douglas groothuis
ephesians 
ephesians 5 
ministry 
exegesis 
theology
ministry philosophy
My friend Joy has FINALLY started blogging over at Joy's Ruminations. Right now she's ruminating "calling".
ministry callingministryministryI have been called by God to do one thing. And I will do it. In the past year or so, I have been sidetracked--that's on me--but God's wapped me upside the head with a 2x4 and I am committed to not being sidetracked again. I will continue what we have started with Tuesday Night Bible Study:There are some who feel the need for 'relevant' teaching. I understand the impulse. I disagree with the impulse. Just because one feels the need for something it does not necessarily follow that the "needed" thing is the actual answer. Relevance is not the answer; clear understanding of the Word is the answer. (I wrote on "relevance back in October of 2005 and I repost it below.)I have no choice but to do as I have been called to do.
- to point and keep pointing people to the Word of God which is able to convict and transform,
- to train them to chew and understand God's Word for themselves, and
- to equip them to point others to God's Word.
ministry
"I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.Thoughts after a short lectio on verse 22
John 17:20-23 ESV
ministrythe thinking
"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them..."
"And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them..."
Cognition is not the key, BUT it is present in both cases and acts as a necessary precurser to "doing," for one cannot do what one does not know.the writing
The teaching of Jesus: This ties to the Great Commission in Matt 28:16-20, teaching them to observe all Jesus commanded.
"Everyone" is both broad and narrow.
I love cognition. There, I said it. Too easily I fall into the trap, thinking mere knowledge to be sufficient. It is not. It is necessary, but it is not sufficient. I ought to pant after the knowledge of God. But even more, I ought to pant after doing the Father's will. This is a matter of desire and decision. If I truly love and trust God, then that trust is expressed by knowing his commands and doing them. This is how one properly loves a sovereign. Trust is expressed similarly. If I trust God, then I trust that his ways are actually best.
Why then, since I love and trust God, do I continue loving and trusting other things?
This is a direction I did not think the "Duty, Apathy, Zeal" lectios would go. But here I am. The Sermon on the Mount--of which this is a capstone passage--is taken by some to be legalistic, but this is not at all the case. The fact is that God has set before us two ways. One way is wise: do the Father's will. The other way is foolish: do not do the Father's will.Tag(s): ministry lectio
The question that remains is, What is the Father's will?
(and, How do duty and zeal fit in?)
"Wise" (phronimos): thoughtful, i.e. sagacious or discreet (implying a cautious character)Matthew 7:24-27
"foolish" (moros): dull or stupid (as if shut up), i.e. heedless, (morally) blockhead, (apparently) absurd
"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."[in greek]
Tag(s): ministry lectio
- Wisdom is the insight to make a sound moral judgment in light of the guidance of God’s Spirit speaking through God’s Word.
- Wisdom is “insight”: it is knowing what to think and what to do in particulars.
- Wisdom leads to “sound moral judgment”: wisdom includes knowledge (cognition) but always goes beyond cognition to doing good and to doing what is right.
- Wisdom is prompted by God’s Spirit: again, it transcends simple cognition because it is prompted by God’s Spirit — who prompted the psalmist in his day and who prompts us in our day.
- Wisdom is rooted in God’s Word: again, the Spirit who prompted the Word is the Spirit who will lead in continuity and development of that Word in our day.
"...I give to him my covenant of peace."the thinking
"...hold fast to what is good."
God is all about his kingdom, his rule. God's rule is the wholeness--the shalom--we crave. Doing his will is what we truly desire, for this is what we were created to be and do. But here, in this time and place, God's rule co-exists with brokenness. His kingdom is not yet consummated. Therefore, here in this time and place we must be zealous for his glory, even if this zeal is sometimes prickly.=================
"..one of the people of Israel..."the thinking
"...in the sight of...the people of Israel..."
"...turned back my wrath from the people of Israel..."
"...made atonement for the people of Israel."
It's really not about what any one of us wants. It's about what God wants for his people. This means being who he has made us to be and being gracious to others who may not fit our expectations. It means caring more for the group than we care about ourselves and putting the needs of the group first. It might mean caring for our brothers and sisters in Christ more that we care for our non-believing family members (as shocking as that may seem). It means being the people of God.
Duty...An act or a course of action that is requiredthe thinking
Zeal...Enthusiastic devotion ...tireless diligence
the writing
What does this look like for me?
Culture, ministry, personality, and other factors necessarily shape the practice of love for God and love for others. The practice of love also exhibits itself in both duty—that love is practiced—and in zeal—how love is practiced.
So I, for now, am a teacher. I use tangentriding (AKA discussion) as my primary teaching method. What does it look like for me to love God and love others, fulfilling my duty and serving with zeal?
“Let love be genuine.”lectio one
I propose two aspects to “genuine”. The first aspect is to be true to the nature of love. Love is what it is. It is not a warm feeling in your heart. It is, rather, a decision to act for the good of another whether that individual reciprocates or not.
The second aspect is to be true to the nature of self. This gets messy, for we are not complete. We are partial. Our humanity (imago Dei) has been corrupted and, even as atoned-for persons, the consequences of that corruption and the consequences of our too-little-practice of righteousness remain.
But still, when I love, I must love truly and as my self. What does this look like in ministry?
he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousythe thinking
Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.
"Stand clear. The doors are closing."[NOTE: by facts, I do not refer merely to God's justice, but also to God's grace.]
These two sentences fill my sonic space Monday through Friday as I take the train to work. Funny how things gain new meaning when you listen with different ears. Let me explain.
The first sentence, "Stand clear," is a simple command. The voice makes no apology. No niceties are attached: no "please" before and no "thank you" after. The voice merely commands.
This command is set in the context of a factual statement: "The doors are closing." There are consequences if one disobeys the command: one gets slightly mushed by the door, blocks them from closing, prevents the train from moving, and perturbs one's fellows.
Maybe stating God's truth is similar: facts and consequences.
I've been in ruts before. For a while, the tracks are comforting. I know them. Then, slowly or suddenly, I notice things beyond my reach. I notice that what I feel is not comfort. Is it apathy? Am I dutiful or habitized?Tag(s): ministry lectio
I am in this place now. I see beyond the rut and the view is amazing, but I am stuck and I am not sure how to get unstuck, except to declare it and agree with God that it is wrong.
An act or a course of action that is required of one by position, social custom, law, or religion.Apathy:
Lack of interest or concern, especially regarding matters of general importance or appeal; indifference.Zeal:
Enthusiastic devotion to a cause, ideal, or goal and tireless diligence in its furtherance.
And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped. Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.Romans 12:9-13
And the LORD said to Moses, "Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, 'Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.'"
Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.Tag(s): ministry lectio
