Category / Theology

by johnkking

Worldview Revisited

Eleven months ago I published a blog article that began a series addressing worldview:

These posts shared my reflections on an article, “Understanding Culture” by Lloyd E. Kwast, found on page 397 of  Perspectives on the World Christian Movement, Fourth Edition. Pasadena: William Carey Library. Through these six posts I explored the significant role that stories play in shaping a people group’s view of themselves, their beliefs, values and behavior.

Recently I was asked to share relevant parts of this material with a children’s education group. People from four different churches came together on a Friday evening. Most teach in regular Sunday School programs in traditional Western style churches, but several work with a program that has classes for inner city children who come from high crime and poverty stricken areas of our city. Some of these people are also involved in curriculum development.

[NOTE: Over the next several weeks I will write about this experience. I will also explore how to be intentional in developing the worldview of children. While I did not have the benefit of this material when my son and daughter were young, my first grandson is due to be born February 18, 2013. My responsibilities live on!]

by johnkking

Contextualization and Post-Modernity

Recently a friend tweeted the following link to a brief overview of critical transitions that need to happen in the life of an individual as he/she is discipled from being a “skeptic” into a “world changer”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ep8XM5IFWsI

As I dialogued with my friend regarding the video, I pointed out that it is very “Western” and “individualistic,” especially in Choung’s discussion of the “skeptic” needing to “trust” a Christian to be able to transition into a “seeker.” I also raised the issue that Choung does not seem to have any familiarity with the concept of God raising up a person of peace who could serve as a bridge into his family and/or her community.

Today I did some searching on Choung’s website and found the following blog which contains the video mentioned above:

Real Life Continuum video which explains the basic model of the book is also out! http://www.jameschoung.net/2012/11/22/real-life-in-print/

It also links to an earlier video, “True Story,” that uses four circles to help visualize what needs to happen in coming to Christ. Later Choung writes about these two videos showing these charts being drawn and their connected books, “True Story and Real Life actually share a common lineage: they are popularized versions of first and second halves of my dissertation on postmodern leadership development. True Story gave the theological ground for Real Life’s disciple-making model.

Please note the very specific context of his dissertation—postmodern leadership development. What happens if you attempt to use his approach in a pre-modern setting? What about a modern setting? I will be exploring these questions as a means of getting Western thinkers to reconsider exporting our strategies cross-culturally without carefully exploring our own presuppositions.

by johnkking

DBS Helps Cross-cultural Communications

Cross-cultural communication is a challenge at best! Just ask wives and husbands how many times they realized their spouse did not hear what they intended to communicate.

In every cross-cultural conversation there is a sender and a receiver. The sender uploads what she/he intends to communicate, but their message is always encoded from within their cultural context (yes, this more closely approximates that of the receiver the more fluent their language skills are). Then the receiver downloads the message and filters it through his/her ethno-linguistic cultural grid. But the process is also impacted by “noise.”

The only way to assess what is understood is to ask for feedback. “What did you understand me to just say?” is a great way to seek clarity. When this person shares what they heard, then you can attempt to overcome the effects of noise and the differences in the ways we utilize words/phrases cross-culturally.

One of the great beauties of Discovery Bible Studies (when the stories are being heard in the heart tongue) is the passage is not being explored cross-culturally. Yes, I know that Scriptures were written from within and for other cultures (e.g., pre-exilic Hebrew, post-exilic Hebrew, 1st century Judeo-Christian, 1st century Gentile Christian, etc.) but it is not going through the additional cultural grid of the cross-cultural missionary.

The Word of God illuminated by the Spirit of God is enough to produce the people of God!

by johnkking

Hearing God

I am facilitating an adult Bible study class that is exploring the biblical material on “Hearing God.” We started by making a list of some of the ways God has spoken to his people. As Hebrews 1:1 points out, “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways…” One of those ways is dreams and visions. We have spent the last two weeks exploring the role of dreams in the life of Joseph, the son of Israel (Genesis 37, 40 & 41).

We found that others may become jealous of dreamers. Joseph’s ten brothers heard the dreams about bowing before him from the context of Israel’s favoritism toward Rachel’s son. The idea that this brother with the brightly colored cloak would rule over them riled them and they plotted to kill him. Some people naively assume that knowledge of the future will be such a great blessing.

In chapter 40 Joseph is not the dreamer, but gets to be the interpreter. As we discovered God through the narrative of Joseph, the chief cupbearer and baker we arrived at a question raised by a counselor in the class, “Do you see God as setting up and arranging these events to get Joseph to accomplish his purposes, or do you see God as becoming involved in the free choices of the people involved, when needed to channel them to accomplish his purpose?”

Sounds like a great place to get lost in the Calvin/Arminius debate.

Not trying to be a smart-aleck, I left the class with a different question—“So what?” No, I did not raise this as a way of implying this is an irrelevant question. Thinking about God’s sovereignty and exploring the ways he accomplishes his purpose in the affairs of individuals, people groups and even nations is a very appropriate aspect of the Joseph, Israel and Egypt narrative. The way I want the class (and you) to grapple with the “So what?” question is much more personal. I am not too concerned with whether you come out nearer either of the aforementioned theologians. The point I want you to ponder is how does your understanding of God’s nature affect your daily walk?

“What do you learn about God from this passage?” is the most important question we can ask of a text, in my studied opinion. If we approach Scriptures like a new yearbook (“Where is my picture in here?”), rather than as the record of God’s self-revelation, we are misusing them. Is God the puppeteer who only creates the appearance that his puppets have a life of their own, or does he really call them to join him in what he is seeking to accomplish and grant them some level of freedom to accept/reject that call, and then adapt based on those choices to make sure his purpose comes to pass?

For some, their answer to “So what?” is they arrive at some level of fatalism. God controls everything so it is futile to will to do anything, including responding in obedience to any calling he has placed on our lives (intentionally overstated)! At the opposite extreme there is the potential that one assumes, “I must grab the wheel and steer this vehicle!—it is all up to me.”

Does my understanding of God lead to either extreme? Is there a better understanding? Where I come out on this matters. It impacts how I hear God. It does not alter his intended meaning, but it greatly shapes my hearing. Remember that Jesus calls those with ears to hear. Grasping God’s nature greatly impacts how we hear, thus how we respond.

What are you hearing from God? How are you responding?

by johnkking

Steering a Parked Life

Last week I encountered two quotes that converged for me. The first said, “It is hard to steer a parked car.” A vehicle that is barely moving is easier to turn than one that is sitting still. When we attempt to obey what we hear God calling us to do, our lives become more open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Another friend wrote the following in her Facebook status:

“Do what you know you should do, and you will know what to do…God clarifies in the midst of obedience, not beforehand”… I’m already seeing what I’ve begged God to show me while sitting still… He really is in the MOVEMENT!

How often do we miss out on blessings because we will not lean into what we already know God calls us to do? Yes, He is sovereign and will accomplish his ultimate purposes. But there are good things along the way that are connected to our openness to receive.

In John 14 and 15 Jesus expresses numerous blessings that come to those who are moving, those who obey Jesus:

14:15-17      When we obey Jesus, He will pray and in answer to his prayer the Father will give the Spirit of Truth

14:23-24      Loving obedience to Jesus results in the Father and Jesus abiding with the obedient disciple

15:10-11      Loving obedience brings Jesus’ joy to completion in the disciple

15:12-15      Loving obedience reveals we are Jesus’ friends

15:16-17      We will bear much fruit—fruit that lasts!

If you are not experiencing these blessings, maybe you are like a parked car. If you continue to beg God for clarity, maybe you are ignoring an earlier answer he has already given. Start moving in the direction he called you and see if your life is not more easily steered!

by johnkking

Still Learning My Way Around

Recently I was encouraged to put an index to some of my more useful blog posts, on this site. I have placed links to similar posts within posts, but I was not sure how to accomplish what was requested.

After I got on my site the next time I decided to check out the “Categories” and the “Tags” links (if you put your cursor over the words that follow either of these two, you will find they change color, meaning if you click on one you will be provided every entry that deals with a specific category, or every one that mentions the tagged topic. So the categories is sort of like a topical table of contents and the tagged words are sort of thematic indexes. This is what you get when you read the blog of a novice–I keep learning more of the features that are built into this blog format.

If you go to the top of this article you will see that just below the title, “Still Learning My Way Around,” there is a box that has “Category:” followed by several items like, “Bible Studies, Communication, Community Development, etc.” Click on any of those and you will get all of the posts I have grouped under than category.

In that same box, just below “Categories” is the option of “Tags:” which is followed by words like “Discovery Bible Studies.” If you click on that you will get the 10-11 articles that mention these.

Hopefully this is old news to most of you. But just in case you are still sort of new to this whole blogging scene (like I obviously am), I want to be sure you know how to use this feature. While I listed all the categories, I only gave you a few of the tags since there are more than 40 of them.

Let me know if any of these posts prompt questions. Some of my best writing happens when people ask good questions.

by johnkking

Redeeming Obedience

Leading groups of people through a discovery process can be very rewarding. Recently I was part of a four-man team that introduced 55 people to the Disciple Making Movements strategy that has been employed in sub-Saharan Africa. They heard stories of the remarkable fruit God has been producing since 2006. Then we had them use the 8-Questions as a guide for exploring Deuteronomy 6:1-9 and Matthew 28:16-20 (combine these with Luke 10 and you have the three most significant texts for the paradigm shifts needed to experience rapid multiplication).

At first sight, some people wonder why anyone would couple Deuteronomy 6 and Matthew 28. These two texts actually both appear in the first gospel. They are commonly called the Great Commandment (Matthew 22:34-40) and the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20). Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6 when he is asked “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law” (vs. 36).

On the second day we debriefed the previous day by having the groups discuss what they found most valuable or encouraging out of the previous day’s study. When the seven groups were asked to compile a list of the top three, the collectively shared the following list:

  • Encouraged by simplicity.
  • Focus on the Word and obedience
  • Discovery Bible Study provides a simple and practical model.
  • The 8 questions provide a great template.
  • Redeeming of the word obedience.
  • Prayer is needed and focused on as one of the basics.
  • Story telling model – the stories of God at work come alive.
  • God is moving through people and prayer.
  • Whole groups are coming to Jesus.
  • B’s testimony – an answer to prayer.
  • Make disciples not converts.  Disciple to salvation.
  • The power of writing out the scripture.
  • People of peace are everywhere
  • Lay people are doing the work.
  • Growing sense of disillusionment among Muslims.
  • Don’t be afraid of small beginnings.
  • Sheiks and other Muslim leaders coming to the Lord.

“Redeeming the word obedience” is the one that really jumped out to me that day. What a beautiful way to express what many of us have been experiencing over the last six years. Few insights have brought more push back, though, in Western settings. Since many hear this discussion in the context of legalism they need to experience this redemption.

I urge you to spend some time noticing the role of obedience in discipleship. Yes, we are saved by grace. No, we are not teaching that we start by grace giving us a clean slate from our past sins and then we are expected to obey our way to heaven. Obedience is empowered by grace. To obey Jesus is to exhibit evidence that his grace reaches me. Read through John chapters 14 and 15 noting every time the words “obey” and “obedience” appear. Note the verse number and then note what promises are attached to obedience. Grace is God’s love language to us. Obedience is our love language to him!

by johnkking

Hearing and Obeying Jesus

A follow-up question was written that asks me to share what effects the implications of what I have written will have on a different passage written to a different context by a different author. While the question is certainly legitimate, and has the potential to prompt a second-level investigation, it also risks derailing the call. Here is the next question:

John, would you say that the Ephesians 4 pastor-teacher still only teaches others to obey Jesus teachings, or is it more?

Because of my understanding of Matthew I am convicted that I am not obeying Jesus’ final command (in the first gospel) unless I am discipling disciple makers. Teaching to obey all of Jesus’ commands includes his last command which is to make disciples.

Jesus is incredibly intentional and thorough in his teaching in Matthew. There are those five blocks of oral teaching that are recorded in the first gospel (a little similar material appears in Luke in the sermon on the plain) giving this gospel some of its uniqueness. I am convinced Matthew’s five great teaching sections grapple with core issues of discipleship:
• chapters 5-7 the teaching on the mount in Galilee
• chapter 10 the sending of the twelve
• chapter 13 the parables on the Kingdom
• chapter 18 the teaching on greatness in the Kingdom
• chapters 24-25 the teaching on the mount of Olives

Strangely enough, the word “disciple(s)” never appears after Acts. The concept is certainly in the epistles and Revelation, but the word is absent. “Disciple(s)” seems to serve a special function in the narrative sections, while the meaning attached to it is communicated in other ways as communities or individuals of believers are addressed in the letters.

I believe it is far more fruitful to involve people in a process of discovering Jesus’ teaching than in trying to teach it ourselves. Much of our so-called disciple making (here in North America) is teacher centered more than Jesus centered—in my opinion. Jesus has done a wonderful job of discipling those who will open themselves to hearing him and then obeying. At the close of the Matthew 7 he says those who hear his words will fall into the categories of “wise” or “foolish.” What determines this for each of us is whether or not we obey. Do we practice what Jesus teaches? here is the real test of a disciple.

If you want to make disciples, be sure to teach them to obey Jesus’ teaching—all of it. Never underestimate the value of modeling obedience as you teach them to obey.

by johnkking

Hearing Jesus

Interesting things happen when you confine your study of “teaching” (διδάσκω) to Matthew. Jesus has a three-fold ministry of preaching, teaching and healing. He involves the 12 in preaching and healing in Matthew 10, when he sends them out two by two. But only Jesus teaches in the first gospel. Matthew 28:20 is the first time (in the first gospel) where the disciples are included in teaching. Even then what they teach is restricted to teach the disciples they make to obey all of Jesus’ commands.

My study of Matthew leads me to the conviction that Jesus is the only teacher for disciples. As sent out disciple makers we are to point others to Jesus. What we teach them is to obey Jesus’ teaching. It is Jesus who defines what disciple making looks like by the way he makes disciples. His disciples are contrasted with those of John the Baptist and the disciples of the religious leaders. The disciples at the heart of the first gospel are people who have responded to Jesus’ call to follow. It is at its basic core a submissive relationship with the Son of God. Jesus provides the content for all his disciples.

You don’t get this nuanced perspective from the other biblical authors, but only Matthew uses that phrase “make disciples.” We need to be sure we use that phrase in ways consistent with what he reveals about what that entails. Don’t begin by going to Luke-Acts, Mark or John.

I originally posted most of the preceding comments in a discussion area considering the question, “How are we to define the word ‘teaching’ in the Great Commission?” The query sparked much dialogue. My desire was to answer the question by looking to the context where the word “teach” appears. The immediate context of the last four verses is significant, but it is inadequate to know how the term is used by the first evangelist. You only get that from what Jesus has already said and revealed through his actions about the nature of disciple making

by johnkking

Hearing Jesus

One of the first classes I took in Bible College was “The Life of Christ.” While we were told that our text would be Luke, we actually were required to purchase The Fourfold Gospel: A Harmony of the Four Gospels. Every word of the first four books of the New Testament were chopped up and arranged chronologically to tell the story of Jesus.

Maybe every believer needs a chronological overview of Jesus’ life, but I suspect there are significant unintended consequences that arise from such an approach (e.g., venting the smoke, from the cooking fire, out of the grass hut in Africa allows mites to invade):

  • Knowing about Jesus replaces hearing Jesus.
  • We fail to understand and appreciate the nuanced gospeling that the Spirit gives us through the early church.
  • We perpetuate the “string-of-pearls” hermeneutic which is modeled for us.
  • We fail to perceive the power of contextualization.

Before you take a section from one gospel (or any New Testament author) and join it with one from another, you should make sure you understand what the first author means. Context deals with more than the paragraph or chapter.

Let me illustrate my point by raising two issues. The word “disciple(s)” is very significant in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Acts. It never appears in the rest of the New Testament. You must grapple with the function of the word “disciple(s)” in the narrative sections. While the epistles and Revelation deal with the concept of discipleship, they never use the word.

Only Matthew contains Jesus mandate to “Go, make disciples, baptize them, and teach them to obey everything I have commanded.” What does “make disciples” mean here? You have to understand the model of disciple making that Jesus has used with these men. You cannot just drop into the first gospel at this point and know. You will import a connotation from somewhere else if you are not careful. Over the next couple of weeks I plan to share from my study of hearing Jesus and being obedient.