July Reading Report

I’ve not provided a true reading report for a while. You may or may not be interested in what’s crossing my desk (screens).  I do think it is important for Christians to keep their fingers on the pulse of culture. Each of us have domain knowledge in our chosen profession which we are obligated to strengthen and deepen. Beyond that, we are called to make disciples. Disciple-making requires basic knowledge of the culture in which we live and the approaches to knowledge that prevail therein. A good, diverse reading list helps us to understand the environment in which we are called to make disciples. 

Preaching & Teaching

I am currently going through two preaching series transitions. I have completed my preaching from Nehemiah and am moving into a 5 sermon series on various theological topics. As that series unfolds I will be engaging in the deep preliminary dive for 1 Corinthians. Consequently, much of my “study” time the last couple of weeks has been tracking down and preparing Bibliography. I did, however complete reading: 

Carson, D. A. Christ and Culture Revisited. Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008.

I thought this would be a good prelude to 1 Corinthians. Additionally, cultural and social issues will play a significant role in the exegesis for this series so I wanted to get the pump primed with a good discussion of culture. 

The first actual book I read in preparation for 1 Corinthians 

Dunn, James D. G. 1 Corinthians. London; New York: T&T Clark, 1999.

A fairly brief guide to the study of 1 Corinthians with a clear grasp of the direction the discussion flows. Though somewhat dated the discussion was lively and did not get bogged down. Many of the scholars he highlighted are in my Bibliography so I look forward to the process of preparing what I pray will be a significant series of messages. 

General Knowledge & Curiosity

An interesting read for the times 

SIchlesinger, Henry. Battery: How Portable Power Sparked a Technological Revolution. San Francisco: Harper-Collins, 2011.

I had not expected this book to be as interesting and timely as it proved to be. Electrical innovation began with battery technology. In the late 19^th century, largely driven by Edison, electrical power was turned into a public utility. Now, in the 21^st century, battery power is again the cutting edge; whether that be in our devices or, in the near future, powering many of our automobiles. 

Gawande, Atul. The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right. First edition. A Metropolitan Book. New York: Picador, 2010.

This book fed into my tendency to be as organized as possible. Because I am already a checklist guy it was more of a review, but I appreciated the research he put into the question and the anecdotal evidence that using checklists to organize work is effective as one both prepares to work and evaluated outcomes. 

Truman Cal, The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind. Chicago: Moody, 2012.

The essential takeaway—no theology=no mind. 

Conclusions

I am not sure if August will have a reading report. Or, more accurately, my reading report for August can be best appreciated by listening to me preach from September—November. Good preaching requires deep study. It requires difficult “conversations” with scholars you disagree with. It requires a process of reading and reflecting, taking notes, comparing, and evaluating different perspectives on the text. And that’s just the secondary reading! The real work is detailed examination and exegesis of the text. 

I hope that this little glimpse inside my “mind-at-work” gives you some perspective on what it means to be a pastor-scholar. Preaching is a divine calling which requires dedication and determination. One must know the text, congregation, and community in which one serves. There is no greater responsibility and no greater blessing. If you are a preacher—I pray for you. If you are a preacher—let me encourage you. Read deeply. Study diligently. Prepare with discipline. Preach directly. 

How are we Healing?

    The plan was for COVID-19, the novel Corona-virus to be fading away by now. And to a great extent it has. For those of us who have taken the logical step of being vaccinated life has mostly returned to normal. There are some who have been vaccinated who still contract the virus. For most of those cases the sickness is dramatically less severe than had they been un-vaccinated. Because I am now nearing 60 I have friends who are beginning to negotiate the various issues that confront us in middle age. We are starting to contract the chronic illnesses that are a sure sign of getting older. For many of us vaccination was critical. If you are already at risk and something can reduce that risk then it is a no-brainer. I also know some who cannot be vaccinated for other health reasons. That is another reason to get the shot. Traditional vaccination accounts for those who are unable to be vaccinated surrounding them with a community who are. Under those circumstances everyone benefits. 

This is why in the developed world we rarely confront Measles, Whooping Cough, or Polio. When people are confronted with a phenomena which can kill them, they generally take the precautions available to hold death at bay. I look forward to the day that we can well and truly say that this thing is behind us. Again, by us I mean the community in which I live, my nation, my world. Because even though I’m vaccinated and feel like I’m on the other side, life in human community means that my concern goes beyond myself. This attitude is at the heart of Jesus’ summary of the law into the two great commandments in Matthew 22.

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:37–40 (ESV)

I am sometimes shocked that so many people who claim to believe the Bible, who accept it as the authoritative guide for their lives so cavalierly set aside what it says when louder cultural and social voices ring loudly in their ears. There are many times that Jesus, to be blunt and honest, does not care what your personal rights are. One of these days He is going to ask you and I how we  balanced selfish pursuit of individual autonomy against the revealed standard of loving your neighbor as yourself. Should be interesting. 

This attitude is not relegated to Jesus. Virtually all of the ethical and parenetic teaching in the NT only makes sense within community.  Take Galatians 5.19-24 as an example

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 

Virtually all of the vices and virtues that Paul mentions either imperil or invigorate community. How can you even have jealousy, fits of anger (against whom?), rivalries, dissensions, division, and envy without community? Likewise love needs an object, peace needs a context, patience needs an irritant, kindness needs the downtrodden.  Need we discuss the circumstances which cause most of us to lose our self-control? I think that I (actually Paul) have made my point. But there’s more! Look what Peter says:

15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

What was true of Paul is true of Peter. We are called upon to “love our neighbor”…good, bad, or ugly; as ourselves. This brings us back to the rhetorical question which is the title of this little essay. How are we Healing? The nation is still getting back on its feet. While some prosper others are getting sick. Some hospitals empty out, and others are filling. There is angst and anger. There is happiness and hatred. There is a great opportunity for God’s people to demonstrate in word and deed what it means to love neighbor as we love self. It is time for us to model what it means to be a healing community. Healing words. Healing deeds. Biblical love. Biblical grace. Biblical goodness. Biblical compassion. Many of you will think, “mind your business.” Well, as a preacher of the Gospel—this is my business. If we are persistently losing we in the overwhelming wave of me, it is time for the Heralds of God to remind the Church of our responsibility to love as Jesus loved. 

Liberty in Christ

Liberty in Christ is no yoking matter. If you submit to any other kind of slavery, the yoke is on you. I could go on like this forever. And you would likely stop reading. Since my goal is thoughtful engagement let me get clearly to the point.

“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1 ESV)

 It is so easy to forget what Jesus has done when there are other physical, present, persistent voices clambering for our attention and validation. As believers we are responsible for knowing the content of our faith and should be able to understand the basic elements of Christian Theology in the context of our broader human experience. Long before anyone had ever thought that “freedom” was a political category Paul reminded us that it is primarily a relational and spiritual category. We humans are fallen. Our fall into sin left us in bondage to sin. All of the other examples of bondage, from chattel slavery, political demagoguery, domestic abuse, and economic oppression are a consequence and outcome of our primary estrangement from God. Because sin has ruined our relationship with Him the rippling consequences overwhelm every other human instinct. The central blessing of the Gospel is that we are released from Sin. It is easy to forget that in the context of so many other secondary or even trivial uses of the word freedom.

For example—If you think Jesus suffered and died on the cross so that you can have a don’t tread on me I’m gonna do whatever I want attitude toward the world—you have missed the point of the Gospel. If you claim to be a Christian and have that attitude you need to repent and stop believing the lies of the culture. You were not freed by Christ to do whatever you want. You were not freed by Jesus to continue seeking to fulfill the desires of self-centeredness under the claim of personal rights and privileges. According to the Scriptures we all deserve to be punished for our rebellion. Jesus has freed us from that sentence of death to serve Him. We are freed for the sake of freedom and that freedom requires responsible Christian living. Jesus has done so much for us and in return, we often do little for Him. We claim the name and then continue under the sovereign lordship of self. That is the attitude which caused Adam to willfully reach for the fruit offered him by his deceived wife. 

Later in Galatians 5 Paul will lay out some minimal expectations for freedom in Christ. 

“Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, Galatians 5:23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:22–24 ESV)

Liberty in Christ means obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit. That means love is  not an option. That means joy, peace, patience and kindness can be commanded. Paul states that goodness, faithfulness, and self-control are central to the liberty that Christians enjoy. Liberty in Christ means that we have surrendered to Him. Liberty in Christ means that the cross we are called to carry is smeared with the blood of our own flesh with its passions and desires. 

While it is nice to live in a country that has political freedoms; that privilege is nothing compared to the freedom we have in Christ. The freedom we have in Christ is wholly different in kind and substance than any rights that mere terrestrial citizenship might accord us. 

We should also keep in mind that the man called to write such penetrating words about our liberty in Christ spent much of his own ministry in prison for proclaiming that liberty in an environment that found it threatening. There is no message quite as compelling as that which tells men that the empires of earth are of minimal consequence compared to the eternal appeal of the Kingdom of God. 

Disciplined Preaching when You're Tempted to Coast

It is July. It is hot. It is humid. Perhaps you will have a vacation. Whatever the circumstances, many look at the “dog-days” of summer as time to take it easy, to relax, to coast. As a preacher you go through many busy seasons. Summer, other than Camp, is generally not one of them. Worship attendance contracts as families take their vacations. Even those who do not travel may have a Sunday or two that is given over to family reunion(s). 

So we are tempted to coast. For a preacher this can take several forms. Maybe you have a “barrel” of sermons which predate your time with your current congregation. Why not just reach in and use those messages? Even if you update them the heavy lifting is all done! More time to relax! I don’t want you to think that I am against relaxing. I try and relax the mental tension of ministry a little bit every day.  Mrs. Beckman and I really do prefer to stay at home. I can generally find something productive to do every day. She’s going to crochet and work on her craft. It is not unusual for me, even while at home, to be working on my craft as well. 

You might counter; “that sounds a little obsessive, Bob.” Of course its obsessive! I love what I do. I am absolutely convinced of the central importance of preaching. I am always thinking about how to apply scripture or how to frame a Biblical argument in such a way that it is persuasive and compelling. Similarly, Mrs. Beckman will often take a deep dive into her yarn collection or her pattern stash. She loves crochet and she is very, very good at it. Why  would she not be obsessed at something which she does well which brings her satisfaction and creates joy for so many people?

The preachers who worry me are the ones who are not obsessed. Those who are not looking to improve. Those who are satisfied with reaching to the bottom of their barrel or who are perfectly willing to pass off someone else’s work as their own. I’m worried about those looking for reasons and seasons for coasting. In my mind that particular quest is nothing but repackaged laziness.  

Yet, summer really is slower. There isn’t as much to do. It is the “off season.” How then can the local preacher remain diligent and productive when the season surfaces the temptation to coast? How can we arrange matters so that we are able to maintain discipline and focus even if it is for fewer hours a day and the pressure is ratcheted down a bit? Three ideas.

Read

There will be times during the year when time to read is harder to come by. Use the summer to cull your reading list. Divide your “to read” pile by genre, discipline, Biblical book, or author. Take the time, be creative, and grease your intellectual skids. The time will be shorter when school starts and the autumn programming season arrives. Use the Summer wisely and prepare mentally for the second half of the year. It may be July, but Christmas is coming. 

Revise

We talked about your “barrel” of sermons earlier. Let me revisit that topic. If you have planned well, written well, and filed well you have a lot of material. If you have been in the ministry for as little as 3 years you should have around 150 messages. As you move into years 4-10 it will become necessary to start repeating  texts (if not sermons). 

Even if you don’t preach those sermons again as they stand they are a rich resource for future preaching, teaching, and writing. If a message is ten years old you are ten years wiser. Revise. If you have a really good sermon on grace and you are called upon to write an article in your church newsletter—revise. You may be able to revise that one sermon into several moths worth of articles as you revise your language, edit carefully, and expand that single sermon for a different kind of publication. 

Review

You should be reviewing your work every week. You should also inventory your work each month. July provides the right time for evaluating your current preaching calendar. What worked. What didn’t. What remaining background research needs to be done for upcoming sermon series—and have I set aside enough time to get the work done? 

We need to do formal reviews because most of us tend to over-estimate time and under-estimate completed work. The only way to be on top of things is to be intentional. We need to look. We need to think. We need to review. 

Unsearchable Riches.

 “To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,” (Ephesians 3:8 ESV)

As a preacher I am a miner. Every day I get to mine the precious ore of God’s Word. I am allowed to proclaim that message in public and private to those who are growing in faith and to those who have none. I am become a herald of God. I get fatigued, but draw strength from Him. I get discouraged and am given encouragement by God’s good people. I fail and am given direction by Godly leaders. I live in a rich, privileged land  filled with people who are blithely unaware of their fallen state. It is a joy and honor to serve Him. Why would I not be obsessed? Why would I look to coast? Why would I risk disappointing the Christ who has called me into service? 

Yes, it is summer. There will be times of refreshment and relaxation. There will also be opportunities for serious work. Don’t give in to the temptation to coast. Soon the season will change again and the Church will need not only your renewed energy but your engaged mind.