Category Archives: Society

Is Jesus THE Way?

A recent post over at ScriptureZealot stirred my thinking. Some of the more incendiary comments have since been edited out, but it stirs me nonetheless.

It raised the specter of hard-line Calvinism simply saying, “If you don’t believe in TULIP (and some very specific tenets of Calvinism) then you are preaching another gospel.” That’s the subtle undertone of the piece by Horton. I do not accuse Jeff on his blog of raising such a division!

But when I read of our postmodern “emergent” (or whatever they’re calling it these days) struggles with the uniqueness of Christ, I think, “Why do we have to split hairs between Calvinism and Arminianism? We have bigger problems!”

A recent posting on Christianity Today demonstrates this issue. This new working out of theology and evangelism is scary. When the author of the article tried to bring the leaders of the seminar to a point of demonstrating the uniqueness of Christ and the proposition of Christ, they just wouldn’t declare what Jesus himself declared: He IS the way, the truth and the life!

Consider this disturbing passage:

On the last day, the discussion focused on Christian engagement with other religions. I resonated with much of what was said: the need for respectful dialogue, the willingness to listen and learn, and the intent to promote peace and understanding. But I also experienced a growing sense of unease. As my concern crystallized, I asked our distinguished guests: As those who self-identified with the Christian tradition, how did they understand the uniqueness of Jesus Christ?

Their response was that of course Jesus is unique. But, they continued, so are the leaders of the other world religions. While it was certainly true that Jesus is unique and different from other religious leaders, they said, it is also true that they are unique in relation to him. The uniqueness of Jesus was no different from that of any other important religious figure. Only in this way, they suggested, is equality among religions established as a basis for interreligious dialogue.

Those last two sentences should raise flags, set off alarms, and cause us to fall to our knees in repentance. To me, this isn’t laid at the feet of Calvin or Arminius. And it’s far beyond the problem of holding to some TULIP formula.

We have problems, friends. And it goes FAR beyond some debate between J.I. Packer and N.T. Wright. Neither of those men is preaching another gospel. (Horton, it seems, or maybe Packer, or both, seem to think Wright is proclaiming another gospel.) My contention is Wright is down-right ORTHODOX compared to the horrible theology presented in the last two lines of the quoted passage above.

Jesus is the Savior. Not just MY Savior. He is THE Savior. THE way. THE truth. THE life. No one… NO ONE… comes to the Father except by him.

Peace in the Middle East

I am a political person to the core. I can talk politics all day long. So… I avoid it. There are just too many other things going on, so I want to focus more on theology, spiritual formation, etc.

Theologically, the whole realm of “end times theology” is a massive heap of varied opinions. So, when I see statements issued like this one, I am curious as to reasons for particular people signing on. Take a look at the press release, then the signatories, and if you get a chance let me know what you think.

Monday Thoughts

Some random thoughts from the weekend, last week, etc.

Obama and the Supremes

President Obama will get his first appointment to the Supreme Court. Souter is retiring and now the hand-wringing begins. Conservatives are worried he will find someone even more liberal than Souter. Liberals are worried Obama may not get someone liberal enough. When some media outlet speculates as to whether or not Obama will find someone “liberal”, I just want to go: “DUH!”

Twins, Royals, and Torn Loyalties

In the middle of last season I determined to swear off my boyhood team, the KC Royals. I am a HUGE baseball fan and grew up in the days of George Brett, Frank White, Willie Wilson, Amos Otis … (okay, I could name the entire team if I wanted).

From that glorious World Series in 1985 (Thank you, Don Dekinger!), the Royals have done ZIP. I mean NOTHING.

And I cheered them on. I witnessed a Brett Saberhagen no hitter (thanks to the hometown scorer that night and Kirk Gibson being in left field). And even though I’ve been in Minneapolis for 11 plus years, I kept hoping against all hope that franchise would finally wise up. After another horrible season last year, I threw in the towel. The Twins would be my team! GO TWINS!

Then… the Royals come to town and take two of three from the Twins. The Twins actually handed it over… twice. On Sunday, Baker had a no hitter against the them for six innings. (He did that a couple of years ago, too!) Then… it all collapsed. A four-run Twins lead vanished and the Royals won.

I honestly think teams need to start paying me NOT to cheer for them!

Genius at Work

I must be in a rambling mood. This post is too long.

David Brooks has a column on “Genius.” It’s not so much the divine spark or IQ.

“The latest research suggests a more prosaic, democratic, even puritanical view of the world. The key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not a divine spark. It’s not IQ. Instead, it’s deliberate practice. Top performers spend more hours (many more hours) practicing their craft.”

The simple fact of the matter may be that practice pays off. It’s not that practice makes perfect, but PERFECT practice makes perfect. You practice the practice.

Russian tennis schools will practice returning volleys without the ball. They concentrate on the technique.

The mind wants to turn deliberate. It wants to form habits, even bad ones. We allow ourselves to get sloppy. By practicing slowly, we force the brain to break down the skills. Examine the rules. Examine the tiny parts. The brain can then internalize a better pattern of performance.

It kind of takes the magic out of great achievement. We just want to think, “Well, I can’t play well because I’m not Tiger Woods.”

Well, it may be you just don’t work as hard as he does at his game. And the man works hard. He wins tournaments with one good leg! That’s not magic.

While it’s said we’re creatures of habit, we may need to learn we can become BETTER creatures of habit.

File This…

I would file this under “DUH” and “DOH!”

An article discusses a sociologists findings that social networking sites could be harmful to a child’s development.

A couple of key thoughts from the article:

Social networking websites are causing alarming changes in the brains of young users, an eminent scientist has warned.

Sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Bebo are said to shorten attention spans, encourage instant gratification and make young people more self-centred.

This is a big “DUH” because it’s just so noticeable without the research! All you have to do is READ the silly Twitter comments, or read on Facebook what people are doing. How many times do we need to follow people into the bathroom for the internet world to see? Really!

The big “DOH!” is that yet again here is a researcher who got PAID to report the obvious. I have GOT to learn how to get in that racket!