The Final Quest

The Final Quest
by Rick Joyner

This book, as the introduction informs, is born out of a series of dreams and other prophetic experiences that Rick Joyner had over a length of time. It speaks powerfully to the soul. I have read this book through a second time now, and still find myself moved to tears at the beauty of the life found in our Master, and the depth of blackness of evil that my own heart is capable of. Humility, pride, wisdom, and other characteristics, are dealt with in a powerful and symbolic/prophetic way.

While some might find this book appealling as fiction, yet disturbing as 'prophecy,' I would highly recommend this book as an insight into the workings of evil in our world, our church, and our heart; and the supremacy of Jesus in all things.

MYSPACE

I am not really into America's new online rage, MYSPACE, I was on there tonight checking out my brothers myspace page (I guess you could call it spying) and checking all his friends pages too. I just wanted to see what they were into and everything. I just don't like it. It seems like a weird place and I just have this dark feeling everytime I go there. I am afraid of what I would be exposed to. You never know what you might see. It feels like to me that you can't go very far without being violated at some point or another. It's all so weird to me. I don't like it. Maybe because I just don't get it, and I am sure there are some good ones out there that aren't so bad. And that's all I have to say about myspace.

Answered Prayer

I hope this news encourages you as it does us!

Answers to prayer are a real encouragement!

We had been praying for several different areas of need for our move, and God has provided beyond our expectations. He has given us a mini-van! He also granted us a very succesful moving-sale; we were hoping to clear $1,000, and we ended up with almost twice that amount! This means we will have enough money to furnish our new home when we arrive in Buffalo (Tamy is giving a loud "thank you God!") as well as help out with the moving expenses so more of our savings will be able to be directed to reaching out to the community when we arrive.

We have also been blessed to find friends, family, and hospitable strangers who are willing to house us as we travel through on our way across country. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to make the trip less stressful, and more affordable, not to mention make a few friends along the way!

The day swiftly approaches!

God is good!

Judgment

So here are some thoughts...

Do I judge people who I perceive as 'not wanting God?'

Do I take people who don't conform to my plans for their life (and no matter how spiritual sounding I make it, it doesn't amount to anything more than that!) and place them in a box? Anyone who refuses to jump on board with what God has called me to is relegated to non-existence? Is there no room for other people pursuing God's plan for their life, must they also pursue God's plan for me?

It is very easy to do!

It is very easy to just expect people to 'get with the program!' "Why won't you just do what everyone else is doing!?!" If you won't, the obvious answer is, you are lazy, evil, unrepentant, unsubmissive, difficult, or all of the above. These people are then simply ignored. I know I do it. If you are unwilling to make the effort, if you won't pursue my time, if you won't show up to my group, if you won't approach me, then you will not 'qualify' for my time.

It is very easy to do, it is what our culture trains us to do, it is the easy thing to do, the unreflective and comfortable thing to do, and it is just what Satan is whispering in our ear!

I turn the Kingdom of the Blessed poor, into the Kingdom of the beautiful people. Jesus said blessed are the down and out, and I very often choose instead to bless those who already have it made. Jesus said blessed are the meek and weak, and yet I choose to bless the powerful and successful. Jesus hung out with despised people, I choose to hang out with those who can accomplish much; and perhaps that keeps me from seeing what Jesus can accomplish...

How can I say I am 'seeking the lost' when the people I am 'finding' are so capable and self-assured?

I know that people will say that we shouldn't 'cast pearls before swine,' but swine don't have a use for pearls; and I don't think Jesus intended that saying to be used to instigate segregation, to promote cliques. Jesus, it is noted, spent time with the twelve, and with the three, at the expense of his time with others, but is this our real motivation for our proximity to the best and brightest, the up-and-comers?

I know that spending time with burned out people is depressing, but doesn't the Spirit of our Crucified Master compell us to blow on the spark till it flames, even though it means ashes in our faces?

Wouldn't Jesus rather have us get behind them and encourage them, instead of ignoring them, or privately mocking them?

Shouldn't we take the time to get to know the people who 'don't want more,' the people who are left out of the 'inner circle?' Shouldn't we do the real relational work of finding out just what is really going on, before we throw them to the trash heap of Church rejects?

Wouldn't we rather be a Barnabas and look for a discounted Saul to stand up for, invite along, and then step out of the way?

I am telling people to 'come follow me' instead of being 'with' them. Jesus loved people, He was with them and that is what allowed him to challenge people to 'follow him;' do we love the people we are 'challenging' the way that Jesus loved them?

The real question, of course, is not "do we?" but rather "do I?"

...another gnostic Gospel?

The Secret Message of Jesus
by Brian McLaren



McLaren gives us a great treatment of the theme of Jesus' ministry, message, life, death, and resurrection; the Kingdom of God. I am grateful for this highly readable book on this subject. McLaren essentially provides us with an exegesis of the message of Jesus in its entirety. The Secret Message of Jesus is by no means a secret, and so McLaren's latest book is less provocative than others he has written. I would give a warning that McLaren's appraisal of the contemporary application of the Message of Jesus is politically liberal* (specifically on the issue of foreign policy and war), although he does provide ample room for alternate perspectives, which is why I would not make this a critique of the book. The only outright critique I make of the book is that McLaren describes something that has been proclaimed for 2,000 years as 'secret;' he paints the gospel as 'hidden,' even going so far as to imply in his Appendix I entitled Why Didn't We Get It Sooner that the Church lost the message of Jesus sometime before the end of the second century and we have just regained the proper understanding of it in this most recent generation.

I had the unfortunate timing to read this Appendix while I was about halfway through the book. I was immensely excited by the direction the book was taking and then, while perusing the endnotes, came across the Appendix. I did not know how to react. Anger, sorrow, disgust... The Appendix colored my reading of the rest of the book. In fact, I don't know that I will be able to read McLaren again in the same light (without some sort of retraction). While McLaren disavows any naive arrogance about contemporary scholarship in comparison to that of antiquity, he has little ground to stand on when he makes the argument that he does. I hold very few positions with greater conviction than the universal nature of the Church, and the 2,000 year history of worldwide witness to the message of Jesus that the Church catholic provides for us.**

I would be tempted to give this book to others, with the obvious provision of cutting the Appendix out of the book prior to doing so, however, this theological 'newness' that fails to understand and value the truth of the gospel for 2,000 years expressed in hundreds of cultures is a common theme throughout 'emergent' literature and McLaren is not immune to it. This is the danger of speaking prophetically; judgment, criticism, dogmatism; unfortunately McLaren (while I must credit his sincere attempts to avoid these errors) has obviously fallen into them. While McLaren speaks with gentle words, what he is saying is ultimately "The Church, for 2,000 years and in hundreds of cultural expressions, has completely missed the point of Jesus, let me tell you what he really meant." This has never been a stated point in any of his works that I have read (until the Appendix) yet there are hints towards this in everything of his that I have read.

I have become even more skeptical of dogmatism in the past months (wait for my next blog). I have often been told to "chew up the meat and spit out the bones," however tossing out 2,000 years of Church history from every continent on the planet is, perhaps, too large a bone for any meal. While I have been greatly, and positively, influenced by McLaren, I am saddened by the position he outlines in his Appendix. It is a dangerous trend...

*This is not to say that Christian politics, in order to be truly Christian, should be conservative. We should offer similar warnings for writers who exegete along Republican party lines. In fact, I find liberal politics a refreshing mix with orthodox theology...

**This is not to say that Christian history is without error, but rather that the gospel message of Jesus ("repent for the Kingdom is here!') has always been attested to throughout history. There have even been times when the majority of Christians, or the officials of the Church, have stood in opposition to the Gospel of the Kingdom, but we must never mistake that for complete apostasy. There have always been those who live in the Kingdom, at times they are cast to the fringes of the Church, at other times they are properly honored as the keepers of the Gospel flame, but they have always been present; the Message of Jesus has never been 'lost.' (Matthew 13:24-30 addresses the issue of 'weeds' that need to be destroyed and harvestable 'crops' both existing together until the end.)