Frontin’

It was really nice weather today, so I went down to the park this evening watching some of our UTM students play basketball. When one of our students started cussing because he didn’t agree with a foul called on him, another student who was standing next to me, Dorian, said, “Y’all be frontin‘ when ya’ll at church.” What he meant, for those unacquainted with street talk, is that here is a guy who says he loves Jesus and goes to things like our Hype Bible study, but he’s no different than anyone else. He just talks the talk but still lives like those around him. He puts on a mask when he’s a church, but it’s only skin deep.

I thought for a few seconds about Dorian’s comment, then I replied, “I don’t know, Dorian. I think everyone who goes to church is frontin’.” He looked at me and responded, “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

“Now hold up,” you may be thinking. “Are you bashing on church goers? Are you accusing all of them of being hypocrites?”

On the contrary. See, that’s not the statement I’m trying to make. I know for sure that while some people who attend church are hypocrites, not everyone is. In fact, a good chunk of them are not. The point I’m trying to make is this. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, we are given the power not to sin. That doesn’t mean that we stop sinning, though. This is why Paul tells the Ephesians to “put off” the old self and “put on” the new self, like putting off and on clothes (Eph 4:22-24). If we stopped sinning when we believed in Jesus, we wouldn’t have to be instructed to put off/on. Neither would we be told to live as children of light, not as we did when we were in darkness (Eph 5:8). So yes, to an extent, people who follow God are frontin’. That’s not what makes them different.

What makes them different is that they progressively front less and less (2 Peter 1:8). Yes, I know I just combined street lingo with theological lingo, but it works. If we love God and follow him, we have less and less to front about. We are being changed on the inside. We are finding what pleases God (Eph 5:9). And yes, we may not have all parts of our lives conformed perfectly to Christ, but we need to act in ways that deny we’re not there yet. Some may call this frontin’. But I think the direction of that phrase leads us astray. Rather, what we’re looking at is self control. Self control does not deny the fact that I would rather act out. Instead, it controls how I do act even if it’s not how I want to act. The Bible has lots to say about self control. It’s a fruit of the spirit (Gal 5:22-23).  Self-control is part of being of the light and not darkness (1 Thess. 5:4-11). It’s not easy. In fact, it’s extremely hard (1 Peter 5:8). How do we live self controlled? What enables us to do so? God’s grace!

¹¹For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. ¹²It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, ¹³while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, ¹⁴who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. (Titus 2:11-14)

Yet we have part in it too.

¹³Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. ¹⁴As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. ¹⁵But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; ¹⁶for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-16)

⁵For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; ⁶and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; ⁷and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. (2 Peter 1:5-7)

So God followers, are we frontin’? Absolutely. But what are we frontin’? The fact that we haven’t realize God’s grace to change our lives? Or the fact that we’re still not perfect, but God’s grace has given us self control so we can please Him with our actions and attitudes more?

A Theology of Occupation

A Theology of Occupation by Robert Lupton: ”

Approach the intersection of Second Avenue and Boulevard Drive any time, day or night, and you will see the raw and unchecked version of street life when crime takes over a community. Clusters of men congregate on the corner in front of a row of storefronts, openly selling drugs to the passing traffic. Across the street, cars pull in and out of the parking lot of a boarded up fast food chicken place, stopping long enough to exchange stolen goods for cash with the entrepreneurs who have moved in on this abandoned turf. In the wooded lot behind the chicken place prostitutes conduct their business under the watchful eyes of their pimps. The gas station on the other corner swarms with ‘mechanics’ stripping automobiles of fencible parts. Beside the station a large Victorian house, partitioned into cheap rental rooms, houses addicts who burglarize the neighborhood by day and descend into their own private hell by night.

Welcome to East Lake! The pride and charm that once characterized this Atlanta neighborhood disappeared years ago as its children grew up and departed for greener suburban pastures. Weeds and trash eventually took over manicured yards and graffiti replaced attractive streetscapes. Absentee landlords who bought up the properties cared less about the quality of community life than about doubling up their rental revenues. The elderly who stayed were condemned to a life of isolation behind drawn shades and deadbolt locks. As fear crept in, the police, dependent upon community vigilance and support, lost their ability to keep the peace. Neighbors lost courage to report crime and witnesses became reluctant to appear in court. With leadership strength depleted, the community degenerated into a wild, unsecured territory, wide open to thieves and thugs and other predators who thrive in lawless environs.

Is there a way to turn around a neighborhood that has been overrun by crime? Can East Lake ever again become a healthy community in which to raise children? Yes, most assuredly! But it will not happen simply by passing tougher anti-crime legislation or putting more police on the streets. Nor does street evangelism or church sponsored midnight basketball offer an adequate solution, as important as they may be. Life on the corner of Second Avenue and Boulevard Drive is determined by two critical factors: occupation and leadership.

Those who occupy the land at this strategic community crossroad and the type of leadership they exert will determine its quality of life. Currently, roguish renters and predatory leaders occupy this turf. The weak and vulnerable are withdrawn into the surrounding shadows. But introduce a couple of committed neighbor-leaders into the territory and the dynamic begins to shift. Those who have endured victimization begin to show themselves and courage starts to resurface. Police sense that they have some new allies and are energized to renew their peace-keeping patrols. Illicit activity on the corner, which does not do well under scrutiny, becomes more cautious and gradually starts to drift away. Neighborhood energy, long consumed in personal protection, begins to refocus on community well-being. The playground is reclaimed. A legitimate grocery store is sought. Zoning enforcement is solicited to close down overcrowded apartments. In time, the land is reclaimed for redemptive purposes and health returns. The defining factor is who occupies it and who will assert leadership.

Sound like wishful thinking? Just take a few snapshots of this corner. (You might want to use a little caution if you drive by with your camera right now!) Six months from now this intersection will seem noticeably different. Two years from now you won’t recognize it as the same place. A few faith-motivated visionaries have decided to put their talents and resources to work reclaiming this community. In low-key manner they have been getting to know the good-hearted neighbors in the area. Jeffrey, our 26-year-old son who has been caught by the vision, just purchased a home near the corner and is gathering intelligence on all the activity around him. The group has been quietly buying up vacant lots and derelict houses. They’ve torn down a couple of crack houses that were beyond repair. They have leased one duplex to a Christian couple who will be good resident managers. The Victorian rooming house is currently under contract. This month Charis (our housing ministry) will break ground on the land which prostitutes now use; seven new homes will be built here for key families who are making serious commitments to reclaim their community.

In religious terms, we might describe this as the practical theology of occupation. It is about the strategic redeployment of the saints. It raises the question: Does it matter where the people of God locate themselves in this world? At a time of unprecedented global urbanization when our cities are in very deep trouble, the issue of where we live our witness has enormous consequences. Grand strategies to evangelize the world en masse via mega-gatherings, satellite and other state-of-the-art communication methods may have their place. But the task of redeeming our cities will be accomplished on the ground, one block at a time, by courageous people who take the daily risks that bring life to their small corner of the world.

‘Occupy till I come,’ (Lk.19:13KJV) were the Lord’s parting instructions as he illustrated how his Kingdom is to function in this world. Never have marching orders been more strategic.

(Via Neue.)

How Children Come to Faith in Christ

How Children Come to Faith in Christ: ”

From Between Two Worlds who got it from the first source Ryan Kelly:

How do children come to faith in Christ? Check out the following radio interviews with Jim Elliff that are available for free online:

1. Genuine Salvation: More Than a Prayer

2. How Children Come to Faith in Christ

3. Taking our Children to Church: Is that Enough?

4. How to Deal With Doubt

5. Observing Salvation in Your Child: What Does it Look Like?

6. The Family: No Better Place to Come to Know Christ!

“

(Via Jesus Loves The Children.)

Review of “Theological Implications of Hip-Hop Culture”

Review of “Theological Implications of Hip-Hop Culture”: “
I just ordered William ‘Duce’ Branch’s Masters Thesis off the internet and read it yesterday. For most people, his name doesn’t mean anything, but for those who know Holy Hip-Hop, you might know him better as ‘The Ambassador’ from the Cross Movement. That’s right…An emcee from one of Christian Hip-Hop’s foremost, progressive groups earned his ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary, including composing a seventy-nine page thesis. It is appropriately titled, ‘Theological Implications of Hip-Hop culture.’

Although I was somewhat skeptical of its contributing value to scholarship with its generic title, Branch gradually won me over. I believe ‘Theological Implications of Hip-Hop Culture’ lays a solid workable foundation for the development of mission theology within the context of Hip-Hop culture. Duce constructs a compelling case for Hip-Hop culture as a legitimate culture, rather than a passing fad or remote subculture as some might argue. As part of developing this case for Hip-Hop culture’s validity, Branch relies heavily upon Hip-Hop scholars such as Bakari Kitwana and Michael Dyson, and some of Marvin Mayer, writer of ‘Christianity Confronts Culture.’ Furthermore, he keenly traces the historical development of Hip-Hop culture over the past forty years to support his assertion.

Another positive aspect of ‘Theological Implications….’ is when Duce develops a Christian perspective of culture, he rightly roots his theology of Hip-Hop culture in the doctrine of creation, centering upon the implications of the cultural mandate, including the insights of Reformed theologians Abraham Kuyper and Herman Dooyeweerd. Moreover, Branch perceptively points out the value of Hip-Hop culture in relationship to the church. He makes an intriguing comparison between Hellenistic culture of the first century and Hip-Hop culture of 21st, which I would like to see further developed.

However, ‘Theological Implications….’ covers too much territory and too many themes. Consequently in my humble opinion, it did not go quite deep enough (although it goes deeper than the majority of available literature that attempts to address a theology of Hip-Hop culture). Yet maybe this was Branch’s intention from the beginning. By pressing the reader to think through the many theological implications of hip-hop culture, those who take both urban ministry and theology seriously might feel obliged to further unpack the plethora of themes that Duce alludes to within his thesis.

Overall, William Branch does the church and its theological community an invaluable service by doing theology that intersects with hip-hop culture. Not only have I enjoyed listening to ‘The Ambassador’ as a hip-hop artist, but I also enjoy reading ‘The Ambassador’ as a theologian doing mission theology within the context of Hip-Hop and the church. I look forward to reading more of William Branch’s mission-theological works in the future.”

(Via UTM sentiments.)

Church or Condo?

Link

Alan Hirsch at GRTS

This past Wednesday, Alan Hirsch, Director of Forge Mission Training Network, and author of The Shaping of Things to Come and The Forgotten Ways, spoke in chapel at my seminary, Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. I wasn’t able to make it, although I really wanted to be there. Thankfully there is a recording available on the GRTS website. You can access it in the player below or download it here.

Steve Argue, Director of the Contextual Learning Center and Adjunct Professor at GRTS was there, and gives these notes from Hirsch’s message.

Four Essentials for the Western Church in the 21st Century
1. The church must rediscover the absolute centrality of Jesus (Christology)

• We must (re)align ourselves with Jesus Christ
• We must go back to the roots of our faith
• The closer we get to Jesus… the more dangerous he is
• Has Jesus been subverted from the church?
• Jesus does not suit our middle class sensibilities

2. The church must rediscover the ethos of discipleship

• We need discipleship not entertainment
• Without discipleship you end up with a church that is less than Jesus intended
• The authority of the church to speak, comes out of our ability to embody the message

3. The church must rediscover a missional-incarnational impulse

• This exposes the very nature of God
• The church doesn’t have a mission… the mission has a church
• We must reframe around “sent-ness” not “come-ness
• Incarnation- into one’s world (Jesus- 30 years in the neighborhood and no one “noticed.” This is the opposite of colonizing people’s cultures or an “attractional” posture.

4. The church must rediscover the ethos of the structure of apostolic movements

• Consider church’s resources in the first 200 years contrary to the resources the church has today. Have our resources mixed our message?
• Movements are not elitist. Everyone is involved, everyone carries the potential for change (priesthood of all believers)
• “Movements” are reproducing and reproducible
• Movements avoid centralization of power
• We must broaden out our understanding of leadership as it is currently too narrow (Eph 4)

From AlreadyNotYet

Now I read Hirsch’s book, Shaping of Things to Come for my class on the missional church. I tended to like a lot of what Hirsch wrote. This is only confirmed by his time here in Grand Rapids.

Free Matthew & Mark Cornerstone Biblical Commentary

Another incredible deal with Logos Bible Software right now is a free volume of the new Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: Matthew & Mark by David Turner and Darrell Bock.

I happen to know David Turner as he is a professor at Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. I’ve taken his New Testament Literature course, and it was very good.

To get your copy, visit http://blog.logos.com/archives/2008/08/matthew_mark_cornerstone_biblical_commentary–free.html

Logos Bible Software Offering two free Lutheran Lectionaries

I just got this in my inbox. If you use or are familiar with Logos Bible software, then this offer might be useful for you. You can get the Lutheran Service Book, both one year and three year lectionaries for free.

For more information, visit http://www.logos.com/lutheranlectionaries

Redesign

After a long absence from my blog, I return with a fresh new look. Tell me what you think of it!

What I’ve Done

Linkin Park has always been an interesting fellow. Here’s one of his newer songs. Let me know what you think.