Creedal Gymnastics to Hip-Hop

This post was too good to pass up - it highlights the importance of creeds that you actually subscribe to - in other words you stay standing. (Episcopal Life - Feb 2008)

The Rev. Tom Woodward of Santa Fe, N.M., once devised a startling way to show a congregation its belief, unbelief, and the value of community. He calls it "an experience with the Nicene Creed."

After explaining that they would be reading through the creed phrase by phrase, Woodward would give the charge: "When the phrase is something you understand on one level or another, and believe, stand up or remain standing. When the phrase is something that makes no sense to you, or is something you do not believe, sit down or remain sitting."

The resulting dance, he said, appeared to be something akin "to a rebellious exercise class," with folks popping up, sitting down and squirming to watch their neighbors as they stood and sat and stood again.

At the end, Woodward would ask what they had observed. "The answers were always the same: No one stood all the way through the creed, and no one stayed seated all the way through, and there was always someone standing for every phrase."

HT:The Corner on National Review Online

Martin Downes over at Against Heresies points out another disturbing trend with “minimalist doctrines” (broad but minimal statements of faith) which he laments as the a-historicizing of Christianity:

Phil Johnson ...referred to the short life-span of theological views held by the people in their twenties. Every eighteen months or so some people go through a revolution in their thinking, a paradigm shift that leaves behind one view and is off touting a new one...
Hence, some people change their theology more often than Madonna changed her image in her illustrious pop career. The point at issue is not of course the exact time frame involved but the short term exposure to, and grasp of, a particular view or church tradition.

Some think that if we would just use “minimalist doctrines” we’d avoid “creedal gymnastics”. True, but wouldn’t we be left with congregations that could remain standing but all to ready to hop to the next doctrine (heresy) that comes along? Maybe that would be the new definition of “Hip-Hop” in relation to doctrine - congregants ready to hop to the next doctrine every 18 months, in order to stay standing to their minimalist “creed”.

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February 4, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Sin of Unbelief

In our study class on the Westminster Confession we discussed whether unbelief is a sin. I cannot recall the specifics - but the question was asked in regards to the Christian. I came across this sermon from Spurgeon on the “The Sin of Unbelief”, based on 2 Kings 7:19. This excerpt was originally preached on Jan. 14, 1855 at the New Park Street Chapel. Jump to the last paragraph and than read the whole thing for the Spurgeon’s compelling answer.

His sin was unbelief. He doubted the promise of God.

In this particular case unbelief took the form of a doubt of the divine reality, or a mistrust of God’s power. Either he doubted whether God really meant what he said, or whether it was within the range of possibility that God would fulfill his promise. Unbelief has more phases than the moon, and more colors than the chameleon. Common people, when speaking of the devil, say, that he is sometimes seen in one shape, and sometimes in another. I am sure this is true of Satan’s first-born child--unbelief, for it has a multitude of forms.

At one time I see unbelief dressed up as an angel of light. It calls itself humility, and it says, “I would not be presumptuous; I dare not believe that God would pardon me; I am too great a sinner.” We call that humility, and thank God that our friend is in such a good condition. I don’t thank God for any such delusion. It is the devil dressed as an angel of light; it is unbelief after all.

At other times we detect unbelief in the shape of a doubt of God’s immutability: “The Lord has loved me, but perhaps he will cast me away tomorrow. He helped me yesterday, and under the shadows of his wings I trust; but perhaps I will receive no help in the next affliction. He may have thrown me away; he may not remember his covenant, and forget to be gracious.”

Sometimes this infidelity is embodied in a doubt of God’s power. Every day we see new problems, we are involved in a net of difficulties, and we think “surely the Lord cannot deliver us.” We strive to get rid of our burden, and finding that we can’t do it, we think God’s arm is as short as ours, and his power as little as human might.

A fearful form of unbelief is that doubt which keeps men from coming to Christ; which leads the sinner to distrust the ability of Christ to save him, to doubt the willingness of Jesus to accept such a great transgressor. But the most hideous of all is the traitor, in its true colors, blaspheming God, and madly denying his existence. Infidelity, deism, and atheism, are the ripe fruits of this deadly tree; they are the most massive eruptions of the volcano of unbelief. Unbelief has become full mature, when removing the mask and laying aside the disguise, it profanely stalks the earth, uttering the rebellious cry, “There is no God,” striving in vain to shake the throne of the divinity, by lifting up its arm against Jehovah, and in its arrogance would,

“Snatch from his hand the balance and the rod,
Rejudge his justice--be the god of God.”

Then truly unbelief has come to its full perfection, and then you see what it really is, for the least unbelief is of the same nature as the greatest.

I am astonished, and I am sure you will be too, when I tell you that there are some strange people in the world who do not believe that unbelief is a sin. I must call them strange people, because they are sound in their faith in every other respect, but they imagine and they deny that unbelief is sinful.

I remember a young man joining a circle of friends and ministers, who were disputing whether it was a sin for men and women not to believe the gospel. While they were discussing it, he said, “Gentlemen am I in the presence of Christians? Are you believers in the Bible, or are you not?” They said, “Of course we are Christians.” “Then,” he said, “doesn’t the Scripture record Jesus as saying, ‘When the Holy Spirit comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin . . . . because men do not believe in me?’ And isn’t it the damning sin of sinners, that they do not believe on Christ?” I could not have thought that persons should be so fool-hardy as to venture to assert that, “it is not a sin for a sinner not to believe in Christ.” I thought that, however far they might wish to push their sentiments, they would not tell a lie to uphold the truth, and, in my opinion this is what such men are really doing. Truth is a strong tower and never requires to be reinforced with error. God’s Word will stand against all man’s schemes. I would never invent such an illogical argument to try to prove that it is not a sin on the part of the ungodly not to believe, for I am sure it is, for I am taught in the Scriptures that, “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light,” and when I read, “whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son,” I affirm, and the Word declares it, unbelief is a sin. Surely with rational and unbiased persons, it cannot require any reasoning to prove it. Is it not a sin for a creature to doubt the word of its Maker? Is it not a crime and an insult to the Divinity, for me, an atom, a particle of dust, to dare to deny his words? Is it not the very summit of arrogance and extremity of pride for a son of Adam to say, even in his heart, “God I doubt your grace; God I doubt your love, God I doubt your power?” Oh! dear friends believe me, if you could roll all sins into one mass--if you could take murder, and blasphemy, and lust, adultery, and fornication, and everything that is vile and unite them all into one vast ball of filthy corruption, they would not, even then, equal the sin of unbelief. This is the king of all sins, the epitome of guilt; the mixture of the venom of all crimes; the dregs of the wine of Gomorrah; it is the number one sin, the masterpiece of Satan, the chief work of the devil.

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December 15, 2007 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Creedal Gymnastics to Hip-Hop

The Sin of Unbelief

Grace for perseverance