The Surprising God

This post was contributed by worship leader Mike Hale. Last time we began exploring the book Worshipping Trinity: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship , by Robin Parry, and highlighted sections making plain that the primary emphasis in worship should not be on our own faith, decision or response, but rather on the perfect faith, decision and response of Jesus – the Son of God and Son of Man – and that the Holy Spirit enables us to share in the resurrected and ascended Son’s ongoing prayer and worship of the Father.  Below are additional quotes as to what that dynamic means for congregational worship. “Trinity should be related to our other beliefs like hydrogen is related to water.  Take the ‘H’ out of H2O and you no longer have water.  Take the Trinity out of Christian faith and practice and you no longer have Christian faith and practice.” (p. 5) “Christian theology is not an interesting exercise in abstract speculation but is intimately connected to Christian living and...

Kudos to the  Experimental Theology  blog for highlighting the work of Douglas Campbell (pictured right) in The Deliverance of God . Though Campbell's book is long, dense and expensive, it's an important trinitarian analysis of Paul's doctrine of justification. Paul's thesis in Romans is summarized in 1:17: "For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written, 'The righteous will live by faith.'"  Here Paul is quoting Habakkuk 2:4: "See, he is puffed up; his desires are not upright - but the righteous will live by his faith." Paul's point is often misunderstood by viewing the one referred to here as "the righteous" who will "live by faith" as you or me. That misunderstanding then leads to another, namely that we attain a state of being "righteous" through our faith in Jesus.This view leads on to a transactional theory of justif...

This post was contributed by worship leader Mike Hale. “I doubt that there is any other factor with undermines the mission and worship of the church more tragically than the widespread failure to appreciate the Trinitarian dynamic of worship….” Those are strong words!  They come from Alan J. Torrance in his endorsement of the book Worshipping Trinity:  Coming back to the heart of worship , by Robin Parry (2005 Paternoster Press).  Alan is Chair of Systematic Theology at St Mary’s College, University of St Andrews (and if his name sounds familiar, he is son of James Torrance and nephew of Thomas Torrance, each a highly respected minister, mentor and Trinitarian theologian). Certainly none of us want to unknowingly undermine mission and worship in our congregations, so what is this Trinitarian dynamic of worship, and how might we be failing to appreciate it?  We already believe in grace, so what’s the big concern? Robin Parry writes, “(Some) people think that although ...

[This post was updated on 12/24/12] Christian theologies acknowledge that the atonement is accomplished through the person and work of Jesus Christ on our behalf. However, they differ in how they explain  how the atonement is accomplished. Trinitarian, incarnational theology emphasizes that the atonement is not accomplished merely by what Jesus has done for us, but who he is for us--the incarnate Son of God  who was born, lived, ministered, suffered, died, rose bodily, ascended bodily and now, remaining fully God and fully human ( 1Timothy 2:5 ), lives to intercede for us. This incarnational view of the atonement is explained by C. S. Lewis (pictured at right) in  Mere Christianity  (for Thomas Torrance's similar view of the atonement,  click here ): "We are told that Christ was killed for us, that His death has washed out our sins, and that by dying He disabled death itself.  That is the formula.  That is Christianity.  That...

The book "Atonement, the Person and Work of Christ" compiles the lectures of T.F. Torrance. In the introduction, the book's editor, Robert Walker, notes that the "linchpin" of Torrance's Trinitarian, incarnational theology is his understanding of the nature of Jesus Christ: "He who is the eternal Son of God, of one being with the Father, is he who is now also man and the fact that the same person who is fully and truly God is now fully and truly man, means that his person is and constitutes in itself...the union of God and humanity... In his one person, therefore, God and man, God and all humanity, are now irrevocably and eternally united. God and man can now no more be separated from one another in Christ than the person of Christ can be undone, or the incarnation, crucifixion and resurrection be reversed" (pp.xxxvii-xxxviii). Torrance understands this union of God and humankind in the person of Jesus to be   an "event, a becoming, the ac...

This post was contributed by worship leader Mike Hale. One of my favorite doxologies is Romans 11:33-36.  Those verses are also the lyrics to All Things by Joel Hendrickson, Steve Mills and Jeff Crumb (1992 Little Peach Music).  For years our praise band Higher Ground has often used this powerful song to place a rousing exclamation mark at the end of worship services. This doxology (from the Greek doxa – glory) captures the awe and wonder that thankful believers express when confronted with the “deep riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God” revealed in Christ. It also captures some of the mystery that is in the message. It touches upon several key elements in Christ-centered (Trinitarian) worship and theology – that all things begin and end with God – and that even though his thoughts and ways are completely beyond our ways of knowing, all things (everything in heaven and earth) are accomplished through him and to his glory.  And although God does not owe anyone anythi...

This post was contributed by worship leader Mike Hale. “I’m not really of much use to this church.  I’m only a volunteer worship leader, and not a full-time staff member.  My role here is so small, and besides, I really need to know a lot more about the theology of worship.” It was well over a dozen years ago, but still seems like yesterday.  I was feeling down and had begun to question my value as a volunteer member of a worship ministry team—wondering if those few hours of ministry each weekend were making any difference to anyone, and also wondering if I was really up to the task. Part of the problem was that for most of my adult life I’d been employed by a church, but severe budget cuts and large-scale layoffs had put an end to church employment, so it was easy to feel less a part of “real ministry.” Added to that, at the time I was stuck working as a temp on part-time jobs, and the kind of work wasn’t what I would have preferred as a career.  On the bright side,...

A trinitarian, incarnational understanding of the sacraments has significant implications for how we approach both baptism and the Lord's Supper. This issue is helpfully addressed by many trinitarian theologians. Here are two examples: Paul Fiddes writes in Participating in God: [We understand] the sacraments as pieces of earthly stuff that are meeting places with this [triune] God who exists in ecstatic movements of love. They are doors into the dance of perichoresis in God. [They are a means] of God’s gracious coming and dwelling with us. They are signs which enable us to participate in the drama of death and resurrection which is happening in the heart of God. We share in death as we share in the broken body of the bread and the extravagantly poured out wine, and as we are covered with a threat of hostile waters. We share in life as we come out from under the waters…to take our place in the new community of the body of Christ, and to be filled with the new wine of the Sp...

“Our small congregation has really been through a lot recently—several deaths, serious illnesses, unemployment, people moving away….we’ve been hit hard.” My friend was describing what he’s been facing as a ministry team volunteer, and I took no joy in letting him know he had also just described the exact condition of the small congregation I serve on the other side of town.  Over coffee we commiserated and talked about worship during times of trial and suffering.  Not meaning to sound trite—there seems to be more than enough suffering to go around. Events of last week brought more suffering into view.  I was assisting a local university’s Service Learning Program in Los Angeles consisting of six days of intensive, hands-on education at social service agencies of which just a partial listing includes an adult day care center for those suffering with Alzheimers, a global human rights agency fighting against genocides and caring for refugees, a social/psychiatric treatment c...

In John 3:36, we read this: Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on them. How are we to read this statement? A lot depends on the lens through which we look. If it's a  theology of separation , this verse might be interpreted as indicating that God stands separate from and in wrath against all people *until* the moment they believe in Jesus, at which point God enters their lives (for the first time), stops being wrathful toward them, and grants them eternal life. But is that interpretation justified? We would say no, because it is inconsistent with what Scripture tells us about who God is, as revealed to us in the person of the incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ. According to that revelation---reading this verse through that lens---rather than separate from sinners, God is  a friend of sinners;  God is Immanuel ---God with us and for us, the God of love who, in the person of Jesus, ...

The current tragedy in Haiti leads many to ask: Where is God when the world suffers?  For some, human suffering is evidence that there is no God. For others, it is evidence that God is either aloof (ignoring our suffering) or vengeful (causing it). The truth, revealed to us in the person of Jesus of Nazareth is this: God cares deeply, and is fully present with us in our suffering. We learn in Holy Scripture that God loved the world so much that he sent his one and only Son to become one of us in order suffer and die with us and for us (John 3:16). He did not come among us 2000 years ago, and he is not with us now, as a God of retribution who brings suffering upon his creation (John 3:17). No, the God we know in Jesus came and remains with us as Immanuel - God with us and for us - as one of us. God in the flesh (John 1:14). Through the Incarnation,  the Son of God, in the person of Jesus, took upon himself the fullness of our humanity - with all its sin and suffe...

This post concludes a series reviewing Christian Kettler's book, The God Who Believes - Faith, Doubt, and the Vicarious Humanity of Christ .  For other posts in the series, click a number: 1 , 2 , 3 . We conclude now with several quotes from the book. "Jesus believes when I am unable to believe. Jesus acts when I am unable to act. Jesus loves when I am unable to love. Jesus forgives when I am unable to forgive. Jesus lives when I am dead in my sins. That is the power of truth become personal, the power of a vicarious life" (p. 102). "A vicarious life is a life that can be shared with others. The worship of the Father by the Son in the Spirit is but a part of a complete life of faith and obedience to the Father that in turn offers to us a share in this intimate communion between the Father by the Son in the Spirit. The Son indeed 'sanctifies' himself, sets himself apart for a holy use, for our sakes" [John 17:19 & Heb. 2:11] (p. 102). ...

This post was contributed by worship leader Mike Hale. Happy New Year!  However if you are anything like me and a lot of other folks, a big part of the celebration was shouting GOOD RIDDANCE to 2009!  What a year!  Almost nothing went according to plan, and there was plenty of what felt like failure, and not much to brag about.  And when enough things flop altogether or turn out dramatically different than you thought they would, at some point you not only feel a lack of power and wisdom—you wonder if you really know anything at all. So now its a new year and you definitely feel the need to look beyond yourself.  Help arrives with the inspired words of the Apostle Paul. Throughout the first two chapters of I Corinthians Paul describes God’s faithful love known in fellowship with the Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.   Paul proclaims the wisdom, power and grace that is Christ crucified—and says we share that wisdom and mind of Christ in our new life in Christ...

Dr. John McKenna Following is a gift to Surprising God readers from Dr. John McKenna, a trinitarian theologian and fellow traveler in the life we share with the Father, Son and Spirit. The Lion in Exile The other night, I dreamt of lions. I am a poor man and I do not think my dreams have any real value. I live in a rented room of a cheap hotel in the hum and drum of a graffiti written city. Dreams are things I throw into the trash, stuff I send down the toilet. I do not spend any more time thinking about them than I spend thinking about breathing. But since the lions, I have begun to change my mind about them. I was walking in a field of high grass and trees and the lions watched me intently, their faces kindly. They surprised me with their friendliness. Do not lions attack and eat us? My room is a barren place, a few pictures hanging on the walls, a cracked mirror above an old sink, a bathroom down the hall. I sleep in it, that is all. I like to walk. I walk most all day ...

This post was contributed by worship leader Mike Hale. The last few days we've been confirming logistics and details for tonight’s Christmas Eve service.  (Thanks coordinators and team members!)  As we’ve done for about ten years, two small congregations from different denominations (but bound to each other and to Jesus by the Holy Spirit) will come together on Christmas Eve to sing, pray, preach and present readings about the Father’s love known in the Savior Jesus and his breaking into his creation as God with us and for us. Tonight’s plan for music includes traditional carols, contemporary songs, children singing Tommy Walker’s Happy Birthday Jesus , and the service concluding with the singing of Silent Night as we light one another’s candle (originating from the Christ candle) and face one another in song.  I’ll be serving in one of my favorite ways—just singing harmony. Weeks ago I blogged about favorite Christmas CD’s from Chris Tomlin, Third Day and others, but i...

This post continues a series reviewing Christian Kettler's book,  The God Who Believes - Faith, Doubt, and the Vicarious Humanity of Christ .  For other posts in the series, click a number:  1 ,  2 ,  4 . In the last two posts, I've shared quotes from Christian Kettler's book, "The God Who Believes," in which he discusses Jesus' believing, knowing and acting on our behalf. Here are more: Lest we misunderstand, this does not mean that there is not a place for our own believing, knowing, and acting. According to Kettler, "Because Jesus believes for us does not exclude the imperative for us to believe!" (p. 71).  However, Kettler notes that "we do not initiate our knowledge of God" (p. 71). Jesus is the only human who truly knows God; and he shares, by grace, that knowledge with us. Thus the faith that saves us, is Jesus' faith, not our own. And his faith is grounded in his intimate knowledge of the Father. And so we know God, becaus...

This post continues a series reviewing Christian Kettler's book,  The God Who Believes - Faith, Doubt, and the Vicarious Humanity of Christ .  For other posts in the series, click a number:  1 ,  3 ,  4 . Last time  we looked at representative quotes from Dr. Kettler (pictured at right). Here are some more: "The modern age...values...reason...[but] faith...confesses at times 'I don't know'...[We see this in Jesus, where] God has voluntarily restricted his knowledge in the person of the incarnate Son. The Son does not need to know, for in his humanity he possesses a faith that continually seeks understanding. The Son seeks understanding, as we know from the earliest days in the temple, where he was both 'listening to them and asking them questions' (Luke 2:46), increasing 'in wisdom and in years' (Luke 2:52). The Epistle to the Hebrews, indeed, speaks of the Son who 'learned obedience through what he suffered' (Heb. 5:8). Jesus' fa...