Reclaiming the Mind Ministries has performed a valuable service in posting papers presented at meetings of the Evangelical Theological Society.  The library appears to represent meetings  from 2001 to 2005 only, but that still represents hundreds of papers on topics ranging from systematic theology to biblical exegesis to church history to christian counseling and more.  As a pastor I am concerned with making disciples at Beaver Baptist Church, and I am interested in the relationship between spiritual formation and the disciple-making ministry of the church.  It turns out that there is a spiritual formation interest group in ETS, and the site has 12 papers on the subject of spiritual formation (the site says 15, but some are double-counted).

One of the papers that I have found to be helpful is “New Wine in Old Wineskins? The Relationship of Evangelical Thinking on Spiritual Formation and Theological Models of Sanctification” (html, or download the .pdf file here), by Steven Roy, who teaches practical theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.  In this paper, Roy compares the approaches to spiritual formation of two evangelical scholars: Dallas Willard as described in his book, The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God, and Bruce Demarest, represented by his book, Satisfy Your Soul: Restoring the Heart of Christian Spirituality.  These approaches (which turn out to be fairly similar) are compared to three evangelical models of sanctification: (1) The Reformed or progressive model, which holds that progress in sanctification occurs over the course of the believer’s life, and which is never complete in this life; (2) the Wesleyan model, which holds that entire sanctification is possible, coming through a crisis experience, subsequent to regeneration; and (3) the Keswick model, which holds that the believer, through a crisis experience, comes to surrender to the work of the Spirit, resulting in a breakthrough, or turning point in sanctification,  although entire sanctification is not the result.  Roy observes that there is an affinity between the spiritual formation view approach (of both Willard and Demarest), and the Reformed model of sanctification, because there is a common emphasis on lifelong, gradual progress, and because they both are synergistic, that is, they both emphasize cooperation with the grace of God.  Roy assesses strengths and weakness in each author’s approach to spiritual formation, and in general is quite positive about benefits of spiritual formation movement in evangelicalism.  He concludes:

Spiritual formation and sanctification need each other.   Sanctification is not an old wineskin that must be discarded in order to profit from the new wine of spiritual formation.  Neither is spiritual formation a new and weird departure from tried and true discussion of sanctification.  No, both spiritual formation and sanctification need each other.  So, to quote the words of Jesus from another context, What God has joined together, let no one separate.

Yesterday, on the way home, I started yet another book: What Are Spiritual Gifts? Rethinking the Conventional View, by Kenneth Berding, professor of New Testament at Talbot Theological Seminary.  Berding challenges what he calls the conventional view:

Let’s begin by looking at the conventional approach to the so-called spiritual gifts. . . . This approach says that the spiritual gifts are abilities or enablements, given by the Holy Spirit to individual believers to help them serve others.  There are three main components in any conventional definition of a spiritual gift: (1) the entity itself is an ability or enablement; (2) it is given by the Holy Spirit; (3) it is to be used in building up the community of believers. . . .

In this approach, every believer who has a relationship with God through Jesus Christ has been given at least one special ability that he or she is to discover and use in building the community of faith. [pp. 25-27]

Berding claims that nearly all discussions about the spiritual gifts begin without defining from scripture what a spiritual gift is.  That is, all spiritual gifts are assumed to be abilities that are supernaturally given by the Holy Spirit.  Here Berding describes an alternative understanding:

In this alternative approach, the so-called spiritual gifts are not special abilities; they’re Spirit-given ministries.  According to the contextual evidence in the letters of Paul, the so-called spiritual gifts should be viewed as the ministries themselves.  Every believer has been assigned by the Holy Spirit to specific positions and activities of service, small and large, short-term and long-term.  These are ministry assignments that are given by the Holy Spirit to individual believers and, in turn, these individuals in their ministries have been given as gifts to the church. [p. 32]

Berding asserts that this is not a charismatic vs. non-charismatic issue in that both parties believe that spiritual gifts are abilities given by the Holy Spirit, it’s just that they disagree on whether the Holy Spirit still gives miraculous gifts, such as speaking tongue, prophecy, etc. [p. 29]  In arguing for the ministry-assignment view, Berding concedes that some ministries such as prophecy, but not all ministries, would have required a supernatural enablement.  [p. 34]

Berding argues that in Paul’s usage of the Greek word, charisma, every usage of the word can fit the concept of ministry, and that in a number of cases, that is the only viable meaning for the term.  The heart of the book, chapters 5 through 14, lay out Berding’s argument, but I have only read through chapter 7.

There are a number of practical implications if this view is correct.  For one, there would no longer be any need for believers to seek to discover just what gift or gifts they have been given by the Holy Spirit.  The believer merely need to seek where God would have him minister.  This could come in the form of some sort of inner confirmation by the Spirit, but it would also be informed by the believer’s identification of needs in the church, and wise counsel from others.  In addition, one would not be limited by the lists of so-called spiritual gifts found in Ephesians 4:11, Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:8-10; and 12:28-30.  They would be taken as a representative, and not exhaustive, list of ministries. [p. 49]

I know that in my own preaching and teaching I have emphasized that every on has a spiritual gift that they need to put to use in the kingdom work of the local church.  But I have not been helpful in showing how our church members are to identify those gifts.  I’m beginning to think that I should modify that to say that every believer has been called to at least one ministry in the local church.  I think it would be easier to give guidance to those who respond to such exhortations and who want to know what to do next.

John Botkin is the pastor of Bangor Baptist Church in Michigan, and a friend from seminary days.  He’s posted an article titled Becoming a House of Prayer and talks about a chapter on prayer he has written for an upcoming book on pastoral ministry.  You can download a copy of the draft of his chapter here.  I’ve downloaded and read the chapter, and I think it’s very well done.  I was challenged to be faithful in my own work of prayer as a pastor, and to lead our church to be a house of prayer.  John’s article also contains some helpful suggestions for doing both of these things.  Recommended, and not just for pastors.

I’m not always in agreement with Internet Monk, but often he says things that are not only true, but need to be said.  In a post titled Evangelism Won’t Cure It, Michael Spencer identifies a perennial source of self-deception among Southern Baptists, namely, that the problem of decline in the SBC would be reversed if only we would become more evangelistic, and therefore, what the SBC needs is an evangelistic campaign that everyone needs to get on board with.

Read the whole thing, but here is how Spencer wraps it up:

I love what the SBC does right.  I really do. My denomination can be awesome at some things, especially in the area of cooperative missions.

I’m not dogging evangelists.  I spend a significant amount of my time in evangelistic ministry. It’s one reason I will remain an evangelical.

Our denomination has some wonderful churches and some great people.

But let’s just say it:  We’re Johnny One Notes on evangelism because we don’t want to admit how flawed, hurting, confused and increasingly dysfunctional we are.

We need evangelism in its place, and that won’t happen till we stop and look at the whole, not just the parts we want to blame.

And 100,000 more baptisms won’t solve those problems.

Ben Witherington, Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Asbury Theological Seminary, has posted part one of a review of Reimagining Church by Frank Viola.  In part one, Witherington deals with Viola’s assertion that the relationship of the members of the triune Godhead is essentially egalitarian, and therefore relationships within the church are to reflect the Trinity.  Witherington concludes:

So here is where I stress that ontological equality, and functional subordination have always been and always will be compatible, and the blueprint Godhead provides us with a reason to expect that in the church there will be a hierarchial pattern of ordering things. I would hasten to add that it does NOT lead us to expect that this pattern will involve a gender hierarchy. No, it will involve a leader and follower, shepherd and sheep, pastor and congregation, apostle and co-workers hierarchy— something Frank wants to avoid at all costs, seeing it as either inorganic or simply fallen human structures.

Alas, however, it is the divine design, mirroring the functional subordination that indeed has and does exist in the Trinity. When the Bible says ‘honor thy father (and mother)”, it never conceives of a day when somehow the son ever ceases to be a son, ceases to owe respect to the father, ceases to be ordered under the father in these ways. There will always be an ordering in that relation and so a hierarchy. Likewise, there never comes a day when the only begotten Son becomes the Father, or somehow the Father changes roles and becomes the only begotten Son. Equality and indeed mutual love and respect do not in any way necessarily rule out an ordering of relationships, or even functional subordination in such relationships either in the Godhead, or in Christian community. I am afraid that what has affected and infected this discussion is secular notions of equality that assume that equal must mean ‘the same’ in all respects, or ‘the same’ in all functions. But this is not what the Bible either says or suggests.

But, by all means, read the entire review the review for yourself.

One of the challenges faced by many bivocational pastors is that of finding work that will support their families and, hopefully, leave sufficient time for their pastoral duties.  This can be particularly difficult for younger pastors who, after college, immediately go into church work, or go to seminary and then into church work.  They may not have skills that are in great command in the job market.

When I left California to attend Southern Seminary, I had no intention of returning to the field of hospital finance and work in decision support systems.  After finishing seminary, however, the Lord called Helen and I to a small church in Beaver, Pennsylvania.  Our congregation gives generously, but it hasn’t been enough to support us.  Last year I made the decision to become bivocational.  I count it a blessing that I found work as a decision support analyst at Magee Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh.  Between the job and the time it takes to commute, it does put pressure on the time I can devote to ministry.  But the folks at Beaver Baptist Church are understanding and now personal finances won’t determine whether or not we can stay at BBC.  We intend to stay for the long haul.

One thing that strikes me about my work is how nice a workplace it is.  Everyone I work with is pleasant, curteous, and professional.  I was reminded of this by an article in the New York Times: “Desk Rage Spoils Workplace for Many Americans.”  It looks like it’s pretty rough out there

Nearly half of U.S. workers in America report yelling and verbal abuse on the job, with roughly a quarter saying it has driven them to tears, research has shown.

Other research showed one-sixth of workers reported anger at work has led to property damage, while a tenth reported physical violence and fear their workplace might not be safe.

It is a blessing that I can leave my work at the end of the day and not be stressed-out by my work situation.

I first encountered the theological journal Themelios some 26 years ago.  Over the years, when I have had access to a theological library, I enjoyed browsing it for interesting, well-written articles, and for its book reviews.  I often wanted to subscribe, but always found something more pressing to spend my money on.  A couple of years ago, I think, Themelios went dormant, but it has been revived by The Gospel Coalition, and is edited by D. A. Carson and Carl Trueman.  This in and of itself is good news, but it gets better: the journal is now available online (no more print version) in both PDF and HTML formats.  And it gets better yet: you can read it online or download it for free.  You can check it out at: Themelios.  Although it has high scholarly standards, its intended audience is “both theological/religious studies students and pastors.”  As a pastor I can attest to its value, e.g., a helpful and relevant discussion of the church’s mission by Keith Ferdinando, and 38 (!) pages of book reviews.  Shawn Wright, a friend of mine now teaching at Southern Seminary, is the book review editor for the History and Historical Theology category.  Highly recommended.

Today I discovered a new (to me, that is) weblog named Against Heresies by Martin Downes.  The latest two posts are on subject of legalism (here and here).  Well said, and sure to be quoted in some future sermon by Eutychus.

What does God want for this church? In which direction should we go? How does this church have to change? Where do we start? How cautious or bold should I be? Will it work? What will I do if it fails? I’ve asked these questions and I expect that many other pastors, especially new pastors like me, have also asked them.

The prevailing answer today is the “seeker-sensitive” or :purpose-driven” approach. But I am repulsed by its dependence on marketing, demographic niche-filling, entertainment, and consumerism. I cannot take the riches of God’s Word and craft sermons consisting of “life principles.” You’ve heard them, sermons series like: “The Decalogue: Ten Principles for a Better Sex Life.”

I am also persuaded that there is another, better, more Scriptural way to go. And there are churches that are showing us the way. Churches like Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, and Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., and Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, M.D. I’ve seen it first-hand at Clifton Baptist Church in Louisville, KY where it was the privilege of my wife and me to be members for five years.

What is distinctive about these churches? What is it they have in common? I would list the following characteristics: (1) All of these churches emphasize content-rich, doctrinal, evangelistic, expository preaching. (2) Although they vary in style, their worship uses God-centered music that reaches both the mind and the emotions. (3) These churches are led by a plurality of elders, with a mixture of full-time, paid pastors and non-paid lay elders. (4) All of these churches have a passion for missions and evangelism. (5) All of them are Calvinistic in their soteriology. (6) All four churches have rich opportunities for adult education, in some cases even training for church leadership.

My heart’s desire for Beaver Baptist Church, where it is my privilege to be pastor, is a minstry that relies upon God in the faithful proclamation of the Gospel, both to win souls for Christ as well as progressively to conform these saints to the image of Christ. I know that there are other pastors and church leaders who desire the same thing. I believe we must encourage one another to remain faithful, and to help one another. We must do it for the sake of our churches. We must do it for sake of the church at large, demonstrating that there is an alternative to the modern church growth movement.