BOOK REVIEW: Pastoral Theology in the Classical Tradition

Purves, Andrew. (2001). Pastoral Theology in the Classical Tradition. Louisville, Kentucky, Westminster John Knox Press.

This little book seeks to address the author’s concern that the practice of pastoral care “is, by and large, uninformed by historical practice.” (5) Purves identifies the need for “a profound reappraisal of core working assumptions in pastoral theology,” (5) and to this need, seeks to apply wisdom gleaned from five figures in church history: Gregory of Nazianzus, John Chrysostom, Gregory the Great, Martin Bucer, and Richard Baxter.

His selection of these five was directed by the fact that they wrote directly about the work of the pastor, rather than addressing specific issues of theological debate. Read more

BOOK REVIEW: Simple Church

Thom Rainer & Eric Geiger, Simple Church. Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group 2006. Pp. 257. $19.99. Hardcover.

Bringing their experience and research to bear on the organization of the local church, Rainer and Geiger argue that less is more. Specifically, they argue that a church that does less, but does so with a clear focus on their process for the making of disciples is more effective than a very active church that is not intentional about moving people to greater levels of faithfulness in their walk with Christ. This effectiveness is measured by consistent growth in worship attendance. Read more

BOOK REVIEW: The Reformers and their Stepchildren

Leonard Verduin, The Reformers and Their Stepchildren. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. 1964. Reprint by The Baptist Standard Bearer, Inc. Pp. 292. $24.00. Paperback.

The work Verduin seeks to accomplish in this volume is thoroughly to describe the major issues that separated Reformers such as Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli from those who believed their reforms did not go far enough. These he identifies as the stepchildren of the reformers, justifying this moniker by their treatment at the hands of those in whom they had early placed such great hope. With a focus upon the relationship between the ecclesiastical and the civil authority, Verduin details the distinctions between these two groups as they arose around various beliefs and practices of the stepchildren. Read more

Dreadfully bored with theology

I wonder if readers can identify the source of this quote, in which the speaker is asked to explain why churches are growing:

Two ways. One is a demand answer; one is a supply answer.

The demand answer is simple. There are so many young, educated people who are struggling with ambition and isolation. They come out of a blue-collar background or a farm background and find themselves working in the jungle of Los Angeles or Cincinnati. They need something to offset that intensely competitive, high-pressure, high-stress environment. They need something that they may not be conscious of, but something that restores balance and sanity. They need community. Read more

Extreme Makeover: Blog Edition

Alert readers (and both of you know who you are) will notice that significant changes have been implemented here. Many thanks to Jesse Heath for his help in updating the look of the blog. Now if only I can come up with the content to match. If you’d like Jesse to help you with your web project, contact him via Twitter.

Cruise Directors and Other Officers of the Church

I recently had a Facebook conversation with a pastor friend in another city who was sharing his frustrations over difficulties he was having with a staff member. Apparently his youth pastor was leaving after a short tenure because “God was telling him” it was time to leave. Leaving aside my skepticism for anyone who claims to be getting direct revelation from God, this conversation caused me to think more about the kinds of relationships churches often have with ministers other than the pastor.

Of course, there is no mention of a “youth minister” in the Bible. But I know they exist, because I used to be one, and it is a curious relationship. Each of the four churches I served in this capacity insisted that I meet the biblical qualifications of an elder as laid out in the pastoral epistles, yet none of them viewed me as someone serving in the role of an elder. In fact, I’m convinced that some of them desired me to function more like Julie McCoy on “The Love Boat.” Read more

VBS and Invitations

Last week my son, who is six years old, responded to an invitation given at a vacation Bible school he attended at another church in our community. From what I understand, there were many who responded, and he left there expressing confidence that he was now saved because he had prayed a prayer. My boy is asking some very good questions concerning the gospel, and I believe that he is moving toward the point of having saving faith, but I don’t think he has an adequate understanding of his own personal guilt, the punishment it deserves, and Christ’s work in bearing that punishment in his place. By God’s grace, he will get there. He’s headed in the right direction.

But this episode has caused me to think about the practice of VBS invitations, and I believe there is much more caution needed than there is caution exercised in our churches when it comes to this issue. Read more

Back at the Keyboard

According to my SiteMeter stats, I still get between 30 and 40 daily visitors, and for the life of me, I have no idea why. Oh, sure, I’ve written some compelling stuff, but it has been nearly two years since I posted anything, and longer than that since I posted with any kind of consistency. I’m hoping to change that.

Much of the break has been due to my studies at Liberty University. Twenty years ago, when I should have been pursuing my education, I was instead pursuing my dream of becoming a major league baseball umpire. Sadly, that didn’t work out as planned, but by the time it became clear that it wasn’t going to work out, life had intervened, and a college education seemed to me to be out of reach. It pretty much stayed out of reach, from my perspective, for the next decade.

Then my friend and SBC Today co-founder Joe Stewart told me about an organization called the Liberty Baptist Fellowship. Founded by Jerry Falwell in the early 1980′s, the group has two primary functions: to plant Baptist churches, and to certify chaplains to the armed forces of the United States. Only churches hold membership in this group, and one of the benefits had always been a tuition-free scholarship to Liberty University, either to study on campus or through their distance learning program. That scholarship benefit has tightened up considerably since Dr. Falwell’s death, but it still exists. When I began, the minimum contribution for a church the size of the one I serve was $25 per month, and this made a scholarship available for all full-time staff members. As of January 2011, the minimum contribution became $200 per month per scholarship, and the scholarships are limited in number. I understand that there is now a waiting list.

Even at that higher rate, discerning readers will recognize that this is still an absolute bargain, and I took full advantage. I began studies in the spring of 2008, and on May 14 of this year, I walked across the stage at the Tolsma Indoor Track Center to shake hands with Dr. Elmer Towns and to receive the degree of Bachelor of Science in Religion.*

I’m sure this won’t be the end of my educational journey. I recognize that in order to be fully effective in the role to which God has called me, pastor of a local church, I need yet more training. I’ve done some investigating of various seminary options, and look forward to beginning work on my M. Div. just as soon as I figure out where to begin it. In the mean time, I plan to return to regular posting here. I will continue to focus on issues of interest to Southern Baptists, or at least to this Southern Baptist. I will continue to write in advocacy of a robust ecclesiology, and against forces and ideas that would weaken our distinctives as Baptists. And I’ll look forward to opportunities for interaction with readers.

I had a couple of opportunities last week in Phoenix to reflect upon the beginning of my blogging in 2006. The issues we faced then are not the issues we face now, but in many ways they are similar. What I remember most fondly about those days is the relationships formed, some through heated exchanges in the comments sections of various blogs. Time and time again I was forced more deeply into the scriptures, and forced to be ever more careful in articulating what I learned there. I don’t imagine this new phase of blogging will be anything like that, so different is the landscape today from what existed five years ago. But I look forward to making my contribution.

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*Dr. Towns didn’t actually hand me my diploma, of course. It was a fundraising letter with a ribbon around it.

Let It Snow!

I was asked by my Director of Missions to write a letter to my fellow pastors in the Frisco Baptist Association about our church’s involvement in the Christmas in August emphasis. Below is the text of my letter.

Dear Pastor,

I’m writing to ask you to consider putting a critical need before your people: the budget shortfall at the International Mission Board. The 2008 Lottie Moon Christmas Offering fell some $30 million short of the goal, and according to a friend who is a trustee, the immediate shortfall they’re facing stands at $13 million. SBC President Johnny Hunt has called on churches to celebrate “Christmas in August,” and Trinity Baptist in Valliant will be participating. I plan to preach mission-themed messages each Sunday of the month, I’m working on lining up a guest speaker from the IMB for one of those Sundays, and we’re even going to have Christmas dinner on August 30, the fifth Sunday of the month. We’re not planning to set a goal for this special offering; we’re simply emphasizing the need and trusting God to lead us in how we can contribute.

Will you consider leading your church to participate in this very special emphasis? Dr. Thomas White, Vice-President for Communications at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Forth Worth, is leading an effort there to provide participating churches with materials to aid in its promotion. In addition to the logo you see on this page, there will be promotional videos and other materials available for use by churches. They’ve established a web page where these materials can be accessed: http://www.swbts.edu/christmasinaugust. If you don’t have internet access, or aren’t sure how to access these resources in a way that’s usable in your congregation, don’t hesitate to contact me and I’ll be glad to help.

This is the first time in the history of the International Mission Board that otherwise qualified missionaries could not be deployed to the field due to a lack of resources. Let’s join together in Frisco Baptist Association to contribute to the meeting of this need, so that no one else who has committed their lives to missionary service will have to be told that we don’t have the money to send them.
God bless,

Wes Kenney

Hate the Spin

This is a reposting of an essay I published at SBC Today.

When I was in college at John Brown University in the early 1990’s, I loved playing foosball. I played every day, at all hours. It’s possible that, had I not loved it so much, I might not now be working my way through Liberty University’s distance learning program, but I digress.

I was never a great player, mainly because I was never able to generate enough power without spinning the handle, and spinning, in real competitive foosball, is strictly verboten.  There was even a catchy saying in the foosball community at this private Christian college: “Hate the spin, but love the spinner.” It is much easier to slam the ball into the back of the goal when you spin, but the truly talented players can fire unbelievably powerful shots just by the action of their wrists. They don’t need to spin in order to be effective.

On April 20, USA Today published an essay by Jonathan Merritt. Merritt, 26, is a recent graduate of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and according to the footnote of his essay, he works as a faith and culture writer. The article is titled “An Evangelical’s Plea: ‘Love the Sinner’,” and it is a call for Christians to reach out in love to the gays and lesbians around us, and to do so in tangible ways. This is a worthy point to make, and a call that all of us who name the name of Christ ought to heed. But in making the point, Merritt makes use of quite a lot of rhetorical “spin,” enough to make me want to dust off that old catch phrase I learned around the foosball tables at JBU.

Some of this “spin” can be found in his opening paragraphs, where he provides examples of quotes that he has mined from the internet in an attempt to demonstrate that evangelicals prefer to display their hatred for sin. To characterize the late Dr. D. James Kennedy as a “fundamentalist televangelist” can only serve to inflame and prejudice USA Today readers, who may be unfamiliar with his life and ministry, against anything he might have said. Some of the statements he quotes are indefensible, but some, given their proper context, might be entirely appropriate. His quote-mining “spin” can only serve to confuse the issue and it paints with too broad a brush.

Another example of “spin” being employed by Mr. Merritt is in his use of statistics. He cites a Barna Research Group study which found that 80% of non-Christians ages 16-29 describe Christians as “confusing” on this issue. He then suggests that this is perhaps because “many recognize the difference between the life of Jesus Christ and the lives of those who claim to follow him.” This is quite a leap, and I can’t imagine what it is intended to suggest, if not that we ought to look to the opinions of the young non-Christians around us rather than to the scriptures when evaluating our degree of faithfulness to Christ.

But perhaps most disturbing in Merritt’s essay is his seeming willingness to compromise biblical definitions of sin and salvation. In discussing the marriage debate, he rightly states, “our biblical convictions prohibit a redefinition of marriage.” But he then goes on to suggest “other areas” where we might be able to compromise, such as offering support for anti-discrimination measures in the workplace and in reducing legal impediments to inheritance and hospital visitation rights for same-sex couples.

Let me be clear: I do not believe that it is a sin to be tempted by homosexual desires. I am convinced, however, because the Bible is very clear, that homosexual behavior is sinful. I will leave to others the debate over whether it is a chosen lifestyle or an inborn reality. That debate makes not one bit of difference to me. What scripture condemns is homosexual behavior.

Having said that, I am curious as to whether there are any other sins Mr. Merritt would be in favor of legislating in order to make their commission more acceptable in our society. It sounds very compassionate to advocate for these rights; it might even make one feel as if they are “showing love” to gays and lesbians in a way that is “concrete and tangible.” But what it is, in fact, is simply more terribly naïve “spin.”

The person who is enslaved to the sin of homosexuality does not need Christians to express love to them by making their sin easier to commit. Rather, they need Christians who will love them enough to come alongside them and show them their desperate need for a relationship with the One who can forgive them and restore them to a right relationship with their Creator.

I am convinced, however, that Mr. Merritt’s most egregious spin is contained in a paragraph in which he discusses marriage.  It contains concepts that are, I believe, harmful to the Gospel itself. Merritt states:

“God’s model is a lifelong, monogamous, heterosexual union, but we must balance this message with the scriptural understanding that we are all sinners. Individuals who have decided to follow Christ have not ceased to be sinners; we are simply sinners who have taken advantage of God’s gracious gift of salvation.”

This paragraph only tells part of the Gospel story, and the part it leaves out is absolutely essential to this discussion. In John’s first epistle, he writes, “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.” (1 John 3:9 ESV)

Merritt’s presentation of “God’s gracious gift of salvation” in the paragraph quoted above makes it sound as though a sinner can hold to Christ while simultaneously holding to a habitual sin. This is not only false, but it is dangerously misleading, and offers false hope to those who wish to believe that their anti-biblical lifestyle can somehow be compatible with saving faith. God’s Word is clear: It cannot.

Mr. Merritt has many good points to make. And I have no doubt he possess the necessary intellect and skill with the language in order to be effective in making them. In this essay, however, it seems that he has relied more upon spin, a spin with potentially dangerous consequences.

Yes, I believe the phrase I learned during my misspent youth in Northwest Arkansas applies here. As Jonathan Merritt is my brother in Christ, I love the “spinner” who wrote this article. I’m just not terribly fond of his “spin.”