The Divine Deli

A recent Newsweek article suggests that Americans are more Hindu than Christian in their worldviews. I guess this shouldn't be a surprise. Hinduism is essentially a pluralistic religion, so as the West migrates toward pluralism, its religious views will be more and more compatible with Hinduism—regardless of the fact that the average Joe knows nothing about the nuts and bolts of Hinduism and thinks "dharma" is the business venture behind the mysterious island in the TV drama, LOST.

"Stephen Prothero, religion professor at Boston University, has long framed the American propensity for 'the divine-deli-cafeteria religion' as 'very much in the spirit of Hinduism. You're not picking and choosing from different religions, because they're all the same,' he says. 'It isn't about orthodoxy. It's about whatever works. If going to yoga works, great—and if going to Catholic mass works, great. And if going to Catholic mass plus the yoga plus the Buddhist retreat works, that's great, too.'"

The problem is not that this divine deli exists—it always has. The problem is that the church has decided to sell its products at the same deli. Unfortunately, our "product" is too costly, the flavor is not always appealing to the palate and the rewards of "using" the product are often not realized until the death of the user.

The Louder You Scream

Grace is so big and so undeserved.

While I was walking the dog last night, I listened to a message on John 5, in which Jesus healed a crippled man by the pool of Bethesda. Along with the fact that Jesus performed this miracle on the Sabbath (and instructed the man to carry his bed on the Sabbath), the story highlights the absolute helplessness of the man's condition. The man did absolutely nothing to receive his healing. In fact, the man didn't even recognize that Jesus was a healer until it was "too late"—while he was busy complaining to Jesus about not having anyone to put him in the pool, Jesus healed him!

Contrast that with this little video clip, in which "Prophetess" Christina Glenn, soon to be the third wife of "Bishop" Thomas Wesley Weeks III, informs her listeners that the loudness of their screaming will determine the size of the miracle they get.

This Book Makes Me Worship

I picked up Hugh Ross's Creation as Science several years ago and haven't bothered to read it until recently. Ross is an astronomer, an evangelical and the founder of Reasons to Believe, a ministry whose mission is to "show that science and faith are, and always will be, allies, not enemies."

If you believe in a 6,000-year-old earth and that creation occurred in seven 24-hour days, the book may challenge your worldview. (Ross effectively argues for a 13.73 billion-year-old universe that began with a God-initiated Big Bang.) He also takes on classic evolutionists, traditional creationists and IDers as well, in a tone that is both respectful to those with whom he disagrees and reverent toward Scripture.

The most amazing effect of the book, though, is that I have found myself utterly amazed at God. The profound size and age of the universe and infinitesimal conditions that are required for life on this unique planet make not believing in God a joke. Ross spends almost no time defending the existence of God—he merely lays out the facts, and it becomes obvious.

Here's just one item that will blow your mind:

"... Astronomers determine that the entire observable universe contains at least 200 billion galaxies. These galaxies contain an estimated average of 200 billion stars each. The total number of stars in these galaxies, then, is 40 billion trillion. The unobserved dwarf galaxies would contribute an estimated additional 10 billion trillion. Thus, the total number of stars in the observable universe adds up to about 50 billion trillion."

Yeah, my mind can handle that just fine, but what about this?

"One reason the universe must be so massive is that life requires it. The density of protons and neutrons determines how much of the universe's hydrogen fuses into heavier elements. With a slightly lower density (producing fewer than about 50 billion trillion observable stars), nuclear fusion would be less productive and at no time in cosmic history (either in the big bang or in stars) would elements heavier than helium be produced. Or, if the density were slightly higher (producing more than about 50 billion trillion observable stars), nuclear fusion would be so productive that only heavier-than-iron elements would exist. Either way, life-essential elements such as carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorous would be too scarce or nonexistent."

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." - Romans 1:20

Pastoral Affairs and God's Independence

One of the attributes of God is "independence"—not one that gets preached on too much, because it cuts across the grain of human arrogance with a vengeance. The implication of God's independence is that He doesn't need us, that we can neither add nor take away anything from His existence. Additionally, He can carry out His plan of global redemption independent of our involvement.

How does this relate to pastors having affairs?

Consider the Orlando pastor (and father of four) who carried on a 1-year-long affair with an exotic dancer, leading his wife to divorce him and start a church of her own down the road. After a three-month period of "counseling" he was back in the pulpit. You would think the "restoration" process away from church leadership would be at least as long as the affair that led to it.

Or what about the church planter who was removed from his position after being caught carrying on an illicit relationship with his married personal assistant? Now, 11 weeks later, he and his wife are divorcing (he also has small children), but a quick perusal of his Twitter feed would indicate that the primary thing on his mind is planting another church.

Many would assume that these pastors are simply power-hungry reprobates, but I have a different theory. When I read interviews with them and posts from their blogs, I think they actually believe they are indispensable to God—that the ministry they have been called to cannot be carried out without them. Simply put, God needs them. Their motives for returning to ministry are noble: They want to reach people for Jesus, and they see themselves as possessing a unique gift for doing this—sometimes even more so after they have fallen into sin. It is the activity surrounding this "indispensable" ministry for God that gives them fulfillment, because they are convinced that they play a crucial role in God's Kingdom.

I think it is this demonic codependency that leads to many being "called" into pastoral ministry who belong in a different field, and it leads many to stay in ministry long past the time they have disqualified themselves.

"The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things." - Acts 17:24-25

Succession or Nepotism?

I've observed an interesting trend in at least three megachurches recently: the man who grew the church to "mega" status retires and appoints his son to replace him. All of the young men are in their late 20s or early 30s and served on staff at their fathers' churches before being appointed senior pastor.

Only time will tell how this will work out, but consider that in all three instances the young men grew up in great wealth and privilege (think private jets and mansions) with the unique status of being a PK. They began preaching at an early age—often in their teens—attended Bible college or did an internship, and are now given leadership of congregations of thousands, huge staffs and budgets of tens of millions of dollars. In the process, associate pastors with greater maturity, education and experience have been passed over and are now their employees.

Am I the only one who sees a disaster in the making?

The Mind Is Slave to the Heart

In my Christian experience, I've heard much about the danger of the mind. Books have been written (think Joyce Meyer's Battlefield of the Mind), sermons have been preached and it wouldn't surprise me if demons of "book larnin'" have been cast out. The mind, it is taught, is the barrier to understanding God, accepting Him, worshiping Him.

The problem is, that even a quick perusal of scripture would indicate that the mind is not the problem—in fact, the mind is often what we are encouraged to engage in our contemplation of God, our study of His Word and remembrance of His laws. The problem is not the mind, it is the heart—specifically the unregenerate heart.

Simply put, my mind is a slave to my heart. Where my heart goes, my mind will follow.

I ignore evidence of the Creator—even as it is clear in the fingerprints of science, mathematics and astronomy—not because my mind isn't functioning, but because my heart is darkened, and this depravity of heart causes my mind to ignore the obvious. "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God'" (Psalm 14:1).

Inversely, when my heart is transformed, my mind sees God everywhere. It becomes a tool in the hands of God for helping me to understand His Word, defend His truth, explore His world. My mind is renewed, not apart from, but because of the new heart God gives me.

Polyamory: It's Perfectly Natural

"Everyone in a relationship wrestles at some point with an eternal question: can one person really satisfy every need?" So says Newsweek's Jessica Bennett in a recent article on polyamory.

I have to agree, and with the proponents of polyamory interviewed in the article, I concur that the practice is natural. It is as natural as sailors stranded on a lifeboat for weeks plunging their faces over the side to drink their fill of saltwater. Anyone seeking satisfaction in human relationships is seeking a truly noble thing. The logic is seemingly solid: If I can find pleasure in the companionship of one person, that pleasure would be multiplied by multiplying the number of people with whom I'm enjoying that pleasure. It's a no-brainer.

The problem is that these seekers will always come up empty. They are carnivores at a salad bar. We were not created for each other. We were created for God, and we will only find satisfaction in the One for whom we were made.

“Thou hast made us for Thyself O God, and the heart of man is restless until it finds its rest in Thee.” - Augustine

I'd love to hear some of the Christian culture warriors respond to the trend of polyamory with this angle. I think it would throw the media a curveball.