Philippians 4:5

This summer I’ve preached an overview of the book of Philippians in a series entitled ‘The Gospel Driven Life’. Sunday brings me to a very short and seemingly out of place passage in the fourth chapter of that book. It reads as follows: Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand (ESV). The NASB translates the same passage this way: Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. The term translated ‘reasonableness’ in the ESV and gentle in the NASB is a compound term that conveys the idea of having a consistent attitude of mildness, patience with a view toward expressing meekness under pressure. Furthermore it carries the notion of treating others with respect, consideration and dignity and may especially be applied to those who either disagree with or oppose us. Though the term reasonableness is a good and accurate way to translate the word I’m a bit more partial to the NASB rendering of gentle spirit. Gentleness calls us to treat others in light of considering how our words, disposition, tone and actions affects their feelings. It calls for the saints to refrain from doing or saying things that would demean or belittle someone else. The word picture associated with gentleness is the way a loving mother treats a young infant.

From this passage Paul expects the saints not only to relate to each other in this way but also to those who oppose them and the gospel. This is a significant point and one which we must not be too swift to gloss over. We would certainly expect the apostle to exhort the saints to relate to each other with a gentle disposition. (see Eph. 4:2) This would be applicable within the church generally and during times when God’s people see things differently. Here however Paul is careful to alert the Philippians to express this gentleness to the wider society. The weightiness of his imperative comes into focus when we consider that those to whom the Philippians were called to display gentleness to were some of the very people who actively opposed the gospel, our Lord Jesus Christ and His church.

Ok Lance, what in the world does this have to do with the price of tea in China? Now that the election season has begun in earnest I want to encourage God’s people to consider this short but significant passage in the way we relate to those who may oppose our chosen political party and candidate. We may genuinely believe that they are totally wrong, completely off base, incredibly out of touch and even maliciously devious. But even if we think their unstated but very real goal is the destruction of this country we must still treat and relate to them with an authentic gentleness.

About twenty years ago this might not have been that big of a deal. For the most part we would have hung with those who agreed with our politics and even if we ran into those at work who didn’t it wasn’t that big of a deal. But now dear ones we have the blogopshere. And I’m becoming more and more convinced that cyberspace is the last frontier of sanctification for God’s people. The world wide web can give us an access and boldness that many of us would not otherwise have. Here we can write things from the relative safety of our keyboards with the knowledge that more than likely we’ll never sit face to face with someone we’ve insulted or mistreated. But don’t be fooled. The world is still watching and even if we think it unfair will judge us by what we write, how we write it and what it says about our true thoughts about them and the truths we confess. Am I advocating we stay away from the important political discussions happening in this country? Not at all. I’m am asking all of us to engage in those discussion in light of Phil. 4:5.

Why? Because in the end our primary purpose and calling isn’t the election of a candidate, the dominance of a particular party or even the overall supremacy of a temporary country. Our primary purpose and calling with relation to this society is to call men and women, boys and girls into a saving relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ whose return in nearer now than when Paul penned his words 2000 years ago. Our main calling is far more important then who gets to occupy the White House for the next four years for it deals with who gets to live in God’s house for the next eternity.

So my brothers and sisters by all means discuss, debate, advocate, defend, campaign and vote. But in all things whether you are democrat or republican let your gentleness be known to everyone, for the Lord is near.

The Lord’s Peace
Pastor lance

August 28th

When all is said and done in this election season one thing is sure. August 28th will once again be a historic day not only for African-Americans but for the United States of America. Forty-five years ago today Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave one of the most stirring and moving speeches in American history. His speech voiced the hope of some 20 million black people along with millions of other Americans who genuinely wished to live in a country where one’s ethnicity didn’t determines one’s fate from cradle to grave.

Now another African-American will give a historic speech but this time to accept his party’s nomination for president. And he’ll do so just one generation removed from the time when this country prevented many of his people from even casting a vote. Indeed we’ve come a long way baby. For most black people this will be the most significant political event we’ve ever witnessed. Millions of African-Americans will sit down with their children and watch a black man call the country to rise to its potential to live as one unified nation. And these millions will relish the possibility of seeing a black man, his wife and their children occupy the signature symbol of power of this country.

Does that mean that black folks believe that Senator Obama’s nomination has ushered the country into some kind of new racial utopia? No it doesn’t. But I believe there is a hope that successive Obama administrations can go along way to changing the racial climate of this country. Here’s what I mean. While most African-Americans deny that ethnicity is the single greatest impediment toward opportunity in America, we nonetheless still believe that it carries some weight. There is still the belief that you always start out as a suspect until you prove yourself otherwise. There persist the belief within much of black America that the mainstream society feels much more comfortable with us on the ball field than the boardroom. To this day many of us still shake our heads and wonder when someone from the mainstream society notes with surprise how ‘articulate’ a particular black person is. (if you don’t believe me just ask your best buddy black reformed cat how many times someone remarked how articulate he was)

And it’s my view that this belief has become so persistent among so many within the black community that many of us give up without even trying. Far too many of us seem to think that there’s little or no chance that the mainstream society will view us as little more than either potential ball players or criminals. Perhaps at one time there was the hope that America’s collective consciousness would change, that she’d open her arms wide to those whose ancestors built the country and we would indeed live as one nation, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. But that ship has sailed. While it would be nice to live in a land without racial prejudice that just ain’t going to happen.

And if we need any more proof then the reality that some life-long democrats will refuse to vote for Senator Obama just because he’s black confirms it. His nomination proves however that we no longer have to wait for the collective acceptance of the white community to do what is needed to address the issues of ourselves, our families and our communities. Just like Barack and Michelle Obama we too can focus on obtaining an education so that we increase our chances to climb out of cyclical poverty. Just like Barack and Michelle Obama we too can see the value of using our education and abilities to work on the behalf of others and not just ourselves. And just like Barack and Michelle Obama we too can approach life with a sense of confidence, a desire to make a difference and a genuine hope that the world of our children can be better than ours.

The Lord’s Peace
Pastor lance

Let The Games Begin

The games are over and now the game is on. As the Olympics fade into the background the U.S. presidential race takes center stage. From now until at least early November the American voting populace will be deluged by candidates, commercials and commentary.

And now’s our chance. Once every four years bible believing Christians get the opportunity to demonstrate a powerful, humble, authentic witness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Presidential campaigns usually highlight the divisions that persistently remain in this country. Each side seems to go out of its way to demonize their opponent and cast him in the very worst possible light. And judging from how things have transpired thus far we will be treated to more of the same for the next few months.

So how can we inject a bit of godliness into the process? Elementary my dear Watson, just follow a few of the biblical injunctions God has given His people for such occasions. For instance both Paul and Peter told the saints to respect (not just submit to) the secular public officials of the country in which we live (Rom. 13:7; 1 Pet. 2:17). What did it mean to honor the king and how can we apply that today? It meant to speak respectfully to and about a country’s leaders. It meant that the church, its leaders and its people did not seek to demean or demonize their local or national officials. Remember this respect was to be given to officials who weren’t elected and who were at times openly hostile to the followers of the Way.

How can we put this into practice today? We can start by refusing to disrespect those running for president and we can do this while still disagreeing with their views on various issues. We can affirm the reality that they too have been made in God’s image and through God’s providence have risen to a place of leadership in this country. We can also refuse to speak about them as if they are utterly depraved and completely beyond God’s grace of redemption. We must also refuse to listen to and pass on bad jokes about the candidates and their wives.

It’s also a good idea for us to remember that the way we speak of or about a particular candidate extends to those who support him. Is it worth unnecessarily alienating a whole group of people just to get in a couple of cheap shots? Do we really see ourselves as taking the gospel to the whole culture or just those who align with our politics? Regardless of how things turn out in this election the fact is that about 50 or so million people will not agree with our choice for president. Can we truly see some of those people as part of our church or is our fellowship more based on what we have in common politically as opposed to spiritually?

To Him Who Loves Us...
pastor lance

The Content of Our Character - Billboard Wars

The billboard wars are alive and kicking in Philly. As you can see from the pic our friendly neighborhood atheist launched a salvo that challenged God’s existence. This was met by our Roman Catholic hombres who counterpunched with a plea to pray the rosary. And thus the battle for the religious hearts and minds of the citizens of Philadelphia has been joined.

I’m pretty sure that it’s fairly safe to say that the Christian church has been looking for ways to connect with unbelievers and deliver the message of the gospel for the last two thousand years. And now 20th century marketing techniques have given us a new tool in our arsenal of weapons. We may not be able to get you in church, nor are we likely to meet you as we serve in our local community (since we may not be too enthused to be about that) but by golly we will grab your attention as you fly by on I95.

So just how should believers in 21st century Philly, or Detroit, or Berlin, or Nairobi or anyplace else in the world seek to connect with nonbelievers? Should we spend lots of money (they’re not giving away billboards you know) and come up with clever ad campaigns tailored to speak to a technologically sophisticated, entertainment saturated society? Perhaps. One of the advantages the church has in addressing this question (or for that matter any other question regarding church ministry, mission etc. ) is our access to the scriptures. The ability to read, study and rely on scripture to answer our questions keeps us from endless speculation concerning what we should do and how we should do it. Could we be wrong in how we read, interpret and apply scripture? Of course we can. The alternative however is far, far worse. Why? Because without referring to scripture we’re left to the speculation of people. And I for one don’t think it’s a good idea to leave the witness of our Lord in the hands and minds of people who’ll decide to do what they think is right based on whatever man-made criteria they dream up.

So what does scripture say about our witness, where should we look in scripture and how can that help us today? While there are many places I’d like to begin with the beatitudes. Why you ask? Leading off it seems that Jesus had the gospel witness in mind when He proclaimed the beatitudes. Look at Matt. 5:10-16. Notice how that passage assumes that believers will come into contact with non-believers. It’s just makes common sense that one cannot be persecuted for the sake of righteousness if one isn’t in a position to express righteousness in a hostile environment. To put it another way Jesus didn’t expect His followers to confine our practice of proactive biblical holiness to ourselves. In fact He expected us to be among those who would actively reject our visible demonstrations of Christ likeness.

Another reason I’m partial to the beatitudes is that they don’t make our witness dependent on any particular expertise. You don’t have to be a theologian, seminary graduate or student, pastor or even deacon. And you don’t even have to be a talented Christian rapper. This allows our witness to branch out much farther than if we only relied on the theological experts or artistically talented. The beatitudes are also particularly relevant as they address the basic issues with which people from all times and all places struggle. It is the people the Way who by God’s grace can actually speak to the root issues of fulfillment, grief, power, integrity and reconciliation that weigh so heavily in our culture.

Lastly, but by no means least the beatitudes propel the church to highlight and emphasize the uniqueness, supremacy and deity of Jesus Christ. It is Jesus Himself who embodies each of the beatitudes and in so doing each of them makes the case that He alone is the only way that anyone can be assured of a place of honor, acceptance and delight before the Father.

So brothers and sisters let’s join the battle. Armed not with clever slogans but with the power of Christ transformed life.

To Him Who Loves Us…
Pastor lance

Shawn Andrews

I’m sure at least one of two of you follow the NFL. Is so you may have heard that the two time Pro Bowl right guard of the Philadelphia Eagles recently disclosed that he had not reported to camp due to struggles with ongoing depression. For those who do follow such things please keep Shawn Andrews in your prayers. In my view it took a lot of courage to publicly admit what is in essence a very private issue. Mr. Andrews has played in Philly long enough to know that Eagle fans can be most unforgiving and merciless. That said most folks have been supportive of him and genuinely hope that he’s able to fight this battle successfully.

Another reason I applaud Mr. Andrews for going public is that it helps remind me as well as others that he is a real person with real issues and not just a football player. His worth as a human being can’t be measured just by what he does on a football field. There are times when our society can de-humanize athletes and treat them as if there their only value lies in providing our entertainment. Hopefully Mr. Andrews’ struggle with depression will help us to re-evaluate that view and help us to see that there is much more to all of these men than just a uniform and a game.

Peace
LL

Between Three Worlds - Forward March!

So here we stand at the precipice of a new century with what could be a golden providential opportunity before us. Not only could we reshape how the black church and black community think and practice the faith once delivered to all the saints, but we might actually re-form a church that truly includes all the saints.

So in a journey of a thousand miles where do we start?

Determine that reform is both desirable and necessary. There are many we know who for the most part see little if anything wrong within the black church. From their perspective each new successive “move of God” should be welcomed and followed until it fails to titillate and we then move onto something else. Some however see that at this point in time the black church is for the most part living in Ephesians 4:14. Change is necessary and sorely needed. And now is not the time for us to just sit back and watch the black church crash on the rocks of false destructive teaching.

Form a functional connection. This may be the most challenging step that we face. It calls for the growing number of African-Americans embracing reformed theology to let go of our distrust of others and ourselves, learn flexibility and actually begin working toward something meaningful. For some this might be especially difficult because their pain may have caused them to distrust any kind of structure organized for the purpose of expanding the kingdom. Many may genuinely believe that they must go it alone if only to avoid being disappointed by yet another leader. But I don’t think we can allow that to prevent us from engaging our people and our culture with the true gospel of God’s grace. Think how many are still caught in the snare of the wolves who even now ravage the saints.
A functional connection means that we pursue a broadly reformed association for the purpose of impacting the black church and black community with the gospel of God’s grace with the goal of galvanizing the evangelical church to embrace a biblically driven, kingdom focused, Christ centered witness. It means that we will seek out others of like mind and heart and embrace them in fellowship even though they don’t line up exactly with our 34 point criteria for what is truly reformed. It means that we’re willing to work with, support and worship with those who’ve embraced the doctrines of grace, the five solas and long to see them impact the black church, black community and American culture.

Will we all agree on who is baptized and the mode of such baptism? No. Will we all agree on the biblical form of church government? No. Will we all concur on the biblical or reformed way God’s people ought to express themselves in worship? No. Will we all agree on the continuing validity of spiritual gifts? No. Will we all agree on all issues regarding eschatology? No. Should we allow such differences to prevent us from forming a working fellowship? Absolutely not. And no it doesn’t mean that we’re an open ended group in which anyone who is sincere enough can join. By God’s grace and the wisdom of the saints who went before us there are enough creeds and confessions we can all agree on that can form the basis for a working association. Remember I’m calling for a functional connection not a formal one. Those who want a formal connection with a body of believers who share their concerns on the above mentioned issues can probably find at least one reformed denomination to become apart of. For those who cannot then I appeal to you to at least consider linking up with our functional connection.

How shall we begin? Let me give three specific actions and then perhaps in another post suggest a few more.

Generate a unifying statement of faith, identity and vision. A few of us are actually in the process of doing this over at the Council of Reforming Churches. The purpose of the statement is to define what we believe, who we are in Christ and what we hope to see our Lord do in our churches and communities. Our goal isn’t to weed out as many as possible but to give all who wish to join us a realistically biblical basis for working together.

Form regional geographic networks for the purpose advancing biblical theology and practice in our area. These groups could decide to meet a certain number of times per year to pray, fellowship and plan for the revival and even resurrection of God’s church in that area. These networks could have three primary purposes. 1) Draw into fellowship various people and churches seeking to impact the black church and community with biblically reformed theology. 2) Devise strategies for spreading the basic biblical truths of scripture which may be the best way to combat false teaching. 3) Develop church planting networks consisting of existing churches, committed leaders and lay people willing to give of their time and money to do biblically driven church planting.

Draft a uniform training curriculum. Most of us within reformed circles believe that formal education for the ministry is a necessary and wise requirement. However there’s no reason that such an education must happen within a traditional seminary. The wealth of books, DVD’s, MP3’s and whole courses available on the internet means we can construct a robust seminary level curriculum and deliver it within the context of the local church. This means that we can prepare the next generation of ministers, officers and other lay leaders using both an academic and hands on mentored ministry approach. We can also remove the potentially high cost of obtaining a seminary education from the ministry equation of those young men who wish to obtain it but are hindered by finances.

By the grace of God brothers and sisters let’s begin to pray for our Lord to once more revive and enliven His church so that she will indeed live out her calling to be the house of God which is the church of the living God the pillar and foundation of the truth. And then let’s be ready to respond to His answer by joining with those He’s called to press this battle on.

To Him Who Loves Us…
Pastor Lance

Between Three Worlds - Vision Pt. 4

So just what can two cats (Justus and Epaphras) from the first century teach today's church regarding employing a kingdom focused, biblically driven witness that leads with truth and engages people from multiple cultures?

Enlarge our vision. Presently we tend to only engage distinct subcultures within our society perhaps believing that young white goatee sportin post-modern artists could never have anything to do with middle aged, black modern entrepreneurs. We then craft a mission strategy that heavily depends on entering their cultural world. The end result are churches that consist mainly of young white post-moderns and middle aged, black moderns. However, instead of seeing the white post-moderns as the problem and purview of the white evangelical church and the black, middle aged moderns as the challenge for the bible believing black church let’s go after both with the belief and intention of seeing God transform them to the extent that they recognize see that what we have in common in Christ is far more important and far more valuable than what naturally divides us.

Don’t worship your culture. Both Justus and Epaphras had to part with aspects of their culture which were very important to them. This didn’t mean that Justus ceased being Jewish or Epaphras stopped being Greek. It did mean that upon believing in Christ they chose to focus on those aspects of biblical culture transmitted though the faith once delivered to the saints. This also enabled them to enjoy the flexibility of adopting certain non-sinful human aspects of culture for the purpose of advancing the kingdom. It’s here that Paul’s maxim from 1 Cor 9:19-23 is particularly important to us. Like Paul we must learn to wear human culture loosely. The extent that we’re wedded to a specific culture is the extent that we will shrink the reach of our witness. And we might be surprised at how flexible others are with respect to culture once we’re committed to biblical driven cultural flexibility.

Don’t waste our culture. Part of the challenge with any culture is the way that it defines who people are and marks them as belonging to one people group and therefore standing apart from other people groups. And in my view that’s one of the biggest obstacles facing the expansion of an authentic, biblical driven, unified witness in the 21st century. White evangelical believers and bible believing black believers have identified and held onto their natural cultures far too tightly and far too long. In doing so we’ve failed to emphasize and embody genuine biblical culture for the witness of the gospel and the glory of Christ. We spend so much time attempting to be culturally relevant to our niche human cultures that we’ve failed to produce a people that who are mainly known for the culture embodied in passages such as Ten Commandments, Beatitudes or Colossians 3. The result is believers who are far more American or African-American than we are Christian.

What could a focus on biblical culture look like? Let me give an example from each of the passages I just mentioned. From the Ten Commandments God’s people could nurture a culture of contentment. This could be especially valuable in a society that prizes covetousness. Through our lives we could demonstrate the advantages of gratitude, giving and biblical contentment. We could show our society that life isn’t about things and that our identity isn’t found in having the latest and best gadgets. We could also learn to be a people who intentionally live beneath our means so that we could increase what we give to those who have less than we.

From the Beatitudes we could prize the biblical cultural virtue of meekness. We could then find ways to use whatever strength we have be it emotional, financial, psychological, social or political on behalf of those who are weak and have less strength. And we could apply this meekness towards all kinds of people who for whatever reason need it. Imagine a group of churches in a particular city or region deciding to gather together and speak out and support the latest group of immigrants just because God providentially provided us with the opportunity to do so?

Lastly, from Col. 3 we could cultivate a taste for the life yet to come. We could become so enamored by our next life and the Savior who awaits us that we literally reorganized our time, finances and lives around the pursuit of His kingdom and promotion of His gospel.

The basis of this way of thinking is the view that the strength of our witness doesn’t spring from having worship events that mimic our human culture as much as it is having the One we worship transform us as we engage the culture.

Check your politics at the door. I’m using the term politics here in the generic sense of the way societies organize resources. I’m not asking for anyone to change his or her political views. Instead I’m asking that we don’t hold our politics so dear as to just about mandate that those who believe like us must vote like us. Also we need to be crystal clear with ourselves and our culture concerning which things are so important that they should occupy out time, thought, conversation and fellowship and which are not. Frankly brothers and sisters it is both unwise and detrimental to our witness to be so identified with and tied to one political party or another. And it is also unwise and potentially damaging for any aspect of God’s church to speak or act in such a way that lifts the temporal earthly agenda of a country or people to the level of God’s eternal kingdom. We are not here to promote or preserve the overall economic, political and military supremacy of the United States nor the lifestyle to which that supremacy brings us. Nor are we here to see that African-Americans or any other ethnic group levels the playing field and grabs their slice of the American dream along with everybody else.

Is there a place for politics in this new 21st century church? Yes there is. These churches should work together and work with the local officials of our cities, counties, townships and regions to advocate for policies that will benefit everyone who lives in the region.

Work hard. Isn’t it interesting how Paul the apostle of God’s grace mentioned how hard people worked to see that the message of grace impacted the Roman world? First century discipleship wasn’t a casual affair. Those who embraced Christ adopted the promotion of the gospel as a way of life and not merely a religious addition to their existing life. They gave themselves to the task of the gospel doing whatever was necessary to see to that it spread. Though we’re not sure what all of them did we do know that whatever it was they did it willfully, consistently, whole-heartedly and joyfully.

The current community of believers in America may have to look at itself in the mirror and make a hard choice. We can adopt the path of following Jesus by the way of the cross and truly embody biblically informed culture. This will mean wrapping our lives around the promotion of the gospel and thus radically altering how we spend our time, money and organize our lives. Or we can continue to be molded by our current culture of commerce and entertainment, wrap our lives around the comfort and convenience that culture affords us and then wait for the next church growth guru to tell us the real secret to connecting with the culture.

To Him Who Loves Us…
Pastor Lance