★★★★★ 5
” Not so long ago we were sure that such an amazing and beautiful reality must be way off in the ...
Format: Paperback
Eclectic Living?
How are you relating right now to Jesus? Did you see the “you” and the “right now?” We’re all different and in different places in our lives, also in the ways we turn to Jesus and trust him. The gospel of Jesus is rich and varied, with so many facets meeting us in our so multiple needs.
We have been thinking about our “union with Christ.” Not so long ago we were sure that such an amazing and beautiful reality must be way off in the future, at the end of the chain of our “way of salvation,” the ordo salutis. When we go to heaven without any remaining sin, then we’ll see how all Jesus has done for us comes together, that was how we used to think. Then John Murray and others began to show us how union isn’t at the far end but at the very beginning of new life in Jesus. That means that our forgiveness/justification and our godly growth/sanctification belong together, both gifts from the Jesus to whom we belong.
For people who know our theological history that could be alarming though. Wasn’t that what the Reformation 500 years ago was all about? Before, people thought that the main thing was to do the best you can, and then it could be maybe that God would answer that with forgiveness and blessing. But how can you tell when you’re doing enough? The more spiritually alert you were, the less sure. Then came Martin Luther and that breakthrough insight: yes the Lord is holy and you aren’t, but Jesus is! It’s his righteousness that he gives you, and now you can be confident that God is on your side, that when things go wrong it isn’t because he’s mad at you, but probably he’s giving you some kind of “fatherly chastisement.”
Isn’t that wonderful, that firm foundation of the Lord’s unfailing love for you! Being totally sure that what we so desperately need right now is right there in the gospel. Isn’t that all we’ll ever need? In some ways it is, but aren’t we still supposed to grow in our godliness? We’re called to love the Lord with all our hearts and our neighbors as ourselves—now that’s not easy, is it? Luther gave us a real start, but we have to add that now we give our hearts to respond to our Lord’s love with whole-hearted life-changing obedience, right? Lutherans tend to want to stick with #1, forgiveness, and we Reformed want the bigger package. But to do that means work, putting together the loving presence of your Jesus and doing those hard things in your life.
That’s the history, but where are we right now? Way back when I became a believer, it was about “what if you were to die tonight?” That is, in the next six hours how much change can you pull off? Not much, so dying tonight was totally about forgiveness. Back then there was also a lot of teaching about the end of the world and the suffering that would happen then. Most believed Jesus would take us out of that before it got too bad. Interesting, but what if we haven’t arrived yet at the end? So our combo of “tonight” and “sometime way off,” wasn’t much for “what if I have to get up tomorrow morning,” which so far is what life is about.
Sure, people became believers, and were decent afterwards. But did the Jesus gospel really have much to do with their lives? Even if they did their thing and read the Bible every day? Friend Rosemarie tells the world that I have “an eclectic fashion statement.” I really like my bright pink shirt and also my Navaho green bola—so I wear them together. If each is great, then together they have to be stunning, right? Well, they do leave people stunned, eclectically.
So here’s a remarkable Biblical doctrine, say justification, and here’s someone struggling with loneliness. Justification has to be the answer, right? Both are important, so don’t they have to fit? Bone up on justification and watch what happens: not much. Loneliness is a lot about not having a clue about relating to people, how does you forgiveness fit that? Eclectic?
John Leonard’s Get Real helps. When you’re getting to know a not-yet-believer, what do you talk about? Here’s John’s profound answer: it depends! It depends on what’s so hard for him, you learn that by Listening! Then you bring a piece of the gospel to him, one of the “many facets of the gospel!” That is, something out of your own hard life and how the Lord has been blessing you through it, from some part of what Jesus has done for you. I don’t believe John tells us how many facets there are, he’s still collecting them.
John is mostly about not-yets. Now comes David Powlison’s How Does Sanctification Work? He’s about “you, yourself and I.” What’s so hard for you right now? Where is that piece of the Bible that helps you understand and go on to live? Look hard for it, don’t be satisfied with eclectic. That’s going to take prayer and trust in Jesus. Jack Miller taught us to have prayer answered right away: Lord, show me my sin. Now add a David one: show me where I am and how Jesus is there for me. Justification may not be it, don’t look for a cure-all, see how the Lord came in the Bible to people with different lives and gave them exactly what they needed. Talk to other believers too.
I’m glad that biblical counseling came along, people and Bible together, Jay! I’m glad that urban ministry also arrived, now we can learn how to think like a missionary by going only a few miles: see how people different from you are blessed through the gospel in ways you never knew; Harvie! Manny! (Underneath all that comes from seeing the culture under the Bible, how it meets people in that mindset or mess or foolishness. Thank you Meredith Kline, Ray Dillard, Dan McCartney and Doug Green).
Can we count on preachers to model that for us: they know where their people are, don’t they? They can’t preach to fit all those needs at once, but wouldn’t it work to show the basic How? We all can do better with giving them feedback, right? Those liberals just about invented Eclectic, they could see some need and make up a story about it, not bothering with the Bible. We have to watch that we’re not doing Eclectic the other way around though, doing the Bible right and mumbling about how it works. That’s why the Lord has raised up those questioning millennials for us, making clear that what we’re doing so far isn’t much help.
As usual I’m better at spotting the problem than giving the answer. But at least I can give you the beginning: read David’s book!
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Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2017
