Cynicism and Preaching

Preaching has been coming into question over the past decade (more or less) with arguments like the shorter attention spans of the hearers, the inauthenticity of pretentious pastors, its inability to actually change lives, and various and sundry other arguments.

Proponents of preaching, cite biblical references, historical precedent, and start screaming louder and louder to drown out opposition. Yet they fail to seriously take into consideration the charges brought against them. (I am talking here of people I have heard defending preaching, such as John MacArthur and his cronies, and even Mark Driscoll).

I am a little tougher sell, though. I have blogged before about the danger of overusing the lecture format in church, and how it can be abused. This time, I want to try to sell preaching, but with different philosophical foundations behind its use and function.

First and foremost, let's face it, the gospel must presented orally at some point. Actions, pictures, songs, and attitudes are the backup singers: insufficient on their own, but when paired with the melody line, it creates a fuller, more beautiful experience and expression of the original idea.

The main problem I see to preaching is how to communicate truth to a society that is completely overrun with iconoclasm, sarcasm, cynicism, and skepticism, much like a medieval city overrun by rats and lice. How can one break through the wall of skepticism without demolishing the building?

I have a few solutions that are both difficult to describe and master, but must, I believe, be present.

To begin, as I learned in preaching class, the purpose of a sermon is NEVER knowledge. The purpose of every sermon is to connect people to the God of the universe, to lead them to the bridge between time and eternity, the God-man, Jesus. Confronted with the presence of God, people will then see who they are and be drawn to repent and motivated to do good and spurn evil.

This kind of preaching can only be achieved through prayer, because it is the power of the Holy Spirit, working in the hearts and minds and lives of the hearers. So preachers must pray, pray, pray.

Next, as a result of enlightenment philosophies of the past several hundred years, preaching has been replaced with cold, lifeless, abstract propositions, and has seen fit to leave behind the active, living, concrete metaphors and vivid word pictures. When you actually examine scripture, it is almost entirely made up of metaphor, story, song, and parable. Very little of the Bible is abstract or purely propositional in nature.

Certainly, propositions are made/implied by these vehicles of communication, but what service is done by taking the concrete and making it abstract and theoretical?

So we are to let the Bible speak on its own terms, and use parables and metaphor and figures of speech to engage the imagination of the hearer. And finally, we MUST know our audiences and take their objections seriously. We must listen to the questions they are asking, the concerns that they are raising, and reply humbly and sincerely.

The last point is my biggest disappointment in most preaching. The message has nothing to do with me, because none of my questions are raised and dealt with. Naturally, the preacher cannot deal with every objection possible, but the objections must be contemporary and should be real, not just the whim and imagination of what the preacher thinks an objector might sound.

Paul is the best example of raising objections to his own points. Books like Romans and Corinthians are brilliant examples of answering logical objections with real solutions. In writing, it's known as the "hypothetical interlocutor," but who cares! Put the people's real questions in your mouth. And preach Jesus.

I'll deal more with propositions in my next blog. This topic just ran away with me! Hooah!

The "Ever Fixed Mark"

I'm sure that the more refined readers will recognize the title as being stolen from Shakespeare (Sonnet CXVI to be precise).

So what does an old love poem have to do with western culture's movement from modernism to postmoderism, Christian existentialism, and my life so far? Good question!

"Modernism" can be grossly oversimplified as the search for foundations, and even THE foundation. Modernism as we know it was launched with the Cartesian formula "I think, therefore I am." Existence was founded on being rational. The human mind was the pinnacle of creation, and it was thought that no mystery or problem was beyond a solution based on the scientific method.

Eventually, humans figured out that most of what "I think" is based on "my" experience, and "my" culture, and "my" worldview. This discovery led to the mission to deconstruct all previously held general assumptions of facts (and even "proven" facts) by exposing the foundations upon which they were held as mere aspects of "truth," only "relative" to each person's experience. (my right pinky is getting tired of all these quote marks...)

The search for foundations, the "ever fixed mark[s]" upon which everything would stand, has led to the attempted destruction of every thought, theory, and practice. The result is a feeling of "lostness." Philosophers have variously called this feeling despair, angst, homelessness, and sundry other synonyms. It is evident in all our culture, the constant motion of life to avoid these feelings, the acknowledged emptiness of the entertainment, on which we spend countless hours and dollars, the lyrics of many bands (esp. alternative) like Coldplay, U2, and many other less famous performers.

The deeper we dig, and the harder we try, the more questions we find, and the more variables and aspects appear. Science is still trying desperately to put together the grand unified theory of everything, and there is still little consensus on how life begins in naturalistic ways other than "it just does." Wars still rage on, even despite our human "evolution" beyond these things.

So now to bring this around again to the title: humanity is more in need now than ever of an "ever fixed mark."

Is it any wonder that the Old Testament, which is filled with imagery of humanity as transient (filling the earth, scattering after Babel, sojourning in Egypt, wandering in the desert, being exiled from the promised land, etc.) has such "outmoded" titles for God in the Psalms such as Rock, Refuge, Fortress, Tower, Established, Forever...

---

The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer,

My God, my mountain where I seek refuge,

My shield and the horn of my salvation,

My stronghold.

---

Long ago You established the earth,

And the heavens are the work of Your hands.

They will perish, but You will endure;

All of them will wear out like clothing.

You will change them like a garment,

And they will pass away.

But You are the same, and Your years will never end.

---

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

---

"Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds . . .

O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken"

Humble "Innovation"

Because of anti-traditional diatribes of late, I have been questioned by several people vis-a-vis what happens when my anti-traditions become tradition.

First, I want to make clear that none of my ideas are innovations. In fact, most of them even predate Jesus (e.g., Socratic method style teaching).

Second, I have no love whatsoever for chasing fads, or the next new thing. Part of the problem with institutionalized churches (e.g. Willow Creek, Saddleback) that hold conference after conference promoting new, bigger, better, faster, whatever, is that they eat up huge chunks of budget on surface stuff. I am dealing with a foundational understanding of what the church is.

Third, I have to realize that not everyone will agree with me now or ever. The problem with more traditional churches is that they don't care and will not listen to younger people. When I was in high school, the pastor of my church was retirement-age and I loved him (still do!). Why? Because he treated me as a valued person and took time to talk with me and get to know me and pray for me. That's all I'm really looking for: acceptance, the ability to be myself without being judged or relegated to being a second-class Christian.

In summary, I'm not looking for something new, per se, I'm looking for something real, authentic, meaningful, and worthwhile.

I find it funny that even the "liberal" churches are having the same problems with their young people. It's not about mere rebellion, or taste, or style, or preference. It's about humbling yourself, being open to dialogue with your "enemies," and dropping the need to always be right.

I can now guarantee you that I have been wrong on some of my blogs. It's OK with me.

It takes a big man to admit his mistakes, and I am that big man. I've just got to go out there, stand up for what I believe in, and do the best I can do. I'm not the pope, I'm not Jesus, but I see a broken system in American church discipleship. I can't just stand by and ignore it. Something's got to change. If I'm suggesting the wrong things, let's talk about it and see where we end up.

I am sure of a few things: inform people why you do what you do, don't blow smoke and make up crap that sounds good but isn't really in the Bible, and treat people like they are valuable until they actually become valuable.

Messianic Postmodernity

This post may go over some people's heads, but I'm OK with that.

I'm really excited to be graduated so that now I can finally read all the books I've been wanting to read but couldn't because of the demands of school. I'm reading more about the "emergent" wing of the emerging church, frequently classified as those who reside in emergentvillage.com.

One of their unifying traits (if any!) is the idea of what has been termed a "trajectory hermeneutic." Simply put, that is the idea that there seems to be a shift between old and new testaments, and the church continues the shift as our context changes. Some might call it evolutionary Christianity, some might call it stupid.

Some are claiming that we are in a new stage in God's redemption story, which included past things like creation, the exodus, the exile, Jesus' resurrection, (perhaps) the protestant reformation, and now postmodernism (or postmodernity?).

Here's the key question: is the Bible sufficient after 2,000 to 3,000 years of saying the same thing? Are the people that propound this view really under the direction of the Holy Spirit?

I'll make this brief: Yes with a but, and no with an if.
Yes, scripture is sufficient, otherwise we'd either get more of it or we wouldn't even need it.
While I believe that many of these people are Christian, (probably?) I think that some of their teachings are going to have serious consequences down the line.

Waiting on the World to Change

Go ahead and call me dumb, but John Mayer's Waiting on the World to Change (I kinda like this churchified video) keeps playing in my head, over and over and over. I'm not really a fan of his, but I definitely identify with the sentiment. Is this really the best we can do as a state, as a country, as a world, as a church??

My basic life goal is to make a measurable difference for the better. Thus far, I haven't been put in a position to change things. It's frustrating. I wonder sometimes that if I am put in a position to change things, by the time will I have lost all the naive enthusiasm and optimism that I now have? Is it possible that I might hinder a young idealist like me and turn him into just another old cynical curmudgeon?

But here's the thing: people all over the world have been "waiting on the world to change" since the beginning. Why can't humans get it right? Why can't we achieve that elusive Utopian society? Now that all the Hippies and Yuppies have each had their chance to rule America, are we any better off??

Romans 8:18-25 tells us that all creation is frustrated and groaning, waiting on Jesus to restore everything.

My generation is getting ready to step up to the plate and take our turn with the world. I'm pretty confident that by the time I'm 60-ish the young people will still be complaining about the same things that I'm tired of.

However, while we may not be able to change the world, we can definitely impact our families, our churches, our jobs, and our communities. One person can absolutely make a difference, and several people together can make a big difference. So let's get started making our little differences and trust that Jesus is still coming back to change the whole world into an actual Utopia. In this way, we are "Changing the World While We Wait" for Jesus. Maybe someone can make a catchy song out of that phrase.

The Next Generation

No, I'm not talking about Star Trek. What I am talking about is the enormous population gap that churches are becoming more and more ineffective at retaining: 18-35 year olds. Why is that? There have been many suggestions. Postmodern worldview, worldly temptations, boring services, too early to get up, and on and on and on. We can come up with all kinds of excuses, but what if, what if, the reason is inside us?

While this may not be true for everyone, in my experience churches don't like "kids" messing up the good thing they've got going. Instead of involving them in decisions, giving them leadership opportunities, and mentoring them, churches keep them perpetually children, locked away from the "real" church, throw a bunch of pizza at them, and make them continue to sit at the children's table. Why would anyone want to continue at that kind of church?? I can eat pizza and play video games at home.

Meanwhile, these "kids" are out designing websites, making music, and being trained in management in the secular world.

Southern Baptists like to claim that every believer gets a spiritual gift when they become a Christian, but in practice, the only thing we let youth and young adults do is listen to adults, watch movies, and eat pizza. Maybe instead we should let them exercise their gifts (under encouraging supervision), and find a way for them to be the church, not just an auxiliary to the old people.