Evangelical Manifesto?

When I'm bored at work, I like to surf the Web for some interesting news articles, and this one takes the cake on interesting. I ran across an article in the Dallas Morning News religion blog that interviews Os Guinness about a new "Evangelical Manifesto" that was published last week. It caught my eye because we just finished reading his book "The Call" in our DCM class, and much of the stuff in there caught my eye. His point in the book is that, as Christians, we are called by God to live out the nature of grace in our lives. His call is central to our very existence as Christians, first to surrender ourselves to His will, and second to live out that grace in a day-to-day life in our dealings with others. Careers, occupations, and things of that nature may not necessarily be a part of our vocation, our call to service Christ. So after discussing that, I realized that I like what he has to say. I think that it's very very Biblically based, theologically sound. So when I saw that he had been one of the people to write the "Evangelical Manifesto", I got curious.


Another reason I got curious was because we had studied the Evangelical movement in my American Church History class this semester. It's a curious thing... this movement. It was designed to get away from the radical Fundamentalist movement that portrayed God as vengeful and not loving (of course, He is a wrathful God because He's holy, but that's another issue altogether).

It's a good read. It has some very good points as far as finally settling doctrinal issues that evangelicals have been struggling over for months. The Church in America is suffering. It's on the brink of collapse, as a matter of fact. We don't know what we believe. We don't know doctrine, we don't know Scripture, and ultimately we have no idea of what God desires us to be. It's laxidaisical, lazy, apathetic, and just plain screwed up. We've focused far more on privatizing our religion and getting people in the doors than discipling them in accordance with Scripture ("teaching them all that I have commanded you".) We don't know theology. We don't know Christology. We don't know anything. And it's frustrating.

We also don't know how to get along with other people. We're so focused on saying that we're right and they're wrong that we forget how to civilly dialogue with someone from another religion or even another denomination. This Manifesto calls for a civil public square-- where we can discuss our different opinions with civility and gentleness, like we're called to do ("Always be ready to give an answer for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.") Too many fundamentalist Christians (*cough* Pat Robertson *cough*) just end up putting a bad name on Christianity by calling for assassinations or protesting gay marriage outside funerals for fallen soldiers. Every time they open their mouths it's to take out their foot and stick the other one in. There's a time and a place to vote against moral measures, and there's no time or place to publicly call for Christians to pressure the government into assassination. So many non-Christians look at these kind of actions and reject Christianity altogether, simply because it's a bad representation of what a relationship with Christ really means.

By calling for a civil public square, this Manifesto puts religion back into the public light, since it has been hidden in the darkness of privatization for way too long. My faith is not private. My faith is a part of who I am... my Jesus and His call are all that I am. Neither should we make other religions privatize their faith in favor of our own. I hate to tell you this, but America was never founded on Christianity. It was founded on the concept of religious liberty, for all religions. Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, agnostics, atheists, Christians, Sikhs, Taoists, Shintos, and religions I can't even think of... all religions are supposed to have the freedom to practice their religion (as long as it doesn't transgress civil law, i.e. ritual human sacrifice) and to freely speak about it (see the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States). It's what sets our nation apart from other nations, because we don't have one single religion that it recognized above all the others. I'm tired of the Pat Robertsons of this country calling for us to return to our Christian roots. I'm tired of the Jerry Falwells of this country calling for everyone to automatically become Christian, because it's the American thing to do. They may be wrong, but it's not our place to tell them to give up their beliefs without a shred of evidence why they should. The Gospel of Christ is compelling, the grace of God is irresistible, and we are His messengers... but we are not His enforcers. We do not convert anyone. The Holy Spirit converts people, with or without us. We tend to speak out of both sides of our mouths on this point. We say that we should be given the forum to speak, but no one else is allowed the same forum.

Secondly, this Manifesto calls for us to de-politicize religion. Nowadays, unless you're a part of a certain party, you're pretty close to being called a heretic! Our allegiance is not to any party platform, civil group, world cause, or anything of the sort. Our allegiance is to Christ and Christ alone, to His Gospel and the spread of it, to preaching freedom in Christ and redemption through His blood. We've forgotten that in modern America. This is not to say that we should remove ourselves from all politics. In fact, we should be involved in getting a Christian voice into major issues. We're called to stand up for injustice, the weak of society, the millions of murdered unborn babies, the victims of horrific genocide. It's what Jesus did. But Christianity is not a weapon for political points, to use Guinness's words. We're not to use the Bible to get across a political message. We're not to become terrorists for Jesus. There is a method to getting what needs to be done in politics. It's called voting. It's called litigation. It's called lobbying. Not simply on the basis of "Well, Jesus said so," but on the basis of "It's morally right." Christianity is to never, ever, ever be synonymous with one party or another.

I don't know about you, but I am so ready to be taught what I believe. I'm ready for someone to finally stand up and say, "The church in America needs help." I think that this Manifesto is a good thing (I wished they had picked another term... anything other than Manifesto. I have visions of Communism when they say that.). It's a call to change the way that we think. It's a call to change the way that we behave. It points out things that are wrong with our Church these days. It's a call to get back to actually understanding theology and examining what the Bible really says. It finally stands up to say that Fundamentalism got things wrong, and Liberalism got things wrong. It stands up and says that it's time for civil dialogue between Christians and other religions in this world.

But don't take my word for it. Read it for yourself.

http://www.anevangelicalmanifesto.com/docs/Evangelical_Manifesto.pdf

With a song in my heart...

So I mentioned before that when bad things happen, I turn to music (Scriptural music, that is). I don't really know why that is, but for some reason, God always shows me a song that He wants me to consider when things start to go wrong in my life. And lately, that's been a lot of stuff.

I sat down about 3 weeks after Mrs. Marks died and begged God for the words to write a song for the way I was feeling. It seemed to me like everything that I had been feeling could be summed up in "Bring it on." I think I figured out that when things go wrong, God's trying to bring out a lesson for me. He's teaching me something about His character that I need to know. And what came to me was that, yes, it's okay to go through tough times in life. It's beneficial for us as Christians to face trials, because it teaches us to lean on Him for strength that we can't get anywhere else. And the way that I figure it, going through trials is okay by me, as long as God is there to protect my soul. So this is the product of that night.

Bring On the Storm-- Chris Johnston

Sometimes my life just makes no sense at all
The mountains before me seem just way too tall
I can't see in front, and I can't look behind
I can't seem to shake these doubts that plague my mind
So I'll cling to the love I can't comprehend
Claiming the blood that freed me from sin

So bring on the storm, bring on the rain
Let it wash away all my pain
'Cause it's through the rain I am made whole
So bring on the storm and cover my soul

I look for something to bring me some peace
I seek for someone to wipe these tears from my cheeks
I pray for mercy to come and make me whole
It's only Your mercy that fills this void in my soul
Though the wind howls around my battered form
I'll hold to the strength that can calm this storm

So let the lightning flash and the thunder roll
Let the rain pour down and make me whole again

Bring on the storm, bring on the rain,
Let it wash away all my pain
'Cause it's through the rain I am made whole
So bring on the storm and cover my soul

That song has been playing in my mind for the past couple of weeks, even when all that stuff went down with John last week. Though we may face trials of many kinds, God will never give us more than we can bear. Over the past month or so, He's given me more songs to hold onto during this time... they really speak peace over my life at this point.

This next song has been playing in my mind for the past 2 months or so, ever since... well, this semester from hell began.

Hold Me Jesus-Rich Mullins

Well sometimes my life just don't make sense at all
When the mountains look so big and my faith just seems so small
So hold me Jesus, 'cause I'm shaking like a leaf
You have been King of my glory, won't You be my Prince of Peace

And I wake up in the night and feel the dark
It's so hot inside my soul, I swear there must be blisters on my heart
So hold me Jesus, 'cause I'm shaking like a leaf
You have been King of my glory, won't You be my Prince of Peace

Surrender don't come natural to me
I'd rather fight You for something I don't really want
Than to take what You give that I need
And I beat my head against so many walls, now I'm falling down,
Falling on my knees

And the Salvation Army band is playing this hymn
And Your grace rings out so deep, makes my resistance seem so thin
So hold me Jesus, 'cause I'm shaking like a leaf
You have been King of my glory, won't You be my Prince of Peace

I adopted this next song by Rich Mullins a long time ago as kind of my life song... and it's held special meaning for me today. Nothing on earth should hold my allegiance but Him. If I'm going to stand, I'm going to stand on His grace and power and knowledge that He will indeed pull me through.

If I Stand

There's more that rises in the morning than the sun
And more that shines in the night than just the moon
There's more than this fire here that keeps me warm
And a shelter that is larger than this room

And there's a loyalty that's deeper than mere sentiment
And a music higher than the songs that I can sing
The stuff of earth competes for the allegiance
I owe only to the Giver of all good things

So if I stand, let me stand on the promise
That You will pull me through
And if I can't let me fall on the grace
That first brought me to You
And if I sing let me sing for the joy
That has born in me these songs
And if I weep, let it be as a man
Who is longing for his home

There's more that dances on the prairie than the wind
And more that pulses in the ocean than the tide
There's a love that's fiercer than the love between friends
More gentle than a mother when her baby's at her side.

And there's a loyalty that's deeper than mere sentiment
And a music higher than the songs that I can sing
The stuff of earth competes for the allegiance
I owe only to the Giver of all good things.

Here's a kind of new hymn for me... it's the one I want playing at my funeral (if it's still around when I die). I still get chills every time I hear this song. I love the theological soundness of this song, and the tenacity of each of these statements. They are a firm statement on whom I will place my trust, and a bold declaration of where my hope lies.

In Christ Alone

In Christ alone, my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this Solid Ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love! What depths of peace!
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All-in-All,
Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless Babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
'Til on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His, and He is mine,
Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
'Til He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand!

All of these songs have been teaching me about God and His grace. I have been shown such unmerited favor, that when hard times come, I can't help but hold strong so that my God will still be glorified. Each of these songs has a common theme... In Christ's love, God's goodness, and the Holy Spirit's power I will stand until He moves me. And I will continually praise Him, with His Word on my lips and His song in my heart.