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Infusing Godly Wisdom
A Quote from “Out of the Storm” (Page 88) in answer to the question of wisdom, when looking at truth and untruth in the speeches of Elihu (Job chapters 32-37).
“The answer goes to the heart of wisdom: Godly wisdom is not so much a word spoken to the human heart from the outside, as a character formed in the believer by the Spirit of God working by the Word of God at the deepest level of the human heart. In setting before us in Job these speeches in which truth and error are mixed, God invites us to think for ourselves, to puzzle, to engage with the process of wisdom fashioning our minds and hearts. There is an aspect of the Word of God that comes authoritatively to us from above, from the mountaintop of Sinai; this is the Law of God. But there is also an aspect of the Word of God that gets under our skin and into our soul and beavers away within us as we meditate, puzzle and think about the world and our place in it. This latter facet of the Word of God does not respond to the immature request to “Tell me the answer”, rather it draws the seeking and searching believer into a lifelong process of wondering and prayerful meditation on God’s Word.”
‘Out of the Storm’; Christopher Ash; Inter-Varsity Press; Nottingham, England 2004. ISBN 978-I-84474-056-7
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Three Views of Church
I’ve formed the opinion over the last forty-two years that people leave a Church, or Churches divide, more often because of Ecclesiology than over secondary doctrines.
My observation is that there are three types of local Churches.
There is the “Events Co-Ordinator” Church where a team of specialists put together an event each Sunday for the “laity” to consume. The only expectation on those attending is to fund the program conducted by the “specialist team”.
Secondly, there is the “we’re all one family” Church, where people are encouraged to “join the family” and once in, they are given job to do to keep them engaged. New members to the “family” are showered with attention to make them feel “at home”.
In both of the above, the dominant teaching is how to be a good corporate citizen and how to grow in “love” and “acceptance”. The goal is to keep people attending (whether Born-Again or not) in order to “grow the Church”.
Then there is the third type of local Church. It’s focus is on being faithful to Biblical structure and purpose. It may not be as large, but it makes disciples of Jesus, and for Jesus. It believes that it is the Church’s role to make disciples, and that Jesus said He will build His Church.
In Acts 2:47 we see that the Lord added to the Church “those who were being saved”. Can we not trust Him to continue to do the same?
We proclaim; He saves; and He joins those who are saved to the Church; then the Church teaches them all of His requirements, so they grow as disciples.
It seems so simple if we really trust God and His Word.
In which type of Church are you involved?
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Growing the Church
When I speak of Church in this article I’m speaking of a Local Assembly.
Jesus said that He will build His Church and that it will endure (Matthew 16:18). He also said that His people are to make Disciples and teach them thoroughly (Matthew 28:19-20).
As I watch Local Churches in their outreach activities today (assuming they have some) I often observe people who are not Born-Again being squeezed into the congregation in the name of grace and non-judgement. (Acts 2:47 tells us that Jesus adds those who are “saved” to His Church.)
Some Churches seem to have reversed the words of Jesus and see it to be their responsibility to grow their congregation, and leave it to Jesus to do the “teaching all things”.
Jesus is more interested in growing His Kingdom, in seeing His Body grow, than he is the size of a particular congregation.
The often insular obsession in congregation size seems to be there to meet needs that are born in insecurity and pride. I say this humbly because I too have had responsibility for a local Church and know the temptations, especially when attending ministers’ meetings.
All Christians need to be submitted to some sort of small group for accountability which promotes safety and growth. How much more-so do those in leadership need the same?
The God of grace and love will only allow one’s ministry to grow to a ceiling above which the minister would likely be destroyed. That’s mercy.
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“Legalism” verses “Living in Grace”
We will all live our lives on a continuum between these two positions.
Grace taken to the extreme is Antinomianism. Antinomianism is a stance that is offended by any sense of restriction on the Believer’s life. Antinomianism is conviction-less Christianity. It sees repentance as a single event, not to be repeated.
Legalism is at the opposite end of the scale. It strives to build walls and moats around God’s Grace, forcing the Believer to constantly prove their worth through “good works”.
Part of the issue in this debate is how people see “salvation”. Some see “salvation” merely in terms of escaping Judgement unto Hell. But the Bible describes “salvation” and being freed from the bondage of sin; that which separates from God.
“Salvation” is God’s mechanism of restoring the Believer to Sonship with Him.
May I give a little illustration to help understand this life as Redeemed people?
Consider the Child walking in a park with their father.
They are within sight of each other.
Suddenly a vicious dog appears near the child. The child screams.
The father runs to the child and scoops them up into his arms, with the dog snapping at the child’s heels.
The child is safe.
The dog is only a threat if the Father releases the child from His arms.
But the child draws up their legs and clings with all their might to the father.
Gratitude and love cause them to hold tight.
For Christians, our Heavenly Father will never let us go.
However, sin is constantly snapping at our heels.
Our clinging to God by living the life which He prefers for us, shows appreciation for the salvation that He provides.
This clinging to the Father is a sensible and loving response.
But it is often called “legalism” by those who lean towards antinomianism.
The wise Christian knows they are safe in the Father’s arms, but they so fear sin that they cling tightly to Him.
Some people are content to stroll near sin only holding on to God’s finger while casually looking around.
Some people just walk through life with only an occasional glance at God.
Which are you?
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Joyous Response to Living Water
700am, Goolwa SA, after a November Thunderstorm 2024
I walked past the park; lots of lovely flowering shrubs of various colours all grateful for the rain.
While the water is giving the roots their essential nourishment, the foliage and flowers are bowed low with the weight of the water.
The whole plant rejoices.
This is how God’s people appear after He has poured out His presence on them for a season.
In their rejoicing they feel the refreshment drawing up from the reservoir of out-poured Living Water, but the weight of His Presence causes their hearts to be bowed low in grateful, reverential, yieldedness.
Solemn joy.
Oh for a Thunderstorm!
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A Resistance to Scholarship
It can be heard in church, people saying that “you don’t need to go to Bible College, you just read your bible”. Some even go so far as to claim that commentaries and the likes are unnecessary.
It disturbs me when I hear the inference that scholarship is ‘not spiritual’ and that those who pursue it are somehow ‘just being nerds’ and lacking passion for the ‘true work’ of the Gospel.
Jesus endorsed that it is right to love God with “all our mind” (Luke 10:27), this indicates some mental exertion; perhaps called “scholarship”.
If you are reading a Bible in a language other than Hebrew and Greek, thank scholars.
If you use the margin notes, links to other texts, and other references in your Bible, thank scholars.
If you understand the primary doctrines of the Gospel, doctrines of God, doctrines of the Church etc, then thank the scholars down through the last two millennia who gave themselves to bringing clarity.
Yes, there are scholars who are “unspiritual”, there are even Bible scholars who are not Christians, but our role is to interact with what is taught and reject the error, not to reject scholarship outright.
We all build on the knowledge of those who have gone before, and it is arrogant to say, “I can do it alone with the just Bible” (and often it is added, “with the Holy Spirit”).
As none of us perfectly hear God’s voice, that is a certain way to end up with a god of one’s own making.
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Can Women Be Pastors?
This is a contentious, convoluted, and divisive subject in this time in which we find ourselves.
I find though, that many, or most people argue from a place of poor definitions and of tradition, more than from a plain reading of Holy Scripture.
The term ‘pastor’ as a noun appears only once in the New Testament (in Ephesians 4). It is one of five ministries that Paul describes as Gifts from Christ to His Church. These giftings have the purpose of ‘equipping the Saints for the work of the ministry’ and will be needed until the Church matures and grows into the ‘fullness of Christ’.
A Pastor provides for the social and emotional needs of the Church. To complement that, Christ also provides Apostles (equals “missionaries” from Latin), Prophets (those who make known the mind of God for a situation), Teachers (for formal instruction in the Word) and Evangelists (to show the Saints how to minister the Gospel to the lost).
I believe this to be so, coming from a plain reading of the text, without imposing pre-suppositions.
Unfortunately, many Churches use the term ‘Pastor’ as synonymous with the title of ‘Priest’, the ordained person who does all the ministry in a local Body. The ‘Pastor’ in these settings is also the principal governing authority.
Surely Ephesians Chapter 4 informs us that no one person can do this alone.
Scripture does give us a term for those who govern the local Church and that is ‘Elder’, and it is usually used in the plural.
I am a simple man, and I cannot understand how very well-educated Christians can equate these two roles (Pastor/Elder), given that one (pastor) only appears once in the New Testament, and it appears with four other roles which they totally disregard.
Elders had existed long before Christ instituted His Church. Indeed, communities had elders to set boundaries in society and settle disputes in many cultures including among the Jews. These Elders would be found near the gates of the city (if gates were present) and would keep an eye on those coming and going as well as giving their wisdom as needed in various scenarios.
Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus outline the needed character traits for one to be an Elder for the Church, and it seems that it is a male-only domain.
I’ve heard the various arguments used to try to squeeze women into the role, but if we go outside the ‘proof-texts’, please answer this question. If the wife needs to submit to her husband at home, why will he need to submit to her ‘leadership’ in the local Church? Surely this God-ordained order will remain.
Yes, women can be deacons, but deacons don’t govern a local Church according to Scripture, Elders do.
So, let’s get back to the question: “Can women be pastors?”.Given that the Prophet Joel, the Apostle Peter (at Pentecost), and the Apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 12), all say that both sons and daughters will prophesy, why can’t they be Pastors if the roles are grouped together in Ephesians 4?
Surely, women are well equipped to care for the social and emotional needs of the Church.
Women can be Pastors, but that is not an ‘office’ of the Church it is simply a gifted role among the Saints, and that applies equally to men.
Eldership, however, is a different matter. Women need not aspire to this male-only governing role.
If God has taken the time to give us clear, simple instruction on how to best care for the Body of His Son, surely we can accept it and get on with reaching the lost and building up the Church into a more accurate depiction of our saviour.
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The Problem with Pragmatism
Pragmatism is based in pride.
It will not wait for an answer from God.
It will not search the Scriptures for direction from God.
It seeks to appear to have the solution that best suits the problem.
It seeks to appear to be in control.
But God says:
“let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him,
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.”(Isaiah 55:7-9)
Pragmatism may “get the job done”; but whose job is getting done?
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Jesus Sticker
As A Brand New Christian, I put a “Jesus Lives!” Rainbow-sticker on the back window of my old hotted-up Kombi.
I was perturbed when ‘older’ Christians gave me advice.
One said, “you shouldn’t put that on your window, because when you drive badly you’ll give Jesus a bad name”. To this I replied: “Perhaps I can just not drive badly?”.
The other ‘wise’ advisor said, “I shouldn’t have a rainbow on my van because the rainbow was a symbol of the homosexual community”. To this I replied: “isn’t the rainbow, first of all, a sign of God’s promise?”
How easy is it to bow to the fallen world rather than simply live a Christian life amongst the mess?
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Being a Radical Christian
Much is said on occasions about being “Radical” as a Christian.
Some see it as being “out there” or sharing their faith with great abandon.
But this is not what the word means. I refer to Webster’s Dictionary:
Radical – adjective (rad·i·cal ˈra-di-kəl )
1: of, relating to, or proceeding from a root: such as
A (1) : of or growing from the root of a plant (radical tubers)
(2) : growing from the base of a stem, from a rootlike stem, or from a stem that does not rise above the ground (radical leaves)
B: of, relating to, or constituting a linguistic root
C: of or relating to a mathematical root
D: designed to remove the root of a disease or all diseased and potentially diseased tissue (radical surgery)
2: of, or relating to, the origin : Fundamental
To truly be considered a Radical Christian, one would be displaying the attributes typically seen in the believers of the early Church (Acts Chapters 2 to 7)and showing the outworkings of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew Chapters 5 to 7).
These passages are often disregarded as being applicable to the Believer in this time and more importantly this culture.
In my early Christian life I was influenced (for the better) by the writings of Arthur Wallis (The Radical Christian and God’s Chosen Fast) and AW Tozer (The pursuit of God and Knowledge of the Holy).
But more recently I was challenged by a little orange book called “Radical”.
I read Radical in 2011 and it struck a chord with me. Author, David Platt, challenges readers to “take back their faith from the American (or Australian) dream”, and to live a counter-cultural lifestyle.
I challenge you to read it with a heart and mind open to the Lord’s intervention.
For almost forty years I have continually been challenged by a couple of verses from the Book of Acts:
“None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women” (Acts 5:13-14)
Would you consider if Jesus expects anything less than being truly “radical” from those who profess to belong to Him?
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About Me
I’m a ‘sort-of’ retired person who is a follower of Jesus. I don’t like brands and titles because they have varied meanings to different observers. I like to talk about the Good News of Jesus, and the Bible’s story of redemption.
East Gippsland Gospel 