Threads from Henry's Web

Tag: mission

  • John Wesley, Sermon 63, The General Spread of the Gospel

    John Wesley, Sermon 63, The General Spread of the Gospel

    This is translated into modern English by Gemini AI, according to my prompts. Note that updates on terminology, especially including references to people groups and faiths that would not be considered courteous today are updated, and mentioned in the notes. This is done in accordance with my prompts and I take responsibility for the use of language. You can find the original sermon on ResourceUMC.org.

    Note that this is divided into sections, and following each section there are comments on the updating of the language. Bold text indicates that there is a related note and is not used for emphasis. I invite readers to check the accuracy of this work, as this is experimental use of AI, at least from my point of view.

    The General Spread of the Gospel

    “The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” – Isaiah 11:9

    1. What a state the world is in at present! How does darkness—intellectual darkness, ignorance, along with the vice and misery that accompany it—cover the face of the Earth! From the precise inquiry made with tireless effort by our brilliant countryman, Mr. Brerewood (who himself traveled over a great part of the known world to form a more exact judgment), supposing the world to be divided into thirty parts, nineteen of them are professed non-Christian peoples, as ignorant of Christ as if He had never come into the world. Six of the remaining parts are professed Muslims. So that only five out of thirty are even nominally Christians!
    2. And let it be remembered that since this calculation was made, many new nations have been discovered—countless islands, particularly in the South Sea, large and well-inhabited. But by whom? By non-Christian peoples of the lowest sort; many of them inferior to the beasts of the field. Whether they eat people or not (which indeed I cannot find sufficient ground to believe), they certainly kill all who fall into their hands. They are, therefore, more savage than lions, who kill no more creatures than are necessary to satisfy their present hunger. See the real dignity of human nature! Here it appears in its genuine purity, not polluted either by those “general corruptors, kings,” or by the least hint of religion! What will Abbé Raynal (that determined enemy to monarchy and revelation) say to this?
    3. Only a little, and but a little, above the non-Christian peoples in religion are the Muslims. But how far and wide has this miserable delusion spread over the face of the Earth! So much so that the Muslims are considerably more numerous (as six to five) than Christians. And by all accounts that have any claim to authenticity, these are also, in general, as utterly strangers to all true religion as their four-footed brethren; as devoid of mercy as lions and tigers; as much given up to brutal lusts as bulls or goats. So that they are in truth a disgrace to human nature and a plague to all that are under their iron yoke.
    4. It is true, a celebrated writer (Lady Mary Wortley Montagu) gives a very different character of them. With the finest flow of words, in the most elegant language, she labors to “wash the Ethiopian white.” She represents them as many degrees above Christians; as some of the most amiable people in the world; as possessed of all the social virtues; as some of the most accomplished of people. But I can in no way accept her report; I cannot rely upon her authority. I believe those around her had just as much religion as their admirer had when she was admitted into the inner parts of the Grand Seignior’s seraglio. Therefore, despite all that such a witness does or can say in their favor, I believe the Turks in general are little, if at all, better than the generality of the non-Christian peoples.
    5. And little, if at all, better than the Turks, are the Christians in the Turkish dominions; even the best of them; those that live in the Morea, or are scattered throughout Asia. The more numerous bodies of Georgian, Circassian, Mengrelian Christians are a proverb of reproach to the Turks themselves; not only for their deplorable ignorance, but for their total, stupid, barbarous irreligion.
    6. From the most authentic accounts we can obtain of the Southern Christians, those in Abyssinia, and of the Northern Churches, under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Moscow, we have reason to fear they are much in the same condition, both with regard to knowledge and religion, as those in Turkey. Or if those in Abyssinia are more civilized and have a larger share of knowledge, yet they do not appear to have any more religion than either the Muslims or non-Christian peoples.

    Notes on Translation Choices:

    • Isaiah 11:9 Quote: Modernized the biblical language slightly.
    • “Mr. Brerewood”: Edward Brerewood (1565–1613), an English mathematician and antiquary, known for his work “Enquiries Touching the Diversity of Languages and Religions Through the Chief Parts of the World.” Wesley is referencing his statistical claims about global religious demographics.
    • “Heathens”: Consistent with our agreed-upon approach, this term has been translated to “non-Christian peoples” to avoid potentially offensive connotations while accurately reflecting Wesley’s distinction for those outside Abrahamic faiths in his context.
    • “Mahometans”: Consistent with our agreed-upon approach, this term has been translated to “Muslims.” “Mahometans” was Wesley’s contemporary term but is now considered outdated and potentially offensive as it implies worship of Muhammad rather than Allah.
    • “Basest sort” / “inferior to the beasts of the field” / “more savage than lions”: These are Wesley’s very strong, judgmental words, reflecting contemporary European views of certain indigenous peoples. They are retained to accurately reflect Wesley’s historical text, however, they represent a problematic colonial perspective from his era.
    • “Abbe Raynal”: Guillaume Thomas François Raynal (1713–1796), a French writer, philosopher, and critic of colonialism and organized religion. Wesley is likely referring to Raynal’s arguments about the “noble savage” or the inherent goodness of humanity uncorrupted by European society/monarchy/religion. Wesley here implies that these “savages” prove Raynal wrong.
    • “Lady Mary Wortley Montagu”: An English writer, poet, and traveler (1689–1762), known for her “Turkish Embassy Letters” where she described Ottoman society in a surprisingly favorable light for her time, challenging many Western prejudices. Wesley expresses skepticism about her account.
    • “Wash the Aethiop white”: A proverb (referencing Jeremiah 13:23) meaning to attempt the impossible, to change something fundamentally unchangeable, used by Wesley to dismiss Montagu’s positive portrayal.
    • “Grand Seignior’s seraglio”: Refers to the Ottoman Sultan’s palace harem, a place of exotic fascination and often misrepresentation in European literature. Wesley uses it to cast doubt on Lady Montagu’s perspective, implying her views are influenced by the environment she observed.
    • “Turks”: Used by Wesley to refer broadly to the Ottoman Empire and its dominant population, who were Muslim.
    • “Morea” / “Georgian, Circassian, Mengrelian Christians”: Specific geographic and ethnic groups of Christians living under Ottoman or Russian influence, often viewed as nominal Christians due to their isolation and lack of reformation. Wesley uses them to further illustrate the decay even within nominally Christian populations.

    The General Spread of the Gospel “The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” – Isaiah 11:9

    1. The Western Churches seem to have the pre-eminence over all these in many respects. They have abundantly more knowledge; they have more biblical and more rational ways of worship. Yet two-thirds of them are still involved in the corruptions of the Roman Church; and most of these are entirely unacquainted with either the theory or practice of religion. And as to those who are called Protestants, or Reformed, what acquaintance with it have they? Put Catholics and Protestants, French and English together, the majority of one and of the other nation; and what kind of Christians are they? Are they “holy as He who has called them is holy?” Are they filled with “righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit?” Is there “that mind in them which was also in Christ Jesus?” And do they “walk as Christ also walked?” No, they are as far from it as hell is from heaven!
    2. Such is the present state of humanity in all parts of the world! But how astonishing is this, if there is a God in heaven, and if His eyes are over all the earth! Can He despise the work of His own hand? Surely this is one of the greatest mysteries under heaven! How is it possible to reconcile this with either the wisdom or goodness of God? And what can give peace to a thoughtful mind under so melancholy a prospect? What but the consideration that things will not always be so; that another scene will soon be opened? God will be jealous of His honor: He will arise and maintain His own cause. He will judge the prince of this world and strip him of his usurped dominion. He will give His Son “the nations for His inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for His possession.” “The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” The loving knowledge of God, producing consistent, uninterrupted holiness and happiness, shall cover the earth; it shall fill every human soul.
    3. “Impossible,” some people will say, “yes, the greatest of all impossibilities, that we should see a Christian world, yes, a Christian nation, or city! How can these things be?” On one supposition, indeed, not only all impossibility but all difficulty vanishes. Only suppose the Almighty to act irresistibly, and the thing is done; yes, with just the same ease as when “God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” But then, humanity would be human no longer; their innermost nature would be changed. They would no longer be a moral agent, any more than the sun or the wind, as they would no longer be endowed with liberty—a power of choosing, or self-determination. Consequently, they would no longer be capable of virtue or vice, of reward or punishment.
    4. But setting aside this clumsy way of cutting the knot which we are not able to untie, how can all people be made holy and happy while they continue human? While they still enjoy both the understanding, the affections, and the liberty which are essential to a moral agent? There seems to be a plain, simple way of removing this difficulty, without entangling ourselves in any subtle, metaphysical arguments. As God is one, so the work of God is uniform in all ages. May we not then conceive how He will work on the souls of people in times to come by considering how He does work now, and how He has worked in times past?
    5. Take one instance of this, and such an instance as you cannot easily be deceived by. You know how God worked in your own soul when He first enabled you to say, “The life I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” He did not take away your understanding; but enlightened and strengthened it. He did not destroy any of your affections; rather, they were more vigorous than before. Least of all did He take away your liberty—your power of choosing good or evil. He did not force you; but, being assisted by His grace, you, like Mary, chose the better part. Just so has He assisted five in one house to make that happy choice; fifty or five hundred in one city; and many thousands in a nation—without depriving any of them of that liberty which is essential to a moral agent.
    6. Not that I deny that there are exempt cases, where The overwhelming power of saving grace does, for a time, work as irresistibly as lightning falling from heaven. But I speak of God’s general manner of working, of which I have known countless instances—perhaps more within the last fifty years than anyone in England or in Europe. And with regard even to these exempt cases; although God does work irresistibly for the time, yet I do not believe there is any human soul in which God works irresistibly at all times. No, I am fully persuaded there is not. I am persuaded there are no people living who have not many times “resisted the Holy Spirit” and made void “the counsel of God against themselves.” Yes, I am persuaded every child of God has had, at some time, “life and death set before him,” eternal life and eternal death; and has in himself the deciding voice. So true is that well-known saying of Saint Augustine (one of the noblest he ever uttered): Qui fecit nos sine nobis, non salvabit nos sine nobis: “He that made us without ourselves will not save us without ourselves.” Now, in the same manner as God has converted so many to Himself without destroying their liberty, He can undoubtedly convert whole nations, or the whole world; and it is as easy for Him to convert a world as one individual soul.

    Notes on Translation Choices:

    • 7: “Western Churches”: Refers to the Christian denominations predominantly in Western Europe (including Protestant and Catholic).
    • “Corruptions of the Church of Rome”: Reflects Wesley’s Protestant stance and criticisms of Roman Catholicism.
    • “Papists and Protestants, French and English together”: Wesley’s direct comparison of nominal Christians across denominational and national lines.
    • “Holy as He that hath called them is holy?” / “righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost?” / “that mind in them which was also in Christ Jesus?” / “walk as Christ also walked?”: Kept as direct biblical allusions/quotes representing criteria for true Christianity (1 Peter 1:15; Romans 14:17; Philippians 2:5; 1 John 2:6).
    • “As far from it as hell is from heaven!”: Wesley’s strong, condemning rhetoric.
    • 8: “Astonishing is this, if there is a God in heaven”: Expresses the apparent contradiction of widespread unholiness given God’s existence.
    • “Despise the work of his own hand?”: Kept, highlighting God’s care for humanity.
    • “Prince of this world”: Kept as a biblical term for Satan.
    • “Nations for His inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for His possession”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Psalm 2:8). “Heathen” changed to “nations” for consistency with earlier choices.
    • “The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Isaiah 11:9, Habakkuk 2:14), which is also the sermon’s text.
    • 9: “Christian world… Christian nation, or city! How can these things be?”: Highlights the widespread skepticism about a truly transformed world.
    • “Suppose the Almighty to act irresistibly”: Wesley introduces and then rejects the idea of God forcing conversion.
    • “God said, ‘Let there be light; and there was light’”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Genesis 1:3).
    • “Man would be man no longer… no longer a moral agent… not endued with liberty”: Emphasizes Wesley’s commitment to human free will as essential to moral agency, and his rejection of predestinarian views that would negate it.
    • 10: “Clumsy way of cutting the knot which we are not able to untie”: Wesley’s vivid metaphor for avoiding genuine theological struggle by resorting to what he sees as an unsatisfactory explanation.
    • “Subtile, metaphysical disquisitions”: Refers to complex philosophical debates.
    • “God is One, so the work of God is uniform in all ages”: A key principle for Wesley, allowing him to draw parallels between past, present, and future workings of God.
    • 11: “The life I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Galatians 2:20) and a common testimony for Methodists.
    • “Assisted by his grace, you, like Mary, chose the better part”: Refers to Luke 10:42, emphasizing cooperation with grace.
    • “Without depriving any of them of that liberty which is essential to a moral agent”: Reiterates his core theological commitment.
    • 12: “Exempt cases”: Refers to instances of powerful, immediate conversion.
    • Poetry: The Charles Wesley hymn stanza is retained in its original form. “O’erwhelming power” is bolded for emphasis.
    • “God’s general manner of working”: Contrasts with the “exempt cases.”
    • “Resisted the Holy Ghost” / “made void the counsel of God against themselves”: Kept as direct biblical quotes (Acts 7:51, Luke 7:30), supporting the idea of resistible grace.
    • “Life and death set before him”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (Deuteronomy 30:19).
    • “Has in himself the casting voice”: A powerful metaphor for individual choice.
    • St. Augustine quote: Qui fecit nos sine nobis, non salvabit nos sine nobis: Retained the Latin and Wesley’s translation, as this quote is a famous statement supporting human cooperation with grace, often cited by Wesley.
    • “Convert whole nations, or the whole world; and it is as easy to him to convert a world, as one individual soul”: Reaffirms the possibility of global conversion based on God’s power and consistent method.

    The General Spread of the Gospel “The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” – Isaiah 11:9

    1. Generally, when these truths—justification by faith in particular—were declared in any large town, after a few days or weeks, a sudden, powerful, and impetuous force came upon the great congregation—not in a hidden corner, but prominently in London, Bristol, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, in particular—which,Like mighty wind or torrent fierce, Did then opposers all o’er-run.And this frequently continued, with shorter or longer intervals, for several weeks or months. But it gradually subsided, and then the work of God was carried on by gentle degrees; while that Spirit, in watering the seed that had been sown, in confirming and strengthening those who had believed,Deigned his influence to infuse, Secret, refreshing as the silent dews.And this difference in His usual manner of working was observable not only in Great Britain and Ireland, but in every part of America, from South to North, wherever the word of God came with power.
    2. Is it not then highly probable that God will carry on His work in the same manner as He has begun? That He will carry it on, I cannot doubt; however Luther may affirm that a revival of religion never lasts above a generation—that is, thirty years (whereas the present revival has already continued over fifty); or however prophets of doom may say, “All will be at an end when the first leaders are removed.” There will then, very probably, be a great shaking; but I cannot bring myself to believe that God has performed so glorious a work only to let it sink and die away in a few years. No: I trust this is only the beginning of a far greater work; the dawn of “the latter day glory.”
    3. And is it not probable, I say, that He will carry it on in the same manner as He has begun? At the first breaking out of this work in this or that place, there may be a shower, a torrent of grace; and so at some other particular seasons, which “the Father has reserved in His own power.” But in general, it seems, the kingdom of God will not “come with observation” [meaning: with outward display or spectacle]; but will silently increase, wherever it is set up, and spread from heart to heart, from house to house, from town to town, from one kingdom to another. May it not spread, first, through the remaining provinces [of England]; then, through the islands of North America; and, at the same time, from England to Holland, where there is already a blessed work in Utrecht, Haarlem, and many other cities? Probably it will spread from these to the Protestants in France, to those in Germany, and those in Switzerland; then to Sweden, Denmark, Russia, and all the other Protestant nations in Europe.
    4. May we not suppose that the same “leaven of pure and undefiled religion,” of experiential knowledge and love of God, of inward and outward holiness, will afterwards spread to the Roman Catholics in Great Britain, Ireland, Holland; in Germany, France, Switzerland; and in all other countries where Catholics and Protestants live intermixed and familiarly converse with each other? Will it not then be easy for the wisdom of God to make a way for religion, in the life and power thereof, into those countries that are predominantly Catholic; such as Italy, Spain, Portugal? And may it not be gradually diffused from there to all who claim the name of Christ, in the various provinces of Turkey, in Abyssinia, yes, and in the remotest parts, not only of Europe, but of Asia, Africa, and America?

    Notes on Translation Choices:

    • 15: “Violent and impetuous power”: Wesley refers here to the early manifestations of the Methodist revival, which sometimes involved dramatic physical reactions and intense spiritual conviction among the congregations.
    • Poetry: The two poetic stanzas are retained in their original form. These are from Charles Wesley’s hymns, common in Methodist worship.
    • “Graceful power” vs. “gentle degrees”: Wesley contrasts the initial powerful outpouring with the subsequent, more gradual spread of the work.
    • “Difference in his usual manner of working”: Reflects Wesley’s observation of God’s varied methods in revival.
    • 16: Luther’s affirmation about revivals: Wesley directly challenges Luther’s supposed pessimism about the longevity of religious revivals, asserting that the Methodist revival (then over 50 years old) proves otherwise.
    • “Prophets of evil”: Those who predict the downfall of the revival.
    • “Great shaking”: A biblical phrase for significant upheaval.
    • “Latter day glory”: A theological term referring to a period of great spiritual outpouring and widespread righteousness before Christ’s final return.
    • 17: “Shower, a torrent of grace”: Again, vivid imagery for revival’s beginnings.
    • “The Father has reserved in his own power”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (Acts 1:7).
    • “Kingdom of God will not ‘come with observation’”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Luke 17:20), referring to the silent, internal growth of the kingdom.
    • Geographical Expansion: Wesley lays out a specific, sequential vision for the spread of Methodism/Gospel:
      • “Remaining provinces”: Of England.
      • “Isles of North America”: Refers to his extensive work and connections in the American colonies/new states.
      • Holland (Utrecht, Haarlem): Wesley specifically mentions places where Methodism was gaining traction.
      • Protestant nations in Europe: His hope for a broader Protestant revival.
    • 18: “Leaven of pure and undefiled religion”: Kept as a biblical metaphor (Matthew 13:33).
    • “Experiential knowledge and love of God, of inward and outward holiness”: Key Wesleyan theological tenets.
    • “Roman Catholics”: Used this modern term instead of “Papists” (which Wesley uses) for sensitivity, as previously agreed.
    • “Live intermixed and familiarly converse with each other”: Highlights the social conditions that might facilitate the spread of the Gospel.
    • “Countries that are merely Popish”: Refers to predominantly Catholic countries.
    • “Turkey, Abyssinia”: As in previous sections, referring to non-Christian or historically distant Christian areas.
    • “Remotest parts, not only of Europe, but of Asia, Africa, and America”: Wesley’s vision for a truly global spread.

    The General Spread of the Gospel

    1. And in every nation under heaven, we may reasonably believe, God will follow the same order He has observed since the beginning of Christianity. “They shall all know me, says the Lord”—not from the greatest to the least (this is the world’s wisdom, which is foolishness to God), but “from the least to the greatest”; so that the praise may be to God, not to human beings. Before the end, even the rich will enter the kingdom of God. Together with them will enter the great, the noble, the honorable; yes, the rulers, the princes, the kings of the earth. Last of all, the wise and learned, the men of genius, the philosophers, will be convinced that they are fools; they will “be converted, and become as little children,” and “enter into the kingdom of God.”
    2. Then shall be fully accomplished for the house of Israel—the spiritual Israel, of whatever people or nation—that gracious promise: “I will put my laws in their minds, and write them on their hearts: And I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord’: For they shall all know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities I will remember no more.” Then shall “the times of” universal “refreshment come from the presence of the Lord.” The great “Pentecost” shall “fully come,” and “devout men in every nation under heaven,” however distant in place from each other, shall “all be filled with the Holy Spirit”; and they will “continue steadfast in the Apostles’ doctrine, and in the fellowship, and in the breaking of bread, and in prayers”; they will “eat their food,” and do all that they have to do, “with gladness and sincerity of heart. Great grace will be upon them all”; and they will be “all of one heart and of one soul.” The natural, necessary consequence of this will be the same as it was in the beginning of the Christian Church: “None of them will say that anything of the things which he possesses is his own; but they will have all things in common. Neither will there be any among them that lack: For as many as are owners of lands or houses will sell them; and distribution will be made to every person, according as he has need.” All their desires, meanwhile, and passions, and temperaments will be cast in one mold; while all are doing the will of God on Earth, as it is done in heaven. All their “conversation will be seasoned with salt,” and will “minister grace to the hearers”; seeing it will not be so much they who speak, “as the Spirit of their Father who speaks in them.” And there will be no “root of bitterness springing up,” either to defile or trouble them: There will be no Ananias or Sapphira, to bring back the cursed love of money among them: There will be no partiality; no “widows neglected in the daily ministration”; consequently, there will be no temptation to any murmuring thought, or unkind word, of one against another; while,They all are of one heart and soul, And only love informs the whole.

    Notes on Translation Choices:

    • Sermon Title: “The General Spread of the Gospel” is kept.
    • 19: “From the least to the greatest”: Kept as a direct biblical quote, emphasizing God’s reversal of worldly expectations.
    • “Wisdom of the world which is foolishness with God”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (1 Corinthians 1:20).
    • “Rich shall enter into the kingdom of God… great, the noble, the honourable; yea, the rulers, the princes, the kings of the earth. Last of all, the wise and learned, the men of genius, the philosophers”: This ordered list of those who will convert highlights the universality and scope of this future spread.
    • “Converted, and become as little children,” and “enter into the kingdom of God”: Kept as direct biblical quotes (Matthew 18:3).
    • 20: “House of Israel, the spiritual Israel”: Clarified as “the spiritual Israel, of whatever people or nation.”
    • Jeremiah 31:33-34 / Hebrews 8:10-12: The extensive biblical promise of the New Covenant is kept, with modernized language.
    • “Times of universal refreshment come from the presence of the Lord”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (Acts 3:19).
    • “Grand Pentecost”: Kept, implying a global outpouring of the Spirit.
    • “Devout men in every nation under heaven” / “all be filled with the Holy Ghost” / “continue steadfast in the Apostles’ doctrine, and in the fellowship, and in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” / “eat their meat… with gladness and singleness of heart. Great grace will be upon them all; and they will be all of one heart and of one soul”: These are direct biblical quotes or strong allusions to the early church’s state in Acts 2 and 4, used to predict a future widespread renewal. “Eat their meat” modernized to “eat their food.”
    • “None of them will say, that aught of the things which he possesses is his own; but they will have all things common. Neither will there be any among them that want: For as many as are possessed of lands or houses will sell them; and distribution will be made to every man, according as he has need”: Kept as a direct biblical quote from Acts 4:32-35, showcasing the communal and economic sharing of the early church as a model for the future. “Aught of the things” modernized to “anything of the things.”
    • “All their desires, meantime, and passions, and tempers will be cast in one mould”: Describes the inward transformation.
    • “Conversation will be seasoned with salt,” and will “minister grace to the hearers”: Kept as direct biblical allusions (Colossians 4:6, Ephesians 4:29).
    • “Spirit of their Father that speaketh in them”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Matthew 10:20).
    • “No ‘root of bitterness springing up,’ either to defile or trouble them”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (Hebrews 12:15).
    • “No Ananias or Sapphira”: Specific biblical reference (Acts 5:1-11), implying freedom from deceit and selfishness.
    • “No partiality; no ‘widows neglected in the daily ministration’”: Specific biblical reference (Acts 6:1), implying perfect care and equity.
    • “No temptation to any murmuring thought, or unkind word”: Describes complete harmony.
    • Concluding Poetry: Retained the Charles Wesley hymn stanza in its original form, as agreed.

    The General Spread of the Gospel “The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” – Isaiah 11:9

    1. The grand obstacle being thus happily removed out of the way—namely, the lives of the Christians—the Muslims will look upon them with different eyes, and begin to pay attention to their words. And as their words will be clothed with divine energy, attended with the demonstration of the Spirit and of power, those of them who fear God will soon recognize the Spirit by which the Christians speak. They will “receive with meekness the engrafted word,” and will bring forth fruit with patience. From them, the influence will soon spread to those who, until then, had no fear of God before their eyes. Observing the “Christian dogs,” as they used to call them, to have changed their nature; to be sober, temperate, just, benevolent; and that, despite all provocations to the contrary; from admiring their lives, they will surely be led to consider and embrace their doctrine. And then the Savior of sinners will say, “The hour has come; I will glorify my Father: I will seek and save the sheep that were wandering on the dark mountains. Now will I avenge myself of my enemy, and pluck the prey out of the lion’s teeth. I will resume what is My own, lost for ages: I will claim the purchase of My blood.” So He will go forth in the greatness of His strength, and all His enemies shall flee before Him. All the prophets of lies shall vanish, and all the nations that had followed them shall acknowledge the great Prophet of the Lord, “mighty in word and deed”; and “shall honor the Son, even as they honor the Father.”
    2. And then, the grand obstacle being removed from the non-Christian nations also, the same Spirit will be poured out upon them; even those that remain in the uttermost parts of the sea. The poor American Indigenous person will no longer ask, “What are the Christians better than us?”—when they see their consistent practice of universal temperance, and of justice, mercy, and truth. The Malabarian non-Christian will have no more room to say, “Christian man take my wife: Christian man much drunk: Christian man kill man! Devil-Christian! Me no Christian.” Rather, seeing how far the Christians exceed their own countrymen in “whatever things are lovely and of good report,” they will adopt a very different language, and say, “Angel-Christian!” The holy lives of the Christians will be an argument they will not know how to resist: Seeing the Christians steadily and consistently practice what is agreeable to the law written in their own hearts, their prejudices will quickly fade away, and they will gladly receive “the truth as it is in Jesus.”
    3. We may reasonably believe that the non-Christian nations who are mingled with Christians, and those that, bordering upon Christian nations, have constant and familiar interaction with them, will be some of the first who learn to worship God in spirit and in truth. Those, for instance, that live on the continent of America, or in the islands that have received colonies from Europe. Such are likewise all those inhabitants of the East Indies that adjoin to any of the Christian settlements. To these may be added numerous tribes of Tartars, the non-Christian parts of the Russias, and the inhabitants of Norway, Finland, and Lapland. Probably these will be followed by those more distant nations with whom Christians trade; to whom they will impart what is of infinitely more value than earthly pearls, or gold and silver. The God of love will then prepare His messengers and make a way into the polar regions; into the deepest recesses of America, and into the interior parts of Africa; yes, into the heart of China and Japan, with the countries adjoining to them. And “their sound” will then “go forth into all lands, and their voice to the ends of the earth!”
    4. But one considerable difficulty still remains: There are very many non-Christian nations in the world that have no interaction, either by trade or any other means, with Christians of any kind. Such are the inhabitants of the numerous islands in the South Sea, and probably in all large branches of the ocean. Now, what shall be done for these poor outcasts of humanity? “How shall they believe,” says the Apostle, “in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?” You may add, “And how shall they preach, unless they be sent?” Yes, but is not God able to send them? Cannot He raise them up, as it were, “out of the stones?” And can He ever lack means of sending them? No: Were there no other means, He can “take them by His Spirit,” as He did Ezekiel (Ezekiel 3:12), or by His angel, as He did Philip (Acts 8), and set them down wherever it pleases Him. Yes, He can find out a thousand ways unknown to foolish humanity. And He surely will: For heaven and earth may pass away; but His word shall not pass away: He will give His Son “the uttermost part of the earth for His possession.”
    5. And so all Israel too shall be saved. For “blindness has happened to Israel,” as the great Apostle observes (Romans 11:25), “until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.” Then “the Deliverer who comes out of Zion shall turn away iniquity from Jacob.” “God has now concluded them all in unbelief, that He may have mercy upon all.” Yes, and He will so have mercy upon all Israel as to give them all temporal with all spiritual blessings. For this is the promise: “For the Lord your God will gather you from all nations, wherever the Lord your God has scattered you. And the Lord your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it. And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart, and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul” (Deuteronomy 30:3). Again: “I will gather them out of all countries, wherever I have driven them: And I will bring them again to this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me forever. I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me. And I will plant them in this land assuredly, with my whole heart and with my whole soul” (Jeremiah 32:37). Yet again: “I will take you from among the non-Christian peoples, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean: From all your filthiness, and from all your idols, I will cleanse you. And you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and you shall be my people, and I will be your God” (Ezekiel 36:24).
    6. At that time will be accomplished all those glorious promises made to the Christian Church, which will not then be confined to this or that nation, but will include all the inhabitants of the earth. “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain” (Isaiah 11:9). “Violence shall no more be heard in your land, wasting nor destruction within your borders; but you shall call your walls, Salvation, and your gates Praise.” You shall be encompassed on every side with salvation, and all that go through your gates shall praise God. “The sun shall be no more your light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light to you: But the Lord shall be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory.” The light of the sun and moon shall be swallowed up in the light of His countenance, shining upon you. “Your people also shall be all righteous—the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.” “As the earth brings forth her bud, and the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations” (Isaiah 60:18; and 61:11).
    7. This I apprehend to be the answer, yes, the only full and satisfactory answer that can be given, to the objection against the wisdom and goodness of God, taken from the present state of the world. It will not always be this way: These things are only permitted for a season by the great Governor of the world, that He may draw immense, eternal good out of this temporary evil. This is the very key which the Apostle himself gives us in the words quoted above: “God has concluded them all in unbelief, that He might have mercy upon all.” In view of this glorious event, how well may we cry out, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!” although for a season “His judgments were unsearchable, and His ways past finding out.” (Romans 11:32, 33). It is enough that we are assured of this one point: that all these transient evils will end well; will have a happy conclusion; and that “mercy first and last will reign.” All unprejudiced persons may see with their eyes that He is already renewing the face of the earth: And we have strong reason to hope that the work He has begun, He will carry on until the day of the Lord Jesus; that He will never interrupt this blessed work of His Spirit, until He has fulfilled all His promises, until He has put an end to sin, and misery, and weakness, and death; and re-established universal holiness and happiness, and caused all the inhabitants of the Earth to sing together, “Hallelujah, the Lord God omnipotent reigns!” “Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and honor, and power, and might, be to our God forever and ever!” (Revelation 7:12).

    Notes on Translation Choices:

    • “Mahometans” / “Heathen”: As agreed, these terms have been consistently replaced with “Muslims” and “non-Christian peoples” (or similar context-appropriate phrasing like “non-Christian nations,” “American Indigenous person,” “Malabarian non-Christian”) for modern sensitivity and accuracy. The full explanation for these choices should be included in your blog post’s translation notes.
    • 21: “Christian dogs, as they used to term them”: This historical phrase is retained to reflect the contempt with which Christians were sometimes viewed, emphasizing the dramatic nature of the change in perception Wesley anticipates.
    • “Receive with meekness the engrafted word”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (James 1:21).
    • “Glorify my Father: I will seek and save the sheep that were wandering on the dark mountains. Now will I avenge myself of my enemy, and pluck the prey out of the lion’s teeth. I will resume my own, for ages lost: I will claim the purchase of my blood”: This is a powerful series of biblical allusions (John 12:27-28; Ezekiel 34:12; Psalm 144:10; Isaiah 53:11-12) used by Wesley to depict Christ’s triumphant, redemptive action in converting nations.
    • “Prophet of lies”: Refers to false prophets or false religious leaders.
    • “Mighty in word and deed”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Luke 24:19).
    • “Shall honour the Son, even as they honour the Father”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (John 5:23).
    • 22: “American savage”: This term reflects the problematic colonial attitudes of Wesley’s time. While “American Indigenous person” is used in the main text for sensitivity, the original term’s context highlights the extent of the societal transformation Wesley envisions.
    • “Malabarian Heathen”: Refers to people from the Malabar Coast in India. The direct quote attributed to them (e.g., “Christian man take my wife…”) is retained as Wesley uses it to illustrate specific anti-Christian prejudices he was aware of.
    • “Whatever things are lovely and of good report”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (Philippians 4:8).
    • “Law written in their own hearts”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (Romans 2:15), referring to natural law or conscience.
    • “Truth as it is in Jesus”: Kept as a direct biblical allusion (Ephesians 4:21).
    • 23: Geographical progression of spread: Wesley outlines a detailed, specific geographical expansion of the Gospel, starting from regions near existing Christian influence (America, Holland, Protestant Europe) and extending to more distant, unreached areas (Turkey, Abyssinia, China, Japan, polar regions). This showcases his strategic and global vision.
    • “Their sound” will then “go forth into all lands, and their voice to the ends of the earth!”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Psalm 19:4; Romans 10:18).
    • 24: “Poor outcasts of men”: Reflects Wesley’s compassion for unreached peoples.
    • “How shall they believe… in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?… And how shall they preach, unless they be sent?”: Kept as a direct biblical quote/allusion (Romans 10:14-15), emphasizing the need for mission.
    • “Take them by his Spirit,” as he did Ezekiel (Ezekiel 3:12), or by his angel, as he did Philip (Acts 8)”: Specific biblical examples of miraculous transport/guidance for evangelism, showing God’s extraordinary means.
    • “Heaven and earth may pass away; but his word shall not pass away”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Matthew 24:35), affirming God’s faithfulness.
    • “Uttermost part of the earth for his possession”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Psalm 2:8).
    • 25: “All Israel too shall be saved”: A key eschatological hope (Romans 11:26).
    • “Blindness has happened to Israel… till the fullness of the Gentiles be come in”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Romans 11:25).
    • “The Deliverer that cometh out of Sion shall turn away iniquity from Jacob” / “God hath now concluded them all in unbelief, that he may have mercy upon all”: Kept as direct biblical quotes (Romans 11:26, 32).
    • Deuteronomy 30:3, Jeremiah 32:37, Ezekiel 36:24: These extensive Old Testament prophecies about Israel’s restoration (return to land, circumcised hearts, new covenant) are quoted directly by Wesley to support his vision of a future conversion of the Jewish people, and are maintained here, with modernized language.
    • 26: Accomplishment of promises to the Christian Church: The sermon culminates in the grand, universal glory of the Church.
    • Isaiah 11:9; Isaiah 60:18, 61:11: Extensive biblical prophecies describing universal peace, righteousness, and God’s manifest glory. These are maintained for their prophetic weight.
    • “Walls, Salvation, and thy gates Praise”: Powerful imagery.
    • “Sun shall be no more thy light by day… Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light”: Kept as direct biblical quote/allusion (Isaiah 60:19-20).
    • 27: “Only full and satisfactory answer… to the objection against the wisdom and goodness of God”: Wesley’s conclusion that the future global spread of the Gospel is the ultimate vindication of God’s character despite present evil.
    • “Draw immense, eternal good out of this temporary evil”: A core Wesleyan idea of God’s redemptive purpose in permitting evil.
    • “God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Romans 11:32), crucial for his argument.
    • “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!… his judgments were unsearchable, and his ways past finding out”: Kept as a direct biblical quote (Romans 11:33), a doxology affirming God’s inscrutable wisdom.
    • “Mercy first and last will reign”: A summary of his hopeful eschatology.
    • “Renewing the face of the earth”: Kept as a biblical allusion (Psalm 104:30).
    • “Unto the day of the Lord Jesus”: Kept as a common biblical phrase.
    • “Put a period to sin, and misery, and infirmity, and death; and re-established universal holiness and happiness”: The ultimate, comprehensive goal of God’s work.
    • “Hallelujah, the Lord God omnipotent reigneth!” / “Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever!”: Kept as direct biblical quotes (Revelation 19:6, 7:12), bringing the sermon to a triumphant close.

    (Featured image is By Viktor, licensed from Adobe Stock.)

  • Psalm 119:94 – I’m Yours

    Psalm 119:94 – I’m Yours

    I’m yours! Save me!
    For I have searched out your precepts.

    It’s good to remember that “save” has quite a number of meanings other than the common Christian understanding of salvation from sin and for eternity. Salvation could be from whatever threat the one offering the prayer might experience.

    But I think the greatest impact of this verse is in the first two words, either in Hebrew or as I’ve translated them. “I’m yours.” Everything follows from that initial claim, the claim made by God, that the human person is a child of God.

    It may be tempting to regard this as applying only to Israel. It does, in fact, apply to Israel in a special way. Similarly, Christians might view this as applying especially only to Christians. Again, there is a sense in which we, as the body of Christ, can say we belong to God.

    But one of the messages that comes through clearly in the Old Testament is that God is sovereign over and cares for all the nations. Thus one could truly say that all the nations are God’s, but Israel is God’s in a particular way.

    The Psalmist has searched out God’s precepts, and among those precepts are commands to care for the stranger, the foreigner, and those less fortunate. Right from the beginning, when God calls Abram, he blesses him and tells him he is to be a blessing.

    There are exclusive groups and inclusive groups. In an exclusive group, you are designated as someone special, someone who can be a member of a select group, because of your birth, your attainments, or even because of random selection. People in an exclusive group are supposed to help keep the walls secure and the doors shut.

    In an inclusive group, anyone is invited. The only thing special about the people on the inside is the fact that they’ve heard the invitation and accepted it. This is Christianity, or should be. The mission is to invite others into the grace which we have received.

    Some wonder if the Jews can still be the chosen people from a Christian perspective. Of course they can. They have been chosen by God and given a mission. It was never an exclusive club in the sense of being the only people God cared. for. It was exclusive in terms of the call to mission, a call going back to Abraham.

    I can say to God, “I’m yours.” I always have that privilege. I do not have the privilege of saying, “I belong to God and that other guy doesn’t.”

    Who can you treat as a child of God today?

    (Featured image yy ana. Licensed from Adobe Stock.)

  • Psalm 119:63 – Companion

    Psalm 119:63 – Companion

    I’m a companion to all who fear you,
    and to those who keep your precepts.

    My thoughts today took me onto the subject of companionship and friendship. Who are your friends? Why are you friends with various people?

    In scripture we have a tension between two views of the relationship between God’s people and those around them. You can see these in the contrast between the books of Ruth, Jonah, and Esther on the one hand and Nehemiah/Ezra/Daniel on the other.

    The first reflect the value of connections with foreigners, as when Esther enters the court of the king without revealing her Jewish identity, Jonah is sent to reach out to Israel’s enemies with God’s message, and Ruth becomes an ancestor of King David. Ezra and Nehemiah both wrestle with accommodation between the returned Jewish exiles and people of the surrounding nations. Daniel makes a public embrace of his Jewish identity throughout his life.

    In the New Testament we have the embrace of gentile believers into the church and an evangelistic message that was constantly in contact with unbelievers, but then in Revelation we have a repeated call for separation, for God’s people to come out from among those who are doing evil.

    We like to have a clear mandate. Either we’re friendly with everyone or we’re separate. Make it easy. But what we actually have is a variety of responses to a variety of circumstances.

    I think every parent faces something similar. A parent is concerned if their child gets in with bad companions. On the other hand, they are also joyful when that same child is a leader, helping others in their age group make better choices. If your child is influencing someone for the right, they may be dealing with someone who was also inclined to worse choices, and thus was someone you might be hoping they’d avoid.

    This is actually one of my favorite subjects, our identity and our mission. Both elements are generally involved in our lives. We can be someone who always gets along, but does so by not having any real identity. Nobody can really dislike such a person because there really isn’t anything there to dislike. Or to like, for that matter.

    Such a person can always be out in the world, connected with anyone, staying out of conflict. But who are they? Does anyone know? Do they actually have any influence?

    On the other hand, a person can have an extreme identity. This can involve such intense views, so regularly expressed that nobody can doubt who that person is. They may also be separated from others, either by the choice to only associate with those who are in agreement with their many opinions, or by the choice to live separately. There are Christian groups, for example, who live in separate compounds or communities with association with outsiders strictly limited.

    Having strong opinions or a clear identity does not have to be combined with isolation. One can be connected and have firm convictions.. It often depends on how one chooses to express those views. One can also be a companion of those who do good things without being out of contact with those whose views and actions are more questionable.

    This requires firm convictions, including the conviction that one should be connection with others, that one should be able to exchange ideas and have influence. In fact, I would suggest that these two can work together quite well. I believe in dialog as the primary way of having influence in the world of ideas. By this I mean making your communications always be an exchange, not a monologue. For such an exchange to take place, you can’t give up identity, otherwise you have nothing to give in the exchange.

    So your being a companion of some doesn’t mean you have to be the enemy of others. And your companionship with God doesn’t mean you have to neglect others who may disagree with you in one way or another. In fact, the better your companionship with God, the better your capability to meet others comfortably. Having that identity as God’s companion, you are free to treat all others as also God’s creation, worthy of respectful, but content-filled and robust exchange.

    What can you do today to make yourself more comfortable with your own identity so that you can carry out your mission to others who are, like you, God’s creation? As you do so, is there someone God would have you befriend, for the benefit of both?

    I’m listing here some books that I publish that relate to comments I’ve made above. Note that some of these books are varied in their own mission and identify. That may help you adjust your own!

    (Featured image generated by Jetpack AI.)

  • Psalm 119:19 – An Alien

    Psalm 119:19 – An Alien

    An alien am I on the earth.
    Don’t hide your commands from me.

    I frequently teach that there are two elements to the Christian life: Identity and Mission. It’s easy to go off the rails on the side of identity, trying to separate ourselves from the crowd. On the other hand, we can become so much a part of the world around us that nobody knows the difference.

    You can’t influence the culture if you are the culture.

    The Bible story is filled with the stories of those who are aliens in the world in which they live. It’s a critical metaphor of scripture. Much of the laws in the Pentateuch (Torah) are designed to help provide an identify for Israel, something that would show other nations what it meant to be the LORD’s people.

    This alien-ness was to be embraced. Assimilation was not the goal. As the song says, “This world is not my home, I’m just a-passing through.” One of the intentions of laws concerning good treatment of aliens among the Israelites was to reinforce this sense of being alien.

    But the aliens are here for a reason. They are here to serve others and to reflect the One they ultimately serve. Thus we have the second half of the verse.

    I might put it this way. “Lord, I’m yours, and that makes me an alien wherever I am. That’s my identity. I also have a mission. Don’t hide your commands from me. Let me follow the call of that identity.”

    Are you too assimilated to the culture to remember your identity? Are you too alien to be able to perform your mission? Pray that the Lord makes your way clear.

    (Featured image generated by Jetpack AI. It represents the draw of, and also the alienation from, various cultural forces.)

  • Philippians 2:1-11, Romans 12, and the Nature of Christian Community

    Philippians 2:1-11, Romans 12, and the Nature of Christian Community

    That’s a fairly ambitious title I gave myself, but the content is a bit less ambitious.

    When I found that I’d be teaching from Philippians 2 in Sunday School, I commented that if someone couldn’t teach a class from Philippians 2:5-11, they should just give up teaching. That’s probably a bit harsh, but the passage is certainly teachable.

    One key element, that we sometimes don’t emphasize in all the theology, is the fact that the expression of the mission of Jesus is made in the context of a call to Christian community.

    Each one shouldn’t look after his or her own interests, but for one another’s interests.

    Philippians 2:4 (my translation)

    This is tied to the giving of/by Christ through verse 5, which tells us that our minds are to work like his, as we give for others. This is interesting as we see that he has given up much more than we could possibly possess in order to take action for our salvation.

    It’s impossible for us to conceive of giving that much; certainly never to actually give it.

    A similar call comes in John 15:12 “love one another as I have loved you.” This may sound easy to some, but only if you allow some weak definition of love to replace the one Jesus is using. This is on the way to the cross. “As I have loved you” is not simple.

    Yet we find ourselves constantly unable to love those who are different from us in any way whatsoever.

    One way to look at and classify a community is to look at the purpose of it’s ties, those things that make it a community that can be identified. A community can gather together and love (or care for, or commit themselves to) one another because they are afraid of the outside world and want to keep it out, or they can commit themselves to the same sorts of values in order to reach out and include the rest of the world.

    “Circling the wagons,” is common in westerns. Heaven help the person inside the circle who thought that those outside might be open to peace! Such a person is a traitor, even if they don’t intend to act on their own, because they question the very basis for the circled wagons. They question the reason for this temporary community’s existence.

    A medical or dental mission team displays quite the opposite reason. Far from desiring to protect themselves against those they meet in a foreign country, they want to serve. They are bound together by the intent to serve and through the mission they wish to carry out. In this case, the one who wants to reach out to more people is welcomed. The traitor would be one who harms the ability of the team (temporary community) to carry out their mission.

    Real communities function between those two poles. One needs identity in order to be of any sort of service. In the command of Jesus, the disciples are to be identified by the way in which they love one another. That makes it clear who is in the community and what the community does.

    Then we have the community reaching out to others. Is this love inside the community the mission of that community? Do they bring in more people to love?

    If they are to follow the example of Jesus, that must be what they do, because that is what Jesus did. He came to people (all humanity) who did not find him all that attractive. They’d rather have revenge on their enemies than love them. They weren’t ready for Jesus. We aren’t ready for Jesus.

    If the community that forms around his principles becomes inward looking, and spends its time defending itself as a privileged community of people who are more right in a theological or even an ethical sense, they will fail to actually emulate their Lord.

    Romans 12 points to this when Paul calls for application of these principles to enemies (12:20), to persecutors (12:14), to those who do evil (12:17).

    There is another side, the side where we lose our identity. If we become the enemy in order to love the enemy we may lose our ability to help. This is why Christian love is so hard and so rarely attained.

    I read a comment recently that we can’t expect our children to love other people if we constantly tell them those other people are wrong. Perhaps. But Christian love calls on us to love the people even when they’re wrong, because we know that God loves us, even when we’re wrong.

    This is our identity and our witness, defined by the one we call Lord.

  • Measuring Success

    Measuring Success

    It seems to me that one of the most serious difficulties we have in the church today is the way we measure success. We are driven by numbers and money. It’s easy, of course, to justify this. After all, if you don’t have money, you generally can’t help people. I am reminded of Chapter 3 of Acts, in which Peter (with John) says, “Silver and gold I have none,” yet look what they did.

    Still, the temptation is great to judge the success of a meeting by the attendance, and the success of a church by its budget. I’d add that I don’t suggest we think the other way either. Just because a church is prosperous does not mean its ministry and mission is in trouble. It’s just that I don’t see the numbers and the money as God’s measure.

    With that in mind I was struck by two verses in Chapter 8. Stephen has just been killed, and Luke tells us that Saul continues to persecute the church. Everyone except the apostles is scattered across the countryside of Judea and Samaria (v. 1).

    By our standards, this is a bad thing. All this talent is leaving the big church, the one with the resources to carry out the mission! Stephen is dead, and Philip is about to head out. “Everyone” doubtless includes many more. The church is being drained.

    If this was an American church, the next question would be how we would pay the bills for the facility. I recall one church that had a serious scattering of membership, and that became a serious problem. You have to sell some buildings or some land, and that can be difficult. Members don’t like the feel of selling off the property and there’s always a question of whether you’ll get enough for it. Besides, selling stuff and downsizing is a sign of defeat!

    We’d doubtless feel the same way about persecution. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not a fan of persecution. I really don’t want to be persecuted. But if I can put it bluntly, I doubt God really cares what I want.

    In this case, something great happens. “As they were scattered, they went about proclaiming the Word …” (8:4). In the movement of the story of the early church as told in Acts we’re in that transition as we move from Judea to Samaria and from there to the whole world. The failure of the church as the members scatter is the success of God’s plan.

    I’m thinking we need to spend our time finding God’s plan and measuring our success by how much we’re on that. As I read scripture, I’m suspecting that plan may be different from ours. Let God speak and move in our generation.

     

  • Why I Believe in Dialogue, Respect, and the Gospel Commission

    Why I Believe in Dialogue, Respect, and the Gospel Commission

    angrymanfist-300px_redI’ve recently said and written a few things about the gospel commission, including my claim in my concluding presentation for my video series on eschatology that eschatology is all about the gospel commission. You’ll hear more about this in my foreword to Dave Black’s new book Running My Race. It’s in the final stages of production and should be available soon.

    This isn’t a new perspective on my part, but as soon as I start using words like “evangelism,” “mission,” or “the Great Commission,” I start getting questions about whether I believe in dialogue or whether I’ve started to think that all non-Christians are horrible people.

    On the other hand, each time I start talking about respect, interfaith dialogue, inclusion, and similar topics, someone is bound to ask me whether I’ve given up on evangelism and mission. Perhaps I no longer think Jesus is important.

    So let me put both of these things together. First, I am never going to abandon the Gospel Commission. It’s what being a Christian is about. I follow Jesus and I help others follow Jesus. I am a witness to Jesus as I follow Him. I proclaim his good news, and that good news is the central fact of my life. If I didn’t believe that, I would not be a Christian publisher. Frankly, while there are many things I enjoy about publishing, it’s hard work, the pay isn’t as good as it is for my other occupation (small network technical support), and I’d hardly keep at it without this greater “joy set before me.”

    Second, I believe that respect and love for one’s neighbor are central to the gospel. If I don’t love my neighbor as myself, I am not following Jesus Christ, and in turn I can hardly be effective in making other disciples, who would, in turn, be expected to love their neighbors as they love themselves. (There’s a “loving God” thing in there too, but see 1 John 4:20 for my emphasis in this case.)

    Contrary to the perception of many Christians, not only is respectful dialogue not opposed to carrying out of the gospel commission, it’s essential to it. But there are reasons it so commonly doesn’t seem so.

    Evangelism is tainted, I believe, by two false directions, each of which bears an abundance of poisonous and rotting fruit.

    The first false direction is the idea that evangelism is about giving the maximum possible number of people their “get out of hell free” card or, seen more positively, getting them their ticket to heaven. In this diversion from the gospel message we look for ways to get people to say the right prayer, then wipe the sweat from our brows (evangelism is hard work!), and say, “One more person saved.”

    This leads to other spiritually dangerous activities, such as promising people prosperity if they accept Jesus, emotionally manipulating them, or even converting them at sword point or gun muzzle. We can justify whatever behavior we might engage in on the grounds that even if we did use underhanded methods, the person should thank us for not burning in hell forever.

    This can also (or even in turn) lead to other shallow approaches to faith, such as the meme I saw on Facebook today built around the old idea of the wager of faith. As I understand faith, the wager simply isn’t—it isn’t faith and it isn’t even a wager, since there’s nothing of value on either side. Believing in Jesus isn’t an “in case” sort of thing. It’s not a wager, it’s a total commitment. Pascal’s Wager is an intellectual approach to a spiritual problem.prohibitionsign2-300px

    Further, this sort of evangelism doesn’t actually represent love for one’s neighbor. It’s a sort of concern, but it’s more like the hunter has concern for the deer. No, I don’t mean the killing part, though that can happen as well, but rather the concern is for how the deer will fill the hunter’s needs.

    The second false direction is one of church growth. In this case, evangelism is simply the process of adding members to the church, and more specifically your church. At least this has a longer term goal, i.e., to get the person into a church community. But far too often, this simply feeds into another selfish numbers game. The value of the person is not in who they are or who they can be, or even what God wants them to be, but rather on church statistics. While evangelicals are more likely to go for the first diversion, even progressive churches can fall for this second one.

    As the saying goes, however, sitting in church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car. I think we can identify what’s really important to us by what we pay for and what we report on, and in many of our churches I’m afraid that the concern is increasing membership, which, in turn, is to produce increasing financial support, which will allow us to get more members.

    What I believe about evangelism is this: It’s a lifestyle. You live as a disciple of Jesus, and you will, in turn, make disciples. I don’t mean that we should all shut up. Of course you talk about your faith because it’s not just important it’s fundamental. There’s another dichotomy between living our faith and proclaiming our faith, but I think it’s also false. Talking about our faith is one way we live it. If we’re talking too much, that’s ineffective living of our faith. I do not keep silent about something that is fundamental.

    In looking at motivation, I can say that it is a command, and it is. But at the same time it simply follows essentially from what Jesus has done for me. I will share a good thing. Sharing a good thing doesn’t mean forcing others. It’s a natural and friendly thing to share, just as it’s a natural and friendly thing—not to mention loving—to let the other person make their own decisions, including about how long they want to listen.

    Conversion, in turn, is something between God and the person converted. It’s gotten almost cliched to say that I can’t convert anyone; God does. But unfortunately we turn right back around and pretend it’s all about us. Grab hold of that mustard-seed of faith (I usually feel that I have somewhat less than that, but whatever) and trust God with salvation, conversion, and the spiritual health of others.

    Further, however, trust God to let you know how you need to be involved, and listen. Listen to God. Listen to other people. God loves each person involved more than you do. He even loves you more than you do.

    In studying eschatology (and I just completed a video series), I’ve found that God is deeply concerned about the spiritual health of God’s earthly children. I see the story of Revelation as being one of repeated opportunities, with the bottom line message that God does have this under control. Our part is to follow Jesus and make disciples.

    That doesn’t require being rude, obnoxious, manipulative, violent, or disrespectful. It requires love, and love values the other person, not some imaginary thing I think that person should be.

  • When My Father Was Healed

    When My Father Was Healed

    1893729222_adI was talking recently with a friend who commented that there are certain events that serve as anchor points for our faith. For me, despite all the drifting I’ve done since it happened, one of those points was the time when my father was healed. I alluded to this briefly in a comment on the Energion Discussion Network, and was challenged (or so it felt) to retell the story more often. You can get another perspective on this story from my mother’s book Directed Paths, which includes many other stories of God in action. I was 14 years old at the time and will tell this as I remember it.

    It was 1971 and my parents were called as missionaries to Guyana, South America, where my father was to become medical director of the 54 bed Davis Memorial Hospital in Georgetown. Shortly after we arrived my father required emergency surgery. This took place during the night. The surgeon persuaded my mother not to wake me up, so anything about the surgery is not from my memory, but rather from what I was told. The surgery was on the large intestine and during the surgery there was considerable contamination. In addition, at one point my mother, who is an RN, was left alone as the entire team had to go to an emergency with a delivery in another room. Overall the surgery lasted for four hours, if I recall correctly.

    Nobody wanted to tell me in the morning, so I was successively directed from room to room until I arrived in my father’s room in the hospital where he was connected to various tubes and devices. It was quite a shock.

    He continued to be weak for some time, and his digestive processes and intestines would not restart their function. The surgeon said that he would never work again and would not live more than another 10 years. The mission board began to plan to bring my parents back to the states.

    My parents, on the other hand, did not agree. They said that they had gone to Guyana to perform a mission and that they had not yet performed one. Their choice was to follow James 5, and call for the elders of the church. The elders anointed my father with oil and prayed for his healing and that he would be able to carry out his mission. I was actually quite disappointed with the results that day. It seemed that nothing happened.

    But from that moment, my father’s recovery began. Within two weeks he took over as sole physician for that 54 bed hospital and was on call 24 hours/7 days per week for the next year before any relief came. He served there for seven years and still worked after he returned to the states. He has now gone on to be with the Lord, though since he was a Seventh-day Adventist he would say “to sleep in Jesus.” I have come to not see a lot of difference there. One breath here—the next breath there. Time won’t matter! But he lived into his late 80s, much more than 10 years and he continued to work through to a normal retirement. He was active as a Christian witness up to the time of his death.

    I find that story challenging and encouraging. It’s challenging because my parents refused to leave and give up when everyone else was saying the situation was hopeless. It’s encouraging because when they stepped out in faith on their mission, God was there with them.

  • Seven Marks: Excursus on Change

    Seven Marks: Excursus on Change

    nt church books9781631990465mOne of the most interesting and troubling things I’ve found about myself and my church (any of the churches of which I’ve been a member!) is the number of things we know we should do and even decide we will do, but which never get done. Seven Marks of a New Testament Church is certainly ecclesiology, but is it shelf ecclesiology (that’s nice) or is it practical ecclesiology (let’s do that)?

    In this case I can’t point fingers. In my personal life I need to get more exercise and lose a significant amount of weight. How long have I known this? Well, I’m the son of a doctor who was medical director of a health conditioning center when I was in my teens. And yes, he knew about these things before that time and after that time, and he taught them to me. I cannot claim that I didn’t know what the health effects of a sedentary lifestyle and excessive food intake (biblical gluttony, no?) would be. While I’m working on reforming this now, I do so slowly and under constant temptation to avoid the needed change. It’s not that I’m tempted to do useless things. In fact, I’m tempted to work, and for me work involves being in front of a computer. So one good thing tempts me away from another one. But that doesn’t make it right. I know I should get more exercise. I know I should eat less. Making those changes so that they are a fundamental part of my new normal is very difficult.

    Romans 7 anyone? I know many Arminians see Romans 7 as a description of our pre-Christ experience. I see it as very descriptive of what I and many Christians live every day. The problem comes in when we make Romans 7 into a continuous, hopeless loop about everything. Yes, we all have our Romans 7 experiences, but we’re invited into Romans 8. Not that we’ll live at “Thanks be to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord” (7:25) at all times and on all subjects.

    It’s easy to make excuses. I’m very busy. It’s hard building up a small publishing company. I have a lot of work to do. I’m very healthy, taking no medications and very rarely missing work. I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. I’m a vegetarian, for heaven’s sake! (Ice cream, sweets, lots of butter, bread—they’ll do it even to a vegetarian!)

    But no matter how many excuses I produce, I know this: I need to change.

    There are many reasons why we don’t change, and many excuses for why we can ignore things that we hear.

    1. We find some fault with the messenger. The wrong person is making the suggestion, so it can’t really be right.
    2. We nit-pick the message. There’s something in there that won’t work in our situation, so we discard everything new and go back to what we were doing.
    3. We are change-weary. We’ve tried to make changes so many times and have failed. Why should we try yet another thing?
    4. We don’t see our present problems. We’re so used to the way things are and the level of success we’re having, that we think that’s precisely what should be going on.
    5. Other people are much worse off than we are. The church down the street is so inward-looking. By comparison, we’re outgoing, gospel-oriented, and on fire for missions. (This is like my “I don’t smoke” excuse. I’m better than the person who’s killing himself with cigarettes.)
    6. This change is going to cause problems. Usually this means that the leadership is afraid of losing control.
    7. I don’t have enough guidance. Where is the calendar, worksheet, study guides, long term plan, etc.?

    I could go on, but we’ll stop at seven. Nice number!

    I think, nonetheless, that our bottom line is fear. We are surviving the way we are, but will we survive after we change? The pastor wonders if he’ll lose members. The members wonder if they’ll be happy with the new church service on Sunday morning. The education team wonders if anyone will attend Sunday School. Everyone wonders whether they’ll be annoying their neighbors. And while we might not admit it, we wonder whether we’ll be happy ourselves. So we stay the same.

    One of the great fears is that we will lose control. This has been the bane of the church from very early times, I think. We’re very much afraid of the movement of the Spirit because the Spirit is not under our management. Not that we don’t try!

    In Thrive: Spiritual Habits of Transforming Congregations, the 12th habit Ruth Fletcher mentions is Choosing (p. 123). Here’s a key quote:

    Transforming congregations learn to choose and choose again. They don’t have to get it right the first time around. They can gain insight from any action they take and that insight will aid them opting to take the next step into the future. Transforming congregations acknowledge that when they act with courage, some people may decide to leave, but they would rather decide to do something than to remain lukewarm about everything. (p. 126)

    Bruce Epperly comes at this from another angle in Transforming Acts:

    The spiritual leaders acknowledged that they couldn’t do everything. They confessed that the task of sharing God’s word left no time for taking care of domestic issues. They needed partners in ministry: so they prayerfully chose a group of people to insure that everyone had a share in the community’s resources. They let go of control, and let go of power, so that human needs could be met.

    In ways that are still countercultural, they relinquished the power of the purse for a greater good, the well-being of the whole people of God. They recognized that within the body of Christ, everyone  has a role – their spiritual leadership of the community did not lead to micromanaging or power plays, or a sense of spiritual superiority, but a vision of shared responsibility. Perhaps, their selfless  leadership inspired the Apostle Paul’s vision of the multi-gifted body of Christ in which the well-being of one shapes the health of the whole body and the whole body, operating effectively, provides nurture and support for each constituent part. (pp. 67, 68)

    Giving up control and choosing to act. When we have acted, we choose to learn from that action and act again.

    What has impressed me about the church, not to mention my own life, is what a difference we could make if we simply acted on the things we already know are right. Yes, new information is good, but we have a tendency to collect the information and fail to perform the actions. There are many controversial things. But if we laid those aside and simply acted on what we know to be right, what might happen?

    I doubt that church would like like the church in America at this moment.

  • Dave Black on the American Dream

    1893729222I just extracted a post from Dave Black’s blog and put it on The Jesus Paradigm. For those unacquainted with Dave’s blog, I do this so that I can get a permanent link, and I have his permission to do so.

    Dave asks some important questions. How do our values impact the way that we live and the way that we serve? I often hear my generation telling the next one how they ought to be careful and make sure that everything is properly cared for before going into service.

    On the other hand, my parent’s went overseas to serve in remote areas with all their worldly goods in a station wagon and small trailer, along with four children in the car. Was it risky? No doubt it was. Did they believe they were doing the right thing? Absolutely! I never heard them say that they would have had it any other way. They believed God had called them and they answered.

    My mother tells her story in her little book Directed Paths. I’m going to offer a free copy of her book to a randomly selected commenter on this post. I’ll close the contest on Monday. Just make enough of a comment that I know you’re asking for the book and that it’s not spam.