of prayerful, scriptural, and communal discernment. I've shown that the current circumstances in the PCUSA are extraordinary, but also extraordinarily complicated. I've explained several biblical reasons why some sort of separation from the PCUSA may in fact be God's will. So now we come to where the rubber meets the road. Does God want biblically-committed Christians to leave the PCUSA?

My answer, to be quite honest, is: I'm not sure. Now I realize this might sound like I'm being wishy-washy, and perhaps I am. But my lack of certainty has to do, on the one hand, with the complexity of the circumstances and biblical arguments involved. On the other hand, it was to do with the fact that I have not engaged in an extended season of prayerful, scriptural, and communal discernment about whether or not to part ways with the PCUSA.

"Why not?" you might wonder. "Didn't you see this coming?" Well, I did think some about what I'd do if the General Assembly passed the fifth recommendation of the PUP Report, the one that allows governing bodies to ordain people who are sexually active outside of marriage, in contradiction to the clear statement of our church constitution. But, quite frankly, I did not think that the General Assembly would vote affirmatively. To me, the wrongness of Recommendation #5 was so obvious, and the implications of passing this recommendations so obviously dire, that I fully expected the General Assembly to reject it. So much for my ability to predict how a General Assembly will vote.

Because the General Assembly actions did not change the constitution in a way that requires me to withdraw my membership in the PCUSA, I have the time, and, indeed, the responsibility to engage in the kind of prayerful, scriptural, and communal discernment required in this situation.

On a personal level, I'm bringing these questions before God in prayer on a regular basis. I'm trying to surrender my agendas and preferences, so I can be open to God's call. If God wants me to remain in the PCUSA, I will. If God wants me to leave, I will. But in order to obey, I need to get clearer on God's guidance for my life. I should add, by the way, that I'm not a free agent here, but a member of a family. My wife's wisdom in this matter will be crucial to me.

Moreover, I'm pastor of a church, and am blessed with many wise colleagues, both on staff and on the Session (Board of Elders). Discernment of God's will is something we will do together. I would never leave the PCUSA without extensive conversation and prayer with my fellow leaders at Irvine Presbyerian Church.

I'm also greatly blessed to be part of a strong, Christ-centered Presbytery (regional body). I have partners in ministry, both pastors and elders, who are struggling with all of this much as I am. Moreover, my Presbytery Executive (who is rather like a bishop without any power), is a godly man whose wisdom I trust. What I've experienced in my local Presbytery has been almost entirely positive. If the PCUSA were simply a larger version of Los Ranchos Presbytery, the question of leaving would never have occurred to me.

Beyond the personal partnerships that will provide a context for communal discernment, I'm also looking to my fellow evangelical Presbyterians for their perspective and guidance. In particular, the Presbyterian Renewal Network, an alliance of 14 evangelical PCUSA organizations, will be source of vision and insight. Whatever I do personally, and whatever my church does corporately, in response to the General Assembly vote, I want this to be done in fellowship with like-minded Presbyterians.

Let me close this post by quoting from two responses to the General Assembly action. The first is from the New Wineskins folk, some PCUSA leaders who have been working hard on the question of denominational renewal and reconfiguration. The second is the official statement of the Presbyterian Renewal Network. These will be long quotations, but I think they're worth citing and reading.

The New Wineskins Reponse to the General Assembly Vote

In the past twenty-four hours, everything has changed. Tuesday's actions of the General Assembly of the P.C.U.S.A. has turned presbyterianism on its head.

By adopting recommendation five of the Theological Task Force report, the 217th assembly of the P.C.U.S.A. has forsaken its constitutional covenant., abandoned its Presbyterian heritage and opened the door to the blatant disregard of biblical standards, paving the way for a climate in which, “each does what is right in his own eyes.”

The actions of this assembly have thrown our denomination into a crisis. Yet the God who delights to bring new creation out of chaos remains sovereign over our life as presbyterians. We recognize in this moment of crisis and profound disappointment a God given opportunity. This world longs to see us give faithful expression to our covenantal life. Now is the time. For five years men and women in the New Wineskins Initiative have worked to articulate a vision for a life together as Presbyterians that is marked by theological and ethical integrity, missional faithfulness and structural effectiveness. We believe that the action of this assembly confirms the need for a new wineskin.

How shall we respond? Together. These are days that require of us that we stand with those who are one in spirit. We rejoice at the sense of common purpose that increasingly characterizes our mutual efforts as organizations seeking renewal and reform, and believe that now more than ever we must seek and serve God together, affirming one another’s work wherever possible as side-by-side we work to preserve a biblically faithful presbyterian fellowship.

On July 19, in Tulsa, the second annual convocation of the New Wineskin Initiative begins. At that event we will seek and enjoy God, actively explore ways to live out our vision, and wrestle with how God may wish to move us together towards his preferred future. All who share our concerns and our hope are enthusiastically invited to attend the convocation and learn more of the vision to which we believe God may be calling us.

The decision of the assembly to forsake our presbyterian heritage for the sake of structural unity has left many shaken, disheartened, and deeply concerned, but with God there is always hope. We are confident that God will be faithful to use this crisis to surface the need for, to awaken our desire for, the new work God wishes to do among us. In God’s hands, and with our humble and prayerful cooperation, these events can serve to move us closer to becoming the faithful community of Presbyterians for which God and we long together.

The Response of the Presbyterian Renewal Network

Today, in a single vote by 298 commissioners, the constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) effectively was changed. The mandated requirements of ordination, rooted in Scripture and our Confessions, have been made optional. Sessions and presbyteries have been allowed to treat the Seventh Commandment as “not essential.” These ordaining bodies have been told that they need not obey the explicit instruction of the apostles: that all Christian believers should “abstain from … sexual immorality” (Acts 15:29).

The consequences of the decision of this General Assembly throw our denomination into crisis. Many individuals and congregations will conclude from this decision that the PC(USA) has abandoned the historic faith of the Church. The decision will be regarded by others in the worldwide body of Christ as profoundly offensive.

Yet we do not believe that God has abandoned the members of the PCUSA. We do believe that God’s Word, by the power of God’s Spirit, is able to convict, transform, and restore. We are thankful for the many Presbyterian congregations and members who testify so boldly to that power—even this week in Birmingham. Faithful commissioners and advisory delegates have stood valiantly and effectively for doctrines such as the Trinity and the sanctity of human life.

We will redouble our efforts to bear witness to the Gospel in this troubled time and place. We reaffirm our ordination vows at the very time when those vows are being cheapened. This recent decision marks a profound deviation from biblical requirements, and we cannot accept, support, or tolerate it. We will take the steps necessary to be faithful to God and to those God calls us to serve.

Let us all be guided by the passage from which comes, providentially, the theme of this 217th General Assembly:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.

Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood….

Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.

Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble, and through it many become defiled.

Hebrews 12: 1-4, 12-15 (NRSV)

My Conclusion

I'm going to conclude this series on the PCUSA for now. I'm sure I'll get back to it before too long. If you've read this far, I'd ask for your prayers, both for me and for all in our deeply divided denomination.

Are There Biblical Reasons for Breaking Fellowship with Other Christians? (Section B)

Part 5 of series: The End of the Presbyterian Church USA?
Posted for Monday, June 26, 2006
Permalink to markdroberts.com

In Saturday's post I began to examine biblical reasons for Christians to break fellowship with each other. They included:

1. Breaking Fellowship When Christians Persist in Sinful Behavior
2. Breaking Fellowship in the Case of Theological Disagreement About Essential
     Doctrine
3. Breaking Fellowship for the Sake of Mission

The biblical ground for #3 came from the story of Paul and Barnabas in Acts 15, where these former mission partners split up over a practical disagreement. In light of this example, I suggested that sometimes Christians who are truly one in Christ are better off without being institutional partners. I illustrated this by talking about my close friendship with a Southern Baptist minister.

Yet breaking fellowship for the sake of mission is also something that I have to consider in my PCUSA relationships. For example, I have Presbyterian pastor friends who believe that gays and lesbians should be ordained if they are in lifelong, monogamous relationships. I disagree with these friends about this, even though we share the essentials of Christian faith in common. Now, if in light of the recent General Assembly action, my friends start ordaining gay and lesbian elders in their churches, I'm not sure we could maintain institutional connectedness, since I would not be able to accept these elders as co-leaders in our common denomination.

At this point my friends and I would face a choice: Spend the next thirty years as we have the last thirty, fighting with each other over the issue of gay ordination, draining our energy and distracting our attention from the gospel ministry. Or we could decide to separate institutionally, so that we might be free to lead our churches according to our differing convictions. We could still get together to build a Habitat for Humanity house, or to join in corporate prayer, or whatever. My friends and I could still enjoy true fellowship in Christ. But we would not be continually duking it out to preserve a tenuous and enervating institutional unity.

A denomination is not the body of Christ. It's not the church of Jesus Christ. Scripture refers to the church in local terms and in global terms, but not in denominational terms. A denomination is a practical, functional institution, one that is meant to support and augment the ministries of its churches. When a denomination accomplishes this goal, it has obvious value. But what if a denomination begins to get in the way of ministry and mission? What if denominational connections hinder rather than help us fulfill the Great Commission? Is it time for new denominational wineskins?

My relationship with the PCUSA has been both a help and a hindrance. So far, the pluses have outweighed the minuses. I've received strong support from my local Presbytery (regional body), and I'm in a great covenant group with several PCUSA pastors. The PCUSA has been the denomination that ordained me and in which I've served two churches.

Yet I've found that, increasingly, my PCUSA connection often hampers my ministry. I've spent literally hundreds of hours in the past 20 years dealing with unfortunate actions of our General Assemblies and other gatherings (pro-gay ordination votes, Re-imagining Conference, Israel divestment vote, etc.) The countless hours that I and my fellow leaders at Irvine Presbyterian Church have put into cleaning up PCUSA messes have been, quite frankly, a big waste of time.

Moreover, I've found that the "Presbyterian" label is sometimes more of a minus than a plus for outreach. People "out there" tend to think of the Presbyterian church as confused, liberal, and dying, largely because we make headlines that confirm these perceptions. Why would anybody want to come to Irvine Presbyterian Church if it's confused, liberal, and dying? So I find myself in the position of having to explain that thought we might be confused sometimes, we aren't liberal and we're in fact growing.

Furthermore, in the last ten years I've had to deal with dozens of people who believed that the PCUSA endorses homosexuality, and for whom this is a reason not to get involved in the PCUSA church. When I've explained that we do not approve of gay ordination, some of these folks have been willing to give us a try. Others have remained hesitant because they've seen too many negative news stories. Now I'm going to have to tell people that our constitution calls for fidelity and chastity, and that Irvine Presbyterian Church affirms this completely, but that our denomination allows some people to do what our constitution forbids. This isn't exactly going to make people want to join a PCUSA church.

If churches exist to do the mission of Jesus Christ, which I believe on biblical grounds, and if denominations exist chiefly to support and extend that mission, which I believe on theological and historical grounds, then when denominational help is outweighed by denominational hindrance, it may be time for a church to disengage from a particular denomination, and to seek out more edifying connections. This should never be done impetuously, however, since God's concern for unity must be given due weight. But God is also concerned for mission. When denominational unity, something that is not directly addressed in Scripture, gets in the way of mission, something that pervades Scripture, it may be time for new denominational wineskins.

But if this is such a time for biblically-committed Presbyterians, then we must engage in careful, prayerful, corporate discernment of God's will. I'll say more about this in my next post in this series.

Praying with the Church: A Brief Review

I want to interrupt today's blogging plans to put up a brief review of Praying with the Church by Scot McKnight. I had expected to put up a more extensive review next month, and I may still do so. But I became aware of a "blogger's promotional" for this book, and wanted to pass on this opportunity to my readers. (Note: I do not accept paid advertising of any kind. I did receive a complementary review copy of this book. I receive many of these, but tend to review only those I like.)

Who is Scot McKnight?

First, a bit about the author. I don't know Scot McKnight personally, though I've held him in high esteem for years. I first got to know Scot in the late 1980s through his writings. Introducing New Testament Interpretation, in particular, impressed me as an outstanding primer, and I used it as a required book in my seminary exegesis courses. Then, in the early 1990s, Scot was a co-editor of the Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, which was (and still is) one of the finest pieces of evangelical biblical scholarship I know.

But Scot is not merely a top-notch academic with strong Christian convictions. He's also able to communicate with non-specialists, something many academics simply cannot do. In 2004 Scot published The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others. This fine book, intended for lay Christian audiences, won the 2005 Christianity Today Book Award in the Christian Living Category. Then, in 2005, Scot began his blog, www.jesuscreed.org, which I consider to be one of the most informative (and sometimes entertaining) blogs in existence. One of the things I appreciate about Scot McKnight is his commitment to engaging contemporary cultural and church issues (like the emerging movement, for example) from a solidly biblical perspective.

As I said before, I don't know Scot personally. But it's obvious from his writings that he is a deeply committed Christian who seeks to use his many gifts for the sake of God's kingdom. He is also eager to grow in his relationship with the Lord. Praying with the Church is a result of Scot's effort in this regard.

A Brief Review of Praying with the Church

I own a couple dozen books on prayer. Praying with the Church is unlike any other. Most books on prayer cover more or less the same ground in more or less the same ways. Praying with the Church focuses on topics that are almost completely ignored in most evangelical books on prayer. I read books on prayer largely for inspiration, rarely with the expectation of learning new things. Praying with the Church taught me lots that I didn't know before.

Here's how the book begins:

Most Christians are not happy with their prayer life – they either don't pray often enough or well enough. This book is written to help such Christians – and for those who do pray often, this book might also bring a welcoming word. (p. 1)

Okay, so far so good, but nothing especially new here. In fact, this sounds a whole lot like things I said in the introduction to my own book on prayer, No Holds Barred.

So what makes Praying with the Church unusual? It seeks to help evangelical Christians (and others, but especially evangelicals) discover the benefits of praying with the church through using "liturgical prayer, fixed-hour prayers, the Divine Office, the divine hours, the hours of prayer, or the Opus Dei ('the work of God')." No, this is not a book about the Catholic order Opus Dei, made famous (or infamous) by The Da Vinci Code.

My guess is that this last paragraph didn't make you want to buy Praying with the Church. Why should you care about liturgical prayer, fixed-hour prayers, the Divine Office, and the like? Isn't this just high-church stuff, the tired traditions of days gone by? Well, in a word, no. These expressions of prayer have given life to millions of Christians for centuries, and they still do. They are, as Scot McKnight shows, rooted in Scripture and in the prayer life of Jesus Himself. They are a potential source of living water for those of us who are very unfamiliar with or uninterested in what we would consider "churchy" prayer.

Let me quote another bit from Praying with the Church:

Praying with the Church involves allowing our own prayer lives to be adjusted to the sacred rhythms of the Church's prayer tradition and invites us to use the words of the Bible and the Church. This book will focus on learning to pray with the Church, and it is an invitation for all Christians to learn to pray not just alone in the church but also together with the Church. (p. 10)

Praying with the Church does not get lost in lofty theologizing. It's very down to earth. Though exploring serious issues, it does so in a very available and, dare I say, "user-friendly" way. It explains things I have often wondered about, and does so with brevity and clarity.

I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to grow in his or her relationship with God. Praying with the Church would make a wonderful curriculum for adult study groups. I plan to use it in my church in contexts where people can discuss and put into practice the wisdom of the ages concerning prayer.

The Blogger's Special

This is the special deal I mentioned earlier. From now until June 30th, that's only five days, you can buy a copy of Praying with the Church from the publisher (Paraclete Press), and they'll give you a free copy of Scot McKnight's award winning The Jesus Creed. This is a great deal!

Here's what you must to do get the special:

1. Visit the Paraclete Press website. Order a copy of Praying with the Church and a copy of The Jesus Creed. Then, in the coupon blank, enter the coupon code: PRBLOG. Then update your order. It should show that you're getting a free book. (Note: I did this twice before it worked. So you may want to use option #2.)

2. Call Paraclete Press at 1-800-451-5006 and order both books with the PRBLOG special code.

Welcome

Welcome to markdroberts . . . afoot and afield.

This is my "back up" website, one I'll use primarily when I am not able to have regular Internet access. You don't have to save a link to this site in order to access it. It will be accessible from my regular site, markdroberts.com.

Thanks for visiting!