Why Eschatology Matters

The Bible is an incredible and fascinating book. It is far from being merely a list of moral guidelines, or an instruction manual on ‘how to get to heaven in ten easy steps’. Instead, when read in terms of the overall story of God’s work within creation, it reveals a depth and beauty that transcends comprehension. Unfortunately, for many Christians, the notion of reading and teaching Scripture in terms of the over-arching story of Scripture has been vacant. Instead of understanding the grand narrative and its majestic portrait of God and His redemptive activity, the Bible has unfortunately too often become the repository of ‘rules’ and ‘regulations’. This is not to say that the Bible does not have such an ethical code, but only that in failing to see God’s mission within creation as unveiled in Scripture, we have neglected this vital storyline that runs from Genesis to Revelation (from Garden to Garden!), and, in doing so, we run the grand risk of failing to comprehend our role within the story. It is this story that we want to explore in more depth. For, it is the contention here that a proper understanding of eschatology begins with a complete grasp of the entire story of the Old and New Testaments. For, when we place the life and ministry of Jesus into the overarching story of God’s mission, then we may begin to discern the eschatological significance of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection, and the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost. And it is here that eschatology, mission, and the biblical story meet. That is, understanding Jesus, both His person and His work, eschatologically and in the context of the biblical story correlates directly to a proper understanding of the mission of God’s people. And it is here that eschatology becomes relevant for the Church today! Our mission as followers of Christ is to carry forward the mission begun by Christ, which itself was an inauguration of the eschaton (the ‘end’). You see, eschatology is not simply a bunch of ramblings about the future and what will happen, but it is intimately tied to the life of the Church today!

Peace among Christians, Muslims, and Jews

Thought you might find this article interesting Middle East and North Africa Religious Leaders Reject Violence Commit to Cooperation among Muslims, Christians and Jews to Build Peace Marrakech, Morocco -- Senior religious leaders from across the Middle East and North Africa rejected violence and called for deepened multi-religious collaboration as the region undergoes historic transformations. They committed to stand in solidarity with all vulnerable communities, to advocate for full religious freedoms across the region and to call on all religious believers to become a united force to help ensure that governments honor the full rights, protect and serve all of their citizens without exception. Read the summary of the statement here. The religious leaderscoming from Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Turkeywere convened by the Religions for Peace Middle East and North Africa Council, a body led by religious leaders from the region. They were joined by representatives from the United Nations (UN), the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Islamic Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO). The participants reiterated the urgent need for the historic faiths in the region Islam, Christianity and Judaism to work together for the common good of the people in the region. Respecting their religious differences, they pledged to work together to promote and protect the fundamental dignity and religious and other rights of all people, including those who are not followers of their historic faiths. Calling on the religious communities to unite on the basis of shared values, the President of the United Nations General Assembly H.E. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser noted in his message that this was the only way to build flourishing communities committed to a just peace across the region. The religious leaders were united in their call for the rejection of the misuse of religion as well as their respect for religious freedom across the region. H.E. Ufuk Gokcen, Ambassador of the OIC to the United Nations, noted that the commitments of the religious leaders could be helpfully aligned with the recent political consensus achieved in the United Nations Human Rights Council resolution 16/18. That political consensusendorsed by the gathered religious leadersrecognizes that the incitement to imminent violence based on religion or belief should be criminalized. The Director General of ISESCO, Dr. Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri, condemned the manipulation of religion for political ends. He cautioned against those who justified violence in the name of religion by misinterpreting scriptures out of their historical contexts. In relation to violence against religious communities, the religious leaders committed to stand in solidarity with all vulnerable religious communities and to advocate for their protection. Terming the Religions for Peace MENA Council as needed in the region, Dr. Altwaijri asked everyone to support it and pledged the cooperation of ISESCO. Prof. Mohammed Sammak from Lebanon called for the development of a Muslim-Christian contract of mutual care. Prof. Sammak, a Co-President of Religions for Peace International, stated that the destiny of the Muslims and Christians in Middle East and North Africa are inseparable. He noted with alarm the dwindling population of Christians in the region, and called on the Muslims in the region to help reverse this trend by standing in solidarity with Christians and advocating governments to protect them. The religious leaders pledged to help the Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities in the region to build contracts of mutual care. The religious leaders pledged themselves to help develop and support a notion of citizenship needed across the region and called on all religious believers to become a united force to help ensure that governments honor the full rights, protect and serve all of their citizens without exception. They noted that this must especially be true in Jerusalem, a city holy to the three Abrahamic religions. They called on all governments to achieve a just peace in Jerusalem and the Holy Land and pledged their support in achieving it. The High Representative of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, H.E. Jorge Sampaio, stated that strengthening inter-religious dialogue in the MENA region is one of the most important ways to secure a just peace and dignity for the people of the region.

I am very excited about our next set of classes beginning Nov 29 (lasts 10 weeks not including the 2 weeks off before Christmas and New Years) on the Gospel of John and Christ and Culture. we will really look at the Gospel of John in a way you have never seen before--I promise or your money back!! The Christ and Culture course will really equip you to understand the nature and importance of worldviews and how to engage with those of various worldviews (postmodernism, Atheism, pluralism, and many other isms!). The Gospel of John will really get us into Who was this Jesus and what was He doing! Why would they crucify a guy who told neat stories and healed everyone? (hmm Maybe because He was a radical and a quiet rebel?!). Here is the registration link: http://cornerstoneweb.org/ministries/the-bible-academy/classes/ Here are the descriptions: Christ and Culture: This course will address the foundational issues of worldviews and apologetics designed to equip us to effectively engage the culture with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to be prepared to ‘give an answer to everyone’ (1 Pet 3:15) in love. How does the Gospel of Jesus Christ relate to the constantly changing culture? How do we know that the Bible is true and trustworthy? In all, this course will assist the students to be prepared to engage with the common worldviews present in American culture, so that they can more effectively engage the culture as witnesses for Jesus Christ. Gospel of John: Why did John write a fourth Gospel when we already had three others? This amazing Gospel fills in so much of our understanding of Jesus; who He is; what He did; and why it matters to us. An understanding of this Gospel is essential for understanding the relationship between the Old Testament and the New Testament; Who Jesus is; and what it means for us as Christians today! The Gospel of John presents us with one of the clearest accounts of how Jesus is the truly the fulfillment of the promises of God to His people. Jesus is the true Bread from heaven, the true Light of the World, and the great I Am. The Gospel of John also highlights how Jesus was God in the flesh and how He has brought about the goal of the God to dwell among His people; first in Jesus, then in the giving of the Spirit to the Church, and ultimately to the whole creation in the New Jerusalem. This class will explore these pictures of Jesus as well as the call to discipleship in the Gospel of John.

Pray for those in Ministry or preparing to be!

I just read the following excerpt from the great Eugene Peterson. It is sombering and sobering. Many future leaders are being trained in our seminaries; pray that they will not succumb to the dangers of doing ministry. Pray that those currently serving will fulfill their tasks and will not only lead the Church towards Christ, but serve as role models for those who are hearing the call of God and aspiring towards ministry. “American pastors are abandoning their posts, left and right, and at an alarming rate. They are not leaving their churches and getting other jobs. Congregations still pay their salaries. Their names remain on the church stationary and they continue to appear in pulpits on Sundays. But they are abandoning their posts, their calling. They have gone whoring after other gods. What they do with their time under the guise of pastoral ministry hasn’t the remotest connection with what the church’s pastors have done for most of twenty centuries. A few of us are angry about it. We are angry because we have been deserted…. It is bitterly disappointing to enter a room full of people whom you have every reason to expect share the quest and commitments of pastoral work and find within ten minutes that they most definitely do not. They talk of images and statistics. They drop names. They discuss influence and status. Matters of God and the soul and Scripture are not grist for their mills. The pastors of America have metamorphosed into a company of shopkeepers, and the shops they keep are churches. They are preoccupied with shopkeeper’s concerns– how to keep the customers happy, how to lure customers away from competitors down the street, how to package the goods so that the customers will lay out more money. Some of them are very good shopkeepers. They attract a lot of customers, pull in great sums of money, develop splendid reputations. Yet it is still shopkeeping; religious shopkeeping, to be sure, but shopkeeping all the same. The marketing strategies of the fast-food franchise occupy the waking minds of these entrepreneurs; while asleep they dream of the kind of success that will get the attention of journalists. The biblical fact is that there are no successful churches. There are, instead, communities of sinners, gathered before God week after week in towns and villages all over the world. The Holy Spirit gathers them and does his work in them. In these communities of sinners, one of the sinners is called pastor and given a designated responsibility in the community. The pastor’s responsibility is to keep the community attentive to God. It is this responsibility that is being abandoned in spades.” -Eugene Peterson Father forgive them for they know not what they do--even though they should