Three Lessons from Church History

One of the first lessons I learned was that allowing a political leader, who at best operates out of the flesh, is detrimental when allowed to be a “Christian” voice. While it may have been good that Constantine ended persecution of Christians, tying citizenship to Christianity ensured that many false converts were made, instead of repentant sinners who ‘counted the cost.’ After all, if you are offered money, a robe and citizenship over getting baptized, would you really be identifying as a sinner in need of Christ, or simply looking to get a few benefits? Sadly, as time went on, just as in the period of the judges, wicked popes and church leaders perverted the truth and polluted the Christian faith.

I honestly think the second lesson I learned was not placing too much importance on tradition. Growing up Lutheran, I experience a great deal of church tradition, much of which descended through the Roman Catholic Church and filtered through the Reformation. However, not knowing the origin of certain practices, I’ve imagined that how I grew up was how Christianity has to look like. Consequently, I failed to honor and find value in other expressions of the Christian faith, instead becoming a little proud and indignant. Additionally, things such as incense seem really cool, but considering they were practically for reducing body odor of the parishioners, I don’t want to imagine it some sort of holy, symbolic thing. In other words, I definitely find great value in tradition, but it is helpful for the mature believer to learn the origins of many traditions, to continue to purify oneself of compromise that has subtly crept into the church.

The third lesson to be learned is the value of allowing the Holy Spirit to be the teacher and leader. While many of the Reformers brought back the truth of the Gospel, some like Luther had both a bad mouth and bad attitudes. Hoping Jews to be burned or Anabaptist attached to stone and thrown into water isn’t exactly displaying the love of Christ. And I wonder how much time Luther spent asking the Lord about different issues, as opposed to perhaps reading the scriptures and logically developing theology out of his own understanding. I’m sure there was a certain level of this, but clearly there were some major issues in Luther’s heart that did not facilitate Christ-like love. Perhaps if Luther spent more time asking the Lord, perhaps he would get God’s heart for Israel and been a little more compassionate to different Christian perspective, even if he thought they were off on secondary doctrinal points. Unlike Luther, I hope not to be a man of my time, but a man lead by the Spirit who transcends time and culture.

God offends the mind to reveal the heart

In Chapter 11 of Growing in the Prophetic, Mike Bickle talks about how God offends the mind to reveal the heart. As a non-charaimatic walking into charismatic people, I can relate. Mike mentioned that the Holy Spirit doesn't seem to concerned with reputation and sometimes intentionally offends people. One of the examples given was the healing of Naaman in 2 Kings 5. Naaman didn't want to do what the prophet asked, but eventually did after receiving advice, and was healed. So long as what one ministering to me is asking me to do does not violate scripture, I want to have the humility to at least give it a shot. For example, my wife gave me a list of statements of who I am in Christ, but I didn't want to say them out loud in the mirror seven times, as she felt the Lord was prompting her to tell me. However, I eventually swallowed my pride and the result was that the oppression I felt lifted.

Mike also mentioned the issue of bizarre methods or unconventional ministry styles, but mentioned stepping out in faith with those who have an established positive track record. I would also like to employ the same attitude. Having myself seen the strange way that God has worked in the scriptures (2 Kings 6, Ezekiel 4), I want to make sure I do not arrogantly reject what God might be saying through others, because it did not come in the package I preferred.

I also greatly appreciated Mike's recommendation with how to handle public corrections. I always wondered how to deal with this, but Mike suggested letting the first fleshly word slide (unless clearly unbiblical or destructive). If they continue, then privately talk with them about saying less, then asking them not to speak in public, then warning them that a public rebuke will come if they continue, then public rebuke with public explanation that the offender was privately warned. In this manner, the church is protected and understands the process, so those who want to grow in prophetic ministry are not discouraged.

Mike also explained that the Pharisees were actually the conservative intellectuals that basically held the line of orthodoxy. However, their problem was pride. They believed they were the only ones with the truth, interpreting scripture through the lens of their elders. They were also “content to be seen as orthodox without hungering for the presence of God Himself” (Bickle, p121). I've seen elements of this in myself, which God is working out. I want the humility to recognize when I or my group gets thigns things wrong so I can allow the Holy Spirit to be my teacher, instead of my spiritual “tribe.” Secondly, I will always remember that God wants me to be grounded in His written Word, but that Word was made flesh and wants me to encounter the Emanuel, “God with us” reality here and now in my experience, through the promised Holy Spirit.

Be with me

So I spent 2 hours meditating on John 14:27, and God used it to bring freedom to my heart. I began by considering the word “Father,” asking the Holy Spirit to reveal to me God as father. I got a series of phrases that were directed towards how God felt towards me. Through the next few phrases, I experienced something similar. Then, when I got to “may be with me where I am,” I felt the Lord say “I want you with me, Robert” and it struck chord in me. You see, in high school I was “on fire for Jesus.” I felt the Lord call me to be a pastor, I was getting involved in evangelism and I was consuming the Word like nobodies business. I literally told God that I surrendered my whole being to Him and He could do with me whatever He wanted. Point being, I wanted to give my 100%, going hard after the Lord. Then, I went through six years of Clinical Depression, which was the darkest six years of my life. I felt that my faith got severely damaged and it became a fight for me not to give up talking to God. Consequently, I often relate to Peter. Peter was all in for Jesus and was the one that seemed to give His 100%. However, Jesus told Peter that he would deny Jesus. Though Peter denied that he would do such a thing, the time came that Peter did deny Jesus and, when he realized what Jesus said had happened, he wept bitterly.

While God has been healing my heart, just as with Peter on the shore when Jesus reinstated him, there have still been parts of me that have felt unworthy or guilty. As I meditated on Jesus' desire to be with me, that unworthy feeling got touched and I couldn't quite fully believe that Jesus wanted to be with me. However, I knew that Jesus did want to be with me and I started praying to God about this issue. I was reminded of two verses: Romans 8:1 and Romans 5:8. Romans 8:1 reminded me that “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Through Christ, I was no longer condemned, so I can reject condemnation. Then Romans 5:8 reminded me of God's love, which was so deep that Jesus died for my while I was still a sinner! Reflecting on God's love, I believed the Gospel. Satan immediately brought doubt into my heart, but I chose to trust in the Gospel and believe that Jesus desired me and through faith in His blood, I was fully cleansed, fully forgiven. Thank God that He has been answering my prayer to help me overcome my unbelief, and is helping me to believe the Gospel more fully.Thank God Jesus wants to be with me!

Why is sola scriptura important?

Throughout centuries of church history, there have been four methods of obtaining truth: Scripture, tradition, reason and experience. Clearly, in Jesus' time, experience would have been a big method of obtaining truth. Because the twelve disciples literally walked with the Lord of the universe, they had the benefit of experiencing Jesus teaching through all five senses. However, they still very much relied on the written scriptures that actually vetted that Jesus was who He said He was. After Jesus ascended and as time went on, tradition became a huge source of truth. After all, those closest to Jesus understandably knew quite a bit, and so future disciples would rightly wish to imitate them as much as possible. Unfortunately, with the expansion of the church and introduction of geopolitical power, the sinful flesh distorted truth and instead “tradition” easily became what the current pope decided it would be, even divorced from Scripture. By the time of the reformation in the 1500's, “tradition” devolved into mere traditions of men that deviated largely from the scriptural foundations, which produced a massive split in the church.

Reason is also a source of truth, given by God to help us understand and work through information. Unfortunately, some have underestimated that God's ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9), and so reasoned things like the resurrection of Christ right out of their theology. As mentioned earlier, experience is another method of obtaining truth, although it looks a bit different than it did in the days of the disciples walking with Jesus. The Holy Spirit now lives in each one of us and we can operate in signs, wonders and miracles (John 14:12), experiencing the joy of the Lord, angelic encounters and a whole host of other supernatural experiences, which can be doorways into the revelation of God. Unfortunately, many have taken these “doorways” without heeding scriptures, thus opening themselves up to following angels more than God. Thankfully, we are still able to utilize tradition, reason and experience, as these are gifts of God useful to bring us deeper into knowledge of Him. However, these forms of revelation must always be subservient to the written Scriptures, the primary means that God has given us to judge truth claims that we obtain through other methods.

Why should Christians break bread together?

Food always seems to bring people together. From small dinners to large BBQ's, who could get upset in filling their belly? In John 6, Jesus feeds at least five thousand men, and then they follow him around. At this point, however, Jesus informs the crowd that he is the living bread of Heaven (John 6:51). In fact, Jesus goes on to mention that “unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you (John 6:53). While many deserted Jesus on this point, the twelve did not (John 6:66-69).

Jesus' statement becomes especially interesting later on, when he does a special meal with the twelve. Mentioned in Matthew 26:26-29, Mark 14:22-25, Luke 22:17-20, & 1 Cor 11:23-26, Jesus declares the bread and wine his body and blood, said the wine is his blood in the new covenant, encourages the disciples to do it in remembrance of him and Paul says that through this we proclaim Christ death until he comes again. Simply Jesus discussion in John 6 seems good enough reason to break bread in this special way, for Jesus said “whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him” (John 6:56). Additionally, Jesus did tell the twelve to practice this meal (Matt 26, Mark 14, Luke 22). Surely, in partaking in the bread and wine, Christ own body and blood, we corporately remind ourselves of the forgiveness of sins that Christ has accomplished for us. By Acts 2:42, we also see that the breaking of bread was a core practice, which 1 Corinthians 11 corroborates. Since Christ instituted this in a group setting and Christ saved us, not just individually, but corporately, it only makes sense that we break bead together, proclaiming Christ death until he returns. 

Are we saved, being saved, or yet to be saved completely?

Yes! While much of modern protestant Christianity seems to focus on being saved as a singular event, the scriptures provide a more holistic view. The Greek verb form of being saved is used as a continuous act, indicating that salvation is ongoing. One only needs to look at Paul's letter to the Corinthian or Galatian church to realize that we all have sin that God has to continuously deliver us out of. Don't get me wrong, the moment we place are faith in Jesus, we were declared justified before God in Christ, but that is but the beginning of a glorious journey.

Additionally, in my research on healing in the Bible, I came across the Greek word σῴζω (sōzō). Interestingly enough, this word is translated as both “saved” and “healed.” I had always considered being saved as a spiritual deliverance from sin, but from the Biblical perspective, salvation is redemption of both spirit and body. In fact, many Christians believe that we are composed of body, soul and spirit, all of which needs redemption. I've personally not studied this out, so I can't comment too much, beyond acknowledging that salvation is more than a spiritual act of forgiving sin. The forgiveness of sin actually impacts our physical body, because we are physical and spiritual creatures.

Now, if being saved includes healing, it is clear that our salvation is incomplete, for we all die. Romans 8:23-24 clearly deals with this issue, mentioning that we look forward to the day of our “adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” Interesting! So, as those who have been saved through faith in Christ, receiving the first-fruits of the Spirit, we are looking forward to the day when Jesus finishes what He has begun, completing the adoption process and bringing permanent healing to our bodies.

What part of the Law of Moses are we under?

This question must first be answered with a question: What do you mean by “under?” In Hebrews 8, the writer contrasts the covenant God made with Moses to the covenant in Christ. With the Law of Moses in view (Heb 3:4), the author calls it old and fading (Heb 8:13)! In Galatians, we see Paul chiding the Galatians for attempting to be justified before God based on works of the law. Contextually, “law” should be understood as Mosaic Law (Gal 3:7). At this point, some may become uneasy and protest, “God calls us to be holy!” True, God does call us to be righteous, but not according to how we would imagine. Paul, in fact, declares that the Law has no life (Galatians 3:21)! At the end of the day, the real issue with the law is that our sinful nature prevents us from fulfilling it (Romans 8:3).

Why the law, then? According to Galatians 3:19, law was given because of transgressions. In other words, the Law was given to curb sin. In fact, Paul goes on to say that the Law holds us captive (vs 23). This Law, though holy (Rom 7:12), is merely a tutor to lead us to Christ (Gal 3:24). The Law, because of our sinful nature, is useful for demonstrating how we are unable to live holy, but it is useless for actually bringing freedom and life. The freedom and life is found through faith in Christ (Gal 3:23-26).

Now, when dealing with this subject more thoroughly in Romans, Paul also warns us not to conclude that sinning is perfectly fine. The fact is, if we are set free from sin, we certainly do not want to return to it, for it only brings death (Romans 3:23). So, our Justification is firmly rooted in faith in Christ. In other words, we are not under the Law of Moses.

In terms of our Sanctification, I believe we have to talk to the Holy Spirit with how to deal with the Law of Moses. After all, faith in Christ fulfills the Law of Moses (Rom 10:4), so we are not obligated to it. Jesus himself declared all food clean (Mark 7:18-19) and the apostolic witness is clear that believers are not bound to festivals, Sabbaths, etc. (Col 3:16). It would be an error to think our righteousness, even just a little, is contingent upon obedience, but it is also error to think that adultery or lying are now acceptable or beneficial. Since the Law is only a shadow of the good things to come (Col 2:7, Heb 10:1) we must ask what is actually behind the Mosaic Law. Jesus clarified this in a number of places (Mark 2:27, Matt 22:38-39). However, it still must be maintained that our righteous standing before God is not dependent on our Sanctification, but that Sanctification is an outworking of Justification.