Giving a Reason for Your Faith

but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,  having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
1 Peter 3:15-16 (ESV)

How often have we heard references to this passage? And yet, not enough of us take the words to heart.  Some time ago, persons were asked, “Why do you believe Christianity?” This poll was taken at a recent NBR conference and the responders were people who should be able to give solid reasons for their faith.  The responses were not very enlightening.

“My life has known so much peace since I came to Jesus!”
“I know that Christianity is true because the bible is true.”

These are just two examples from a long list of feel good reasons for their faith. While these types of subjective responses may be valid to the people expressing them they are not going to change an unbelievers heart.  In point of fact, experiential apologetics are as equally valid for almost any religion.  I can guarantee you that most Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists can all point to faith affirming experiences.  I can assure you that every Wiccan practitioner  and Satanist  will tell you that their lives are enriched by their religions.

The point is that subjective appeals to experience mean nothing.  Peter, who walked side by side Jesus, had a greater experience than any of todays Christian.  But when asked, he did not talk about his feelings; he laid out concrete reasons for his faith, a faith for which he died! So I started asking myself why was I a believer? How would I answer this question?  My answer would be thus:

• Christianity and Judaism are the only religions which address the beginning and creation in a rational manner.

• Christianity and Judaism are the only two faiths which attempt to explain who the Creator is and define humanity’s relationship to Him.

• Christianity is the only religion which explain what happened to that relationship and explains the reason for why the world is the way it is.

• Christianity is the only religion which explains how the Creator broke into human history to implement a method for repairing that broken relationship.

• Christianity is the only religion which provides a written record of the Creators work; a record which is rational and historically verifiable and allows for commentary on that written record. This commentary provides verification of Christian claims from sources both antagonistic and sympathetic to Christian truth. The Christian truths are rooted in history.

• Christianity is the only religion which provides a clarity and purpose to its adherents.  It makes sense in peoples lives.

• Christianity is a religion which transforms people and their lives.

• Christianity withstands examination.

• Christianity provides the anticlimax of the human drama. It tells us not only how we began but where we will ultimately end.

I am sure there are other reasons which can be added to this list.  But Christians should able able to give more concrete proofs for our profession of faith.  Why do you believe? What are your reasons for following Jesus Christ?

Before We Argue We Should Settle on What We Are Discussing!

In discussing what direction  the future of the Christian Church in America was heading, I came to the realization that to map out that direction, I had to ensure I and others were talking about the same thing.

Years ago, I took a course in critical thinking. I received an A for the course but had forgotten what it taught.  I forgot the first principle of logical thinking and rhetoric – define your terms.  In order to ensure that we are not comparing what we in the US see a lemon as oval, small, yellow and sour tasting.  A lime is as being like a lemon except it is green and more tart.  It surprised me to find that in much of South America, the definitions are reversed. A lemon is a lime and a lime a lemon.

So how do we define church, evangelical, or even what is a Christian?

Church is from the Greek which can mean the “called out ones”. But there are at least 5 varieties of “called out ones” to whom one can point: the Roman Catholic Church, which considers itself to be the true church; the Orthodox Church which considers itself to be the original and truest to apostolic conventions; the Protestant Church which was born out of the Reformation movement; and the Church of the Latter Day Saints. Most recently there is the Emergent Church, which seems to be dying the Death of a Thousand Cuts.  It is vital to note that each of these church consider themselves as “Christian” despite huge differences in doctrines, worship practices and world-views.   Indeed, it should be noted that each of these have subdivisions and denominations within them.   So, what exactly is “a church’?  I confess that these days I am not even sure I know.

Try defining a Christian today and you will find yourself hip deep in a semantic and theological quagmire. In accepted historical terms, the various creeds outlined in the early church days the accepted definition of “Christian”.  To many these come the closest in consistency and acceptability.  Are the absolute requirements for being considered a Christian.  Historically and theologically, I believe the answer must be a qualified yes.  Just are there are certain criteria which defines a Manx cat from a lion although both are felines.  But there are others who insist that believing that Jesus’s teachings is enough.  Still others, believe that going to church (see above) is enough to be a Christan. But, until those criteria are agreed upon, however, one cannot logically come to any meeting of the minds about weightier matter.

Evangelical is yet another problem. What constitutes an evangelical?

Euangellismos is Greek and Evangel means the good news which in the New Testament denotes the news of salvation. An evangelical was spreading the good news but later came to refer to someone who had certain views about just what that good news is.  In reformation doctrine one held belief was based on God’s sovereign grace in salvation. But many modern “evalgelicals” reject that docrine. So again, just what do we mean by “evangelical”?

Read what RC Sproul wrote recently blending these three subjects.

When we consider the predicament that the evangelical church of the twenty-first century faces in America, the first thing we need to understand is the very designation “evangelical church” is itself a redundancy. If a church is not evangelical, it is not an authentic church. The redundancy is similar to the language that we hear by which people are described as “born-again Christians.” If a person is born again of the Spirit of God, that person is, to be sure, a Christian. If a person is not regenerated by the Holy Spirit, he may profess to be a Christian, but he is not an authentic Christian. There are many groups that claim to be churches that long ago repudiated the evangel, that is, the gospel. Without the gospel, a gathering of people, though they claim otherwise, cannot be an authentic church.

So, before we can even discuss where the church today and Christianity needs to be going  we first have to decide what we mean by these terms.

Coming from a reformed theological background, I will define how these terms are meant in most of my writings.

Christianity: the historic faith as given to us by the New Testament.  Adherents (called Christians) believe that  the historic bible, inerrant in the original autographs, sufficient in its teaching, is the literal revealed word of God.  Christianity is biblical in it’s foundations and relevant in its teachings. Biblical Christianity teaches that there is one God, revealed in a Trinity, the deity of Jesus Christ, the substitution atonement for sin via Jesus Christ due to the inherent sinful nature of humanity.  Christianity must also rely on the death and Resurrection of Jesus and adhere to the assurance that Jesus will return. Without these key beliefs, Christianity is pointless.

Christian: an adherent of Christianity in faith and in deed.

Evangelical: Not a denomination but a way of approaching Christianity by by spreading the evangel or “Good News (gospel)

It would be nice is other writers would take the time to define their terms.  discourse is only productinve when we all begin at the same place.

4 Loves

A person named Mangesh wrote this originally, but I changed the ending a bit.  But I think the truths are just as applicable now as ever…and for many of us, even more so.

The Story of 4 Loves

Once upon a time there was a girl who had four loves. She loved the fourth love the most and adorned him with rich robes and treated him to the finest of delicacies. She gave him nothing but the best.

She also loved the third love very much and was always showing him off to neighboring kingdoms. However, she feared that one day he would leave her for another.

She also loved her second love. He was her confidant and was always kind, considerate and patient with her. Whenever this girl faced a problem, she could confide in him, and he would help her get through the difficult times.

The girl’s first love was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining her wealth and kingdom. However, she did not really love the first love. Although he loved her deeply, she hardly took notice of him!

One day, the girl fell ill and she knew her time was short. She thought of her luxurious life and wondered, ‘I now have four loves with me, but when I die, I’ll be all alone.’

Thus, she asked the fourth love, ‘I loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I’m dying, will you follow me and keep me company?’

‘No way!’, replied the fourth love, and he walked away without another word.

His answer cut like a sharp knife right into her heart.

The sad girl then asked the third love, ‘I loved you all my life. Now that I’m dying, will you follow me and keep me company?’

‘No!’, replied the third love. ‘Life is too good! When you die, I’m going to marry someone else!’

Her heart sank and turned cold.

She then asked the second love, ‘I have always turned to you for help and you’ve always been there for me.  When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?’

‘I’m sorry, I can’t help you out this time!’, replied the second love. ‘At the very most, I can only walk with you to your grave.’

His answer struck her like a bolt of lightning, and the girl was devastated.

Then a voice called out: ‘I’ll go with you. I’ll follow you no matter where you go.’

The girl looked up, and there was her first love. He was very skinny as he suffered from malnutrition and neglect and mistreatment. But his eys were kind and still full of life.

Greatly grieved, the girl said, ‘I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!’

In truth, you have four loves in your life:

Your fourth love is your body. No matter how much time and effort you lavish in making it look good, it will leave you when you die.

Your third love is your possessions, status and wealth. When you die, it will all go to others.

Your second love is your family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for you, the furthest they can stay by you is up to the grave.

And your first love is Jesus Christ, Lord and Savior – too often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the world.

However, Jesus Christ is the only one that will follow you wherever you go. Cultivate, strengthen and cherish Him now, for He is the only love that will follow you to the Throne of God and continue with you throughout Eternity.

The Future of the American Christian Church? (Part 1 Backround)

There is distressing news for some in the latest edition of the magazine Newsweek. It is writing on a recent report  released by the 2009 American Religious Identification Survey. The survey confirms what we of faith already know: the Christian faith will begin the long slide into the pit of apostasy which Scripture assures us will and must occur. This apostate church is affirmed in such passages as 2 Peter 2, Jude 8-10, Hebrews 10, as well as 5 of the named churches in Revelation chapters 2 and 3.  the entire article can be read online at The End of Christian America . Briefly, the article points to a few troubling facts:

• the number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly doubled since 1990, rising from 8 to 15 percent.
• the percentage of self-identified Christians has fallen 10 percentage points since 1990, from 86 to 76 percent.
• The Jewish population is 1.2 percent; the Muslim, 0.6 percent (but growing)

The article then quotes from the prior Pew report.

• reporting that the percentage of people who say they are unaffiliated with any particular faith has doubled in recent years, to 16 percent; in terms of voting, this group grew from 5 percent in 1988 to 12 percent in 2008—roughly the same percentage of the electorate as African-Americans.
• Seventy-five percent of unaffiliated voters chose Barack Obama, a Christian. Meanwhile, the number of people willing to describe themselves as atheist or agnostic has increased about fourfold from 1990 to 2009, from 1 million to about 3.6 million.  That is about double the number of, say, Episcopalians in the United States. {At least that is what he says. I haven’t found any evidence of it yet.}
  

The article does, rightly point out that being LESS christian is not the same as being POST Christian. In the past, post christian meant the same as being agnostic or ashiest. To others it can mean a decline in importance and influence in charting the course of American life.

One does need to define what is meant by “Christian America”. Here the article made a stab at it but failed. It said:

Evangelical Christians have long believed that the United States should be a nation whose political life is based upon and governed by their interpretation of biblical and theological principles. If the church believes drinking to be a sin, for instance, then the laws of the state should ban the consumption of alcohol. If the church believes the theory of evolution conflicts with a literal reading of the Book of Genesis, then the public schools should tailor their lessons accordingly. If the church believes abortion should be outlawed, then the legislatures and courts of the land should follow suit. The intensity of feeling about how Christian the nation should be has ebbed and flowed since Jamestown; there is, as the Bible says, no thing new under the sun. For more than 40 years, the debate that began with the Supreme Court’s decision to end mandatory school prayer in 1962 (and accelerated with the Roe v. Wade ruling 11 years later) may not have been novel, but it has been ferocious. Fearing the coming of a Europe-like secular state, the right longed to engineer a return to what it believed was a Christian America of yore.

It goes on to correctly point out that that experiment has thus far, failed.  The Newsweek author goes on to say that

Many conservative Christians believe they have lost the battles over issues such as abortion, school prayer and even same-sex marriage, and that the country has now entered a post-Christian phase. Christopher Hitchens —a friend and possibly the most charming provocateur you will ever meet—wrote a hugely popular atheist tract a few years ago, “God Is Not Great.” As an observant (if deeply flawed) Episcopalian, I disagree with many of Hitchens’s arguments—I do not think it is productive to dismiss religious belief as superstitious and wrong—but he is a man of rigorous intellectual honesty who, on a recent journey to Texas, reported hearing evangelical mutterings about the advent of a “post-Christian” America.

I will leave you to read the rest of the article for yourselves. But what does all of this mean and where does it leave us for the future.  Here is my belief.

Like certain other Evangelical preachers, I have long been saying that the church in America, like that of Ephesus,  lost its first love long ago.  That first love must be Jesus Christ and the Gospel.  For the Christian Right, the Moral Majority, and the  Conservative Christians Movement, their focused far to much on trying to do something which Christ never, in any part of scripture, never called upon to do and that is to put forth our efforts into marrying conservative, Christian ethics and values with government.  We believed, wrongly in my opinion, that America was somehow a covenant nation and chosen above all other nations.  While, we were certainly blessed, we never were, and are not now a covenant nation.  As things in America changed over time, we believed that if we could just be religious enough, stern enough, Christian enough, and assure all of this through laws passed by our legislatures, we could return to and enjoy the benefits to which we became used.

What we forgot was that this mindset left unchecked, the mindset of Moralism, led directly to the mindset found in the Pharisees and Sadducee’s. Moralism, never attains it goal.  Also, it results in a deflection from our true purpose which it to be living representatives of Christ on earth and diverts time, talent and money from out task of spreading the gospel.

Tomorrow, I will post the second pat of this blog outlining what exactly has resulted from this diversion and why we can expect more.  I will touch on what the current state of the American church is from a lay persons viewpoint and what we can expect in the future.

Lord, You Forgot Something!

Make yourself an ark of gopher wood.  Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. This is how you are to make it: the length of the ark 300 cubits, its breadth 50 cubits, and its height 30 cubits.  Make a roof for the ark, and finish it to a cubit above, and set the door of the ark in its side.  Make it with lower, second, and third decks. (Gen 7:14-16  ESV)

Notice that God instructed Noah of exactly what material the ark was to be comprised. He gave the length, breadth, height, how many floors, rooms, windows, how to waterproof, a door.  Later He gave instructions on how to many animals and of what type (clean and unclean), food. Nothing was left to chance. God was specific in every detail.

Or was He?  Have you noticed something He left out?  The ark was to hold all life during a massive flood. What did God not specify?

God never made any mention of a sail or rudder or even a keel design. Noah, who had never made a canoe much less an ark as I am aware, had no way to stabilize, propel or guide this craft over the months of being on the water.  All that was left to God.  God wanted Noah to trust in God to bring Noah to safety. In His wisdom, Lord God, didn’t even expose Noah to the temptation of trying to wrest control.  No Sail, No Rudder, No Problem.

I can’t take credit for this epiphany.  I heard it the other day from Ravi Zacharias, and he only briefly mentioned it in passing as a question.  But God was speaking directly to me in that moment. I immediately checked the passage and my eyes were opened.

We, God’s chosen. must be like Noah and trust in the Lord’s sovereignty, might and will to move and guide us over the troubled waters of our lives. This is  especially true now when so much of the world we knew is changing. It was true for me in the great transitions I experience in my life. So often I find my self reaching for the rudder so I can alter course; billow out a little more sail so I can move faster. The bulge may be building, the food giving way, and smell is terrible! This is not what I signed up for, Lord! I have to gain some kind of control!  But control isn’t one of my options.

Like Noah, we have to be reminded that since coming to Christ, we gave up control.  We don’t have a helm to steer our way past the rocks which line the shores of our lives. Whirlpools and reefs can’t be avoided by running to the mast.  God didn’t equip us with those items. Noah didn’t need them and neither do we. We have no choice but to be as Noah and rest in the assurance that God’s hand will bring us to the mountain top and we can disembark in safety.

Rest in the knowledge that God is in control and He will bring us safely to our destination.

Real Faith Shows: How to Discern a Genuine Christian.

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! ( 2 Cor 13:5 ESV)

A mere confession of faith is not sufficient to prove a life changing faith in Our Lord, Jesus Christ.  A believer will demonstrate a visible morality (Mt 19:16-21,23,27).  They will exhibit a good biblical knowledge (Rom 1:21; 2:17ff), and  they are involved with their church, ministry and community (Mt 25:1-10).   They see themselves as sinners and are convicted of sin (Acts 24:25).  After making a decision for Christ (Lk 8:13,14), an assurance of salvation is assumed (Mt 23, yes, the whole chapter).

But is this enough? If Christianity were a crime, would these traits be enough to convict a person? Not necessarily.  Hell will have no lack of “good” people.  Our institutions of higher learning, including seminaries,  are populated by those claiming biblical knowledge but lack any true feeling for the gospel of Christ.  Church involvement is often just routine; an activity preceding a Sunday afternoon barbecue.   Active ministry is required by our Lord,  but it must be as genuine as the professed conviction of sin.

Fortunately,  Jesus recognized that true saving faith was going to be harder to come-by although many would profess a belief in Our Lord. He warned us of the results.

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’  Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. (Mt 7:21-24 ESV)

True Christian faith is known by its fruits.  Some would call them works but I prefer the term “proofs” of genuine saving faith.  Just as a mirror reflects a image of the person, a vibrant faith reflects the image and spirit of Jesus, the one who lives in us. These traits are also clearly outlined within the pages of Scripture. Genuine saving faith blossoms in a love for God (Ps 42:1ff; 73:25; Lk 10:27; Rom 8:7), repentance from sin (Ps 32:5; Pr 28:13; Ro 7:14ff; 2 Cor 7:10; 1 Jn 1:8-10), true humility (Ps 51:17; Mt 5:1-12; Jas 4:6,9ff), a devotion to God’s Glory ( Ps 105:3; 115:1; Is 43:7; Is 48:10ff; Jer 9:23,24; 1 Cor 10:31), a life of continual prayer (Lk 18:1; Eph 6:18ff; Php 4:6ff; 1 Tim 2:1-4; Jas 5:16-18), a selfless love for others (1 Jn 2:9ff; 3:14; 4:7ff), a separation from the world (1 Cor 2:12; Jas 4:4ff; 1 Jn 2:15-17; 5:5), growth of the spirit (Lk 8:15; Jn 15:1-6; Eph 4:12-16), living in obedience to God (Mt 7:21; Jn 15:14ff; Rom 16:26; 1 Pet 1:2,22; 1 Jn 2:3-5), a hunger for God’s Word and bible study (1 Pet 2:1-3).  All of these result in a transformed life (2 Cor 5:17)!

And all of the glory and credit goes to God.

If List 1 is true of a person and List 2 is false, then there is serious cause to question a persons profession of faith.  However, if List 2 is true, then List 1 will be true as well.  That is the beauty of real faith.

There are challenging days to come, and I do not believe that I am overstating my case when I say challenging.  Indeed, I think I am soft-pedaling.  In those days, it is important that we not just profess the blessingsof Christianity but live them out in our daily lives.

“Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.”  1 John 2:4-6 (ESV)

Hello and Welcome to Mars Hill Perspectives

Hello and welcome to the first edition of Mars Hill Perspectives.  Our intention is provide quality commentary from a variety of perspectives involving a life of faith. We hope to bring ideas from a variety of Christian viewpoints.

This project grew out of friendships and dialogues begun on MySpace and moved here so as to gain a wider audience.

Like the fabled Mars Hill in Athens where the apostle Paul spoke, we hope to attract extort Christ to the world. In each posting we fill hope to remain focused on relevant topics from contemporary Christian writers and bloggers.  While we may not agree with the viewpoint, we promises to maintain clarity of thought, civility in discourse and generosity in attitude.  We hope to open minds and hearts to the glory of  God.  Personally, I hope not to advance any agenda save being seen and a faithful follower of Christ and to have His light and wisdom shine through these pages.

As our list of contributors grows, so will the perspectives discussed. We hope that you will subscribe, read, ponder, diseminate and discuss. Perhaps you will like to join our llittle group and contribute. That is certainly my prayer.  so feel ffree to comback and contribute.

Until tomorrow.

S. McKenna