by Jack Irwin
Below is a good letter titled “Are We Reading a Different Bible?” from Gayla Congdon, who founded Amor Ministries along with her husband Scott, for how to deal with differences by one of the founders of Amor. Schism, separation. Even Tom Wright decries the disunity of the modern church. We would have to look at the basic convictions at people’s most base level. that is, through what lens to they see everything?
Gayla sees it through a certain lens.
Those whose mantra (lens) is “The Bible says….” have a different lens.
I like what I read recently in a book by Jacques Ellul, the French lawyer, professor and theologian, which puts it all into perspective:
He said that the Bible really asks questions, does not give answers. Think about it: God asked Adam and Eve a question. God asked Cain a question. Our God is not an “answer” God, but a questioning God, a challenging God, a God asking us to step up to the plate and bat the ball. He is not there to bat the ball for us…. And so God challenged Cain, but what was Cain’s basic “lens”? It was a lens of mistrust…
By the way, Ellul is 180 degrees opposite from Bill’s interpretation of Cain. See Ellul’s book on the “City.” I challenge you to see the story of the Scripture in its whole: The story of the early scripture is not saying that Cain’s line was blessed. The line of the covenant and blessing passes to Seth, not to Cain.
What is the lineage of Cain? Where does the lineage of Cain ultimately lead to? Not agriculture. Not music. Not iron tools. (These are really the result of just being human…made in the image of God to be fellow creators.) But what is the real lineage that the Bible is pointing out: says Lamech, 6 generations from Cain, who just murdered someone, I will be avenged 77 times! (Gen 4:23-24) This is not a redeemed lineage. The Avengers have now multiplied and spread all over the earth, like a fungus and rot. They are even here in the American Empire.
I agree with Ellul and see Cain as the Archetype of humanity who reject God and go to build their own City against God, their own Tower of Babel that they might stand in heaven on their own, who don’t leave vengeance to God, whose lineage leads to the Pharisees and High Priest and Pilate who condemned Jesus, who want to build and control their own Jerusalem. Cain’s city is Babylon, the great archetype of all pride, arrogance, evil and sin elevated to enormous levels, in an affront to God.
Cain rejected the grace that God showed — that grace was too much to bear! So he rejected God who said he would be a wanderer, and builds himself a city of his own hands for his own security. What a picture of Empires throughout history and even today. Empires promising security, power, wealth, fun, ease, whatever else … Empires focused on man, not on God.
But the Kingdom and covenant and promised line is not through Cain. It is through Seth — from Seth the seed promised Eve will come. Noah came from this line. This lineage leads to the heavenly city — the New Jerusalem, come down from heaven to earth — where all dwell in harmony, where the leaves of the trees are for the healing of the nations…
Why are we in Tijuana with Amor? Surely Tijuana is a Babylon! But open the eyes of faith, and you see that God has his army of believers and of angels all over that City of Man, that City of Cain. We are there to redeem the people and to bring something of the future New Jerusalem into Tijuana so that people will see that God has become King and that Jesus has the Victory.
For the Kingdom, Jack
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Are We Reading a Different Bible? by Galya Congdon Wouldn’t you have loved to have been a fly on the wall when the disciples discussed among themselves what Jesus was teaching them? Or in their case a fly buzzing around the mountainside that day when he delivered the Sermon on the Mount. I can just imagine how they may have discussed what Jesus really meant when he brought up a teaching from the Old Covenant with a New Covenant application like “an eye for an eye” in Matthew 5:38-42. And I would venture to say that they became rather heated at times with each other during these discussions. When our son Jordan visited Princeton Seminary for his admissions interview, I took him to church at the Brooklyn Tabernacle in New York. Pastor Cymbala preached a sermon out of first or second Peter that I honestly can’t remember most of. I do, however, recall something he said that I have thought about often over the years as it relates to this issue of reading a different Bible. He said that his study led him to interpret the passage he was preaching on and that was the message he was delivering that day. He went on to say that he could probably have 2 or 3 of his minister friends study the same passage and come to different conclusions on what that passage meant to them. I grew up in a fellowship of churches that calls itself the Restoration Movement. One of the brands of our fellowship is that we are committed to “restoring people to Biblical principles.” Among our churches there is disagreement on what that means. For example, I am ordained by a church that is part of this fellowship and yet there are many churches throughout the US in our fellowship that don’t believe in the ordination of women or that I can preach or serve as an elder. All of which I have done at the local church level. So where am I going with this and how does this apply to Amor? For almost 35 years we have stated and practiced the mantra, “when you step on an Amor work site, pick up what unites you – a hammer – and put down what divides you.” A former group leader one time told a member of his church that heaven will be like an Amor camp where people that are different in how they express their faith can actually live and work alongside each other to keep families together. Why do I think this is an important reminder as we move into this season of our ministry? Because Amor wants to be a place where people can continue to serve together in the midst of doctrinal differences. We want to facilitate a global conversation amongst those that come on trips with us that addresses our mission and purpose – serving through the local church in all of our locations to house families and keep them together. Our staff is a diverse group of people that have their own theological and political beliefs. Within our four walls, we encourage any discourse that will be beneficial in moving the ministry forward. If you are reading our blog then you can see how different each member of our writing team is as they approach many of the issues at hand. Our desire is that we will give you things to think about even though you might not always agree with what that person has written. The Amor team is a reflection of a significant portion of those that come on trips and therefore will speak with their own unique voice. From millennials to baby boomers, Catholics to charismatics, schools, sports teams, and many more, we celebrate how “fearfully and wonderfully” each person is made whether they are part of our staff, a participant on a trip, or the people we serve alongside. We also celebrate that our groups know they can bring students that might not even have a faith journey or have one that is different than the rest of their group. Because it is picking up a hammer on an Amor house-build that can unite us. I am personally concerned about how these conversations about differences are becoming more angry and hateful. When I look at Paul’s writings I see that unity can happen even in disagreement because he continues to call us to seek each other’s best interests. How can we do that when we are yelling and screaming at one another? At the core of the Good News is God’s amazing love lived out through Jesus, as well as ourselves. Our prayer is that God will continue to use Amor to speak into the lives of those in our sphere of influence to create justice and unite us even when it seems like we are reading a different Bible. “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” – Luke 4:18-21
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The Amor founder has got it right. We need to knock this crap off. Art and I disagree on significant points of doctrine. You and I disagree on significant points of doctrine. Bill and I disagree on whether we disagree. These issues are important to all of us. But what do we do about it? Paul knew that one of the central themes of the gospel was Unity. Here’s how he opens up his message to the Ephesians: “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.” Not one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord (kyrios; king), one faith, one baptism, one father, one Messiah for those of us who read the bible to oppose gay marriage as sinful and another body, another Spirit, another hope, another Lord, another faith, another baptism, another faith, another father, another Messiah for those of us who read the bible as having no proscription against gay marriage.
Wright makes this point clear: “Occasion for this remarkable statement is the need to ground the appeal for unity which forms the preceding three verses, echoing passage such as Philippians 2.1–4: love, humility, meekness, patients, making every effort to guard the unity of the Spirit gives, being bound together in peace. It is, after all, the unity of the Messiah’s followers that will demonstrate that they are indeed the new humanity, the true people of the one God of Israel. The multiple gifts which the Messiah gives them by the Spirit are to be the means, as in 1 Corinthians 12, not of this of fissiparous corporate life in which everyone’s gifts are used for selfish and separatist ends, but of a common life in which, ‘we should all reach unity in our belief and loyalty, and in knowing God’s son.’”
Whatever goes on in America’s vision of its notion of heaven, be sure of this: Unity will reign in the Kingdom of God.
Roland
Thank you guys for this extremely important and timely blog post.
As Paul instructs us in disagreement we are to be humble and treat each other with kindness.
Humility – when there are different interpretations on an issue, how sure are you that your belief is correct? How much have you studied, discussed and prayed on it? Were you really open to all the different viewpoints? Are you 100% certain? Have any of your positions, beliefs, interpretations, understandings changed in the past 20 years? I hope you get my point…we must be humble.
Yes humble. Take for example the issue of same sex marriage we are wrestling with today.
If you are for – there will be long lasting and possibly unattended consequences. Is allowing polygamy, etc. next? It is possible that even fewer people would remain monogamous and sexually faithful in their marriages. Are you 100% certain of your position?
Are you against – the churches traditional understanding of scripture regarding homosexuality has led to that group of people to become disowned and outcast from family, society & church, subject to violence and death; living lonely lives, with no hope of meaningful loving relationships ever…damned to hell if they do, depression, sex, alcohol and drug addictions and suicide. Are you 100% certain? With the devastation to lives that this position causes we better damn well be 100% correct.
Maybe the test of time will shed light on the proper interpretation and course of action. We can look back now and see that the abolition of slavery in the United States, which tore churches, was correct. Same for allowing mixed race marriages. Same for allowing women to be Elders and Deacons and even Ministers! and many more divisive issues the churches have faced.
Please please let there be humility in our beliefs and in our disagreements. Humility is a cornerstone of unity.
john